Glenn W. Cooper, Tamworth, Australia
BLUE — JONI MITCHELL
—Glenn W. Cooper
listening
to Joni Mitchell’s
Blue
is like
pulling out
a shoebox
full of old love
letters
on a
rainy Sunday
afternoon
and remembering
through tear-
struck eyes
how
things
once were
on the
carousel
of love
before it
terminated
hopelessly and
the funpark
was closed
down and
boarded up
forever.
_____________________
Thanks, Glenn! Good to hear from poets on the other side of the globe! Glenn W. Cooper is 39 years old and lives in Tamworth, Australia, where he works as an inventory manager in a bookstore. His poems have been published widely in the small press, and his latest books are Methinks I See My Father via Liquid Paper Press, and Planet Ali — Poems About Muhammad Ali via www.kaminipress.com/.
Distressing news about LAMP:
Those of us who have enjoyed and appreciated the work of Sutter Health’s LAMP program (Literature, Arts, and Medicine Program) are saddened to learn that, due to budgetary concerns, the program, headed by Poet Chip Spann, is closing its doors. LAMP provided many workshops and an anthology during the past few years, ministering to the seriously ill by providing writing workshops for them. Chip sends the following letter, suggesting we let the Sutter Health staff know how important this program has been to the community, in hopes that the course of events might be changed:
Your voice needs to be heard. The only way this can be done is if you let your thoughts and feelings be known to Sutter Health administrators. A few sentences is enough, and email makes that easy. Please don't polish or search for words. This can be a simple 5-minute write. Please send your letters to Tom Gagen, CEO Sutter Medical Center, Sacramento and copy Sarah Krevans, Regional Executive Officer, and Patrick Fry, President and CEO, Sutter Health as below:
Write to: gagent@sutterhealth.org
cc: krevanss@sutterhealth.org
and fryp@sutterhealth.org
Lawrence H. Spann, Ph.D.
Director, Sutter's LAMP
Literature, Arts, and Medicine Program
2800 L Street, Library
Sacramento, CA 95816
Phone: 916-454-6802
www.sutterwriters.com
Poetics & Politics: Poetry Writing with Truong Tran
July 18 - August 29, 2007; Wednesdays, 7–9:30 PM, 180 Capp St. (@17th St.), San Francisco: Truong Tran will be leading a writing intensive workshop with a focused exploration of the personal as political in poetry. What does it mean to be a politically conscious writer? How does How do we find our authentic voice at the intersection of the political and the personal? What are the tools and methods of exploration for writers working in this realm? Workshop discussion topics will include but are not limited to the poetry of witness, the writing of other and the work of silence. In addition to student works, the participants will also be exposed to the writings of Lucille Clifton, Carolyn Forche, Teresa Hak Cha and Myung Mi Kim. Each of these writers have devoted a lifetime to the intellectual and experiential exploration of the personal as political in writing.
Truong Tran is the author of three previous collections of poetry and a children's book. The Book of Perceptions, published in 1999 by Kearny Street Workshop, was a finalist for The Kiriyama Prize. placing the accents, published in 1999 by Apogee Press, was a finalist for the Western States Book Prize for Poetry, and dust and conscience, also published by Apogee Press in 2002, was awarded the San Francisco State Poetry Center Book Prize. He recently ventured into the world of children's literature, authoring Going Home Coming Home, published by Children's Book Press. In 2003, he served as Writer In Residence for Intersection for the Arts. Truong lives in San Francisco.
Class size: minimum of 6, maximum of 14. Cost: $215 non-members, $195 members. Course description and instructor bio at
http://kearnystreet.org/programs/calendar/2007_07.html#11b/ Register by check or credit card. To register, contact program director Samantha Chanse at 415.503.0520 or sam@kearnystreet.org for more information.
About Kearny Street Workshop: The mission of Kearny Street Workshop is to produce and present art that enriches and empowers Asian Pacific American communities. Our vision is to achieve a more just society by connecting Asian Pacific American (APA) artists with community members to give voice to our cultural, historical, and contemporary issues. For more information, please visit http://www.kearnystreet.org.
______________________
the next thing
—Glenn W. Cooper
she picks
holes in
my arguments,
in the same
way that I
proof-read
newspapers
for grammar &
spelling
mistakes —
there’s no
real point to it —
it’s just
something
to do while
we wait for
the next
thing.
____________________
EAST OF EDEN
—Glenn W. Cooper
Sharp pencils, blunt pencils.
Reading John Steinbeck’s
“East of Eden Journals”,
and how he talks about using
different types of pencils
for all his different
writing moods. The blunt, soft
pencils are for when he’s feeling
gentle and sensitive; the sharp,
harsh pencils correspond
to when he’s sour and wants
to emphasise his words.
