Sunday, November 25, 2007

I'm in a pissy mood. I will probably remain involved with the "community" in a half-assed way as is my want. Sometimes however I wish I could "drop out" and just become a recluse. Of course I can do that, but I won't. I'm going to say something that is not directed at any one person. It's often hard to see what the point is of links, connections and various correspondences. Being a part of the "community". But then if someone was all like "Hey Mike, I wanna publish your book." I'm sure I would be all like, "Oh my God, the poetic community. Me and Uncle Creeley and Auntie Gertrude Stein. Oh where would I be without it!?" I always said that I didn't want to turn into one of those bitter poets. I don't know what really makes me a poet. Where am I going with this seriously? Where am I going with this "blog post" and this "poetic career". The fact is I just don't work very hard. I don't really try to get my poems published, I don't really try to do readings, I don't try to be a part of the "community". I don't say where the press is from that so and so had their book published by. I don't know how important any of that is. I guess I shouldn't be complaining about some percieved indifference.

There have been alot of times when I said to a friend of mine here what amounts to the opposite of what's above. But that's all really important. Sharing with your peers. Having an audience. I don't know if I ever actually said "community".

And now it is the next day. I'm a chubby frail human being. In the morning I'm writing on the other side of a "pissy attack", so things haven't gotten started yet. Though I know they will. I wasn't sure last night whether to publish this, but it's like what the hell.

4 comments:

Karl Saffran said...

You, perhaps more so than anyone I know, are, by your very existence, part of the poetry community.

Jim K. said...

This happens a lot.
We are in an inland sea.
Keep going!

Jim K. said...

The full-assed only get it worse.
Do what keeps you in without
thrashing.

Joseph Massey said...

Just reading and writing poetry with avid interest, as you do, makes you a part of the community (the big conversation that poetry is). All of the "biz" aspects are bullshit -- you know that.

Whenever I start feeling bitter, which is often, I take some poetry I really love -- say, some Ceravolo -- and I go for a walk (i.e., get the hell out of the house) and find a place to sit down and read it. That's what poetry is. Hey, I'm in the world and here's some anchor to help me connect. Amen. Pass the potatoes. Everything else is noise.

Massey