CATALYST FOR MOVING
I am looking to head back around August 1. I will putting on a one-man show in San Francisco on Sundays this August 8, 15, 22 and 29. It will be called In Search of Midnight: The Mike McGee Show of Awesome. Because of the scheduling, I will be in and around San Francisco for the entirety of August.

Another catalyst is the potential for Dave Perez and I to take the reigns of the San José Poetry Slam. This is all very up-in-the-air in terms of details, but I am sure my involvement with SJPS organizing is assured for the beginning of the poetry slam season in September.

Perez and I have formed Silicon Valley Performance Project (SVPP) as our banner for events we produce, such as our upcoming Slumberfest 2010. SVPP may be taking on some form of poetry slam for Silicon Valley as re-design of its current poetry slam.

LIVING SPACE
I AM PRETTY OPEN TO MOST CITIES ON THE PACIFIC COAST. I ask those of you in the Bay Area to keep an eye and ear out for any available room for rent in and around San José. If I do not find something in the area under my budget by September, I will probably look further into setting up residence in Portland, Oregon. I have a couple of possibilities for housing in Portland. No matter what, I am sure I will spend a lot of time there over the next few years.

WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS
Man. I am saddened to leave these people. Thanks to the fact that I make my living on the road, I know I will be back at least once a year. Who would’ve thought Worcester would become such a special place in my heart.

KITCHEN SESSIONS
My little baby show has made my stay here in Worcester a really fun experience. If you plan to be around New England around any of the KS dates below, please add yourself to the Facebook group here, as I will keep it going to inform people of all Kitchen Sessions I will be involved with. Here’s the letter I just sent to the Kitchen Sessions group members:

Hey, Sessioners.

I am about 75% sure that I am moving back to the West Coast around August 1, 2010.

I know that I WILL spend all of August in the SF Bay Area. I could end up in Portland in September. I may end up in San José. Because of this, I need to pack up my stuff and start prepping for the move.

Kitchen Sessions in Worcester will go into overdrive before I leave.

My first hope is to make these last ones fun & huge. —> Fuge™

Here’s my outlook of remaining Sessions:

June 12 (this Saturday): Mahogany Browne and Jive Poetic had to back out. There will still be a KS @ 8:00pm, I’m just up in the air on the feature.

Saturday, June 19: Vancouver Kitchen Session #1. Hosted by yours truly at the Foxy House in East Van. 7:30pm.

Saturday, July 3: Krista Mosca and Matthew John Conley feature. McKendy will mini-feature.

Saturday, July 10: Ken Arkind feature. Ken has promised all new poems.

Friday, July 16: Boston Diningroom Session. Not at my house. TBA.

Saturday, July 24: New York Invasion feature. Some of our favorite New York poets come up early to BBQ and perform in a “Backyard Session.”

Friday, July 30: BON VOYAGE! A KITCHEN FAREWELL. Co-Hosted with Simone Beaubien. Tony Brown & Mike McGee feature all new work.

My second hope is that someone, be it here in Worcester, Manchester, Providence or Boston (and yes, even Connecticut…) will take the reigns and create their own space for a new series of ongoing Sessions. I understand the general distaste of opening one’s home to something like this so frequently, but it pays off, I assure you. If one is interested in holding their own, I will always be a phone call away for advice and networking.

My goal over the next year will be to incorporate traveling Sessions while touring. If I have a day off, and you have poets and a space, I will try schedule and host a session.

Wherever I end up on the West Coast I will try to establish a new Session there as well. I will probably give preference to any New England poet that comes through to the new Sessions.

Beginning this Saturday, there will be a box/pile of things I do not wish to take with me. It will be the UP FOR GRABS PILE. Take a little bit f me home with you, won’t you.

I hope to see a number of you this Saturday. So far, only Bill MacMillan and Liz Heath are signed up.

Love,
McGee

STAY INFORMED ON EVERYTHING I AM DOING
Members of newsletter list will get neat stuff…

Subscribe to Mike McGee's Newsletter

Email:

Visit this group

Barring anything that might make me move sooner, I am thinking that since the fall is a major touring season for me, I’d like to try to get settled on the west coast by September. I miss my family too often to live this far away now. I gave myself a year to live here and my family understood, but it’s getting harder to be this distant.

My father’s side of my family lives in Washington. My mother’s side lives in California. Oregon is a good central location. I have very close friends in and around Everett, WA who I love to visit, as well as in Eugene and Corvallis, OR.

