Troy Poetry Mission, March 27

The Winter has been tough on this monthly series with storms tending toward mid-week, but with astrological Spring here I was bold enough to venture out to Troy, to Elixir16Troy for what was billed as “2 Poets 1 Night” hosted by R.M. Engelhardt & James H. Duncan. But then it turned out to be 1 poet & 1 host & a bare handful of open mic poets, even without a snowstorm.

R.M. Engelhardt started us off with an invocation, a poem in Robert Service rhyme & meter “Don Quixote.” I followed with 2 short poems reacting to reading the poetry of Paul Pines then “Reading Mary Oliver while Masturbating” appropriating lines from her poems. Gloria Manthos, whom I usually see at Caffè Lena, began with a poem reminiscent of one by Lawrence Ferlinghetti “The Anxiety of Waiting” with its recurring line “I am waiting for…” then a poem about her ancestry, her family, what she termed “a border poem,” “Bloodlines.”

Carol Durant read new stuff, a poem with a bit of neighborhood humor “Tick Tock,” then one titled “Revealed.” Rob was back to read John Milton’s “Sonnet 19,” then a piece on the ones we have lost “A Conversation: Friends & Angels.”

The one present featured poet, Suzanne S. Rancourt, read from her forthcoming book Murmurs at the Gate a long poem titled “The Blue Curl: When Angels Fall” filled with images of blue, the military, death, PSTD, as well as the magical. In “The Woman” she celebrated her own strength & power. “The Execution” was a meditation on the media & what’s real & was inspired by the famous photo from 1968 of the summary execution of Viet Cong General Nguyen Van Lem. Other poems using military images & references (Suzanne served in both the US Army & the Marines) were “The Hunt,” “Re-enlistment: the Global War on Terror,” “On My Way Home,” & “Iron Sight.” Her poem “Courage Grows Strong at the Wound” about dealing with family grief & testing the family tree, while Mediterranean Blue” pondered the nature of humanity; there were others as well. As I said, there had been a second featured poet scheduled who could not make it at the last minute, but Suzanne’s reading was a long as 2 features, so the lack of a second feature, & with only 4 open mic readers the night did not seem so long.

The Troy Poetry Mission happens on the last Wednesday of the month at Elixir16Troy, 45 2nd Street, Troy, NY, listed as 7:30PM in the publicity but doesn’t get going until about 8:00PM, adult beverages are available, but no elevator for those of you who are challenged by stairs.

Poets Speak Loud!, March 25

I’d missed this event last month so had to be back tonight for beer, burgers & poetry. Mary Panza, as usual, was the host & keeper of the sign-up sheet.

First up on the first half of the open mic was D. Alexander Holiday, who stated that the themes of what he was about to read were “women & guns;” first from Poems from the Women’s Movement Susan Griffin’s “I Like to Think of Harriet Tubman” (who was known to carry a gun), then from Sapphire “Strange Fruit” in the persona a young woman killed by a shop keeper. Sylvia Barnard’s poems looked back to where she grew up in Western Massachusetts, “Rachel” (the name of her grandmother’s horse), then one about the foundations of former homes “House Spots.” Joe Krausman began with Derek Walcott’s “Love After Love,” then read his own poem “Ode to My Arthritis.”

Brett Petersen was the night’s featured poet. From what I’ve heard of his work at open mics his poems are characteristically rambling stream- of-consciousness, piles of outrageous images with long titles that are often poems in themselves, such as the one titled “When Barak Obama Rises from the Grave only to Die Again,” or the cartoon images of a dystopia childhood in “The Infinite Hands of Unos” which he said was the first of his work to be published, & his most recent poem “How to Get Un-inebriated.” His tour-de-force was a poem with a title so long that I missed half of it, something like “My Clit Aches to Spoon with a Spoon-Sized Pizza…” which was a line in this over-the-top piece that piled outrageous, Dada-inspired images, to the ceiling that then dripped down the wall. He ended with the surprisingly tame “The Burger Song.” Phew!

Back to the open mic I followed that with a tame old poem of longing “Blue,” then my new piece “Reading Mary Oliver while Masturbating.” Julie Lomoe talked about her work-in-progress “Subdural,” then read a couple poems about her mother & her mother’s stroke & death, “My Mother & Senator Joe,” & “My Mother’s Head.” Don Levy has taken to reading his poems from his phone, tonight read one about missing recent open mics due to his arthritis & the weather “Remember Me?” Christa DeMarco read a couple of untitled short poems, one about seeing ants in the shower that made her ponder whether life matters, another on depression.

Matt Mirenberg was here for the first time, said it was only the 2nd reading he’s done & read an invocative piece beginning “luscious lips...” A good start.

Poets Speak Loud! is at McGeary’s on Sheridan Square in Albany, NY each last Monday of most months, starts no sooner than 7:30PM, usually around 8:00PM, with a feature (usually) & an open mic. Join us.

