MANUEL PAUL LOPEZ

from a Notebook

2012-01-30T17:08:00.000-08:00

"Sometimes I think my tongue is a desert praying for rain!"

-Benjamin Alire Saenz

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"If you draw a tree the way it really looks, no one will believe you."

-Joe Brainard

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Telephone Booth 32439

if you hit a poet
& he doesn't hit you back
leave town immediately
take out life insurance
get a new identity
unite with transvestites
sleep with unlisted numbers!

-Pedro Pietri

Dia de la Mujer Celebration--Jury Exhibition

2012-01-26T05:42:00.000-08:00

Casa Familiar's THE FRONT announces 5th Annual Dia de la Mujer Celebration--Jury Exhibition. Click here for guidelines!

Patti As Blaise Cendrars

2012-01-23T20:30:00.000-08:00

Photo by Judy Linn

2012-01-22T20:28:00.000-08:00

Recently returned from El Salvador. Here's a photo from Ilamatepec. I want to post more photos soon.

Good News

2011-12-28T12:25:00.000-08:00

I want to thank the San Diego Foundation Creative Catalyst Fund for providing me with a much needed grant. I also want to thank Seema Sueko and the Mo'olelo Performing Arts Company for selecting me for this awesome opportunity to collaborate. This will be the first year that this type of grant is awarded to individual artists and the arts organizations that work with them. I think it's an amazing step, and I hope it continues here in San Diego for a long time. Here's the write-up that appeared in the San Diego Union Tribune on Christmas Day.

2011-12-23T17:03:00.000-08:00

One of the cooler songs of 2011. I'm excited to hear everything that 2012 has to bring, to read it, too. To contribute to it in some way or another. Exciting.

2011-12-22T09:49:00.000-08:00

Just finished reading Craig Santos Perez's latest from Incorporated Territory [Saina]. It is amazing.

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Prepping for my trip to El Salvador in a couple of weeks. I'm so excited.

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Reading Maldoror. Wow!

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Got some work coming out in Antique Children: A Mischievous Literary Art Journal Thanks Antique Children!

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The Chargers are back!

2011-12-11T21:42:00.000-08:00

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I picked up an album this weekend entitled Sing Me A Song Of Songmy: A Fantasy for Electromagnetic Tape, featuring Freddie Hubbard and His Quintet, Composed by Ilhan Mimaroglu. On the cover of the album is "Massacre in Korea" by Pablo Picasso. This album includes reciters, string orchestra, hammond organ, synthesized and processed sounds. All haunting. Vietnam backdrop. Civil Rights. Poems by Che Guevara, Nha-Khe, Talat Sait Halman, and others. Pow. Never in my ears till this Sat. evening. Poof!

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Wrote 4 new poems this weekend. Here's an excerpt from one: " , "

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2011-11-27T11:34:00.000-08:00

Just received the new issue of Palabra: A Magazine of Chicano and Latino Literary Art, and I am happy. Pick up a copy.

Featured Authors:

Michael P. Aleman

Francisco Aragón

Atom Ariola

Gilbert Arzola

Xánath Caraza

Rubén Darío

Leticia Del Toro

Mario Duarte

Diana Ferraro

Michelle Lizet Flores

Jerry Garcia

Rigoberto González

Cynthia Guardado

Laurie Ann Guerrero

Stephen D. Gutiérrez

Rubén R. Mendoza

Calvin Mills

John A. Nieves

José-Luis Moctezuma

Michelle Otero

Melinda Palacio

Emmy Pérez

Luivette Resto

Louis Reyna

Caridad Svich

Rodrigo Toscano

2011-11-21T15:42:00.000-08:00

Excited to see Death Grips tonight. Intense!

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Here's some cool Ginsberg footage shot at DG Wills in La Jolla, California.

2011-11-08T19:36:00.000-08:00

I saw the ASCO: Elite of the Obscure, A Retrospective,1972-1987! It was fantastic. A hip group, storming the boundaries. It was really cool to watch the interview footage of the group, too. Creating, creating, creating, they were. If you're in the area, make an effort to see it.

Chicano Park and the Restoration Project

2011-10-29T10:57:00.000-07:00

This Tuesday I had the good fortune to watch a bit of the Chicano Park Park Mural Restoration project. There I met up with novelist and artist, Maceo Montoya. You can see him working hard with his cousin Tomás Montoya on restoring the great, José Montoya's mural seen below. Maceo kindly introduced me to master muralists Esteban Villa and José Montoya. It was something to see José Montoya observe the progress on his mural. I chatted with Mr. Villa for some time and received an invaluable education on topics that ranged from life in the classroom to the beginnings of the Royal Chicano Air Force. 40 years of history that afternoon!

The restoration project will continue, so if you want to observe some of it, drop by and watch.

("Libertad" mural by Esteban Villa)

Journey of the Skeletons

2011-10-25T12:24:00.000-07:00

Things to Do On My Birthday Week

2011-10-17T22:56:00.000-07:00

1. Check out the Asco retrospective and get completely excited. Scroll down and watch the Willie Herrón video. His voice sounds like someone I know, but I just can't place it yet. I am now closing my eyes and listening, though the person still does not come to me. As my homeboy, Alex, would say: mmmmmmmmmmmm.

2. Check out Ambrose Akinmusire play Miles Davis. I've written about him before--his work is amazing, and I can't wait to hear his Miles interpretations.

3. Buy new Rigoberto Gonzalez poetry collection Black Blossoms.

2011-10-16T21:53:00.000-07:00

I heard this old classic today on the radio during our short road trip. O, how I used to feel so tragic. The Wedding Presents' Sea Monsters still sounds so current to me despite its 20 yr+ age.

Raul Zurita at UCSD

2011-10-14T13:17:00.000-07:00

It was only by chance that I read about the reading in the local weekly. It happened while waiting for an appointment, the uneventful type that simply allows us to remain in good standing with convenience.

A couple of weeks ago I had the opportunity to hear, meet and survive for days on end on the echoed verses of the great, Chilean poeta, Raul Zurita. This reading, sponsored by UCSD's New Writers Series, took place on campus at the Visual Arts Facility, a black box of a venue, that added further to the haunting atmosphere that Zurita's mutli-voiced poetry evokes. On location, was a representative of Action Books, who recently (2010)published a bilingual version of Zurita's Canto A Su Amor Desaparecido, originally published by Editorial Universitaria (Santiago, Chile, 1985). Poet, Daniel Borzutzky, translated the latest edition.

