Kelli Russell Agodon's Blog, page 52

Poem: Hard Rain by Tony Hoagland

Tony read this at the Skagit River Poetry Festival.  The "Dear Abby" part of this poem, blew me away.





Hard Rain



After I heard It's a Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall

played softly by an accordion quartet

through the ceiling speakers at the Springdale Shopping Mall,

I understood there's nothing

we can't pluck the stinger from,



nothing we can't turn into a soft drink flavor or a t-shirt.

Even serenity can become something horrible

if you make a commercial about it

using smiling, white-haired people



quoting Thoreau to sell retirement homes

in the Everglades, where the swamp has been

drained and bulldozed into a nineteen-hole golf course

with electrified alligator barriers.



You can't keep beating yourself up, Billy

I heard the therapist say on television

                                                         to the teenage murderer,

About all those people you killed—

You just have to be the best person you can be,



one day at a time—



and everybody in the audience claps and weeps a little,

because the level of deep feeling has been touched,

and they want to believe that

the power of Forgiveness is greater

than the power of Consequence, or History.



Dear Abby:

My father is a businessman who travels.

Each time he returns from one of his trips,

his shoes and trousers

                                   are covered with blood-

but he never forgets to bring me a nice present;

Should I say something?

                                                       Signed, America.



I used to think I was not part of this,

that I could mind my own business and get along,



but that was just another song

that had been taught to me since birth—



whose words I was humming under my breath,

as I was walking through the Springdale Mall.



"Hard Rain" by Tony Hoagland from  Hard Rain: A Chapbook . 



Kelli Russell Agodon
www.agodon.com

Confession Tuesday: Bad Decisions plus One Good Thing

Last Week- this was my motto unfortunately...


Dear Reader,



It's been a week of poetry festivals or small breakdowns and the science of liquid and electricity.  It's been a pheasant that squawks at 6 am and 6 pm, the wild turkeys have been removed from a small town, I shouldn't touch other people's phones, and even though coffee hurt me, I still love it.



Yes, as you can see a lot has been going on.



So here's the last week of confessions.  Hold on to your wig, folks, it was a someone windy ride.  To the confessional--





The Problem with Bad Decisions--



I confess I made an $1800 mistake.  While the rest of you made good decisions last week, I decided that I would bring my metal pot of coffee to my friend Annette's house while we finished up the edits of Crab Creek Review.





For a brief moment, as I grabbed my laptop (a MacBook pro) I thought--I shouldn't put my laptop so close to the coffee in case it spills.  Can you see where this is going?



But I had done it before. I had done it a few times, loaded up the sturdy metal pot of coffee, my laptop, books, and papers, and all has been well in my part of the world.  But not last Wednesday.  Last Wednesday there was a tip in the earth and the coffee pot began to spill all over my laptop unbeknownst to me.  Unbeknownst to me, when I arrived at Annette's house and took my bag with my laptop out it was quite wet as was my laptop.



If you have ever seen a laptop dripping with coffee, it is not artistic or pretty or fascinating.  It is sad sad sad.



One bad decision = a dead laptop.  $1200 to fix it.  $1800 for a new one.  (Insert tears and curse words here.)



I chose the new one.



At Annette's we tried to fix the damage, at one point we had a bag of rice and a little screwdriver, we had my laptop upside down watching the dripping the coffee leave its electronic body.  I kept saying, "I think I'm going to cry."  Annette said, "Well, at least you didn't pour scolding coffee on a baby..."  And it was true.  No one died from this mistake.  No one lost an arm or was scarred for life.  No animals were hurt in my poor choices, no people, I will not have to say to the anyone in the waiting room: I'm sorry, but he didn't make it.



In the end, the only thing hurt from my mistake was my pocketbook and my pride.  Two things that will refill again.



But it was a reminder to me, when you get those little thoughts in your head that *maybe* what you're doing isn't the best idea and you could do something similar that might take a bit more time -- don't half-ass it.  Do it right.  When you hear that little voice saying, "You know, this probably isn't the best idea" - Listen.



~



Why You Shouldn't Be Texting During a Poetry Reading--



I confess I need to learn to keep my hands to myself...



So, I'm sitting next to Jeannine Hall Gailey on Friday night at the Skagit Valley Poetry Reading and she is texting her husband Glenn, who is texting back, "Should u b texting right now?"



I am tired and getting bored of Poet X who is reading poems about his childhood.  I look over at Jeannine's new Microsoft phone and see the texting in process.  As she responds to Glenn's "Should u be texting now?"  She writes "i did" and I reach over and add "sexy stuff." Then I press send.  Ha!  I've amused myself and Glenn will be amused with this funny text.



As I look at Jeannine and smile, I see her Facebook newsfeed come up.  Well, that's weird.



As it turns out, I did not text "i did sexy stuff" to Glenn, but posted it on Facebook as her status.  Holy Inappropriate Status, Batman!



