Much needed updates...

have been uploaded for the Readings (next one 10/16 at the Ear Inn), Current, and About pages here at me dot com (see nav bar above for links). Actually, I'd like to do a complete redesign on the site, but I don't have time for that right now, alas.



Handing back Maggie Nelson's forthcoming Soft Skull book JANE: An investigation in poems today. Wowee.

Next up: Jerome Sala's Look Slimmer Instantly! & Jen Benka's Preamble.

CAConrad just turned in his revised MS for his forthcoming Deviant Propulsion, too.

Ron Palmer's Logicalogics is also in the hopper.

I can't help it; I'm excited.

The Wired blurb is now online, and it's also been added to the Soft Skull info page. (Though that's still the wrong cover.)



Should get the proofs today. Woohoo.

Oh poets, the sought-after Laurel...

may be found just slightly to the left of her usual digs. I panicked and wrote to ask where she'd gone! She's here. Update your links, yo.

Things to Think About...

Well, at least this wasn't going on during my part of the reading.



I hope. She really did say "mastadon," though.

Texas tour part 1: The Big Thicket & Luckenbach

From the educational film playing at the Big Thicket National Reserve Visitor Center, Kountze, TX. (The BTNP was America's first national preserve, you know. Lots of great B&W photos exhibited in their current show, including some of the so-called "Dog People." Perhaps more about the Big Thicket later.)









A carnivorous pitcher plant feasting on love bugs. Love bugs are almost always stuck together in pairs--like mating dragonflies.









A shot from the outdoor service window into the bar at Luckenbach, TX. Yes, that Luckenbach. It was open mic night. Mostly music--oh, that music--but the guy on the far left in the cowboy hat was actually a poet. He did a bit about his ex-wife. Very C&W.









The empty dancehall across the road at Luckenbach. It was a Tuesday night.



Are these too small?



Next up: A virtual tour of Enchanted Rock State Park, plus a trip to the Chinati Foundation in Marfa, TX, where Donald Judd and minimalist sculpture are the basis of the local economy.

Mark L. has twice your power!

See here.

Erica's new boss's new collection

Might we see some eventual Smurf poems!?

Last night...

Despite my somewhat froggy voice (which Ada & Meghan generously described as sexy), I managed not to cough during my reading and read some new poems including my contribution to Shafer Hall's Operation Tiger, plus a few from each chapbook. And Marie Ponsot is the coolest. She gave a mesmerizing reading, complete with a poem about the ritual lopping off of male genitalia, which had Susanne in stitches and Chris in a panic. She says "dactyl" is not only a metrical foot but also another name for a maenad--who'd a thunk it? She called us "children" when she mentioned she started school in 1926 (?) and wrote a certain poem in 1950. She sported a button that said "STILL AGAINST THE WAR." I want to grow up to be just like her.



Here's a report from Daniel Nester, with photos.



Dan also coerced a couple of post reading audio reviews from kindly cohorts. Here and here.



It was lovely to see Jen & Ada after weeks of being cooped up in my office, and Maureen, and Susanne, and Dan, and Chris, and Sean, and Jordan, and Meghan, and [expurgated]. Thanks for coming out, y'all. It's so damn nice to read to a room full of friends.

First GAMERS review in from Wired!

"With ample reverence for the Atari 2600 era, this collection of personal essays tracks the cultural and historical significance of video games. Among the highlights: Mark Lamoureux's article comparing the introduction of 3-D in games to the discovery of perspective by Renaissance painters, and Laurel Snyder's tell-all in which she admits to playing Tetris in her head while having sex. That way, she scores twice." --Shana Ting Lipton, Wired, October 2004



The issue may not be on stands yet, but will hit soon. Eventually it will also go up online, I think. Congrats to Laurel & Mark!

a.k.a. Sarah...

at least, according to NYPress. But a listing's a listing. Rock.

Request hotline

Going over the MSS trying to pick out what to read this evening. I could read all new stuff. I've read a lot from the Spookies & Confettis lately. Trying to remember what I did at the last couple of readings (Wordsworth, 11th Street Bar, Poetry Project) so I don't bore the regulars. (And how much do I love the regulars? Thanks, y'all.)



Which poems of mine would sound best delivered by a frog?



Because that's what I still sound like.

Audio ad...

for GSMQII and GAMERS, courtesy of Todd Rogers.



Catching up with Dan's audioblogged notes from the tour!

Darling friends in the blogosphere...

how I have missed you.



I finally finally finally signed off on GAMERS Sunday morning and the French Canadians are printing it NOW. Finished copies in about a month and the web page(s) very soon. I pulled a near all-nighter last Thursday before we left and had to take the last bit with me. So it felt supreme brilliant superlative exclamation to send off the index of games to trusty Charlie, who as usual filled in for me in the pinchiest pinch. (Julia Child--my hero, as you know--always indexed her own books, too. Still loving her through the biography, the only reading I did on the trip besides highway maps and museum prose.)



