"John Cage" live at Backyard Social in Portland, Oregon - 7/15/2017

I'm finally trying to catch up on posting assorted video clips from recent years on my blog. This one is from one of the more memorable poetry festivals I've participated in, Kleft Jaw & TRUST Art Collective Present: Contronym (A Fugue in E Minor), hosted by Kleft Jaw Press last summer in Portland, Oregon.

In this clip, recorded the same day I saw the Pacific Ocean in person for my first time ever, I recite my signature poem, "John Cage Engaged and Uncaged." I forget who recorded it, but will update this when I find out.

Video permalink: https://youtu.be/q976VKz-87A.

Recalling Ataraxis, 4/22/2018

I've been meaning to post a link to this video for awhile, but other things kept coming up. This clip catches me on 22 April 2018 in the middle of reading my poem "Ataraxis" during the Tongue-in-Groove Poetry Jam hosted by Ray McNiece at the Millard Fillmore Presidential Library in Cleveland's Waterloo district.

View here:
https://www.facebook.com/KleftJaw/videos/1672397019512347/

It was recorded by Frankie Metro of Kleft Jaw Press. Musical accompaniment is by Ray McNiece's Tongue-in-Groove band. I wrote "Ataraxis" in early April 2018 for an Ekphrastacy program at Heights Arts in Cleveland Heights. It was inspired by a work of art by Dana Oldfather entitled Equanimity. The poem was finally published this summer in The Gasconade Review Presents: Missouri Is a Ghost-Shaped Thing by Spartan Press.

Kleft Crisis 2018 Gratitude

The house is finally empty again. Kinda sad to see everyone go. But what a weekend of wonder! Many thanks to Frankie Metronome and Kleft Jaw Press for inspiring this blessed mess. Gobs of gratitude to our gracious hosts Guide To Kulchur Books, Main Street Books, and Mac's Backs-Books On Coventry. Special thanks to the featured writers of #KleftCrisis2018 who traveled from far and near to share their incredible work, including: Margie Shaheed, Jeanette Powers, Iris Appelquist, Gabriel Ricard, Austin Price, Ra Washington, Mark S. Kuhar, Steve Brightman, Nathanael William Stolte, Dianne Borsenik, Shelley Chernin, Christina M. Brooks, Juliet Cook, Steve Goldberg, Clarissa Jakobsons, Heather Ann Schmidt, Kathy Smith, Steven Smith, Azriel Johnson, Alice and, again, Frankie. I also wanna thank a number of other people who made this weekend even better in myriad ways, including James Borsenik, Mark Sebastian Jordan, Suzanne DeGaetano, Peggy Honeydew, Deva Lynn, Raymond McNiece, his Tongue-in-Groove band, Llalan Fowler, Nick Gardner, Cathie Joslyn, Mike Burroughs, Michael Salinger, Sara Holbrook, and I could go on and on. You all freaking rock and I love you. Now it's back to work until I head to Athens. Looking forward to Thursday 4/26, when Athens Poet Laureate: Kari Gunter-Seymour (author of Serving, just published in March by Crisis Chronicles Press) will read at Arts West. Cheers!

Check out https://www.facebook.com/events/2061025770809966/

Kleft Crisis 2018 and Steven Smith Book Launch This Weekend!

This weekend, Crisis Chronicles Press (out of Cleveland) and Kleft Jaw Press (out of Denver) celebrate National Poetry Month by presenting a Friday/Saturday litfest you won't want to miss featuring authors from across the United States at three of the best bookstores in Ohio. Then Ray McNiece will follow it up on Sunday with a Tongue-in-Groove Poetry Jam featuring Cleveland art/poetry legend Steven Smith, whose new book, Where Never Was Already Is, was just published this month by Crisis Chronicles.

Friday 4/20, 7pm till ? at Guide to Kulchur Books
5222 Lorain Ave., Cleveland, OH 44102
featuring readings by
Iris Appelquist (Kansas City, MO)
Steve Brightman (Akron, OH)
John Burroughs (Cleveland, OH)
Ryder Collins (Milwaukee, WI)
Azriel Johnson (Canton, OH)
Mark S Kuhar (Medina, OH)
Frankie Metro (Denver, CO)
Jeanette Powers (Kansas City, MO)
Austin Price (New York, NY)
Gabriel Ricard (East Northport, NY)
Margie Shaheed (Memphis, TN)
Nathanael Stolte (Buffalo, NY)
RA Washington (Cleveland, OH)

Saturday 4/21, 2pm to 4pm at Main Street Books
104 N. Main St,, Mansfield, OH 44902
emcee: Mark Sebastian Jordan
featuring readings by
Iris Appelquist (Kansas City, MO)
Frankie Metro (Denver, CO)
Jeanette Powers (Kansas City, MO)
Gabriel Ricard (East Northport, NY)
plus open mic

