Warm Apple with Crispy Oatmeal & Brown Sugar, a sprinkle of Cinnamon – and Vanilla Ice-cream

When I walked out of the building Friday afternoon at the end of the work day it was just gorgeous. It was the kind of weather you just want to Xerox so you can enjoy it every day.  I appreciate these kind of days. It was bight and mostly sunny but the air was cool – a perfect pre-fall day.  It put me in the mood for Apple Betty a-la-mode.  Of course It didn’t hurt that earlier in the day I read a blog post about it.  I knew I’d think about it all weekend, so when Kelli posted three “Apple Brown Betty” recipes today, I had to get domestic and make some. Cathy had gone into her office today and so when she came home, Walla!  I made the second recipe which worked really well. I do think it could use a little more of the batter, but the flavor was perfecto!

Off to do a writing session. The night isn’t getting any younger you know.

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Bright Star puts Sexy back into Poetry

I know it’s a period piece, but the reviews circulating in print this week are calling Bright Star a hit…  it lets us rediscover the thrills of poetry, played with mesmerizing vitality and heart-stopping grace by Abbie Cornish and exhilarating, and deeply pleasurable.

Bright Star is the story of the intense love affair between the young poet John Keats and his younger neighbor, Fanny Brawne.  Their story is a love story of non-traditional sorts. Keats after all, is an impoverished writer who has contracted tuberculosis. Their love is never consummated, and Keats will ultimately die at the young age of twenty-five. His love for Brawne inspires some of his greatest poetry.

You can check out the official movie site here.  I’m anxious to see this movie.

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Off the beaten path..

As I sat down to write last night, I went to an epigraph I lifted from another poem that I had thought about for a while and started to write. Beyond the fist line of my own (not the epigraph) it stopped working. I tried forcing it. The old I’m going to pound this square peg into the round hole if it’s the end of me method of writing. Well, it was the end of me writing anything worthwhile for the evening. It ended badly as these things usually do when I’m in that mode of operation. I become a poet wondering in the desert. Lost.




Perhaps the poet will find his way back onto the page today.

This is so Incredible

I heard about this on our local NPR station today.  KCUR 89.3 FM
Isn’t the human creative capacity awesome…

Birds on the Wires from Jarbas Agnelli on Vimeo.

Perhaps only a musician could see this photograph of birds on wires as notes on a musical staff. 
Brazilian composer Jarbas Agnelli saw a photo in a newspaper of birds sitting on five parallel wires, and was inspired to treat their positions as avian sheet music. He interpreted what he saw as music and orchestrated the tune.     [Source]

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Wasn’t the smartest thing to do…

 

This morning I sent an e-mail from my smart phone to another poet.  Later in the day I received a reply. The response was concise and indicated the sender understood what I had sent.  Of course along with the reply was my original message embedded in the text.  Seeing the message I had sent I was horrified. It contained a significant number of errors. I was both embarrassed and amazed that the recipient could even understand what I said.  I felt compelled to sent another e-mail with explanation and I did as follows:   

Oh My God!  Seeing this ( my original note) underscores why I should never be allowed to type e-mails on my smart phone.  No matter how smart the phone is, if my big fat fingers don't hit the right key I'm going to look pretty dumb.

How did you ever read it?

So totally embarrassed!

The reply that came back read in part:

The brain is a magical thing, it makes meaning where there is none.  ;-)

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Two You Don’t Want to Miss

It’s late, but I wanted to call attention to a couple of notable blog posts on Friday. Brian Brodeur’s blog. How A Poem Happens is a great read.  It features various poets discussing the development of a particular poem and thus gives some insight into what goes on in a poet’s head as he or she uses their creative prowess to write a poem.

Today a new post is up and it features Idra Novey discussing her poem Trans. Novey  is the winner of the 2007 Kinereth Gensler Award as well as awards from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Poetry Society of America, and the PEN Translation Fund. 

Of course you can still find older posts where many other poets have  done the same with their own work. You can find Brian’s blog by clicking here.

Another blog post worth reading is Kelli Russell Agodon’s post on the subject of Creative Clusters.

I’m calling it a night! Hope everyone has a great weekend!

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Local Poet Highlighted in The Examiner

Robert Fisher’s voice is deep and husky. I’ve heard him read at various venues in the Kansas City metropolitan area in recent years. If he isn’t reading, it’s not uncommon to see him at readings by others at the Writers place or any of a number of other open mics. It was nice to see Adrianne DeWeese’s article in the local Examiner newspaper on him.  article link

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