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“Oh, and it’s time to lend a hand to life”

all hell is poppin’ loose at the poetry_slam listserve. i woke up one morning to see 125(!) e-mails in my inbox and it all revolves around the points system vs regionals vs first come first serve. if you dont know what that means, just play along for a sec because thats not the point of this entry which is this: the poetry_slam listserve is full of the most winiest, self-centered, ego maniacs on the planet… and they’re poets! which means that they love to write long drawn out shit (kettle meet pot).

this being my own personal little corner of the web, ima tell my side of the story:

NPS has gotten way too big for PSI too handle, its the joy and sorrow of a grssroots movement… for acentos it would be what would happen if we became the nuyorican. there was room for 56 teams for this last nats and all the slots, thanks to online registration filled up in days verusus the customary months. this left a good number of “established” teams out of nats leading to another flare up in the SF (slam family). chicago made concessions allowing 63 teams to compete but the aftermath was clear.

first come first serve was antiquated.

this was not a new piece of information, as many had foreseen this day and attempted to put a regional system in place to prevent it from getting this far. one of those folks was my predecessor as union square SM (slammaster), guy. when the debate over the chicago mess was going on, guy was listed as co-slammaster and as such he dropped a proposal to EC (poetry slam inc. executive council, i know, i know) member scott woods.

the gist of the proposal was to tighten up the certification process to make sure the teams that wanted to compete at nats had at least done some kinda work to make their slam a thriving scene as opposed to the here-today-gone-tomorrow or we-keep-sending-the-same-four-people-for-the-last-ten-years slam (i know, kettle greets pot) scott took the proposal and presented it to the SMs who ripped it apart.

it’s unfair to old teams. it’s unfair to new teams. it’s unfair to travelling poets. it’s unfair to teams that are far away. it’s unfair to rats. it’s unfair to martians. blah, blah, blah… personal honesty moment, i should have added to this debate, especially since guy used some of my suggestions in it, but felt that i didnt have a right to speak. moment- over.

the certification process eventually became bastarized into the current point sysytem. which, when the SM meeting in chicago went down, i voted for after voting that first-come-first-serve was dead. i have said it publicly to the other SMs on the list and to scott woods in person, that SM meeting was a joke and had no kinda of order. no attendance, no accounability for your vote, one venue even had a rep instead of their SM there without any type of written proxy (beauracratic, am i? hell, yeah! unless you want to see every longwinded mofo take up time on the floor cause he wants to hear the sweet reverberation of his own tones) after the point system is voted in, scott asks that a committee determine the final criteria for the system and calls for volunteers. he promises the system up in place by sept. 10th. i ask for it to be passed as a motion and put into record, he says it’ll be done, i say i want it official and so it passes. scott, btw, is a wonderful person and one of the few people that can actually formulate his own ideas and move past the bickering and get to the implementation of ideas.

flash forward to the present– the SMs unveil the point system and the SF flips out. “we werent told. we werent consulted. we werent given warm milk.” blah, blah, blah.

and here is where i am truly pissed… the poetry_slam listeserve is not the SF… it is about forty internet geeks (pot marries kettle) that spends all day on the net typing like mad dog for anything (kettle births pot, jr)

for the last few weeks, my yahoo inbox is getting almost a hundred emails a day (thank god, i sent them emails to another destination) and its almost always the same muthfuckas asking the same questions to the same group of people that actually want to help and have valid suggestions but cant move forward because these stupid asses live to argue (pot divorces kettle, cuz that AINT me)

HOW TO WRITE A POETRY_SLAM MESSAGE (with the helpful “I” bell)

family (cuz youre always thinking for everybody else never for your owqn venue or yourself, nah)

i (DING) have been thinking about this long and hard. i (DING) remember in the year 1600/just last moth that i logged on (its one or the other) when i (DING) last/first started slamming. i (DING) was so moved and touch by slam that i (DING) dedicated my life to it (more like you found a venue that has the same five judges all the time) but know i (DING) find myself (modifiedDING) at the crossroad.

