"Mighty" Mike McGee's Electronic Place of Himself.
Typings of a well-traveled, talky, funny, hobo-poet.
Just raced my train with Ronnie K. Stephens to find my station in Walnut Ridge, Arkansas. Adventure! Now!
Ronnie’s the shit.
I arrive in Chicago around 2pm. Amtrak time!
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Word to the nerd.
This entry was written by , posted on 19 March, 2010 at 10:59 PM, filed under Travel and tagged chicago, Travel & Touring. Leave a comment or view the discussion at the permalink.
3/365
Went for a walk with my rolling suitcase and backpack to meet my ride (to my next gig) at a Starbucks.
Just minding my own business, listening to a bit of Mike Doughty and a bit of The Roots (the greatest hip hop group ever to make music), walking through a residential neighborhood in my search for coffee.
It’s a mile or so away. I am ready to walk. Been looking forward to it since I went to bed last night (which was an awesome night.)
My ride, a fellow poet and USU alum named Darren, was to pick me up where I stayed last night. I knew I’d want to walk to coffee, so I got directions and planned to meet Darren there instead. What’s easier to find than Starbucks.
I had to bring all my stuff with me since I wouldn’t return to the house. I set the alarm on the house as instructed and ventured out an hour before Darren was to arrive.
I initially made a wrong turn out of the house: the road I hit was the LONG way, so I turned around and went to the next road. I heard a rider mower as I walked on. As it got louder, I saw a massive house with a ginormous backyard. A man in a white polo shirt was mowing this mega-yard beyond a huge gate. Parked in front of it was a yard crew truck. Professional.
I kept on down the street, marveling at the unused sidewalks, worn only by weather and the occasional walked dog. Turns out that it leads directly to a private street. That’s it. Signs posted at the entrance warning people and cars not to tresspass. Big fat faux stop sign decreeing it a private driveway. I have no idea what’s down the street or if Utah residents own shotguns, so I turned around, furious, as this is the only other way out to the main road. It seems one MUST take the LONG way to get anywhere.
Google Maps’s walking directions didn’t mention this… Fuck!
So as I head back to the house to sit out front and wait for Darren, I walk past the big house again, across the street from me. The house directly next to me on this sidewalk is just as big, with an equally gargantuan backyard. Only as I pass its long white fence, I can see the back porch and I hear a small, furry, yappy dog, staying a good distance from me but warning me that if I tresspass, it will annoy me to death.
NOTE: Another fucking yappy dog is barking at me just sitting out in front of the house.
As I nearly clear the Yappy House to my right, I see a woman step out and stand behind her stupid dog of which I could easily punt halfway across her yard.
Now, I know very well that I am not the most stylish dude. I wear hoodies and old tees and Vans and a wily beard. Sometime I feel as though I look like a fat-sensitive-trucker-lumberjack-Buddy-Holly-hobbit. The woman on her porch is out to see what the her dog’s fussing about, because she’ll be damned if someone would dare use an actual sidewalk to get somewhere. She must know everyone in town, and no one she knows walks on anything but maybe a treadmill or a vacation spot.
She watches me the whole way down the sidewalk, probably wondering what the hell I’m doing in her neighborhood. I can feel the souls of young skateboarders who used to call these people mom and dad, but had the unfortunate desire to move fast on wheels, making a racket on the street. That woman gave me a look that said she would leave me bleeding and dying on that sidewalk were it to ensure her mutt would live. She has no idea what it means to be free anymore. Maybe she did. Maybe she enjoyed sex and socializing and love, but her overly manicured lifestyle tells me that so many natural things have been sacrificed for her comfort. She is fenced in with her possessions. She won’t use that sidewalk. She has a yard for that, but just doesn’t have the time. Now her yappy canine squirrel has a place to run around so she doen’t have to.
I know I am readin into a lot of this, but it’s what my gut told me, so I am fine with it. I have gone from complete and utter frustration to sadness. Maybe she feels sad for me, or fear that I am going to rob them. Either way, she’s wrong about me. I wanted to smile at and for her, but her stance told me I was wrong to be on that sidewalk. I was wrong to dress so inappropriately. Her dog tells me I am a foreigner. She is wrong about me. That look on her face tells me so. The Roots tell me so. Mike Doughty tells me so.
