Poam-A-Day Challange day 17

All I want is a little Peace of Mind

I don't ask for much.
A late morning rainfall heard from my bed.
The mail man passing my house,
not a single bill delivered.
The sun setting gently, unshaken
and lifting a glass high in my honor.

No grimy hands pulling at my trouser leg,
no cold empty bottle of 2004 Sea Smoke Cellars
Chardonnay- languishing in the refrigerator.

A pristine moment alone
in my head, the visions of sugar plums silenced
by time out in the corner and the constant drumbeat
of a drummer, different from all others,
whose sticks mark time with untold stories and
misplaced swallows who for the first time
have not returned.



[yesterdays prompt was "all I want is (blank)"]

Poam-A-Day Challenge (day16)

Black

Black wants nothing more
than to challenge transparency-
to turn the lights out,
have dominion over the day.

Black lives for that hour when the curtain
draws back across the world stage
and will not weep for the fallen sun.

It's the onyx of stones,
the dark loam beneath
our feet, the grounds
in the bottom of our coffee

cup- and the hollow
gut wrench emptiness
that overcomes us
when all alone.

This too shall pass

                                          Today, for the second time this week, I received rejections on submissions.

I guess the positive side of this is I'm being rejected by better caliber journals.  Hey, you've got to look at the positive.

Back to the drawing board.

 

Technorati Tags: rejected submissions

Blogger Appreciation Day

Today is Blogger Appreciation Day. With that in mind I like first to express my sincere appreciation for those people who stop by Stickpoet from time to time and occasionally offer some comments. (Ok, I don't mean spammers, I've had a rash of them in the past ten days. Their posts are moderated and never see the light of day.)

Occasionally we do have some thought provoking exchanges here and other times I do my thing and people keep coming back. So thank you to all who visit this site and take the time to read.

There is another whole group of people out there for whom I am also appreciative. These would be the bloggers who write the blogs I go to on a regular basis. There are many that I read, but among the most regular are the following that I'd like to acknowledge:

• Joannie Stangeland at Poe Query
• Ivy Alvarez at Ivy is here
• Kelli Russell Agodon at The Book of Kells
• Sandra Beasley at Chicks Dig Poetry
• Christine Hamm at This is All Your Fault
• Mary Biddinger at The word cage

These are just a few that I follow, but they are pretty regular in posting and each offers something I especially like.

Joannie for instance is very eclectic. Her posts range from poems to pictures of various culinary endeavors she undertakes and I have especially found her how-to videos worthwhile. They generally are of technical nature related to computers and writing.

Ivy is like inspirational. I mean her dedication to her craft and how she goes about it is an excellent example for the rest of us.

Kelli is funny, I love Tuesday at the Confessional. She will from time to time post some of her work, but I especially have enjoyed her insight over the several years that I have followed her blog.

Sandra often features information about other poets and their book releases and occasionally provides an interesting commentary on a poetry related topic.

Christine is like dark and edgy. Ok, I mean her poetry not exactly her. This is a good thing- I mean it is writing I appreciate and enjoy. There is often a dark humor about it as well. Most of her posts are things she is working on, written but some interesting art as well.

Mary will pose exceptionally thoughtful questions or insights and always seems to generate a lot of feed back from her readers in the comments. Mary truly have succeeded in creating dialogue with her blog.

There, a little bit about why I enjoy each of these blogs and appreciate the work they do to post on a regular basis, fresh ideas or work. Thanks to all of you!

Technorati Tags: blogger appreciation day,Mary Biddinger,Christine Hamm,Joannie Stangeland,Sandra Beasley,Ivy Alvarez,Keli Russell Agodon

And the Good News is....

I can imagine that many people participating in NaPaWriMO / Poem-a-day challenge or whatever you want to call it will agree with me this is a taxing proposition. (Oh! there is that nasty “T” word on tax day) Don’t think that many would disagree with me that this is not exactly the best way to create quality poems, but that also doesn’t mean that can’t happen.

With all the financial ills, unemployment, pirates, nukes, war, drugs, etc. (I’m sure I’m missing someone’s favorite malady) it’s nice to hear something upbeat; that someone did good.

So for all those suffering poets out there a bit of joyous news for one poet and an inspiration for the rest of us to keep plugging along on the last half of the poem-a-day challenge. Congratulations are in order for Christine Klocek-Lim, who has won the Annual Ellen La Forge Poetry Prize for her 2008 entry of six astrology poems (get this next part) written from last year’s NaPoWriMo. The added bonus is that money actually comes along with the award, which of course defies any logic since the product involved was poetry.

Three cheers for Christine… everyone keep writing!

Enjoy!

Post Secret

40 %

So I've just finished posting today's poem on Poetry Asides written from the prompt for the day: So We Decided To (blank).  This is the earliest that I've finished one in a number of days. With today's poem, we are now 40% through the month of poems challenge. Even doing a basic draft a day is no piece of cake. It takes a lot out of you.

With my poem finished, and the Giants baseball game is already over for the day, I will retire to some reading in a few minutes.

Hope all of you had a joyous weekend. If you celebrate Easter, then a Happy Easter to you, if not, I bid you best wishes the same.

Technorati Tags: Poem-A-Day Challenge