The reading began with Zurita reading from Purgatorio, with guest readers contributing English versions in tandem. The result of this reading was theatrical, chamber-like, two voices, two languages, exorcising the effects of Pinochet-era Chile.

Someone in the audience commented on Raul Zurita's frequent use of Chile's natural landscapes, most famously, the Atacama desert. In response, he stated, though much more vividly and eloquently, that because people were so brutally disposed of during this tragic era in Chile's history by using secret, though many times not-so-secret methods, Chile's natural geography was often the last living body to offer any compassion to these victims.

After the reading, I asked The Poet to sign my copy of Canto A Su Amor Desparecido. He did, graciously. "De donde eres?" he asked, our hands in a slowly-loosening handshake. "...de El Centro," I answered. "Ahhhhh..." he responded. Something in his face, in his expression, seemed strangely recognizable.

Zurita's Purgatorio is an important book to me for many reasons. For it is a document of witness, participant, memory, flesh, trauma, warning, triumph, in addition to so much more. To me, the work's beauty lies in the unflinching eye, the ineffable courage to strike back at the madness with verse.

Zurita His name, too, sky-written among the clouds.

Post Book Fair Panel Sentimientos

2011-10-09T20:20:00.000-07:00

I want to drop a big thank you to Virginia Escalante, professor and director of the San Diego City College International Book Fair. The event was marvelous. To see Wanda Coleman, Austin Straus, and Luis Rodriguez consecutively on Sat. was some cool hours spent. I also want to thank Angel Sandoval, currently a San Diego State University MFA candidate, for organizing the panel, and for delivering an awesome reading and presentation. As a fellow Imperial Valleyite, I am very proud of the work he's doing. It was also great to read with Manuel Velez, a poet and professor whose collection Bus Stop and Other Poems, has been a book that I've periodically returned to/to see how it's done.

2011-10-07T19:41:00.000-07:00

Here's The Sorcerer working it. At 1:36 he drops some Stravinsky-ass synth!

Gold!!!

2011-10-05T23:48:00.000-07:00

Omar Salinas reads from his Crazy gypsy poems, 1973

2011-10-05T19:49:00.001-07:00

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I will be on a panel alongside poetas Manuel J. Velez and Angel Sandoval at the San Diego City College International Book Fair on Thursday. Come join us!
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2011-09-17T09:30:00.000-07:00

It is Saturday morning, and M is listening to Coltrane's A Love Supreme. She can't get enough of it. Meanwhile, I'm preparing submissions, and I'm reassuring these poems, that even if no one likes them, they were worth every cent of the roundtrip ticket I purchased for them.

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I just watched Strange Powers: Stephen Merritt and the Magnetic Fields. An old friend of mine turned me on to 69 Love Songs a number of years ago. I'm not sure I ever thanked her, but thank you. Never realized the controversy Stephen Merritt generated with his "List of Favorites." How many artists of color are on your iPod?

Cool to see Carrie Brownstein of Sleater Kinney in the documentary. "Stephen Merritt is superior to everyone else." Wow...

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Wrote a short poem called "Larry Levis."

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Currently reading Woodnote by Christine Deavel, Dear Prudence: New and Selected Poems by David Trinidad, Passionate Declarations: Essays on War and Justice by Howard Zinn, and Historic Diary by Tony Trigilio (which I want to review).

2011-09-11T09:44:00.000-07:00

Martin Espada reading "Alabanza: In Praise of Local 100," introduced by the incomparable, Angela Davis.

2011-08-28T14:50:00.000-07:00

3 Things I'm looking forward to in September:

1. Das Racist new album Relax.

2. David Trinidad's new book Dear Prudence: New and Selected Poems. I emailed David Trinidad once to tell him how much I loved his long poem "A Poem Under the Influence" from his wonderful collection The Late Show. I'm a fan. What can I say?

3. Check out Asco at LACMA

2011-08-27T10:25:00.000-07:00

Beware San Diego and Tijuana! I'm there!

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Mexicali is inching toward the Little League World Series final. Here's a nice story that was recently written in the Imperial Valley Press.

2011-08-22T19:12:00.000-07:00

Click here to read some good poems by Sheryl Luna at Acentos Review.

2011-08-11T10:50:00.000-07:00

I'm listening to Pet Sounds right now. If I didn't hate the beach so much I'd be on a surf board right now.

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I can't wait to watch Miranda July's "The Future."

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Philip Levine is the new poet laureate of the United States. Cool portrait by Robert Vasquez at Letras Latinas.

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"His blood began to murmur in his veins, murmuring like a sinful city summoned from its sleep to hear its doom." O the Catholics!

from A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man

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I remember digging this poem so much by Carolina Ebeid I read it every day for a couple of weeks, then periodically thereafter. It turns out Carolina was at CantoMundo this summer and I didn't put 2 & 2 together, as they say.

El Field.

2011-07-28T07:01:00.000-07:00

El Field. is an upcoming documentary about the Imperial Valley/Mexicali region. Watch the trailer here.

Thanks to Matt Amar for sending me the link.

CantoMundo 2011 (Photo Courtesy of CMAS)

2011-07-27T14:46:00.000-07:00

RIP

2011-07-25T13:35:00.000-07:00

for ms. winehouse

2011-07-20T09:41:00.000-07:00

It's been some time since I've read A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. I just finished chapter one this morning and the part when Stephen Dedalus gets smacked on his hands by this priest for not having his glasses still gets me. O, the injustice!

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The presentation and reading went well yesterday for the Upward Bound IV students. I had a good time. The students certainly showed passion, and I can't wait to hear about their future accomplishments.

One eerie note, I presented in the same classroom where I took a calculus class that kicked my ass so many years ago.

Don't Suck

2011-07-19T09:10:00.000-07:00

I'm really excited to have the opportunity to present for a group of Upward Bound students at UCSD today. What makes it especially special is that they are from the Imperial Valley. 50 high school students spending several weeks of their summer to invest in themselves academically. You gotta love it. My presentation will consist of a reading and a few shared experiences from my days in the college classroom. I hope it goes over well. In times like these, I can't help but remember Gysee-Yo's sage advice to herself, which really is a two word life philosopy: "Don't suck." She mentioned this to an audience at the Tucson Poetry Festival last year. She's amazing!

