BIG HAMMER

Three of my poems are in Big Hammer

#13.  The poems are titled Worker’s

Compensation Blues, They Bill Him Out,

and Jobs Are Hard To Find In Rural Ohio &

If You Call OSHA, This Place Will Close.

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I’ve been grinning like a fool for the past

two days, because I’m holding a copy in

my hands.  Edited by Dave Roskos, who is

an excellent poet, Big Hammer is an

awesome zine full of big names and even

bigger poetry. 

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Big Hammer #13 is dedicated to Mary Beth Roskos and Dave Church.

Many people are familiar with Dave Church’s powerful work.  Yes, it is in

there!

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I found a link for ordering from outlaw poetry and free jazz network,

which is one of my favorite places to read on the net.   To check it out or place

an order, click HERE.

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After you click the above link, scroll down and look at that fellow’s picture.

Yep.  Kell Robertson is in there showing the world how it’s done.  If you’ve

read this site for any time now, you know how much I love Kell’s work.  But

I’d better hush about that, or I’ll start talking about flaming arrows going

through my country soul or some such girlie stuff.

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My tip of the hat to Kell isn’t intended to discredit anyone else, though.  I love

it all.

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Dave Roskos has been bringing great poetry to the world for a long time, and

IniquityPress/Vendetta Books publishes high quality work.  If you want

to read poetry about real people, poetry with teeth, blood, soul and sweat,

then this is the place to go.

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Instead of looking at my pathetic attempts to download pictures, look at this

link from outlaw poetry and free jazz network to see more Iniquity

Press titles HERE. There is a great bio of Dave Roskos and his work.  I also

love the description of the people Dave publishes.  I almost fell off my chair

when I read about the old tire soap trick.  I thought my family invented that

one.

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The books are excellent.  Right now, I’m reading light dark light by Tom

Kryss, and I’m blown away.  Thank you, Dave.

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I encourage everybody to check out all the titles and all the Big Hammer

issues in the links above.  It will be easier for folks in the states to order Big

Hammer #13 by sending ten bucks via paypal to iniquitypress@hotmail.com

or by mail (no checks please) to  POB 54, Manasquan, NJ 08736.   The work is

beautiful.

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Never Give Up

Tips For A Job Interview

Julie Buffaloe-Yoder

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Pick out your outfit

the night before.

Sew up the holes.

Glue soles back in place.

Wear white if not stained.

It looks the least faded.

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Wake up early–scrape

your skin until it burns

to remove all residue

of funk and desperation.

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Park three blocks away

so they won’t see your

broken windshield or

hear the crick-crack

of your rattling bolts

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or smell

the blue cloud

of smoke hanging

over your head.

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When you show up

two hours early, hide

behind bushes.  Don’t

peep in the windows.

Stroll in no more than

fifteen minutes

before they sniff

and call your name.

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Don’t be tempted to take

any of the quarters

that wink at you

from the

wishing pool.

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Don’t stare in awe

at the art on their walls

or the carpet or the leather.

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Don’t let them see sweat

in your eyebrows

or the permanent roots

of dirt on your palms.

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Shake hands firmly.

Don’t hold on too long.

Pretend you belong.

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When they say that

someone with your

experience

is not a good fit

for entry level work,

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don’t tell them how

you can whistle

and scrub toilets

at the same time

or how you’ll gladly

mop and glow

for much less.

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Don’t cry or beg

or tell them

their entry level

is more than

you’ve ever

made in your life.

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Smile, thank them

for taking the time

to kick you in your

experienced ass.

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Don’t get mad

when people

you pass

on the street

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shy away

from the scarlet flush

on your forehead.

They know

it is contagious.

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Just shut up.

Go back to

the beginning.

Wash.   Rinse.

Repeat.

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Stories With Teeth

The Storytellers

Julie Buffaloe-Yoder

They tell stories they learned

in school, take off their shoes,

black out a tooth, put on

straw hats to look cute.

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They hold their hands

the way the teacher

told them to

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talk about possums

and articulate with

just enough

dramatic accent

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to make the crowd

in the auditorium go

hee hee and a haw haw.

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Then they get in SUV’s

and drive back to

gated communities.