I don’t write with pencils, but
I was thinking just now how
I do a similar thing with
the way I tap at this keyboard —
sometimes banging hard on the keys,
like using my index finger to
prod in the chest an adversary
to forcefully make a point;
other times caressing them
gently, as if stroking the early-
morning cheek of a loved one
to rouse them from sleep, in
readiness for a long journey,
maybe somewhere East of Eden.
____________________
WAITING FOR A TRAIN
—Glenn W. Cooper
Like Jimmy Rodgers
I’ve been waiting for a train,
but it hasn’t come yet.
Waited first at the platform
with a crowd of others, then
moved further up the line
till the city was far off
in the distance,
and waited there.
When I put my ear to
the ground, I swear I hear it,
feel it’s metallic rumblings
edging closer. I
don’t know where it’s been, don’t
know where I’m going, but I
know this train is coming —
it’s Coltrane’s Blue Train,
Johnny Cash’s Train of Love,
the peace train, the downtown train
maybe even Ozzy’s Crazy Train; it’s
the midnight train to Clarkson,
to Georgia, to London, and
all stations in between.
I’ve got a lot of baggage but
nothing I can take on board —
nothing I’ll be needing.
I’m waiting on a train
but it hasn’t come yet.
______________________
—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 (free publications): Rattlesnake Review14 is now available at The Book Collector; contributors and subscribers should have received theirs by now. If you're none of those, and can't get down to The Book Collector, send two bux (for postage) to P.O. Box 762, Pollock Pines, CA 95726 and I'll mail you a copy. Next deadline, for RR15, is August 15. VYPER6 (for youth 13-19) is in The Book Collector; next deadline is Nov. 1. Snakelets10 (for kids 0-12) is also at The Book Collector; next deadline is Oct. 1.
Books/broadsides: June's releases include Tom Miner's chapbook, North of Everything; David Humphreys' littlesnake broadside, Cominciare Adagio; and #3 in B.L. Kennedy's Rattlesnake Interview Series, this one featuring Jane Blue.
ZZZZZZZ: Shh! The Snake is sleeping! There will be no Snake readings/releases in July or August. Then we return with a bang on September 12, presenting Susan Kelly-DeWitt's new chapbook, Cassiopeia Above the Banyan Tree. See the online journal, Mudlark, for a hefty sample of poems from her book; that’s http://www.unf.edu/mudlark/. Also coming in the Fall: new issues of the Review, Snakelets and VYPER [see the above deadlines], plus more littlesnake broadsides from NorCal poets near and far, and a continuation of B.L. Kennedy's Rattlesnake Interview Series—including an anthology of interviews to be released for Sacramento Poetry Month (October).
—Glenn W. Cooper
listening
to Joni Mitchell’s
Blue
is like
pulling out
a shoebox
full of old love
letters
on a
rainy Sunday
afternoon
and remembering
through tear-
struck eyes
how
things
once were
on the
carousel
of love
before it
terminated
hopelessly and
the funpark
was closed
down and
boarded up
forever.
_____________________
Thanks, Glenn! Good to hear from poets on the other side of the globe! Glenn W. Cooper is 39 years old and lives in Tamworth, Australia, where he works as an inventory manager in a bookstore. His poems have been published widely in the small press, and his latest books are Methinks I See My Father via Liquid Paper Press, and Planet Ali — Poems About Muhammad Ali via www.kaminipress.com/.
Distressing news about LAMP:
Those of us who have enjoyed and appreciated the work of Sutter Health’s LAMP program (Literature, Arts, and Medicine Program) are saddened to learn that, due to budgetary concerns, the program, headed by Poet Chip Spann, is closing its doors. LAMP provided many workshops and an anthology during the past few years, ministering to the seriously ill by providing writing workshops for them. Chip sends the following letter, suggesting we let the Sutter Health staff know how important this program has been to the community, in hopes that the course of events might be changed:
Your voice needs to be heard. The only way this can be done is if you let your thoughts and feelings be known to Sutter Health administrators. A few sentences is enough, and email makes that easy. Please don't polish or search for words. This can be a simple 5-minute write. Please send your letters to Tom Gagen, CEO Sutter Medical Center, Sacramento and copy Sarah Krevans, Regional Executive Officer, and Patrick Fry, President and CEO, Sutter Health as below:
Write to: gagent@sutterhealth.org
cc: krevanss@sutterhealth.org
and fryp@sutterhealth.org
Lawrence H. Spann, Ph.D.
Director, Sutter's LAMP
Literature, Arts, and Medicine Program
2800 L Street, Library
Sacramento, CA 95816
Phone: 916-454-6802
www.sutterwriters.com
Poetics & Politics: Poetry Writing with Truong Tran
July 18 - August 29, 2007; Wednesdays, 7–9:30 PM, 180 Capp St. (@17th St.), San Francisco: Truong Tran will be leading a writing intensive workshop with a focused exploration of the personal as political in poetry. What does it mean to be a politically conscious writer? How does How do we find our authentic voice at the intersection of the political and the personal? What are the tools and methods of exploration for writers working in this realm? Workshop discussion topics will include but are not limited to the poetry of witness, the writing of other and the work of silence. In addition to student works, the participants will also be exposed to the writings of Lucille Clifton, Carolyn Forche, Teresa Hak Cha and Myung Mi Kim. Each of these writers have devoted a lifetime to the intellectual and experiential exploration of the personal as political in writing.