2011-07-15T14:19:00.000-07:00

Went to the bookstore yesterday with no title really in mind until I saw Michael Lally's It Takes One to Know One: Poetry and Prose and thought huh and bought it and while purchasing the collection I asked the young lady behind the cash register Yo, what in heavens are you listening to! it's rad somehow something new but old and she told me and I said wait wait let me write it down and she said ok and I wrote it and said have you heard of Ice Age have you heard of Chola Hair and she said no and I said check them out and I hurried home but first ducked into another store and bought some white sunglasses because my last pair suck and are broken because I am really bad with sunglasses and so I hurried home not really hurrying home because I don't like to drive fast I like to cruise you know so I busted through my door like Charles Bronson (not really) and downloaded the tune and now I play it for you I'm sure it's really old and I play it for the Canto Mundistas because they are all really cool, brilliant people as I wait for my wife to return from work to slow dance this tune in the middle of our living room before we drive up the coast while I tell her how much I like Benjamin Alire Sáenz's The Book of What Remains and how I wrote a poem about a snail and a poem about a skunk and hopefully the poems don't stink and if they do let them stink splendidly so so that when they are in the vicinity they are mistaken for none other than the skunk because no ideas but in things or something like that.

2011-07-14T09:24:00.000-07:00

Had the opportunity to see and hear HR last night. He and his band closed with the Bad Brains' "Re-Ignition." Controversial figure--yes. Artist--yes.

The Return

2011-07-12T08:28:00.000-07:00

Below are a few pics from CantoMundo. For more, you can visit Eduardo Corral's site. The whole experience was a blast. Austin was hot with latin@ poetry and deep platica this weekend! Here's to new friends, and in raúlrsalinas' words, here's to more "righteous gente work."

I hope to post more about CantoMundo in the future.

2011-06-28T11:34:00.000-07:00

This George Yepes (print) hangs over my desk now. Some kind of muse.

2011-06-27T12:57:00.000-07:00

I/m happy to share that I/ll be participating at this year/s San Diego City College Intl. Book Fair in October. The highlight for me will undoubtedly be sitting on the same panel as Leroy V. Quintana. I/ve been a long time admirer of his work. I/ll have more info. as the event draws nearer.

CantoMundo Is Around the Corner

2011-06-21T20:20:00.000-07:00

For immediate release

Nationally recognized Latino Poets from across the U.S. offer a free public reading in Austin, Texas.

Friday, July 8, 2011 at 7:30 p.m.
Free. Open to the public.
Emma S. Barrientos Mexican American Cultural Arts Center
600 River Street Austin, TX 78701
More than 20 nationally recognized Latino poets from across the U.S. will gather in Austin, Texas, for CantoMundo, a national poetry workshop dedicated to supporting and developing Latina/o poetics.

On Friday, July 8, 2011, at 7:30 p.m., these poets will present a free poetry reading that will be open to the public at the Emma S. Barrientos Mexican American Cultural Arts Center. A reception will follow the reading.

These participants in CantoMundo represent the best of Latina/o poetry in the United States. Some of the featured award-winning and nationally recognized poets include: Millicent Borges Acardi (New York City), Francisco Aragón (Washington D.C.), Oscar Bermeo (California), Eduardo Corral (Arizona), Carolina Ebeid (Austin, Texas), Amalia Ortíz (Texas/California), Luivette Resto (California), and ire’ne lara silva (Austin, Texas), among others.

CantoMundo provides a space where Latina/o poets can nurture and enhance their poetics; lecture and learn about aspects of Latina/o poetics currently not being discussed by the mainstream publishers and critics; and network with peer poets to enrich and further disseminate Latina/o poetry. For the complete list of CantoMundo poets, please visit www.cantomundo.org.

Biographies

Millicent Borges Accardi, a Portuguese-American poet, is the author of three books: Injuring Eternity, Woman on a Shaky Bridge (chapbook), and Only More So (forthcoming Salmon Press, Ireland). She has won fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, the California Arts Council, Barbara Deming (Money for Women), the Formby Foundation at Texas Tech as well as residencies at Yaddo, Jentel, Vermont Studio, Fundación Valparaíso in Mojacar, and Milkwood in Cesky Krumlov.

Francisco Aragón is the author of Puerta del Sol and Glow of Our Sweat, as well as editor of The Wind Shifts: New Latino Poetry. He directs Letras Latinas—the literary program of the Institute for Latino Studies at the University of Notre Dame. He is also the editor of “Canto Cosas,” a book series from Bilingual Press featuring new Latino and Latina poets. For more information, visit: http://franciscoaragon.net.

Born in Ecuador and raised in the Bronx, Oscar Bermeo is the author of the chapbooks Anywhere Avenue, Palimpsest, Heaven Below and To the Break of Dawn. He lives in Oakland, where he teaches creative writing to elementary school students, co-edits Doveglion Press and blogs.

Eduardo C. Corral won the 2011 Yale Series of Younger Poets Award. His first book will be published in April 2012.

Carolina Ebeid was born in West New York, NJ and now lives in Austin, TX where she is a fellow at the Michener Center for Writers and the poetry editor of the Bat City Review. Her poems appear in Agni, Poetry, West Branch, Gulf Coast, 32 Poems, Anti-, Memorious, and many other journals.

Amalia Ortíz is a performance poet and a playwright. After living in Los Angeles for almost five years, she is moving back to Texas this summer.

Luivette Resto was born in Aguas Buenas, Puerto Rico but proudly raised in the Bronx. Her first book of poetry, Unfinished Portrait, was published in 2008 by Tia Chucha Press and was named a finalist for the 2009 Paterson Poetry Prize.

ire’ne lara silva is the author of furia, a collection of poetry, and two chapbooks: ani’mal and INDíGENA. She is the 2008 recipient of the Gloria Anzaldua Milagro Award and an inaugural CantoMundo fellow. Website: www.irenelarasilva.webs.com.

For more information about the event, contact Celeste Mendoza at cmendoza@cantomundo.org or Deborah Paredez at dparedez@cantomundo.org.

La Llorona

2011-06-20T15:03:00.000-07:00

Here's a beautiful video featuring Perla Batalla and Luis Rodriguez.

DM

2011-06-18T11:12:00.000-07:00

In tribute to our conversation last night re: Depeche Mode. My favorite. My favorite.

Student Art Exhibition

2011-06-02T09:14:00.002-07:00

As a semester-long project with a group of 43 high school juniors, we explored several social/cultural movements that rose hard against oppressive institutional powers in 20th/21st century America (U.S.). Students were asked to conduct research, study and write original (historical) micro-fiction, write personal narratives, and create a piece of art in the spirit of Ken Kesey's Jail Journals. In addition, students were asked to consider some of the iconic figures and/or images associated with these movements and how their meanings have morphed or remained intact since their inception. These efforts culminated with an exhibition at the Centro Cultural de la Raza at San Diego's Balboa Park where students shared their art and read from their very own chapbooks. Yes, that's right, each student created multiple copies of hand-made chapbooks with original writings and art which graced the covers.

