Tuesday, September 26, 2006
The Love Hotel Poems
I am pleased to announce the publication of my Love Hotel Poems series as a limited edition artist book available from Press Lorentz in Chicago. Included bound into this volume is also the work of Chicago book artist Ray Martin.
Signed books may be purchased directly from me for $12 (plus shipping and handling where applicable).
Alternatively, these books will be available directly from the publisher at the Press Lorentz website and can be purchased with either check or credit card. (The book hasn't yet been added to the website, but you may contact the publisher via the website/email to place an order).
I will fill any orders after October 4, when I return to Texas from the Dodge Festival and New York.
Thanks for reading.
Signed books may be purchased directly from me for $12 (plus shipping and handling where applicable).
Alternatively, these books will be available directly from the publisher at the Press Lorentz website and can be purchased with either check or credit card. (The book hasn't yet been added to the website, but you may contact the publisher via the website/email to place an order).
I will fill any orders after October 4, when I return to Texas from the Dodge Festival and New York.
Thanks for reading.
The Memory of Running
I just finished reading this Ron McLarty novel, so that I could return it to its owner since I've held on to it for about two months. There are some books that I am willing to give a chance, based on the merits of my friends' tastes, and this was probably one of them.
I struggled with the beginning of the book - in the first 50 or so pages, the heavy-drinking, overweight main character Smithy Ides is introduced and the reader witnesses the death of both of his parents from a fatal car wreck. His mentally ill sister is also introduced through flashback scenes, as well as a wheelchair-bound childhood friend/neighbor. So much tragedy and an unusal and accidental hero who I could only initially first feel aversion for. Eventually, Smithy embarks on an amazing journey which takes him on a cross-country bicycle ride from Rhode Island to Los Angeles, California, where he claims the body of his long-dead homeless sister at a Chinese funeral home in Venice Beach.
In the end, reading this book reminded me of David B's memoir Epileptic - the struggle to deal with a sibling inflicted with a physical/mental disorder. But aspects of Smithy's depictions of his family seemed less than credible at moments - the description of his sister's Bethany's voices and frozen "poses," her disappearances and re-emergences - Smithy's ability to sustain that all emotionally seemed at times on the surface. But I don't think this observation has to be a criticism of the book, so much as that Smithy had a very different journey of physical/emotional transformation vs. the artistic total-being transformation that David B undergoes in Epileptic.
Monday, September 25, 2006
Friday, September 22, 2006
Thursday, September 21, 2006
exhale dallas
Kort's new job is as lead acupuncturist at the new exhale spa at the Hotel Palomar which celebrated its grand opening on Monday. I took a Core Fusion class at the spa yesterday night. Core Fusion combines pilates, yoga, weight training, and ballet to build lean muscles using both floor and bar exercises. The hour-long class was a very tough workout - I was shaking most of the time from the amount of strength needed to do most of the exercises and got a very good night's sleep after the session. It's hard to find a workout routine that works, but this one definitely works.
The Lucipo list is being restructured, the Wave poetry bus is critiqued, and Best American Poetry is exposed for what it really is. Too many life-depleting things at one time.
Monday, September 18, 2006
Currently in production... out very soon
This is a mock-up of the concertina-bound structure of Works on Paper. Book boards wrapped in persimmon-dyed paper.
The ampersand won't be an actual part of the cover - it's used here to test beeswax and dye interaction. The colored sections will be a part of the final design.
Thursday, September 14, 2006
Elder abuse
With the story about Mary Ellen Bendtsen and 4949 Swiss Ave in Dallas fresh in my mind, I read about 104-year-old Brooke Astor.
More on Tuttle
Pamela Lu has some great observations on the Richard Tuttle show that was in SF before it came to Dallas.
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
Fred Flare
Fred Flare is sponsoring a poetry writing contest. Details here. Katey Nicosia also sells her piles o' paper thru this web site, which is all about cute design, i.e. these mushroom thumbtacks and paper airplane passport holder.
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
Girls for Breakfast
From my friend Dave....
Hello All,
I am happy to announce the official launch of the
paperback version of Girls for Breakfast (Laurel Leaf,
$5.99), available in stores Tuesday, September 12,
2006! Actually, I’m probably misusing the word
‘launch’--this isn’t so much a launch as it is me,
standing on a dock by myself after sunset, smashing a
half-empty bottle of Two Buck Chuck against the side
of some stranger’s boat and then running away. As some
of you already know, first novels face a difficult
road to survival, and this novel in particular faces
an even tougher road ahead because it doesn’t bear the
current hallmarks of popular YA/adult fiction. This
novel isn’t about four friends (which seems to be
turning into a rule as of late), there are no wizards
in this novel (although there is a fair amount of
whizzing), no teen vampires (there is, however,
mention of a “lady of the night”), and most
unfortunately, this novel doesn’t have the luxury of
having been carefully formulated (as opposed to
written) by a team of 40-year-old execs sitting around
a mahogany table in some boardroom in Manhattan,
brainstorming on a dry erase board about what teen
girls like to read. Because of this, the novel depends
almost solely on word-of-mouth in order to find an
audience, which is why I am writing you today. If you
are receiving this email, it means that I truly
consider you one of the following:
-a dear, dear friend
-someone I secretly admire from afar
-rich
What I’m talking about is the very livelihood of a
little book that touched your hearts last year, each
and every one of you. Do you remember her? Try to
picture the paperback version of this novel as a
little child, in a war-torn country, and she needs
just $5.99 to survive another week in the refugee
camp. And maybe, just maybe, if you buy not one but,
say, four copies of the paperback, it’ll guarantee
that she lives to see a, er, second printing. That’s
what is at stake here. This isn’t about me, anymore,
is what I’m saying. This is about the book. And what
this little girl, er, book, needs right now is your
support, and so I ask that you help me spread word of
its existence.
Right now, in fact. This’ll only take a moment. I want
you to get up now. I want all of you to get up out of
your computer chairs. I want you to get up right now
and go to the window, open it, and stick your head out
and yell, “I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to
take this anymore!! People of (name of your city), go
out and buy a paperback copy of David Yoo’s wonderful
debut novel, Girls for Breakfast, available in
bookstores and online as of September 12, 2006!”
That’s all I ask.
That said, I’m thrilled to inform you that the
paperback version is, in all honesty, far superior to
the original hardcover, for several reasons. I know
what you’re thinking: “Dave, that’s impossible! You’ve
always been a liar…” But it’s true, I swear, on my
bully from high school’s grave. Here are the 5 main
improvements that have been made:
1.) Transportability: Many of you complained last year
that the reason you didn’t buy my novel was you “never
buy hardcovers” because they’re so bulky, because they
have the ability to maim. To which I replied under my
breath, “Well, I don’t like some of my friends because
they’re bulky, and I think they should be maimed.” I
feel we’ve both grown up a lot in the last year, and I
honestly believe we’re past that, and I’m psyched to
inform you that, as a mass market paperback, this
novel is now back to its birth weight, and shows up to
the weigh-in at a svelte 6.8 x 4.3 x 0.8 inches,
making it small enough to fit handily in most purses,
laptop bags, and if you’re overseas—fanny packs.
2.) Affordability: At the implausibly low price of
$5.99, the paperback version is now officially cheaper
then, well, just about everything. Don’t even try to
tell me, “But Dave, I don’t have six bucks to blow on
a book,” because I’ll immediately reply, “But it’s
less then six bucks.” There’s a reason I got kicked
out of mock trial by Mr. Czepiel senior year of high
school: when it comes to debating, I can be downright
ruthless.
3.) Altruism: I didn’t want to have to mention this,
and frankly, I don’t even know if this is real or
fake, but on the off chance that this turns out to be
authentic I feel obligated to bring this up: several
weeks ago I received an anonymous, scarily credible
letter in the mail that stated that if x-amount of
paperback copies don’t get sold by a certain date, all
the animal shelters in this country will…explode.
4.) Numerology: I don’t know if you believe in this
stuff (I for one make even the most basic decisions,
usually involving socks, using numerology) but
irregardless, I just ask that you keep an open mind
for a moment and consider the following example of
what numerologists refer to as ‘digit summing’:
Price of paperback copy of Girls for Breakfast: $5.99
Add up the principles: 5 + 9 + 9 = 23
Subtract 1st principle from total: 23 – 5 = 18
Subtract 2nd principle from revised total: 18 - 9 = 9
Subtract 3rd principle from revised total: 9 - 9 =
Answer: 0
Go ahead, check the math, I haven’t…
5.) Readability: Lastly, and most importantly, the
actual text of the novel has been revised. While the
following is commonly known within publishing circles,
most gap-toothed laymen don’t realize that pretty much
all published novels contain several mistakes. Given
the number of times the author and editor rake over
the material, let alone the existence of copyeditors
(or what people in the industry refer to as
“Godsbane”) you’d think all errors would be found
prior to going to print. Incomprehensibly, you’d be
dead wrong, and my novel is no exception, but we’ve
worked really hard on fixing the text, and I’m proud
to say that, as a result, the new paperback version of
Girls for Breakfast is cleaner, sleeker, well oiled,
and overall just a much better ride then before. Which
leads me to the biggest news of all--I am happy to
announce the opening of:
The 2006 Girls for Breakfast Paperback Contest!
I’ve noticed in the past year that many authors seem
to have contests and various interactive things that
they do that readers seem to eat up, so I figured I’d
join the fray. I invite you and anyone you know to
participate in this inaugural contest. The objective
is mind-bogglingly easy: simply find 5 changes that
have been made to the text of the paperback version
(by comparing the paperback to the hardcover version)
and you win! What’ll they win, me? Well, if you
correctly find 5 edits that have been made to the
text, contact me and you will win:
1.) A signed copy of the paperback version (by the
author himself)
2.) A free year’s membership to the author’s official
fan club, Davey’s Palz!
3.) And while supplies last, this lovely fountain pen:
This contest will run through December 15, 2006.
Spread the word, this contest is open to just about
anyone (see restrictions below) and remember the final
words of Pliny, “Ya can’t play if you don’t pay.”
Rules and Regulations:
1.) If you think you are a winner, please send your
answers along with a SASE to the author’s publisher in
order to receive a signed copy of the paperback
version of Girls for Breakfast. Pending approval,
please allow 18-21 weeks for delivery.
