claudiapena.com

But really, with two pink eyes, bird flu, bronchitis, two busted ankles and endless visits to the doc, thank God April is gone! So how can you celebrate poetry?

1. Poets.org has 30 ways to celebrate the month by: adding a verse to your signature line, hosting a reading, taking your favorite poet out to lunch or giving out a pocket size poems to your friends like this one or this one. My personal favorite is the mp3 ring tones and the phone friendly poetry web page. Think how cool a phone ringing with “Do not go gentle into that good night, Fight!..” would be!

2. Gas is expensive so check out your favorite poet on the net with University of Cali’s TV. I love the way the camera allows you to see the relationship of the author to the audience. The second option: Download a chapter a day from the best books in history or checkout a podcast. A little difficult with the monotone reading and there’s no time to look for really cool words.

3. Find other poetry blogs with blogged poetry. Because I believe poetry is personal, technical and artistic, I surf through many web pages before something hits me. I recommend Ms. Hamm’s beautiful poetry blog and my next interview. Though modern poetry breaks with the author’s natural breath, I still have to wonder where is the line between poetry and prose? Mr. Rappleye, for introducing me to the words of Rothke, “I used to think of poets as helping one another; as advancing consciousness together.” It’s difficult to find a community of poets.

4. Go Shexy! After I’m done with this semester (Research Analysis: 100!), I plan to celebrate poetry month by dressing in my hottest black number and passing out my poetry to Asians on the street. In this harebrained idea is the newest member on my blogroll: Epik Justino, teacher, camera dude and human rights activist.

I was fortunate to see Madam Butterfly as a teenager at the Kennedy Center, Washington, D.C. I will be visiting the inspiration for this play, the second city to get hit with an atomic bomb: Nagasaki, Japan. I am looking forward to seeing the poetry the place inspires within me and taking lots of great pics from the 9-13th.

Stay tuned for these images and as always, write and send me poetry. Orale! Bali, Bali! The sun sets slower on your side of the world.