Married to Amazement

WHEN DEATH COMES
—Mary Oliver

When death comes
like the hungry bear in autumn;
when death comes and takes all the bright coins from his purse

to buy me, and snaps the purse shut;
when death comes
like the measle-pox;

when death comes
like an iceberg between the shoulder blades,

I want to step through the door full of curiosity, wondering:
what is it going to be like, that cottage of darkness?

And therefore I look upon everything
as a brotherhood and a sisterhood,
and I look upon time as no more than an idea,
and I consider eternity as another possibility,

and I think of each life as a flower, as common
as a field daisy, and as singular,

and each name a comfortable music in the mouth,
tending, as all music does, toward silence,

and each body a lion of courage, and something
precious to the earth.

When it's over, I want to say: all my life
I was a bride married to amazement.
I was the bridegroom, taking the world into my arms.

When it's over, I don't want to wonder
if I have made of my life something particular, and real.
I don't want to find myself sighing and frightened,
or full of argument.

I don't want to end up simply having visited this world.

___________

—Medusa

Mysticism of Stone

Stonehenge
Photo by Katy Brown, Davis

ROCK AND HAWK
—Robinson Jeffers

Here is a symbol in which
Many high tragic thoughts
Watch their own eyes.

This gray rock, standing tall
On the headland, where the seawind
Lets no tree grow,

Earthquake-proved, and signatured
By ages of storms: on its peak
A falcon has perched.

I think, here is your emblem
To hang in the future sky;
Not the cross, not the hive,

But this; bright power, dark peace;
Fierce consciousness joined with final
Disinterestedness;

Life with calm death; the falcon's
Realist eyes and act
Married to the massive

Mysticism of stone,
Which failure cannot cast down
Nor success make proud.

__________________

TO THE STONE-CUTTERS
—Robinson Jeffers

Stone-cutters fighting time with marble, you foredefeated
Challengers of oblivion
Eat cynical earnings, knowing rock splits, records fall down,
The square-limbed Roman letters
Scale in the thaws, wear in the rain. The poet as well
Builds his monument mockingly;
For man will be blotted out, the blithe earth die, the brave sun
Die blind and blacken to the heart:
Yet stones have stood for a thousand years, and pained thoughts found
The honey of peace in old poems.

__________________

STONE
—Charles Simic

Go inside a stone
That would be my way.
Let somebody else become a dove
Or gnash with a tiger's tooth.
I am happy to be a stone.

From the outside the stone is a riddle:
No one knows how to answer it.
Yet within, it must be cool and quiet
Even though a cow steps on it full weight,
Even though a child throws it in a river;
The stone sinks, slow, unperturbed
To the river bottom
Where the fishes come to knock on it
And listen.

I have seen sparks fly out
When two stones are rubbed,
So perhaps it is not dark inside after all;
Perhaps there is a moon shining
From somewhere, as though behind a hill—
Just enough light to make out
The strange writings, the star-charts
On the inner walls.

___________________

THE SERENITY IN STONES
—Simon J. Ortiz

I am holding this turquoise
in my hands.
My hands hold the sky
wrought in this little stone.
There is a cloud
at the furthest boundary.
The world is somewhere underneath.

I turn the stone, and there is more sky.
This is the serenity possible in stones,
the place of a feeling to which one belongs.
I am happy as I hold this sky
in my hands, in my eyes, and in myself.

__________________

STONING STONE
—A.R. Ammons

I put down
the splintered ax

and in the
fury of failure

attacked time's
stone with

tears: the stone
holds, but tears

soften the stone
of my striving.

__________________

I WILL RETURN
—Pablo Neruda

Some other time, man or woman, traveler,
later, when I am not alive,
look here, look for me
between stone and ocean,
in the light storming
through the foam.
Look here, look for me,
for here I will return, without saying a thing,
without voice, without mouth, pure,
here I will return to be the churning
of the water, of
its unbroken heart,
here, I will be discovered and lost:
here, I will, perhaps, be stone and silence.

__________________

Today's LittleNip:

Hold the stone in the palm of your hand. Try to think of yourself like that.

—Stephen Dobyns

__________________

—Medusa


SnakeWatch: What's New from Rattlesnake Press:

Rattlesnake Review: Deadline for the current issue (#20) has passed (it was Nov. 15); that issue is currently rattling around in the SnakePit and will be released at The Book Collector reading on December 10, then mailed to contributors and subscribers in mid-December. Next deadline is February 15: send 3-5 poems, smallish art pieces and/or photos (no bio, no cover letter, no simultaneous submissions or previously-published poems) to kathykieth@hotmail.com or P.O. Box 762, Pollock Pines, CA 95726. E-mail attachments are preferred, but be sure to include all contact info, including snail address. Meanwhile, the snakes of Medusa are always hungry!

