lines from Jack Gilbert

We find out the heart only by dismantling what
the heart knows. By redefining the morning,
we find a morning that comes just after darkness.
We can break through marriage into marriage.
By insisting on love we spoil it, get beyond
affection and wade mouth-deep into love.
We must unlearn the constellations to see the stars.

- Jack Gilbert, from his poem "Tear it Down" (The Great Fires)

His bio does not include that he was a visiting professor some years ago for Eastern's MFA program. After he left, Jonathan Johnson took over that office...and I've sat in there many times. Good vibes there. Now Nance has that office and Jonathan, now Program Director, gets one next to the main office...in case you were wondering.

halfway over

...so it's National Poetry Month, the "official" celebration that happens every April. Though some of us breathe and live poetry all the time through a combination of reading it, writing it, thinking about it. Even when I'm reading a great novel or book of non-fiction, I'm still considering the lyricism of the author's language, figurative language, what kind of spin-off image or poem could occur.

The past few nights I've had some really lucid images in my mind while drifting off to sleep. The first time it happened, a really strange and beautiful image came to me in an entire line. I remember feeling really cool I had thought of it, and that I should write it down. But I was so cozy. The bed was warm, my husband was in a deep sleep and I was only a few seconds behind him. I didn't disturb my sleep to write it down. I actually said in my head, "This is so good, I won't forget this line." Zzzzzzzzz.....Zzzzzzzz.....

I still can't remember that damn good line. But last night, it happened again. "White ducks lined up like mannequin heads"...or something like that, at least that's how it started. I was half-asleep, but still able to think: "Ok, the lucid lines are starting to come. Let them." And then words started building into complete lines! I didn't want to turn on the light. I didn't want to move at all. I wished for a dictaphone to appear on my nightstand. I'm such a slave to my art, to my calling...obviously.

But I didn't want to miss the chance of writing that one really great poem that would be "the one" to first get published in a national literary magazine. (Oh, the ambitious hope I have!)

So I did it--turned on the light, grabbed the ballpoint pen by my clock, and scribbled on the back of a library check-out receipt until I had no more room.

What I read in the morning was a little...well, odd. I still need to sort it out. The World's Greatest Line of Poetry Conceived While Half-Asleep is not going to premiere today.

So sad.

But do read a great poem today.

we all know one, don't we?

(I couldn't wait for another day to post this.)

"Regurgimailer: people who forward to everyone they know everything that lands in their in-boxes. Warnings about techniques that rapists use in parking lots; photos of adorable missing children; heart-warming lists of why women and their friendships are so wonderful; jokes about, well, everything. The fact that most of the items either have been traveling the Internet for years or turn out not to be true, or both, does not stop them. A word to regurgimailers — check Snopes.com before you forward, please." - from LISA BELKIN's article

True finding: People from North Dakota are especially prone to this, as I usually get everything they send to my mom--another ND native.

drinking coffee in Spokane

Today: Hung out with "Wide-Eyed" today for some good coffee, a walk through the park, and stimulating conversation. Colorado is lucky to have her. Rebecca for Poet Laureate in 2021!

New in the book-bag this week:

• Anne Lamott's Plan B: Further Thoughts on Faith
• ZZ Packer's Drinking Coffee Elsewhere
• 100 Essential Modern Poems, an anthology created by Joseph Parisi
• The Best American Poetry 2005
• Denise Levertov's New & Selected Essays
• The ASJA Guide to Freelance Writing
• Handbook for Freelance Writing, by Michael Perry

This afternoon: I read (quite loudly) some Yusef Komunyakaa poems on the corner of Main and Washington in front of Auntie's Bookstore while standing on top of a milk crate, as part of the Milk Crate Readings for Get Lit! In addition, I helped pass out festival programs to pedestrians (and a few drivers) with two other poets.

If you live near Spokane, Wash., you should go to at least one event--some are free or low-cost, others are worth the ticket price. Embrace a spirit of literacy! This is, like, one of the coolest things that happens every year in Spokane. Last year I met Rita Dove, Robert Bly, and David Sedaris at Get Lit! This year I'm attending the Yusef reading and Nancy Pearl event.

