Poetry + Prose Open Mic, March 11

I am pleased to co-host (with Nancy Klepsch) this monthly free event at the Arts Center of the Capital Region. A number of us had just been here the day before to participate in the Write Here! Writers Conference sponsored by the Arts Center & the Hudson Valley Writers Guild.

The very first reader of the day was a virgin, John O., who read an excerpt of a piece of prose fiction about a robbery, contemplating heroism. I followed with 2 poems from my January vacation in Florida, "Arts Festival, Delray Beach, FL" & the hot pants poem, "Southwest Flight 2095, Seat 8A." Bob Sharkey began with an anaphoristic list poem, "Where is Baby Lisa?" then a poem about his decision as a youth to do alternative service to being in the military, "April 16." Ron Drummond read from a long letter to a love in Portland, full of longing & angst.

Stephen Leslie drew from his experience working in hospice to read 2 pieces, "A Woman of Many Surprises," & "True Story" (about Harold who sees a cow in his dining room). David Wolcott read from a chapter called "The Last Final Exam" from his ongoing memoir. D. Alexander Holiday just read 1 poem, not even his own, this time it was Joy Harjo's "Strange Fruit" about a lynching in California in the 1980s. Reading from her handwritten notebook, Sally Rhoades continued on with the next installment of her prose piece "The Outpost." & co-host Nancy Klepsch closed out the afternoon with the answer to "Why I Listen to Biggie Small."

This open mic is usually the 2nd Sunday of most months, at 2PM at the Arts Center on River St. in Troy. However, in April it will be on April 1 (not fooling) because Easter falls on the 2nd Sunday. Please join us.

Metroland's Readers' Poll, March 8

An early harbinger of Spring, like that first crop of dandelions, is Metroland's Readers' Poll, from Best Car Wash to Best Poet. After years of dumpster diving, bribery & computer hacking to find out the actual final tallies for Best Poet (Metroland just tells you who wins, not how many votes anyone gets), I decided to make my life easier & do something different this year.

Metroland's Best Poet RM Engelhardt

But first -- Metroland's Readers Poll Best Poets for 2012 are: Colin Halloran, RM Engelhardt & Gary Murrow. Engelhardt has been on Metroland's Readers Poll as Best Poet since the category was created, & deservedly so for not only reading his poems at the occasional open mic, but for years of hosting his own open mics throughout the community, currently at the UAG Gallery on the third Monday of the month.

So then who are the other 2? My personal theory of this poll is that one becomes Best Poet the way one becomes Best Pizza: get the most votes. There is no criteria other than getting everyone you know to vote for the candidate of choice. One does not even have to be a poet to win Best Poet, or even to have ever read a poem in any of the Capital District's many poetry venues. I had planned for the last year to make this point, with the help of others in Albany's art community, with Gary Murrow, but  Colin Halloran snuck in & stole my thunder.

I go to lots of poetry open mics in the area; you can know exactly where I've been simply by following this Blog. But I have never heard of, or heard, Colin Halloran at any of the venues here. I do not have a photo of him in the 15,000 plus photos I have of unknown poets. There may indeed be a poet "Colin Halloran," & if so he's got a lot of friends in the Capital District, or at least enough to muster up at 1 more vote than RM Engelhardt. But if he's around here in April he can be one of the featured poets at AlbanyWordFest.

Now, as for Gary Murrow -- who is he? He is no one, he does not exist, but was "born", or at least his name was conjured up, last year after the Readers Poll came out, to prove my point about Best Pizza/Best Poet. His is a made-up name touted throughout the poetry & entertainment community solely for the purpose of getting in the Best Poet list on the Readers Poll. "Gary Murrow" may be on the Best Poet list, but he is not a poet, not even a person, he is just a name on a ballot. Want to be Best Poet? Don't waste your time writing poetry, just get all your friends to vote for you.

& thank you Colin Halloran for doubly helping me to make this point.