New for November: Now available at The Book Collector, or from the authors, or through rattlesnakepress.com (or—heck—just write to me and I'll send 'em to you): a new rattlechap from Red Fox Underground Poet Wendy Patrice Williams (Some New Forgetting); a littlesnake broadside from South Lake Tahoe Poet Ray Hadley (Children's Games); our 2009 calendar from Katy Brown (Beyond the Hill: A Poet’s Calendar) as well as Conversations, Vol. 4 of B.L. Kennedy’s Rattlesnake Interview Series, featuring conversations with Luke Breit, Gail Rudd Entrekin, Traci Gourdine, Taylor Graham, Noel Kroeplin, Rob Lozano, Crawdad Nelson, Monika Rose, Will Staple, Mary Zeppa and nila northSun. And don't forget to pick up your copies of B.L. Kennedy's new SpiralChap of his poetry and art, Luna's House of Words, as well as the anthology of poets, art and photos, La Luna: Poetry Unplugged from Luna's Cafe, edited by frank andrick.

Also available (free): littlesnake broadside #46: Snake Secrets: Getting Your Poetry Published in Rattlesnake Press (and lots of other places, besides!): A compendium of ideas for brushing up on your submissions process so as to make editors everywhere more happy, thereby increasing the likelihood of getting your poetry published. Write to me and I'll send you one. Free!

Coming in December: Join us at The Book Collector on Wednesday, December 10, for the release of a new chapbook from Danyen Powell (Blue Sky Flies Out); a littlesnake broadside from Kevin Jones (Low-Rent Dojo), and a brand-new issue of Rattlesnake Review (#20)! That's at 7:30, 1008 24th St., Sacramento. Refreshments and a read-around will follow; bring your own poems or somebody else's.

Coming in January: The Snake will be snoozing during January; no releases or readings. But our October road trips inspired a new Rattlesnake publication, WTF, to be edited by frank andrick. This 30-page, chapbook-style quarterly journal will primarily showcase the talents of readers at Poetry Unplugged at Luna’s Café. Deadline is Jan. 15 for a Feb. 19 premiere at Luna’s. Submission guidelines are the same as for the Snake, but send your poems, photos, smallish art or prose pieces (500 words or less) to fandrickfabpub@hotmail.com (attachments preferred) or, if you’re snailing, to P.O. Box 762, Pollock Pines, CA 95726. And be forewarned: this publication will be for adults only! so you must be over 18 years of age to submit.


Medusa's Weekly Menu:

(Contributors are welcome to cook up something 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 SOWs; 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 (sometimes): 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 future issues of 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 ravenous poetic souls.

And poetry! Every day, poetry from writers near and far and in-between! The Snakes of Medusa are always hungry.......!

_________________

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.

Floaters

D.R. Wagner signs his SpiralChap for Jeanine Stevens, 2007

A SPEC IN THE UNIVERSE
—Jeanine Stevens, Sacramento

I admit, I’m caught
in your sorry black web.
You pretend you’re a tree
branch. I duck—almost fall.
Your shape defies me: meandering
hairs projected on a beaded screen,
or spidery legs dangling
like miniature smoke-stained
chandeliers one might see
in a doll’s house. Only visible
against the white page, you are unruly,
a child activating old toy boxes,
pick-up-sticks, tin pail and shovel.
Some call you floaters,
but you are not buoyant clouds,
just surface creatures sucking.
You love light—gain traction,
rub blue circles raw. You steal
my days. We negotiate
each other. In cafes, I sit,
back to the window, avoid
the blinking sign, wait
for night: a jagged slipstitch—
a dark seamstress stretching skin,
gathering up spindly fragments.

__________________

Thanks, Jeanine! For more about Jeanine Stevens, go to March 8, 2007 in the column on the right for her Medusa feature, or see her RattleChaps page on rattlesnakepress.com/. Ditto for D.R. Wagner, who was featured on Medusa on October 13, 2008 and has a page on the website under SnakeRings SpiralChaps. D.R. will be helping us launch our new Rattlesnake Reprints series in February, 2009 with a reprint of his The Dimensions of the Morning, which was originally published in 1969 by Black Rabbit Press. Rattlesnake Reprints is founded on the principle that there's nothing sadder than a good book out of print...


This weekend in NorCal poetry (and music):

•••Sat. (11/29), 9 PM: Luna's Cafe (1414 16th St., Sacramento) presents David Houston and Strings (Christina Maradik, Alison Sharkey, and Reylynn Goessling (respectively Viola, Cello, and Violin) with text/vox by David Houston. Poems and stories and stuff by frank andrick, plus songs by singer/songwriter Drew Blum. $6 at the door; La Luna anthology will be for sale ($8).

•••Monday (12/1), 8 PM: Copperfield’s Books Renowned Speakers presents a reading by Mary Oliver at the Wells Fargo Center for the Arts, 50 Mark West Springs Rd., Santa Rosa. Tickets start at $15 at wellsfargocenterarts.org or call 707-546-3600 (noon-6 PM, Tues.-Sat). [Ed. note: I don't know if they still have tickets available, but you can check.]