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Word to the nerd.
This entry was written by , posted on 10 March, 2010 at 10:15 AM, filed under Travel and tagged utah sucks. Leave a comment or view the discussion at the permalink.
1/365 (Count reset for missing yesterday… I always realize I forgot to post an hour after midnight! fuck… What to do, what to do?)
I fly to Salt Lake City tomorrow. I get to hang with Jesse Parent. He’s cool and has Worcester cred. He’s gonna show me the Mormon Temple like a tourist. (MUST take photos.) Then I am off to Denver for a show at Johnson & Wales University on Thursday. I’ve been there before and I had a blast last time. Denverites: Spread the word!
I have many gigs to tend to. Click here for updated dates. Looking forward to rocking some schools and Denver Poetry Slam. Will have a few days of free time next week. I was hoping to go to Fayetteville, Arkansas for a day or two, but the cost of travel makes it very difficult to get out there. I miss Fayetteville and my peeps there. Will have to get there this year.
Shit. I really need to hit up the whole mid-west. Big time. Texas to Minnesota. Like mad.
GAMING
I am bringing a Magic deck with me. If you play, lemme know, bring your deck. We’ll make it happen. I am also down for Scrabble, Trivial Pursuit, and Bananagrams, but you’ll have to supply them.
YOUTH WORKSHOP
Ken Arkind is working out a youth poetry performance workshop for me to facilitate in Denver this weekend. Should be good times. Will update with information soon.
CHICAGO IS MINT AND BOSS
After my last mid-west school on March 19th, I think I am just going to catch a train and ride to Chicago. One: Because I love Chicago. Two: Because I love trains. If anyone wants to ride the train with me, come! Let us ride the train and play games. I need to see Chicago peeps like mad.
ON A RADTASTIC NOTE
Got a call tonight from my friend John. I wedded him and his wife Audra last August in Milwaukee, my very first wedding. They wanted me to know that I will be an uncle this year as they have gone made themselves pregnant. I am so very happy for them and their child as they will be incredible parents.
Babies having babies, man. Babies having babies.
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Word to the nerd.
Bunnies having bunnies, man.
This entry was written by , posted on 8 March, 2010 at 8:37 PM, filed under Travel and tagged arkansas, batesville, chicago, colorado, comedy shows, denver, illinois, live performance, performances, salt lake city, slc, spoken word shows, uncle mike, utah. Leave a comment or view the discussion at the permalink.
ON MY DAILY POST CHALLENGE
First I’d like to denote that I don’t care if I post every day for 365 days or 450 days or 700 days. It doesn’t matter, as long as I keep going. So the number following the post title [2] will be the consecutive days posted. This is also why I won’t add a number count to second and third entries for one day. Maybe I could add a letter [2b] if I were to post again the same day. I don’t think it matters if I add the [*/365] to the count, and it saves me from having to type it for every post title. Once I actually get to 100 or 280 posts, that’s when I will really start to take notice that I’m accomplishing what I’ve set out to do. Every time I post, I feel good. I am going to have days where I just have nothing to write about. That’s not what happened on 2/1/2010, I just plum forgot to post and fell asleep before the day was over.
TO-DO LIST THIS MONTH
I’ve gotten one check so far from a school gig, and it clears this afternoon. I will pay some February bills and begin paying back the first several loans via PayPal. I get home on Sunday and have a few weeks off before I hit the road again. I will receive two more school checks this weekend and should be able to pay back all of the loans by 2/15/10. I am stoked.