Ringing the Changes, March 24

This is the title of Kathleen McCoy’s new book due out in June from Finishing Line Press. On this pleasant Sunday afternoon in Glens Falls she gave an informal reading among friends from the book at the First Baptist Church. Finishing Line Press likes for its authors to drum up pre-orders, upon which they base their eventual print runs, so Kathy used this event to drum up orders & to hold a raffle for a free copy; I had already submitted my pre-order after I got the email about the event.

Kathy explained that the poems in this collection began with poems she was writing for the church for holidays such as Christmas & Lent, then put out tiny bells on the tables we were siting around because, she said, “Bells keep coming back” in her poems. Consequently, at random moments during the afternoon there was the tinkling of bells accenting the conversations as well as the poems.

The poems she read were on verses from the New Testament but went beyond the religious setting to a larger spiritual message. The first she described as “a Lent poem” was in the persona of Nicodemus, a Pharisee who went to Jesus to discuss his teachings (see John 3:8). The next poem was titled “The Woman at the Well,” based on John 4:9, in which Jesus asked a Samaritan woman for a drink of water, & was in the voice of the woman. Kathy also read excerpts from a longer poem titled “Mary at Golgotha” which was based on John 19:25.

The poems, while based on New Testament scriptures, transcended the texts to talk about the larger messages of compassion & the wonder of human interaction. I’m looking forward to having these & the other poems in Ringing the Changes in my hand to read & ponder.

You can find out how to pre-order your copy at https://www.finishinglinepress.com/product/ringing-the-changes-by-kathleen-mccoy/

Third Thursday Poetry Night, March 21

Spring! & poetry once again at the Social Justice Center, with an enthusiastic list of poets on the sign-up sheet, one all the way from Bennington, VT. & speaking of Bennington, the Muse I invoked was the gone poet, Jill Hays, who had lived & run her used-book business out of there.  I had met Jill at the workshops run by the NYS Writers Institute & led by Irish poet (also gone) John Montague; I read Jill’s poem “At Phoenix Park” set at the Dublin Zoo.

Signed up first, with a flourish, was Sue Oringel, to read a memoir piece inspired by a recent hospital stay “Fruit Cocktail.” Joe Krausman used lines by Shakespeare to comment on Sue's poem, then read his old poem “Going to a Double Header Ending in a Tie Game” about a guy marrying a woman with 2-heads. Peter Boudreaux read a death poem titled “Tombstone” “ready to be found.” Tom Corrado read another of his famous screen dumps, a string of lines & images, even lines from 1960s pop tunes. D.A. Holiday read again from Ghost Fishing: an Eco-Justice Anthology this time the poem “Taking Root” by Tara Betts.

Tonight’s featured poet was Tom Bonville whom I have seen at open mics in the area over the years but tonight he had a chance to read more than 2 or 3 poems. He began with a cluster of poems about his family, “Meat” about his grandfather telling him about eating horse meat, “1946, in Europe” a tale of his mother escaping the ravages of Word War II finding her way to America in a pair of shoes taken from a corpse, then another about his mother “Christmas Morning” at 90 years old remembering swimming the Sava river in Europe before the war. The next couple of poems were about his children, “Trout Fishing on 10-Mile Creek,” with his young son, proud of his catch & his curiosity, & one about his daughter “To Be a Child” learning a life lesson when the cat is carried away by a coyote. Then on to a series of poems from issues of Up The River, 2 in the persona of a frustrated wife from the 2018 “Trouble Falling Asleep” & “What to Wear,” then one from the forth-coming UTR 2019 “What If Everyone Got Gold Stars” a childhood memoir of stealing colored stars from the nun’s desk. “The Smoke” was about his father with Parkinson’s hallucinating the house burning down, & he ended with a humorous conversation, recently published in Chronogram, “The Tests.” It was a sometimes funny, sometimes sad or grim, sometimes tender, but always moving mix of poems.

After a break we were back with the rest of the open mic sign-up sheet, & I started it off with a poem from my recent visit to Gloucester “Hey!”  Charlie Rossiter came over for the open mic & to spend the night, & read “If You See Something Say Something” (a poet’s motto). The sign-up pen was black ink but Mark W. O’Brien's magic Irish touch turned it green; he read from “Letters to his Granddaughter” short, weighty pronouncements.

I’ve seen Joel Best read in Troy on occasion but it was his first time here at the SJC & he read the philosophical “Make Circles of Ourselves.” This was not Anthony Bernini’s first time here; he read “A Mirror Fell” about an event in a room full of parents & children, a grand metaphor. Mr. Israel Moses slipped in at the last minute, made it on the list, & read a prophetic piece suitable for his name.