LOTS OF THOUGHT
I want my family, given and chosen, to travel more. Shit — I want everyone I know to travel — but they are a sedentary lot down there in Silicon Valley and up in the Seattle area. If I move to a place they can get to in one flight or train, or even a 12 hour drive, they just might do it.

I’ve been considering this for sometime now, ever since the Elephant Engine Revival Tour last autumn. We spent a pretty solid week in Portland and I fell in love with the city itself, caught up with a surprising amount of friends in the area, and realized it’s proximity and low cost were key to being closer to San José and Vancouver, B.C., the Cities of My Heart.

Portland is a 1h:45m flight to San José and generally very cheap. Portland is also about 6-8 hours by train to Vancouver, or a 1h:10m flight straight through. Seattle’s an easy stop. Boise’s awesome and easy to get to as well.

MY TIME IN WORCESTER
I feel I’ve experienced as much growth in Worcester in the last 13 months as I did in the previous five years on the road. So much of it is thanks to Bill MacMillan and Tony Brown — my brothers from other mothers. I feel like I can be me and I like the me that I’m becoming thanks to the people who have become my New England family. My roommate Melinda Lee is the shit, plain and simple. I have felt very much at home here thanks specifically to Missy Mitchell, Dave Keali‘i MacKenzie, Sou MacMillan, Alex Charlambides, Liz Heath, Cyndi Keeley, Rushelle Frazier (before she moved), Heather MacPherson, Danielle Carriveau, Mark Palos, Sam Teitel, Roger Mindfucker (our cat), Anne O’Neill, Simone Beaubien, Danny Balel, Emily Mele, and a host of other people in New England. I haven’t forgotten any names, I just didn’t want to turn this into an acceptance speech. I will surely write that entry when I do actually move.

WHAT BOTHERS ME MOST
I am sad that so many others promised to visit me in my home while I was here and will have absolutely failed to do so before I move. I am just glad Finneyfrock and Weslowski are coming to do there own respective Kitchen Sessions this spring. And they’re coming from the WEST COAST… At this point, I will be too busy to really host anyone else before I move… Very, very saddening.

PORTLAND IS RAD AND GETTING RADDER
With the growing number of Write Bloody authors living and moving to Portland, it’s a perfect spot for a northern WB hub. We can put on shows/readings, get the ball rolling on events and brainstorm future projects. The city pushes the arts, has a fantastic transit system (which is a HUGE sell for us rare non-drivers), and loves their bicyclists, an activity I’ve missed since my Schwinn cruiser days in downtown San José.

Portland is alive and electric. It excites me. I feel I could be there even if I didn’t know anyone, although, it does also feel very, very transient. I think people come and go like mad, which is my plan as well. The gray skies will get to me in due time, but at least it doesn’t snow very often.

I think people should travel and really try living in other places. It’s easier than it seems and there are a number of people who do it enough to advise newbies. I said I would give Worcester a year and it turned out to be more. I will probably give Portland a year. I think it’s a good idea. You really get a feel for a city when you’ve spent a year there.

WHERE I TRULY BELONG
Of the entirety of the Bay Area, I would really only live in San José/Silicon Valley, but it’s three times the cost of living in Worcester. I am one of San José’s biggest fans, but I have spent 27+ years there (prior to touring) and I really just want to see more places and try out new environments for a while. I will return to San José, but I need just a little more stability and a girl-partner who is also a huge fan of Silicon Valley. And they would have to be a fan of it because anyone who didn’t grow up there has a hard time seeing it’s greatness. I couldn’t love a human baby as much as I love Silicon Valley.

Silicon Valley Example of Greatness #2,482: 300 days a year of sunshine. 300. Yep.

SILICON VALLEY vs. PACIFIC NORTHWEST
There are really only a few places I feel I belong in a living situation and they are Silicon Valley and the Pacific Northwest (Eugene, OR to Bellingham, WA… Vancouver is the Pacific Southwest to Canadians.) I belong in Vancouver. I am so very much at home in Vancouver, but the cost of living there is fuckstupid, especially for an American. With my constant travel, I’d have to fly from Vancouver to U.S. destinations pretty often. I tend to have to book flights on short notice. I just did a sample search and a ONE-WAY flight two weeks from now from Vancouver to Denver is $309-USD. However, one-way from Seattle to Denver is $101-USD. Prices for Canadian flights to the U.S. are almost always three-times U.S. prices, across the board. I could bus it down to Seattle whenever I had a flight, but making the right bus-to-flight connection is a bitch-and-a-half and pretty costly over time. It’s a 2h:30m ride and you have to cross a border every time. I’ve done it and I despise it.