Writing Biz:
An interesting NYT's article, "This Boring Headline is Written for Google", about how headlines are used to generate internet traffic via search engine listings.

* * *
And finally, here's my list of recommended places to drink coffee (while writing) in Spokane:

1. Rockwood Bakery - Excellent lattes every time; delicious baked goods with half-price deals for day-old muffins and scones; great people-watching opportunities; free parking; a plethora of tables; friendly staff. Kids love coming here, too, because of their huge chocolate chip cookies and decorated seasonal cupcakes! A relaxing place to get some writing done. Their drip coffee is only $1.35 with 25-cent refills. I'm not sure if they exclusively sell Craven's Coffee

2. Starbucks - Like most major cities, there are very many locations to choose from. Some stores are not big enough to handle the number of people who want to linger for hours and write on a laptop or do homework. Sometimes fellow patrons can be fairly loud, and the crowded stores can be too chatty for reading/writing--rather than a dull background noise, it can sound like a sporadic conversational party. Great for stealing dialogue if you can pick out specific comments.

3. The Empyrean Coffeehouse - Hosts poetry readings,concerts, mini art gallery, serves individualized French Press coffee, as well as alcohol and good food. Lots of space to hang out, which seems to attract a large adolescent crowd to this downtown venue. I'm glad kids have a cool place to go, but they can be a little too rowdy for an otherwise laid-back coffeehouse culture--especially when Saturday evening poetry readings are taking place. Finding nearby parking can be difficult. Meters free after 6pm and all day Sunday.

4. Lindaman's - Delicious lattes, gourmet food, and it's okay to just get a coffee and hang out for awhile and write. The barista man creates really neat designs in your milk foam.

...But then again, you could make your own coffee at home and write at your table. That sounds like a good deal, especially when a coffee shop owner says this: “...the profit margins are the highest in the food industry. You can make a 16-ounce cup of mocha for 55 cents and sell it for $3.25 or $3.50.” - Okay then...who wants to go to the new Coffee Deluxe.

recently published

My book review of Joe Williams' book.

Also, my interview article with former Olympian and Bloomsday race director Don Kardong.

out of silence

Then

When I am dead, even then,
I will still love you, I will wait in these poems,
When I am dead, even then
I am still listening to you.
I will still be making poems for you
out of silence;
silence will be falling into that silence,
it is building music.

- Muriel Rukeyser

Considered one of the prominent foundational poets in the feminist school of poetry, Rukeyser is probably largely unknown to non-MFA readers of poetry. Out of Silence: Selected Poems is an excellent book to own. In this poem above, I like to think she's speaking to all the future women poets--her "daughters", so to speak, as if we could channel her like a muse--as well as her son and loved ones.

homemaker

"One writes to make a home for one’s self, in paper, in time, in others’ minds." – Alfred Kazin

Next deadline: April 7th - article for Northwest Runner

Currently reading: The Last Days of Dogtown, novel by Anita Diamant; and the Spring 2006 issue of Prairie Schooner

This afternoon: teaching English at a local high school

Next week: my intensive week self-directed "Freelance Writing Boot Camp" (no sub days due to Spring Break)

father of free verse

"This is what you shall do: Love the earth and sun and the animals, despise riches, give alms to every one that asks, stand up for the stupid and crazy, devote your income and labor to others, hate tyrants, argue not concerning God, have patience and indulgence toward the people, take off your hat to nothing known or unknown or to any man or number of men, go freely with powerful uneducated persons and with the young and with the mothers of families, read these leaves in the open air every season of every year of your life, re-examine all you have been told at school or church or in any book, dismiss whatever insults your own soul; and your very flesh shall be a great poem . . . ."