So if the weather continues to get warmer but the River doesn’t rise above its banks we will be back at the Social Justice Center, 33 Central Ave., Albany, NY, 7:30PM start, for more open mic poets, & a featured poet; your generous donations help pay the poet, supports poetry events in the area, & supports the work of the SJC.

Getting Down to Brass Tacks, March 19

It’s a busy week for poetry, as many are here in Albany. Last night Poetic Vibe, tonight back at The Low Beat for Getting Down to Brass Tacks with Ian Macks feauted & an open mic. Our host was el presidente of AlbanyPoets Thom Francis.

& once again I was first on the list with 2 recent pieces, “Hey!” about an encounter with a gull in Gloucester, & a poem incorporating lines from another poet “Reading Mary Oliver while Masturbating.” The elusive Matt Galletta was here to read the metaphorical “The Professor” speaking to a hole in a cave, then the wry “Let it Kill You.” The equally elusive Shane read an untitled unfinished piece about the question of what do we do with our demons. The poet who signs up as Slay the Dragon read the same poems he read last night at Poetic Vibe, but in a reverse order, which worked better, “Vicious Ending” in the persona of Sid Vicious, & “My Name is Gregg & I’m Addicted to Poetry.”

Ian Macks, tonight’s featured poet, is back in town with his poems after a hiatus with AmeriCorps. He began with some poems from a chapbook he produced when he was in his 20s, the poems titled “Dr. Manhattan,” “Cradle,” & “Now This” (brain freeze). His poems were a mix of topics & moods but all sprung from his day-to-day experiences, such as observing others at a bar, or a homeless man, or at Starbucks (titled ironically enough “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”). He included a couple of poems written as definitions, “Vulnerability” & “Windswept.” Others included a love poem to his girlfriend, a poem on mortality titled “When Your Car is on Fire…,” “The Drop,” “Keep Walking,” & personal meditations like “What Does It Take to Get You Off,” “Eulogy for the Former Me,” & “Flatiron.” His last poem was a letter to a friend who ended up in jail. We’re glad to have his voice & words back here in Poetry Capital.

Thom Francis took a turn at the mic with a couple of untitled pieces, about his daughter having no fear among strangers, wishing he had that too, then one about connecting to memories via the things in his pockets.  

Coco Flo was visiting from Charlotte, NC & recited 2 pieces from memory, the first about when she was 11-years old, a man who inspired her, the next titled “Invisibility” the super-power she would want, but it reminds her of her father who was invisible.

Nick Bisanz made a rare appearance on a stage without a guitar & reading poetry instead, about the death’s of wrestling heroes in Winter, such as King Kong Bundy, & other wrestling stories. Also making an equally rare appearance was our habitual bartender, Kim Dreizehn, with a rhyming poem about her cat. Last up was Allie who read a love poem “Your Love Sustains” apparently just-written on the backs of a couple Third Thursday fliers I’d just given out.

So come to The Low Beat, 335 Central Ave., on the 1st & 3rd Tuesdays of each month, where you can meet Kim the bartender, Thom Francis el presidente, & whomever else shows up to read — 7:30PM.

Poetic Vibe, March 18

Although this exciting venue happens every Monday at the Troy Kitchen, I don’t make it there as much as I would like, so I was glad to there this night for the diverse open mic poets, & for the night’s featured poet, Nancy Klepsch. The host & organizer is the energetic D. Colin. She got us off on the correct poetic foot with a couple of poems, her playground poem (with the wonderful line “we be the best part of the playground”) & some “new shit” about a middle school crush & discovering the poetry of Ntozake Shange. Then on to the open mic.

I was up first & recited Bob Kaufman’s poem/prayer “Believe, Believe,” then my poem/essay in appreciation, with the same title. The poet who signs up as “Slay the Dragon” began with a poem titled “Hi, My Name is Gregg & I’m Addicted to Poetry” a clever, funny piece using terms from addictions & referencing poets, then, on a related note, a poem written New Years Day about Sid Vicious from the Sex Pistols “Vicious Ending.”

Poetik began with “Confessions of a Fat Black Girl” from her 2017 book Labyrinth of a Melaninated Being, then on to new shit “Babble from an Emotional Laborer” a rant about being used. Cass read a poem titled “Fragile” about a heart “fragile like a bomb,” then a poem like Poetik’s “Emotional Laborer” with a somewhat preachy message of positive advice, & another of the same ilk on “community.” Hannah Rose brought her young daughter Sage on stage to sing a song about being a Mom.  Allie’s poem was about introspection & responding to others’ negative comments. D. Colin was back with her wonderfully assertive poem about her hair.  

Liv also brought her baby, Levi, on stage & sang “Levi’s Lullaby.” Reality was the final open mic poet with a poem titled “Tender.” To cap off the open mic D. Colin returned with what she calls her “take-aways” from the open mic, lines & phrases that she wrote down from each of the performers.