Because Jeannine is just as unfamiliar with her phone as I am, it took a few minutes to figure this out and to realize this was not a private text to her husband and in the meantime, Jeannine's status is beginning to get "Likes."



I think Jeannine's exact words were "Get it off!" and "My grandmother is on Facebook!"



Poet X began to read poems about an abusive father while I was trying to hold in my nervous laughter while sitting in the audience trying to delete "i did sexy stuff" from Jeannine's status.  2 more "Likes."  At this point, I pretend to be crying over his poems because I'm acting like such an arse.



Finally after not being able to delete it from her phone, I have Jeannine sign into my Facebook app on my iPhone where I know where the delete button is.  By the time we got it off, Jeannine had about 5 Likes, a few from people she didn't know (and people I think she should defriend immediately for liking that bizarre status).



She was also very concerned that despite her status said "i did sexy stuff" - it was also lacking capitalization and punctuation.  This is what I like about my writer friends, they are more embarrassed by lack of punctuation and capitalization, then content--though I know in a million years that would *never* be Jeannine's status...well, unless I was the one who was holding her phone.



Oh and "i did sexy stuff" became our motto for the weekend.  And I am still laughing about it. (Sorry, J9!)



~



Tony Hoagland's Wine



I confess that is not a metaphor.



On Sunday morning, I took a 3 hour workshop with Tony Hoagland.  He introduced me to a new poet, Judith Taylor who wrote the book Curios.  All morning we wrote sentences in similar styles to poetsL Frank O'Hara, Louise Gluck, Spencer Reese.



I had told myself I was not going to share anything because I hate sharing at random workshops, but the way the workshop was set up was we had to go around and each say a sentence we wrote based on the directions we gave us.  When no one before me said "Pass" - I knew this was part of the deal.



Lana Hechtman Ayers had the best sentence I've ever heard, but I won't put it here in case she wants to use it in a poem.  Mine got some laughter, which made me pleased.



After the workshop, Tony walks up to Lana with an opened bottle of wine (I'm guessing he started it but couldn't bring it on the plane) and says it was for having the best line of the day.  Lana said she doesn't drink wine, so as runner-up for best line, the wine was given to me.  Awesome.



My line?  Actually a couplet:



I come from a town with too many trampolines.

Women are always jumping from husband to husband to wife.



I have never won wine at a poetry workshop.  I hope this is a good sign of what's to come and may it never come anywhere near my laptop.



Amen.







Kelli Russell Agodon
www.agodon.com

A Few Notes on the Skagit Poetry Festival and a Few More to Come!

Bob Hicok, Lorraine Healy & my knee




So I've just returned from the Skagit Poetry Festival.



I always return inspired and ready to live my life as a poet to the best of my ability...or something like that.



The Skagit Festival is rarely recorded, so it's a one-time deal.  If you miss it, you miss it.  If you don't take notes, then you have what you have in your memory.  I have a terrible memory so I take massive amounts of notes (and direct quotes) because I know when I get home, I'll have forgotten everything.



This is good for you as I tend to post these notes and quotes here, so even if you didn't make Skagit this year, you can at least get a taste of it.  (And if you do ever get the chance to come--do!  It's amazing and only every other spring.  So 2014 will be the next one.)



The first session I went to was Poems as Weapons, Poems as Prayers with Bob Hicok and Lorraine Healy.  Immediately when I began I knew I wanted to be somewhere else and that I should have gone with my first choice on Visual Art.  However, I told myself--you are where you are, so there's a reason you're here (philosophical Dr. Seuss talk).



Neither poet was entirely clear what "poems as weapons" were.  Lorraine had political poetry she read and Bob read some poems from his book--all which were fantastic.



Some quotes I wrote down from the talk was:



"First do no harm" --both Bob and Lorraine agreed this was the #1 rule when teaching.



Regarding writing poetry--

"As a shy person, I can be larger socially in poems..."  Bob Hicok



He talked about how he can speak for others.



He read his poem "Constitution 3.0" that considers the idea that "Corporations are people now."  It's hilariously funny and poignant.



After the reading I ran into Elizabeth Austen and we were able to spend some time together, in my mind, that is why I was meant to be at the reading.



This session was the one I took the least amount of notes because they mostly read poems.  I like poems (obviously), but when I have the chance to hear the thoughts, process, and ideas behind a poet, I enjoy that.  I also think it ended 20 minutes early, which was weird.



Tomorrow for Confession Tuesday, I'll post some more plus how I made an $1800 mistake.



More soon!







Kelli Russell Agodon
www.agodon.com

Superstition Review & My Poem

Check out Superstition Review to see my poem (and others)!  They are a wonderful magazine with some really incredible writing and interviews.



Click here for my poem.



By the way, I'm just back from the Skagit River Poetry Festival and I'll have all the lowdown on the poets and events.



I'm really good at taking notes and getting quotes, so more of that coming soon!

Kelli Russell Agodon
www.agodon.com

Confession Tuesday

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Dear Reader,



It's been a week of sunshine since my last confession.  A week of waves and water and weather that has turned Seattle into a flip-flop wearing town again.  Normally we wear wool and fleece until the end of June.  But warm weather has taken over I worry what it does to my brain.