•••Monday (12/1), 7:30 PM: Sacramento Poetry Center presents James DenBoer and Elyssa White at HQ for the Arts, 25th & R Sts., Sacramento. Open mic to follow. James DenBoer is the author of many books, including Trying to Come Apart (Univ. Of Pittsburgh Press, 1971) [National Council of the Arts Award], Olson/DenBoer: A Letter (Christopher’s Books, 1979), Dreaming of the Chinese Army (Blue Thunder Press, 2000), and Stonework (Swan Scythe Press, 2007). For a full list of publications, see http://www.paperwrk.com/public.html. He is a Sacramento institution and has published two chapbooks with Rattlesnake Press.

Elyssa White is a student of International Relations and Technocultural Studies at the University of California, Davis. A member of the UCD Sickspits poetry collective, Elyssa has performed alongside Amir Sulaiman, Zion-I, Marc Bamuthi Joseph, Butterscotch, Chinaka Hodge, Skim, Adriana Cabrera Garcias, and Quincey Troupe, among others. She was a member of the 2005 UC Davis Slam team and has recently arrived back in the USA after a year of study at the Universidad de Complutense in Madrid, Spain and a job with Variety magazine. A filmmaker and performance poet, Elyssa seeks to comment on the world around her in a way that harmonizes art, politics, and a complete sensory experience.


Coming Up in December at SPC:

•••Weds., December 3: SPC Benefit at the Millers' home: Pat Grizzell, James DenBoer, and Mary Mackey
•••Monday, December 8: David Iribarne, Gabrielle White and Shevonna Blackshire
•••Monday, December 15: Winter Solstice Read-Around
•••Monday, December 22: No Reading
•••Monday, December 29: Indigo Moor and Jeanne Wagner

__________________

PERSONAL AND SHADOW
—Jeanine Stevens


Bonded twins, fused. One side baby blue, serene

the nose—a meandering-stream-heart-mouth,

slight pout, eyes black squares strung in night skyscrapers.

And just one Pagliacci tear, the mask presented,

the wished for side, the face

prepared to meet another face. The shadow half,

cobalt and purple, retreats, Modigliani nose

lips askew, eyes disharmonic triangles.

The head, shaped like an anvil, supports the neck,

a thickened pedestal displaying both spheres. Listen

hear them singing the tenor’s solemn, unhinged melody.



(After a sculpture by Stan Furby)


__________________

CARTOGRAPHER
—Jeanine Stevens

In my next life, globes will be obsolete.
I will be a mapmaker and superimpose

green climate changes over blood red
political borders, place black vertical

columns around suspected oil reserves,
and use five dimensional images to highlight

pre-historic game trails. This will be my
calling, my vocation. I will amble from door

to door, hawking my ancient broadside—
a satellite photo—the polar ice cap,

a hole the size of Indiana. Belatedly,
I leave tattered flyers on rundown doorsteps.


__________________

Today's LittleNip:

JUICE
—A.R. Ammons

I'm stuck with the infinity thing
again this morning: a skinny
inexpressible syrup, finer than light,
everywhere present: the cobweb becoming
visible with dust and the tumblelint
stalled in the corner seem worthy.

__________________

—Medusa


SnakeWatch: What's New from Rattlesnake Press:

Rattlesnake Review: Deadline for the current issue (#20) has passed (it was Nov. 15); that issue is currently rattling around in the SnakePit and will be released at The Book Collector reading on December 10, then mailed to contributors and subscribers in mid-December. Next deadline is February 15: send 3-5 poems, smallish art pieces and/or photos (no bio, no cover letter, no simultaneous submissions or previously-published poems) to kathykieth@hotmail.com or P.O. Box 762, Pollock Pines, CA 95726. E-mail attachments are preferred, but be sure to include all contact info, including snail address. Meanwhile, the snakes of Medusa are always hungry!

New for November: Now available at The Book Collector, or from the authors, or through rattlesnakepress.com (or—heck—just write to me and I'll send 'em to you): a new rattlechap from Red Fox Underground Poet Wendy Patrice Williams (Some New Forgetting); a littlesnake broadside from South Lake Tahoe Poet Ray Hadley (Children's Games); our 2009 calendar from Katy Brown (Beyond the Hill: A Poet’s Calendar) as well as Conversations, Vol. 4 of B.L. Kennedy’s Rattlesnake Interview Series, featuring conversations with Luke Breit, Gail Rudd Entrekin, Traci Gourdine, Taylor Graham, Noel Kroeplin, Rob Lozano, Crawdad Nelson, Monika Rose, Will Staple, Mary Zeppa and nila northSun. And don't forget to pick up your copies of B.L. Kennedy's new SpiralChap of his poetry and art, Luna's House of Words, as well as the anthology of poets, art and photos, La Luna: Poetry Unplugged from Luna's Cafe, edited by frank andrick.

Also available (free): littlesnake broadside #46: Snake Secrets: Getting Your Poetry Published in Rattlesnake Press (and lots of other places, besides!): A compendium of ideas for brushing up on your submissions process so as to make editors everywhere more happy, thereby increasing the likelihood of getting your poetry published. Write to me and I'll send you one. Free!

