Confession Tuesday

It’s Tuesday and I’m in better shape today than I was yesterday. I don’t know if I had the Monday Blues, Cold Weather Blues, Back to Work Blues, No. 53 Blues or the Sunday Blues a day late.

As I said, it’s Tuesday, so let’s head to the Confessional:

I heard that Jay Leno is back next week and while I confess I could be tempted to watch as one of his guests is supposed to be the U.S Team skier Lindsay Vonn, but I won’t. I confess I’ve never been a big fan of Leno. I’ve laughed at a few of his monologues but I’ve never really felt he was remotely in a league with Carson or Letterman. So if I do break down and watch, I’ll be back here to confess I lied.

I looked in the mirror this morning after shaving and I confess that I could for a moment I felt I should have a leather collar around my neck. It’s time for a haircut or dog tags. I realize there are countless poets – old men poets with hair that seems all over the place, and they get by with it. I confess they have a few things going for them that I don’t. Pulitzers, National Book Awards, (hell even books), Pushcart Prizes. I think when you have a couple of these you can let your hair go all to hell.

It is that crazy time again when filing for political office begins. With seven terms on the County Democratic Committee in years past and a handful of other races that I’ve run, seeing the mass hysteria of people amassed in the wee hours of the morning for the opportunity to be first on the ballot brought back old times. I confess that a part of me misses this.

Pitchers and catchers reported to Spring Training Camps this past week. I confess that I really am ready for baseball season to get underway. It’s a Spring Rite of passage. It’s the secular equivalent of Easter. The rebirth – all things anew. I think I’m going to get teary-eyed. Not really, I confess that’s just me being a drama queen (dude).

I confess I poked fun at Lindsay Vonn’s emotional scene after winning her gold medal. My wife thought I was being harsh, and I confess I was. I could accept that it was an emotional moment but I judged it as being too long, over the top, whatever. Never haing experienced what it is like to train for and experience all that is involved up to that point, I can’t say that I wouldn’t do the same thing.

That’s it for this week….

Why It's Not The Same

Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy the USA men’s hockey team beat Canada in the Olympics. To Canada where there is a real pride of ownership in the game, the loss yesterday was a very big thing. But to be very clear, what the U.S.A. team win means yesterday is not and cannot possibly ever be seen as on the same level as the successes of the 1980 U.S.A. Olympic team. Not even if the 2010 team ultimately wins the Gold.

The U.S.A. Women’s team is playing in the Simi-finals. That’s a big story. You see, the women’s team is not a bunch of professional players. Neither was the 1980 men’s team Herb Brooks coached to a gold medal win over the very senior, very experienced Russian team. I love the Olympics for the spirit of athleticism that is about the purity of amateur competition. Pulling a bunch of NHL players together on a U.S. team to play a bunch of NHL players on a Canadian team is just another NHL game. If you like NHL hockey then you get bonus play.

It’s the women playing on the U.S. team that deserve attention for carrying on the true Olympic tradition. I would love to be able to feel the same way about the men’s team, but we are all cheated out of that possibility. Therefore, all that’s left to say is, You Go Girls!

Wordle - February

Wordle - February: ""

Unconscious Mutterings Week 369

You say.... I Think:

1.Teeth :: chatter
2.Sweeten :: deal
3.Demons :: little
4.Pizza :: lights
5.Protector :: procket
6.Smooth :: sailing
7.Coat :: wool
8.Pebbles :: Bam-Bam
9.Pregnant :: woman
10.Sing :: song
 
Get your own list

Snowing again in River City

Yes, it’s snowing again. Right here in River City.

I’m reading Anne Sexton Teacher of Weird Abundance by Paula M. Salvio.  It’s not quite what I was expecting but I don’t mean that in a bad way. I’m wondering what other surprises are awaiting me as I get deeper into it.

Have a new poem from this week that I’m very happy with. Coming into the weekend and already one out of my way starts off things nicely. I’m working on some rewrites this weekend, trying to breath some life into older efforts.  



Olympics still capturing a lot of my time. Ski jumping on the big hill today- some terrific flying!