Rarely do I comment on my life as a high school teacher here, but I wanted to share that the student exhibit will be on display at the Centro through June 15th. If possible, please try and check it out.

My teaching partner and I are proud of their work. Eventually, I would like to link some photos of the opening. Lots of food, music, and righteousness.

Below are some samples of the work. Anyone interested in a student chapbook, please hit me up, and I can see what I can do. The writings incorporated in the art pieces are both original and primary source materials.

In closing, we are grateful for having had the opportunity to collaborate with the Centro on this endeavor.

*Note, each art piece is approx. 16 X 18in.

Akinmusire Rocked It

2011-05-31T22:36:00.000-07:00

Straight from Stockholm, Ambrose Akinmusire and his group played an amazing show even while exhausted from the long trip back to the States. Apparently, this show was a tune-up for a performance that will take place on June 11th at the Hollywood Bowl. The night began with his tune "Confessions to My Unborn Daughter," the first track off his album When the Heart Emerges Glistening. As previously mentioned, the set kicked ass, and there were several moments when I couldn't keep myself in my seat. The half-valve work he incorporated throughout was exquisite!

What was refreshing and pure to see was how much fun the band was having on stage. These musicians were actually smiling. Of course, this band has been playing together for some time as far as I know. Saxophonist, Walter Smith III, also struck me thoughout the evening, with his big, husky sound.

All in all, the performance at the 200-seat Athenaeum Jazz at the Studio was impressive, and I must say it was one of the best I've seen in a long time.

*Here's an older article on Akinmusire, his band, and his new album.

2011-05-25T15:47:00.000-07:00

My plan is to see Bomba Estereo tonight!
My plan is to see the Twilight Singers Friday.
My plan is to breathe deeply, to really breathe deeply.
My plan is to write more poems.
My plan is to stay focused long enough to write more poems.

2011-05-21T09:17:00.000-07:00

Considering
Like the man who walked
his three-legged dog
in Central Park--
Pride and pathos
struggling in his face--
I consider my life
and my art.

-Harvey Shapiro

2011-05-19T14:49:00.000-07:00

Very excited. Saturday night we'll be checking out the unmistakable tone of Ambrose Akinmusire. His arrangements are incredible.

2011-05-18T21:41:00.000-07:00

As my students were mounting their paintings today at the Centro Cultural de la Raza for tomorrow's evening exhibition, we were fortunate enough to have the muralist, Guillermo Chavez Rosette, give our students a history lesson on the Centro and some of the seminal moments that have taken place at the venue. He shared with us that he is currently in town working hard on the mural restoration at Chicano Park. It was a special moment for all of us.

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O, I've been reading Vallejo! Puro Vallejo! Strange, beautiful, dark verses! I feel 18 feet tall.

My Students' Exhibition!

2011-05-13T14:47:00.000-07:00

2011-05-09T05:36:00.000-07:00

CABALLOS

En las horas inquietas de ciertos amaneceres los oigo galopar. Su locura y su confusión recuerdan la dinámica de los oceanos, el ir y venir de las olas, el rugir de las marejadas, la insaciable ir de las tempestades. So los caballos perdidos en la fiebre del poeta muerto. Caballos apenas concebidos, ni realidad ni metáfora. Mas yo los oigo incansables--como la sangre arrebatada en un cuerpo sin sombra--ir acá para allá buscando las orillas de un sueño ya imposible.

Caballos sin nadie que los sueñe.

--Rafael Perez Estrada

2011-05-06T10:39:00.000-07:00

Imperial Valley Film and Art Fest

2011-05-02T20:46:00.000-07:00

The Imperial Valley's inaugural Film and Arts Festival will be this weekend. Two friends of mine will be featured: Raul Celaya and Daniel Gibson. Raul was the executive producer for the film That Evening Sun, starring Hal Holbrook. The movie is beautiful and should be recognized as some of Hal Hobrook's finest work. Holbrook's late wife, the inimitable Dixie Carter, also appears in the film.

On the art side, Daniel Gibson will be showing his work. He is an exceptional graphic artist whose work I was fortunate to have on the cover of my book Death of a Mexican and Other Poems, along with the calacas that appeared before each section. Daniel and I also collaborated on a VisPo piece that was published in the summer 2008 issue of Rattle. Be sure to check it out--it's pretty cool.

Also, Ernesto Yerena (another Centro native) will be presente as a guest artist. He's currently producing righteous-gente-work with his socially conscious/brilliant pieces. Check him out here.

For anyone in the area, please try to make it. You won't regret it!

2011-05-02T11:24:00.000-07:00

Collage is easier said than done. New Paris Review features a work by Joe Brainard, among others.

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Muchos escritores e intelectuales argentinos expresaron su pesar por el fallecimiento de Sabato. "Con él termina toda una generación de escritores que nos fue dejando despacito y que da pie a la próxima", afirmó Claudia Piñera. El también novelista Guillermo Martínez, matemático de formación, aseguró que siempre hay que seguir leyendo a Sabato, aunque no cree, como él, que haya que renegar de la ciencia para dedicarse la literatura ni que las dos cosas sean incompatibles.

2011-04-28T22:03:00.000-07:00

"I close the book. I'm going out for a walk."
--Nausea, Jean-Paul Sartre

*

To walk, ah nah,
to ride bike and listen to Obits' right now
on iPod even though
I've been pulled over on occasion
with warnings to remove ear buds
while riding
or else

*

"But her! But him! But them! What about them?"

*

ughh.

The New Leaf--Ruidosón!!!

2011-04-27T23:27:00.000-07:00

The biggest music act to come out of Tijuana in recent years has been Nortec Collective, a world-renowned ensemble of producers who’ve influenced countless artists with their groundbreaking fusion of norteño and electronic music. But there’s a new scene in town: ruidosón. Rooted in Mexican heritage yet decidedly forward-thinking, it’s some of the most raw and exciting music coming out of this border region today. By comparison, Nortec looks about as cutting-edge as Avenida Revolución’s zebra-stripe-painted donkeys.

Cherríe Moraga at UCSD

2011-04-22T17:03:00.001-07:00

Had the opportunity to listen to Cherríe Moraga last Thursday night at UCSD. It was a 2 hour presentation that included readings from her new book, A Xicana Codex of Changing Consciousness: A Decade of Discourse-- to be published by Duke University Press in Spring 2011, and a 30 minute viewing of her mixed-media play,La Semilla Caminante (The Traveling Seed).