- Walt Whitman, from the Preface to Leaves of Grass (1855)

Harry Potter vocab list, part II

affably
aghast
airily
albeit
alchemical
amok
aquiver
bade
besotted
brooded/broodingly
chortled/chortling
cleaving
contemptuous
crenellated
cunning
curtly
dawdled
disparate
disquiet
efficacious
envisaged
exerted
feebler
fervently
filigree
furtively
genial/genially
goading
gormless
hastily
haughty
hovel
imperiously
impervious
incantations
incredulously
inexorably
inexplicable
ingenuity
inordinate
intuitive
jocularly
jowls
livid
mirthless
morose
mutinous
oblivious/oblivion
ominous
ostentatiously
pallid
pallor
phial
placidly
pouffe
procure
prodigious
putrid
ramparts
raucous
reminisce
reproving
resolutely
retching
retort
ruefully
ruse
seething
sentry
simpered
sinuously
sodden
sulky
surreptitiously
sycophantically
tersely
travesty
trawled
tripe
uncouth
unplumbed
ursurping
volition
wrest

freelance writing and coffee break reading

For the past few months I've been more seriously researching how to establish a presence and earn money as a freelance writer/editor. There is a lot of exaggerated and useless information available in the form of web sites. Here's a brief list of how to get started on this path--from someone who finally figured out where to begin in a low-cost and efficient way. (This assumes that as writer you have proven your successful writing ability through verifiable work experience with businesses &/or non-profit organizations, and you also have some publication credits. Depending on who you want to target as a freelancer, publication may not be necessary.)

1. Join a writer's forum or group. If you live in the Northwest, join www.seattlewritergrrls.org. It's not limited just to women, although that's how it started. Mainly, this is an online email discussion group for learning about issues related to writing jobs, events, and networking opportunities. There are over 1,000 members, so many potential employers are there, along with other great bits of advice. Post any valid writing-related question, and you'll get thoughtful and helpful replies from professionals who've been-there-done-that. It's a great mentoring venue. Be sure to read and understand the discussion/membership guidelines. There is also a Portland Writergrrls chapter, made up of freelance journalists. I've also started a Spokane Writergrrls chapter that's just getting going--with 10 members so far. If you live in the Spokane/CdA area, join at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SpokaneWritergrrls/

2. Check out www.mediabistro.com - there's a fee to join and get full access, but you can also get a free subscription to view some areas.

3. Check out the web sites of reputable freelance writers, which are used to promote their services. www.dawnweinberger.com is a very good one (she's the founder of Portland Writergrrls). You can google search for more, but also those who participate in online forums usually include their site address.

4. Do further research through books, classes, workshops, etc. Dawn's website suggests some books. Amazon has a plethora to choose from, but only one really good one is needed. I haven't decided which one I'll purchase yet. I trust Dawn's recommendations.

5. Create a small collection of writing samples to share with editors/publishers either when applying for a job or after you send them your resume and/or query letter. Perhaps even create a blog portfolio to link to online examples of your work or post samples. I always wonder about plagarism is this way, so I scanned published pages of my articles and created picture files that were then uploaded. Some writers pay for web hosting. I'm not even close to this stage yet.

6. Research your local business scene and publications which may provide freelance writing opportunities. Check out the Chamber of Commerce members, weekly and monthly magazines/publications, etc.

* * *
An amusing, even quirky, short story: My God, Is It Raining Hard ... strange and surreal. Worth a short coffee break.

* * *
How many boxes of books do you own? Using small liquor-store boxes, I'd estimate that I have about 10-15. Octavio Butler had 300! She was an African-American science fiction writer who recently passed away. I'm sorry I never heard of her before, but now I want to read Kindred.

Recently published

My article at Associated Content:
Interview with Former Olympian Don Kardong, Lilac Bloomsday Run Founder and Race Director

Vocab Words

from Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

apparition
astute
bestial
blithely
bravado
cosseted
derision
dignified
drones
eccentric
enigmatic
enmity
excruciatingly
extricated
exuberantly
furtive
indignantly
irate
jibe
liaison
pestilential
prudent
reluctant
resilient
resolutely
sardonically
secateurs
silhouette
tantamount
vindictive
vivacious

