Monday, May 18, 2015

Sorority Sisters Vs. Sasquatch!

My pal Mark Justice has drafted me to appear in his next film.  This one is entitled Sorority Sisters Vs. Sasquatch. I play a college professor who takes a group of students into the woods on a research trip where we find Sasquatch. He has already completed some filming and put together a trailer:

Wednesday, May 6, 2015

Working Stiff

I am happy to announce that a few things that I have written will appear in Working Stiff:  An Anthology Of Professional Wrestling Themed Literature & Art, an upcoming book that Josh Olsen is putting together.  I was alerted to the project by my pal Leopold McGinnis, who knew it was my kind of literary anthology.  I wrote a poem, "Wrestlemania Sonnet", just for the anthology and some excerpts from Blog Love Omega Glee will also be appearing.  I am very excited to read it and find out which other underground authors enjoy the silliness and spectacle of pro wrestling.  Word is that the anthology should appear this fall.

Tuesday, May 5, 2015

Charles Bukowski On Lawns

I recently reread a collection of Charles Bukowski short stories.  I was surprised how well his work held up.  I found some comments on lawns amusing.

In "Notes Of A Potential Suicide", he writes, "all the people in Los Angeles are doing it:  running ass-wild after something that is not there.  it is basically a fear of facing one's self, it is basically a fear of being alone.  my fear is of the crowd, the ass-wild running crowd; the people who read Norman Mailer and go to baseball games and cut and water their lawns and bend over the garden with a trowel."

In "The Blanket", he writes, "Madness?  Sure.  What isn't madness?  Isn't Life madness?  We are all wound-up like toys . . . a few winds of the spring, it runs down, and that's it . . . and we walk around and presume things, make plans, elect governors, mow lawns . . . Madness, surely, what ISN'T madness?"

It appears that Bukowski perhaps regarded lawns as a waste of time.  That stance isn't too shocking coming from the bard of L.A.'s skid row, but, given the current drought, California might have been wise to listen to him.

Monday, May 4, 2015

45 Years Of May 4th

Every year, if I can swing it, I mosey down to Kent, Ohio USA for the May 4th Commemoration.  Though the event is rapidly receding from living memory--the flower children whom I saw today would be more accurately described as flower elderly--it is important to remember what happened.  And what happened was the government--one group of people--killing another group of people who disagreed with them.  Underneath all the malarkey laid on top of the event, that's what it boils down to.  The lesson to be learned is that we can disagree without killing one another.  It was sad to read in The Daily Kent Stater that some of the shooting victims were retired or getting ready to retire and then think of the four dead who had all that life stolen from them.  A couple of those students were just walking to class; they weren't even all protestors. One was even an ROTC student.  Sadly, 45 years on, the world doesn't seem to have learned that lesson.  Every week, a read of The Economist reveals that a Kent State happens every day pretty much somewhere in the world.

Other thoughts on the day:

*Keynote speaker Dick Gregory was inspiring if rambling.  Nevertheless, I hope that I am that energetic at 83.  He is good evidence that there might be something to his fruitarian diet.

*Kent continues to get more creepy and corporate.  Downtown is starting to resemble one of those fake town outdoor shopping malls.  It would look nice if I did not suspect quite a bit of taxpayer money was poured into erasing the funky soul of the town that I lived in many years ago.  For example, the ramshackle Mantis Gallery that The GoGoBots played so many shows in is vacant (it had been a couple of other bohemian type things after the Mantis) and the building has a sign on it advertising that it will soon be shops, offices, and apartments.  Town and gown have also demolished most of the old student ghetto and replaced it with an odd almost blockwide concrete walking path to downtown.  It's pleasant enough but seems to be a sort of pointless use of that space (except for perhaps getting rid of cheap competition to the dorms).  It has a poetry park next to it, which is nifty, but I noted the irony of a plaque with a poem about dandelions being in it, while the lawn looks chemically treated to keep the actual dandelions out (fortunately, the rest of the path between campus and downtown is more dandelion friendly).

*I finally got to visit the May 4 Visitors Center.  It was nice.  Last year, it was closed because May 4th was on a Sunday.  One would think the university might have the budget to open it up on a Sunday once a decade or so.

*Somehow, the old hippie who wears the same jeans every year has managed to keep them going for another year.  By this point, the jeans are mostly patches, but looking for his jeans is always a highlight of the visit.  Long may his jeans and the spirit of May 4th live!          

Sunday, May 3, 2015

Red Fez Poem Of The Week!

For some unknown reason, probably random selection, a poem that I wrote, "Mitt Romney Dreams Of The Last Taxpayer And Nightsweats, Soaking His Magical Underwear", is The Red Fez's "Poem Of The Week".  I would be thrilled enough to declare myself The King Of May, just like Allen Ginsberg, but I dislike royalty, so I will just say thanks.

Saturday, May 2, 2015

Hooray For Free Comic Book Day!

On my errands, I noticed that a new comic book store, Imaginary Worlds, had opened in Cleveland Heights, Ohio USA.  Since it was Free Comic Book Day, I decided to pop in.  I was glad I did.  In addition to the free comics (honestly, usually not that great, but sometimes a gem pops up--still, one can't complain since they are free), the store had boxes upon boxes of comics for ten cents each (as long as one bought twenty), with some good stuff in them.  It was their grand opening, so I suppose it was their way of making sure people had a good time and would want to come back.  It worked!  The store seems a nice addition to the Cleveland comics scene.  It's well-stocked, and the staff seems nice.  I probably will pop back in again long before the next Free Comic Book Day.

Friday, May 1, 2015

Dandelion Season

The dandelions on my block seem to have all sprung up overnight.  I find this delightful.  Not only are they pretty, but they are a good guide as to which yards have had unnecessary and possibly hazardous chemicals dumped on them.  A yard without dandelions is worth jogging past with the dog.  A yard with dandelions is likely quite safe for the dog to sniff on a leisurely stroll.  Unfortunately, the method isn't foolproof, as I noticed a couple of neighbors today busily digging up the dandelions, and I suspect it wasn't to make a salad or wine with them, which is unfortunate because those are among the only good reasons to dig out a dandelion.  The dandelion is actually quite useful.  I learned more about it recently by reading The Teeth Of The Lion:  The Story Of The Beloved And Despised Dandelion.  I picked up the book when the author, Anita Sanchez, gave a talk nearby.  I also got the chance that evening to sample some dandelion coffee, which was quite yummy.  I do enjoy useful crops that just grow without much help from me, so the dots of yellow popping up amidst the green in my lawn please me.