Maybe next year I will make up a fictional pizza place to win Best Pizza!

Nitty Gritty Slam #13, March 6

Unlucky 13, el presidente Thom Francis had to hold down the electronic duties alone & host the open mic (as Mojavi took over the duties of the Slam Bastard) -- the rest of the crew taken out & shot by competing slam venues from across the Region (at least the poets survived).

Before I get into the sad tale of the Slam, let me comment briefly on the night's open mic. D. Alexander Holiday is getting more & more Dadaist in his latest poems, tonight the purely alphabetical sounds of his "KKK Poem" (poignantly after reading Joy Harjo's poem "Strange Fruit"). There was Leslie Michelle with her poem "The Human Heart" & host/MC/el presidente Thom Francis with "Relevance Gone" & "Third Can."

But the big hit was the night's virgin, the birthday girl @ sweet 65 Deb Adler, with the snowtire poem "Going Away" & a poem to the birds, "Letter to Camp." In fact she was such a hit that she volunteered as the "Sacrifcial goat" (or lamb, to be more kind). Her poem "Overture Coda" about her parents meeting on a Pittsburg streetcar singing a song by Schubert got a very respectable 25.5 for a real poem.

OK, so how much proof do I need to proved that, like I've always said, (1) I am not a Slam poet, & (2) "real poems don't get a 10"? Since there were only 4 of us in the Slam it was a (pace Dain Bramage) 4-4-2 Slam, with Shannon Shoemaker & me in the first round going dick to dick. By the second round I knew I was done, with a combined score of (only) 54.5. All night long there had been high scoring, with a proliferation of unnecessary & un-warrented 10s (none for me, of course).

But when the dust settled at the third round, Poetyc Visionz was in third place, while Shannon (in the money) Shoemaker & Kevin Peterson (to whom I had to explain the meaning of "KP") were tied. OMG! What to Do? (WTD?) So a final (repeat) round ended up with Kevin over (hmm...) Shannon.

Hey, don't knock it. No other Slam venue in Albany has gone to 13 events -- check it out (virgins welcome) on the 1st & 3rd Tuesday of each month at Valentines on the beginning of New Scotland Ave., just off the Park, 7:30 Pm -- pay up $5.00 at the door.

ODE TO THE OREO

Happy Birthday, honkie!

I don’t know who said it first
who called the first middle-class
Black an “Oreo cookie,” which
took a while to register with me
the “Black on the outside
White on the inside” not something
I would pay attention to, but

that tough guy in a magnificent
Afro, leather jacket, beret & rifle
sure made it sound less than sweet
less than what I should have for a snack
after school, leastwise with a
glass of white milk.

Chronogram Open Word, March 3

Because in the 21st Century everything is an acronym, I suppose you could say that this reading series in Kingston (NY) is udderly mooving, & that's no bull. I've been to this reading a few months back, but tonight I was one of the featured poets. There were some old friends in the audience, & some new faces/new voices too.

Our Chronogram host, Phillip Levine, started off the night with what he identified as a slam poem, "Woman on the Subway" (about a 9.2). Tony Pena read 2 poems from his self-published collection Opening Night in Gehenna, the grim, urban "Finer Things," & the sad & tender "Head in the Clouds." Tim Dwyer read a poem from what he described as the unpublished work of Irish poet Donald Michael Furey, then his own poem on an Irish theme, "Train Boat Train."  Ron Whiteurs had to wait for the flush of a friend in the bathroom to begin his 2 pieces, one on roosters & chickens, "Pecking for Seeds & Crumbs," & the sentimental & cliched "Rogue Dogs," read from a large display type version. Donald Lev read a series of short (some very short) poems, among them a dream-like "Lost Again," & the very recent "Arizona: A Brief Visit, 1958," then ended with a poem from his very new book, A Very Funny Fellow. Jay Wenk read a moving poem on "100th Anniversary of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire."

