A much needed ego boost

After Hours has accepted my poem "Advice from a Hotel Maid" for their next issue. That's two journals/five poems in less than a week.

Thanks, universe, I needed this.

My regular readers will know that my confidence as a poet/academic/person has taken a hit this last year, what with my rather uninspired transition to city living and PhD work. It's good to be reminded, even in this small, largely subjective way, that some folks (besides the ones that love me already) appreciate my work.

Two of the poems were written during my MFA, one was written while I was still in Akron playing the adjunct game, and two were written during my first semester in Chicago. I think that's a pretty good spread.

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I got sucked into the abyss that is cable (err--satellite) television for the last couple of days and have not met my goal, which was to write ten pages in less than a week (okay, originally it was to write ten pages in 3 days, then five, then in less than a week). My friend Kristina is coming to the farm to talk poetry on Wednesday, so the new goal is to have ten pages by the time she gets here. I do have 2 new pages, so that's 8 that I still need. I'm channeling Maggie Anderson here, and her 10-pages-in-a-weekend assignment that kicked my ass/provided a much needed break-through in my writing the summer that I was working on my thesis.

Speaking of Maggie Anderson and the post-Bisbee writing assignment, I should give a shout-out to this year's Wick Fellows, including my friend Frank. I think they're starting their workshop tomorrow and will be heading out to Arizona next week, but I could be wrong. At any rate, I wish them much joy and artistic inspiration and camaraderie.

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And before I go, one more picture of my idyllic home in the country. I'm so wishing I could stay forever.

I'd Rather Be...

here:

It is so cold in Ohio today that I don't even want to go see if there is any poetry news in the mailbox.

At the same time that I'm struggling with transition, I'm aching for change. For something new & different. To stir the pot.

I've never been to NYC before, so maybe that will be enough to get things moving, but being that I am a country bumpkin, I'm not sure the big city will inspire me like the Chiricahuas did. I suppose it's a wholly different thing. The similarities: both big, immense, and overwhelming. Good for perspective.

The sky today is like old blankets. Dull and fuzzy. But not warm.

Bisbee Recap

The People

Bob and Estellean Wick are the most gracious hosts any wayward traveler could ask for. They welcomed us into their home and pampered us with delicious food, beautiful surroundings, and delightful conversation. It was far more than any of us hoped for or expected. They took us to some of the best restaurants in Bisbee and Nogales, Mexico (where they demonstrated their excellent salsa dancing skills). Both Bob and Estellean are thoughtful, intelligent, creative, and insightful and happy to share their memories, stories, and beliefs with anyone who asks. And they're not shy about sharing opinions or asking tough questions either.

The Wick's also have a wonderful staff at their home; Marita and Elvita, two wonderful cooks who always had coffee ready for us by 5:30 a.m. and never let us go hungry, and Lalo, a very talented gardener who patiently allowed Jay and I to practice our Spanish skills with him. The poor man probably never heard "como se dice" so many times in his life!

Then there are the residents of Bisbee. All generous, welcoming, and excited to have a bunch of poets in town. The reading at the Oliver House had an amazing turn-out; the place was packed! Since it rained that night, we read inside. The room was too small, so people lined the halls, the stairways, and even stood outside and listened through the windows. I've never seen so many people so interested in poetry (except maybe at AWP) in the same place.

Finally, I can't forget my traveling companions. It was the perfect combination of old and new friends, connections and rekindlings. The best night of the trip had nothing to do with location and everything to do with who I was with. We sat around drinking wine and talking and I haven't had so much fun in ages.

The Places:

I'll let the photos do the talking.

The view from the Wick Ranch, sunrise.

The view from the Wick's driveway:

Chiricahua Mountains:

Nogales, Mexico

Final Thoughts

This trip meant so much more to me than I can explain here, so this post almost feels silly. I'll just say that I can't imagine a better gift for a writer, especially a beginning writer, than to provide everything she could possibly ask for, for an entire week, and ask nothing in return except that she spend all her free time writing. The Wicks seem to understand and nurture the creative process in everything they do, in the place where they live, in the way that they act. To bring us into that world, off the grid, away from TV and internet and constant headlines, and allow us to submerge ourselves in words and ideas was an amazing blessing. And Maggie, our teacher, our facilitator, was just as nurturing and encouraging as we could ask as well (and not without a stern hand when we got off track, either).

The southwest is sooo far from Ohio not only in distance, but in landscape, in air, in flora and fauna...it made everything feel new. The way the earth got greener each time it rained, the way the sky changed in seconds from sunny to black and ominous, the way the mountains reflected light, these things opened my eyes to my own landscape, made things that are familiar and almost mundane become precious because they were missing. And mornings. Arizona almost made me a morning person.

As far as my writing, my thesis...I generated so many ideas that I don't know when I'll have time to write them all down. I'm not sure my plan is any clearer now, but it is richer. And my mss is longer than the page minimum finally, which means I have room to play.

Sad that it's over, but more ready now to continue with the day-to-day. I spent a lot of time at the ranch thinking about next steps and my future. I realized that the not knowing is the blessing. Opening doors and checking things out sounds like the best possible plan for the next couple years. I'm ready to ask questions.