And this is just from chapters 1-14, there's still over 300 pages left to go. This is the list of words that I would pull out to assist secondary students as a reading strategy. Teach to the lowest reader, if in doubt. I'm sure these words would cause pause from the average student, either with pronunciation and/or meaning. Most kids might say they've "heard" of the word, but wouldn't actually be able to use it in his/her own conversation or written work. Moreover, they would probably be nervous to read it aloud with confidence. Some students would rather die than mispronounce a word, where smarty-pants classmates will call out the correct pronunciation right on their heels--or worse, call it out during the reader's pause before attempting it. That is the teacher's role, always to be done with kindness, naturally. It's one thing to have the teacher help you. It's a whole 'nother story when the hottie in the next row does it with the whole class as witness. Depends on the tone of voice used, of course, by the samaritan classmate. In middle school, kids are ruthless and like to show how much they know and others don't.

If Harry Potter were on the secondary curriculum list, Albus Dumbledore's dialogue would be excellent examples for teaching the usage of commas, clauses, and inflection in voice to establish characterization. A challenging sentence diagramming exercise, as well.

lack of work

“Under decentralization, the heat might bet turned down at night or the gym floor might go another year without refurnishing. In the past, if a school made such efforts to save money, the funds would only be sent back to the central office to be spent by someone else. Now it stays where it may mean a part-time reading instructor. When substitute teachers are paid by headquarters, teachers call in sick more often. When money saved on substitutes comes back to the school, absenteeism falls 40%, [William] Ouchi* says.”
- from “Schools take a lesson from big business”, USA Today, 3/9/06
(* Ouchi is a UCLA Management professor)

more from this article . . .

Good or bad?

“Principals at high schools in New York City’s autonomous zone have given up assistant principals, guidance counselors and attendance clerks. But they have been able to add so many teachers with the same budget that the number of students a teacher sees each day has been driven down from 160 to 60, Ouchi says.”

Yikes!! That's an amazing teacher-student ratio; however, I can recall numerous ways that AP's and counselors are important. Who's doing all that work for them, the principal? Or are the teachers doing more administrative and non-instructional duties to compensate for this? And last I knew an attendance clerk was busy making sure there was communication between the school and parents, and keeping track of truancies, etc. That seems important when high school kids are tempted to fool the system.

The Dark Side? . . . Teacher union president gives his 2 cents.

“ ‘Decentralization is a terrible idea that would be a disaster,’ says A.J. Duffy, president of United Teachers Los Angeles. Too many principals and assistant principals are ‘demigods who take credit for what teachers do and blame teachers for what goes wrong,’ and they would become more ‘mean spirited’ if given the power of the purse, he says.

Decentralization works in industry, Duffy says, because employees can find a similar job elsewhere if they have an abusive boss. ‘You can’t do that in schools,’ he says. ‘You either work there, or you become a welder.’ ”

--Is that really the only two choices for LA teachers? Teacher or welder? Is it really that hostile there? Duffy's comments totally undersell and underestimate the aptitute and work skills of teacher. Educators can apply their talents in numerous ways outside of the traditional teacher position--whether with businesses or non-profit organizations.

A startling example cited in the article -
NYC Catholic schools have a central office staff of 22. The NYC public school system has ten times as many students, which should correlate into 222 central office staff (using the same efficient, less bureaucratic, lean principles). Uh…no. It’s actually 25,500!! Outrageous.

eat, pray, love? sounds good to me

'Eat, Pray, Love' is a dazzling memoir of one woman's 'search for everything' is the title of a Seattle PI article about Elizabeth Gilbert's new book, Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia . . . sounds very interesting. Gilbert's reading in Seattle at Eliot Bay Bookstore on Tuesday evening. I'd go if I lived within an hour's drive. Spokane usually isn't fortunate to get many authors doing their West Coast book tour to make the 1-hour flight east (or 4-5 hr drive) for a reading/book signing.

something i wish was in spokane

...as found at Seattle Weekly.

Shar[e]d Ingredients
Two shows explore the combination of verbal and visual poetry.

husky lovers

No, not large, big-boned people...husky as in the dog breed, those who love huskies.

