DIVING INTO THE FLORIDA ELECTION SWAMP
Well, this is Florida and it's just not possible to write poetry news at the end of 2000 that does not contain something -- although we are all sick to death of it -- about the election. Sorry.

Excerpt from a reading at Butterfly Lightning in Miami, sent in by moderator/poet Steve Donachie:

“Night With My Florida Stud” by Preston Allen, AKA Xaviera Slutz:

“...One look at his heavy, hanging chad, his rudely dimpled ballot, and my Florida stud had my vote. He went straight for my bush and punched it more times than I could count. It was incredible. I came like 1700 times. But it was starting to hurt, so I tricked him into bending me over and slipping it into my big, round buchanon, you know, a few hard pokes in my brown, tightly-puckered nadar? But not too much because I'm not really into deviance. I'm way too conservative. Afterwards, I was tired. But he wanted a recount. He wanted to hear the voice of the people. Well, his word is law, so I opened my oral ballot box wide, and he proved his big, old tally machine was not malfunctioning. He spewed and spewed his gore all over my face faster than I could lick it off. He spewed and spewed it seemed like for weeks. It aroused me so much I sucked and sucked and sucked and sucked till even my lower counties were sticky and dripping liberally with his sweet, manly gore. After this, surely my Florida stud would let me rest. But no, with a lecherous smile, he opened my palm, wide like a beach, and demanded a hand count. I was tired and sore, but the law is the law.”

[cringe]

Visit ButterflyLightning.com for ButterflyNet subscription information and the latest on the reading series at Tobacco Road, Miami.

LIP, TONGUE & EAR POETRY PRODUCTIONS
Lip, Tongue & Ear has this to say:

“Everyday People,” featuring Diane Perez, Nasheed Jackson, Zaria Oswg, William Brown, Jahkey Kleinhans, Terry Fernando Newton Kristoff Skalet, Shamele Jenkins & Jonathan Rose debuts Saturday, January 6, 2001 at 7:30 pm at The American Legion Harvey W. Seeds Post #29, 6445 N.E. 7th Avenue. Plenty of free parking, admission $20 in advance, $25 at the door (price includes admission to the play, one alcoholic or non-alcoholic drink, eats).

“Everyday People” was written by eight South Florida poets, all of whom are members of Lip, Tongue & Ear Poetry Productions, a 2.5 year old Miami-based poetry guild more than 290 members strong. Each character in “Everyday People” is portrayed and produced by its poet/author and creator. The play takes place over the cosmos of the district of “The Living Door on Planet Earth.” They all reside in that thriving and bustling metropolis, Any City, USA. Each character is someone you can personally relate to. It's someone you know. It's your mother, your father, your brother, your sister, your cousin and/or your neighbor. Let's be frank about it. This play is all about you. Journey with these characters into their personal worlds as they transform, shedding faces and hearts -- just as we do in our everyday lives. First you think you know them and then you find out you don't really know them. Maybe you just recognize the person, that is, until their issues surface, all airs are cast aside and the faces start falling to the ground.

Tickets: 305.474.0078, Shamele Jenkins

LE BOOKFAIR
In November Miami-Dade was host to more than just an election -- there was the ever-popular Miami Book Fair International, which takes place on the campus of Miami-Dade Community College. Here's a report from roving poet reporter Richard Ryal:

My visit started Friday night with attending the Harold Bloom lecture, even though I'm not crazy about him. I found him tedious and a firm champion of the classics at the expense of the wonderful diversity that is changing English language literature as we speak. The fact that he packed the main auditorium in this multi-cultural city -- and was applauded without challenge -- disappointed me.

I did practically an all-poetry track, hearing 16 poets in two days: some very good poets and other okay poets, but few peak poetry experiences, except for the discussion about poetry by Ed Hirsch and Mark Strand, who were sharp, funny and willing to tweak the audience's seriousness while educating us on how to read poetry -- accomplishing, in other words, what Harold Bloom didn't.

John Balaban gave a wonderful presentation, engaging the audience immediately in translations of the work of a Vietnamese poet from almost two centuries ago. He communicated his care for his subject and attention to detail wonderfully.

Stephen Kuusisto was an equally engaging presence who shared a couple of very good pieces that invoked the mysterious world of blindness.

James Brock wrote well of love and marriage, something we see far too little of. His poetry offers -- in the subtlety of his ideas, imagery and language -- a humane and non-clinical approach to relationships.

