Let the Rhythm Hit'em

Shopping in the Chinese mega-market on Broadway is one of the more, shall we say, interesting experiences in Elmhurst. I was there earlier buying some unsweetened soy milk (I take care of my body, you know--ha!), but decided to walk around to see if any other products were worth buying. Oh my, you bet there were! Among the usual products one would expect to see in an Asian market (dried noodles, quail eggs), I came across some decidedly more adventurous offerings: spicy bamboo shoots, black chicken (I've never seen something so strange in my life), and much to my surprise, live frogs (on sale at $4.49 per pound). I had the urge to pick one of them up, but decided against it. I might return later this week to give them names; the frog at the top of the heap looked like a "Harry."

Anyhow, I did not make any particularly brave choices, and stuck to my soy milk. But, along with that bottle of soy milk, I bought a package of vegetable spring rolls, the label of which reads like so:

No need to defrost. After the oil turns hot, fry until the bread turns golden brown. It taste good.

It taste good, indeed.

*

I can't believe that I've been walking around without knowing of the existence of what doctors call a "didelphic uterus." How is it possible to be this uninformed?

*

Eric B & Rakim's "Don't Sweat the Technique" sounds as fresh and alive as when it was first released in 1992. The track is, without question, a classic of hip-hop: it is sample-heavy, and loaded with Rakim's smooth vocal delivery. (One wonders how this usually rhythmic genre could have shifted, in the span of about fifteen years, from being filled with beats to one that is nearly minimalist [refer to Southern hip-hop for a bit of what I mean] in its construction.)

And speaking of music, the GMC Single of the Week is Interpol's "The Heinrich Maneuver." The track is classic Interpol; those fans who are looking for experimentation and change are advised to look elsewhere. However, the song (from the forthcoming Our Love to Admire, the band's first for Capitol) has a lot going for it, given that it has an incredibly propulsive beat and lyrics that actually make sense ("today my heart swings," for example, as opposed to "you wear those shoes like a dove").

*

Like I used to say, at the end of my radio show, until next time, be safe...

My Next Reading: 6/26/2007

Dear All,

My next poetry reading will take place on Tuesday, June 26, 2007. Here are the details:

Graduate Reading Night at Cornelia Street Cafe
29 Cornelia Street
New York, NY 10014
212-989-9319

Traci Bimhall - Sarah Lawrence College
Amy Lawless - The New School
Danny Rivera - City College
Zach Sussman - New York University
Angela Veronica Wong - The New School

Time: 6pm
Admission: $6 gets you one free drink

I hope to see some of you there!

[DR]

Celebrate Brooklyn

http://www.briconline.org/celebrate/schedule_2007.asp

Come to my backyard for a picnic and concert! June 29/ 30.

2 cool events, fyi...

FREE
Queerin' Queens Pride Celebration
@ Queens Museum of Art
June 17th

an evening of poetry, music and dance featuring
Climbing PoeTree
Queen GodIs
DJ Ashu Rai
and many more!

Film Festival: 3-5pm
Performance: 5-7pm

**Complimentary Light Refreshments will be served.**


SATURDAY 6/16

DOORS: 8pm
SHOW: 9pm
DANCE PARTY: all night long!
WHERE: Clemente de Soto Velez cutural center, NYC
107 suffolk st ( between DElancy and Rivington)
3rd floor studio 307 (Afro Brazil Art Capoiera Studio

MUSIC * POETRY * FOOD * ACTION

*Raising FUNDS for ONE* LOVE's trip to SOUTH AFRICA
*Celebrating MOANA and* OJA's born days
*MOURNING and HONORING*
30th Anniversary of Soweto Children Uprising

One Love South Africa
is an international team of Artist, Educators, Leaders and Activist standing together in action to end AIDS in South Africa.

SUGGESTED DONATION: $15-$ 50

2nd whale shark dies at Ga. Aquarium

In January, Ralph, another whale shark that was among the aquarium's first stars after it opened in 2005, also died there.

Ralph had stomach problems that led to an inflammation of a membrane in his abdomen, according to aquarium officials. The aquarium has theorized that a chemical it no longer uses in the tank to treat parasites might have contributed to his loss of appetite and health problems.

The two new whale sharks, Yushan and Taroko, join Alice and Trixie in the aquarium's 6-million-gallon tank. The sharks can grow up to 40 feet long.

Poetry! Live! Tonight!

Here are the details for the reading that I'll be giving tonight at the Bowery Poetry Club:

Saturday, June 9 2007
8:00pm - 9:30pm

Greetings Magazine celebrates the release of aural issue #13 at the Bowery Poetry Club with a concert/reading featuring poets Jacqueline Waters, Daniel Rivera, and magazine editor Jeffrey Joe Nelson. Bands Legends and Drachein are also scheduled to perform, as well as experimental musicians John Clair and Jed Shahar. Greetings Magazine, a ten-year-old literary magazine, is primarily published as a limited-edition, handmade CD of live music and poetry performances. This issue includes performances by comedian Nick Kroll, R&B tandem Simone and Blaze, hip-hop master MC Extra-Cheese, and poets David Cameron, Paul Killebrew, and Cliff Fyman. The Allman Brothers, Bill Evans, and the double-dutch jumping, bike-pumping children of Brooklyn also make cameos. All attendees will receive copies of the CD. In the past two years alone, Greetings has been proud to host a diverse group of musicians: Adam Matta, Julianne Carney, The Woes, Sabir Mateen, Val Geffner, Danny Erker (of the Cobble Hillbillies), Bryan Eubanks, Blaise Siwula, Warslut, John Clair, Spin 17, and Marina Rosenfeld. In the same time period the magazine has published the work of writers Bob Holman, Filip Marinovich, Matvei Yankelevich, Julien Poirier, Geoffrey Cruikshank-Hagenbuckle, James Hoff, Stan Apps, Michael Ruby, Eddie Berrigan, Phil Cordelli, Dustin Williamson, Steve Dalachinsky, Yuko Otomo, Micah Ballard, Stan Apps, Vanessa Place, Harold Abramowitz, Joseph Mosconi, Ilya Bernstein, Ara Shirinyan, and Mathew Timmons. As always the editors encourage musicians, writers, and entertainers to submit works and proposals for the next issue and/or reading in person at the show.

fun with pearl jam

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLd22ha_-VU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ePjESN9pRdg&mode=related&search=

Teddy began collecting his things...

Adventures of a Teddy Bear by Mrs H. C. Cradock: An Abridged Version
First published October 1934 by George G Harrap & Co. Ltd. 182 High Holborn, London

THE NURSERY
"Deep breathing now," said Elizabeth.

TEDDY LEAVES HOME
"I don't think I can have an adventure sitting here. Do you think so, Owly?" He said the last few words aloud. The other part was thinking. Then he wished he had not spoken, for he wanted the adventure to be a secret.
Hanky, Biscuits, Honey, a little string, a knife--in case, a man's proper leather purse. Three tiddly-wink counters. He called them pennies. One was blue, one red, and one green. Walking-stick! He put on an important sort of grown-up look. "P'raps I'll write."
"Writing paper, one envelope, one stamp."

TEDDY BEGINS HIS ADVENTURES
Now his legs were not very long, and soon his strides became shorter, then shorter still.

TEDDY SAVES THE LIFE OF A LITTLE GIRL
I'll pay, said Teddy, feeling very grand

TEDDY KEEPS A SCHOOL
Teddy felt a little anxious about the school, for, truth to tell, he wasn't a very clever little bear. He knew that an island was a piece of land with water all around it--
My dear Mummy,
I am having wonderful adventures. I will tell you all about it some day. Love to John and Owly.
EDWARD BEAR, ESQUIRE, HEADMASTER.

TEDDY SLEEPS IN A TREE
"Now listen to this," he said. "'The rat ran away when it saw the cat.'"
They gazed at him open-mouthed. What learning!
"Now the reading lesson is done," said Teddy. "Geography next."
"What is an island, children?"
Silence.
Cock-robin, Sparrow, Jenny Wren, and Blue Tit sometimes came too.

TEDDY SEES FAIRIES
They rowed very quietly up to the island

TEDDY DECIDES TO GO HOME
Teddy writes in his little blue notebook:
SAVED THE LIFE OF A FAT LITTLE GIRL
BEING HEADMASTER
SLEPT IN A TREE
TELEGRAMS
FAIRIES
Never again, surely, would they roll him on the nursery floor and call him "Fatkins."

THE HOUSE IN THE WOOD
"Not a bad idea," said John. "But I can remember things without a notebook. If you write down everything, Teddy, you'll spoil your memory."
But Teddy didn't know what that meant. He wrote:
BIG STICKS
LITTLE STICKS
LITTLEST STICKS
CONES
MOSS
STICKY MUD
Teddy and Owly worked very hard

MUMMY COMES
"I don't think it's light enough for tomorrow," he thought.
To-morrow soon came; it generally does when you go to sleep quickly.
It was the very loveliest party.

THEY ALL GO HOME
Owly was murmuring, "I thoughted of the best adventure. Nobody ever had such nice people to tea"; and as he was so young they didn't contradict him.

Girl of Sixteen

Lyrics and Conversation


I don’t want to start any blasphemous rumors
But I think that god’s got a sick sense of humor
And when I die I expect to find him laughing.

*

Mother: When are you going to have kids?
Daughter: Should I get married first?

*

what day is it
and in what month
this clock never seemed so alive

*

Mother: You gained some weight.
Daughter: You stayed the same.

*

Girl of sixteen, whole life ahead of her
Slashed her wrists, bored with life
Didn’t succeed, thank the lord
For small mercies

*

The sun is sinking down
I'm standing 'round my window
You say you're going away
But I believe in love

*

Fighting back the tears, mother reads the note again
Sixteen candles burn in her mind
She takes the blame, its always the same
She goes down on her knees and prays

*

Peace be with you.
And also with you.

*

Mother: What are you writing?
Girl: Stupid typewriter.
Typewriter: You’re a star.
Girl: I’m a lowly planet.
Typewriter: Don’t forget to dream.

*

TO DO: Buy: To Buy or Not to Buy Organic
Build Your Own Treehouse.
I Like You. Lose weight.
Take advice from Amy Sedaris

*

Girl of eighteen, fell in love with everything
Found new life in Jesus Christ
Hit by a car

*

The moon is coming up
And I'm still here in prayer
You say you've had enough
And that you just don't care

*

Time Out Moon Café
Huge storm hits bay window
Slant sheets of hail
On the top of the mountain
My heart rises and falls

*

Summers day, as she passed away
Birds were singing in the summer sky
Then came the rain, and once again
A tear fell from her mother’s eye.