Coming in December: Join us at The Book Collector on Wednesday, December 10, for the release of a new chapbook from Danyen Powell (Blue Sky Flies Out); a littlesnake broadside from Kevin Jones (Low-Rent Dojo), and a brand-new issue of Rattlesnake Review (#20)! That's at 7:30, 1008 24th St., Sacramento. Refreshments and a read-around will follow; bring your own poems or somebody else's.

Coming in January: The Snake will be snoozing during January; no releases or readings. But our October road trips inspired a new Rattlesnake publication, WTF, to be edited by frank andrick. This 30-page, chapbook-style quarterly journal will primarily showcase the talents of readers at Poetry Unplugged at Luna’s Café. Deadline is Jan. 15 for a Feb. 19 premiere at Luna’s. Submission guidelines are the same as for the Snake, but send your poems, photos, smallish art or prose pieces (500 words or less) to fandrickfabpub@hotmail.com (attachments preferred) or, if you’re snailing, to P.O. Box 762, Pollock Pines, CA 95726. And be forewarned: this publication will be for adults only! so you must be over 18 years of age to submit.


Medusa's Weekly Menu:

(Contributors are welcome to cook up something 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 SOWs; 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 (sometimes): 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 future issues of 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 ravenous poetic souls.

And poetry! Every day, poetry from writers near and far and in-between! The Snakes of Medusa are always hungry.......!

_________________

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.

The Measure of Thanksgiving

Photo by Katy Brown, Davis

LINES FOR WINTER
(for Ros Krauss)
—Mark Strand

Tell yourself
as it gets cold and grey falls from the air
that you will go on
walking, hearing
the same tune no matter where
you find yourself—
inside the dome of dark
or under the cracking white
of the moon's gaze in a valley of snow.
Tonight as it gets cold
tell yourself
what you know which is nothing
but the tune your bones play
as you keep going. And you will be able
for once to lie down under the small fire
of winter stars.
And if it happens that you cannot
go on or turn back
and you find yourself
where you will be at the end,
tell yourself
in that final flowing of cold through your
limbs
that you love what you are.

___________________

Today's LittleNip:

Not what we say about our blessings, but how we use them, is the true measure of our thanksgiving.

~W.T. Purkiser

___________________

—Medusa

The Immaculate Silence of Kites

CHILD ON TOP OF A GREENHOUSE
—Theodore Roethke

The wind billowing out the seat of my britches,
My feet crackling splinters of glass and dried putty,
The half-grown chrysanthemums staring up like accusers,
Up through the streaked glass, flashing with sunlight,
A few white clouds all rushing eastward,
A line of elms plunging and tossing like horses,
And everyone, everyone pointing up and shouting!

__________________

THE CHILD'S MORNING
—Winfield Townley Scott

Gangway for violets,
Old snow in the corner.
Sun after a rise of rain
Over cuttlebone cloud.
Sun in the brook running
Green with watercress
Sun on the spade—
We shovel out crocuses.
Up the concrete walk
Under surf of rollerskates
The hail of jacks,
Kiss-click of aggies.
We summon with jumpropes
Sap in the trees,
With bat-knock of ball
And the thudding glove.
That clang of schoolbells
We answer with answers:
Tall immaculate silence
Of colored kites.

____________________

LONELINESS
—Brooks Jenkins

I was about to go, and said so;
And I had almost started for the door.
But he was all alone in the sugar-house,
And more lonely than he'd ever been before.
We'd talked for half an hour, almost,
About the price of sugar, and how I like my school,
And he had made me drink some syrup hot,
Telling me it was better that way than when cool.

And I agreed, and thanked him for it,
And said good-bye, and was about to go.
Want to see where I was born?
He asked me quickly. How to say no?

The sugar-house looked over miles of valley.
He pointed with a sticky finger to a patch of snow
Where he was born. The house, he said, was gone.
I can understand these people better, now I know.

___________________

SUMMONS
—Robert Francis

Keep me from going to sleep too soon
Or if I go to sleep too soon
Come wake me up. Come any hour
Of night. Come whistling up the road.
Stomp on the porch. Bang on the door.
Make me get out of bed and come
And let you in and light a light.
Tell me the northern lights are on
And make me look. Or tell me clouds
Are doing something to the moon
They never did before, and show me.
See that I see. Talk to me till
I'm half as wide awake as you
And start to dress wondering why
I ever went to bed at all.
Tell me the walking is superb.
Not only tell me but persuade me.
You know I'm not too hard persuaded.

__________________

HOLIDAY BREAKDOWN
—Taylor Graham, Placerville

It happened miles from anywhere.
Sputter of engine, then
silence
except for jaunty birds that sang
like bobolinks, making merry
at our stopped car.
At last a man in an old Dodge truck
gave us a ride to the
provincial town with its single
run-down hotel.
All along the brief main street,
no scent of gingerbread from open doors;
the square almost deserted,
just one old woman bearing a last-
minute gift tied with red ribbons.
And down the alley, someone
caroling in words beyond
our understanding of the language.
On this sacred eve, the music
going on till midnight
under our one-star balcony.
And, so far from city lights, all the other
stars gathered high above us
singing.

