TURNING THE GARDEN IN MIDDLE AGE
—Maxine Kumin
They have lain a long time, these two:
parsnip with his beard on his foot,
pudding stone with fool's gold in her ear
until, under the thrust of my fork,
earthlock lets go. Mineral
and marrow are flung loose in May
still clinging together as if
they had intended this embrace.
I think then of skulls picked clean
underground, and the long bones
of animals overturned in the woods
and the gorgeous insurgency
of these smart green weeds
erect now in every furrow
that lure me once more
to set seeds in the loam.
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Check the b-board or eskimopie.net for this weekend’s offerings, including, locally, Terry Moore's The Blackout Poetry Series and The Show. In the Bay Area, Sacramento’s Shawn Pittard will be reading with Christina Hutchins and Roy Mash at the Rebound Bookstore on Saturday: reboundbookstore.com
Here’s another colorful, inspiring Bay Area event—The 25th Annual Berkeley Kite Festival, which runs Sat. and Sun. from 10am-5pm in Cesar E. Chavez State Park at the Berkeley Marina, sponsored by Highline Kites of Berkeley. See giant kites, a “candy drop” from low-flying kites, team kite flying and kite battles, Octopile 2010, kites sales and demos, and kids having a chance to build their own kites. Go to www.highlinekites.com/pages.php?pageid=21 for directions and details (and ‘way cool pix!). The event is free, although parking costs $10. But there is a free shuttle from the North BART station.
Then on Monday, Sacramento Poetry Center presents Gillian Wegener, William O'Daly, Lenore Myers, Allison Meraz, Kathleen McClung, Katie McCleary, Devi Sen Laskar, Penelope La Montagne (also reading a poem by Connie Post), L.A. Jones, Taylor Graham, Tom Goff, Susan Flynn, Margaret Duarte, Clark M. Dixon Moses, Sandra Bozarth, Naomi Benaron, Francisco X. Alarcón, all reading from the new summer issue of SPC's journal, Tule Review. That’s at 25th & R Sts., Sacramento, 7:30pm.
And for further inspiration, see Sac. Poet Laureate Emeritus Viola Weinberg’s latest blog-post at rugsandbones-viola.blogspot.com
Happy Birthday to two SnakePals this week: Taylor Graham (7/28) and Katy Brown (7/30). I figure they both like kites…
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AGITATION
—Patricia Hickerson, Davis
the afterlife of a tornado:
street flooded
bridge out
house crushed
the residue of an ice storm:
branch down
power line crackling
road blocked
in the wake of your suicide threat:
hands shaking
heart racing
nightmare…
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URBAN SOLACE XVII
In Line
—Mitz Sackman, Murphys
In line and damn it she wasn’t skating either
She was just standing in this colossal snail paced line
Creeping ever so slowly forward
Unemployment it sucks
All the forms, all the waiting just to have enough to get by
Trying to be patient, cheerful
But hey at least when she wasn’t waiting she had time to see friends,
Skate, go dancing
Compared to her 24/7 overwork job before she was downsized
At least she had time now to stop and think for herself
She smiled
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QUESTION
—May Swenson
Body my house
my horse my hound
what will I do
when you are fallen
Where will I sleep
How will I ride
What will I hunt
Where can I go
without my mount
all eager and quick
How will I know
in thicket ahead
is danger or treasure
when Body my good
bright dog is dead
How will it be
to lie in the sky
without roof or door
and wind for an eye
With cloud for shift
how will I hide?
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Today's LittleNip:
BIRTHDAY POEM
—Steve Sanfield
Inside—the laughter of friends.
Outside—the moon & I alone.
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—Medusa
