Adventures in H-Town, GA

So.

It's clear at this point that I'm not going to be sharing (finishing because it was going to be garbeage) the piece that reflects my experience at Nats this year. But if you were interested it went like this:

Part 1:
The experience of competing against Roger and Jeanann and Adam and Trevor and Mo and Carlos (et cetera, et cetera, et cetera) is terrifying enough withough Eboni and Marty and Ink and Carrie and Jon (et cetera, et cetera, et cetera) being in the audience.

Part 2:
The points are not the point. Deep breath. Go get on stage.

Part 3:
I'm still awesome on stage.

Part 4:
Slam family picnic is awesome in a self-affirming kind of way. The afore mentioned names are reduced from poet-gods to just poets, and all is right with the world.

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Word.

So.

I've been at home for the past couple of days and have become increasingly more terrified by the air freshener my mother has placed in the living room. Of course, I appreciate it on the level that pop is going through man-opause and baby brother is nearly 16 - and so both bring a male funk that could be oppresive if it went unchecked....nevertheless...it sprays at random intervals that always freak me out....especially at 3am when I'm watching old episodes of True Blood.

Writing my iwps qualifier po-ems. Currently they suck....but hopefully i'll get them together before the slam off in September. I'm going to make baby brother video my 4-minute rehearsal...so I can see what Bob means when he talks about my lack of performance energy during the denoument of the po-em. If Bob is crazy....I'll post it.....if I've got mad work to do....then i'll just hit you with a copy of the po-em.

Alright. Enough of my rambling.

Peace Be

Adventures in (National) Poetry

So.

Just got back in from NPS in St. Paul, Minnesota, where we were summarily abused by louderARTS, the Green Mill, and Dallas on the first night of prelims, thereby obliterating all hope of ranking at all in the competition. Tragic. That said, I hit several emotional lows that had nothing to do with the competition, but overall...I had a good time. I mean hey, I got to meet and get feedback from some awesome writers, play a djembe in artists' quarter, and watch two of my favorite teams do...extraordinaly well. (Big ups to team SNO for pulling the 1 at the group piece finals, and to Bull City for pulling the 3 overall). Next year's competition is in Boston, and although I spent much of Wednesday swearing of the whole PSi "community"....I'm already kinda geeked for the opportunity to reconnect with some of the poets that I met this year. ABOVE ALL ELSE...looking forward to Southern Fried next year in Atlanta.

Currently working on a po-em that is a reflection of the week's experience. Should be up tomorrow.

Peace Be

Adventures in (COGIC) Poetry

So. Last week was the AIMS Conference in good ol' Charlotte, NC, and yours truly was in attendance. Not only in attendance, but I was asked to perform some po-e-try for Mother Rivers, Lady Mae Blake, Lady K. C.-Sheard, Mother Fitts, Dr. Wells, and mad others at the Bishops' Wives' Luncheon. Now. For you non-COGICs, this setting and cast of characters may not sound spectacular...and I too am not normally a person that cares about the "celebrity" of things....but imagine, if you will, what the experience of Oprah asking you to be the first poet ever to preform at the Essence Women in Hollywood Luncheon would be like...and you'll have some idea of how it felt to be me last week. You may tease me if you wish....but I was in little COGIC girl heaven.
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In completely unrelated news: I want to take up some sort of visual art...obviously not any type of drawing, because i have...no skills in that area.....but something.

Peace Be