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The DitchRider's Blog – August 2010 Archive (6)

The 2nd Annual Sunday Poets Potluck

Last Saturday, MaryAnn and I hosted the second Sunday Poets Potluck. So far The Sunday Poem series has run for 89 consecutive weeks. It started February 15, 2009 with two poems by Richard Vargas and continues until the present day. 56 different local poets have been featured here, many more than once. I repeat: 56 local poets! And we are not done yet.

A Scary Bunch

It takes a lot of courage to call yourself a poet. Next time… Continue

Added by The DitchRider on August 31, 2010 at 8:20am — 6 Comments

The Sunday Poem: Liza Wolff-Francis... American Noise

Somehow the noise of America seems timeless. "Can you spare some change?" resonates through much of the 20th century. And here we are in the 21st. Self-help slogans are everywhere. We listen for the soul of our country somewhere in this mix of verbal traffic.

Liza Wolff-Francis is a poet, writer and clinical social worker. She is an MFA student at Goddard College and has been published in Earthships Anthology, Albuquerque Almanac… Continue

Added by The DitchRider on August 29, 2010 at 8:16am — 6 Comments

The Sunday Poem: Don McIver... Daily Special

Don McIver is on duty. His eyes are open. He is keeping the watch, even if he can't do much about what he sees.

McIver is a 4 time member of the ABQ slam team, the host/producer of KUNM's Spoken Word Hour, the author of The Noisy Pen, and a co-editor of A Bigger Boat: the Unlikely Success of the Albuquerque Slam Scene. A teacher by trade, he works at Central New Mexico Community College. The banner photo above is by the late… Continue

Added by The DitchRider on August 22, 2010 at 7:46am — 5 Comments

The Sunday Poem: Gina Marselle... Time Traveler

Poems about paintings always lead off the canvas. And in the case of a painting of a crow, your journey could be a long one.

Gina Marselle is a poet, photographer, teacher and single mom whose impact on the poetry community includes collaborating with local poets, and coordinating the Open Space Visitor Center’s semi-annual “Poetry in Place” event connecting people to place through poetry. She has been work published in the Rag, The Sunday… Continue

Added by The DitchRider on August 15, 2010 at 8:08am — 9 Comments

The Sunday Poem: Richard Vargas... why my ex-wife will go to heaven

Richard is one of Albuquerque's strongest voices. He continues to walk down your streets, taking it all in and making sense. Today's poem about his ex-wife partially takes place in his ex-home, Rockford, Illinois. Incredibly, I lived there for 18 years myself.

Vargas is the editor of the poetry journal Mas Tequila Review. It just published its first issue (available for a reasonable six bucks). Purchase and publication info is… Continue

Added by The DitchRider on August 8, 2010 at 8:00am — 15 Comments

The Sunday Poem: Jimmy Santiago Baca... 1-04-04

"Born in New Mexico of Indio-Mexican descent, Jimmy Santiago Baca was raised first by his grandmother and later sent to an orphanage. A runaway at age 13, it was after Baca was sentenced to five years in a maximum security prison that he began to turn his life around: he learned to read and write and unearthed a voracious passion for poetry." Thus begins his 'official' biography as related on… Continue

Added by The DitchRider on August 1, 2010 at 8:30am — 3 Comments