Feeling much better today, although one of my sisters has a sinus/respiratory infection which is making me a little nervous that my feeling better is a fluke. Hopefully I will wake up tomorrow and still be able to breathe through my nose.

I have recently (today) forgotten the difference between breath and breathe...hopefully I used the right one in my previous sentence.

When I checked my email upon returning from Arizona, I had two rejections and one acceptance in my inbox. I suppose that's a pretty nice ratio. My poem "Punnet Squares" will be in the August edition of Lily. I'm super excited!

I just realized that most of my publications are in on-line mags. Maybe for my next round of submissions, I'll focus on print journals. That would make CP happy. He's old school.

Oh, and how could I almost forget. Waiting for me in the mailbox? Orange Girl. Awesome.

I'm still not ready to recap my trip. So for now, another teaser.

Bisbee Copper Mine

Home Sweet Home

What I've brought back from Arizona:

5 new poems

100+ pictures

1 nasty sinus infection

Maggie says I have to write ten more pages by Monday because I didn't write enough while we were gone. I was really looking forward to the deadline-induced frenzy, but now that I can't breathe and my head feels like a balloon, I think it's going to be a little more difficult than I'd hoped.

Despite my current whiny-ness, my trip was amazing, and hopefully tomorrow I will feel better and have enough time to give you a play-by-play. In the meantime, here's a picture about perspective.

Amazing.

Loving Arizona. Loving Bisbee Coffee Company, their "Cold Miner" iced mocha, and their free wireless.

Every morning, I wake up, open my eyes, and look at this:

We just finished the radio show. I hope you listened and liked it. Next, we're having dinner and then the Oliver House reading. Getting a little nervous.

This will probably be my only chance to get on-line, so look for my long recap and lots of pictures late next week.

Radio Interview Update

Hey ya'll. This really is my last post before I leave--I just wanted to give you the correct information.

KBRP - Radio Free Bisbee will be interviewing Professor Maggie Anderson and NEOMFA students (me, Mona Lisi, Jason Venner, Rick Strong, Jessica Schantz, and Jennifer Sullivan) on Saturday, July 21, 2:00-4:00 Mountain time (that's 4pm to 6pm Eastern). We'll be reading some of our work, talking about our projects, writing, the NEOMFA, and who knows what else. To listen, just click on Program Streaming and follow the instructions. I believe the show will be replayed on Sunday from 10pm-12am (Mountain time) if you're busy Saturday afternoon.

Well, I'm off to pack now. Hope everyone has a great week.

Brain = Empty

Wow. Is it really only Monday?

I revised 5 poems today. 3 for the Bisbee class and 2 for the other class.
I need new poems too (at least 2), but now my brain is empty. That will just have to wait.

Tomorrow is another never-ending day; class starts at 10, then I have a 3 hour break, then class until 9:30. And CP says he wants to go out after. Who can say no when the prof offers to buy the first pitcher?

Wednesday is all about laundry and packing.

Thursday, our flight leaves at 7:15. If all goes well, we should be at the ranch by mid-afternoon (Arizona time).

If I have any Arizona readers, come see me on Saturday night at the Oliver House. Or listen to my radio interview on Saturday afternoon. Actually, listen to my interview even if you're not in Arizona. I'm not exactly sure how this works, but they tell me you can get streaming radio from this website: kbrpradio.com Unfortunately, I don't know exactly what time the interview is, so I guess you'll just have to listen all day. I know it's sometime in the afternoon--I'm guessing between 12:30 and 4:00 Mountain time (is that the right name? Not pacific, but an hour ahead) because there's nothing listed there.

If I don't make it back here before I leave, hope everyone has a great week. I'll be back with pictures in about a week and a half.

I lied.

You know I can't stay away.

Today, someone popped my thesis bubble. The one where I'm writing about this guy named Donny who works for ODOT.

Today, someone said, "Why are you trying to write persona poems? Couldn't you just tell these stories in your own voice?"

Today, I thought my brain was going to explode.

Tomorrow, I'm going to see about fixing this Donny issue.

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The Pre-Bisbee workshop is pretty awesome though, regardless of the existential problems it's creating in my life. Yesterday, though, was a rough day. I started class at 10 a.m. and was still in class almost 12 hours later (a different class, of course). By the end of the day, I was twitching and slap-happy and exhausted. Didn't get to bed until around 2 and started again at 10. I'm so glad I have the weekend to recuperate. And just a few more days before I go west.

Disappearing, perhaps?

My Bisbee workshop begins tomorrow. That means right now I should be reading the materials and prepping my discussion for Friday, but first, a little distraction. I have a feeling I will be swamped and overwhelmed for the next little while, so I imagine you will see less of me around here. Of course, I always say that and then find time to post almost daily, but we'll see. I definitely won't be posting while I'm gone because I hear there's no wireless connection where I'm going. (The horrors!)

And now I'm off to break in my hiking boots.

Wait, one more thing. I'm bursting with excitement for this, and dying of envy because of this.