__________________

Thanks, TG, for your response to this week's Seed of the Week: Beyond the Trappings.



__________________

Today's LittleNip:

Poetry is a theorem of a yellow-silk handkerchief knotted with riddles, sealed in a balloon tied to the tail of a kite flying in a white wind against a blue sky in spring.

—Carl Sandburg

__________________

—Medusa


SnakeWatch: What's New from Rattlesnake Press:

Rattlesnake Review: Deadline for the current issue (#20) has passed (it was Nov. 15); that issue is currently rattling around in the SnakePit and will be released at The Book Collector reading on December 10, then mailed to contributors and subscribers in mid-December. Next deadline is February 15: send 3-5 poems, smallish art pieces and/or photos (no bio, no cover letter, no simultaneous submissions or previously-published poems) to kathykieth@hotmail.com or P.O. Box 762, Pollock Pines, CA 95726. E-mail attachments are preferred, but be sure to include all contact info, including snail address. Meanwhile, the snakes of Medusa are always hungry!

New for November: Now available at The Book Collector, or from the authors, or through rattlesnakepress.com (or—heck—just write to me and I'll send 'em to you): a new rattlechap from Red Fox Underground Poet Wendy Patrice Williams (Some New Forgetting); a littlesnake broadside from South Lake Tahoe Poet Ray Hadley (Children's Games); our 2009 calendar from Katy Brown (Beyond the Hill: A Poet’s Calendar) as well as Conversations, Vol. 4 of B.L. Kennedy’s Rattlesnake Interview Series, featuring conversations with Luke Breit, Gail Rudd Entrekin, Traci Gourdine, Taylor Graham, Noel Kroeplin, Rob Lozano, Crawdad Nelson, Monika Rose, Will Staple, Mary Zeppa and nila northSun. And don't forget to pick up your copies of B.L. Kennedy's new SpiralChap of his poetry and art, Luna's House of Words, as well as the anthology of poets, art and photos, La Luna: Poetry Unplugged from Luna's Cafe, edited by frank andrick.

Also available (free): littlesnake broadside #46: Snake Secrets: Getting Your Poetry Published in Rattlesnake Press (and lots of other places, besides!): A compendium of ideas for brushing up on your submissions process so as to make editors everywhere more happy, thereby increasing the likelihood of getting your poetry published. Write to me and I'll send you one. Free!

Coming in December: Join us at The Book Collector on Wednesday, December 10, for the release of a new chapbook from Danyen Powell (Blue Sky Flies Out); a littlesnake broadside from Kevin Jones (Low-Rent Dojo), and a brand-new issue of Rattlesnake Review (#20)! That's at 7:30, 1008 24th St., Sacramento. Refreshments and a read-around will follow; bring your own poems or somebody else's.

Coming in January: The Snake will be snoozing during January; no releases or readings. But our October road trips inspired a new Rattlesnake publication, WTF, to be edited by frank andrick. This 30-page, chapbook-style quarterly journal will primarily showcase the talents of readers at Poetry Unplugged at Luna’s Café. Deadline is Jan. 15 for a Feb. 19 premiere at Luna’s. Submission guidelines are the same as for the Snake, but send your poems, photos, smallish art or prose pieces (500 words or less) to fandrickfabpub@hotmail.com (attachments preferred) or, if you’re snailing, to P.O. Box 762, Pollock Pines, CA 95726. And be forewarned: this publication will be for adults only! so you must be over 18 years of age to submit.


Medusa's Weekly Menu:

(Contributors are welcome to cook up something 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 SOWs; 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 (sometimes): 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 future issues of 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 ravenous poetic souls.

And poetry! Every day, poetry from writers near and far and in-between! The Snakes of Medusa are always hungry.......!

_________________

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.

To Stretch Without Breaking

Elsie Whitlow Feliz

THE RINGMASTER EXPLAINS THE END
OF THE CIRCUS
—Elsie Whitlow Feliz, Sacramento

It started with the elephants who were
tired of working for peanuts. They left us
in California. The tigers? Well, something

happened in Las Vegas. Ever since Siegfried
and Roy, tigers have been trouble. Somewhere
in Montana the horses headed for the hills, leaving

our bareback riders to wonder what they did wrong,
and what they might do next. The seal died blowing
those little brass horns. Twinkle, Twinkle, little star…

It just flipped over dead in the middle of the music.
The dogs stayed until the end, but even they had
better offers in television. All those family programs

need a family dog. When we got back to Florida
the clowns retired. They do parties for children. It’s
much easier than the circus life. Although I’ve been

a ringmaster for forty years, moving from town to
town. I didn’t retire completely. I work at the mall
selling jewelry. They still call me, The Ringmaster.

