Welcome to the 60th issue of the ezine. I never
thought I'd hit this milestone but I did and here it is, finally. Yeah
I know I've been doing a lot of different things over the past number of months
and my time has been taken up in a lot of different matters. Still
you're here not to hear a bunch of lame excuses but to see what is exciting
out there in the world of electronic poetry.
I should also announce a new mailing address, the former
one is going to be deleted, after six years I'm canceling pabear_7@yahoo.com.
I've been having a problem with a lot of spam and I believe I've probably
missed some important messages because stuff has been bounced back.
So after some consideration I've set up a new address, abovegroundtesting@yahoo.com.
This will be the address which will go on the homepage and on the bottom of
each and every ezine. I'm hoping that it will be a time before those
dastardly spammer find this address so let's hope. I also want to say
again a special thank you to Jeffrey Mackie for allowing me to interview him.
I was reading it again and he is a fascinating person. I hope you've
take the time to discover him for yourself. If you missed the issue
it can be found at https://www.angelfire.com/on/abovegroundtesting/agt59cover.html.
This has been a rewarding part of publishing the ezine, getting to meet and
learn about interesting poets from all over the place. I'm got a few
more interviews that I'm planning some from the readership and a few I've
found through other sources. So look forward to that in upcoming issues.
A few other new things is the purchase of a cellphone and camera attachment
so I can take some photos that are more 'in the moment' oriented. No
I don't plan to take 'those' type of pictures, there will be none of that
'hot chicks of Ontario' in this or any other issue. This will continue
to be a class document. However, I'm sure the interesting will be featured
on these pages soon enough.
POETRY
The first series of poems comes from John Sweet.
He sent me this biography of himself:
been writing for 20 + years now, publishing for 18 or so. most recent
collection, ENEMY, available from www.pinkanarchkitty.com, and my
first full-lenth collection, from 2003, available from www.ravennapress.com.
am 35, married, father of 2, in debt about 40 feet over my head and sinking
fast. overeducated and underpaid, opposed to great many things, and
waiting with much anticipation for warmer weather (upstate new york is the
pits). thanks for yr time, peace,
john sweet
asweetmay@peoplepc.com
the desert is anywhere you call home
the sun without mercy
and the shadows of children
the shdows of powerlines down
empty streets
black on grey and
do you see what i'm getting at here?
you don't need to believe
in emptiness
to be swallowed by it
anything beautiful
seen from the wrong angle
becomes merely human
and pollock knew this
and rothko
and in the end they were nothing more
than what they'd always feared
in the end they were only
blood and bone
and all of the ways it can be
smeared across the pages
of history books
and what i think about whenever
anyone begins to discuss hatred
is the sound
of my father's laughter
ash wilderness
dirty yellow sunlight in some
almost-remembered room
you were or
you might have been here
might have had scars
that you kept hidden
a brother who died too young
a father who believed in
the fist or the bottle
who left when you were six
and at some point
the story moves into the
present tense
it ends badly and with
broken glass
with an abortion or a
miscarriage
words and then
no words
some vague idea of
a less brutal future
time and distance
and the flat white glare of sunlight
off of windshields and chrome
and the savage beauty of decay
the parking lots where
they fade into weeds or memory
the way i hold you in
a strange room
and the way nothing is said
the way empty space
feeds on itself
nothing between us but
the people we've become
a moment, softly
and then my wife turns to me
and smiles
says that she loves me
and i believe her
says something like
all we've ever been are
starving dogs on a dead-end street
but maybe not in those words
maybe just says she's tired
endless waves of white light
crashing against the windows
The second contributor is our good friend Richard
Williams. He continues to use the Haiku style to develop his interesting
themes:
ON PSYCHOLOGISTS AND PSYCHIATRISTS
I
Carl Rogers employed
client-centered therapy
yes, nondirective
II
B.F. Skinner used
schedules of reinforcement;
with behaviorism
III
Alfred Binet's test
a clinical instrument
best known IQ test
IV
Jean Piaget, a
famous developmental
Swiss psychologist
V
A.R. Luria was
Soviet pioneer in
study of language
VI
J.B. Watson---the
behaviorist who focused
on environment
VII
Sigmund Freud---founder
of psychoanalysis
and the unconscious
VIII
Alfred Adler left
Freud. Moved to individual's
hopes for perfection
2
IX
Carl Jung was a Swiss
psychiatrist who broke from
Freud. Framed archetypes
X
Hans Eysenck employed
lab and questionnaire studies
attacked Sigmund Freud
XI
Don Hebb revived the
physiological base
of observations
XII
Robert Gagne's work
relates to aims and goals of
school curriculum
The End
Our third poet is another new comer to these pages. Dina Televitskaya submitted this information as well as
these poems: "My name is Dina Televitskaya. I am a writer from Russia and
I live in the city of Sunkt-Petersburg. I write prose ( short stories, fairy-tales,
fantasy and fantastic novels) and poetry for children of all ages.