Saturday 4/21, 7pm to 10pm at Mac's Backs
1820 Coventry Rd., Cleveland Heights, OH 44118
featuring readings by
Dianne Borsenik (Elyria, OH)
Theresa Brightman (Akron, OH)
Christina Brooks (Detroit, MI)
Shelley Chernin (Novelty, OH)
Ryder Collins (Milwaukee, WI)
Juliet Cook (Medina, OH)
Steve Goldberg (Cleveland, OH)
Clarissa Jakobsons (Aurora, OH)
Alynn Mahle (Mentor, OH)
Austin Price (New York, NY)
Heather Ann Schmidt (Oberlin, OH)
Margie Shaheed (Memphis, TN)
Kathy Smith (Cleveland, OH)
Steven Smith (Cleveland, OH)
Nathanael Stolte (Buffalo, NY)

Sunday 4/22, 6pm at the Millard Fillmore Presidential Library
15617 Waterloo Rd., Cleveland, Ohio 44110
Tongue-in-Groove Poetry Jam
emceed by Ray McNiece
featuring a performance by Steven Smith
plus open mic (your chance to perform with the band)

Please come celebrate with us!

Gratitude and coming up this week(end)

Thank you so much, Foam, Brett Underwood, Mic Boshans, Jim Z McGowin, Stef Russell, Thom Fletcher, Jeanette Powers, Jason Preu, Dianne Borsenik, InterUrban ArtHouse, Kevin W. Peery, the Rural Oklahoma Museum of Poetry, Jim Holt, Brews, John Dorsey, Jason Baldinger and everyone else who's made this leg of the tour so special! Now I'm looking forward to getting back to Ohio for the following amazing events:

4/18 in Akron: Latitudes Poetry Night feat. Dianne Borsenik
4/20: Kleft Crisis 2018 - Cleveland
4/21 2pm: Kleft Crisis 2018 - Mansfield
4/21 7 pm: Kleft Crisis 2018 - Cleveland Heights
4/22 in Cleveland: Tongue-In-Groove Poetry Jam, featuring Steven Smith
.

Busy Be thru April

The next 12 days will be a WHIRLWIND. Friday April 13th is Burroughs and Borsenik Foaming at the Mouth in St. Louis. Saturday the 14th is our FountainVerse Poetry Reading in Overland Park, Kansas. The 15th we'll be in Oklahoma. The 16th is Brews-Zing Poetry with Burroughs, Borsenik, Baldinger & Dorsey in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. The 18th is Latitudes Poetry Night feat. Dianne Borsenik in Akron, Ohio. Then comes #KleftCrisis2018, our 3-venue poetry fest featuring authors from across the country: Kleft Crisis 2018 - Cleveland (20th), Kleft Crisis 2018 - Mansfield (21st at 2pm) and Kleft Crisis 2018 - Cleveland Heights (21st at 7pm). Finally, on the 22nd will be the Tongue-in-Groove Poetry Jam featuring Steven Smith at The Millard Fillmore Presidential Library in Cleveland. And as if that's not enough, after that I'll find my way to Athens Poet Laureate: Just When You Think You Know Her... in Athens, Ohio on the 26th and the Poetry Forum featuring John Burroughs on the 30th in Columbus. But believe it or not, my May might be even busier.

My full 2018 poetry event schedule is here.

Featured Writers at Kleft Crisis 2018 on April 20-21

Okay, here's the tentative schedule of features for #KleftCrisis2018, hosted on 4/20 and 4/21 by Kleft Jaw Press and Crisis Chronicles Press with writers from across the country at three of the best bookstores in Ohio: Guide To Kulchur Books (Cleveland), Main Street Books (Mansfield) and Mac's Backs-Books On Coventry (Cleveland Heights).

Kleft Crisis 2018 - Cleveland
Kleft Crisis 2018 - Mansfield
Kleft Crisis 2018 - Cleveland Heights

My July and August Poetry Tour Schedule

In my first 49 years of life I had never been west of Auburn, Indiana. That changed in April 2016 when I finally crossed the Mississippi River to participate in a poetry festival in Kansas City. Fast forward to July 2017 and I'm about to embark on my first ever trek to the west coast of the United States. Many thanks to all the friends and strangers who've offered me a place to read or sleep on my way or are otherwise supporting the effort. I don't expect I'll have much time to blog until I get home. But I plan to post periodic updates on my Facebook page.

