On Monday night I had an excellent night featuring at Passionate Tongues. Michael Reynolds gave me quite an amazing introduction and I was glad for the reddish light because they saved my blushing. The crowd was relatively new to me and I managed to read the entire thing off an iPad! Being a tech geek FTW!

In further news, I will be making another feature at the magnificent Dan O’Connell on the first Saturday in August (the 6th, I think)! New posts coming soon.

I’ve found a collection of poetic prompts that I’m slowly working my way through, in the absence of original ideas, I’m into week 2 at the moment (writing when time allows doesn’t allow me to write one poem a day). But my usual annual challenger of getting out 12 poems a year looks like it will be knocked over rather soon. Anyhow, this was from Day 4 of the prompts. Write a ‘containment’ poem. I started with being in a bookstore and went from there.

Here is the place I lost myself
and the reference section
that atlased me back home
 
Here is the poetry section with
its small and empty shelf telling me
the books aren’t going to write themselves.
 
Here is the where I fell to pieces
and the architecture guide
that blueprinted me again
 
Here is the sci-fi shelves who say
this is the future if you please
If not, who are you to the future anyway?
 
Here are the books written about music
and all the songs about writing.

Reading: “The Michael Palin Diaries: The Python Years”
Listening: “Ramona Was A Waitress” – Paul Dempsey

In the absence of actual content from myself, I thought I would throw in something recently posted by Sean M. Whelan, he performed a bunch of his work recently with co-conspirator Andrew Watson. The link below will take you to a video of the two of them performing the title to Sean’s most recent and purchase-worthy book.

Click this link. You know you should!

A Striking Soliloquy

tu be
or not
tu be

New mini-moleskine notebook

…or I need to spend more time waiting for her to arrive from her travels. On Sunday Nicole, my wife, returned from Sydney after visiting the Sydney Vintage Fair. Being the nervous sort, I usually turn up to collect her from the airport far earlier than is necessary, preferring to be too early than too late.

In this instance, I was two and a half hours too early which then became three when her flight was delayed.

It’s National Poetry Month in the US and Robert Brewer has been attempting a Poem-A-Day challenge, publishing the results on his blog, Poetic Asides. Taking a look at the prompts he’s been posting, and armed with a large amount of time to kill, an internet accessible phone and a notebook, I had a shot at writing some poetry while I waited.

Total poems written to date in 2010: 2.
Total poems written in two hours: 5.

I can’t vouch for their quality. Yet. It’s five rough drafts, but I don’t recall ever being quite so productive in such a small amount of time. I’ll be posting them as they get a suitable amount of polish to them.

Reading: “Infinite City” – Alex Skovron
Listening: “Ramona Was A Waitress” – Paul Dempsey

What: The Spinning Room feat. Tim Hamilton
When: 8:00pm, 30th March
Where: ET Hotel, High St., Prahran
Why: Because the poetry is good! Because I’ll be featuring! Because poetry in Melbourne needs and loves your support!

More news real soon now, including featuring announcements!

Thanks to Peter Bakowski and the marvellous poetry course her ran last year, my new year resolution last year to write at least one poem a month ended up somewhere close to 20! Thanks Peter!

So here is the first for this year, a Martian poem.

This species unique for
their Bowie coloured eyes
one for dark, one for light.
Shiny black carapace,
fragility increasing
as they mature and grow.
 
The human holds her charge
with reverence, stroking
and grooming its arcane
circular plumages.
 
It’s back pressed to her face
They observe, in ritual,
some distant mock-prey.
It clicks in excitement
with an explosion from
it’s bright eye, it’s dark eye
fluttering in response.
 
Satisfied, the human
shows the marsupial
nature of this creature;
returning it to a
black spongy pouch
around her neck before
they continue to stalk
more eye-catching quarry.

Reading: “The collected poetry of Czeslaw Milosz”
Listening: “Legions (War)” – Zoë Keating

Stuff is forming in my notebook, but I seem to work by way of accretion. Will post again soon with something I was toying with on Saturday.

Hope you are all well.

The launch was amazing, The Heart Chamber were fantastic.