Dan's book tour seems to be going well. Rock on, D!



A report from our trip to follow, illustrated by some photos. Let me prepare you by saying the quality of the trip I enjoyed most next to Family was Light. Texas possesses light and sky like no other state nor place.



Please, won't you come say hello tomorrow at Pete's Candy Store? Blessed is the sniffly me with outgoing cold and croaky voice that gets to read with Marie Ponsot! Info here.

Frequency on Sunday!

Frequency this week will feature Quinn Latimer and Anselm Berrigan. Wow!



The Four Faced Liar

Sunday, 9/26, 2:30 PM

165 W. 4th St. & 6th Ave.



(And we're flying back from TX tomorrow, so we might just see you there!)

Howdy from the road:

Real post later, with photos, but for now, a little reminder from Jen & Ada about next Monday's reading with me & Marie Ponsot!



"Don't miss next Monday 9/27 at 7:30 when

Pete's Big Salmon welcomes fan-tan-bu-loso poetesses

Marie Ponsot and Shanna Compton.

 

Marie Ponsot has published numerous works,

including SPRINGING and THE BIRD CATCHER

which won the National Book Critics Circle Award.

Among her awards are a grant from the

National Endowment for the Arts,

the Delmore Schwartz Memorial Prize,

and the Shaughnessy Medal of the Modern Language

Association. She teaches at Columbia University.



Shanna Compton is the editor of LIT

and the Associate Publisher of Soft Skull Press.

Her poems have appeared or are forthcoming

 in canwehaveourballback, Eye-Rhyme, McSweeney's,

Nerve, Gastronomica, Painted Bride Quarterly,

Pindeldyboz, CROWD, BOOG City, Skid Row

Penthouse, Good Foot, and elsewhere.



All readings are FREE.  Pete's Big Salmon

takes place at Pete's Candy Store in Williamsburg,

Brooklyn.  790 Lorimer btw Frost and Richardson.

take the G or the L.  Click here for a great map:

http://www.petescandystore.com/pete%27s_map.html



Visit our website for fun stuff

You'll be glad you did!"

Daniel Nester tonight at the Brooklyn Brewery!

A little reminder from Dan:



This will be my last reading in New York for some time, and the last of my

"GSMQII launch events." I hope you can come! Your presence will be

appreciated.



Thursday, September 16 2004

7:00 P.M. - 9:00 P.M.



Joint Soft Skull/Akashic Bonanza at the Brooklyn Brewery with Derek

McCormack, Daniel Nester and Joe Meno!



Brooklyn Brewery

Brewers Row

79 N. 11th St. (b/t Berry & Wythe )

Brooklyn NY, 11211

tel: 718-486-7422

How Much Is That Hipster in the Window?

Go see Vincie today.

Laugh-outloud funny

Kenneth Koch & Allen Ginsberg improvising a Popeye ballad.



Oh, ho ho. I'm going to get kicked out of my cubicle.

Three-Week Countdown

The last day to register to vote in the general election is Tuesday, October 5, 2004. That's three weeks from yesterday.



I'm sure all you good people are registered, but do you know someone who might not be? A younger sibling, perhaps? A friend traveling abroad? Or somebody who's recently moved to a new state?



These folks should be encouraged to make arrangements now to either get registered, upate their registration address, or request absentee ballots, before it's too late.



Why not email them this link: http://rockthevote.org/

And here's a link for New Yorkers: http://www.vote.nyc.ny.us/register.jsp

WANTED: THOMAS KELLY

Have you seen this man?

Last known location: Newark Airport, headed for Ireland, Wednesday, September 8.

Interested parties offering cash reward for capture of his missing Gamers essay.



Please forward tips to shanna at softskull dot com.

Anonymity guaranteed. No questions asked.



UPDATE: Thank you for your attention. Mr. Kelly has been FOUND. We expect to secure capture of his essay by tomorrow A.M., latest.

Today's observation

Writing copy for Lladro porcelain figurines with names like "Flowers for Mommy" on only a few hours of sleep and listening to Ubu web sound poetry is...weird.

What we learned yesterday

1. Ubu web sound poetry archives at work are GREAT!



2. Do not, under any circumstances, take the L train to Williamsburg. If you must go to Williamsburg, take the 7 to the G, for the safety of your supremely annoying fellow passengers.



3. Charles Bernstein sways his hips when he reads! And the mojito is his cocktail of choice.



4. Charles Bernstein's 1987 book The Sophist has just been rereleased by Salt Publishing.



5. Irish-American novelists are as "elusive as leprechauns."



And what we learned this morning:



Do not get up at 5:00 and work for 7 hours before showing up for your freelance gig. Sleepytime.

I can't believe I have neglected to mention...