I was pleased to be asked to be a feature at this series, another in a string of engaging open mics hosted by Phillip Levine. I read a poem each from my chapbooks Poeming the Prompt (A.P.D., 2011) & boundless abodes of Albany (Benevolent Bird Press, 2010), a couple of "peace poems," including "Baghdad, Kingston" by Cheryl A. Rice, then a cluster of poems written during a recent Florida vacation, ending appropriately with "At the End."

Alan Salant is an old friend of Phillip Levine's & although he has published a collection of poems, The Expedition Sets Out (The Oliver Arts and Open Press, 2011), he doesn't read his poems out & this was his first public reading. He included a few poems from his book in his reading but most were not. Interestingly enough, there were 2 poems both in 16 short parts, "Inequality is an Art," ironic & philosophical, on visiting the Occupy Wall St. site, & "Finally the Inner Revolution," musings on music in urban conversations & cats liking jazz. It was a good, straight-forward reading of thoughtful, introspective poetry, well appreciated by the audience.

Back to the open mic Andrea Stolte read an untitled piece written today, a spooky piece about getting old, merging with her mother. Jennifer Bennett sang the lyrics to Duke Ellington's "Sophisticated Lady." Then Tim, who was locked out of the out-of-tune piano had the audience recite lines from which he picked up a phrase to riff on. & our host, Phillip Levine, read "Hooked", built on a litany of NYC coast-line names.

Chronogram Open Word happens on the first Saturday of the month at 7PM at the BEAhive, 314 Wall St., Kingston, NY. The $5.00 cover charge gets you some wine too!

Poets Speak Loud!, February 27

It has taken a while but I'm losing my nostalgia for the Lark Tavern, the grieving process is coming to an end, with the success & vibrancy of this series at McGeary's. Perhaps it is the cozy back room where poets listen to poets, where the shocked dinner patrons can eat in peace & enjoy their conversation out in the main dining area. Or it is simply that the good & snarky energy of this venue has taken root here, as it had at Tess' Lark Tavern.

Our host, Mary Panza, started us off with a poem, which she rarely, if ever, does this in memory of her mother, a paean to skills that matter, "And the Women Cooked." Sheldon Carnes made a rare appearance (with his Apache drum flute) to do a poem in the persona of a dog(?) crossing the road. Carolee Sherwood did a couple of breakup poems, an old one about a made-for-TV autopsy, & the new poem playing on the word "murder," "Crows on the First Cold Night of February."

Tess Lecuyer started with an old Spring Equinox poem (jumping the gun a little), then another old poem titled "Strays." Ed Rinaldi is working at a-poem-a-day & read one about the reasons he writes poetry, then another, "To Know What's For Dessert." We all sang "Happy Birthday" to Cheryl Rice who read a couple of horse poems, "Horseshoe" (hanging over her kitchen door), & the nostalgic, family memoir, picture-poem "Water Trough Bench."

Tenesha Smith was the featured poet, whom I've only heard at open mics so it was good to hear a big chunk of her work, including some I've heard before. She began with a piece of flash-fiction, a childhood memoir about her grandmother, "Ripening on the Vine," then on to poems with "Trail of Change." She said her favorite poem of hers (& one I've heard her do before) is "Pussy," a testament to what she (all women) are more than. There was also a chilling poem about the NYC shooting of groom-to-be Sean Bell, "Almost a Widow." In "Spider on the Ceiling" a spider in the shower shows her her own strength in surviving, & in "Terrible Stories: Why I Beat My Kids" she talked about passing that strength down to her children. Tenesha performs her poems well without theatrics, but with the strength of her words & of herself.

Shannon Shoemaker began with a poem titled "Valentines Day," then brought the house down (& started a continuing conversation) with the poem she performed so well at the last Nitty Gritty Slam, the strap-on/whip-it-out poem inspired by my old piece, "To My Penis."  I followed (as well as I could) next with a total change of pace, last year's "Winter Light" & "Not Yet Spring." Sylvia Barnard dug out an old broadside put out by the University at Albany English Department in 2005, & read her poem from it "January 2004," then my poem (!) from the broadside, "Reading Bei Dao at the Great Wall."