Moraga's overall presentation opened my head and centered me in a way that I needed, as she spoke of loss, the (re)membering of the (dis)membered, the attack on ethnic studies in Arizona, among other equally engaging topics. (I recorded parts of the presentation and intend to include more specifics soon)

I'm glad I made the long drive to La Jolla after a long day of work--I nearly caved to the post-jale yawn. There were many in the audience and the vibe was beautiful.

This was my first opportunity to hear Cherríe Moraga in person, and it was a magnificent experience. Looking forward to her new book.

2011-04-06T08:19:00.000-07:00

Hope to catch Olga Garcia Echeverria today at UCSD as part of their New Writing Series. Hope she reads "Conversation Between Two Dead Bilingual Roaches."

************************************************************************************** from I ASKED by James Schuyler

I want to take my dishes to the stream and wash them.
I will wear my overcoat and a green silk square and gloves.
I will sing songs we learned at school and my dishes will float and sing among rocks to become houses for trout. I will come home.
It will be as before, for who wishes the love
in his heart to die lives in terror of its death.

from the collection Other Flowers: Uncollected Poems

2011-04-04T16:18:00.000-07:00

The Calexico reading this weekend was wonderful. Thank you to The Calexico Cultural Arts Center, headed by Sandra Tauler and the dedicated staff, all of whom created a great space to usher in National Poetry Month. I also want to spotlight SDSU MFA grad student, Angel Sandoval, originally from Brawley, for making it happen. His contagious enthusiasm and profound love for the Word is gonna pump inspiring works into our community, clearly evident in his emcee duties and poetry reading on Sat. For those of you not from the area, the Imperial Valley/Mexicali took a huge hit by a 7.2 earthquake exactly 1 year ago today. I'm sure it's on many people's minds there, but they continue to walk forward courageously, alongside the still visible destruction in certain parts of these towns. A good friend of ours lost her brick fireplace and chimney. So what does she and her husband do, they use the brick to build a beautiful porch. I wasn't in town for the earthquake, so I can't really comprehend the scale. You just have to wonder about Japan, Haiti, and Chile. Coping with loss. Reconstruction. Displaced and frightened children. To consider poetry and poetry readings and National Poetry Month seems almost insignificant in comparison to the devastation that has affected so many, but to paraphase Mr. Sandoval, poetry has properties that are medicinal; therefore, it is absolutely necessary.

Parrot in the Oven by Victor Martinez

2011-04-01T13:25:00.000-07:00

I just finished rereading Parrot in the Oven over the last couple of days and I am still floored by the control and restraint in the writing, the exquisite metaphors, and of course, the resilient narrator. The scene when Manny's father picks up Magda and places her in the bathtub still punches me in the gut. (Don't want to ruin so I'll stop here) It's stunning! Over the years, several of my high school students have read this book and loved it, many recommending it to friends. "Lopez, I liked it when..." "Lopez, that sucked when Manny..." "Lopez, I gave it to my little sister to read." Unfortunately, Mr. Martinez recently passed. To read about Victor Martinez's passing, read here. And here. What a loss, but he certainly left something beautiful behind. Read this book if you haven't already. And if you have read it, read it again.

PJ Harvey

2011-03-28T17:47:00.000-07:00

I'm obsessed with PJ Harvey's song "In the Dark Places." I can't stop playing it; I can't stop hearing it. It's been the soundtrack of my dreams and nightmares lately. My naps. My jogs.

New Chapbook

2011-03-27T09:18:00.000-07:00

New 1984 chapbook is in the house. Collect all 5 day-glo colors.

Send me a note if interested in acquiring the year for your very own.

2011-03-24T22:42:00.000-07:00

Hey Perfesser, get that bicycle off your nose!

2011-03-21T20:52:00.000-07:00

from Screaming My Head Off

You people
of the future
Running back
over the past,
Shining a light
back over your shoulder,
You'll probably
want to learn
about me,
Mayakovsky.

Vladimir Mayakovsky
Adaptation by Ron Padgett

John Stewart Call Out Fox News

2011-03-05T14:12:00.001-08:00

John Stewart calls out Fox News and its "fair and balanced" reportage of teachers' salaries.

Gronk's A Giant Claw

2011-02-27T21:08:00.000-08:00

I've been engaging Gronk's cool new book A Giant Claw by drawing more in my own journal. I'm so horrible at it, but it's my horror.

Click on the image for more information about the book.

CantoMundo 2011!

2011-02-22T20:45:00.000-08:00

I am absolutely grateful to have the opportunity to be a part of the CantoMundo experience this summer. Thank you very much. I am looking forward to meeting everyone.

CantoMundo 2011 Fellows:

¡Felicitaciones! to the CantoMundo 2011 Fellows:
• Millicent Bórges Accardi
• Diana Marie Delgado
• Carolina Ebeid
• Benjamín A. García
• Rodney Gomez
• Laurie Ann Guerrero
• Leticia Hernández-Linares
• Manuel Paul López
• Carl Marcum
• Juan J. Morales

CantoMundo 2011 will convene July 7-10, 2011, in Austin, Texas.
More about CantoMundo here.

2011-01-20T06:25:00.000-08:00

Derecho de propiedad

Nada es tan mío
como el mar
cuando lo miro

-Elías Nandino

Reading Trakl

2011-01-12T17:03:00.000-08:00

Currently reading Georg Trakl: Poems and Prose, translated by Alexander Stillmark.

Ludwig Wittgenstein, who acted as Trakl's benefactor when the chips were down, said of the poet's work when he first read it: "I don't understand them. But their tone delights me. It is the tone of true men of genius."

Here's a poem called "At Night."

The blueness of my eyes has gone out this night,

The red gold of my heart. O how tranquil the light shone.

Your blue mantle enfolded the sinking man;

Your red mouth sealed your friend's dark derangement.

2011-01-04T20:46:00.000-08:00

Here's my poem "The Scales" with audio at the glorious Rattle.

* * *

I have a broadside of a poem by Edwin Torres that I'm trying to find the perfect spot for on the wall. It's called "A Man of Two."

2010-12-20T17:51:00.001-08:00

I've always wanted to hear Oliver Lake live. My opportunity presented itelf when I attended his performance Friday evening. This program was part of the Fresh Sound Series, "a series of experimental, electronic, contemporary classical and improvised music" under the umbrella of Sushi Contemporary Performance and Visual Arts.

Lake performed solo, interspersing his alto and soprano saxophone pieces with verse. From recited text that evoked a mother's wisdom and guidance, to the catastrophic effects of Katrina, Lake's performance engaged and startled. Lake painted space, tossing out sound by swinging his horn from right to left--HOOOoooonk. Brush strokes of sound. An occassional 360. Chaotic riffs like "scrambled eggs." Long, introspective passages. Quick, playful lines reminiscent of a joyous angel practicing a quebradita in front of a bemused lover angel.