2.) Do not taunt happy fun ball.
3.) Employees and any family members of employees at
Random House, as well as its subsidiary, Halliburton,
are barred from participating in this contest.
4.) Also barred from participating, people from the
following states: North Dakota.
Girls for Breakfast is finally here today, September
12, 2006, available in stores and at various on-line
outlets, as well as mentally, if you’re one of those
people. For more info, visit www.girlsforbreakfast.com
or www.daveyoo.com . Thank you for your time, and have
a great day.
I love you.
Sincerely,
David Yoo
GIRLS FOR BREAKFAST
Delacorte Press/Laurel Leaf Books
Paperback isbn: 0-440-23883-8
2005 Booksense Pick
2005 Reading Rants Top 10 Books for Teens
2006 NYPL Books for the Teen Age
-----------------
David Yoo
Author of
GIRLS FOR BREAKFAST
"This edgy and wickedly hilarious tale..."
-School Library Journal
"Instinctively funny."
-Austin American Statesman
Visit http://www.daveyoo.com or www.girlsforbreakfast.com for more information.
Hello All,
I am happy to announce the official launch of the
paperback version of Girls for Breakfast (Laurel Leaf,
$5.99), available in stores Tuesday, September 12,
2006! Actually, I’m probably misusing the word
‘launch’--this isn’t so much a launch as it is me,
standing on a dock by myself after sunset, smashing a
half-empty bottle of Two Buck Chuck against the side
of some stranger’s boat and then running away. As some
of you already know, first novels face a difficult
road to survival, and this novel in particular faces
an even tougher road ahead because it doesn’t bear the
current hallmarks of popular YA/adult fiction. This
novel isn’t about four friends (which seems to be
turning into a rule as of late), there are no wizards
in this novel (although there is a fair amount of
whizzing), no teen vampires (there is, however,
mention of a “lady of the night”), and most
unfortunately, this novel doesn’t have the luxury of
having been carefully formulated (as opposed to
written) by a team of 40-year-old execs sitting around
a mahogany table in some boardroom in Manhattan,
brainstorming on a dry erase board about what teen
girls like to read. Because of this, the novel depends
almost solely on word-of-mouth in order to find an
audience, which is why I am writing you today. If you
are receiving this email, it means that I truly
consider you one of the following:
-a dear, dear friend
-someone I secretly admire from afar
-rich
What I’m talking about is the very livelihood of a
little book that touched your hearts last year, each
and every one of you. Do you remember her? Try to
picture the paperback version of this novel as a
little child, in a war-torn country, and she needs
just $5.99 to survive another week in the refugee
camp. And maybe, just maybe, if you buy not one but,
say, four copies of the paperback, it’ll guarantee
that she lives to see a, er, second printing. That’s
what is at stake here. This isn’t about me, anymore,
is what I’m saying. This is about the book. And what
this little girl, er, book, needs right now is your
support, and so I ask that you help me spread word of
its existence.
Right now, in fact. This’ll only take a moment. I want
you to get up now. I want all of you to get up out of
your computer chairs. I want you to get up right now
and go to the window, open it, and stick your head out
and yell, “I'm as mad as hell, and I'm not going to
take this anymore!! People of (name of your city), go
out and buy a paperback copy of David Yoo’s wonderful
debut novel, Girls for Breakfast, available in
bookstores and online as of September 12, 2006!”
That’s all I ask.
That said, I’m thrilled to inform you that the
paperback version is, in all honesty, far superior to
the original hardcover, for several reasons. I know
what you’re thinking: “Dave, that’s impossible! You’ve
always been a liar…” But it’s true, I swear, on my
bully from high school’s grave. Here are the 5 main
improvements that have been made:
1.) Transportability: Many of you complained last year
that the reason you didn’t buy my novel was you “never
buy hardcovers” because they’re so bulky, because they
have the ability to maim. To which I replied under my
breath, “Well, I don’t like some of my friends because
they’re bulky, and I think they should be maimed.” I
feel we’ve both grown up a lot in the last year, and I
honestly believe we’re past that, and I’m psyched to
inform you that, as a mass market paperback, this
novel is now back to its birth weight, and shows up to
the weigh-in at a svelte 6.8 x 4.3 x 0.8 inches,
making it small enough to fit handily in most purses,
laptop bags, and if you’re overseas—fanny packs.
2.) Affordability: At the implausibly low price of
$5.99, the paperback version is now officially cheaper
then, well, just about everything. Don’t even try to
tell me, “But Dave, I don’t have six bucks to blow on
a book,” because I’ll immediately reply, “But it’s
less then six bucks.” There’s a reason I got kicked
out of mock trial by Mr. Czepiel senior year of high
school: when it comes to debating, I can be downright
ruthless.
3.) Altruism: I didn’t want to have to mention this,
and frankly, I don’t even know if this is real or
fake, but on the off chance that this turns out to be
authentic I feel obligated to bring this up: several
weeks ago I received an anonymous, scarily credible
letter in the mail that stated that if x-amount of
paperback copies don’t get sold by a certain date, all
the animal shelters in this country will…explode.
4.) Numerology: I don’t know if you believe in this
stuff (I for one make even the most basic decisions,
usually involving socks, using numerology) but
irregardless, I just ask that you keep an open mind
for a moment and consider the following example of
what numerologists refer to as ‘digit summing’:
Price of paperback copy of Girls for Breakfast: $5.99
Add up the principles: 5 + 9 + 9 = 23
Subtract 1st principle from total: 23 – 5 = 18
Subtract 2nd principle from revised total: 18 - 9 = 9
Subtract 3rd principle from revised total: 9 - 9 =
Answer: 0
Go ahead, check the math, I haven’t…
5.) Readability: Lastly, and most importantly, the
actual text of the novel has been revised. While the
following is commonly known within publishing circles,
most gap-toothed laymen don’t realize that pretty much
all published novels contain several mistakes. Given
the number of times the author and editor rake over
the material, let alone the existence of copyeditors
(or what people in the industry refer to as
“Godsbane”) you’d think all errors would be found
prior to going to print. Incomprehensibly, you’d be
dead wrong, and my novel is no exception, but we’ve
worked really hard on fixing the text, and I’m proud
to say that, as a result, the new paperback version of
Girls for Breakfast is cleaner, sleeker, well oiled,
and overall just a much better ride then before. Which
leads me to the biggest news of all--I am happy to
announce the opening of:
The 2006 Girls for Breakfast Paperback Contest!
I’ve noticed in the past year that many authors seem
to have contests and various interactive things that
they do that readers seem to eat up, so I figured I’d
join the fray. I invite you and anyone you know to
participate in this inaugural contest. The objective
is mind-bogglingly easy: simply find 5 changes that
have been made to the text of the paperback version
(by comparing the paperback to the hardcover version)
and you win! What’ll they win, me? Well, if you
correctly find 5 edits that have been made to the
text, contact me and you will win:
1.) A signed copy of the paperback version (by the
author himself)
2.) A free year’s membership to the author’s official
fan club, Davey’s Palz!
3.) And while supplies last, this lovely fountain pen:
This contest will run through December 15, 2006.
Spread the word, this contest is open to just about
anyone (see restrictions below) and remember the final
words of Pliny, “Ya can’t play if you don’t pay.”
Rules and Regulations:
1.) If you think you are a winner, please send your
answers along with a SASE to the author’s publisher in
order to receive a signed copy of the paperback
version of Girls for Breakfast. Pending approval,
please allow 18-21 weeks for delivery.
2.) Do not taunt happy fun ball.
3.) Employees and any family members of employees at
Random House, as well as its subsidiary, Halliburton,
are barred from participating in this contest.
4.) Also barred from participating, people from the
following states: North Dakota.
Girls for Breakfast is finally here today, September
12, 2006, available in stores and at various on-line
outlets, as well as mentally, if you’re one of those
people. For more info, visit www.girlsforbreakfast.com
or www.daveyoo.com . Thank you for your time, and have
a great day.
I love you.
Sincerely,
David Yoo
GIRLS FOR BREAKFAST
Delacorte Press/Laurel Leaf Books
Paperback isbn: 0-440-23883-8
2005 Booksense Pick
2005 Reading Rants Top 10 Books for Teens
2006 NYPL Books for the Teen Age
-----------------
David Yoo
Author of
GIRLS FOR BREAKFAST
"This edgy and wickedly hilarious tale..."
-School Library Journal
"Instinctively funny."
-Austin American Statesman
Visit http://www.daveyoo.com or www.girlsforbreakfast.com for more information.
Sunday, September 10, 2006
Magazine release party
Sojourn Journal celebrates the release of their Fall issue on October 13 with a reading party at UTD's McDermott Library. I have a few photos from my spring Taiwan residency in this issue. Details on the party and the issue to come.
Healthy Living Heaven
Yesterday, Kort and I discovered Herb Mart. If we had known about this little chain of TX herb stores during the our Total Life Cleanse, we would have saved hundred of dollars on vitamins, supplements and natural foods. It's a small shop in a strip mall among several other businesses in Plano, with other locations in Mesquite and Lakewood. It's on the way for us to Whole Foods, about half of the distance from our house. Product prices on Ester C and triphala were more than 50% cheaper than what we would pay at Whole Foods, and all had options of the supplements in easy-to-swallow gel caps. Not only that, the store sells organic meats, wheat-free bread in the freezer case, organic sodas and juices, and beauty and cosmetics products. The staff is knowledgable of the products and the website includes an online store where you can have products shipped to you, wherever you live. If you are into green living, this is the place to shop. The only thing the physical store could not offer was produce - but that's what farmer's markets and food co-ops are for....
Saturday, September 09, 2006
4949 Swiss Avenue
The Dallas Morning News ran a series of stories on the woman who owned the mansion at 4949 Swiss Avenue. It is one of the most severe cases of elder abuse in recent media news - two local antique dealers befriended an elderly socialite in order to get her mansion willed to them. She signed over her belongings to them in a dementia-ridden state post-stroke.
