GO AND JUST BUCKAROO
—Len Flick
They say with barbed wire came the fall of the West,
I ain't denyin' it's true.
'Cuz there's few places left, in this once empty West,
you can go and just buckaroo.
But you follow a fence and you'll find gate or hole,
and there you can wander on through.
But the days are gone, when you took horse and tack,
and could go and just buckaroo.
For the East runs this land, and they don't understand
about cows or our points of view.
They don't even care if they're playin' square,
or care 'bout some lost buckaroo.
But throw the gate wide, 'cuz I'm still full of pride,
and I'll fight 'em till my life is through.
And out in the West, when they lay me to rest,
I'll go and just buckaroo.
_____________________
Thanks to Taylor and Hatch Graham for reminding me that this is Cowboy Poetry Week! Check out cowboypoetry.com, or go to westernfolklifecenter.org for the goings-on in Elko, NV, which include the museum there and the annual Gathering that takes place in late January. Someday I'll get the courage to go Up the Hill that snowy time of year and see the huge festival of cowboy poets, take part in their humor, their rollicking rhythms, rock-solid storytelling, and brassy attitude. It may not be the kind of poetry you're used to, but it's a vital part of our heritage and our current community, as well. I know several "traditional" writers who also participate in gatherings, have a whole 'nother life as cowboy/girl poets.
While you're exploring, check out cowGIRL poetry, such as the classic Graining the Mare: The Poetry of Ranch Women by Teresa Jordan, editor and photographer, 1994, Gibbs Smith Publisher, Layton, Utah. This book is out of print, but there may be copies available through Amazon and the book may be available from the Western Folklife Center. Modern cowboy poetry has expanded 'way past its traditional rhythms into beautiful, free-verse explorations of what it is for both men and women to live the hard, adventurous life of ranching. Check it out.
A packed weekend in Grass Valley:
•••Tonight (Thursday, 4/19), 7:30 PM: the Nevada County Poetry Series presents Poets Joyce Jenkins, Richard Silberg and Daryl Chinn. 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. For more information call (530) 432-8196 or (530) 274-8384.
•••Tonight and tomorrow (Thursday & Friday, April 19-20): Center for the Arts, Literature Alive!, Tahoe National Forest, and the Nevada County Superintendent of Schools present Inspirations from the Forest [see today's photo for their inspiration], celebrating our beautiful forests and open spaces through the arts. Thursday (4/19) will feature a Reception & Art Show free from 5-7 PM at the Center for the Arts in Grass Valley, 314 West Main St., Grass Valley, and on Friday an Award Ceremony at 6 PM Friday (4/20); and then at 7 PM, Literature Alive! presents Listening to the Wild, its 13th annual Earth Day event, a celebration of nature in poetry and prose, music and dance. This year's event will include dance and choral performances by local students. Writer Kim Culbertson will MC. The Movement Alliance Dance Company will present a spoken word/song/dance piece. Poets and writers honoring the wild include Karla Arens, Kate Dwyer, Charles Entrekin, Gail Entrekin, Patricia Miller, Scott Young and the Inkwell Poets from Bear River and Nevada Union High Schools. $12 for adults, $8 for 17 & under. Art Show continues 4/10 through 5/7, Tue-Sat, Noon-5pm. Presented by: The Center for the Arts In cooperation with Nevada County Superintendent of Schools, Literature Alive! and the Tahoe National Forest. Sponsored by: California Community Forestry Foundation and Tahoe NF Employees.
Heck—go up and spend the weekend! Thursday, go to the reception then to the reading, go to the event Friday, hang out in the woods on Saturday, then Sunday:
••Every Sunday in April, 1-3 PM: The Nevada County Poetry Series is celebrating National Poetry Month by holding its annual April open-mic readings at Booktown Books & Tomes. Free at Booktown Books and Tomes, 107 Bank Street (corner of South Auburn) in Grass Valley. For more info, call: (530) 432-8196 or (530) 272-4655.
Plenty to do down here as well, though:
•••Tonight, 8 PM: Poetry Unplugged at Luna's Cafe (1414 16th St., Sac.) features Rattlechapper/SpiralChapper/Reviewer-in-Residence/Interviewer-in-Residence B.L. Kennedy. Info: 916-441-3931 or www.lunascafe.com. Open mic before/after.
_____________________
A 2:00 A.M. CALL
—Rod Nelson
A 2:00 A.M. call is no fun at all
For a rancher who needs his rest.
"To heck with that thing—just let it ring."
Bud wouldn't leave his warm nest.
"But, Bud," Liz cried, "maybe somone has died."
Her voice, though uncertain, was warning.
"Well, Liz," Bud said, "if anyone's dead,
They'll still be dead in the morning!"
_____________________
THE TWO THINGS IN LIFE THAT I REALLY LOVE
—Gary McMahan
There's two things in life
That I really love:
That's women and horses,
This I'm sure of.
So when I die,
Please tan my hide
And tool me into
A saddle so fine.
And give me to a cowgirl
Who likes to ride,
So in the hereafter
I may rest
Between the two things
That I love best.
____________________
—Medusa
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.)
SnakeWatch: Up-to-the-minute Snake news:
Journals: Rattlesnake Review #13 is available at The Book Collector; next deadline is May 15. The new VYPER #6 (for youth 13-19) goes out today; next deadline is Nov. 1. Snakelets 10 (for kids 0-12) is available; next deadline is May 1.
Books/broadsides: April’s releases are SnakeRings SpiralChap #7 from D.R. Wagner: Where The Stars Are Kept, and littlesnake broadside #33: Swallowed By This Whale Of Time by Ann Menebroker. Both are now available at The Book Collector. SpiralChaps are $8; broadsides are free. Or contact kathykieth@hotmail.com for ordering information.
Something new: Rattlesnake Interview Series with B.L. Kennedy is also available (free) at The Book Collector (or contact Kathy Kieth). #1 is Ann Menebroker.
Also: Check out the Rattlechaps Chapbook Series page on the rattlesnakepress.com website! We've started generating separate pages for each rattlechapper/spiralchapper; scroll down through the list of books we've published and click on the names that are in red. That should lead you to a separate page for each of them, including photos, bios, poems, contact info—and more to come, once we get them all up and running. Sweet!