The night was fulfilling, and I left the venue with a lighter step.

* * *

Finished Patti Smith's Just Kids. Beautiful.

* * *

"Reading is done in the immediate past, writing in the immediate future."
-Kenneth Koch

* * *

Looking over proof copy for my new chapbook 1984. "Watch out Orwell. I got your number." I hope to have copies available soon.

2010-12-14T19:02:00.000-08:00

Just devoured two books whole in one sitting: Nicanor Parra's After-Dinner Declarations and Ada Limon's Shark in the Rivers. These, along with the steady regimen of vitamins, jogs, trumpet practice, and writing, keep the spirit ignited and beast-like.

I just got my hands on Patti Smith's Just Kids, which I'm going to try and knock out this week.

* * *

I remember receiving a rejection slip on Christmas Eve one year.

* * *

Back to the blues scales.

2010-11-20T09:25:00.001-08:00

2010-11-17T21:55:00.000-08:00

New poem in Trailer Park Quarterly. Thanks to the editors for using this work.

2010-11-13T09:46:00.000-08:00

An old friend sent me this Jean-Michel B vid. Raise the volume and feel tragic. Dance, too, though. Please dance.

2010-11-02T21:05:00.000-07:00

"But I'm not Nijinsky. I plunge into poetry, as Nijinsky plunged into the dance. With all the effort and faith and dedication possible. As singlemindedly as possible. And with eyes open. Not as Nijinsky, but having seen Nijinsky, like Nijinsky. I don't want art to save me.

I want to be alive. To look at things carefully. To write is to love again."

from a letter to Sandy Berrigan from Ted

* * *

The Palabra Magazine reading in L.A. was wonderful. I really thank elena minor for providing me with an opportunity to read there. While there, I picked up a couple of back issues. Still reading them like crazy.

* * *

Just finished The Poetry Lesson by Andrei Codrescu. Lots of fun! Looking about for my missing "ghost companion."

2010-10-22T09:56:00.000-07:00

I've been reading a lot of Susan Sontag essays lately. I just finished re-reading "A Century of Cinema." A section that struck me was the one in which she drew the line between home theater options vs. the old movie houses. In it, she alludes to how a great movie watched in a theater can transport us for a couple of hours. Here's her creepy but exciting illustration of this: "To be kidnapped, you have to be in a movie theater, seated in the dark among anonymous strangers."

This had me thinkin' of a recent experience. We were recently at the Ken watching the new Basquiat documentary. As the film concluded, I heard a soft weeping that reached us from a few seats to the left. In the darkness, light splashed across half of her face. I was moved by this for a lot of reasons, and shared a bit of sadness at that moment with an anonymous stranger.

* * *

I'm listening to Violeta Parra this morning as I write. My mind wanders. Imagine the conversations between Violeta and Nicanor! Check this out.

* * *

I recently celebrated a birthday. My abuelita called and sang to me. It was utterly beautiful! Following this, she asked: "Mijo, are you still writing?" "I'm trying, grandma." And then she snapped "Don't try! Do!" Brief silence. "Have a happy birthday, mijo. I love you." Click.

* * *

I'm playing trumpet again!

The New Bitter Oleander Is Here

2010-10-17T09:25:00.000-07:00

The new issue of The Bitter Oleander has arrived, and it's a great-looking piece of work. I'm happy to have a poem included entitled "The Yearning Feed," which happens to be the title of my new manuscript. It's a slight boost of confidence to pub. the title poem, especially as the rejection slips continue to slap against my house like angry, lost bats.

In this issue, I've been especially interested in the special addition, featuring the Ecuadorian poet, Ana Minga. Included are an interview, photos, and several poems, including a selection from her newest collection, Orphaned Birds.

Born in 1983, Minga talks about the genesis of her 3 collections of poetry, all of which, I believe, won various awards. Her first collection was called Pandemonium, written when she was just 18 years old. What a title, no? Additionally, Minga writes of her affection for dogs, solitude, dangerous journalism, books, among others. She also reveals episodes related to her long-time relationship with insomnia, and her experiences growing up in the "relatively isolated world of Opus Dei," where her father acted as administrator.

Minga is intense, she lives intensely, explaining that she sometimes writes days at a time. How many of us would love to claim this? And of this, comes lines like: It's hard to turn into a Lion / or some invincible God / when words break apart and we cry dead birds."

I am certainly going to try to pick up all of her books. Pick up this issue of The Bitter Oleander, and you'll know what I mean.

2010-08-27T19:23:00.000-07:00

Check out this fantastic D. Cherry performance, my tied for first fav. horn player. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hL5LAa_6nVA&feature=related

Whatcha You Thinkin' Maya Maya Maya?

2010-08-27T18:53:00.000-07:00

D. Burliuk, Aleksandr Kruchenykh,
V. Mayakovsky, Viktor Khlebnikov

from A Slap of Taste in Public Taste

To the readers of our New First Unexpected.
We alone are the face of our Time. Through us the horn of time blows
in the art of the word.
The past is too tight. The Academy and Pushkin are less intelligible than
hieroglypics.
Throw Pushkin, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, etc. etc overboard from the Ship
of Modernity.
He who does not forget his first love will not recognize his last.

translation from the Russian by Anna Lawton & Herbert Eagle

Reminder!

2010-08-12T10:48:00.000-07:00

Rattle presents...
Issue #33 Reading& Release Party
Sunday, August 15th 2:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.
The Church in Ocean Park 235 Hill Street Santa Monica, CA

Rattle #33 featured a tribute to humor, along with interviews with Aram Saroyan and Carl Phillips, and our always-eclectic blend of accessible poetry. Poets from across the country perform their work, including interviewee Aram Saroyan.

Refreshments provided. Admission is free. Donations to the church accepted at the door.

Featured readers include:
Devika BrandtJ. Scott Brownlee, John Harris, Marvin Klotz, Manuel Paul Lopez, Rick Lupert Aram Saroyan, Steve Westbrook

2010-08-06T09:35:00.000-07:00

Moving to a new place is a #*%^&! It was a local move, but still. Anyway, we're in, nothing broke along the way. A few scratches here and there, but that's usually expected. We're near SDSU now, which means I'm near its library and special collections! Which brings me to this, here is a list of some of the books I was able to read during the packing and moving. My summer vacation is waning, but there's still a week and a half left to squeeze in a few more titles.