Yesterday, two co-workers and I made the trip to 4949 Swiss Ave. A neighbor of the deceased owner organized the estate sale and my co-workers were curious to see the interior of the home which has all of its original fixtures and was the former home of the Caruths. I snapped some photos while we were there.
The grand staircase; local buyers waiting in line to have their purchases processed.
Books from Mary Ellen's library.
Perfume bottles on Mary Ellen's vanity.
Bureau filled with prescription bottles recycled as storage containers for sewing supplies.
Bamboo grove razed to the ground in the backyard.
Sitting room with chairs and bedpan.
Wallpaper in the master bath
Buyers.
Yesterday, two co-workers and I made the trip to 4949 Swiss Ave. A neighbor of the deceased owner organized the estate sale and my co-workers were curious to see the interior of the home which has all of its original fixtures and was the former home of the Caruths. I snapped some photos while we were there.
The grand staircase; local buyers waiting in line to have their purchases processed.
Books from Mary Ellen's library.
Perfume bottles on Mary Ellen's vanity.
Bureau filled with prescription bottles recycled as storage containers for sewing supplies.
Bamboo grove razed to the ground in the backyard.
Sitting room with chairs and bedpan.
Wallpaper in the master bath
Buyers.
Friday, September 08, 2006
David B's Epileptic
I just finished reading David B's Epileptic. My introduction to graphic novels came by way of Marjane Satrapi's Persepolis series last year. David B's book is about his older brother who develops epilepsy when they are children and the family's journey towards trying to find a cure to his brother's disorder - along the path they live in macrobiotic communities, go to psychic mediums who can communicate with the dead, and send him to a Japanese acupuncturist. Like Satrapi's book, it is a story of childhood isolation and loneliness, love for one's family, and various histories.
Thursday, September 07, 2006
20/20
I had my one-month post-op visit yesterday and am seeing at 20/20. I got the green light to go back to wearing eye make-up, rub my eyes, and wash them with water. No swimming for another two weeks. I survived the ordeal with no infections. Hooray!!!
Budget Cuts
Buyouts and downsizing have been happening at my current workplace. Yesterday, I heard a co-worker saying that the coffee mate had been eliminated because the coffee budget had to be cut by 10 percent. I didn't think much of it, since I don't drink coffee. This morning, I found both water coolers completely empty - not even an empty receptacle on top, with post-it notes on each cooler saying "water empty." There is a rumor that the tap water here is tainted with gasoline. There is no filtration system and the other option is to drink Coca-Cola products out of a vending machine. We work in a hermetically sealed environment in the basement of the paper and an email or a memo would have been nice. In other news, our IT team has been dissolved as of yesterday and tech issues are not outsourced to a company in Colorado. Yesterday, the priest called with issues about not being able to receive stories via email from a client. The outgoing IT person said, "Basically, you're hosed."
Friday, September 01, 2006
Yesterday I had a conversation with a poet who just relocated to town from Austin and is teaching undergraduate creative writing programs at UTD. She is in the process of finishing her PhD thesis and has an MFA. She spoke of how MFA programs are serving a similar purpose as residency programs, but for younger less experienced writers. The literary arts are supported by NEA and Guggenheim grants for established poets. For emerging/mid-career writers, there are things like the Stegner, Bucknell, and residencies like MacDowell or Yaddo. So what's left for those at the beginning of their career? MFA programs may be one of the few options. That and maybe community-based programs/models.
Friday, August 25, 2006
Snickers' new ad campaign
Around Dallas, I've been seeing buses wrapped in words like "Nougatocity", "Hungerectomy" and "Satisfectellent." It took me a few weeks to put together brown, white, red and blue + nonsense words = Snickers branded. I'd be curious to hear Geof Huth's vispo take on the candy bar campaign.
Tuesday, August 22, 2006
Little Miss Sunshine
We saw this movie just before John Karr confessed to the JonBenet Ramsey killing. There is a very creepy children's beauty pageant for young girls at the center of this film that has an very unexpected outcome. Well worth viewing....
Naropa photos
This weekend, I scanned a bunch of photos of my Naropa days on our new scanner and uploaded them to my flickr account. They are tagged with the label "Naropa," for anyone who is curious. There are some images of many poets - Jeni Olin, Cedar Sigo, Rachel Levitsky, Max Regan, Michael Smoler of High Energy Constructs, Jack Greene, Roger Snell of Sardines Press, etc.
This image was taken in the SWP tent, during my first summer in Boulder. It was the first week of the program and we were invaded by students from the mask-making class. That's fiction writer Brian Keever, working tech in the background and poet Diana Rickard on the far right.
This image was taken in the SWP tent, during my first summer in Boulder. It was the first week of the program and we were invaded by students from the mask-making class. That's fiction writer Brian Keever, working tech in the background and poet Diana Rickard on the far right.
Photogram, Man Ray
I stage managed and ran lights this weekend for the closing event of the Texas Unbound Festival - a performance by the Dancing Tongue Cabaret group which encompassed a sort of "best of" their past performances including the Dada Show. The show ran about 2 1/2 hours long, which was very lengthy for a Sunday night. But I hadn't gotten to see many of their performances, since mezzo soprano Lisa Huffaker of the Dallas Opera joined the troupe. Lisa brings a wonderful and expressive energy to the group and raises the bar on performance. The group did readings of Walt Whitman poems, Tim Cloward performed a few old standards including "Jazz" and "Tractor" and the majority of the show seemed devoted to the Dada pieces. There were several "ballet" pieces with ordinary objects set to Eric Satie's compositions - the first of which involved projections using a flashlight. and the second of which utilized an overhead projector with objects like a egg beater whisk, mixer heads and other assorted objects. Seeing the images projected "dancing" with one another, I thought of Man Ray's photograms, the simplicity and personality of everyday objects. A live ballet with performers dancing with toilet plungers and engaging in various ways with these objects (from drinking vessels to dance partners to hats) closed the performances, which was followed by a quiz on Dada.
Friday, August 18, 2006
I finally finished the Fascicle Taiwan portfolio - a series of six interviews, and the work of seven poets, which will also include sound files and one animation file. Burned a CD and put the project in the mail to Tony in NC. The folio will feature work by:
Chen Li
Hsia Yu
Melusine Lin
Amang Hung
Hung Hung
Shang Qin
Ye Mimi
as translated by Steve Bradbury, Andrea Lingenfelter, Chang Fan-ling, Zona Tsou, and Melusine Lin. Look for a launch this Fall at the Fascicle web site.
WordSpace
The Texas Unbound Festival wraps up this weekend. I have not been as involved in the programming/festivities as much as I probably should be as a Board Member of the organization. This weekend's program features college-age writers and Sunday night showcases Dancing Tongue performance troupe. If you're in Dallas, stop by the Undermain for the entertainment.
Doctor's orders
Two weeks out from Lasik, vision is clear in my left one, but still partially obscured in my right eye. I've grown tired of putting Systane tears in my eyes every 15 minutes - it never gives them an opportunity to dry out, which is when vision is at its sharpest, so I am cutting back on the instructions. This is a big deal for me, as I tend to follow rules to the letter - but I think I learned from the Total Life Cleanse that you do what's right for your body and its own wisdom, and you question the rules - I was sent home with some very general guidelines for the thousands of Lasik patients that pass thru Dr. Boothe's doors on a monthly basis. It's ridiculous to tell you not to touch your face from below the eyebrows to above the cheekbones for a week to a month to a year. The past week, I have woken up at various hours of the night mid-involuntary action where I find my left finger in my left eye trying to clear the residue out of it - which is not the same as rubbing the eye which puts the eye at risk for infection. I can see then the necessity of wearing a night guard or goggles at night to circumvent this action.
Wire piece
It's very difficult to find a photograph that does justice to one of Richard Tuttle's wire pieces. The current exhibition at the DMA features a room full of these 1970s "drawings" which incorporate graphite, the wall, screws, and wire. These are by far my favorite of Tuttle's oeuvre.
The show at the DMA takes up the Barrell Vault, the quadrant galleries, the concourse, and the contemporary galleries - it's a lot of work to view in what begins to feel like a tight amount of space, and it would have been interesting to see the retrospective installed in San Francisco, to get a sense of how the work flowed in a different configuration.
I was probably most interested in Tuttle's book arts works which were displayed in custom display cases built from blond wood with stands that opened outwards like the pages of a book. Creative carpentry, yes, but awkward when it came to viewing and stepping in close to get a good look at the books under glass. Further, the books were oriented more than one direction which really made viewing a pain in the ass. It's interesting to think of Richard meeting Mei Mei while they worked on the design together of one of her books. Also featured in the show were some of Tuttle's more recent works from 20 Pearls and works made between New Mexico and New York.
Ganzfeld
Ganzfeld
Originally uploaded by shinyu32.
Kort had a Core Fusion (blend of ballet, stretching and yoga) class last night at the new spa, so I took a trip downtown to visit the DMA and the Tuttle retrospective. After finishing there, went to the Trammell Crowe Museum to see Japanese woodblock prints and then wandered across the street to the Nasher Garden. All Museums are free on Thursday nights! I hadn't been to the Nasher in some time - I've never been crazy about the way that the art is laid out in the galleries or in the garden. But tucked in the back of the garden is a James Turrell skyspace. You enter thru two sets of double doors into a concrete space with benches that looks up into the sky. Yesterday, viewing conditions were ideal. Streaky white clouds and birds flying overhead. It's the quietest place in the garden and a nice place to retreat to stare up at the sky.
i never knew what time it was
i never knew what time it was
Originally uploaded by shinyu32.
I just finished reading David Antin's UC Press book i never knew what time it was picked up at the Taipei International Book Festival this past spring. The book is a series of "talk pieces" - adaptations of spoken "lectures" that Antin has given over the years at various venues like CalArts. As a New Yorker, Antin brings an interesting perspective to urban development in Southern California - the nature of real estate (buying and selling on short turnaround time), public highways, and the evolution and politics of the art programs at the Walt Disney School and UC San Diego, where Antin was hired to teach and run the university gallery. It's a fascinating picture of California arts within a certain period. I first came across Antin's cloud poems a few years back in a Granary catalog - Antin hired airplanes to write poems in the sky using water vapor over the skies of La Jolla. They were short poems, because hiring skywriters does not come cheap. But what an amazing concept.