I am a member of the Journalists' and Literarians' Unions of Russia.I am
a member of SCBWI in the United States and have taught Russian language
and literature.
I work seriously in journalism and illustration.
My poetry for children has been published in practically all the children's
magazines of Russia .
15 of my books for children have been published in Russia.
My Web site is available for you to review at your convenience.
There you may read some excerpts from my books along with my biography.
I look forward to your reply at your earliest convenience.
Thank you,Dina Televitskaya, Author and Illustrator.E-mail: dina@ctinet.ru
http://www.dinatel.nm.ru
My fairy tales
"Give me, please, some stars!"
I called into the night sky;
"Help yourself!", came the answer.
"Give me, please, some New Year's snowflakes!"
I called into the winter sky;
"Help yourself!", came the answer.
"Give me, please, some raindrops!",
I called into the spring sky;
"Help yourself!, came the answer.
"Give me, please, some sunrise rays,
And beams of the sunset!",
I called into the summer sky;
"Help yourself!", came the answer;
I then mixed all this,
Together with my dreams,
In the big cup of my inspiration,
And thus was created
The magic cocktail
Called FAIRY TALES FOR CHILDREN.
-------------------------------------------
Olle Lukoye
My favourite magician, Olle Lukoye,
Is a little man in a black hat,
And boots, with big shoe-buckles.
He has two umbrellas:
Olle puts up the black umbrella
Over bad children,
And afterwards, they cannot see nice dreams.
Olle puts up a coloured umbrella
Over good children,
And afterwards,
They see fine dreams.
In Russia, there are many unhappy children,
Without their own house.
Dear Olle!
Come here, please!
Try to make for them,
Happy childhoods
And take me, please,
To be your assistant!
Poems for PATRICIA M JOHNSON
-(my American friend)
1.
"...It will snow for 12 hours..."( from Patricia’s email)
It is snowing in Russia, in St.Petersburg,
It is snowing in America, in New Jersey,
Somebody, who strews this snow,
Can see all the people,
Who live in the countries
Where it is snowing.
I will ask Him
To send my greeting
For PATRICIA.
But it must be
Very soon,
Until snow
Will not be thawing
In New Jersey, in America.
------------------------------------------------
When it is snowing
*******************
When it is snowing,
I see my thoughts,
Go round and round
Together as snow-flakes
Over the earth.
*******************
When it is snowing,
I hear voices
Of my memories,
Calling me into the days
Of my youth...
*******************
When it is snowing,
I can sense fairy-tales,
Lingering near my house
Coming to find me,
Helping me.
About my heart
There are many lies
In the world.
My heart
Is tired of it.
There is much injustice
In the world.
My heart
Has cried too often from it.
There is much sorrow
In my life.
It has almost
Broken my heart.
But I have a great love
In my soul. -
Therefore my heart
Is living still.
Our fourth poet, and another newcomer to AGT, but certainly not to the world
of poetry is C W Hawes. This writer has a great
deal of experience, with a number of books in print: "My work has appeared
at Poetic Voices where I am the
Featured Poet for November and in print in "Farm Romance and Adventure",
"The Valley Voice", and in John Koblas's books "The Jesse James Northfield
Raid"and "Jesse James Ate Here"."
QUIET NIGHT IN SUBURBIA
A train clatters down the rails,
Blasting its horn a half-mile away;
From further on, the rushing cars
Can be heard racing along the freeway
And on the other side of the house
A motorcycle roars down the street;
High upon the telephone pole
A cardinal sings his staccato song,
While the neighbor's dogs bark
Incessantly at nothing in particular;
Another quiet night in suburbia.
BOREDOM
Surfing
One hundred and
Thirty-seven cable
Channels all evening long and then
To bed.
BUT TO BEHOLD
The roses riot beauty along the street,
Drab and dirty, where tenement yards
Sport broken toys, where the young are old.
On the sidewalk pass the shuffling feet
Of mothers, too young, yelling at kids; bards
Of the city singing anger uncontrolled.
Through this sullen sea I pass, where Fate
Has played with heavy hand and all eyes
See the bleak despair of promised lies,
And I see roses who patiently wait
For one to behold.
The scent of burning leaves
Is heavy on the air;
Soon the world will be wrapped all in white --
Her shroud.
Closing Words
It has been good to get back to work on the ezine. I
thank you all for being so patient with me. I do want to remind you
of the new email address. Here it is again: abovegroundtesting@yahoo.com.
If you write, put the subject line something about subscribing and
I'll know to include you. Please send all work to that address.
Well, that's it.
all of you take care.
and Blessings upon each of you.