Watching the Stars Bleed (& Po-Events 7/24-30)

First, the fix-its. This poem was posted last week, but due to some e-mail confusions, half of it was left off. I've posted it here in its entirety:

FENCED IN
—Dawn DiBartolo, Sacramento

i fenced the hours
but minutes trickled thru

sticky puddles like
waffle syrup

to carefully crafted crevices —
space reserved for my

dripping / drizzling
the screaming, screaming

~ fragments of day:

morning shower steam
makes me cough;

coffee dribbles hitler's face
to khaki colored skirt front;

keyboard tick-tick-ticking
in the far corners
of mundane;

traffic lights with obscure colors
and audio singing
"we shall overcome".

undone, i am
naked in the blazing sun,

a swinging wind chime
of fragile glass,

see thru for all who pass
without ever hearing my tune.

_______________________

Thanks, Dawn—A heat poem! For everyone else: be sure your poems are clearly separated when you send them anywhere via e-mail—little asterisks, maybe, or a long, straight line. Extra space is not enough; I've had several come through lately where confusion was possible.

Here is another one by Dawn:

DIFFERENT DENIALS
—Dawn DiBartolo, Sacramento

the gathering
seemed far less
personal than previous
years, everyone
swallowing smoke
and useless expressions.

forced by the weight
of her cross, she bled
uncontrollable once the
walls thinned, unable
to define her religion
even when given
the freedom to do so.

he sat outside of earshot
straining not to believe
that time was ending —
even as he watched
the stars bleed.

and even when she came
to him in darkness,
he forewent depth
for the surface sky,
stretching up his aged arms,
futilely bracing against
its imminent descent.

_______________________

While I'm errata-ing:

A couple of weeks ago, I said that the 20th Annual Focus on Writers Contest, sponsored by the Friends of the Sacramento Public Library, has a deadline of August 1. Actually, the deadline is August 15, so you have more time than you thought—but don't fritter it away! Get those poems in now, while you're thinking about it. Awards in each category (short story; first chapter of a novel; poetry; non-fiction article or first chapter; book/article for children; first chapter of book for young adults) are $250 for 1st, $150 for 2nd, $75 for 3rd. Info/rules: 916-264-2880 or www.saclibrary.org (click on Friends, then on Focus on Writers), or watch for one of the yellow flyers around town, including at The Book Collector.

Also August 15:

August 15 is the (postmark) deadline to enter The Ina Coolbrith Circle’s 87th Annual Poetry Contest. Their rules are very exact, so you need to get a copy of them; write to me and I’ll send them to you. For more information about The Ina Coolbrith Circle itself, try www.coolpoetry.com. ICC is an ancient, venerable society of poets...

Submissions for the second issue of Hardpan, the new journal centered in the Modesto area, are also due Aug. 15. No line limit. Open subject. e or snail mail: hardpanpoetry@sbcglobal.net ....or P.O. Box 1065, Modesto 95353.

Newlyweds Susan and Joe Finkleman:

This dynamic poetry/art duo invite you to sample their new website, visionsandviews.com, with visuals and audios of their two-person poetry, coming events, and other art and photography. Susan and Joe will be putting out a book for Rattlesnake Press in December.

This Week (as the Heat Goes On—115° in Stockton! Redding! Modesto! Distract Yourself With Poetry!):

•••Tonight (Monday, 7/24), 7:30 PM: Sacramento Poetry Center presents Christian Kiefer. Kiefer's latest book of poems is Feeding into the Winter from March Street Press, but other work more representative of his current output can be found at http://www.blackbird.vcu.edu/v2n2/poetry/kiefer_c/walk.htm. He is finishing up his Ph.D. in American Literature at UC Davis, and he keeps a blog [http://xiankiefer.blogspot.com] to record his musings about the music and recording business, including his lively Crowtown podcast. He has released two albums this year: The Black Dove with Sharon Kraus, and a solo project, Czar Nicholas is Dead. Both have MP3 tracks available at his Christian Kiefer website [http://www.christiankiefer.com]. Later this year, he plans to release a psychedelic-folk guitar freak-out with Tom Carter called A Rather Solemn Promise, and he expects several other projects to be released next year. Host: Tim Kahl. SPC/HQ for the Arts, 25th & R Sts., Sac. Info: 451-5569. Free. Open Mic. [Note: I hear that SPC has done something about the air conditioning "situation"!]

•••Wednesday (7/26), 6-7 PM: Hidden Passage Poetry Reading at Hidden Passage Books, 352 Main St. in Placerville. It's an open-mic read-around, so bring your own poems or those of a favorite poet to share, or just come to listen.