So let's begin.  To the confessional--



I confess I've been daydreaming about Key West again.



I've never been there and when it becomes sunny in the Northwest I begin to question to live in a warmer, sunnier climate all year round.



What's interesting about Key West is that it is the southern most city in the continental United States.  And I live about 90 minutes from the Northernmost city in the continental US.  So I'm kind of thinking I'm wanting a change...at least in the winter months where many in the Northwest suffer from SAD (Seasonal Affect Disorder).  This is where the gray clouds above us actually enter our minds.



~



I confess that I am a slow dreamer.



While I may be dreaming about Key West today, that does not mean I will visit there next year, or the year after.  I tend to hold my dreams, goals, visions, plans, in my head for about 2-6 years before I act on them or if you believe in *manifesting* things, before anything happens.



I think this is because for me, time has always moved faster than I do.



If I say I'm leaving in 15 minutes, 15 minutes will arrive at the door quite a bit earlier than I do.  This is not to say I'm always late, but when I do have to be somewhere on time, I have to plan to leave about 10 - 20 minutes earlier otherwise I will lose minutes.



It's as if my life's pockets are filled with holes, I'm always losing time like others lose pennies.



~



I confess I tried out my new paddleboard this week and *loved* it!





Me & my new board


It's definitely faster than the boards I have been renting from our outdoor adventure shop.  And ridiculous light--about 20 lbs. For mother's day, my husband bought me a new carbon paddle, so I'm excited to try that out as well.



In August, I'm the paddler a relay race.



10K SUP, 12K Trail run, 12K Mountain Bike Ride

I'm the 10K SUP (stand-up paddleboard).  So this is how I plan to spend my summer--on the water, so I'm hoping the weather continues to be as great as it has been.



~

I confess I have been writing lately, even with the sunny weather.



This is good for me because normally warm weather turns me into a hammock-loving character from a Jimmy Buffet song.



Amen.



Kelli Russell Agodon
www.agodon.com

My Dizzy Life Has Beautiful Meaning, Even If I Can't Find It

After a week writing residency, I found myself inspired by mixing visual images from photos I've taken with lines from old poems that never went on to anything else.



Here's one I did while on retreat.



The image is of Elvis Costello at his concert last month.  The lines are from an old poem that I could never finish.







Kelli Russell Agodon
www.agodon.com

Happy Mother's Day!

Kelli Russell Agodon
www.agodon.com

Five Questions for... Kelli Russell Agodon

My interview with Collin Kelley is up.  Find out how Annette Spaulding-Convy and I ended up editing an anthology and starting our own press, Two Sylvias Press, because "anything is possible when you don't know what you're talking about."  Thankfully, we figured things out!



Collin Kelley: Modern Confessional: Five Questions for... Kelli Russell Agodon:





Kelli Russell Agodon
www.agodon.com

FREE Poetry Writing Retreat/Workshop in Ireland--Contest for Poets! @susanrichpoet

Susan Rich is teaching a one week workshop in Ireland at Anam Cara Artists Retreat this August and you now have the chance of coming for free! 





What you need to do is write a poem of 14 lines or less on the Marc Chagall painting shown below "I and the Village." For deadlines and details click here to for Anam Cara's web site.



The winning poem will be announced June 14th on Bloomsday and will be published on the Writing Ireland web site which is an excellent source on all things related to writing in Ireland (and beyond).



Writing Ireland has also just reprinted Susan's essay, "It's Not How You Write, It's Not How You Re-write: the Art and Craft of Revision."



Or you can give yourself the gift of time, adventure, and writing and sign up now--





Here's the details about Susan's course at Anam Cara "Speaking in Pictures: A Poetry Workshop Considering Visual Art" you should book soon; only a few places left! 





Please feel free to contact Sue at Anam Cara for a full schedule of the week. Her email is anamcararetreat (at) gmail.com



This sounds as if it will be an amazing experience for all who attend.  Life keeps moving on, don't miss out on these gems that appear along the way.  And good luck to all who enter!













Kelli Russell Agodon
www.agodon.com

Here are mine... @Tin_House: Super Sad True Habits of Highly Effective Writers: Part 1

Whenever I go to a writing conference or poetry festival, someone will always ask "what is your process when you write" or "Tell me about your writing day..."



We want to know the secret details, what do writers do to inspire them to write or how do they start their day...



Tin House has a great article about Super Sad True Habits of Highly Effective Writers, which you must check out here... 



but I thought I'd add mine below--



1)  Wake up

2)  Coffee

3)  check email

4)  Total raisin bran

5)  If working on mss, open mss file.

6)  If working on poems, open about 10 poems (so it doesn't seem serious)

7)  get a snack / more coffee

8)  walk back and forth to the kitchen

9)  turn off the internet

10)  write more



Somehow I manage to get things done...







Kelli Russell Agodon
www.agodon.com