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Old Mr. Orrie tells stories

at the Fish House for hours

on a black dock that rocks

when waves lap against it

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under a full moon that burns

a gold hole through heaven.

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He carves a loon decoy

while he talks, sun hard arms

a criss cross of white scars.

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Curls of wood fall

soft in the rhythm.

Feathers appear

with a whisper

of his hands.

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When the spirit moves him,

Mr. Orrie picks up his guitar

and sings Lonesome Wind

for a while, then tells us

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about that spring in ’48 when

a gale came down from the north.

It rained blue crabs for three days.

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That was the first time

Mr. Orrie learned how

to catch a headwind and

make his shrimp boat fly.

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Beside the neverending tale

of live oaks and salty roots

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he didn’t once

talk about

possum stew

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and he didn’t

go to school

or charge us

a rusty penny.

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Recession Special!

When things don’t always work out like you planned…

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AT LEAST YOU CAN READ GOOD POETRY AT A LOW PRICE!

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leah angstman of Alternating Current/Propoganda Press

is having a clearance booksale.

It’s a recession special.   Some of the prices are as low as

one dollar!

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Click HERE to check out the sale.

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I Can’t Be Your Virgin And Your Mother

Three of my poems are included in I Can’t Be Your Virgin And Your Mother.

You can read the poems by clicking HERE.

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This zine was the brainchild of Crystal Folz, editor of Shoots and Vines.

Crystal did a beautiful job of putting it all together.  It is an all-woman edition

and tells many different stories.  Crystal’s intention for doing the zine was

to showcase women in the small press world.  It is a celebration.  The poets

and writers in the issue are:

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Aleathia Drehmer,  Kristin Fouquet,  Wanda D. Campbell,

Constance Stadler, Katie Moore, Crystal Folz, Jessica Graustein,

Holly Day, Marie Gornell, and Misti Rainwater-Lites.

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I meant every word of the bio I included.  I am so happy to be among these

talented women.

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A limited number of print editions are available for purchase and are going

fast.  To request a print issue, email info@shootsandvines.com.  Print copies

are $3 each and limited to two per person. For more information, click

HERE.  Crystal has learned Chinese bookbinding techniques, and this edition

will be hand sewn.  I can’t wait to hold it in my hands.

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Thanks for reading!

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Read Full Post »

Bob Church Forever

Update:  Read Bob’s essay HERE.    It is excellent!

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I received the most awesome comment this morning from Valerie MacEwan

of The Dead Mule School of Southern Literature.  Our dear friend,

Bob Church, will be published there on June 5th!   Here is the message:

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Found an essay of Bob’s in the submit.mule mailbox this morning. It was sent March 17. He mentioned your blog in his “howdy there” message to me so I tracked you down and did not expect to find such a sad message.

We’ll publish The Ladle on the Mule on June 5th. Not because it was Bob’s and he’s gone – No – we publish it because it’s a great essay and he was a compelling writer, fun to read and wonderful to contemplate.

Good bye Bob.

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-Valerie MacEwan
and the Staff of the Dead Mule School of Southern Literature

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What exciting news!  Please be sure to go over and read Bob’s work on

Friday, June 5.   I’m so excited!  I couldn’t wait until Friday to tell

everyone.  It is a well deserved honor for Bob.  I love his writing, and I love

his sweet, gentle spirit, his sense of humor, and his wisdom.

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The link for The Dead Mule School of Southern Literature is HERE.   It is an

awesome journal full of fine writing, and I am thrilled to see Bob in there.

Many of us have been deeply saddened by Bob’s passing, and now this is

something to celebrate.

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Be sure to keep checking Bob’s blog, too.  His family found a poem he

wrote, and it was posted there recently.  I am so thankful to his family for

sharing him with us.  The link for Bob’s site is HERE.

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Nan Jacobs sent me a link for an interview of Bob at Unite-to-Write.  You

can read the interview HERE.   I had never read it, and I was so happy to

receive the link.  As always, Bob makes me laugh.  Thanks, Nan!

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Bob Church will live forever in our hearts…and in his beautiful words.  I don’t

think he would mind if I say Yeeeeeee-ha! ..Way to go, Bob!

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