Laughing Buddha

Sometimes the straps break and sometimes you fall over. Perhaps it was too much dancing, too much of a load for them to hold up my chest, or perhaps a poor sewing job that caused my dress to come a bit undone over the weekend. Luckily Kjera was packing the super glue in her purse so nothing too unseemly happened. And today Shake Your Booty (the store in which I bought the dress) called and said a new one was on its way.

Today I fell over in high lunge with a twist in yoga. Both mishaps I laughed through--like the buddha, finding humor in our shortcomings. Conversely, the book goes to press today and we've been searching for last minute typos and mishaps. I hope we got them all, because I know I won't be laughing over these mistakes or taking them gracefully. It's actually been pretty stressful--the first time in which the book seems real, almost ready now. Sandra pointed out to me at Burlesque that I've been very hush hush about these poems, not reading them, not sharing them. Perhaps because I think they are a whole, not really meant for one at a time reading. I'm really thinking about what this means, the book, a body of work---and now being on the other end, a reviewer, I'm really interested in the whole of things, not just finding the gems, the coda poems. What I'm reading right now is Mende Lewis Obadike's Armor and Flesh. And really loving the concept of the kinds of armor we wear to protect and sheild ourselves, exposing the masks and what it looks like when we remove them.

Rain Delay

It's been a weekend whirlwind of changes and weather. Annie's married! That's where the pictures are from. Jonathan and I hung out in Coventry, where I used to hang out in college and going back, so many things have changed or moved around. I guess just another indication that nothing ever remains the way it was. Luckily the milkshakes at Tommy's are still the same and you can still get the best used CD's at Record Revolution. We drank a lot and ate a lot of cheese fries. Not such a common thing here on the East Coast so I definitely took advantage of that. But the best was seeing family and friends, because even through change, you grow together. All these girls make me realize how blessed we are to have each other. I think Melissa said it best when she commented in how different we all are, but how that doesn't matter.

We got stuck and extra night and came home to rain and more rain. My ivy is growing quite rapidly and I'm excited I finally have a plant I can keep alive. And in the spirit of growing and producing, my book goes off to press this week! Last night's Burlesque was also full of red pants and hot poetry so make sure you check out the blog. WARNING! Don't view these at work!

Mondays Just Got Hotter!

http://burlesquepoetryhour.blogspot.com/

~Get ready to shake off your Monday Blues~

The Rain Dance

Last Friday, Shannon convinced me to take her ballet class. Everyone else had slippers. I wore my socks. That should tell you how it all went down. Nonetheless, I really liked it. I felt pretty and graceful--when I was doing the stuff right. Which was maybe about half of the time. Next to me at the bar was this guy who comes into the bar--fancy that. My world is starting to get smaller. And wetter. Today I got stuck in a minor apocalypse and was soaked to the core. A kind lady shared her umbrella with me part of the way. This was more of a gesture as the rain was blowing all over and so it didn't really serve any purpose but to have someone else to walk with as we got wet. I came home and made some coffee and began my venture into the world of having a monthly poetry column. That's right, I'll be taking a literary virtual roadtrip as I highlight different presses and poets for the KGB Bar Literary Magazine. I'm really excited to get back to reading and unearthing. I already feel like I found so much. As writers, we often turn inwards and it's nice to see the good work that is out there. You know, we submit to magazines but only read the issues that we're in. But I suppose it all depend on the time you have and how you want to use it. How does one engage in the literary community and still maintain their own writing. I suppose this comes down to balance and who are we to tell each other how to do it. I know I don't have enought time for my own work. Yesterday I wrote a poem and it was the first one in few weeks at least. It came like they usually do---a moment crystalized--from a real story told to me yesterday and then the poem took off from there. I know that's so old school---to be "hit" with inspiration, and then the excited spiral as the poem leads you on the journey. Today in yoga we were told to embrace the what is and open our hearts to that inner voice--the one you don't overthink, the gut impulse or feeling---that the heart, mind, or body have a way of knowing that is just based on feeling (not logic or reason). After the rain hit, I curled up in my sweats and am in for the night with poetry. What a hot date!

New Laureate

One of my favorite poets is now the new laureate! I'm so excited so check it out:

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/14/books/14poet.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

Ha Ha, I'm in a Relationship

Yesterday Raydiance asked me how I make a relationship work. That brings about many interesting questions and anecdotes, as I used to be one of those girls who had a flavor of the month or more accurately week. I was big into trying everything and not having a favorite flavor so to speak. So how does one go from there to where I am now...I'm not quite sure, but I know laughter is a must. Jonathan came over and was helping me hang curtains around my bed and on the ceiling (also helpful to find someone who appreciates your quirks---home decor at 9 pm). I had everything taped up and he let me stick tape all over his clothes as I peeled it from the fabric and the ceiling. Why this was hysterical, I don't know, but he shares my pension for lewd humor and other base things to chuckle about. I also think it's helpful not to yell and to be able to calmly discuss annoyances and try to understand where the other person is coming from before flying off the wall. Because most of these things are never all that big---and trying to see that when it does seem so HUGE. Most importantly, I think is forgiving and forgetting---or at least not necessarity forgetting but being able to turn the situation from tragedy to comedy, to create shared jokes, not where you make fun of the other person but where you laugh together--bringing me back to my original answer. That and ice cream---last night we went out for dessert and paid $7 for coffee ice cream inside a mason jar with some soda water. But jokes on them, it was 100% worth it.

My Milkshake Brings...

You know how the rest of that lyric goes...Yes, Kleis was staying at the Rouge and I didn't get to see her :(. Besides, we're not allowed to be star struck. We just have to treat stars as normal guests and not ask for autographs or do anything else un-called for. I'm sure I would have behaved myself, but that is like one of my all time favorite songs. When asked about it by my co-workers, I said I made good milkshakes and they thought I was being lewd. So I said I had like a really expensive blender at home. So here's proof, what I made for Raydiance today:

1 banana
1/3 c. crushed ice
1 c. milk
1/3 half and half
chocolate sauce (as much as necessary)
same goes for the kahlua

Summer Writing Goal

I spent the early afternoon listening to some of the CD Roms that will accompany the online course I'm teaching this summer, and in the middle of syllabus building, I realized that I really haven't been writing myself, unless you count blogging and countless edits of the book. Though I have been getting back to sending out some poems. I think I ended up writing a lot with my students this spring...now it's just a matter of typing and editing. I still do everything by hand. It just feels more natural that way. Perhaps b/c that's how I began. I wonder if there will be a whole generation of writers that never has that sensation of writing, scratching out, drawing arrows, and all that jazz on the page. Call me old fashioned. But I'm moving forward. I did figure out how to convert files from word perfect to word and I will be teaching online.

So now that we're into summer (hey, it's June and hot in DC) I'm making a vow to get back to the museums once a week and do some writing. I think it's good every season to check in with yourself and see where you're at and where else you want to be.