Jim Daniels was a bit more visceral than the other readers but fairly predictable in his evocation of music he grew up with (a poem about the MC 5 is not as dangerous as the MC 5 were), though David Kirby, Dionisio Martinez and others also gave us looks into what lingers from the past without diminishing.

Nick Carbo read from his new book, Secret Asian Man, and alternated shocking and tender accounts of political persecution with cerebral slapstick. And Michael Hettich read poems from his new chapbook, Sleeping With the Lights On, that were also sensitive to the invocation of unusual details.

Howard Camner signed his work at the International Poetry Society's booth. And though everyone who spoke with him lost their car keys by the end of the day, I'm sure it was just a coincidence.

Aside from Balaban, we heard very accessible narrative poets. It would have been exciting to get more challenging forms, instead of just the occasional challenge of content. It's hard to say I heard anything that shifted the way I consider poetry or poets, though the poets were all worth hearing. It would be wonderful for the choices to broaden beyond narrative styles.

And we also have this Bookfair report from poet Don Burns:

Barb and I went Saturday and Sunday. The biggest problem we had was that every time we went walking, we lost Richard. Mind you, I'm not suggesting he was getting into trouble, but we can't verify his activities. He will have to speak for himself.

We started off with John Balaban, who read and talked about his newly released translation of the Vietnamese poet/sassy lady Ho Xuan Huong. The consensus was it was a book we wanted to read, but didn't want to buy.

The other person in that session was Stephen Kuusisto, a blind writer. I think there might be some insightful (no pun intended) poetry from this guy; I think I'll put his book, Only Bread, Only Light, on my Christmas list.

Streetwalking myself, I saw a book called The Poet's Notebook, a collection of jottings from journals; looked interesting, so I bought it. Turns out Kuusisto was one of the editors.

The next session we hit was Karen Chase (I'm not familiar with her work), Michael Hettich and Diane Thiel. Chase began with a poem knocking language poetry which was amusing and well done, and faded from there. I guess I shouldn't comment on Hettich (he doesn't do anything for me, but Richard and Barb like his work). We've all heard Diane Thiel's offerings before, and she has some really good stuff.

Because I can't read my own writing, we got to the next session a half hour late and missed Donald Caswell and Robert Dana. James Brock read some very moving love poems which we thought were about gay relationships, but Richard bought his book and said he writes about a divorce and a child, so we're not quite sure who they're about -- not that it affected the poems one way or another.

Last was Mark Strand and Edward Hirsch. I think we were looking for Strand to be the high point of the fair, but he was a total letdown. He read from a new book, which has been royally panned and rightly so. He even seems apologetic about it. It is a series of sentences on a single word: observations -- and can't even be considered a list poem. He read mostly from that, but threw in two poems from The Selected. Hirsch read from his How To Read a Poem and Fall in Love With Poetry. Fortunately the day was saved during a Q&A discussion period. That came alive: there were some very thoughtful, useful, even exciting remarks. Made ya wanna run out and start scribblin'.

Sunday Richard and I heard Dionisio Martinez, while Barb listened to the art critic Richard Feigen pontificate. Later in the afternoon, Michael Collier, Jim Daniels and David Kirby served up the meatiest session. We ended with John Barr, Nick Carbo (newly relocated down here, Denise Duhamel's husband) who has in addition to his own poems, just edited a collection of Philippine poets, and William Tester, a short story writer.

All in all it was an enjoyable weekend (even with that god-awful drive from Coral Springs in the Everglades to Miami on I-95). It was mostly nice/good stuff, some just so-so, but nothing that could be considered really memorable. I don't think any of us even did any damage to the charge cards and boy, we were willing. Barb is standing over my shoulder to make sure I say the right things and says I can send this now.

FROM THE TAMPA BAY AREA
Peter Meinke's 1968 children's book in verse, The Legend of Larry the Lizard -- a sequence of 40 limericks illustrated by his wife Jeanne -- has been reissued on CD-ROM, narrated by the author. It's available only from E-On Electronic Publishing Cooperative.