7 July at 8 pm in Madison, Wisconsin 

Madtown Poetry Open Mic featuring John Burroughs at Mother Fool's Coffeehouse, 1101 Williamson Street in Madison.

14/15/16 July in Portland, Oregon  

Kleft Jaw & TRUST Art Collective present: Contronym (A Fugue in E Minor) featuring poets from across the country. 

*Friday: at the TRUST Art Collective.  

*Saturday: at Backyard Social (John Burroughs will be one of the features). 

*Sunday: at the Water Trough Saloon (Crisis Chronicles Press author Leah Mueller will be one of the features).

18 July at 7 pm in Oakland, California 

Get Lit #26 at Ale Industries featuring John Burroughs and others.

19 July in Oakland, California  

The Octopus Literary Salon featuring D.R. Wagner, M.J. Arcangelini, John Burroughs and Matt Cook.

25 July in Denver, Colorado  

Frankie Metro and John Burroughs attack. More details forthcoming.

26 July at 9 pm in Kansas City, Missouri 

Poetic Underground presents Bill Moran with guest appearance by John Burroughs at the Uptown Arts Bar, 3611 Broadway, Kansas City 64111.

28 July at 6 pm in Eureka Springs, Arkansas 

Thirst-quenching poetry featuring John Burroughs and friends at Brews, 2 Pine, Eureka Springs 72632.

4/5/6 August in Michigan City, Indiana 

Underground Lit Fest at the Uptown Artist Lofts, 717 Franklin Street, Michigan City 46360. 

*Friday 11am-5pm: Crisis Chronicles Press will be part of the Small Press Book and Zine Fair.
*Friday 7-10pm: Crisis Chronicles Press authors Dianne Borsenik, Juliet Cook and John Burroughs will be among the featured poets during the evening Speakeasy.

11 August at 7 pm in Canton, Ohio 

Take the Knight Off - Inspiration Showcase featuring John Burroughs, Alicia Young, The Derrick Terrill Project and more at The Local, 135 N. 6th Street in Canton.

13 August at 6 pm in Toledo, Ohio
Punch Through the Envelope: How to Make Editors Notice Your Work, a workshop with editors Dianne Borsenik (NightBallet Press) and John Burroughs (Crisis Chronicles Press) at the Art and Performance Center of West Toledo, 2702 W. Sylvania Avenue.

13 August in Toledo, Ohio 

Poetry Uncloistered featuring John Burroughs, Dianne Borsenik and Andy Roberts at Calvino's Restaurant and Wine Bar. More details forthcoming.

26 August at 7 pm in Cleveland, Ohio 

Poetry for the People 3 hosted by Twelve featuring Christine Howey, John Burroughs, Akeem Jamal Rollins, Eva Barrett, Ephraim Nehemiah and Dominicque Smith in Public Square downtown.

Click here to see my full 2017 poetry tour schedule.

Nineteen books I read in February 2015

The silver lining to having to spend so much time in doctors' offices and the hospital with loved ones this past month is that I was able to knock a few books off my ever growing to-read pile.  The silver lining's silver lining is that most of these were pretty darn good.

Mutant Neuron Codex Swarm by Juliet Cook & Robert Cole [2015, Hyacinth Girl Press]
The Paris Notebooks by R.A. Washington [2015, NightBallet Press]
Captain Head by Dustin Holland [2013, Kleft Jaw Press]
Personal Myths by Howie Good [2012, Writing Knights Press]
Android by Lek Borja [2011, Plan B Press]
The Slop of Giving In, The Melt of Letting Go by Nikki Robinson [2009, P2B Press]
So Damn Sure of Us by Bree [2015, NightBallet Press]
Fortune Cookie by Dianne Borsenik [2012, Kattywompus Press]
The Ides of March: An Anthology of Ohio Poets edited by Hannah Stephenson [2013, Columbus Creative Cooperative]
dueling poets / poets dueling by Russell Vidrick & Jim Lang [2014 reprint, Jim Lang]
Disturbing the Peace by Erren Giraud Kelly [2012, NightBallet Press]
Selected Regions of the Moon by J.E. Stanley [2013, NightBallet Press]
Hurricane Mouth by Amanda Oaks [2014, NightBallet Press]
Prayerbook Bouquet by Zach Fishel [2013, NightBallet Press]
Poems for Explosion by John G. Hall [2015, Crisis Chronicles Press]
Hotel Room by Bradley K. Meyer [2013, Vostok East]
Meditations: a suite for John Coltrane by John Sinclair [1967, Artists' Workshop Press]
congregations by David Highsmith [2009, Plan B Press]
Jerry in the Bardo by Tsaurah Litzky [2014, NightBallet Press]

https://www.goodreads.com/user_challenges/2067883