1. Pay bills/some loans.
2. Begin a daily yoga regimen.
NOTE: Thanks for asking, Stefan, about my goal to lose weight. Two of the the most difficult eating habits to break that I’ve found are portions and timing. I rarely have much of an appetite in the morning, then I am hungry late into the night. I generally snack a bit until evening, then eat ONE very large meal at night, then continue snacking until I fall asleep. I believe I am mostly overweight due to the fact that I fall asleep with so many unused calories still being digested. It has nowhere to go. I am forcing myself a smart breakfast within one hour of waking and I am limiting my eating to sundown. The only snacks I will allow myself when it is dark out are a limited amount of nuts and vegetables. No full meals after dark. No more fast food. Limited breads. A short exercise program before bed and upon waking. I think this is a good start. I love food, I just need to eat it between sun up and sundown, then actually use the energy.
3. Write my children’s story, send to artist to begin project. It’s gonna be sweet!
4. Begin screenplay. Have 40 pages by March.
5. Compile poems and things for second book.
6. Plan tour with Ellis, Maziar, and hopefully Michael Roberts. Links for all of them can be found at my website.
7. Organize and prioritize all my projects for the year.
8. Book travel for March.
INTERNET AND ORGANIZATION
I am getting better with posting my performance dates. Having a date with the internet every day is helpful in compelling me to get more and more work done. I almost have to force myself to get online when I am on the road, then it all comes in waves and I become way more productive. The few friends I know who really use to-do lists seem to get work done a lot more efficiently and are much more focused individuals. I can see the benefits already. I am pretty organized, but why not be the most organized person I know. It’ll be tough since I do know Simone Beaubien. Few come close to her organization skills.
I have streamlined my website and have been using Eventful.com (click for my page) to get my performance dates online in a cohesive listing. Not only does it “calendarize” my dates and info, but it adds the dates to the common event listing for anyone to find. It also automates widgets for each performer, which are on my website, and fans can add a “demand” widget to their sites so others can click to demand a performer to come to their area. It lets me know weekly how many people want me to tour through their respective cities. I like it so far.
WIKI PROJECT
If you’ve done any amount of wiki editing, understand the protocols, coding and formats of a wiki, and are interested in a project I have started, please contact me and let me know, maybe with links to show what you’ve done in the past.
VIDEO LIST
I am looking to add every video of me online to my site. If you have time on your hands and like to search for things on the internet, would you mind posting the URL for any videos you find with me in them. My video page is here, so please don’t add the links already listed: http://www.mikemcgee.net/?page_id=35
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Word to the nerd.
Bunny up.
This entry was written by , posted on 3 February, 2010 at 3:29 PM, filed under Personal Updates, Travel, Writing and tagged calendar, daily post challenge, eventful.com, organization, performance, to-do, video, wiki project. Leave a comment or view the discussion at the permalink.
Date: Sunday, January 31, 2010
Time: 7:30pm – 10:30pm
Location: Backspace
115 NW 5th Ave
Portland, OR
If you’re in Portland, Oregon and on Facebook, feel free to add yourself to the event (login required):
Portland Poetry Slam Event on FB
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Word to the nerd.
This entry was written by , posted on 29 January, 2010 at 11:53 AM, filed under Travel and tagged live performance, oregon, portland poetry slam. Leave a comment or view the discussion at the permalink.
Last night’s show at Mount Union College in Alliance, Ohio was fun. It was neat to meet people who had already acquainted themselves with me on Facebook. A delightful crew of people joined me for an hour-long set.
In the morning, the sudden snowfall had me wondering if I’d miss my flight, but the crew at the Canton/Akron Airport are obviously well prepared for cold, snowy weather and we took off without a hitch.
After a very brief layover in Denver, I landed in Spokane about 10am. I was met by Nick, Renae and Tiffany, who drove in from Pullman and brought me back.
Very few schools utilize poets in the way that really promotes spoken word/poetry on campus. The Student Entertainment Board, on the other hand, had me perform a teaser in the student Lair, which sits in the center of the student union building and is unavoidable along the main thoroughfair. Then I ran a small workshop on writing and performance. I came back to my motel, showered, and I’m about to head back to the school to host a student slam and to perform a full set. A long, full day here in Pullman.
Tomorrow, I head to Spokane to hang with the Empyrean Cafe crew and to put on a small set later in the evening.
Woot! Yay!
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Word to the nerd.
