Everything is Perfect

Joshua Corwin is back with Incentovise at Oddball Magazine. 

How Does He Write Underwater?

Jason Wright's weekly poem column is back. It's another Jagged Thought at Oddball Magazine. 

It's Official

I already have Giving Tuesday fatigue.

Kicking Off

The first poem of the month is a pandemic piece from Erik Tate with art by Eric N. Peterson. Welcome to December at Oddball Magazine. 

This Week's Most Distinguished Network Names

It's amazing what people will name their online networks. I'm always trying to hijack wifi when I'm commuting, so I often come across a number or interesting names. Every Tuesday, I post the most impressive and/or cringe-inducing names.

I hope these aren't roommates!

Happy Birthday Don Hammontree

What I think of When I Remember the Boston Herald's Coverage in November

 

Advent Calendar, Day One

I'm starting strong this year's selection strong with a musical clip from Emmet Otter's Jugband Christmas. If you have never seen this holiday special, you really should.

And...

The piece I mentioned not having been rejected yet was just rejected.

There's literally tomorrow.

Try again in twenty-four hours.

New Thing

 We're starting a focus on Massasoit Community College students every Monday (ideally). Enjoy today's post by Zachary Adams (with art by Gunjan Bhardwaj) to close us out today at Oddball Magaizne. 

 

When You Can Laugh First AND Last

The late Jack Powers, founder of Stone Soup Poetry, wrote this Trump related poem in 1991. James Van Looy rediscovered it recently and thought it very appropriate for today.

Read Jack's poem now at Oddball Magazine.

Thanks to James for uncovering this piece and thanks to Bonnie Matthews Brock for providing the most appropriate of photos to go along with Jack's poem. 

Having Fun

With all my Trump-related poetry work wrapping up over the next few weeks, it's time to look into some new submission opportunities for next month. 

Plus, I just realized that a monthly journal that is usually very diligent when it comes to sending out rejection notices has not sent me one for November yet. Furthermore, it's the last day they can get back to me and keep up with their own personal timetable.

They could be just absentminded from the holidays, but I choose to see their lack of response as a good thing.

From Picture to Page: Same Time

I need to take a nature walk next weekend. It's another commute picture.My view from Forest Hills, to be exact.

Same Time

Monday is a

round house special

It's All Good!

Geoffrey Fallon kicks off another week with his comic "The Secrets of Skinny People" at Oddball Magazine. 

Don't Forget Stone Soup Poetry This Wednesday December 2 with Tony Brown

Still Life After Breakfast, Part 129

 New home, new route, yet some things never change.

Now THIS is a Find

A random store in Jamaica Plain (I didn't look up to see which one) had a box outside with numerous copies of the new issue of Razorcake up for grabs. I didn't even know this magazine was still being published!

I followed this punk magazine when a friend was contributing  a column. I even picked up a photo credit when the friend used one of my pictures in his column!

I thought Razorcake had gone under along with numerous other print magazines I used to love picking up at Newbury Comics back in the day. It's great to see that it's still alive and kicking.

 

Seen Last Night

Taken while waiting inside the most poorly lit Chinese Restaurant I've even been in (their light was broken, and they were shuffling to fix it).

No problem!

This Week's Friendly Reminder

Today's reminder comes courtesy of The Loring Greenough House, where they had this past weekend's Christmas tree sale.

 

Someday...

Someday I'll find out who this Wall Street Journal is meant for. 

Happy Birthday Lloyd Schwartz

 

Your Weekly Dose of God

This week I'm giving props to St. John's Church in Jamaica Plain. They held a Christmas tree sale outside The Loring Greenough House.

Now I want there to be a St. John's store year-round.

Happy Birthday James Stotts

Buy his book Elgin Pelicans from Pen and Anvil Press.

Busy Day

Off for a walk to buy supplies for the house (and hopefully write some first drafts while I do it).

Happy Birthday Lee Litif

Climbing That Oak

Wise Words with Bruce Wise is up now at Oddball Magazine.

Him and His Shadow

Catch Janet Cormier's latest Bamboozled No More! column at Oddball Magazine. 

SAFE DISTANCE EDITION - Stone Soup Croutons, 11-25-20: Thanksgiving Wars (News from the Front)

Stone Soup Croutons is a weekly poem I write using lines and impressions picked from Stone Soup Poetry's open mic readers and features. I figure out a title (and sometimes the rest of the poem) later. You can read the other ones I've done since 2015 here.

I also have a book out now collecting the best of my first year of poems. Click here to purchase it.

Stone Soup gathered the night before Thanksgiving. It was a fun night, much needed before the holiday stress of the past 24 hours. My own Thanksgiving went off without a hitch. The night before, however, I was fueled with the words from various people in the superspreader movement declaring war on safety and public health. That no doubt fueled my thought. Then there was all the talk about Hitler and death on the mic. I'm sure that helped. In a good way. Really. 

