Monthly Archives: October 2011

In Praise of Jean Valentine’s Lucy: A Poem, by Celia Bland

(When I last saw Celia Bland, we were standing over a smoldering log in the fire pit behind the rustic pavilion at Poets’ Walk on a misty afternoon that had brought the first chill of autumn. On better days this … Continue reading

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Have you met Artemisia Cavelli? by Djelloul Marbrook

(Djelloul Marbrook and I share a getaway spot: the Starbucks in the Kingston mall strip. I go for a break from my writing to sip a frothy latte and read the paper. He sets up his laptop and gets to … Continue reading

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One Night on Mount Taurus (Emma Segal R.I.P.)

(On October 14th, 2009, Emma Segal, my former wife and lasting friend, took her own life after suffering a suicidal depression. I post this essay in her memory.) We had no formula for mourning. For two months we’d all but … Continue reading

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Two Wedding Trees: Happy and Sad

I was married under a maple tree. June 18th. Surrounded by dozens of family and friends on a country lawn at the edge of the forest. My bride in a wedding gown styled after the Twenties. A judge for a … Continue reading

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Windfucker: Say It Loud, Say It Proud

Poetry wasn’t part of my married years. Not until later did I begin reading it regularly. But I do remember one idle evening in our East 47th Street apartment, lounging around on our stylish gray couch with black and white … Continue reading

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Occupy Will Nixon’s Blog

(So far I haven’t blogged about politics. Enter Leslie Gerber, who has started a good blog of his own. Thanks, man.) Outrage and Hope By Leslie Gerber In the middle of the Bush Administration, my late friend Marty Laforse, a … Continue reading

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The Muse of Lyric Poetry, by Michael Perkins

The role of the Muse in contemporary lyric poetry is to work her magic in secret. Certainly she is seldom referred to in American writing. In fact, modern critics usually dismiss the notion of Muse poetry as an invalid romantic … Continue reading

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Do You Procrastinate?

Years ago, I learned about procrastination as a young freelancer writing a profile of mystery author Jerry Oster for the Hoboken Reporter. He had a nice place, a first floor apartment painted white that gave it a country cottage-ish atmosphere. … Continue reading

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“Immediate Worlds” by Anthony Bernini

My friend and foil, Michael Perkins, dismisses much of contemporary poetry as “chopped up prose,” which, admittedly, is true, but I’m a committer of chopped up prose myself. In my mid-thirties I began writing poems on a lark, discovering in … Continue reading

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A Bear Attack, by Judith McCombs

I don’t share the primal fear of being eaten by a bear. That became abundantly clear halfway through an advance screening of Grizzly Man at the American Museum of Natural History. From the start of this documentary, we know that … Continue reading

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