This entry was written by , posted on 28 January, 2010 at 5:43 PM, filed under Travel and tagged colleges, mount union college, ohio, pullman, shows, washington, wsu. Leave a comment or view the discussion at the permalink.
I should note that I have booked a feature at the Portland Poetry Slam in Oregon for this Sunday. If you’re nearby, spread the word.
POSTS
I have noticed that every day I am excited to post something, no matter what it is. The challenge lies mostly in remembering whether I’ve actually posted something new per day.
In the process of writing to my website, which auto-posts to my LiveJournal and to Facebook as well, I’ve also tapped into more of my other writings. I’ve written several new poems, and begun the processes on new short stories and screenplays. I’ve re-invigorated my interest in Twitter and the reading of posts and updates from most of my web contacts.
Another challenge I am a little worried about is my ability to post from the road, which I am doing right now. Posting from my desk is easy, because I am always on the internet and I get to poke-type a bit faster. Currently, my thumbs are very exercised. I just need to remember to post. So if you are a regular reader of any of my posts and notice that it is nearing midnight in your region and I have yet to post, don’t be afraid to drop me a reminder.
IN OTHER NEWS
This morning I flew to Akron, Ohio. Last week, Sierra DeMulder (fellow traveling poet) called me for assistance in getting to an airport in New England. Once settling on Boston Logan, and no longer needing my help, it turned out she booked the same flight I was on. We hung out at Logan, then she watched me eat a burrito this morning at the Charlotte airport. I love Charlotte. I saw her off to her Dallas-bound flight and proceeded to my Akron gate.
Tomorrow, I am off to Spokane, then getting picked up and motored to WSU Pullman. I’ve performed there before and excited to return. This time I am also hosting their slam and running a workshop. More schools should ask this of the poets they book. Poets: wanna ensure you’ll get more better paying gigs? Foster poetry and spoken word everywhere you go! Show them they should try what you do. You never know, you may influence and spark the next touring badass.
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Word to the nerd.
This entry was written by , posted on 27 January, 2010 at 3:53 PM, filed under Travel, Writing and tagged daily post challege. Leave a comment or view the discussion at the permalink.
Because just posting my dates doesn’t feel like a “real” journal entry, I would also like to point out that I dig you all.
Now, here is a list of my upcoming shows. If you want more information, just drop me a line or leave a comment.
2010 SCHEDULE
January 26 – Mount Union College, Alliance, OH – http://www.muc.edu/
January 27 – WSU Pullman, WA http://www.wsu.edu/
February 5 – Eastern Oregon University – http://www.eou.edu/index.shtml
February 16 – Urbana Poetry Slam, Bowery Poetry Club, New York
March 14 – Denver Poetry Slam, Mercury Café, Colorado
NOTE: More dates to come in Utah and Colorado in March.
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Word to the nerd.
This entry was written by , posted on 26 January, 2010 at 11:28 AM, filed under Travel and tagged live performance, performances, shows, shows. Leave a comment or view the discussion at the permalink.
Derrick Brown and I will be having a sweet, intimate “End of The Road Show” in Bellingham, WA tomorrow night. There will be special guests, Stuh-RANGE ROAD stories, Q&A, and special performances of rare pieces by Brown & McGee.
7:30pm.
The Amadeus Project: 1209 Cornwall Avenue
Bellingham, Washington 98225
360+815+1825
This entry was written by , posted on 17 November, 2009 at 4:44 PM, filed under Travel and tagged amadeus project, bellingham, books, derrick, derrick brown, Independent-Publishing, live performance, mike mcgee, poetry, stories, washington, write bloody. Leave a comment or view the discussion at the permalink.
What a summer. Taking time off from travel has done wonders for me, but it is also a curse.
I find myself getting do close to people is various cities, then longing to see them much than possible.
Just know I love you. Even if you haven’t heard from me in some time, I do love you very much.
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Love from the nerd.
This entry was written by , posted on 17 August, 2009 at 12:48 PM, filed under Personal Updates, Travel and tagged love note. Leave a comment or view the discussion at the permalink.