Wednesday, August 16, 2006
Poetry Economics 101
This post from my publisher Jeffrey Levine on the distribution of poetry thru small presses is very educational.
Sunday, August 13, 2006
Elimination and discovery
Going thru old notebooks and samizdat publications collected over the years and throwing out anything I do not feel connected to.
In an old notebook from Naropa, I find two interesting notes scrawled in the margins of my Literary Journal class:
"When I got to Boulder, I said to myself, this is not a fuck-town." - Rachel Levitsky
and from my yoga class with Ravi Dykema, my own musings -
"How can yoga be good for your skin if you're putting your face down on a dirty floor mat? Won't that clog your pores?
I added to the list of "things I want to attract" - building an earthship home with Kort in Costa Rica and running a retreat center for the healing and creative arts in San Jose while living as close to the land as possible. How much poetry remains a part of my long-term future remains to be seen.
In an old notebook from Naropa, I find two interesting notes scrawled in the margins of my Literary Journal class:
"When I got to Boulder, I said to myself, this is not a fuck-town." - Rachel Levitsky
and from my yoga class with Ravi Dykema, my own musings -
"How can yoga be good for your skin if you're putting your face down on a dirty floor mat? Won't that clog your pores?
I added to the list of "things I want to attract" - building an earthship home with Kort in Costa Rica and running a retreat center for the healing and creative arts in San Jose while living as close to the land as possible. How much poetry remains a part of my long-term future remains to be seen.
Friday, August 11, 2006
Dodge Fest line-up
Ekiwah Adler-Belendez
Tony Hoagland
Taha Muhammad Ali
Galway Kinnell
Coleman Barks
Kurtis Lamkin
Robert Bly
Andrew Motion
Lucille Clifton
Taslima Nasreen
Billy Collins
Grace Paley
Toi Derricotte
Linda Pastan
Mark Doty
Gerald Stern
Jorie Graham
Sekou Sundiata
Linda Gregg
Brian Turner
Linda Hogan
Ko Un
And
Elizabeth Alexander
Maria Mazziotti Gillan
Len Roberts
Kahlil Almustafa
Ona Gritz
Barry Seiler
Peter Cole
Nathalie Handal
Jason Shinder
John Bargowski
Lois Harrod
Richard Silberg
Ron Block
Matthea Harvey
Vincent Toro
Laure-Anne Bosselaar
Terrance Hayes
Natasha Trethewey
Kurt Brown
Tina Kelly
David Tucker
Tina Chang
Diane Lockward
Pramila Venkateswaran
Jim Daniels
Anne Marie Macari
Thom Ward
Barbara DeCesare
Peter Murphy
Jack Wiler
Corie Feiner
April Ossmann
Stephen B. Wiley
Daisy Fried
Shin Yu Pai
Sholeh Wolpe
Tony Hoagland
Taha Muhammad Ali
Galway Kinnell
Coleman Barks
Kurtis Lamkin
Robert Bly
Andrew Motion
Lucille Clifton
Taslima Nasreen
Billy Collins
Grace Paley
Toi Derricotte
Linda Pastan
Mark Doty
Gerald Stern
Jorie Graham
Sekou Sundiata
Linda Gregg
Brian Turner
Linda Hogan
Ko Un
And
Elizabeth Alexander
Maria Mazziotti Gillan
Len Roberts
Kahlil Almustafa
Ona Gritz
Barry Seiler
Peter Cole
Nathalie Handal
Jason Shinder
John Bargowski
Lois Harrod
Richard Silberg
Ron Block
Matthea Harvey
Vincent Toro
Laure-Anne Bosselaar
Terrance Hayes
Natasha Trethewey
Kurt Brown
Tina Kelly
David Tucker
Tina Chang
Diane Lockward
Pramila Venkateswaran
Jim Daniels
Anne Marie Macari
Thom Ward
Barbara DeCesare
Peter Murphy
Jack Wiler
Corie Feiner
April Ossmann
Stephen B. Wiley
Daisy Fried
Shin Yu Pai
Sholeh Wolpe
Wednesday, August 09, 2006
20/16
Charted at 20/16 at my doctor's appointment on Monday. That's "near perfect", though with all the fluid hydrating my eyes, it's like wearing a dirty, floating pair of contact lenses.
Tomorrow will be the first day that I can wash the tape residue off of my face left from the plastic guards which protect my eyes while I sleep. The sticky adhesive triggered a memory of this tape being the same variety as the kind that my parents would use to tape down my brother's ever-expanding ears in childhood. The things that parents do to their children. I don't remember if I've written about it before, but I got fitted for glasses at the tender age of 8 - the same year that my older brother was diagnosed as needing glasses. My dad engineered a simple but faulty eye test. At dusk, I was made to stand in the neighbor's yard across the street on his little hill and read the unlit license plate of my mother's Monte Carlo parked in the garage. I failed, and so I got glasses from the optometrist who would later turn out to be hired on as a moonlighting general contractor for our house renovations (which ultimately resulted in leaky roofs, and other structural problems.) My father has always said - your body is your mother's gift to you, you are born perfect and you do not own your body. This surgery has marked an attitudinal shift in my experiences - I am correcting on what was long ago inflicted on me and taking ownership of what is mine. With the clearing vision comes an emotional clarity.
I have scaled down to a 4-day work week and am looking forward to working on a memoir next.
Tomorrow will be the first day that I can wash the tape residue off of my face left from the plastic guards which protect my eyes while I sleep. The sticky adhesive triggered a memory of this tape being the same variety as the kind that my parents would use to tape down my brother's ever-expanding ears in childhood. The things that parents do to their children. I don't remember if I've written about it before, but I got fitted for glasses at the tender age of 8 - the same year that my older brother was diagnosed as needing glasses. My dad engineered a simple but faulty eye test. At dusk, I was made to stand in the neighbor's yard across the street on his little hill and read the unlit license plate of my mother's Monte Carlo parked in the garage. I failed, and so I got glasses from the optometrist who would later turn out to be hired on as a moonlighting general contractor for our house renovations (which ultimately resulted in leaky roofs, and other structural problems.) My father has always said - your body is your mother's gift to you, you are born perfect and you do not own your body. This surgery has marked an attitudinal shift in my experiences - I am correcting on what was long ago inflicted on me and taking ownership of what is mine. With the clearing vision comes an emotional clarity.
I have scaled down to a 4-day work week and am looking forward to working on a memoir next.
Apart from that
A very dear friend from my adolescence, Randy Walker, and his girlfriend have just released their first feature-length independent film which will be playing the festival circuits in Edinburgh and showing shortly in Croatia and NYC. Please visit Randy's production company website to view the trailer for Apart from that.
Tuesday, August 08, 2006
Question and Answer w/ My Lasik Doctor
Q: When can I wash the top half of my face?
A: You can wash your eyelids a week after surgery.
Q: You mean I can splash water on my eyelids - or do you mean to keep my eyes closed in the shower and put my face under a stream of water?
A: You should try not to rub your eyes. In fact,when you take a shower, do so with your back to the water.
Q: But how do I wash my eyes, if I can't rub them?
A: We recommend you use a washcloth and clean around the eyes.
Q: Well, can I wash my eyes with distilled water?
A: It's not about the bacterial content in water. Too much moisture or water will create a suspension causing the flap to float.
Q: I found a dead mosquito on the outer corner of my left eyelid and I'm sorry to say I had to swab it away with a q-tip. Am I in any danger of going blind?
A: That's ok, but really try not to touch your eyes!
A: You can wash your eyelids a week after surgery.
Q: You mean I can splash water on my eyelids - or do you mean to keep my eyes closed in the shower and put my face under a stream of water?
A: You should try not to rub your eyes. In fact,when you take a shower, do so with your back to the water.
Q: But how do I wash my eyes, if I can't rub them?
A: We recommend you use a washcloth and clean around the eyes.
Q: Well, can I wash my eyes with distilled water?
A: It's not about the bacterial content in water. Too much moisture or water will create a suspension causing the flap to float.
Q: I found a dead mosquito on the outer corner of my left eyelid and I'm sorry to say I had to swab it away with a q-tip. Am I in any danger of going blind?
A: That's ok, but really try not to touch your eyes!
Sunday, August 06, 2006
Thursday, August 03, 2006
Elective surgery
Elective surgery
Originally uploaded by shinyu32.
Kort and I arrived back home last night just in time for my 6:30 a.m. Lasik eye surgery. I've had to do a series of 4 different eyedrops over a five hour period and am seeing the world thru a milky haze. Tomorrow, the medicinal contact lenses come off of my eyes and I will be able to see how much exactly I can see.
It was a tripped out experience and they gave me a percoset to make the whole thing a little more calm. They mark up your eyeball with a black marker, stick you on a chair with knees bent and tell you to look up into a circle of 8 lights. They hold your eyelids open and apply pressure to the eyeball and everything goes black (which is supposed to be quite normal). Then you sit for 30 minutes and wait for the bubbles to disappear and go back to a different chair where the laser reshapes your eye.
I am not supposed to wash the top half of my face for a full 7 days. I have milky residue from the eyedrops clogging up my lashes, like white mascara.
At the end of this, I may just be able to see.
If I owe you an email or you need something from me, I will be working a bit slower until my eyesight normalizes.
A tour of tea huts in New Mexico
We stayed at Sunrise Springs for two nights outside of Santa Fe and drove on the 2nd day out to Placitas to visit with JB & Cirrelda Bryan. JB just built a rustic little tea shack with hardwood floors. The space does not have electricity so it invites a great deal of creativity in working with these particular circumstances. JB boiled water for tea using a stove-like vertical tower that would in older times be used to heat a flat-iron. It cast a warm glow throughout the space, in combination with the antique oil lamps JB acquired for the space. It was my first time having caffeine or tea since the cleanse and the macha tasted delicious. JB created comfortable sitting areas using large zabutons and hand-made kneeling benches to aid with sitting long hours of seiza.
On Monday, we had tea with Siddiq and Sakina Von Briesen in Santa Fe. Siddiq was very involved in the early days of the Lama Foundation. Both he and his wife are also practitioners of Japanese tea. They renovated their guest room and put in tatami floors, and sliding doors, and built a tokonoma. They also had a professional come and cut a sliding panel door in the wall, leading into and out of the backyard garden. In the garden, they also have a waiting/sitting area for tea, a chozubachi for purification, and a lovely stone path.