•••Thursday (7/27), 8 PM: Poetry Unplugged features Mario Ellis Hill, Terrill & Eric. Open mic before/after. Luna’s Café, 1414 16th St., Sac. Info: 441-3931 or www.lunascafe.com.

•••Thursday, 8 PM: Vibe Sessions Neo-Soul Lounge with Flo-Real, guests and open mic. The Cobbler Soul Food Restaurant, 3520 Stockton, Blvd., Sac. $5. 916-613-0776.

•••Also Thursday (7/27): If you missed the SF reading by Robert Hass, Harryette Mullen, Sharon Olds, C.D. Wright, and Dean Young last Friday, they will read together again, this time at Olympic Village Lodge in Squaw Valley (1901 Chamonix Place), 8:15 PM. $5, $10. Info: 530-581-5200.

•••The 72-hour Java City Poetry Marathon, which will feature poetry readings 24 hours a day for three days, starts this Friday, July 28 at noon and runs 24 hours/day through Saturday, Sunday, ending at noon on Monday, July 31. Java City (18th & Capitol, Sac.). Info: 452-5493. (The Sacramento Bee printed a jaunty picture of Host B.L. Kennedy in yesterday's Sunday "Ticket" section, page 3.)

•••Saturday, 7/29, 7-9 PM: “The Show” Poetry Series features Michelle Ala Chappelle, Lee Knight Jr. from Palo Alto (2005 King of the Mic Champion), Claudia Epperson from Modesto. Wo’se Community Center, 2863 35th St., Sac. (off 35th & Broadway). $5. Info: 916-455-POET.

And Then There Are the Mirrors:

You have until midnight on Tuesday (7/25) to send in your own poems about mirrors and get a free poetry surprise in the mail! Send them to kathykieth@hotmail.com, or (postmarked) P.O. Box 1647, Orangevale, CA 95662. Here are two of the ones we've received so far:

MIRRORS
—Jane Blue, Sacramento

The mirror in my childhood bedroom
tucked in a corner. The mirror
of the Haunted House ride at Disneyland,
someone you didn’t expect
grimacing by your shoulder.
The mirror of my history.
Why should I live elsewhere?
You write and discover. The mirror
of discovery. Once in the town of Willows
I saw the mirror of blooming almond orchards.
Foothills in summer, baked brown, the absorbent
shimmer of insignificant plants.
The Scarlet Pimpernel.
When I first learned its name, that tiny weed
astonished me. I’d seen the movie,
but the plant was nothing! No hero. To me
even the invading star thistle is beautiful—
heathery purple oldgrowth
like a dry sea in the hills.
A dry snow that occurs only in California.
It’s cold again, an arctic wind blowing down.
The months mean little to me any more.
They are mirrors of other months.
Honeybees have survived an epidemic
of parasites. That means I can grow zucchini
if this rain ever stops.

_______________________

Thanks, Jane! (I think you can plant that zucchini now...) Jane says: I just wrote a wonderful poem about mirrors while I was falling asleep. Of course, I couldn't retrieve it. I've just read a very good biography of Borges, who was fascinated by and actually afraid of mirrors. I'll be reading at 6 PM Saturday in the Java City marathon.

That gives me an idea: Send me the time(s) when you'll be reading at the Marathon, and I'll post them so other folks can come hear you. I'll be reading Monday morning at 9 (I know—yikes!), followed by Joyce Odam and Laverne and Carol Frith.

_______________________

THE CALM OF A MIRROR
—Jeanine Stevens, Sacramento

so often deceives.
It frightens to know
my image is smaller
than what I see.
Two black specs,
minute spiders
float at the edge
of each iris, chipped
imperfections eating
their way out—
growing larger with time.
This flaw, hardly
noticed in summer,
by winter screams
“don’t wear black,”
it reveals creases.
By evening, old
Sycamores cast round
shapes on soft lamps,
furrows disappear
behind walls,
firelight neutralizes
smoke etched mirrors,
and hairline cracks recede
into bone white china.

_______________________

Thanks, Jeanine! More mirror poems from the rest of you tomorrow.

Stay cool!

—Medusa

Medusa encourages poets of all ilk and ages to send their poetry and announcements of Northern California poetry events to kathykieth@hotmail.com for posting on this daily Snake blog. Rights remain with the poets. Previously-published poems are okay for Medusa’s Kitchen, as long as you own the rights. (Please cite publication.)