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Confession: I have an intense dislike for window poems. Most of the ones I’ve come across use the window as a lens to the view the rest of the world, a world the writer strives to make as alien as possible from his place of writing. The ones I really hate use the window to separate the writer from the outside world and limit the possibility of the writers’ work to only the things seen from the window. Any possibility that poetry can exist past the window ceases to exist as the poet shrinks away from engaging with a world that he can’t control.

This poem by the recently departed Mario Bendetti goes with a far better approach to writing from the window. Bendetti’s speaker realizes that his world is limited and the outside world is full of so much possibility and joy that to stay locked up would limit his own growth and possibility. I like this window poem, one where the writer can leave the tragic behind and go outside of his secure writing space and take a chance in the unknown.

Little Stones at My Window
by Mario Benedetti
Translated by Charles Hatfield

for roberto and adelaida

Once in a while
joy throws little stones at my window
it wants to let me know that it’s waiting for me
but today I’m calm
I’d almost say even-tempered
I’m going to keep anxiety locked up
and then lie flat on my back
which is an elegant and comfortable position
for receiving and believing news

who knows where I’ll be next
or when my story will be taken into account
who knows what advice I still might come up with
and what easy way out I’ll take not to follow it

don’t worry, I won’t gamble with an eviction
I won’t tattoo remembering with forgetting
there are many things left to say and suppress
and many grapes left to fill our mouths

don’t worry, I’m convinced
joy doesn’t need to throw any more little stones
I’m coming
I’m coming.

Mayor Gavin Newsom today introduced Diane di Prima as the City’s 5th Poet Laureate. Poet, prose writer, playwright and teacher, di Prima is the author of 44 books of poetry and prose.

…

“Diane di Prima is a feminist writer, poet, teacher, and one of the few female Beat writers to attain prominence,” said Mayor Newsom.

“Her writing reflects the political and social upheavals of the 1960’s and 1970’s, as well as her personal life, interest in alchemy, and Eastern philosophies.

As one of the strongest literary voices of her generation, her work continues to inspire, and we are honored to name her the San Francisco Poet Laureate.”

Full article here.

I once joked to Barb that the only reason I would join Twitter was to drop updates like this:

-Please cut the long intro and get to the poem. Ooops, bad poem. Go back to the intro.

-Yo dawgs, 1983 called and it wants the poem you stole back.

-This person has used the same quote for the intro, epigraph, title AND first line of the poem. Shoot me now.

So the questions remains. Will I actually do it? To find out, follow me @obermeo.

This was only one poem from a reading that was dense, articulate and moving. At her first Bay area reading, Elizabeth Alexander came through with various selections from her previous books, a new poem, and the inaugural poem. Her commentary on the poem and the fact that she continues reading it is a great example to all poets: “It is one poem among many. Somewhere in the middle.”

So much of the negative commentary around the Inaugural Poem was about how Alexander didn’t deliver a reading that blew away everyone, a poem that should have stood out among all her work, a performance that would steal the show. This might work for poets who think every reading is their last one, that no one will ever hear their work again, that *this* has to be the poem that will last forever. I’ve met poets like this, most of them only do a few poems they have carefully crafted, endlessly revised, and have performed so often they could do it in their sleep. I know, I was a poet like this. Always relying on a few poems to wow the listener. Hell, for a good long time, I only had one poem to show the audience that Damn it, I am a real poet.

I wish I had heard the advice of Elizabeth Alexander earlier and realized that one poem can make me a poet but only for that moment. If I wanted to be a poet for the ages or even an occasion poet, I would have to keep writing and reciting more poems, work one and then move to the other. It’s a strong lesson to learn and even tougher to follow because the rush of nailing a performance poem–articulating every line break, feeling the turn of the poem move through your body, making eye contact with every one in the room, seeing and feeling their reaction to the poem–it rocks. But to go on to the next moment, where an even better poem might be waiting, that’s the real good news. The kind of good news that could get you to a stage where the whole world is listening, so you can deliver the best poem you have for that day, and then move on.

We just got back from seeing Star Trek on IMAX and I can happily say: J.J. Abrams gets it. And by “it” I mean that audiences are always looking for that new myth, the story of heroes and villians that makes us want to jump out over seats, spill our popcorn and yell “Yeah!” Star Trek is that movie.

As a die-hard fan, I’ll say I walked into this with great hopes for a good movie that stayed true to the vision of the first. As a fan of good story lines in sci-fi, I was ready to settle with, just make it a good long episode in the vein of ST:TOS (told ya I was a fan). Ok, I lied, I would’ve preferred leave good enough alone, don’t go back to the endlessly rehashed Kirk-Spock friendship and focus on either a DS9 movie (Cuz you know Ronald D. Moore has some free time on his hands now) or go with Peter David’s The New Frontier. Abrams proved me wrong by finding a new wrinkle in the Kirk-Spock bromance and fleshing out all the other characters on the bridge (and even some redshirts) with good backstories and contributions to the story that go beyond just showing up. Again, he’s given a new mythology to latch on to.

*Here Be Spoilers*
One thing I hate about time-travel stories, they never have any lasting consequences. Folks go back, forward, sideways in time and nothing changes. Not in this movie. Abrams starts off the film with a major temporal distortion of epic proportions that affects the entire history of the NCC-1701 and her crew. For reals.

A complete reset of the legendary five year mission with distinct alteration to give us a fresh story but with enough familiarity to let us know that this is the Star Trek lore we love.

The best example is Karl Urban portrayal of Dr Bones McCoy, equal parts homage to DeForest Kelley and equal parts foil to Kirk and Spock. Zoe Saldana’s Uhura brings the hotness to the bridge but in a new package filled with personal agency, professional drive and compassion for her man. Again, everybody in the original crew gets to contribute to the story in their own way.

The most important thing Abrams understands about Star Trek: It’s all about Spock. Yes, Kirk is great and leads THE most charmed life in the Federation but the character that’s fueled the engine for most of the franchise if Spock. Zachary Quinto portrayal of the child of Vulcan logic and human emotions shows both without resorting to being mechanical or having to cry so we know he feels something. We know he feels emotion cuz he’s always suppressing it and it comes out in the story.

With a new universe to play with and what will probably be one of this summer’s highest grossing films, what will Abrams do next?

My guess the next Star Trek will have the Enterprise crew meet up with the SS Botany Bay and a brand new Khan Noonien Singh played by (drumroll) Benicio del Toro.