Lesley Jenike's Blog, page 23

I had a really bad day today, made better by my Columbus ...

I had a really bad day today, made better by my Columbus poet friends whom I appreciate greatly, and my husband who warned me but I didn't listen: don't ever go to the OAC grant panel discussions. Surely, though, past years weren't as horrible as this one? Wrong. I've heard horror stories. This time around, one panelist liked my work kind-of a lot, maybe (except for one "bad line?" hello?) The other two: not so much. Fine. What I truly don't appreciate, however, is the lazy use of semi-"poeti...

Uh oh. My least favorite time of year is upon me/us. I'm ...

Uh oh. My least favorite time of year is upon me/us. I'm trying, though, as I get older, to embrace its darker beauties: swags of evergreen, blood-red candles, Alum Creek peeking through the naked trees, days so close to night the sky looks like a stormy Atlantic, midnight mass. (When I was a kid we'd go to a church in Cincinnati where a woman sang carols in German).

I have to pay attention to see these things in and around the noise and oh the weird, phantom-pain nostalgia for a family I real...

I want you to try to deal with a: how beautiful this is b...

I want you to try to deal with a: how beautiful this is b: how crazy this is:

Cross your fingers. Maybe I'll get to see the revival of ...

Cross your fingers. Maybe I'll get to see the revival of A Little Night Music in NYC some time this coming year. It's the Sondheim of my adulthood, though Sunday in the Park with George will always be a touchstone. Absolutely. Without a doubt. And, oh yeah, I'm not too upset about Catherine Zeta Jones playing Desiree because generally I believe the song is just an extension of the dramatic monologue/dialogue and should be treated as such. Here are two actors/comedians doing all kinds of justi...

Most of you know I'm mostly against fantasy or genre lit....

Most of you know I'm mostly against fantasy or genre lit./films in general--maybe not as adamantly as Josh, but I do agree that that working within the confines of "reality" (or even the confines of a proscenium as opposed to the infinite possibilities film offers) exercises the imagination in the best and most fruitful ways. Here's Jenike's philosophy for today: humans need walls to bang against! Could I apply this philosophy to poetic form? Oh god. Maybe. But not today. I do think some of m...

This is an amazing website Josh told me about. I haven't ...

This is an amazing website Josh told me about. I haven't even begun to explore all its classic rock/R&B/soul features, but from what I can tell so far, you get to listen to concerts by some of your favorite artists (or mine) like Laura Nyro, David Bowie, Van Morrison, Miles Davis, Bob Dylan, and more!

Courtesy of La Petite Zine: StoppingWait,WhoseWoodsAreThe...

Courtesy of La Petite Zine:
Stopping

Wait,
Whose
Woods
Are
These?
Mr.
Frost,
Please.

Haven't
You
Heard
Of
Broken
Treaties?

Of
Course,
You
Still
Have
Promises
To
Keep.

Your
Pastoral
Horse
Shit
Is
Deep.

-Sherman Alexie

Oh lord. And you want to know what's worse? I just wrote ...

Oh lord. And you want to know what's worse? I just wrote a poem with footnotes, a poem that concerns Whitey Bulger.

This is my new project. I don't know what form it will ta...

This is my new project. I don't know what form it will take yet, but I'll be writing about it sure enough. And it may be a way back into Boston for me, emotionally speaking.

I'm NOT thankful that our house has not yet sold. In fact...

I'm NOT thankful that our house has not yet sold. In fact, I think it really sucks. But I'm thankful Josh and I are alive. I'm thankful for my book. I wish more people knew about it, but that's my fault. I'm thankful for my pets, though I'm NOT thankful for them when Bailey drags her butt on the carpet and when Yoshimi barfs on the carpet. I'm very thankful to have a job. I'm thankful for my student who said, "Thanks for showing us old movies. I've realized there's so many great movies out th...