We also saw the tea space in use at Sunrise Springs - where a woman named Natsuko who also works for Shibui, hosts gatherings and does some teaching. That building, is also an architectural delight. Local materials (multi-color tree branches) are used for the interior roof, the inside is adobe.
On Monday, we had tea with Siddiq and Sakina Von Briesen in Santa Fe. Siddiq was very involved in the early days of the Lama Foundation. Both he and his wife are also practitioners of Japanese tea. They renovated their guest room and put in tatami floors, and sliding doors, and built a tokonoma. They also had a professional come and cut a sliding panel door in the wall, leading into and out of the backyard garden. In the garden, they also have a waiting/sitting area for tea, a chozubachi for purification, and a lovely stone path.
We also saw the tea space in use at Sunrise Springs - where a woman named Natsuko who also works for Shibui, hosts gatherings and does some teaching. That building, is also an architectural delight. Local materials (multi-color tree branches) are used for the interior roof, the inside is adobe.
Earthships
We visited the World Headquarters of the Earthship Project - sustainable solar-powered homes made of recycled materials including rubber tires, aluminum cans, and more. Homes include cisterns that collect their own freshwater and treat their own wastewater.
Questa
Bandolier cave dwellings
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
Book of Days
The good people at Convivio Bookworks have posted their August Book of Days which features "The Floating World." Plans are underway to release Works on Paper in conjunction with the O-bon festival. This book has been about four years in the making. The Convivio guys are fine art bookmakers and letterpress printers and a very busy and talented team at work at Convivio headquarters in Lake Worth, Florida, while managing the Jaffe Book Arts Collections at Florida Atlantic University. They are planning a letterpressed book with concertina binding, printed with persimmon ink. The book will include some older poems alongside a newer series of poems written for the new year's lantern festival and for the Haiku Not Bombs project.
Appropriative Writing
Just heard word from Camille Martin that I will be on a panel on appropriative writing at AWP 2007 in Atlanta, GA. Co-panelists include Rob Read, Mairead Byrne, and Laura Mullen. I'll be reading from the Nutritional Feed project and showing some slide images from the book.
On holiday
Kort and I are on a mini-break in Taos and will return to Dallas late Wednesday. Until then, please enjoy the poems over at the summer issue of How 2, which includes four poems from Nutritional Feed (Tupelo, forthcoming).
Friday, July 28, 2006
Five x Five
from Lee Herrick
Five things in my freezer:
1. almond wedding cake with raspberry filling
2. taro buns
3. Whole Foods shelled edamame
4. frozen watermelon
5. shitaki mushroom stock
Five things in my closet (we have a shared closet and I have an office closet - these items refer to my office closet):
1. a massage table
2. a vintage yellow leg-o-matic table set with four chairs
3. a red Fender stratocaster restored by James Casey
4. paper-making kit
5. Polaroid land camera (s)
Five books/magazines on my nightstand:
1. A Comet in Moominvalley
2. Snows Gone By - James Koller
3. Red as a Lotus - Lisa Gill
4. Wild Form, Savage Grammar - Andrew Schelling
5. Anthony Flores' chapbook designed by Roland Murillo
Five things in my freezer:
1. almond wedding cake with raspberry filling
2. taro buns
3. Whole Foods shelled edamame
4. frozen watermelon
5. shitaki mushroom stock
Five things in my closet (we have a shared closet and I have an office closet - these items refer to my office closet):
1. a massage table
2. a vintage yellow leg-o-matic table set with four chairs
3. a red Fender stratocaster restored by James Casey
4. paper-making kit
5. Polaroid land camera (s)
Five books/magazines on my nightstand:
1. A Comet in Moominvalley
2. Snows Gone By - James Koller
3. Red as a Lotus - Lisa Gill
4. Wild Form, Savage Grammar - Andrew Schelling
5. Anthony Flores' chapbook designed by Roland Murillo
Dreams
I've had a very active dream life during the liver cleanse weeks and this past week, I've had two dreams in which there is a man I have never seen or met, much older, dark-skinned, dark-haired. The dreams are all set in my workplace. He's a VIP who appears at staff meetings of the "Belo Death Star" as we are being called by the Frontburner Blog. This mystery man tells me that he wants to meet with me and it is clear that he has something to share with me or teach me, put I keep putting it off. Perhaps, that is why he appeared in a second dream. He introduces himself. I have trouble with his name, so I ask him to repeat himself twice, so that I can repeat the sound of it, because I want to say "Guillermo" or "Guillaume." But his name is not either of these, but "Guillen." This morning I did a web search on "Guillen" and found this.
Monday, July 24, 2006
Updates
Unnecessary Roughness, which released in 2005, has sold 39 copies to date. Lesson learned? Avoid POD publishing and publication offers in the future. Design quality is compromised and getting reviews was tricky. Also, there were no "comp" copies/author/review copies in the case of UR.
Week 5 of the cleanse. This week, in addition to continuing with the ghee, there is a second phase liver flush which involves a concoction of lemon juice, cilantro, and flax seed oil. It is really sour.
Observable results: better attention to language, speaking from a grounded place. Calmer nature. Things slowing down significantly. Disappearance of hives and skin rashes. But fierce liver headaches on the left side of my head.
We had a great class on Saturday - the last that K and I will be able to attend with New Mexico on the horizon. This class was about healthy liver function. The liver is responsible for processing all drugs/antibiotics, producing tears, ridding the body of toxins, and is directly linked to anger, as well as PLANNING. Ninety percent of why people get angry is because their plans are interrupted. Those who are angriest have had their plans interrupted since birth. Hmmmm. I had my Sunday night plans interrupted for instance with a request from my publisher to fill out a 15-part marketing survey by Tuesday. But it worked out in the end - I had gotten the survey a year ago from another writer who publishes with the press, and the survey which originally took many hours over many days to fill out, underwent some small revisions and I zapped it out.
On the homefront, fires and temperatures are raging in Southern California. Riverside hit 115 degrees on Saturday and experienced a thunder storm with black clouds. I am concerned about my family. For all intents and purposes, it has fallen apart. And my father is sick. And I am trying to coordinate his care long-distance over the phone with a friend who is standing in for a son or daughter. When life falls apart...
I have changed my mind about the Total Life Cleanse. I had my one-to-one session with Dr. Gregg on Friday, had some chiropractice adjustments and released a great deal of grief. The TLC is a tool for reaching a greater clarity and for detoxifying. Detoxifying can be a scary thing. But with it, goes some of the fear of everything. I have been contemplating death a lot lately.
My homes editor likes to say of our other freelancer "Well at least he has a pulse." To that I say, "He might as well be dead." That attitudinal shift has made all the difference in getting my sections done and not depending on anyone for paid help. In this life, in this cleanse, in therapy, we all go it alone. We are all ultimately alone, even when we are partnered. And there is something of value to be learned there. That might sound negative, but I think my current meditation is on death.
Week 5 of the cleanse. This week, in addition to continuing with the ghee, there is a second phase liver flush which involves a concoction of lemon juice, cilantro, and flax seed oil. It is really sour.
Observable results: better attention to language, speaking from a grounded place. Calmer nature. Things slowing down significantly. Disappearance of hives and skin rashes. But fierce liver headaches on the left side of my head.
We had a great class on Saturday - the last that K and I will be able to attend with New Mexico on the horizon. This class was about healthy liver function. The liver is responsible for processing all drugs/antibiotics, producing tears, ridding the body of toxins, and is directly linked to anger, as well as PLANNING. Ninety percent of why people get angry is because their plans are interrupted. Those who are angriest have had their plans interrupted since birth. Hmmmm. I had my Sunday night plans interrupted for instance with a request from my publisher to fill out a 15-part marketing survey by Tuesday. But it worked out in the end - I had gotten the survey a year ago from another writer who publishes with the press, and the survey which originally took many hours over many days to fill out, underwent some small revisions and I zapped it out.
On the homefront, fires and temperatures are raging in Southern California. Riverside hit 115 degrees on Saturday and experienced a thunder storm with black clouds. I am concerned about my family. For all intents and purposes, it has fallen apart. And my father is sick. And I am trying to coordinate his care long-distance over the phone with a friend who is standing in for a son or daughter. When life falls apart...
I have changed my mind about the Total Life Cleanse. I had my one-to-one session with Dr. Gregg on Friday, had some chiropractice adjustments and released a great deal of grief. The TLC is a tool for reaching a greater clarity and for detoxifying. Detoxifying can be a scary thing. But with it, goes some of the fear of everything. I have been contemplating death a lot lately.
My homes editor likes to say of our other freelancer "Well at least he has a pulse." To that I say, "He might as well be dead." That attitudinal shift has made all the difference in getting my sections done and not depending on anyone for paid help. In this life, in this cleanse, in therapy, we all go it alone. We are all ultimately alone, even when we are partnered. And there is something of value to be learned there. That might sound negative, but I think my current meditation is on death.
Tuesday, July 18, 2006
New Mexico, 2005
Kort and I are getting ready to go back to New Mexico for our 1-year wedding anniversary. We will go back to Alma del Monte and also be staying at Sunrise Springs outside of Santa Fe. We had hoped to visit with our favorite Lama, Lama Chodrak, but Lama is is Hong Kong at the moment, though he did give us his telephone number and invite us to call.
On a recent visit home, I got to sit down with two of the incredible women who were my bridesmaids last year, Mada and Jenn. They have their own fond memories of Lama Chodrak. On the day before the wedding, before rehearsal, we realized that no one had been dispatched to pick up the Lama who needed a ride to get from Questa to Taos Ski Valley. My parents and brother volunteered and left early, since Questa is some distance from the Ski Valley and they would be driving unfamiliar roads. Apparently they arrived earlier than Lama expected, but they packed up my brother's trunk with the barbecue grill for the fire pit, tree branches, a change of clothes and turned right around to get back to the Ski Valley in time for the rehearsal.