Here's the Winter/Spring workshop schedule at the Salvador Dalí Museum in St. Petersburg:

• Saturday, January 20
  Join award-winning local artist Cathleen Schott for an adult bookmaking workshop to celebrate National Book Month. Enrollment is limited to 15. Costs are $15 for Dalí Friends and $20 for others. There is an additional $5 materials fee for all participants. Raymond James Room.
• March 17, 1 to 4 pm
  Surreal Sonnet Writing Workshop
  Join University of Tampa poet, professor and editor Richard Mathews as he explores the poetic chaos that happens when Surrealist techniques like Exquisite Corpse come face to face with Shakespeare's classic sonnet form. The ghost of the bard himself looks on as the Raymond James Room shows “Dalí Illustrates the Classics: The Shakespeare Suites.” Enrollment is limited to 15 adults. $15 Dalí Friends, $20 others.
• April 7, 1 to 3 pm
  Shakespeare Scenes for Kids
  Double, double, toil and trouble! To help celebrate “Dalí Illustrates the Classics: The Shakespeare Suites” in the Raymond James Room, Eckerd College's Theater Troupe uses a fun and interactive workshop to introduce kids and families to Shakespeare. Punch and cookies provided. $2 per person. RSVP by Thursday, April 5 requested.
• May 19, 1 to 4 pm
  “Outsider Altars” Workshop
  In conjunction with the new museum exhibit, “Disarming Beauty: The Venus de Milo in Twentieth Century Art,” popular and award-winning local artist Lynn Carol Henderson leads a workshop investigating beauty and myth through the history, use, and creation of personally designed home altars. Participants should bring a box (cardboard, wood, a drawer, a cigar or other box) and any special photos, jewelry or magic objects they'd like to combine with the loads of other materials Henderson will make available. Enrollment is limited to 15. Registration is as follows: $15 Dalí Friends, $20 others, $7 children. Raymond James Room.

To register for any of these workshops, contact Mike Chasar in the Museum's Education Department at 727.823.3767 ext. 3024, or email education@salvadordalimuseum.org.

FROM HOLLYWOOD
I attended a literary networking party at Warehaus 57 (1903B Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood) on Friday, December 15. Warehaus 57 is home to the First Saturday of the month poetry and fiction reading, which began as an offshoot of the Florida International University Writing Program (FIU) Creative Writing Program. Now it's pretty much an open mic. After the initial hellos and sampling of the great hors d’oeuvres, some of us drifted outside where it was nice and cool and sat at one of the sidewalk tables. As is usual for a Friday night along Hollywood Boulevard downtown, jazz bands and the voices of folks walking by and others eating at other outside venues mixed with the moonlight. Fiction writer extraordinaire John Dufresne, his honey, writer and poet Cindy Chinnelly, poets and writers Jesse Milner and Lyn Millner, myself, Denise Duhamel and her poet husband Nick Carbo discussed -- what else -- the election, told a couple of bad jokes and talked about fruit stands, a new media group in Utah started by one of Dufresnes' former students and how condo rules could make a good poem. Denise and Nick bought a new condo in Hollywood and we congratulated them, but none of us offered to help them paint. Denise and I agreed to check out a restaurant near the ocean that has a sculpture garden in the back -- bathtubs and toilet bowls.

A NEW POETRY GROUP FROM LAUDERHILL
(West of Fort Lauderdale) The Wordsmyth's Corner offers some of the hottest poets from all over Broward and Miami-Dade Counties every Wednesday night at Café 26, 2254 N. State Road 7, Lauderhill. Call 954.485.1558.

FROM NOW-INFAMOUS PALM BEACH COUNTY
(Home of the Butterfly Ballot and the dimpled chad) Poets of the Palm Beaches has lots to offer: This group offers slams, workshops, open mic readings, poetry contests and publication in its annual anthology.

• Workshop:
  7 pm on the second Wednesday of every month at Borders, 1801 Palm Beach Lakes Blvd. Call David Spielberg at 561.625.1464.
• Workshop:
  7 pm on the third Tuesday of every month at Borders, 525 N. Congress Avenue, Boynton Beach. Call John Palozzi at 561.588.9829.
• Workshop:
  2 pm on the fourth Saturday of every month at the West Palm Beach City Library, 100 Clematis Street, West Palm Beach. Call Charles Scheitler at 561.833.2981.
• Poetry slams
  take place on the first Friday of every month at 8 pm at Borders, 525 N. Congress Avenue, Boynton Beach. Call John Palozzi at 561.588.9829.
• Open mic downtown:
  O'Sheas Irish Pub, 531 1/2 Clematis Street, West Palm Beach, hosts an open mic every Tuesday at 8:30 pm. Call Charles Scheitler at 561.833.2981.
• Slamming underground:
  Poetry Slam at the Underground Coffeeworks, 105 S. Narcissus Street, West Palm Beach, where anything goes, takes place every Wednesday at 8 pm. Call Richard Green at 561.252.2330, or email him at grinningdg@aol.com.