Avery did, in his effusive style, 2 long pieces with long titles, the first a riff on the Muppet rainbow song & other borrowed ideas, "On the Magnetism & the Oscillating Personal Relationship …" then a slam-like word flow read fast, "My Spoken Word, Can You Her What I Am Saying?" Mojavi also had a piece with a long title, "So What … & the Letter Beef," about the "poetry wars", then into the more pleasant topic of a love poem.

Leslie Michelle brought us some humor & word play telling us she is "Sick of Twitter." I think Dain Brammage is either stuck in 3rd grade, or looking to repeat it, reading us 2 recently written cinquains. Poetyc Visionz ended the night (or, as Mary said, "bring us out of this…") with a piece from his CD Poetyc Visionz Presents L.I.F.E. - The Meaning, complete with backup singers.

There are lots of reasons to come to this open mic on the last Monday of most months at McGeary's on Clinton Square, in Albany, NY: good food, friendly staff, an attentive (if rambunctious) audience & great poetry (that is, if you show up).

Yes! a Reading, February 24

A busy night of poetry, again, in Albany, but sacrifices have to be made & I opted for this reading at the Social Justice Center since Lori Anderson Moseman was one of the readers. Lori had been one of the regulars back in the early days of the Albany poetry scene & I always enjoyed her work (& her presence). In fact, in few days earlier I had found in my files an article from Metroland from 1992 in which she had been interviewed, with her picture on the cover. But first, the other writers on the program.

James Belflower, who was tag-teaming host duties with Matthew Klane, introduced Julianna Spallholz to read her "short & very-short fiction." She read a couple pieces from her debut collection The State of Kansas (GenPop Books). "The World" was short, then the longer piece, with a beginning, middle & end, the somewhat self-deprecating (but ultimately a love-poem of sorts), "The White Cat."

NF (Nancy) Huth began with summer poems from her chapbook 3 Words (Serif of Nottingham Editions) "When Space Is," "When Dot Wonder," & "When Gathered Out," playing with repetition, elaboration & different rhythms, such as short declarative statements, or falling into what she described as her "mother's rhythm." Then on to winter poems from Radiator (Laughing/Ouch/Cube, an imprint of Leafe Press), more experiments with words & all with one-word titles: "Bit," "Grain" (& it's play on words), "Dark" (a prose section), "Curb" & "Clank."

Matthew Klane took over to introduce Lori Anderson Moseman, since his flim forum press published her most recent book All Steel. So recent, that is, that when I bought a coy before the reading Matthew said I had bought the first copy! Her reading gave only a glimmer, of course, of the complexity of her textual experimentation, with layout, typography, even footnotes & 4 pages of end-notes. Each piece is titled as a diptych, for example, "Hoof Pick/Revelations" or "Labor Day Weekend/Communion," & often the pieces are laid out in 2 (or more) columns, as in "Spurs/Porn." There is frequent use of repeating lines or phrases, usually notated as symbols, such as "]". But listening to Lori read the poems what is evident is the vivid images drawn from real-life/real-work, something that has been in her poetry since I first heard it in the early 1990 & read her chapbook, Walking the Dead (Heaven Bone Press, 1991). She experiments with words, but the images are about things, not heady, academic abstractions. She ended her reading with an improvised performance of her piece "Ongoing/Gong" with Deborah Poe.

In addition to these words there were projected images of the photography of Kim Dunham. You can track her work down at http://kimberlydunham.blogspot.com/  However, the photography was not the only multi-media aspect to the night, there was also a keg of homemade Pantoum Porter which in itself made a great party.

Watch for upcoming readings in this ongoing, sporadic series at the Social Justice Center.