Charles Bernstein & Sarah Gambito

reading at Pete's Big Salmon tonight!



Whoa!



See you there!



More info here.

More trembling, more shining

Jordan Davis reviews Todd Colby's Tremble & Shine at Constant Critic.



Long may you both continue to rock, gentlemen.

A poem a day from me...

this week at No Tell Motel.



And while you're there, be sure to poke through the archives, too!

Frequency this week is SATURDAY (not Sunday)!

Why? Because Shafer Hall is a righteous freak.



Here are the details, straight from the man himself:



"Frequency Reading on Saturday at 2:30 will feature Michael Schiavo, Aaron Kiely, and Chris Martin. That'll be 2:30PM at 165 W. 4th."



Allow me to add that all three of these gentlmen are just plain swell. Join us, won't you?



The commander of Operation Tiger continues with this bit of self-promotion:



"A Saturday night show at Pete's Candy Store will feature the music of Sharron and Ben Murphy and readings by myself and special guests."

I did post once today, earlier.

But Blogger ate it. And then I got busy.



The lovely Marion Wrenn wrote to let me know that last night when I was watching Ben Barnes and Dan Rather tear new anatomically correct holes in the Unelected Idjit's nonservice record, I could have been watching this!



(I mean, how much more do I really need to know about W. Dislike firmly established, going back to his overthrow of motorcycle mama Ann Richards back in the day. If 60 Minutes can firmly establish everyone else's dislike that would be some doing. Digressing.)



If you, like me, missed The Video Game Revolution, never fear. It airs again at 1:00 AM Saturday 9/11 on PBS Thirteen here in New York. That's late Friday night.



But then it's game over.

Congrats to Dan...

on his totally rocking reading last night at KGB and for some pretty dang hot guitar-playing backing up Gene at the Four-Faced Liar afterward. Man, I wish I'd taken my camera. A sex shop called the Pink Pussycat (or something) nextdoor had a erotic gear display featuring old LPs--and yes, Queen was among them! (We have to get your pic in front of that window, D.)



Anyway, God Save My Queen II and its author were properly feted and the book should be in a store near you in a week or two!



UPDATE: For those of you who missed the show last night, be sure to catch Dan on Sunday at Magnetic Fields. This one's a Voice's Choice! Rock on.

Have missed...

my GAMERS deadline twice now, but am getting closer. The final kinks with art and layout and the couple of straggling contributors slowly resolving.



Richard says editing an anthology of original commissioned material is like herding cats! Gotta agree.



Apologies to everyone I owe an email or personal appearance. Should be back on track after this weekend.



UPDATE: Drew writes in to say that perhaps I should revise the title to "Cats Talking About Video Games: herded by Shanna Compton." Heh heh. Perhaps I should say I adore cats. And there are actually only two cats in particular who are resisting herding, both good friends, so I was just ribbing them a little, yanking their tails.



Here, kitty kitty!

Four poems up at Unpleasant Event Schedule!

Party with Daniel Nester tonight!

Daniel Nester reads with Jacob Slichter & contribs to Kill Your Idols

KGB Bar

85 E. 4th Street

at 7:00 P.M.



...then...



Release party for Daniel Nester's God Save My Queen II: The Show Must Go On!

The Four-Faced Liar

165 W. 4th Street

9:00 P.M.



With music by Gene Cawley, free food, cash bar!

FREQUENCY Series starts this Sunday!

UPDATE: Eric Baus is also reading! (Thanks, Noah.)



Gina Myers, Edmund Berrigan & Eric Baus kick off the new season of the Frequency Series at the Four-Faced Liar, this Sunday at 2:30 p.m.



Use your long weekend wisely and be there!



Four-Faced Liar

165 W. 4th Street

New York, NY

FREE!



Take the A/C or F/V to West 4th Street.



Here's a poem by Gina in Shampoo.



And here's a poem by Edmund in Lungfull!



And some by Eric from canwehaveourballback?



(Frequent poetry is best.)

Trembling & Shining with Todd Colby

Eileen Tabios enthuses about Todd Colby's new book Tremble & Shine at the Chatelaine's Poetics! (Thanks, Eileen. So glad you like it!)



You can get it here or here or here.



Groovy!

I keep telling you people that Charlie is brilliant.

Are you listening...

to Dan's audblog posts?

Poetry Tag: Playing catch-up?

Laurel tagged me.

I tagged Chris Murray, Chris Rizzo & Mark Lamoureaux.

Chris Murray tagged Allen Brahmall, Michael aka Graywyvern, Jill Jones, Steve Tills & tagged me again.

Chris Rizzo tagged David Hess & [expurgated].

Jill Jones tagged Clayton Couch & Mark Young.



Who, oh rag-tag poets, will be next?

You know what?

I am sick of this damn convention and I'm sure you are too. Therefore, the last several posts have been deleted.