much like my (pronounDING) poem (this happens at Q&As for academis too, btw) that i (DING) have recited to thunderous applause, i (DING) am left a poet(adjectiveDING) without a stage. this has left me (DING) truly disheartened. i (DING) have given countless hours to my (DING) scene and do not want to see all my (DING) hard work evaporate.

i (DING) will ponder us this more as tonight i (DING) perform on stage the long ass drawn out response i (DING) have inside me (DING) and (based on whether i (DING) score well with it) will post tomorrow for all to be enlightened by my (DING) stunning prose.

family (gotta get back to the community), i (DING) wish you all the best at this time and know that together you and (DING) (DING) (DING) will make it through this.

in poetry,

*****************************************

– time out : just finished reading phil west’s post about the SF and he mentions the “puzzling non-sequitor” which i also love it goes like this

1) someone posts a question (pertinent or not, but that distinction must be made early because then, follow me like if it was a flow chart)

2-a.) pertinent questions are generally answered with a complete off topic revelry that follows with an off-topic question that is considered the “real” inquiry or just given the “good question” stamp without anything being added just so that today’s e-mail junkie can be down with saving PSi

2-b.) non-pertinent questions are dissected and thorougly explained thanks to the poet’s great history

3) initial poster still doesnt have his question answered

4-a.) the bigger picture is still examined like a space shot of mars when youre lookin for a dime. the follow up poster ignores the request to stay on topic and reposts question

4-b.) the reponder gets insulted that his knowledge is being thrown out

5) random comedian jumps in with worthless dribble

6) sides are chosen and alliances formed

7-a.) the inital poster, in an effort to get his point across, responds to the off topic question or the “yeah, i was thinkin the same” thread with an actual thought… jump to 10

7-b.) the inital poster has to acknowledge the dissection of his initially whimsical addition to todays email and bow before the knowledge of the SF

8) the responders cant let go and reinsert more questions that lead to nowhere

9) the initial poster gives up and lets the thread die on its own or soothes the savage ego with a “ok, glas you thought of that.”

10) respondent humbly accepts the glory of leading the SF out of the dark ages

and the actual reason for all this piss & vinegar: sadly, i almost got into a flame war with chuck & buck over some dumb shit they are trying to run and when i found myself caught between a rock and a dumb place, i said “fuck this.”

a good fight over opinions can lead to productivity but really only with people you know and/or respect which excludes most of the SF since i dont know them. i had a lonnng, drawn out, total 180 degree, clash of philosophy with the organizers of louderMONDAYS. when the dust settled, i was still in the minority but it never got stupid or useless, it remianed a valid exchange of ideas and thoughts which at the very least left me with a sense that they have at least weighed other opinions including (and most importantly their own) mofos at the SF that want shit to be donw just cuz it suits theri whim of the day should just say so, if theyre looking to expand their own person agenda (just say so)

do not talk about organization, partnerships, and family when you dont want to be blamed for dropping the ball and then hail yourself the leader when you see it bounce and proclaim the effects of gravity.

enough, bullshit. the SF, they’re god’s kids now.

ACENTOS RECAP

hell yeah, i still have to reflect back on the amazing ms karen jamie and the honor of having louis reyes rivera read for us a few weeks back but first i have to go farther back to the september b.c.a. reading and their feature jeff mcdaniel.

jeff is one of the best readers of poetry in the whole game and i just love hearing him. afterwards, we talked for a bit and i mentioned Acentos and our focus on latino poets… “ever heard of jorge monterossa?” asks jeff.

couple of hours later jorge’s one day reading to srah lawrence becomes a full nyc weekend of poetry. karen adds him to the friday slam (which he won!) and jeff gets louderARTS to give him an extended stay on the open mic (three piece and he killed ’em!)

