ON WHAT I HAVE KNOWN FOR A LONG TIME
—Ferida Durakovic
The bells sound and resound.
At the door of the house the years
stand and patiently wait
for the rooms to be emptied,
for the floors to wear out and the fire
to go out and the cockerel clocks to stop.
Lulled to sleep
on my mother's shoulders to the smell of vanilla,
the piteous angels forget their terrible task.
On the shelves there is always a supper waiting,
in her hands there is always some warmth.
Sometimes, after the wars,
I am back here to stay
and I know:
every single day,
every single moment,
in this home is waiting
a tall, blue vase.
(translated from the Serbian by Antonela Glavinic)
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Patricia Wellingham-Jones sends us the following: If you're a writer with a Website or blog about writing, you'll be interested in a contest Writer's Digest is running. The magazine is soliciting entries for a contest to name the top 10 personal Websites or blogs from writers about writers. According to the magazine, sites will be judged on presentation, ease of use and marketing effectiveness. The prize is modest: a year's subscription to WD and Writersmarket.com. Submissions are due by June 10. Nominate yourself by sending an email with a link to your Website or blog to writersdig@fwpubs.com with "Best Writer's Site" in the subject line.
Thanks for the heads-up, Patricia! NorCal poets have many fine websites and blogs; two I would like to extol here today are www.eskimopie.net and jamesleejobe.livejournal.com/. [Go directly to them by clicking on the links to the right of this column.] Eskimo Pie Girl Rebecca Morrison has posted her web journal, Sacramento Poetry, Art and Music, for many years, listing NorCal poetry, events, articles, artwork and other goodies on her well-run website. And James Lee Jobe is also a veteran post-er, with his interesting lay-out and content—including a birthday tribute today to Gary Snyder. Coincidentally :-) interviews of both of these poets will appear in Conversations Vol. 3 of B.L. Kennedy's Rattlesnake Interview Series, due out May 14. Speaking of B.L.:
B.L.'s Drive-by: A Micro-review from B.L. Kennedy:
Did I Wake You
By Beth Laides
109pp $9.95
Soft Skull Press
55 Washington Street, Suite 804,
Brooklyn, NY 11201
Americans should never write Haiku. In doing so, they slap the face of an age-honored spiritual tradition. Beth Lapides’ collection of wannbe punk rock Girlfriend Modern Living Haiku is, at times fun, and most of the time like the same joke told over and over again. It won’t split any atoms and it surely won’t split your ribs with laughter. But check it out; it’s your call.
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A GUEST MAY COME
—Vojka Djikic
Hold on tight to me
And we'll find the way home
There the fire's still burning
And in the corners
Books lie open
That ought to be read
And the garden's there to dig
The roses to prune
Thus it was said
When we mend the roof
And paint the red door red
A guest may come
(translated from the Serbian by Chris Agee and Antonela Glavinic)
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SOME OF THE SECRETS ARE OUT
—Hamdija Demirovic
Under this divine, omniscient eye,
Of which we have only a presentiment,
terrifying things are hidden.
The night bird, Owl, is only a small
part of that metaphor of horror.
Myriads of stars and maelstroms
of new galaxies come afterwards.
I know the stars are sticky and suggest
oil colours with a tendency to drip.
That's why there are comets and long-tailed
swarms. Their plunging in the depths
of the cosmos doesn't carry any hint
of free choice. Like drops on a frozen
background of a dark windowpane,
some suddenly slip and hurry toward
their own perdition.
Leaving behind always a trail of light.
(translated from the Serbian by Charles Simic, who will be 70 years old tomorrow)
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Today's LittleNip:
The thing I am most aware of is my limits. And this is natural for I never, or almost never, occupy the middle of my cage; my whole being surges toward the bars.
—Andre Gide
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—Medusa
MEDUSA'S WEEKLY MENU:
(Contributors are welcome to cook something up for any and all of these!)
Monday: Weekly NorCal poetry calendar
Tuesday: Seed of the Week: Tuesday is Medusa's day to post poetry triggers such as quotes, forms, photos, memories, jokes—whatever might tickle somebody's muse. Pick up the gauntlet and send in your poetic results; and don't be shy about sending in your own triggers, too! All poems will be posted and a few of them will go into Medusa's Corner of each Rattlesnake Review. Send your work to kathykieth@hotmail.com or P.O. Box 762, Pollock Pines, CA 95726. No deadline for SOW; respond today, tomorrow, or whenever the muse arrives. (Print 'em out, maybe, save 'em for a dry spell?) When you send us work, though, just let us know which "seed" it was that inspired you.
Wednesday: HandyStuff Quickies: Resources for the poet, including whatever helps ease the pain of writing and/or publishing. Favorite journals to read and/or submit to; books, etc., about writing; organizational tools—you know—HandyStuff! Tell us about your favorite tools.
Thursday: B.L.'s Drive-Bys: Micro-reviews by our irreverent Reviewer-in-Residence, B.L. Kennedy. Send books, CDs, DVDs, etc. to him for possible review (either as a Drive-By or in Rattlesnake Review) at P.O. Box 160664, Sacramento, CA 95816.
Friday: NorCal weekend poetry calendar
Daily (except Sunday): LittleNips: SnakeFood for the Poetic Soul: Daily munchables for poetic thought, including short paragraphs, quotes, wonky words, silliness, little-known poetry/poet facts, and other inspiration—yet another way to feed our ever-hungry poetic souls.
And poetry! Every day, poetry from writers near and far! The Snakes of Medusa are always hungry.......!
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SNAKEWATCH: NEWS FROM RATTLESNAKE PRESS
Coming May 14: Join us on Wednesday, May 14 for the release of Among Summer Pines by Quinton Duval; a littlesnake broadside, Before Naming, by Stephani Schaefer; and Volume Three of Conversations, our third book of interviews by B.L. Kennedy, featuring Art Beck, Olivia Costellano, Quinton Duval, William S. Gainer, Mario Ellis Hill, Kathryn Hohlwein, James Jee Jobe, Andy Jones, Rebecca Morrison and Phillip T. Nails. That's at The Book Collector, 1008 24th St., Sacramento, 7:30 PM.
Also in May: Deadline for Issue #18 of Rattlesnake Review is May 15. Free copies of Issue #17 are available at The Book Collector, or send me two bux and I'll mail you one.
Medusa encourages poets of all ilk and ages to send their POETRY, PHOTOS and ART, as well as announcements of Northern California poetry events, to kathykieth@hotmail.com (or snail ‘em to P.O. Box 762, Pollock Pines, CA 95726) 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.) Medusa cannot vouch for the moral fiber of other publications, contests, etc. that she lists, however, so submit to them at your own risk. For more info about the Snake Empire, including guidelines for submitting to or obtaining our publications, click on the link to the right of this column: Rattlesnake Press (rattlesnakepress.com). And be sure to sign up for Snakebytes, our monthly e-newsletter that will keep you up-to-date on all our ophidian chicanery.