Vancouver Suckiness Example #2: Three short days a year of sunshine.*

I’d be better off living in Seattle, but Seattle has always felt like Vancouver Light. Aside from the awesome poetry people who live there, Seattle feels very, very sad. It is almost like 60 to 70% of the city is depressed. I feel it whenever I am there. The Seattle spoken word scene is pretty stellar thanks to Daemond Arrindell and Youth Speaks Seattle, but a thriving poetry scene is one of the last reasons I would move to a city. If it were my first reason, I’d be living in Vancouver already.

I did seriously consider moving to Bellingham, but it was only because I like the Poetry Night crew and their proximity to Vancouver, B.C.

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
Los Angeles is a congested maze and nearly impossible to navigate without a car, but I do like it more than I did five years ago. I have some very close friends down there, but the traffic alone kills me. I don’t know how anyone does it. It seems to me to be the place so many people go to realize their dreams, only to get stuck in a job they despise and eventually abandon their reason for moving there. Success in the arts in L.A. must be limited to a very lucky/determined 2% of the population — if that.

There is so much sadness in L.A. and such a shattered spoken word and poetry scene. In all of my touring I have only ever lost money in Los Angeles. I’ve been paid a few times, but I feel like it was always out of Rob Sturma’s pocket and not really from the community around him. And merch sales? Doubtful. I think so many people are always broke in L.A. because they have to save their money to buy gas and keep their car running. I only ever go there to visit friends. Any gig I get is merely an attempt to deflect some of the cost of travel. But seriously, If I am wrong about L.A., please tell me so. If there is a growing spoken word scene I don’t know about, let me know. Da Poetry Lounge is always a fun gig for me, but it pays irregularly. A lot of poets would like to tour through L.A. but everybody outside of it has no idea where to start.

Orange County seems to have a decent reputation for gigs, but it’s one giant suburb.

Long Beach is the home of Write Bloody and Snoop Dogg, and it’s about an hour away from L.A. I can dig Long Beach, but it’s still too similar to the rest of Southern California. It’s a nice place to visit. All of it really is, but if you have no family there, it’s easy to get lost in the shuffle.

THE MIDWEST
Chicago has always been a possibility, but one of the reasons I intend to leave New England is based on my ever-growing spite of the cold. I can handle rain and chill, but to-the-bone-kind-of cold really wears on me and keeps me inside too often. The cold here in New England starts in October and last through April. I have had two seasons of it. I would just be moving into a similar weather system in Chicago, which also has a summer humidity index that makes me want to punt fat babies. I could really only live there in the spring and autumn, if they show up. I love Chicago, but I would only live there for the people I knew and the fact that Chicago has THE BEST FOOD IN THE WORLD, but I would eventually despise the city for its weather.

FOR YOUR INFORMATION
Chicago is, without a doubt, THE HOME for funny poets. For me, the spoken word scene there has always been a draw for this reason. If you want to be a funny poet and like cold-ass winters and humid-ass summers, Chicago is the place for you. Male, female, emale, wemale — whatever — they are hilarious. Maybe it’s the food and weather. Being well fed and in constant sweaty/freezy conditions must help mold the humor… I am serious. Think about it. If you know the poetry slam/spoken word universe, Chicago has to be the funniest American scene. Germany is very, very big on humor in their poetry, as is Vancouver, but I think Chicago sets the standard as a scene. Hmmm.

I love you, ChiTown. I do, I do.

TIMELINE: JUST TALKING IT OUT
Since I have a bunch of travel this spring, I am going to try to spend as much time in Worcester this summer as I can. Depending on my finances, I will probably move toward the end of August, but I won’t know for sure.

I really don’t want to move while it is hot, so I may have to push it closer to June, which would kill my summer plans here, but would probably be a wiser move. I don’t make as much touring in the summer as I do in the spring and autumn. I would spend money to survive all summer, then spend money to move. I have gigs lined up this spring that would make a June/July move very easy. I am at a loss. I just don’t know.

What would be awesome is a road trip/poetry tour move. Any takers?
———
Word to the nerd.