We had the rehearsal in the meadow followed by dinner for the families and everyone involved in the ceremony at The Bavarian. Mada sat next to Lama at the dinner and she picked up that he seemed uneasy. She got it out of him that he had left behind some items in Questa that he would need for the ceremony. "Well, can I take you to buy them?" Mada asked. These were not your average items that could be picked up from any corner convenience store, so after the dinner ended around 7:00 p.m., Mada, Jenn and Lama got on the road to drive out to Questa. At the time, this information was concealed from me - as it would be just another thing to freak out about.
It had been a rainy day and the roads out to Questa are not well-lit. Lama does not drive and his judgment of distances somewhat reflects this. The girls would ask from the front seat every once in awhile, are we almost there yet? Oh yeah, 20 minutes. Forty-five minutes would pass. They'd ask again. Soon the gas gauge started moving towards empty. Is there a gas station around here? Yes, keep driving, another 20 minutes. It's already close to 9 p.m. by now. When they are finally near the turn-off, Lama abruptly announces it and they pull off the main road back into Lama's land. It's pitch dark and the girls are ready to get the stuff and go, but Lama is very proud of his stupa (a very beautiful stupa indeed) and wants to give the girls a tour of the land and he's on his own sense of time. Mada realizes she has to go to the bathroom, but there is no bathroom in Lama's house. So they drive up to the main center, but the building is locked down. Mada is trying hard do not lose her patience or to lose her temper in the presence of Lama. Finally, Mada decides that she has to go, and so she's going to go outside. But the land is sacred and she can't just go anywhere. I think in the end she opted to go near the garden because it seemed slightly "less sacred."
I noticed the girls missing at the after-dinner mixer at Tim's Lost Dog Cantina. My third bridesmaid was there drinking margaritas but the other two were notably absent. I was told that they were feeling tired and went to take a rest. After the mixer, I ran into Kort's brother in the bar of The Bavarian. He'd had a few drinks and when pressed he admitted that Jenn and Mada took the Lama back to Questa. About a 1/2 hour later, close to 9:30 or 10 p.m., the girls showed up and said very little. So it was great to finally get the full-blown story a few weeks ago.
On a recent visit home, I got to sit down with two of the incredible women who were my bridesmaids last year, Mada and Jenn. They have their own fond memories of Lama Chodrak. On the day before the wedding, before rehearsal, we realized that no one had been dispatched to pick up the Lama who needed a ride to get from Questa to Taos Ski Valley. My parents and brother volunteered and left early, since Questa is some distance from the Ski Valley and they would be driving unfamiliar roads. Apparently they arrived earlier than Lama expected, but they packed up my brother's trunk with the barbecue grill for the fire pit, tree branches, a change of clothes and turned right around to get back to the Ski Valley in time for the rehearsal.
We had the rehearsal in the meadow followed by dinner for the families and everyone involved in the ceremony at The Bavarian. Mada sat next to Lama at the dinner and she picked up that he seemed uneasy. She got it out of him that he had left behind some items in Questa that he would need for the ceremony. "Well, can I take you to buy them?" Mada asked. These were not your average items that could be picked up from any corner convenience store, so after the dinner ended around 7:00 p.m., Mada, Jenn and Lama got on the road to drive out to Questa. At the time, this information was concealed from me - as it would be just another thing to freak out about.
It had been a rainy day and the roads out to Questa are not well-lit. Lama does not drive and his judgment of distances somewhat reflects this. The girls would ask from the front seat every once in awhile, are we almost there yet? Oh yeah, 20 minutes. Forty-five minutes would pass. They'd ask again. Soon the gas gauge started moving towards empty. Is there a gas station around here? Yes, keep driving, another 20 minutes. It's already close to 9 p.m. by now. When they are finally near the turn-off, Lama abruptly announces it and they pull off the main road back into Lama's land. It's pitch dark and the girls are ready to get the stuff and go, but Lama is very proud of his stupa (a very beautiful stupa indeed) and wants to give the girls a tour of the land and he's on his own sense of time. Mada realizes she has to go to the bathroom, but there is no bathroom in Lama's house. So they drive up to the main center, but the building is locked down. Mada is trying hard do not lose her patience or to lose her temper in the presence of Lama. Finally, Mada decides that she has to go, and so she's going to go outside. But the land is sacred and she can't just go anywhere. I think in the end she opted to go near the garden because it seemed slightly "less sacred."
I noticed the girls missing at the after-dinner mixer at Tim's Lost Dog Cantina. My third bridesmaid was there drinking margaritas but the other two were notably absent. I was told that they were feeling tired and went to take a rest. After the mixer, I ran into Kort's brother in the bar of The Bavarian. He'd had a few drinks and when pressed he admitted that Jenn and Mada took the Lama back to Questa. About a 1/2 hour later, close to 9:30 or 10 p.m., the girls showed up and said very little. So it was great to finally get the full-blown story a few weeks ago.
Ghee - what is it and what's its medicinal value?
Vedic seers considered milk to be the most sattvic (peace-producing) food for humankind. From this salubrious nourishment, choice butter, buttermilk, yogurt and ghee are made--that is, when the milk's quality has remained pure and untampered with. Throughout the ages, milk has been used widely but not wisely. Because of the corruption prevalent in today's animal husbandry, we are in danger of losing this sacred food of the earth. The cruel practices engaged in minding the animals, as well as the arsenal of poisons, chemicals and hormones which are used in their feed, all contribute to the misery of this beneficent animal, the impairment of her life-sustaining milk and the dimming of her natural Divine Light. But when butter, yogurt and ghee are made from milk produced by conscious organic dairy farmers, they are considered to be our most nourishing and healing foods. Among them, ghee stands out as the elixir for excellent health.
Sushruta, an ancient Ayurvedic seer, regarded ghee as an intelligence-building principle that fosters the body's confidence and virility. Another ancient, Charaka, praises ghee's ability to promote memory and immunity within the body. From the perspective of sadhana, spiritual discipline, ghee is associated with the body's element of love. Its dominant action allows it to soothe our vital tissues. In Ayurveda, ghee is used as a primary vehicle for conveying herbal powders, essences and medicines into affected tissues because it penetrates them and enlivens vital tissue memory, soothing the body, mind and spirit of the patient.
Ghee also builds ojas, the body's primordial immunological force, thereby reducing fatigue and stress while aiding the body to let go of its toxicity. Ghee may be used in cooking to reduce fatigue, emaciation, loss of appetite and stress from time to time throughout the year. Since the nature of ghee is usually peaceful and nourishing, it accommodates all metabolic types, restoring agni, digestive fire, and allowing the body to adjust to its newly attuned state of revitalization.
A few stories may best serve to illustrate the vast healing powers of ghee. Lynn had a severe strep infection in her throat. After one week of gargling with ghee, turmeric and warm water, her throat infection was gone. Eric, who had a chronic case of psoriasis, treated his condition by applying a poultice made from ghee and neem powder. One month later, Eric's skin ailment was completely cured. Gita had suffered from years of nervous exhaustion, constipation and insomnia by the time she came to me for help. Along with dietary help, I recommended a simple tea made from hot water, ghee and triphala which she took for three months every evening after dinner. Her condition is now vastly improved.
For centuries ghee has been used as a remedy during the seasonal junctions when diseases tend to become more prevalent. At the onset of spring, a tablespoon of ghee may be taken with a few pinches of turmeric every morning for a week or so. Similarly, a tablespoon of ghee can be taken for a week at the commencement of summer with a teaspoon of unrefined brown sugar; at the onset of the rainy season combined with a few pinches of rock salt; at the arrival of autumn with a teaspoon of honey and as winter sets in, mixed with a teaspoon of molasses.
Ghee is made by boiling sweet butter, thereby ridding it of enzymes that could encourage bacteria. The quality of the ghee depends on the quality of the butter, as well as the means of making it and how it is stored. Stored in the right conditions, ghee not only lasts a long time, but its medicinal value increases as it ages. Used in small quantity, ghee is ideal for cooking as it does not burn unless heated excessively. It blends with food nutrients without losing its medicinal quality and therefore soothes and nourishes bodily constituents. Ghee is good for persons of all doshas (constitutional types) and is a specific for pitta. It requires no refrigeration, should be kept covered, away from direct sunlight or heat and protected from any contaminants.
Sushruta, an ancient Ayurvedic seer, regarded ghee as an intelligence-building principle that fosters the body's confidence and virility. Another ancient, Charaka, praises ghee's ability to promote memory and immunity within the body. From the perspective of sadhana, spiritual discipline, ghee is associated with the body's element of love. Its dominant action allows it to soothe our vital tissues. In Ayurveda, ghee is used as a primary vehicle for conveying herbal powders, essences and medicines into affected tissues because it penetrates them and enlivens vital tissue memory, soothing the body, mind and spirit of the patient.
Ghee also builds ojas, the body's primordial immunological force, thereby reducing fatigue and stress while aiding the body to let go of its toxicity. Ghee may be used in cooking to reduce fatigue, emaciation, loss of appetite and stress from time to time throughout the year. Since the nature of ghee is usually peaceful and nourishing, it accommodates all metabolic types, restoring agni, digestive fire, and allowing the body to adjust to its newly attuned state of revitalization.
A few stories may best serve to illustrate the vast healing powers of ghee. Lynn had a severe strep infection in her throat. After one week of gargling with ghee, turmeric and warm water, her throat infection was gone. Eric, who had a chronic case of psoriasis, treated his condition by applying a poultice made from ghee and neem powder. One month later, Eric's skin ailment was completely cured. Gita had suffered from years of nervous exhaustion, constipation and insomnia by the time she came to me for help. Along with dietary help, I recommended a simple tea made from hot water, ghee and triphala which she took for three months every evening after dinner. Her condition is now vastly improved.
For centuries ghee has been used as a remedy during the seasonal junctions when diseases tend to become more prevalent. At the onset of spring, a tablespoon of ghee may be taken with a few pinches of turmeric every morning for a week or so. Similarly, a tablespoon of ghee can be taken for a week at the commencement of summer with a teaspoon of unrefined brown sugar; at the onset of the rainy season combined with a few pinches of rock salt; at the arrival of autumn with a teaspoon of honey and as winter sets in, mixed with a teaspoon of molasses.
