Comma Coffee's Friday Open Mike Night

I thought I'd post a few photos from Comma Coffee's First Friday Open Mike Night. It's mostly music but several people have been showing up to read and there's a good audience. June, the owner, is a singer herself and she's smart. She lets people use the stage for free. She makes money on the kitchen. It's good for everyone. So, if you're in the area, drop in...read, have a cup of coffee and clap, clap, clap.

Hot spots and hot seats

Perhaps I put out too much seed.
LP is after me to cut back and I'm beginning to think he may be right. Since Plonk's friends followed him here, things just haven't been the same. The secret's out. I'm going to stop. I really am.


Bird fight.

In other news, Bill Cowee has really turned up the heat over this damn publishing issue. He wants everyone in Ash Canyon to publish. We are not going to publish ourselves in our own journal. We have to get out in the world the same as everyone else, via publications simply interested in the work, not merely publishing one's friends. I love Cowee for it, of course, but I'm lazy as hell and sending poems out is just one more thing. Besides, I do a zine so what do I care about having others publish me? Naturally the answer is, I want "them" to publish me if I want more than 10 readers. Zines are great but distribution is a huge job, one that is very easy to ignore, which I have. So I need a kick in the ass to get out a little further into the channel and Cowee knows it. I promised I'd have something ready by next Friday. Damn.

Friday night

My office is a mess. I pick up a piece of paper and move it to another part of my desk. A green pen rests precariously on a pad of paper. Two more pens lay beside the mouse pad. They are both black.

Deconstructionist History

It's her birthday today and I'm posting a few photos celebrating the history of the Deconstructionist. Happy Birthday, darlin'. Hope I haven't embarrassed you . . . too much.

Valentine for the Strange

I rather hate doing a blog. It draws me into revealing more about myself than I'm comfortable with. Why not stop, you might ask but I can't give you a satisfactory answer so I won't even try. That said, I want to share part of the lovely card LP made me for Valentine's day. He included what is now my new, favorite love poem and Valentine image. I'm sorry but I don't know who the artist is. I'd love to see more of their work. It's wonderful. The poem was written by Stephen Crane. He is best known for his novel, "Red Badge of Courage", but he also excelled at the short story and was a fine poet. Unfortunately he died young, 29 (1871-1900), leaving years of writing undone. His poetry was so unusual for the time that he referred to them as lines rather than poems. I call this one of my favorite poems of all time.

In the Desert

In the desert I saw a creature, naked, bestial,
Who, squatting upon the ground,
Held his heart in his hands,
And ate of it.
I said, "Is it good, friend?"
"It is bitter – bitter," he answered,
"But I like it
Because it is bitter,
And because it is my heart."

- Stephen Crane

Street sign

Street sign

I'm the one wearing the hoodie.