THE DELRAY BEACH SLAM FROM MARYA SUMMERS
Poets turned out on December 10 at 1 pm at Lake Ida Park in Delray Beach for the BBQed Poetry slam. It was BYOB, but soft drinks and food were provided. "We took our aggressions out physically" with football. Also, a poetry scrimmage with prizes for the winners. Want to come to the next one? Email Marya at msflambe@earthlink.net.

Marya hosts the poetry slam at Dada where earlier this month Brett Axel was featured poet. He is a traveling poet living by his words. He has books and CD's for sale and they passed the hat for him.

Slams are held at Dada every Tuesday night at 10 pm (Dada, 52 N. Swinton Avenue, Delray Beach). Winners receive gift certificates. Call Marya Summers at 561.330.3232 or email her at vangiess@compuserve.com. Marya is putting together a slam team for the next national competition. Dada slam status: She has registered a team awaiting certification.

Final note from Marya: We've been working “unplugged” because the equipment management purchased for us is underpowered and completely unworthy of our hot air. I'm making the rounds to area pawn stores this weekend to remedy the situation. If anyone has bright ideas, let me know. I'm electronically impaired.

MORE FROM DELRAY BEACH
The Coco Wood Lakes Writers' Club presented Pulitzer Prize nominee Julie Gilbert, at Levengers in Delray Beach on Thursday evening, December 7. Writing club is now open for new members. Call Jerry Bashover at 499.2794 for more details.

Leonardo Della Rocca

From Stazja McFadyen:
Austin International Poetry Festival
“Austin International Poetry Festival is now one of the largest and best internationally known American poetry festivals... on the global poetry events calendar.” --Poetry Now Magazine (Autumn 2000, Issue 35)

Austin International Poetry Festival 2001 will be held Thursday, April 19 through Sunday, April 22 in coffee houses, galleries, bookstores, and bars throughout Austin, TX. Scheduled programming, national and international featured guests, workshops, AIPF Slam (cash prize to top three winners), midnight-to-dawn open mics, instant anthology. $10 registration fee. $1 per poem reading fee for submissions to the AIPF anthology 2001: A Di-Verse-City Odyssey. Online registration now available. Registration forms and guidelines for anthology submissions and Christina Sergeyevna poetry contest are online at www.aipf.org. For more information, write to info@aipf.org. (Austin International Poetry Festival is a non-profit organization, funded in part by a grant from the City of Austin Arts Commission.)

From Tony Washington:
Frostburg State Poetry Bash
When: Saturday, February 17, 2001/Sunday February 18, 2001
Where: Frostburg State University

Frostburg State Regional Poetry Slam ™
Saturday, February 17, 2001, 1 pm, Performing Arts Center- Recital Hall, Grand Prize-$500. Eligibility for the Frostburg State Regional Poetry Slam is limited to those who currently pay tuition to attend a college/university (students). To apply for entry into the poetry slam you will need to send an audio or video tape of yourself performing a three-minute self-written poem and a copy of your school ID. All tapes are due by January 17, 2001. Send all tapes to:

Frostburg State Poetry Bash
Attention: Slam Committee
Lane Center-FSU
Frostburg, MD 21532

The Poets Café - Open Mic Night with Reggie Gibson
Saturday, February 17, 2001, 9 pm, Lane Center- Loft. Reggie Gibson, a National Poetry Slam Champion, will return to Frostburg to set the stage ablaze. Reggie has shared the stage with such talents as the Last Poets, Amiri Baraka, Sonia Sanchez and Roy Ayers. Some of Reggie's work can also be heard in the movie Love Jones. (Remember the poem “Brother to the Night”? Enough said!) His first full-length book Storms Beneath the Skin (nappyhead press) was released in winter '99 and he has another book on the way. Reggie has spoken, lectured and performed at schools, universities and venues on two continents and in six countries. His brand of “word-speak” has been called “rhythmistical” because of his combining of the time-honored mystical weaving of the African griot tradition with the often hard-edged rhythms of the African experience in America. We consider Reggie to be one of the baddest poets on the planet. Do not forget to bring your words with you for open mic night.

Poetry Workshop
Sunday, February 18, 2001, 12:30 - 2 pm, Lane Center- 201. There is a $7 charge for the workshop. A catered lunch will be provided. Workshop Facilitator: Reggie Gibson. Reggie will go over various techniques and styles of poetry. This will be a very interactive workshop and a chance for you to learn from one of the best.

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