Can’t forget./We only get what we give.

we don’t have to set the way back machine too far, just to last week, where – as rich pointed out – we see yo boy from da bronx back on the mic on the second tuesday of the month with the obvious difference being that its happenin in califas (san fran’s mission district, to be precise) and i am not hostin but rather one of the features. the event is the presentation of kearny street workshop’s latest chapbook Same Time, Same Place or it could be Same Place, Same Time (depends on which edition you got) which is cool considering that the summer workshop series which spawned the poems also threw my poetic perspective for a bit of a loop, the good ‘shake yo ass up’ type loop.

i am very happy to say that i had a damn good time presentin the new (and not so new) poems that the workshop brought to the forefront. honestly, i just dont think that there is enough or can never be enough fun on the mic. as an audience member, i had plenty nuff fun hearing my compatriots’ work and seeing our facilitator, the right reverend truong tran, speak on the class.

the blog archives say its been a minute since i did this, so hear goes the rundown:
– Homeboys Beatjuggling Down The Westside Highway by John Rodriguez
– both a place and a scare-word
– About B-Boys in the Boogie Down
– Poem written to the Jimmy Castor Bunch’s “It’s Just Begun”

Its Just Begun w/ Anthem Salgado
Originally uploaded by geminipoet.

i only had seven minutes of mic time so thats all i could squeeze in but its a pretty good representation of both time and place (peep the chapbook title!) as i wanted to cover as many bases as i could. and before i forget, much props to Anthem Salgado for not only comin to the reading but also providing the voice to the Jimmy Castor lyrics in the last poem in a very impromptu duet. (for more pics, hit up derek chung’s web site right here)

now lets set the time machine to the future: come january there will be another KSW reading. this one focusing around the creative non-fiction class that i just finished. right now, i am still working on the story but its very close to a finale which has me quite relieved cuz i didnt think i could write a short story worth a fuck. i mean, i kinda knew i could write something but i didnt think it had these kinda legs. i may also be making another appearance doin some poetry up in the mission soon. nothing solid yet but featuring tends to generate its own momentum, a nice roller coaster ride that i dont plan on agitatin but also aint shyin away from.

and we’ll close it out with a view on the current which is that i’m about 1/3 through Robert Caro’s “The Power Broker” an intense read on the life and accomplishments of Robert Moses. i picked it up solely to get a historical perspective on the building of the cross bronx expressway and its immediate effects on the bronx but am instead being schooled on how this one man shaped all of new york city. i am still 400 pages away from the bronx but getting closer and with that i am out cuz i got two pumpkin pies in the oven!

love ya like if i baked ya mahself!