Against Interpretation and Other Essays, Susan Sontag
Purgatory, Raúl Zurita (A book I want to write about later. It was haunting.)
Voices of a People's History of the United States, Howard Zinn and Anthony Arnove
Revolt of the Cockroach People, Oscar Zeta Acosta
Countering the Counterculture: Rereading Postwar American Dissent from Jack Kerouac to Tomás Rivera, Manuel Luis Martinez
To the Break of Dawn, Oscar Bermeo
Peeping Tom Tom Girl, Marisela Norte
The Duplications, Kenneth Koch
Glow of Our Sweat, Francisco Aragón
Painter Among Poets: The Collaborative Art of George Schneeman
Poems of the Millennium: The University of California Book of Modern and Postmodern Poetry, Ed. Jerome Rothenberg and Pierre Joris (Cont' to peck at this giant anthology)

* * *

I'm listening to Red Garland as I type this, and his piano makes me feel like I'm under a mild sedative. In a good way, of course.

* * *

This is what I look like when the mailman hands me a self-addressed envelope.

Arizona State Superintendent Wants Videos

2010-08-04T06:53:00.000-07:00

Arizona State Superintendent Wants Videos Of Tuscan District's Ethnic Studies Classes.
Arizona's Daily Star (8/4, Huicochea) reports that Arizona Schools Chief Tom Horne is requesting that the Tuscan Unified School district "videotape courses over the fall semester to be used as evidence that would show whether they are in violation of House Bill 2281." The legislation restricts schools from offering "courses that promote the overthrow of the US government, promote resentment toward a race or class of people, are designed primarily for pupils of a particular ethnic group, and advocate ethnic solidarity instead of the treatment of pupils as individuals."
Mary Ann Zehr wrote in the Education Week (8/3) "Learning the Language" blog that Horne "has told the superintendent of Arizona's Tucson Unified School District that he will announce a withholding of 10 percent of the district's funds as soon as" the law "goes into effect Dec. 31." On Tuesday, Horne sent a letter to Superintendent John Carroll, in which he also made the request for a videotape of the ethnic studies classes "in their entirety." Zehr added that "Tucson Unified officials would have the opportunity to appeal [a] withholding of funds before an administrative judge."

Stuff

2010-07-26T20:50:00.000-07:00

I got pulled over today by a peace officer in a black and white car while riding my wife's powder blue beach cruiser with white basket along El Cajon Blvd. He asked me if i had any I.D. He asked me if I had anything illegal on my person. He asked me if he could search me. He asked me where I was headed. He told me to have a good day. Away I rode on my wife's powder blue beach cruiser (mine's flat) down El Cajon Blvd with a book by Oscar Zeta Acosta in the white basket.

* * *

I've been listening to a lot of Daniel Johnston lately. Here's a pretty beautiful version of his "Life in Vain."

* * *

I'm really excited to be reading in L.A. this month. It's in support of the new summer issue of Rattle. Check out the details here.

2010-05-07T09:08:00.000-07:00

I am very proud to be a part of this relief effort for Haiti. As a response to the tragic earthquake that happened in Haiti, this org raised over $22,000 in six weeks for the recovery of Haiti.

HTH (High Tech High) for Haiti is currently selling great, black T-shirts that read HTH for Haiti. If you're interested in donating some funds or purchasing a T-shirt, please drop an email at the HTH for Haiti website.

* * *

I just plucked this off of La Bloga. Here's Carmen Lomas Garza talking about her life and her art. This link is part of Los del Valle Oral History Project. I love la música en la sangre. "La música es muy celosa."

Lalo Alcaraz at UCSD

2010-05-03T21:37:00.001-07:00

I really enjoyed Lalo Alcaraz's talk at UCSD. He showed some slides and added commentary. He said his hate mail is more abundant than usual, probably cuz the Arizona debacle, he said, and his responses to it all.

His backstory for the image below was cool, too. Alcaraz explained how angry he was during the whole Sotomayor confirmation hearings and some of the mindless coverage she was receiving in the mainstream media. Of his response, he said, he suddenly "went pink." There was much more to the story, and it was truly inspiring.

I think it was a good choice. I purchased a signed copy and will be waiting to offer it as a gift someday.

Approaching May

2010-04-29T08:27:00.000-07:00

Javier Huerta on SB 1070.

May Day march to begin at Chicano Park at 11am on Sat.

Lalo Alcaraz at UCSD

2010-04-28T12:07:00.000-07:00

An Evening with Chicano artist Lalo Alcaraz at UCSD.

Stuff

2010-04-26T20:12:00.001-07:00

If you want to see a powerful film, check out That Evening Sun. It's been some time since I've seen something like this. Hal Holbrook is so great!

***

I found a cool copy of Lost Body, poems by Aime Cesaire with illustrations by Pablo Picasso.

"The houses out here

at the foot of the mountains

are not even as well arranged as hobnailed boots

the trees are explosions whose last spark

goes out washing over my hands

which tremble a little"

***

Here's an interview I did a couple of weeks ago @ La Estrella De Túcson

Mexican Poet Wins Cervantes Prize

2010-04-26T08:32:00.000-07:00

Jose Emilio Pacheco wins Cervantes Prize.

Also here.

2010-04-13T20:39:00.000-07:00

Chance

the city
has no
electricity

"what
a nightmare!"
I say

"a chance
to count
stars"

you say
pointing
to the sky

Francisco X. Alarcón

* * *

I want to thank the Tucson Poetry Festival board for offering me the chance to participate in this year's program.

Reading alongside gypsee yo, Sonya Renee, and Linda Russo was great fun. To say they got down would just not be enough.

Another highlight for me was the state-wide high school poetry contest, and being there to meet and hear the student winners. Also present that day was Dr. Ofelia Zepeda. It was an absolute honor to meet her.

2010-04-09T16:26:00.000-07:00

This spring break has been an interesting one to say the least. My parents, brother, his fiance, sis., brother-in-law battled that 7.2 earthquake, rode it, fought back. I wasn't there, but I can only imagine the experience. I still remember the '79 earthquake. I was in my backyard with Willie Joe and Susie. I think we were playing marbles. Anyway, my swingset looked like it was walking toward us. "Ma! Ma!" I screamed as I tried to get into the house. And that shit was only a 6. something. Everyone I speak to who experienced the recent earthquake has the same glazed look, the return, a rattling, noisy dishwasher in the head. My parents haven't had a good night's sleep in nearly a week.