Ghee is made by boiling sweet butter, thereby ridding it of enzymes that could encourage bacteria. The quality of the ghee depends on the quality of the butter, as well as the means of making it and how it is stored. Stored in the right conditions, ghee not only lasts a long time, but its medicinal value increases as it ages. Used in small quantity, ghee is ideal for cooking as it does not burn unless heated excessively. It blends with food nutrients without losing its medicinal quality and therefore soothes and nourishes bodily constituents. Ghee is good for persons of all doshas (constitutional types) and is a specific for pitta. It requires no refrigeration, should be kept covered, away from direct sunlight or heat and protected from any contaminants.
Monday, July 17, 2006
Pitta
Common characteristics of people who have a predominantly Pitta body type
–Medium physique, strong, well-built
- Sharp mind, good concentration powers
- Orderly, focused
- Assertive, self-confident, and entrepreneurial at their best; aggressive, demanding, pushy when out of balance
- Competitive, enjoy challenges
- Passionate and romantic; sexually have more vigor and endurance than Vatas, but less than Kaphas
- Strong digestion, strong appetite; get irritated if they have to miss or wait for a meal
- Like to be in command
- When under stress, Pittas become irritated and angry
- Skin fair or reddish, often with freckles; sunburns easily
- Hair usually fine and straight, tending toward blond or red, typically turns gray early; tendency toward baldness or thinning hair
- Uncomfortable in sun or hot weather; heat makes them very tired
- Perspire a lot
- Others may find them stubborn, pushy, opinionated
- Good public speakers; also capable of sharp, sarcastic, cutting speech
- Generally good management and leadership ability, but can become authoritarian
- Like to spend money, surround themselves with beautiful objects
- Subject to temper tantrums, impatience, and anger
- Typical physical problems include rashes or inflammations of the skin, acne, boils, skin cancer, ulcers, heartburn, acid stomach, hot sensations in the stomach or intestines, insomnia, bloodshot or burning eyes and other vision problems, anemia, jaundice.
–Medium physique, strong, well-built
- Sharp mind, good concentration powers
- Orderly, focused
- Assertive, self-confident, and entrepreneurial at their best; aggressive, demanding, pushy when out of balance
- Competitive, enjoy challenges
- Passionate and romantic; sexually have more vigor and endurance than Vatas, but less than Kaphas
- Strong digestion, strong appetite; get irritated if they have to miss or wait for a meal
- Like to be in command
- When under stress, Pittas become irritated and angry
- Skin fair or reddish, often with freckles; sunburns easily
- Hair usually fine and straight, tending toward blond or red, typically turns gray early; tendency toward baldness or thinning hair
- Uncomfortable in sun or hot weather; heat makes them very tired
- Perspire a lot
- Others may find them stubborn, pushy, opinionated
- Good public speakers; also capable of sharp, sarcastic, cutting speech
- Generally good management and leadership ability, but can become authoritarian
- Like to spend money, surround themselves with beautiful objects
- Subject to temper tantrums, impatience, and anger
- Typical physical problems include rashes or inflammations of the skin, acne, boils, skin cancer, ulcers, heartburn, acid stomach, hot sensations in the stomach or intestines, insomnia, bloodshot or burning eyes and other vision problems, anemia, jaundice.
Fortitude
Well, Kort and I have made it to week four of the cleanse. I am doing about 90% of the cleanse. I do not qi gong and we heckled the mixed-race couple on the DVD. I have given up sugar, alcohol, wheat, dairy, processed foods and have been taking 10,000 mgs of vitamin C - apparently, scurvy is not just for pirates. I have dropped 10 pounds and developed a series of body pains, rashes, and outbreaks and simultaneous to the cleanse, my yogic therapy/practice of the week is to continue with various postures and breathing exercises and to work on "speaking my truth" to at least one person a day, besides Kort. Which is to say that the Total Life Cleanse is more of a guidelines for sustainable living than a customized Ayurvedic program for the individual which has been disappointing. Ayurvedic body types are like Buddha families, we've got all of them, vatha, pitta and kapha, though individual constitution may be predisposed to one or the other. But you don't treat viruses with bacterial pro-biotics no matter how much you put the doctor on a pedestal and sooner or later you get to a place where your body speaks to you its own inner wisdom and says fuck the rest. I have never in my life eaten meals cooked in butter (ghee) and am suffering through it and excreting ghee from my pores. I did not give up the media in week two, and I have not given it up now - and with the war in Lebanon and Bush trivializing the conflict as "shit," well I'd rather be engaged and aware. Detachment and clarity are key. Anthropology essay number one is written for the Goldsmiths program and I have been hitting the books hard on fieldwork and case studies. In the mean time, I suffer temperature fluctuations, inflammation, intense hunger and fatigue. A friend asked me why I don't quite go to see a western doc, and I said somewhat convincingly this is what detox looks like. Where is the light at the end of the tunnel? Two weeks to go.
Aversion Week
It's Aversion Week here at the Makura No Soshi where we are slamming shots of melted ghee to cleanse fat-soluble toxins from the body as part of Week 4 of the Ayurvedic cleanse. Gag.
Friday, July 14, 2006
I'm Your Man
I'm Your Man
Originally uploaded by shinyu32.
We went to see the Leonard Cohen documentary last night at the DMA. The film needed more Leonard Cohen and more narrative continuity - you come away knowing very little about the man - but there are some really nice moments. Rufus Wainwright, who performs "Everybody Knows", "The Chelsea Hotel", and "Hallelujah" in the film tells a great story about meeting Cohen for the first time, who is also his friend's dad. When Wainwright walks into the apartment, Cohen is in his underwear, cooking a pot of soba noodles and chewing on tiny sausages that he is regurgitating to feed to an injured bird. Then he steps away into the bedroom to get dressed and comes out wearing an Armani suit at which point, Rufus Wainwright bolts to upright attention, recognizing oh my god it's Leonard Cohen. Such a "snappy dresser!"
Before Cohen was a singer, he was a poet. He has been practicing Zen Buddhism for 30 years and lived on Mt. Baldy where he studied and practiced. He became an ordained priest because it was the protocol in order for him to continue studying, and says in a wonderful moment of humor that he became a priest because he had to and he hated everybody but no body knew because he was generous to everyone.
Brief Encounters with Che Guevara
Wednesday, July 12, 2006
Drawing Restraint
Drawing Restraint
Originally uploaded by shinyu32.
At the beginning of my cleanse week on violence/media saturation two weekends ago, I happened to go to a viewing of Matthew Barney's new film at The Fort Worth Modern. Not the best idea - the film was filled with graphic images of cannibalism and human dissection. That aside, the build up to those moments was aesthetically fascinating.
There is an interesting tea ceremony staged on board a whaling vessel where Barney and Bjork are served thick tea by the ship's captain. The implements include a "scoop" fashioned from a nautilus shell, a tea caddy made from a sea anemone, and a whisk which is an improvised sea shell with spines. The tea bowl is a strange whitish form that looked less like a sea shell and more like a Barney sculpture. Barney addresses the captain in English and he answers in Japanese. Bjork speaks to the captain in Japanese. At the point where there is haiken, Barney asks about the "vessel" and gets instead of an elaboration on the tea vessel, an explication on the ship itself and the lump of ambergris (whale vomit) that has recently passed thru a whale and been brought on board.
There were moments in the film where it was like watching a music video - images of nymph-like divers with pearls dripping from their mouths, a woman playing an oddly shaped instrument, Bjork waiting to be picked up by a boat, while wearing a red cape with fuzzy balls sewn along the hemline. Barney looking somewhat romantic and Russian in a car-length fur-like coat and...blue jeans. I think they were Levi's. He gets his hair shaved by a crew member in an interesting scene where he is taking a nap, awakening to find an opened beer can next to him.
Monday, July 10, 2006
Southwest Writers and Artists Festival
New lit fest in Texas to premiere in October: The Southwest Writers and Artists Festival. Events will take place from October 24-26. The college will be bringing in Lorna Dee Cervantes, Nathaniel Tarn (!!!), and other writers of note. I'll be there presenting as well....
Sunday, July 09, 2006
Weekend Roadtrip to San Antonio
I read here on Friday night and taught a day-long workshop on Saturday. Attendance for the Friday reading was excellent - we had what seemed like well over 50 people packed into the colorful reading space at Gemini Ink at 513. S. Presa. The Saturday class went well and the students were an engaging and talented bunch. Two women came down all the way from Austin. Several of the students were alums of workshops at Gemini and two of the students, if I remember right, already had their MFAs.
San Antonio was hot and steamy and there were 40,000 to 60,000 additional people in town for a Christian youth conference at the convention center, many of whom were staying at our hotel. It was crowded and noisy and not the best weekend to be in S.A., but the town is incredibly charming.
On the way back, we stopped in the town of Italy, Texas, just outside of Waxahachie. We've apparently driven past this town on several occasions, but I'd always been asleep. Off Interstate 35W, there are these strange dome-like structures that seem to be used for storage and/or studio space. Several are lined up together to form a multi-color giant caterpillar which is painted with boots on the side facing the highway.
And right before you get to the monolithic caterpillar, you first run into the Pegasus Starship, a knock-off of the Starship Enterprise which also doubles as a mini-golf park - super mini - as in about 3 holes.
It was very difficult to tell whether or not the project had been abandoned. As we pulled up, I snapped a shot of the graffiti.
Thursday, July 06, 2006
Lit Fest
I'm reading in the San Antonio City Vision/Urban Words fest tomorrow sponsored by Gemini Ink. Stop by San Antone and say hello if you are in the neighborhood.
Wednesday, July 05, 2006
Cleanse report
Well, I've hit some roadblocks this week with the Total Life Cleanse. The media ban is not really working for me. I am a news junkie and I work at the newspaper. There were many years where I proudly did NOT own or watch television, read news on the Internet, or read the newspaper. I was out of the loop. I didn't even own a cell phone. And all that changed with 9-11. I was out of work in Boston, we'd just moved East, and I went down to the Harvard employment office where the facilities were shut tight and flyers were up on the glass doors with a note that said in respect for what had happened in New York, everyone had gone home. Kort got the news at NESA, where he and his peers watched the news unfold in the student lounge. We went out that afternoon to The Phoenix on Central Ave. in Cambridge and watched the big-screen television for several hours, watching the same images over and over again.