Nancy Klepsch & I co-host the 2nd Sunday @ 2 Open Mic for Poetry + Prose at the Arts Center in Troy & tonight she was the feature poet here. She began with the humorous poem of love & sex “Hey Siri,” then on to one inspired by poems of Warsan Shire “Come to Me,” & one titled “Home from the War.” “Before You Know Gratitude” was a food poem & Nancy dedicated it to the late Chef Jackie Baldwin, which is from her book God Must Be a Boogie Man (recto y verso editions, 2017); also from the book she read “Kvetch,” “Queer Folk,” & “Things that Are Worth $10,000.” Nancy also included a couple of Haibun, “Learning Targets” on school lock-downs, & “Driving in Cars While Black & White.” She ended with “Invocation” for the City of Troy where she is a proud resident.

During the evening Danielle had passed around a clipboard for folks to participate in a group poem/exquisite corpse & at the end of the night she read what we had written, or at least as much of it as she could decipher from folks' handwriting.

Poetic Vibe happens every Monday at the Troy Kitchen on Congress St., Troy, NY, at 7:30PM, with an open mic & a featured reader — & the exquisite corpse — for a donation.

2nd Sunday @ 2: Poetry + Prose, March 10

In spite of the snow on the roads there was a full house, upstairs in Studio A of the Arts Center in Troy, once again for the 2nd Sunday @ 2. Co-hosts were Nancy Klepsch & Me, Dan Wilcox. We started off with a moment of meditative silence for 2 community members who died yesterday, musician Caroline “Mother Judge” Isachsen, & activist Vera “Mike” Michelson, then Nancy got us off on the proper poetry foot by reading “The Company of Woman” by January Gill O’Neil.

& I was first up in the #2 slot (because nobody signed up for #1) & read 2 new poems, a short ditty from an encounter with a gull in Gloucester “Hey!” then, for the 1st time ever, a poem I’d started in October & had to finish once Mary Oliver died in January “Reading Mary Oliver while Masturbating” which incorporates lines from her poems. Rod Wilson returned with a poem about not speaking to God & playing off physics, then one titled “Shoddy Work Shoddy Mind.” Dave DeVries explained that his poem “Midget Racing” was about the small race cars, not small people, racing. Naomi Bindman began with a poem written many years ago titled “March Symphony” about birds, then a new poem-in-progress “Anecdote.”

Carol Durant read 2 poems from her poetry chapbook Whole Phat And Gluten Free Poetry (Troy Book Makers, 2017) the short 4-line political commentary “Empire Motto,” then a poem written for her son. Joe DiBari was here for the 1st time, said he has written a series of time travel novels & introduced his work to us by reading from Beyond Centerfield about the main character waking up as a baseball player in the 1880s. Joel Best has been here many times before, & read a couple of his meditative poems “Blocking” & “The Goddess of Eclipse.” Kendall Hoeft continues to amaze us as she did once again with a piece about hiking Peebles Island & being reminded of her mother-in-law “Bitter Sweet,” then another titled “Mood Swing in B Minor.” Shelly Rafferty read a poem in which she used 4 lines from a poem by Adrienne Rich to write about agonizing over not writing enough.

Tim Verhaegen, who often reads about his family, today said he had “been raised by women song writers” & read 2 Centos composed entirely of lines from their songs. Bob Sharkey’s piece titled “Racist Lessons from My Childhood” was a found work consisting of the descriptions of countries & people from his stamp album, circa 1950s, a shocking look into the past many of us grew up in. Peggy LeGee read an old piece from her past “Monday Morning Alcoholism,” then on to a poem about Blackie, a new cat in her life, read in an imitation of T.S. Eliot. Nancy Klepsch’s 2 pieces were new & to me sounded like love poems, the second was titled “Brooklyn Memories” emulating the work of poet Warsan Shire.

Athina Mizen was here for the first time & said her pieces were “raw” & new, the first an untitled poem on desire, jealous & loyalty, the second was written yesterday in a workshop here at the Arts Center run by Julie Lomoe, titled “Love Letter to You” written to herself. Cheri, who said she was reading in public for the first time began with a piece written during an illness about finding solace in Nature, the second approached dying as the other side of being born & was quite positive. Karen Fabiane who is frequently here began with an older poem “Blue Heron, for Deborah,” then on to a new piece “Belltone.” Julie Lomoe, who reads at other area open mics, said this was actually her first time at the 2nd Sunday, & had come in late & didn’t hear the rules (i.e., 2 poems or 5 minutes of prose), so could be excused for the long, rambling reading of multiple sections from her hybrid work in progress “Subdural.” She was the final reader.

The fact that it was crowded in Studio A says something about how this series has been catching on of late, & we plan to continue each 2nd Sunday @ 2 for Poetry + Prose, here at the Arts Center on River St., Troy, NY — & it’s Free!