 

Warning: This poem is going to sound a bit like my other crouton poem, "Fish on a Bicycle Pulpit" from my new book. Mostly because Bil Lewis read my poem as part of the open mic and I didn't realize it until he finished. Thanks to Bil for buying my book, and thanks to you for reading. Hope you enjoyed your time yesterday.

Thanksgiving Wars

News from the front

Racist barbers try

to bring back 

Hitler's mustache

have concentration camps

pose for holiday photos.

Victory Dance

 The legendary Eggy Allan celebrates his team's Post-Thanksgiving Scrabble victory.

We didn't have the heart to tell him that "Squirely" isn't a word.

Update: Squirely is a word, apparently, and now Eggy wants a rematch. First time I've been challenged to a rematch by a team that has already won.

Perfect Timing

Everything about yesterday's meal was perfectly timed yesterday.  From the chicken to the Tofurkey to mashed potatoes to all the other side dishes. Nothing lingered too long in the oven and everything was ready to go by the time our new gravy boat hit the table. Props to my girlfriend for masterminding and engineering our first Thanksgiving meal in our new home.

New Gravy Boat!

 

T.G.I.F.

At the very least, consign him to the little boy's table for the rest of his days.

Inspired by DL Polonsky.

The Spread, Part Two!

 

The Spread

 

Spread Those Wings

Liza Zayas is with you today with The Underground Garden at Oddball Magazine. 

Table's Ready

 Food coming soon.

Where Politics and Angels Meet

James Van Looy is with us this Thanksgiving morning. Read his weekly poem column It's All One Thing at Oddball Magazine. 

 

Stone Soup Poetry Pre-Thanksgiving Open Mic, 11-25-20

From the weekly online open mic. Please be safe this Thanksgiving.

Wave Bye to Superspreaders

Thanks to everyone who came to Stone Soup's pre-Thanksgiving open mic gathering. Enjoy your time today safely. Come back next Wednesday for Tony Brown's feature!

Maintaining a Young Tradition

Here's my "Hand Turkey Jesus" tanka piece for another year.

Happy Thanksgiving

Speaking of Heywood Banks, here's a more appropriate Thanksgiving song from him.

It's Thanksgiving Morning

Eat something light for breakfst. Here's a suggestion courtesy of Heywood Banks.   

My Alternative to #ReleaseTheKraken

 

New Acceptance

My poem "Postponed" (a Stone Soup Croutons poem written in the early days of the pandemic) is now part of Life in Quarantine: Witnessing Global Pandemic, a project sponsored by the Center for Spatial and Textual Analysis (CESTA) and the Poetic Media Lab at Stanford University. I'm one of many writers up there now. I want to thank the project for including me and Megha Sood for inviting me.

December 2: Tony Brown Features at Stone Soup Poetry

December 2: Tony Brown Stays On Point at Stone Soup Poetry

I regret not having Tony Brown visit us sooner, as in a month ago. Other poets didn't want to perform right before the election because they didn't know how the election was going to turn out. I'm pretty positive that Tony's set would have been the same regardless of who he felt was going to win. Tony's work has always been on message and relentless in its message. On December 2, he shares that message with Stone Soup once again.

Join me on Wednesday, December 2, from 7:00 to 9:00 PM ET by clicking this link.

The meeting ID is 821 0169 4994

Password: stonesoup

Closing Time

Just realized I picked today's poems out of two problematic topics this time of year: Home and family (with a little travel thrown in). That's the way it is in the new post-pandemic holiday world.

Let poet Dorroh and returning photography Glenn Bowie help you get to where you need to go this week. Thanks for reading our Wednesday poetry at Oddball Magazine. 

 

Virtual Homecoming

Most of us have to stay home, but published poets and artists can reunite at anytime with total immunity. 

Welcome back poet John Grey and Photographer Jennifer Matthews to this special Wednesday at Oddball Magazine. 

Today's Lesson

Write even when you think it isn't a good time. 

When the time is "good" for you? That's when everyone comes rushing in to stop it from happening anyway.

Happy Birthday Lediana Stillo

American Haiku: Trump's Abridged Conference Further Abridged

When I started my Sarcastic Haiku series, I wrote my first American Haiku. You can read my first one, and others I've written since, by clicking here and scrolling down.

 

American Haiku: Trump's Abridged Conference Further Abridged

Five-sev-gotta go!

Do you like turkeys? I do!

Money is sacred! Money is sacred!

Tonight November 28: Let Stone Soup Help You Take a Breath

It's going to be a different holiday in a different world tomorrow. Share some words and thoughts with each other via Zoom tonight (later start time to make sure we're all home after last minute shopping.
​
Join me on Wednesday, November 25, from 8:00 to 10:00 PM ET by clicking this link.
​
The meeting ID is 851 6444 8723

Password: stonesoup