Truong Tran is the author of three previous collections of poetry and a children's book. The Book of Perceptions, published in 1999 by Kearny Street Workshop, was a finalist for The Kiriyama Prize. placing the accents, published in 1999 by Apogee Press, was a finalist for the Western States Book Prize for Poetry, and dust and conscience, also published by Apogee Press in 2002, was awarded the San Francisco State Poetry Center Book Prize. He recently ventured into the world of children's literature, authoring Going Home Coming Home, published by Children's Book Press. In 2003, he served as Writer In Residence for Intersection for the Arts. Truong lives in San Francisco.
Class size: minimum of 6, maximum of 14. Cost: $215 non-members, $195 members. Course description and instructor bio at
http://kearnystreet.org/programs/calendar/2007_07.html#11b/ Register by check or credit card. To register, contact program director Samantha Chanse at 415.503.0520 or sam@kearnystreet.org for more information.
About Kearny Street Workshop: The mission of Kearny Street Workshop is to produce and present art that enriches and empowers Asian Pacific American communities. Our vision is to achieve a more just society by connecting Asian Pacific American (APA) artists with community members to give voice to our cultural, historical, and contemporary issues. For more information, please visit http://www.kearnystreet.org.
______________________
the next thing
—Glenn W. Cooper
she picks
holes in
my arguments,
in the same
way that I
proof-read
newspapers
for grammar &
spelling
mistakes —
there’s no
real point to it —
it’s just
something
to do while
we wait for
the next
thing.
____________________
EAST OF EDEN
—Glenn W. Cooper
Sharp pencils, blunt pencils.
Reading John Steinbeck’s
“East of Eden Journals”,
and how he talks about using
different types of pencils
for all his different
writing moods. The blunt, soft
pencils are for when he’s feeling
gentle and sensitive; the sharp,
harsh pencils correspond
to when he’s sour and wants
to emphasise his words.
I don’t write with pencils, but
I was thinking just now how
I do a similar thing with
the way I tap at this keyboard —
sometimes banging hard on the keys,
like using my index finger to
prod in the chest an adversary
to forcefully make a point;
other times caressing them
gently, as if stroking the early-
morning cheek of a loved one
to rouse them from sleep, in
readiness for a long journey,
maybe somewhere East of Eden.
____________________
WAITING FOR A TRAIN
—Glenn W. Cooper
Like Jimmy Rodgers
I’ve been waiting for a train,
but it hasn’t come yet.
Waited first at the platform
with a crowd of others, then
moved further up the line
till the city was far off
in the distance,
and waited there.
When I put my ear to
the ground, I swear I hear it,
feel it’s metallic rumblings
edging closer. I
don’t know where it’s been, don’t
know where I’m going, but I
know this train is coming —
it’s Coltrane’s Blue Train,
Johnny Cash’s Train of Love,
the peace train, the downtown train
maybe even Ozzy’s Crazy Train; it’s
the midnight train to Clarkson,
to Georgia, to London, and
all stations in between.
I’ve got a lot of baggage but
nothing I can take on board —
nothing I’ll be needing.
I’m waiting on a train
but it hasn’t come yet.
______________________
—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 (free publications): Rattlesnake Review14 is now available at The Book Collector; contributors and subscribers should have received theirs by now. If you're none of those, and can't get down to The Book Collector, send two bux (for postage) to P.O. Box 762, Pollock Pines, CA 95726 and I'll mail you a copy. Next deadline, for RR15, is August 15. VYPER6 (for youth 13-19) is in The Book Collector; next deadline is Nov. 1. Snakelets10 (for kids 0-12) is also at The Book Collector; next deadline is Oct. 1.
Books/broadsides: June's releases include Tom Miner's chapbook, North of Everything; David Humphreys' littlesnake broadside, Cominciare Adagio; and #3 in B.L. Kennedy's Rattlesnake Interview Series, this one featuring Jane Blue.
ZZZZZZZ: Shh! The Snake is sleeping! There will be no Snake readings/releases in July or August. Then we return with a bang on September 12, presenting Susan Kelly-DeWitt's new chapbook, Cassiopeia Above the Banyan Tree. See the online journal, Mudlark, for a hefty sample of poems from her book; that’s http://www.unf.edu/mudlark/. Also coming in the Fall: new issues of the Review, Snakelets and VYPER [see the above deadlines], plus more littlesnake broadsides from NorCal poets near and far, and a continuation of B.L. Kennedy's Rattlesnake Interview Series—including an anthology of interviews to be released for Sacramento Poetry Month (October).