In the mid 90's, after my mother died, my house was haunted. The only house I'd ever known, The only place I'd felt safe and loved. But at the time there had been a series of deaths-- not in the house, not violent, but all familial, all relatives. My father's death surprised me. And I'm …
Two Women (or An Ideal Marriage Is An Amicable Divorce)
The first woman called mid day Friday and left a voice mail. I called back an hour later, after I'd gotten out of the office. She said she had to prepare a story for a forthcoming live performance and felt stuck and needed help and could I... We arranged to meet at a bar that …
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After The Reading
Riding in a packed car after the reading last night, heading down to the bar, the driver said: Look at the moon. And at the end of the street, the moon appeared as if it were doing some burlesque feather dance with clouds. The woman crammed in next to me who'd been talking about her …
Before The Reading
Tonight after work, I'm heading out to Fort Mason to do a poetry feature. I'll write about it tomorrow, but you can peep poems and info for myself and the night's co-feature, Lorene Zarou Zouzounis here. The above also counts as the first time I had a poem published with typos. I've struggled a long …
Dream Alley
I promised myself to write poems based on dreams. But the one from last night was so fragmented, I'm not sure what to do with it. And my memory of it is weird: am I pulling from different dreams scattered over the last week or did everything happen last night? I pick up my dream …
Red Beaning and Nothingness
I spent last week reading Blood Beneath My Feet a remarkable true life account from Joseph Morgan, a death investigator from the South. A slim but potent volume, it covers the life and work of a coroner who lived and worked between New Orleans and Atlanta. For all the graphic and unsettling stories and descriptions …
Join The Club or What If… There’s Nothing Wrong?
The office I was looking for was in an old building that for many years I thought was a theater or ballroom. The lobby was full of glassed offices and small businesses. A gorgeous ceiling made from stained glass. I saw a security dude seated at a desk. He sent me to the third floor, …
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Its Only Proper
if you're ever present when a monkey sneezes, say 'evolution' -jcagney
Without Love, Your Poetry Is Irrelevant
Its been years since I'd taken the train to Sacramento. I don't exactly remember the last trip I made in the name of my biological family that still lives there. I didn't belong there. My birth-mother was right in giving me up and never looking back. For this trip, I bought my first cane. My …
(Public) Apology or ‘…The Heart Has Got To Open In A Fundamental Way’
My heart felt like a closed fist urgently knocking against my sternum. That's not a metaphor or bad opening line; its a description. My chest felt knotted and angry. I was angry. There's a plethora of reasons why. But I'm writing this because of the moment I felt it stop and open. Earlier this week …
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The Dirty Rat 