last night started on the right foot as the blue ox was packed (for real! i leave the hyperoble to the Acentos Announcements) with kids from sarah lawrence college coming to see jorge. our regular audience was late, as always, but the open mic became a fuckin’ explosion of new & old voices. matt siegle came by and i hope he enjoyed his first foray into the boogie down, our biggest supporter– guy was up in the house, NYFA fellow ed garcia, paopleto melendez & sylvia jackson from the spanish harlem reading came through as did this cat from barcelona, spain droppin’ the illest political poem… in 100% spanish! di que si!

cess from nuyoclothing got to show the bx her increidble line of shirts and when she said. “we seek unification through diveristy,” i knew we had met a kindred soul.

louisa & jade from slc were very, very good, as well. i am sure i left some folks out but more latah on the actual Acentos Announcements.

let me say that the name jorge monterossa will be nationally famous in just a few short years. he dropped over 16 poems on the open mic in his 25 minute set. sixteen! and all off the charts. from the introspective to the cosmic metaphor- from intimate and low key to bombastic and angry-

jorge’s poetry covers it all. so how does someone do 16 poems in 25 minutes? easy, you dont talk about yuurself every chance you get.

you rock the poem, acknowledge the applause, and then hit em again with a new piece. the work was so personal and left me feeling like i have seen the west coast, for just a second, through jorge’s eyes. i’ve seen someone survive the first-generation american experience, like i have, with a similair love for this imperfect country. it is going to be fun writing up his review.

it’s really cool when everyone else sees what you see and guy, fish, paopleto, and rich all had that same look in their eyes.

in the end, i will sayt that this was another soul enriching edition of acentos.

metro– showing me that la poesia urbana is strong all over the world (and that all countries hat theri president)

papoleto– providing the brige between the generations

rich– finding new parts of his soul to bring to life on the page

phrase– stopping in his tracks as he walsk by the blue ox, droppin a poem, then leaving

jorge– giving me the chance to help be a part of someone’s new york experience. can’t wait to see you one day in l.a.

(shameless plug alert– cue the star wars music!) in a borough not that far away, raymond daniel medina will save the galaxy with music and poetry as he drops the thirty pound light saber (dont ask) on the blue ox! (thank you, john williams)

yes, RDM will bring the 505, guitar, drums, keyboards, and kazzo for his

Acentos feature.

act like ya know and come through!

“I’ve been looking at the sky ‘Cause it’s gettin’ me high”

i cant believe its been this long since i’ve updated this bad boy…

well, i’m back and should be droppin’ some rumblings at least once a week.

i still have to finish the NPS review so that i can look back next year and say… “i really thought that?”

and i got a few other events i need to touch back on

latah… for now

“Heads are a science apart.”

i have been at the nuyo for the last two weeks in a row and fully plan on going again this week– holy shit!

i have had such a love/hate thing with the nuyo.

the love is simple it is THE best stage i have ever been on, period. no where else has come close, not 13, the BPC, chicago, NPS, no where! there is this incredible feeling of, well, ominpotence up there. if your poem is tight, they laugh when you want them to laugh, they cry/ahh/gasp/cheer/clap when you want them to… the entire room! not just a few people in the front or that core group of listeners… the while place, all 200 of them. i was doing a poem once and for some strange reason looked to my left for no reason at all and everybody started looking where i was looking… f’ing cool, man.

of course, the nuyo also has the most history of any stage in nyc and maybe, the whole country, when you are up there and know that this is the stage the saul, beau, rog, lynne, guy, mayda, suheir, regie, emanuel, tracy morris, carl hancock rux, miguel algarin, bob holman, steve cnanon… have all been on… you just have to tip your hat.

then comes the hate from the fact that it is not the stage pinero, cienfugos, pietri, piri, esteves, all cut their teeth on… that stage is gone and may never come back since the nuyo has elevated itself into such a POETRY institution that it may never again become the NUYORICAN institution it began as and still remains in the minds of the common every man. i remember going there waiting to see the best in RICAN poetry and getting a nice cross section of popular performance poetry. i think i would have been happy if it was the best in performance poetry but it wasn’t, in my opinion, just the most popular.

well, the last two weeks have had mums and cheryl-boyce taylor as the feature and that is awesome, it’s good for the nuyo to dig deeper into their past and get the new audience in touch with the people that helped make his

place.

