Snakes Alive!

SUNSET TURNED ON ITS SIDE
—David Humphreys, Stockton

Here, on the other side of what is
seen from around the edge of
a nebulous assumption, improbability
is not about to throw anything very
critical into the movement of sun across
the yard. Breakfast comes with coffee
before a morning walk.

Switzerland ties France in the match
this morning. The Czech Republic later
trounces the U. S. team, roughs them
up a bit. Our leader visits the Green
Zone, surprising no one, in particular.
It is one of the central issues. Lunch
is cherry vanilla yoghurt.

Stephen Hawking is a lead story saying
that the only way the human race
will survive into the future will
be to move into outer space to populate
other planets, thereby removing some
from proximity to apparently inevitable
nuclear annihilation. Dinner never comes.

_______________________

Yikes, David—I haven't even had my coffee yet.... But thanks!

Snakes Alive!

Well, Ophidians, check out the spread on the front page of The Sacramento Bee Scene section today! What a day to feature rattlesnakes, when Snake 10 is waiting for you at The Book Collector (or headed for you via snailmail). Over and over, the experts try to tell us that only one or two people die a year from the 800 or so rattlesnake bites that happen, and those deaths are mostly, according to the article, in "young drunken men handling snakes". Kids and pets are at greater risk, though. And we ophidiophobes are right to be cautious, because poets do have a tendency to stick their hands in dark, secret places, yes?..... Anyway, it's a good article, with do's (such as, stay calm, get medical attention) and don'ts (don't try to suck the venom out or get all het up or make a tourniquet or kill the snake or bother with snakebite kits).

And, as I said, Snake 10 premiered at last night's fine Rattle-read by B.L. Kennedy, along with his rattlechap, The Setich Manor Poems, and free littlesnake broadside, A Conversation With B.L. Kennedy by Gene "Gizmo" Avery. Contributors and subscribers will get theirs in the mail this week or next. I'll also be at various readings. And remember: no "save-zies" at The Book Collector; no fair asking Owners Rachel and Richard to save copies for you.

Today's Events

•••Thursday (6/15), Poetry Unplugged at Luna’s Café, 1414 16th St., Sac, 8pm. Cowboy poetry comes to Luna’s! YEEE-Haaaw! Larry Maurice has spent the last 20 years as a Poet cowboy, horse wrangler, and packer who has won numerous national awards for his performances and his CD recordings. He is also a Poet and storyteller; his one-man show “Cowboy: The Spirit, The Lore, The Legacy” keeps him touring around the country.

•••Thursday (6/15) also features an Open Mic at Gwen's Caribbean Cuisine, 2355 Arden Way @ Bell, Sac. Doors open at 7 PM; show starts at 8. $5 cover. Info: (916) 922-3468. Music provided by DJ Barney B.

•••Also Thursday (6/15), the Nevada County Poetry Series will present poets Rhony Bhopla, Julia Connor (Sacramento Poet Laureate) and Dianna Henning at 7:30 PM. Tickets can be purchased at the door for $5 general, seniors and students, and $1 for those under 18. Refreshments and open-mic included. The show will be in Off Center Stage (the Black Box theater, enter from Richardson Street) at the Center for the Arts, 314 W. Main St., Grass Valley, CA. Info: 530-432-8196 or 530-274-8384.

Spreading the Work

Patricia Wellingham-Jones has let us know about Centrifugal Eye (http://centrifugaleye.com/), edited by Eve Hanninen, who has done a fine Medusa cover for the current issue. Check it out!

The 20th Annual Focus on Writers Contest, sponsored by the Friends of the Sacramento Public Library, has a deadline of August 1. 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.

All contestants will receive info about the October 14 Focus on Writers Conference and a $5 discount on the conference reg. fee. This year's conference, to be held at Cal. State University, Sacramento, will feature novelist Beth Lisick as the keynote speaker, with a special, longer session on the craft of writing. Watch for more details later.

Things

Yesterday we started a Thing-a-Thon: Send me a poem of yours about things—ANY Thing(s) by midnight on June 20, and I'll send you a free copy of B.L. Kennedy's new rattlechap, The Setich Manor Poems. (Or, if you have that, another rattlechap of your choosing.) Send them to kathykieth@hotmail.com, or P.O. Box 1647, Orangevale, CA 95662.

Here are two Things poems from James Lee Jobe, who will be reading tomorrow (6/16) at Our House Defines Art with Mary Zeppa, 7 PM. An open mic follows. Our House Defines Art Gallery & Framing is located at 4510 Post St. (Ste. 330) in El Dorado Hills Town Center, El Dorado Hills. Free. Info: 916-933-4278.

LUNCH
—James Lee Jobe, Davis

Toward noon the bread gets anxious, puffing out
the plastic bag with its nervous breath.
The cheese, the milk, the cold chicken
all watch the clock, knowing each second
that passes brings them closer to their fate.
The man approaches. His hungry footsteps
grow louder, come closer, stomping almost.
The jello quivers in its bowl, a frightened child.
Soon, my friend, it will all be over.

________________________

WHAT ARE THE STARS?
—James Lee Jobe

The stars are little holes in the sky
that let the light of Heaven shine through,
so that the night will be softer.

The stars are flying soldiers
protecting the world
from things far above us.

The stars are maps to our souls;
once you open these maps
you can never close them again.

The stars are the spirits
of all our loved ones
who went before us.

________________________

Thanks, JJ! And one from Taylor Graham, who says: Many thanks for the "things" challenge. It came at just the right time. We were about to deliver SnowWhite (beloved Tercel) to the dismantlers, and I hadn't written her a poem as I did for The Dwarf ('87 Tercel) to tuck into his upholstery before the dreaded last drive. So this is brand-new, written on the road. If I don't send it right away, I'll decide it's too hopelessly sentimental.

THE ‘90 TERCEL, 206,630 MILES
—Taylor Graham, Somerset

Bought second hand, she fits me like a skin.
She shimmies into the tightest spaces,
slips into synch with my quirks of clutch
and steering, adjusts her gears to my hills.
Her engine hum’s harmonic to the tinnitus
in my ears. Did I mention how she fits me,
scabs and scuffs and wrinkles? This time
she didn’t smog. I turn into the dismantler’s
chain-link yard. So many miles, the years
of road song, sweet
Tercel. Can a new car really fit
as well?

______________________

Thanks, TG!

—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.)