If you love my Emerson or the general beauty and energy of these happy, strong dogs, you must see the movie Eight Below. (Fun fact: There were 2 dogs for each dog character, so look-alikes to make sure there was a back-up as needed.) See it for the dogs and the scenery, not the human actors. And Disney sure knows how to manipulate music, close-ups, and dog sounds to maximize the emotional impact and trigger audience response. Even my husband felt a tiny bit vaclempt. P.S. The dog known as "Shorty" in the film, looks just like Emerson--except for two same-colored eyes.

And this time of year is Iditarod time. The official web site, sponsored by the Iditarod Trail Committee, even has stuff for teachers to use in the classroom, updates. Some other good Race sites include: Dogsled.com, Cabela's site (Always one of my favorite to check with great daily updates and pictures...they are Jeff King's sponsor, and I met King in 2000 while visiting his husky kennel. Nice guy.), and the Anchorage Daily News.

We take Emerson on his own personalized mini-Iditarod races all the time. On Saturday, he got a 5-mile mountain bike adventure through Manito Park and the surrounding neighborhood--with steep grassy slopes and dirt singletracks. His tongue flapped out of his mouth and his ears bent back just like he was heading towards Nome.

a man named Frank

Fun Quote of the Day:

"Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy." - Benjamin Franklin
* found in the online pages of Alaska Amber Brewing Co.

Yesterday, I finished reading Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt. I know, I know I'm a gazillion years behind the rage of this book, which won a Pulitzer in 1997. (In my defenese, that was the year I student-taught, graduated from college, and started my first year of full-time teaching--so I have valid excuses for being a little behind in my reading. Although, I did start reading it once. I think I just wasn't in the frame of mind to read it then, nor finish it in time to return to the library.)

I don't claim to have read a plethora of Pulitzer books, but I have read a number of memoirs and can appreciate the strengths of this book which make it stand out from other memoirs.

First, honesty. McCourt does not have to dramatize his personal story, because it has very real gritty and tragic facts. It is what it is. The telling of the history moves swiftly with just the right amount of detail. McCourt, I can imagine, checked facts and details with his brothers and perhaps other relatives, as needed to maintain accuracy. (I haven't researched the writing process behind his memoir, so I may be wrong--but I suppose the answer might be found here.) I don't recall the memoir saying things like, "To the best of my memory..." or other disclaimers. Undoubtedly, when you've endured Ireland the way McCourt has you either have an excellent memory (tragedy being a powerful glue), or you have a bad memory in order to block out the pain and protect the psyche. I believe McCourt has an excellent memory, especially since he recounted many of his childhood anecdotes for his students throughout his career as a high school English teacher.

Second, realistic voice. McCourt uses a narrative voice in his first memoir that isn't one of the enlightened adult looking back, using lyrical prose to dazzle the reader and sensationalize scenes. Rather, the succinctness of the narrative is believable as an adult-voice, and also that of the young McCourt, using present tense--to tell the story as if only a few days or hours removed from the events being described. Juvenile, but not childish. Kids like McCourt grew up fast in order to survive. The language used, word choices and not just the dialetic/slang, is what grounds this authentic, trustworthy voice. My favorite term he uses: "the excitement". I also enjoyed the unflattering and blatantly honest way he describes his experiences growing up Irish-Catholic. The emptiness, his fascination with the stories of the saints, the hypocrisy.

And the third strength (which I sort of mentioned above), is the succinct, concise re-telling. In 363 pages, he recounts his life up to age 19. (The only other memoir I've read which covers as many years is Lillian Helman's.) It's consistently engaging because it's not overloaded, long-winded, or otherwise drawn out with redundant, unneccesary details. And regarding page 364...did McCourt have the idea for his second memoir in mind before his first one went to press, or was the second titled Tis because of page 264? Just a question I have.