__________________

Thanks, Elsie! Elsie Whitlow Feliz was born and raised in San Francisco, where her mother’s family settled after fleeing Stalinist Russia. Surrounded by the magic of Potrero Hill, views of the Bay Bridge, ships coming and going into the harbor and always the lights of the City, she knew she’d travel, dreamed of Japan and China. Growing up in the 1940s, she learned about war from refugees and soldiers returning from war. War has been a lifelong study for her. She has studied French, German, Russian, and Japanese, looking for clues about war. In 1960, she married and followed Pfc. Don Feliz to West Berlin, where she attended the Goethe Institute and the Free University of Berlin. She saw how the Berlin Wall changed the lives of many. There were still shell marks on some buildings and some were still in ruins. She graduated from San Francisco State University with a major in Economics.

Elsie is a member of Zica Creative Arts and Literary Guild, Chaparral Poets, First Friday Poets, Sacramento Poetry Center and the River Park-Elk Grove Writers Group. Her poetry has been published in Rattlesnake Review, Brevities, Drumvoices, Poetry Depth Quarterly, Chrysanthemum, San Fernando Poetry Journal, The Poet's Guild, Inky Blue, Mediphors, Poetry Now and the anthologies, We Speak for Peace and The Gathering. She has two chapbooks: Cornered and Tea With Bunya, and in 2008 she co-authored a SnakeRings SpiralChap, To Berlin With Love, with her husband, Don. She and Don are the founders and former co-editors of Free-Wheeling, an annual poetry journal published by the Towe Auto Museum.

__________________

Tuesday is Seed of the Week Day. This week, we're entering into the Month of Trappings, the so-called Holiday Season and all the material distractions thereof. So this week's SOW is Beyond the Trappings. After the dishes are done, the over-tired kids put to bed and the wrappings recycled, what's left? Contentment? Gratitude? Relief? Disappointment....? No deadline on this one; send your poems to kathykieth@hotmail.com or P.O. Box 762, Pollock Pines, CA 95726.

__________________

SHE ENCIRCLES MEANING
—Elsie Whitlow Feliz

A stick figure in a city
of circular streets round

and round she roams,
always returning to some

known place. She’s seen
every street, has been

to the center, again and
again. This is her life:

running in circles. Still she
reaches out everyday with her

arms open—hoping to
hug the meaning of herself.

___________________

MOTHER KNOWS BEST
—Elsie Whitlow Feliz

Yes, mother is aging, my dear,
right into childhood again. She’s

starting to spill things on herself,
getting her words wrong. We know

you’ve heard her stories before, but
the news of her life—you don’t want

to hear about that: all her friends dying.
You tell her to find new ones, younger

people who will be around longer. Oh,
how wise you are! Give yourself a pat

on the back, and enjoy the coming years
as you assume that children know best.

___________________

RUBBER BANDS
—Elsie Whitlow Feliz

at the bank they bind
stacks and stacks of bills

hold vegetables in neat
little bundles at the market

on the porch they keep the
newspaper pages from flight

stretch to make music for a
White-Owl-cigar-box guitar

help restructure the teeth
in an accidental mouth

fasten the free ballpoint pens
on your father’s tidy desk

make great ammunition for
a homemade rubber gun

mark your place in I, The Jury,
that mystery by Mickey Spillane

remind you how useful it is
to stretch without breaking

__________________

Today's LittleNip:

Your heroes: those who fling themselves uselessly against the dark.

—Stephen Dobyns

__________________

—Medusa


SnakeWatch: What's New from Rattlesnake Press:

Rattlesnake Review: Deadline for the current issue (#20) has passed (it was Nov. 15); that issue is currently rattling around in the SnakePit and will be released at The Book Collector reading on December 10, then mailed to contributors and subscribers in mid-December. Next deadline is February 15: send 3-5 poems, smallish art pieces and/or photos (no bio, no cover letter, no simultaneous submissions or previously-published poems) to kathykieth@hotmail.com or P.O. Box 762, Pollock Pines, CA 95726. E-mail attachments are preferred, but be sure to include all contact info, including snail address. Meanwhile, the snakes of Medusa are always hungry!

New for November: Now available at The Book Collector, or from the authors, or through rattlesnakepress.com (or—heck—just write to me and I'll send 'em to you): a new rattlechap from Red Fox Underground Poet Wendy Patrice Williams (Some New Forgetting); a littlesnake broadside from South Lake Tahoe Poet Ray Hadley (Children's Games); our 2009 calendar from Katy Brown (Beyond the Hill: A Poet’s Calendar) as well as Conversations, Vol. 4 of B.L. Kennedy’s Rattlesnake Interview Series, featuring conversations with Luke Breit, Gail Rudd Entrekin, Traci Gourdine, Taylor Graham, Noel Kroeplin, Rob Lozano, Crawdad Nelson, Monika Rose, Will Staple, Mary Zeppa and nila northSun. And don't forget to pick up your copies of B.L. Kennedy's new SpiralChap of his poetry and art, Luna's House of Words, as well as the anthology of poets, art and photos, La Luna: Poetry Unplugged from Luna's Cafe, edited by frank andrick.

Also available (free): littlesnake broadside #46: Snake Secrets: Getting Your Poetry Published in Rattlesnake Press (and lots of other places, besides!): A compendium of ideas for brushing up on your submissions process so as to make editors everywhere more happy, thereby increasing the likelihood of getting your poetry published. Write to me and I'll send you one. Free!