For me, the greater challenge may be giving up reading the emotional train-wreck of some blogs and websites like Smoking Gun or Crime Library which feed Sedaris-esque neuroses about sex offenders and murderers lurking on every street corner and under my nose - hide that butcher knife on the kitchen counter! That will be an essay for a collection of essays some day. I think of the older man I dated in Chicago who kept a rotting cow's skull in a plastic bag, had a walk-in closet dedicated to his cat's defecation on the carpet, rotting food in the fridge, maggots on the carpet, and more trash and mess than a Mormon family of 7 kids in Riverside.
Despite the media ban, part of this week's homework was to read articles on the environment, pollution, genetically-modified foods, chemicals in computer keyboards such as the one I type on, etc. The lack of balance in terms of what comes into one's field of experience, untempered by any practice, has made the cleanse difficult to sustain. Add to that a right speech clause in our assignments and I find myself saying more than ever phrases like "I hate..." and "....is stupid" and swearing like a sailor. An angry liver or cleanse detox, I'm learning that I don' t like to have my experience of language controlled.
For me, the greater challenge may be giving up reading the emotional train-wreck of some blogs and websites like Smoking Gun or Crime Library which feed Sedaris-esque neuroses about sex offenders and murderers lurking on every street corner and under my nose - hide that butcher knife on the kitchen counter! That will be an essay for a collection of essays some day. I think of the older man I dated in Chicago who kept a rotting cow's skull in a plastic bag, had a walk-in closet dedicated to his cat's defecation on the carpet, rotting food in the fridge, maggots on the carpet, and more trash and mess than a Mormon family of 7 kids in Riverside.
Despite the media ban, part of this week's homework was to read articles on the environment, pollution, genetically-modified foods, chemicals in computer keyboards such as the one I type on, etc. The lack of balance in terms of what comes into one's field of experience, untempered by any practice, has made the cleanse difficult to sustain. Add to that a right speech clause in our assignments and I find myself saying more than ever phrases like "I hate..." and "....is stupid" and swearing like a sailor. An angry liver or cleanse detox, I'm learning that I don' t like to have my experience of language controlled.
Thursday, June 29, 2006
The new game in town
Dallas has plans for a new artist residency program called La Reunion. Read the blog here. It has nothing to do with UT Dallas or Southside on Lamar and is taking the steps to become a non-profit. The organization has also received a donation of 35 wooded acres of land on which to house the program. Sounds like some smart leadership. Learn from the mistakes of the Southside Program!
Monday, June 26, 2006
The Total Life Cleanse
June 24 marked the start of a 9-week cleanse under the supervision of Dr. Kevin Gregg, an Ayurvedic healer with Boston roots. Kort and I are doing the cleanse together. Join us at the frontiers of health and read about our experiences here.
We will be eliminating wheat, sugar, nightshade, red meat, fish, processed food, dairy, chemicals and a long list of items from our day-to-day experience.
We will be getting up at 6 a.m. every morning, drinking protein shakes, taking supplements, going for walks to start and end the day, journaling, doing volunteer work, cooking and trying not to step on each other's toes while getting some clarity. Goodbye to the old life.
Infrequent blogging for the next few weeks at the Makura No Soshi.
We will be eliminating wheat, sugar, nightshade, red meat, fish, processed food, dairy, chemicals and a long list of items from our day-to-day experience.
We will be getting up at 6 a.m. every morning, drinking protein shakes, taking supplements, going for walks to start and end the day, journaling, doing volunteer work, cooking and trying not to step on each other's toes while getting some clarity. Goodbye to the old life.
Infrequent blogging for the next few weeks at the Makura No Soshi.
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
Darlene sang several songs at Bob's memorial.
The stage was decorated with several artworks commemorating El Bob.
Portrait of Bob as a young man.
His closest friends walked in the processional carrying box assemblages that Bob made over his lifetime. They were placed in front of the podium on a small altar-like table, along with several of his books.
Big Game Hunter of the Heart
Robert Marshall Trammell's memorial was held yesterday at Winfrey Point at White Rock Lake. More than it being a somber event, the mood was very celebratory. The program was officiated by a Christian minister who went to great lengths to make it a non-denominational address that would include everyone in attendance. The stage was set with a huge painted portrait of Bob with braids and a knapsack, while in the background, there was a screenprinted canvas in red with a portrait of "El Bob" as Che Guevara.
Karen X didn't get her gospel choir, but several people did sing during the program. Novelist David Searcy who met Bob when both were studying at SMU, talked about Bob's importance as a LOCAL vs. a REGIONAL writer. Bob wrote about the plants in his garden, and the cicadas in Texas, and the history of Jack Ruby and he was very much here, up until the final moments. And when David arrived at the house on Mecca minutes after Bob had passed and gazed down on Bob's body which had been cleaned and dressed, his hair braided with flowers in it and his hands folded over his chest, David knew that Bob had arrived at SINGULARITY. David's delivery had an urgent fire to it, Keroauckian in its delivery and abrupt in its cut-off in the way that Bob would just end a poem before you expected it. Ben Fountain, a local short-story writer spoke of how Bob had mentored him and the challenges of working outside the academic institutions. Yet Bob achieved recognition and respect both in and outside of the academe, and instilled young writers with the confidence to pursue whatever path they need to. Michael, aka "Mr. Natural" aka the "Barefoot Poet" affirmed this after the memorial as well. Two relatives, Bob's brother-in-law and his father-in-law shared funny stories. Bob's brother-in-law met him in childhood and eventually married Bob's sister. He told a story about going to public school in Dallas in the days before air-conditioning. The windows opened wide in the schoolroom, while the teacher stepped away, Bob positioned himself at the bottom of the window sprawled out and told his friend to tell the teacher that he had jumped. He got suspended 10 days for that prank. Bob's ex-wife told a story about Bob's time in prison - 1967 - in possession of a penny matchbox full of marijuana, Bob received a felony conviction and served for a year in jail where he taught the inmates English. It was a very touching story. Thruout the memorial, attendees were encouraged to introduce themselves to others to tell each other how they had met Bob and to share stories. There were people in attendance from Bob's high school, his family, his wife's family, WordSpace, The Dallas Institute, the Writer's Garrett. Pretty amazing. The program concluded with a singing of a hymn about a sheep finding his way home to the lord. The way the lyrics and chorus were laid out on the page, I had trouble figuring out when to sing what. My friend Karen and I tried to figure it out, but we were just lost lambs.
After the memorial, Kort and I manned the bar where I got a crash course in operating a beer keg (pour out the first few glasses of frothy stuff, and when the hose runs low - remember to pump!) while cracking corks and making a general mess. Yet I wouldn't have been comfortable anywhere else. Short of 6:30, I headed on to the deck for the flyover - the family planned an airplane to scatter Bob's ashes over Whiterock Lake. They were supposed to cell phone the widow, but it never happened, though a plane was seen retreating in the blue sky. Those who were on the deck, report seeing the drop. The minister made a statement about how Bob surprised us yet again.
I have been to two death rituals in my life - the last one before Bob's a funeral when I was in high school for a friend who was killed by a drunk driver. I have to say, Bob's memorial was a wonderfully celebratory and uplifting experience, something to be remembered for a long time.
Karen X didn't get her gospel choir, but several people did sing during the program. Novelist David Searcy who met Bob when both were studying at SMU, talked about Bob's importance as a LOCAL vs. a REGIONAL writer. Bob wrote about the plants in his garden, and the cicadas in Texas, and the history of Jack Ruby and he was very much here, up until the final moments. And when David arrived at the house on Mecca minutes after Bob had passed and gazed down on Bob's body which had been cleaned and dressed, his hair braided with flowers in it and his hands folded over his chest, David knew that Bob had arrived at SINGULARITY. David's delivery had an urgent fire to it, Keroauckian in its delivery and abrupt in its cut-off in the way that Bob would just end a poem before you expected it. Ben Fountain, a local short-story writer spoke of how Bob had mentored him and the challenges of working outside the academic institutions. Yet Bob achieved recognition and respect both in and outside of the academe, and instilled young writers with the confidence to pursue whatever path they need to. Michael, aka "Mr. Natural" aka the "Barefoot Poet" affirmed this after the memorial as well. Two relatives, Bob's brother-in-law and his father-in-law shared funny stories. Bob's brother-in-law met him in childhood and eventually married Bob's sister. He told a story about going to public school in Dallas in the days before air-conditioning. The windows opened wide in the schoolroom, while the teacher stepped away, Bob positioned himself at the bottom of the window sprawled out and told his friend to tell the teacher that he had jumped. He got suspended 10 days for that prank. Bob's ex-wife told a story about Bob's time in prison - 1967 - in possession of a penny matchbox full of marijuana, Bob received a felony conviction and served for a year in jail where he taught the inmates English. It was a very touching story. Thruout the memorial, attendees were encouraged to introduce themselves to others to tell each other how they had met Bob and to share stories. There were people in attendance from Bob's high school, his family, his wife's family, WordSpace, The Dallas Institute, the Writer's Garrett. Pretty amazing. The program concluded with a singing of a hymn about a sheep finding his way home to the lord. The way the lyrics and chorus were laid out on the page, I had trouble figuring out when to sing what. My friend Karen and I tried to figure it out, but we were just lost lambs.
After the memorial, Kort and I manned the bar where I got a crash course in operating a beer keg (pour out the first few glasses of frothy stuff, and when the hose runs low - remember to pump!) while cracking corks and making a general mess. Yet I wouldn't have been comfortable anywhere else. Short of 6:30, I headed on to the deck for the flyover - the family planned an airplane to scatter Bob's ashes over Whiterock Lake. They were supposed to cell phone the widow, but it never happened, though a plane was seen retreating in the blue sky. Those who were on the deck, report seeing the drop. The minister made a statement about how Bob surprised us yet again.
I have been to two death rituals in my life - the last one before Bob's a funeral when I was in high school for a friend who was killed by a drunk driver. I have to say, Bob's memorial was a wonderfully celebratory and uplifting experience, something to be remembered for a long time.
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