So, that's my short review. I think this book would be a hoot to listen to on tape, but I think I've heard just enough Irish brogue to get a sense of it...och.

of course

"In a complex text, organization may be elaborate, messages may be implicit, interactions among ideas or characters may be subtle, and the vocabulary is demanding and intricate."
- from "Study: Reading Key to College Success"

I think this absolutely characterizes excellent literature from the mediocre. Whether it's a poem, short story, non-fiction essay, or novel, the more students practice reading and understanding the text--the organization of action and character development, motivation of the characters, intent of the author, the thematic messages and issues, all of the elements that work together to form an engaging and insightful work of literature...crafted in language that is precise and intelligent, without cliches and simplistic descriptions...this package is a complex text.

I have always loved to read. This kind of innate fascination and obsession with reading is probably the foundational common trait among all writers. It is also probably an inherent quality in every teacher and professor of English.

Unfortunately, the nature of teaching today's high school students is that many students do not have this same admiration and desire for the written word. Whether or not saturation with books and reading is essential in developing this trait, lest it be lost forever, I can't say. I do know from my studies in literacy and reading skills, the earlier children are introduced to the concepts of reading, the structure of books and literary forms, and surrounded by healthy, positive language, the more likely a child is to be an excellent reader--not only in skill, but also in his/her motivation to read. Choosing a book over a movie, for example. Actually reading the assigned homework chapters for English class. Actually reading a book!

I'm also understanding of the reality that certain speech impairments and developmental issues can delay a child's reading readiness and ultimately impact his/her literary. Depending on what kind of parental support and intervention takes place, and how early, this usually doesn't impact a child through adulthood. In fact, the most motivated and dedicated students are the ones who overcame a speech impediment, dyslexia, or other difficulty in regards to their ability to read and comprehend.

When I was teaching full-time, I required my students to complete an Outside Reading requirement worth 10% of their final grade. For regular level students, this meant they had to read 300 pages (for total credit) of literature (fiction or non-fiction) each quarter. Honors students had to read 500 pages a quarter. The book could not be any from the course curriculum, or a book they read in previous years for English class. Movie books received 1/2 credit. (Which became increasingly difficult as more and more good novels have been adapted into screenplays and produced.) I first learned about this concept from Jane Schaffer when I attended my first workshop with her in the fall of 1997, my first year as a teacher.

My second year of teaching I broadened the scope to also include "Literary Experiences"--where students could attend a play or poetry/book reading and write a short review about the experience. It wasn't as time consuming as reading, but not very many chose this route because they didn't want to pay to see a performance or simply weren't interested. Most did the reading, and after missing it for a quarter quickly realized what a difference it made to their grade. I evaluated students' credit based on "Oral Book Reports". Without fail, I could tell if a student had actually read the book or not. Open it up to a random page, read and passage, then ask the student, "Tell me what's going on." If students haven't read the book, or haven't read to that passage yet and were trying to test on the whole book, it becomes very apparent--they stumble through an explanation, are vague, etc. If that haven't read but had a friend fill them in enough or they somehow otherwise were slick enough to sound like they kind of read, I'll pick a few more passages to have them explain. Often I'll ask specific questions about the character development, theme, or action--usually when I've also read the book. And since I've read many, many books, the students knew they couldn't fool me easily.

My favorite times were when I caught students trying to fib their way through an Oral Book Report. I'd usually make up an event or a character and ask a question about it. Because the student hadn't read the book, he/she would try to create a fabricated answer for my fabricated question. I remember once asking a student who claimed to have read a science-fiction book.

After a few stumbling responses, I asked, "So tell me about the character Vader." The student: "Oh, he's the guy who...." Uh, no. Vader is in Star Wars.

Overall, the most rewarding part of requring Outside Reading was that I was had 5 minute book discussion with each student at least once a quarter. Some students read piles of books, over a thousand pages for the school year. I remember one 11th grade boy who claimed to have never read a book. I told him to go get Harry Potter from the school library, and I bet he would love it. This was back in 1999 when Potter was still really, really the IN thing. He had to be on the waiting list for awhile, and I knew the other student who had the book checked out. So I told her, "Hey, hurry up and finish that book, I know a kid who needs to read it!" It was like an after-school special movie, because that 17-year-old kid read Harry Potter and loved it. He came in so excited on a Monday, telling all about how he read it over the weekend and just couldn't put it down. How we wanted to get the next book right away and start reading again. And the awesome thing for him was that because HP books are so thick, he got most of his pages read for the semester!