Coming in December: Join us at The Book Collector on Wednesday, December 10, for the release of a new chapbook from Danyen Powell (Blue Sky Flies Out); a littlesnake broadside from Kevin Jones (Low-Rent Dojo), and a brand-new issue of Rattlesnake Review (#20)! That's at 7:30, 1008 24th St., Sacramento. Refreshments and a read-around will follow; bring your own poems or somebody else's.

Coming in January: The Snake will be snoozing during January; no releases or readings. But our October road trips inspired a new Rattlesnake publication, WTF, to be edited by frank andrick. This 30-page, chapbook-style quarterly journal will primarily showcase the talents of readers at Poetry Unplugged at Luna’s Café. Deadline is Jan. 15 for a Feb. 19 premiere at Luna’s. Submission guidelines are the same as for the Snake, but send your poems, photos, smallish art or prose pieces (500 words or less) to fandrickfabpub@hotmail.com (attachments preferred) or, if you’re snailing, to P.O. Box 762, Pollock Pines, CA 95726. And be forewarned: this publication will be for adults only!


Medusa's Weekly Menu:

(Contributors are welcome to cook up something 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 SOWs; 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 (sometimes): 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 future issues of 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 ravenous poetic souls.

And poetry! Every day, poetry from writers near and far and in-between! The Snakes of Medusa are always hungry.......!

_________________

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.

Turkey, Steak, & Peppermint Tea

I AM MY KITCHEN

where I shall create a filet
fit for God
and He shall smack His lips
and fall down on His knees to me
as I hoist a huge black skillet from the cabinet
set it on the stove
and stripe its interior with golden oil
straight from some Provence-ripened olive tree...

into these shining rivulets I'll
melt a pat of butter
its corners wisping to creamy drifts
float tender crackles of lavender-white shallots
to dance mindlessly in the sizzling fry
joined by inch-slick slabs of sleek filet
leaking crimson
rained upon by pepper grains, both sides,
pepper slathered, dug deep into aortic blood and host-white veins
more pepper to scar God's nostrils with smoking scent,
to roughen the tender cut, to sear to
a satanic crust that stuns the teeth
(God loves a good hot crunch)
lapped by amber liquid of Madeira and beefstock
pitched dark as Hell
as wine fraught as the Broth of Ancients
that long ago enchanted me...

I fall into a reverie
other kitchen, other steaks
á la Diane, á la Dijon, á la bourgimasque
a minuet of soldierly filets and maidenly mignonettes
crowned by queenly capers—

And voilà!
my sudden reflection in a shiny pot
cheeks smeared with beef grease
a curl of dried shallot dangling from
my lower lip reminds me
at this time in this place
I am the Goddess of Steak
and God (on his knees again)
gives thanks to me.


—Patricia Hickerson, Davis

__________________

Thanks, Pat, for the food poem, and thanks to Cynthia for the etheree! Last week's Seed of the Week is Thanksgiving, and it's still going on. Send me a Thanksgiving poem and I'll post it. But send me a Thanksgiving etheree, and I'll mail you Katy Brown's new 2009 calendar, Beyond the Hill. What's an etheree? See Cynthia Linville's fine example below; I think you can figure out the form from it. (Hint: count the syllables in each line.) This Seed of the Week has a deadline, though: to get your free calendar, your etheree(s) must be sent by midnight tonight (Monday, Nov. 24, e-mailed or postmarked). Addresses are below.

Also featured today are poems from Mabel Mello. I tried to get her to send me a pic and bio, but she's shy, so it's just the poems. Thanks, Mabel!


BLISS
Fridays
After work
A good novel
Hot peppermint tea
A raging storm outside
I’m tucked up in flannel sheets
Nothing to do, no one to see
A smile stretches across my face
Your name flashing on my caller ID

—Cynthia Linville, Sacramento

__________________

This week in NorCal poetry:

•••Mon. (11/24), 7:30 PM: Sacramento Poetry Center presents Janet Smith and Connie Post at HQ for the Arts, 1719 25th St., Sacramento. Open mic follows. [See last Friday's post for bios.]

•••Thurs. (11/27), 8 PM: Poetry Unplugged at Luna's Cafe will not have a reading, due to Thanksgiving.

•••Saturday (11/29), 2-6 PM: Rae Gouirand invites you to the trunk sale she and Amy Radbill are having: Amy will be selling her first line of precious metal clay and beaded jewelry, and Rae will be debuting her first line of hardback journals from Open Books. All profits from the sale of the journals become seed money for Rae’s new lit press. The materials for these books have been gathered from paper houses and bookbinding suppliers all over the world, and there are designs in every color of the rainbow. There are only 150 available, so it'd be a good idea to come early. All purchases include complimentary gift wrapping. The first fifty journals sold come with a complimentary, hand-sewn, stab-bound notebook covered in Thai momi papers. That’s 1111 Burr St., Davis. Cash and local checks (with ID) only.