When it struck, my family was in the backyard, everyone except for my mother who was upstairs in her bedroom. In the midst of all this mess, my younger brother reacted and ran his ass into a possessed house. Dishes flying, glasses breaking, the dude ran in. Like I say, you either got it, or you don't.

Fortunately, my family is alive and well. For those who have been impacted by this in ways that one could only imagine, I can only send my prayers of prayers.

Hugo Crosthwaite

2010-03-31T16:26:00.000-07:00

Just returned from the San Diego Museum of Art where I saw Hugo Crosthwaite's Brutal Beauty exhibition. Amazing work. It really sucks that there wasn't a bench available near the work for my lazy ass to sit and stare for awhile. Lots of unsettling drama in these works. Really incredible. Here's an interview with Crosthwaite on These Days.

Watch Crosthwaite work on Brutal Beauty here.

2010-03-31T12:26:00.001-07:00

Almost time for the Tucson Poetry Festival!

Here's an interview I just did with the Arizona Daily Wildcat. What a goofy bastard.

***

Other news: My wife and I went to see Cat Party, a show in which they were book-ended by two very, very stylistically different bands. I'll leave it at that. Don't know how I feel about it all, only that I feel that I've been addicted to FIFA '10 as of late!

Night at the Pink

2010-03-13T09:43:00.000-08:00

I saw Abe Vigoda Thursday night at Bar Pink in San Diego. The patrons were subdued, which is no criticism, we all (s)lumber through our days in different ways. Although it would have been nice to feed the band a little more energy. They're headed to South by Southwest with the UK band Lovvers. Abe Vigoda's set was mainly new stuff (really cool), but ended, I believe, with "Skeleton," a great one! "Don't take me out! Don't break me out!"

A Book of Light Before Bed

2010-03-04T18:31:00.001-08:00

I've been reading Lucille Clifton's The Book of Light each night just before dropping for the day. A solid week and a half of this.

* * *

I want to thank the editors of Palabra: A Magazine of Chicano and Literary Art and Rattle, respectively, for accepting some new work.

* * *

Man, I want to buy this book.

2010-02-17T21:18:00.000-08:00

Elliot Smith's "I Better Be Quiet Now" just came up in the shuffle. It seems a bit faster than I remember it. Might be a good thing.

Tucson Poetry Festival

2010-02-08T20:31:00.000-08:00

I'm really excited to share that I will be one of the featured readers at this year's Tucson Poetry Festival in April. Details are available here. I'm looking forward to the opportunity! Special thanks to everyone at TPF!

2010-02-02T21:22:00.000-08:00

While hanging with an old friend Saturday night before his gig, we started talking about Monk. My homeboy's keyboard was set up and his trumpet was pressed into his hotel room bed; he had obviously been rehearsing earlier that evening. After awhile I asked him "What makes Monk so great?" He didn't answer me immediately, but sort of recoiled in thought, then walked over to the keyboard and played a flawless rendition of Monk's "Just a Gigolo." He explained to me what was going on musically, though using no more than 10 words or so. He mostly asked me to listen. After that, I felt like the top of my head had flown off; my ears finally opened. I even felt like my vision had improved!

Needless to say, I spent all Sunday listening to Monk Alone: The Complete Columbia Studio Recordings of Thelonious Monk.

2010-01-29T16:19:00.000-08:00

Listening to Magnetic Fields new album Realism. Don't know how I feel about it yet.

***

Goal for next week: See Joe Jack Talcum

2010-01-16T11:41:00.000-08:00

Wow! It's been such a long time since I've typed anything at this space. With the closing of another semester, the holiday season, and some traveling, it's just been really hard to update this thing, which I've always felt ambivalent about anyway.

Just returned from Roma, and some of the highlights were Caravaggio and Francis Bacon at the Borghese Gallery. That sure was a nice space. With light rain, a cool and crisp breeze, I was totally feeling it on the way to and from the gallery. The chance to see an A.S. Roma vs. Chievo game was also exciting. The rain let up that evening for just long enough to enjoy the match.

An interesting coincidence also occurred--I had just bought Andrei Codrescu's The Posthuman Dada Guide: Tzara & Lenin Play Chess for the trip and read the entire book on the plane ride over there. I think it's fantastic, and agree to some extent (there's just so much I haven't read) with Vladimir Tismaneanu blurb "No other book has treated the relationship between the artistic and revolutionary avant-gardes as originally and provocatively as Codrescu's." Anyway, upon arriving, I read in one of Rome's local weekly's about the big Dada/Surrealism exhibit that would be on display during my time there. Overall, it was great. Saw most of the big daddies and big mommies of the movements. There was Tzara, Duchamp, Loy, Picabia, Ernst, on and on, and on and on and on. It was really cool and really inspiring, being that I've been messing around with collage fairly recently. I also saw some Joseph Cornell boxes, which were beautiful, mysterious, and creepy.

All in all, it was a good time, though I'm glad to be home.

Myles Eileen Iceland Song 2008

2009-12-06T11:27:00.001-08:00

I finally got to see Eileen Myles. A long time fan, I've always managed to miss her appearances somehow. At the Visual Arts Center at UCSD, she read from her new book of nonfiction The Importance of Being Iceland. She included various slides in her presentation to help contextualize some of the essays. This video was included, and I thought I'd post it here.

Artemio Rodriguez Visits San Diego

2009-11-15T19:39:00.000-08:00

I recently had the opportunity to meet Artemio Rodriguez at his show's gallery openning here in San Diego. He's a very nice guy and entertained some of my questions and signed his name and drew a cool picture on my copy of the collaboration he did with poet, Juan Felipe Herrera.

My wife and I really enjoy(ed) his work. It was sort of a retrospective spanning approx. fifteen years. As usual, the work was intense and his ability to incorporate interesting detail made several of his prints quite gripping.

I wanted to attend his talk today at the San Diego Musuem of Art but was unable to do so. I don't feel too badly though because Thursday night was pretty magical. He even showed me his new book that is a beautifully produced leather-bound collection of fifty original prints that accompany a wonderful story in Spanish. Each collection was handmade and produced at La Mano Press ,now in Michoacan. Amazing, amazing work!

Below is a shirt I bought some time ago. My sister always complains that it's too intense and causes her anxiety. What do you think?

Acquisitions

2009-11-07T10:54:00.000-08:00

The Chinese Stars played Mexicali last night, and I would've loved to be there. Their new, new album "Heaven on Speed Dial" is out and I'm loving it.

Just got D.A. Powell & David Trinidad's "By Myself." Using 300 memoirs, autobios, and ghost writers, they created this "...tempestuous and inspirational tell-all confession."

I'm absolutely into what I'm writing right now.