I believe the Outside Reading requirement gave students the opportunity to read. When it's not cool and they are so busy with sports, activities, jobs, and friends, this gave them the excuse to kick back and read. Isn't that why some adults go on vacation now? Just to lounge by a pool and read? Read in the airport, on the plane, laying at the beach. Read in the hammock, on the couch, in the park, in a coffee shop.

And by giving them the opportunity to read, they practiced their reading skills. They improved their literacy. They engaged in reading complex texts. Sustained commitment to a work of art. God knows this can't hurt 'em. And 10 minutes each class day of SSR (sustained silent reading) was also helpful. Man, I miss that part of teaching.

* * *
Here's one teacher's webpage for outside reading that includes a book list. neat.

bloggers turned novelists

From Time for the last post -

"Ana Marie Cox also stands as a prime example of another under-acknowledged weakness of the blogger uprising: to make it in blogging seems to mean making it out of blogging. By the time the Vanity Fair photo spread on Gawker Media hit the store shelves in January, Cox had left Wonkette to focus on promoting her novel Dog Days, a satire on Washington DC for which she was paid $250,000. Elizabeth Spiers, too, defected from Gawker after about a year on the job, and her satirical novel will be published next year. Its title is curiously apropos: And They All Die in the End."

"The point is, any writer of talent needs the time and peace to produce work that has a chance of enduring."

Interesting.

* * *

Time

Peace

dada in D.C.

Surrealist poets would be delighted to know about the dada exhibit at Washington's National Gallery--although this article doesn't give mention about Tristan Tzara founding the movement, just his friends Hugo and Richard.

For my MFA Surrealism Poetry course, I chose Tristan Tzara--the poet & essayist known as the founder of dada--as my research subject. In addition to the extensive final research paper, I had to write a creative series of works modeled after our historical surrealist writer. Here are some excerpts from my Tzara-inspired prose, modeled after his "Dada Manifesto" and "Lecture on Dada". (Reading it now, I realize it makes better sense if combined with reading Tzara's actual manifesto. Or perhaps I was hyped up on coffee at the time of composition.)

III
We have always made poorly-constructed rhymes and foamy espresso beverages, but the greatest mistakes are the poems we have written. Gossip has one single bad breath: the rejuvenation and maintenance of biblical and Shakespearean traditions. Gossip is only glorifying itself (like cheerleaders and kids who shop at Old Navy), encouraged by the state-controlled tobacco company (and large home breweries), the international airports of America, all the hospitals in Spokane, the funeral and basket-weaving industry and coffee factories . . . The form under which it most often appears is DADA, and sometimes surrealism in the form of a graduate level Monday night class in downtown Spokane.
. . .
Is simplicity simple, or dada?

I consider myself rather likeable. (but still, I am at times a wee bit selfish)


IV
Is poetry necessary? I know that those who shout in the most nasal voice against it are actually preparing a comfortable obsession for it; they call it the Future Hygienic (or as my dentist would say, a Floss-Free New Order).

People (like professors and other intellectuals) envision the (ever-impending) annihilation of art, independent films in Spokane, and coffee houses that stay open after 10:00 p.m. Here they are looking for a more art-like art. Hygiene becomes mygod mygod purity. Must we no longer believe in words or x-rays? Since when do they express the contrary of what the organ that utters them things and wants?* Herein lies the great secret: Thought is made in the mouth. (and sometimes in the buttocks)I still consider myself very likeable. (And not quite so selfish anymore.)

A great Spokane County philosopher (originally from Canada) said: Thought and the past are also very likeable.
* Thinks. wants, and wishes to think

. . .

VI
It seems that this exists: more logical, very logical, too logical, less logical, not very logical, really logical, fairly logical.
Well then, draw the inferences.
"I want spicy rice."
Now think of the person you would most love to tickle to death.
"Have you?"
Tell me the number and I'll tell you the Power Ball lottery number in all 27 states.

