Howdy, Casual Ramblers, and happy Thursday!
April was a month of birthdays and I have here a collection of poems that occurred to me as little isolated thoughts and vignettes from the month, some obvious some not. They’re all still works in progress, per usual.
Normally I would have been paralyzed by this state of being “new.” Recently, however, I challenged myself: I went to an open mic in Vancouver for my birthday.
This is the first open mic that I have attended with the express intent to share and read my poetry. I was absolutely terrified in the early hours, having arrived late and without any confidence or preparation.
But as the night wore on and I stopped ferrying myself between car and chair, fretting over which poems to read, I began to listen. And every time someone had something new to share, I could hear the trepidation in their voice. The fear of sharing an unvarnished piece of work.
In turn the audience would exclaim, “new shit!”
This hearty response turned off whatever fearful juice of adrenaline coursed through mind and body beforehand and transmuted the page. Suddenly these pieces of the soul became just words. Just stanza. Just poetry.
The night went long. Invited to the event was Derek Sheffield, a native poet laureate of Washington. Thirty-five poets read their work alongside Sheffield, including me. I went last, after many had left for home.
But I didn’t care. For once in my life I felt like I was a writer among writers. A poet among poets reading not for acclaim, but for the love of the craft. I felt welcomed. I felt like I could contribute.
And I felt like I could share some new shit.
P.S. If you want the even newer shit, the Patreon has moved to daily poetry every weekday for paid patrons! Don’t fret, monthly poetry drops will continue, but now they will consist of the selected best of each month. Come join us for new poems by becoming supporting the Casual Ramble today!
- “A Man at Thirty Two” came from a journal entry I wrote on my birthday. Its penultimate section came from a different poem I wrote in my journal as well. I’m not sure if I like it in this poem–it feels too foreboding–but for the moment it works and ends up in a more positive space than I feared it would. The final triplet finishes on the word auspices, a word of which I’ve always had trouble remembering the definition. Etymologically speaking, it comes from the reading of birds as omens and favors, which I only found out after I wrote the final stanza. A happy coincidence, I must say.
- “Collateral” came from another journal entry I wrote while making dinner. It’s built around the triplet “There they stood, a-clash/Two ceramic dolls/That thought themselves wood.”
- “Floetry N. 1” came from an idea one of my friends in Cats in Space gave me to describe my whole shtick of taking my typewriter into the middle of fire circles and writing poems as fast possible. First thought, best thought. She was surprised I never came up with the idea before, but y’know, I think it’s better when friends come up with the names for what you do rather than yourself. Anyhow, I wrote this poem during my friend Doggo’s birthday in March and intended to give it to him, but it ended up unfinished after I ran out of time. Now that it has been worked into an early state of satisfaction, I’m confident enough to share it both with him and you.
- “Floetry N. 2” follows in the footsteps of “N. 1” by following the exact same process: light up some wicks on my poetry sign, then sitting in the middle of a fire circle and writing a poem as fast as possible. It was written the day before my birthday, and I gave it to my friend T who also has a birthday in April. It’s very simple, but y’know what? If first thought, best thought then fire thought, better thought.
- “Kaiote” was written for my friend Kaiote. I always love watching him burn, and the idea of a spirit hound has always permeated his being. Add in a red flannel and the line “flannel red and fire bright” became a launch point for an ode to his sense of self.
- “A Writer Gives Up” came from the day I spent writing all of these poems and polishing them up some. Of all the poems, this is the “new shit.” In that vein, I probably won’t polish beyond this point because, to be honest, it works as is.
Thank you to all my Patreon subscribers and free members of the Casual Ramble! Big news: my manuscript has been reviewed and I will be speaking with my publishing agent on Monday. Regardless of what happens, if I agree to publishing it via them or by myself, this collection will see the light of day soon. I can’t wait to share it.
The Casual Ramble 