mums had an amazing set where he did what he does best– serve up urban philosophy ingrained with the teachings of nietzche, krs one, frued and nas into a form of poetry that is as current as it is profound. the slam that night was good with rich almost pulling out a victory over the marxman, a nice cat and good mc but not a poet. (here ya go, jive) marx was all about having wonderful word play and went to the hip hop formula really well (punchline, metaphor, punchline, metaphor.. huzzah!) but was very geocentric with his works and kept mixing his metaphors to suit his agenda, braggin’ about ‘mself. works in hip-hop but for more me, poetry should be deeper.

cherly boyce was great this last friday, giving the crowd what they should be hearing instead of what they like hearing. one girl by the front was just so bored and was golf clappin cheryl throughout her set, sad. i would have loved to find out what she was missing, what wasnt connecting, especially since cheryl’s work, like mums, has a built in universal appeal. the girl got to clapping when the slam started and the more people used trite rhyme scheme or outrageous performance on the stage– the more she clapped. another good slam with jorge monterossa taking the win and angel, kanaya’s girl, showing me that her work has nice focus.

if all goes well, i’ll be there again this friday as willie perdomo hits the stage. his set should be interesting as he could do the classics, and really SHOULD do em, like ‘a night at the nuyorican’ and ‘nigger rican blues’ but then he has a whole new book of poems. i hope he mixes it up and let;s this crowd know that just cuz you win a slam here, the best stage in the world, you aint done shit… yet.

ya know, someone who uses the moniker, geminipoet, should really pay attention to things like this–

On August 28th, 2003, Mercury turns retrograde again, sending communications, missed appointments, mail and the www into a general snarlup! This awkward period begins a few days before the actual turning point (as Mercury slows) and lasts for three weeks or so, until September 20. It finally straightens out on October 4, bringing things back to normal. Mercury turns retrograde three times a year, as a rule, but the effects of each period differ, according to the sign in which it happens. This year, however, Mercury turns retrograde four times. How confusing!

What does Mercury affect?

In general, Mercury rules thinking and perception, processing and disseminating information and all means of communication, commerce and transportation. By extension, Mercury rules people who work in these areas, especially people who work with their minds or their wits: writers and orators, commentators and critics, gossips and spin doctors, tricksters and thieves.

Mercury retrograde gives rise to personal misunderstandings; flawed, disrupted, or delayed communications, negotiations and trade; glitches and breakdowns with phones, computers, cars, buses, and trains. And all of these problems usually arise because some crucial piece of information, or component, has gone astray, or awry.

When Mercury is retrograde, everyone’s thinking is more introspective and we tend to think about issues and concerns which relate to the sign involved. With Mercury retrograde in Virgo, people with this sign prominent in their charts will be especially prone to such introspection. There is little choice but to reconsider one’s personal views and opinions about life. There is, however, an opportunity to gain insight into one’s own ego.

It should be noted that Mercury retrograde, like any cosmic aspect, affects people differently, depending on where it hits their personal charts. Some people actually prosper under a retro Mercury, especially if Mercury is retrograde but otherwise well-aspected in their birth charts. It is also a time when matters begun under a previous retro period will come to fruition, or completion as the case may be.

Mercury retro in Virgo brings blockages connected with the exercise of analytical abilities, learning and organizational matters. Indecision on these and related issues arises through an undue influence from the persuasive power of others. Confidence may be shaky. Avoid being too impatient and overly critical; the need for perfection inevitably conflicts with the reality of a less-than-perfect world, especially during this period. With regard to learning and transportation, glitches may be expected. Curiosity leads you down many paths, mentally as well as physically. The direct route tends to be blocked through inattention to detail, misunderstood directions, missed appointments and the like.

All areas of communication are affected. Methods and motivation for learning, communication and transportation are subject to difficulties under this aspect. It brings travel snafus and missed appointments of all kinds. Documents can go astray. Be sure to carry a diary and refer to it often.