•••Sunday (11/30): Deadline for the 2008 Soul-Making Literary Contest. Established in 1994, the Soul-Making Literary Competition (and its subsequent Awards Reading at the Koret Auditorium, San Francisco Main Library, Civic Center) is a community arts outreach program of the National League of American Pen Women, Nob Hill, SF Bay Area Branch. There are 11 categories, including one for poetry, one for prose poetry, and one for young adult poetry (grades 9-12). Cash prizes for each category are $100, $50, and $25. For complete details visit www.soulmakingcontest.us.


Coming up next week at Sacramento Poetry Center:

•••Monday (12/1), 7:30 PM: James DenBoer and Elyssa White
•••Wednesday (12/3), 6-8 PM: Annual SPC Benefit at the home of the Millers, featuring Pat Grizzell, James DenBoer, and Mary Mackey.

__________________

SNOOZING MUSE
—Mabel Mello, Sacramento

My muse is snoozing.
Let her rest.

She's done her best
to stimulate and fill my mind

with myriad thoughts
of every kind.

I'll just sit back awhile
until these new ideas form,

then pick up pen and paper
and finally write that poem.

___________________

DOUBLE TROUBLE
—Mabel Mello

She looked poorly and dehydrated.
I fed her and gave her water.

A well-meaning neighbor,
noticing her droopy condition,

gave her another generous drink
and waterlogged her.

I disposed of her today.
She was ten years old.

The empty corner near
my apartment door looks strange

without my lush dracaena.

__________________

GROWING OLD
—Mabel Mello

My hearing is fading,
eyesight's grown dim.
I've gained thirty pounds
and no longer slim.

My balance is off.
So I use a cane.
I still get around,
though sometimes there's pain.

My dentures fit well.
Chewing's sometimes a task,
but I still enjoy food,
what more can one ask?

Then there's the memory
that keeps me upset.
What I want to remember
I tend to forget.

Yes, things have grown different
from day to day,
but I wake up each morning,
what more can I say?

__________________

Today's LittleNip:

GRATITUDE
—Louise Glück

Do not think I am not grateful for your small
kindness to me.
I like small kindnesses.
In fact I actually prefer them to the more
substantial kindness, that is always eying you,
like a large animal on a rug,
until your whole life reduces
to nothing but waking up morning after morning
cramped, and the bright sun shining on its tusks.

__________________

—Medusa


SnakeWatch: What's New from Rattlesnake Press:

Rattlesnake Review: Deadline for the current issue (#20) has passed (it was Nov. 15); that issue is currently rattling around in the SnakePit and will be released at The Book Collector reading on December 10, then mailed to contributors and subscribers in mid-December. Next deadline is February 15: send 3-5 poems, smallish art pieces and/or photos (no bio, no cover letter, no simultaneous submissions or previously-published poems) to kathykieth@hotmail.com or P.O. Box 762, Pollock Pines, CA 95726. E-mail attachments are preferred, but be sure to include all contact info, including snail address. Meanwhile, the snakes of Medusa are always hungry!

New for November: Now available at The Book Collector, or from the authors, or through rattlesnakepress.com (or—heck—just write to me and I'll send 'em to you): a new rattlechap from Red Fox Underground Poet Wendy Patrice Williams (Some New Forgetting); a littlesnake broadside from South Lake Tahoe Poet Ray Hadley (Children's Games); our 2009 calendar from Katy Brown (Beyond the Hill: A Poet’s Calendar) as well as Conversations, Vol. 4 of B.L. Kennedy’s Rattlesnake Interview Series, featuring conversations with Luke Breit, Gail Rudd Entrekin, Traci Gourdine, Taylor Graham, Noel Kroeplin, Rob Lozano, Crawdad Nelson, Monika Rose, Will Staple, Mary Zeppa and nila northSun. And don't forget to pick up your copies of B.L. Kennedy's new SpiralChap of his poetry and art, Luna's House of Words, as well as the anthology of poets, art and photos, La Luna: Poetry Unplugged from Luna's Cafe, edited by frank andrick.

Also available (free): littlesnake broadside #46: Snake Secrets: Getting Your Poetry Published in Rattlesnake Press (and lots of other places, besides!): A compendium of ideas for brushing up on your submissions process so as to make editors everywhere more happy, thereby increasing the likelihood of getting your poetry published. Write to me and I'll send you one. Free!

Coming in December: Join us at The Book Collector on Wednesday, December 10, for the release of a new chapbook from Danyen Powell (Blue Sky Flies Out); a littlesnake broadside from Kevin Jones, and a brand-new issue of Rattlesnake Review (#20)! That's at 7:30, 1008 24th St., Sacramento. Refreshments and a read-around will follow; bring your own poems or somebody else's.


Medusa's Weekly Menu:

(Contributors are welcome to cook up something 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 SOWs; 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 (sometimes): 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 future issues of 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 ravenous poetic souls.

And poetry! Every day, poetry from writers near and far and in-between! The Snakes of Medusa are always hungry.......!

_________________

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.