*I am kidding… Sort of.

Barring anything that might make me move sooner, I am thinking that since the fall is a major touring season for me, I’d like to try to get settled on the west coast by September. I miss my family too often to live this far away now. I gave myself a year to live here and my family understood, but it’s getting harder to be this distant.

My father’s side of my family lives in Washington. My mother’s side lives in California. Oregon is a good central location. I have very close friends in and around Everett, WA who I love to visit, as well as in Eugene and Corvallis, OR.

LOTS OF THOUGHT
I want my family, given and chosen, to travel more. Shit — I want everyone I know to travel — but they are a sedentary lot down there in Silicon Valley and up in the Seattle area. If I move to a place they can get to in one flight or train, or even a 12 hour drive, they just might do it.

I’ve been considering this for sometime now, ever since the Elephant Engine Revival Tour last autumn. We spent a pretty solid week in Portland and I fell in love with the city itself, caught up with a surprising amount of friends in the area, and realized it’s proximity and low cost were key to being closer to San José and Vancouver, B.C., the Cities of My Heart.

Portland is a 1h:45m flight to San José and generally very cheap. Portland is also about 6-8 hours by train to Vancouver, or a 1h:10m flight straight through. Seattle’s an easy stop. Boise’s awesome and easy to get to as well.

MY TIME IN WORCESTER
I feel I’ve experienced as much growth in Worcester in the last 13 months as I did in the previous five years on the road. So much of it is thanks to Bill MacMillan and Tony Brown — my brothers from other mothers. I feel like I can be me and I like the me that I’m becoming thanks to the people who have become my New England family. My roommate Melinda Lee is the shit, plain and simple. I have felt very much at home here thanks specifically to Missy Mitchell, Dave Keali‘i MacKenzie, Sou MacMillan, Alex Charlambides, Liz Heath, Cyndi Keeley, Rushelle Frazier (before she moved), Heather MacPherson, Danielle Carriveau, Mark Palos, Sam Teitel, Roger Mindfucker (our cat), Anne O’Neill, Simone Beaubien, Danny Balel, Emily Mele, and a host of other people in New England. I haven’t forgotten any names, I just didn’t want to turn this into an acceptance speech. I will surely write that entry when I do actually move.

WHAT BOTHERS ME MOST
I am sad that so many others promised to visit me in my home while I was here and will have absolutely failed to do so before I move. I am just glad Finneyfrock and Weslowski are coming to do there own respective Kitchen Sessions this spring. And they’re coming from the WEST COAST… At this point, I will be too busy to really host anyone else before I move… Very, very saddening.

PORTLAND IS RAD AND GETTING RADDER
With the growing number of Write Bloody authors living and moving to Portland, it’s a perfect spot for a northern WB hub. We can put on shows/readings, get the ball rolling on events and brainstorm future projects. The city pushes the arts, has a fantastic transit system (which is a HUGE sell for us rare non-drivers), and loves their bicyclists, an activity I’ve missed since my Schwinn cruiser days in downtown San José.

Portland is alive and electric. It excites me. I feel I could be there even if I didn’t know anyone, although, it does also feel very, very transient. I think people come and go like mad, which is my plan as well. The gray skies will get to me in due time, but at least it doesn’t snow very often.

I think people should travel and really try living in other places. It’s easier than it seems and there are a number of people who do it enough to advise newbies. I said I would give Worcester a year and it turned out to be more. I will probably give Portland a year. I think it’s a good idea. You really get a feel for a city when you’ve spent a year there.

WHERE I TRULY BELONG
Of the entirety of the Bay Area, I would really only live in San José/Silicon Valley, but it’s three times the cost of living in Worcester. I am one of San José’s biggest fans, but I have spent 27+ years there (prior to touring) and I really just want to see more places and try out new environments for a while. I will return to San José, but I need just a little more stability and a girl-partner who is also a huge fan of Silicon Valley. And they would have to be a fan of it because anyone who didn’t grow up there has a hard time seeing it’s greatness. I couldn’t love a human baby as much as I love Silicon Valley.

Silicon Valley Example of Greatness #2,482: 300 days a year of sunshine. 300. Yep.