VII
A seminary student, in other words with his eyes closed, Dada places before action and above all: self-loathing and insecure Doubt. DADA doubts everything. Dada is an armadillo. Dada is a Chihuahua wearing a skirt. Dada is cold cous cous. Everything is Dada, too. Beware of Dada.

Anti-dadaism is a disease: selfkleptomania, man's normal condition, is DADA.
But the real dadas are against DADA. Just like the real coffee addicts make their own brew at home.

The selfkleptomaniac.

The person who steals - without thinking of her own interests or knitting needs, or of her will - elements of her individual, is a kleptomaniac. She steals herself. She causes the characters that alienate her from the community to disappear. She hides behind her cell phone, purse, and stiletto shoes. The bourgeois resemble one another - they're all alike. They used not to be alike. They have been taught to steal - stealing has become a fad (like Converse and bubblegum) - the most convenient and least dangerous thing is to steal oneself. They are all very poor. They are all on food stamps or living off student financial aid, subsidized Stafford loans. The poor are against DADA. They have a lot to do with their brains. They'll never get to the end of it. They work. The poor are against DADA. He who is against DADA is for me, a famous man said, but then he died after a few too many cigarettes and tequila shots. They buried him like a true dadaist. Guten Tag Dada. Beware! And remember this example.

* * *

how i became charming, likeable and delightful
- by amy tzara

1st December 2003

I sleep very late – sometimes past 8:00. I commit suicide at 65.725%. My life is very cheap (like a Mexican rug), it's only 4.25% of life for me. My life has 4.25% of life. It lacks arms, strings, a few buttons, and two ovaries. 5% is devoted to a state of semi-lucid stupor accompanied by vegetarian crackling and nail-biting. This 5% is called DADA. So life is cheap like Wal-Mart. Death is a bit more expensive like The Bon-Macy’s. But life is charming and death is equally charming (though I can’t remember the last time I died).

A few days ago I was at a meeting of imbeciles. There were a lot of people there. Everyone was charming, except for the girl with the hairy lips. Amy Tzara, a small, absurd and insignificant poet was giving a lecture on the art of becoming charming. She was charming, at that. Everyone is charming and sometimes a little too funny. And witty. It's delightful, isn't it? Everyone is delightful, at that. 9.75 degrees below zero. It's charming, isn't it? No, it isn't charming. God isn't up to it, nor is his Mother. He isn't even in the Spokane city directory or the yellow pages. He doesn’t even have his own website yet. But even so he's charming.

Ambassadors to Seattle, MFA poets, princes, musicians, Nirvana fans, journalists, Hollywood actors, writers, diplomats, directors, dressmakers, socialists, princesses and baronesses are charming.

You are all charming, very subtle, witty and delightful (and I must say, I love the way you smell). Amy Tzara says to you: she's quite willing to do something else, but she prefers to remain an idiot, a practical joker and a hoaxer who still laughs at whoopee cushions. Be sincere for a moment: what I've just said to you - is it charming or idiotic? Is it worthy of an MFA final project?

There are some people (journalists, lawyers, amateurs, philosophers) who even think that business, marriages, visits, wars, various conferences, limited companies, politics, accidents, dance halls, economic crises, fits of hysterics, are variations of dada.

Not being a properly trained hypnotist, I don't share their opinion. I believe rather, that dada is only a divinity of the Da Vinci Code, which must quite simply be placed beside the other forms of the new mechanism of Spokane city maps and downtown one-way streets.
Is simplicity simple, or dada?
I consider myself rather likeable. (Please hold your applause until after I leave. Thank you.)

* * *

Surrealist writing exercises
Most people have heard of The Exquisite Corpse game. Mad Libs are another great tool for getting at the spirit of dadaism--the not-completely-sensical cohesion of language. (Another helpful instruction site.)

How to make a Dadaist Poem (method of Tristan Tzara)

Some Tzara poems:
The Great Lament Of My Obscurity Three
Vegetable Swallow