USA Women’s Curling Team has won back to back after a rough start. Yeah!  (Debbie McCormick Pictured left)

The women on the G downhill – another chance for Lindsay Vonn and Julia Moncusio to medal.





And on this Saturday evening, I’ll offer a few story teases:

Late one night we set out with ladders and lanterns (poetry should be subversive), looking for lamp-posts. 

~0~

So when next you are in a bookshop, ask for poems - if for no other reason than you never know what you will find there.
As Ferguson muses in Holding Pattern: A couple called Gladys and Rexwere suddenly keen to have sex(such urgency's slightly perverted),"But where can we do it?" cried she"The poetry section!" said he"I've noticed it's always deserted."

Technorati Tags: Poetry,Olympics,Curling,Downhill sking,Mancuso,Vonn,McCormick

Finalists for Best Translated Books

Poetry finalists have been announced for the 2010 Best Translated Book Awards by University of Rochester.  The ten works making the list are:


Nicole Brossard, Selections.
Translated from the French by Guy Bennett, David Dea, Barbara Godard, Pierre Joris, Robert Majzels,
Erin Moure, Jennifer Moxley, Lucille Nelson, LarryShouldice, Fred Wah, Lisa Weil, Anne-Marie Wheeler.
(Canada, University of California)

René Char, The Brittle Age and Returning Upland.
Translated from the French by Gustaf Sobin. (France, Counterpath)

Mahmoud Darwish, If I Were Another.
Translated from the Arabic by Fady Joudah. (Palestine, FSG)
Elena Fanailova, The Russian Version.
Translated from the Russian by Genya Turovskaya and Stephanie Sandler. (Russia, Ugly Duckling Presse)

Hiromi Ito, Killing Kanoko.
Translated from the Japanese by Jeffrey Angles. (Japan, Action Books)

Marcelijus Martinaitis, KB: The Suspect.
Translated from the Lithuanian by Laima Vince. (Lithuania, White Pine)

Heeduk Ra, Scale and Stairs.
Translated from the Korean by  Woo-Chung Kim and Christopher Merrill. (Korea, White Pine)

Novica Tadic, Dark Things.
Translated from the Serbian by Charles Simic. (Serbia, BOA Editions)


Liliana Ursu, Lightwall.
Translated from the Romanian by Sean Cotter. (Romania, Zephyr Press)

Wei Ying-wu, In Such Hard Times.
Translated from the Chinese by Red Pine. (China, Copper Canyon)

Confession Tuesday

A week already? Let's go to Confession...

It's an extended weekend for me which was good. I didn't shave during it. I confess that I've grown tired of shaving. What makes this even worse is that I believe my whiskers are growing faster these days. It's like they are on steroids. I don't know, maybe it's a rush of testosterone. At any rate today it's back to the office and the growth came off. It was just as annoying shaving this morning then it was last time I did it on Friday. I know this sounds silly but I'm tired of shaving and I'm tired of the whiskers.

I confess the past week has really been relatively uneventful. That may be obvious by being annoyed by whiskers. I mean there really should be bigger issues in life.

I was home alone much of the weekend. This includes part of Valentine’s Day which didn't really seem like Valentine’s Day. My wife and daughter were in St. Louis. I confess it was lonely and I was really glad to see Cathy when she arrived home. We've planned to celebrate on an alternative day.

I confess that I spent some time working on a sestina during the time I was alone. I confess I was not happy with my efforts. I will return to this project later this week.

I confess I was Olympic Crazy this weekend. I love the Winter Games. I confess the Summer Games don't move me the same way. I confess there are several things about the coverage that are annoying me. For one the way they are doing the points for the free style skating. They put the judges points up cumulatively all at once and it takes some of the drama out of it.

I confess I do not care for the snowboarding or the moguls competition. I also confess that Ski Jumping - the downhill, the Nordic combined, figure skating, Hockey, luge, bobsled, these all get my blood flowing.

I confess I'd like to take off the rest of the Olympics and watch it all. Alas, I confess that isn't happening.