SILICON VALLEY vs. PACIFIC NORTHWEST
There are really only a few places I feel I belong in a living situation and they are Silicon Valley and the Pacific Northwest (Eugene, OR to Bellingham, WA… Vancouver is the Pacific Southwest to Canadians.) I belong in Vancouver. I am so very much at home in Vancouver, but the cost of living there is fuckstupid, especially for an American. With my constant travel, I’d have to fly from Vancouver to U.S. destinations pretty often. I tend to have to book flights on short notice. I just did a sample search and a ONE-WAY flight two weeks from now from Vancouver to Denver is $309-USD. However, one-way from Seattle to Denver is $101-USD. Prices for Canadian flights to the U.S. are almost always three-times U.S. prices, across the board. I could bus it down to Seattle whenever I had a flight, but making the right bus-to-flight connection is a bitch-and-a-half and pretty costly over time. It’s a 2h:30m ride and you have to cross a border every time. I’ve done it and I despise it.

Vancouver Suckiness Example #2: Three short days a year of sunshine.*

I’d be better off living in Seattle, but Seattle has always felt like Vancouver Light. Aside from the awesome poetry people who live there, Seattle feels very, very sad. It is almost like 60 to 70% of the city is depressed. I feel it whenever I am there. The Seattle spoken word scene is pretty stellar thanks to Daemond Arrindell and Youth Speaks Seattle, but a thriving poetry scene is one of the last reasons I would move to a city. If it were my first reason, I’d be living in Vancouver already.

I did seriously consider moving to Bellingham, but it was only because I like the Poetry Night crew and their proximity to Vancouver, B.C.

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
Los Angeles is a congested maze and nearly impossible to navigate without a car, but I do like it more than I did five years ago. I have some very close friends down there, but the traffic alone kills me. I don’t know how anyone does it. It seems to me to be the place so many people go to realize their dreams, only to get stuck in a job they despise and eventually abandon their reason for moving there. Success in the arts in L.A. must be limited to a very lucky/determined 2% of the population — if that.

There is so much sadness in L.A. and such a shattered spoken word and poetry scene. In all of my touring I have only ever lost money in Los Angeles. I’ve been paid a few times, but I feel like it was always out of Rob Sturma’s pocket and not really from the community around him. And merch sales? Doubtful. I think so many people are always broke in L.A. because they have to save their money to buy gas and keep their car running. I only ever go there to visit friends. Any gig I get is merely an attempt to deflect some of the cost of travel. But seriously, If I am wrong about L.A., please tell me so. If there is a growing spoken word scene I don’t know about, let me know. Da Poetry Lounge is always a fun gig for me, but it pays irregularly. A lot of poets would like to tour through L.A. but everybody outside of it has no idea where to start.

Orange County seems to have a decent reputation for gigs, but it’s one giant suburb.

Long Beach is the home of Write Bloody and Snoop Dogg, and it’s about an hour away from L.A. I can dig Long Beach, but it’s still too similar to the rest of Southern California. It’s a nice place to visit. All of it really is, but if you have no family there, it’s easy to get lost in the shuffle.

THE MIDWEST
Chicago has always been a possibility, but one of the reasons I intend to leave New England is based on my ever-growing spite of the cold. I can handle rain and chill, but to-the-bone-kind-of cold really wears on me and keeps me inside too often. The cold here in New England starts in October and last through April. I have had two seasons of it. I would just be moving into a similar weather system in Chicago, which also has a summer humidity index that makes me want to punt fat babies. I could really only live there in the spring and autumn, if they show up. I love Chicago, but I would only live there for the people I knew and the fact that Chicago has THE BEST FOOD IN THE WORLD, but I would eventually despise the city for its weather.

FOR YOUR INFORMATION
Chicago is, without a doubt, THE HOME for funny poets. For me, the spoken word scene there has always been a draw for this reason. If you want to be a funny poet and like cold-ass winters and humid-ass summers, Chicago is the place for you. Male, female, emale, wemale — whatever — they are hilarious. Maybe it’s the food and weather. Being well fed and in constant sweaty/freezy conditions must help mold the humor… I am serious. Think about it. If you know the poetry slam/spoken word universe, Chicago has to be the funniest American scene. Germany is very, very big on humor in their poetry, as is Vancouver, but I think Chicago sets the standard as a scene. Hmmm.

I love you, ChiTown. I do, I do.

TIMELINE: JUST TALKING IT OUT
Since I have a bunch of travel this spring, I am going to try to spend as much time in Worcester this summer as I can. Depending on my finances, I will probably move toward the end of August, but I won’t know for sure.

