Loose Leaf Notes

1. Sources say that “Mama” is both the most common first and last word spoken.

2. Hope or Cope?

3. Graft or grift? In some contexts, “graft” and “grift” are used interchangeably to describe dishonest or corrupt activities, but they have slightly different nuances. “Graft” typically refers to the misuse of power or influence within a system, often by a person in authority, for personal gain. “Grift,” on the other hand, can be a more general term for any fraudulent scheme or deception used to deceive or defraud someone.

4. I don’t think of politics as something separate from the rest of my life because the laws that politicians make directly affect my personal health and welfare, as well as my civil and human rights. I think politics are a matter of life and death.

5. All I buy lately is bathrobes and bathing suits which I think says something about my current life.

6. Driving to my poetry reading book launch at The Book House on Sunday, I was feeling kind of anxious and thought that maybe I shouldn’t have mowed the lawn the day before because all the pollen gave me bags under my eyes, and I surely shouldn’t have read that news about Diddy that made me feel ill.

7. THIS was the first time a Heather Cox post made me literally cry.

8. I had to stop myself from all out crying when I read THIS poem at the Book House reading.

9. “The longer I live, the more deeply I learn that love — whether we call it friendship or family or romance — is the work of mirroring and magnifying each other’s light. Gentle work. Steadfast work. Life-saving work in those moments when life and shame and sorrow occlude our own light from our view, but there is still a clear-eyed loving person to beam it back. In our best moments, we are that person for another.” Maria Popova

10. The World is Our Audience:  Life is a stage / for the parts that we play / for critics and fans / and plots that take turns / With no laugh tracks / no Hollywood sets / with no written scripts / it’s all hit or miss

11. It’s all material / Re-runs and sequels / There are no rehearsals / No second takes / Sometimes we wing it / Sometimes we practice / We live our lives LIVE / It’s all on the record

12. The reading at the Book House was on the third floor, which felt like an apartment. I encouraged people to interrupt in between poems if they had a comment or question about a poem, and some did. So, there were poems and conversation throughout and a Poet’s Show and Tell to begin with. – More from Poet in the House HERE.

13. My Birthday Reckoning is HERE. My weekly horoscope by Rob Brezsny went a long way to lift my spirit and encourage my time-consuming and largely unpaid work as a poet:  TAURUS:  “The world’s most expensive spice is saffron. To gather one gram of it, workers must harvest 150 flowers by hand. Doesn’t that process resemble what you have been doing? I am awed by the stamina and delicacy you have been summoning to generate your small but potent treasure. What you’re producing may not be loud and showy, but its value will be concentrated and robust. Trust that those who appreciate quality will recognize the painstaking effort behind your creation. Like saffron’s distinctive essence that transforms ordinary dishes into extraordinary ones, your patient dedication is creating what can’t be rushed or replicated.”

________Thirteen Thursday