I really don’t want to move while it is hot, so I may have to push it closer to June, which would kill my summer plans here, but would probably be a wiser move. I don’t make as much touring in the summer as I do in the spring and autumn. I would spend money to survive all summer, then spend money to move. I have gigs lined up this spring that would make a June/July move very easy. I am at a loss. I just don’t know.

What would be awesome is a road trip/poetry tour move. Any takers?
———
Word to the nerd.

*I am kidding… Sort of.

Originally published at Mike McGee Town. You can comment here or there.

SUNDAY: HELLO, PORTLAND
I arrived in Portland via Greyhound from Spokane around 6pm. On the bus I ate a handful from a bag of really shitty knock-off brand of Chex Mix. Tasted horrible. Like someone took a bag of Chex Mix, let it sit out in the Port Authority bathroom, coated it in knock-off brand mac & cheese powder, then sold it to me. I was still hungry.

Eirean Bradley met me in front of the depot and we headed to his place a couple blocks away. We stopped and met his roommate Davey and Keats, Davey’s sweet, sweet dog. We left, Davey planned to meet us at Backspace.

We headed to the venue and Eirean was in slammaster/host mode for the rest of the night. I don’t know what the Portland Poetry Slam was like prior to Eirean’s arrival and take-over, but he’s really got it under control. A fantastic host and one helluvan organizer, I think Eirean could really help bring Portland back to the National Poetry Slam and keep it stable. The one thing that kept me away from this city when I first started touring was the lack of any real cohesive, organized poetry slam. I’d really only come through when visiting friends and gigs with The Revival. Lewis & Clark College shows, and our Reed College show last year were extraordinary. I’d performed in Eugene and Corvallis over the years, and a few solo spots at colleges, but Portland was always just a refueling point. Hang out with Anis, enjoy some micro-brew, hug a tree, kick a hipster. Portlandy stuff.

Several friends not usually connected to the Portland Poetry Slam told me they’d be coming. Everyone of them who said they’d attend the slam did. I don’t know that I’ve ever had 100% friend follow-through for a slam. Pretty sweet. My cousin Katie came with a couple of her friends. She requested “Dirty Dimes” and so I added it to my set. The crowd was big, but I didn’t get a head count, looked like 80-plus. They were absolutely attentive and responsive to everything that went on on stage. Fellow Write Bloody authors Michael Roberts and Paul Maziar say with my cousin and I. They read in the open mic, I followed with my feature, a break and then a two round poetry slam. Davey won. He’s good. Very polished. A young woman approached me, visibly shaken, and asked if she could give me a hug. She said it was due to my poem “Lullaby,” which I’ve really only been performing in the last 8 months to music. I wrote it to music written by my long-time collaborator, Bryce Dumont. We formed Monotwin in 1999 and have been recording poetry and lyrics to music since 1997. We’re kinda old school. Bryce lives in England and sent me the track a year and a half ago. It triggered a new poem and we recorded it lat summer when I went to visit him. It feels great every time I perform it live. This young lady seemed to need to hear it last night. She squeezed me tight. I hope she knows she’s loved.

Bryna, an old friend from the Bay Area joined us after my feature. She had sat in the back until I was done. She bought me a beer, which Brian the bartender discounted, then asked if I had any books left. I sold him one. Nice guy. Bryna held her glass up to mine and said, “To Gabrielle,” never having met her, but having kept up online with the friends who did. This is why I love Bryna.

Backspace is your standard, giant Portland café with lots of tables and a huge stage, but warm and comfortable. It probably wouldn’t The coffee and booze bar is split: business in the front, party in the back. At the front, to the right of the stage is a small quad of couches and a coffee table. The comfy spot. I’m sure there were afghans on the couches, but if there weren’t, I’m sure customers could bring their own and cozy up with a book/laptop and some tea. My kind of joint.

Eirean, ever more the working stiff, retired to bed immediately after the slam. I always enjoy being around that man. I introduced Bryna, Paul, Michael and Katie to each other. We all hung out for a bit, then jaunted off to the Baghdad for some late night eats. It was a truly lovely evening. Everything I’d hoped the night would be was.

Bryna dropped Michael and I off at Anis’s house. Anis is in Austin, Texas and Michael is subletting his room while he’s away. I miss Mojgani, but it’s great to hang out with Michael and Anis’s roommates. They are all awesome people.

I am looking to set up a small Write Bloody tour with Maziar, Roberts and Brian S. Ellis this year. I think it would be a good combo.

Before falling asleep on the couch, I decided I would make Chex Mix in the morning.

MONDAY: WORLD’S GREATEST CHEX MIX
I woke up around 8:00am, showered and left the house to acquire coffee and Chex Mix ingredients. I asked my Facebook status update for ideas on this. 30+ responses provided me with a ingredients so odd and wonderful that I made a recipe out of it. If anyone was to ever actually make this recipe, I think it may ruin their oven, appetite and friendships with roommates. Thanks to everyone on Facebook who responded with recommendations. It was a good laugh.

INGREDIENTS
2 sticks of butter, melted
3 cups of Wheat Chex
3 cups of Corn Chex
2 cups of Cheerios
1 can of Sardines
1 can of Anchovies
1 can of Spam, diced
handful of Butterscotch pieces
1 bag of Cheetos
1 cup of Pecans
1 cup of Dried cranberries
handful of Brown, orange and yellow Reese’s Pieces
1 cup of Pretzels
handful of Yogurt clusters
1 cup of Chocolate chips
handful of Coconut
1 cup of Banana chips
1 cup of Pumpernickel bread crunchies
handful of Marshmallow
1 cup of Almonds
1 cup of Raisins
1 Ham
1 cup of Cashews
1 cup of Barbecue peanuts
1 cup of Wasabi peas
handful of M&Ms
1 cup of Cheez-Its
1 cup of Rice crackers
handful of Sunflower seeds
1 bag of Pork rinds

SEASONING
3 tbl of Worcestershire sauce
Brad Pitt’s secret soup ingredient from Fight Club, to taste
Spanish fly, to taste
1 tbl Cayenne pepper
1 tbl Sea salt
1 tbl Ground pepper
1/2 cup of bacon grease
Skoal, sprinkle to taste

Pre-heat oven to 250 degrees. Mix all ingredients in a bowl. Place mixture in a shallow baking pan with sides. Bake for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes.

I ended up making two batches of mix, one spicy (cayenne) and one regular. It consisted of Wheat and Corn Chex, Honey Nut Cheerios (all off-brand), cheddar Goldfish, Craisins, almond slivers, crushed macadamias, and cashews.

In order to visually differentiate the spicy from the regular, I added one of those very tiny bags of Fritos to the cayenne mix. I can eat spicy all day, everyday, but the housemates here may not handle it the way Michael Roberts and I do. I wanted to be considerate.

I washed clothes as the mixes baked. Roberts woke up and left on a coffee adventure. My hometown friend Maxwell Aloysius Borkenhagen called me looking to make hang. He’s a student at Lewis & Clark college and lives two blocks aways from Anis’s house. He came by a while later and I introduced him to Roberts. We ventured out to Bread & Ink for their happy hour lunch special. I ate an awesome $3.00 house salad with a sherry vinaigrette and a cup of black bean chili. I washed it down with a $2.50 pint of Laurelwood Tree Hugger porter. DEE-lish!

On the way back to the house we saw a city-commissioned, adobe-ish gazebo at the corner of an international hostel. I immediately felt that we needed to sit in it for a little while. Maxwell called the actual material cob, which I had never heard of. There’s been a pretty constant and annoying drizzle since I got here and probably since I left here in November. The cob gazebo, looking out onto the intersection, was just what I needed. Just as we sat, a woman was crossing the street toward us, lead by her small pug who then joined us in the gazebo. We all took turns petting and scratching the dog, Wasabi. We all introduced ourselves. Wasabi’s owner’s name was Rachael. I remember her saying it was the Hebrew spelling and that it means mother. She was on her way home to make dinner for her girlfriend. She had picked up some very beautiful flowers for her love and ingredients to make a traditional Hawaiian dish. Her girlfriend is half Irish, half Hawaiian, and hasn’t been able to find good Hawaiian food in Portland.

Wasabi and Rachael made my day. Maybe even made the day for all three of us boys. Had we not sat in that cob, we wouldn’t have met them then. We returned home, ate some Chex Mix and thoroughly enjoyed Royal Tenenbaums again. Paul came by and Roberts tried to get me to watch Darjeeling Limited, but I got sleepy and napped.

I woke at one am to the DVD menu playing over and over and no Paul or Roberts. I figured they went out. I regret sleeping so long, but hey, whatevs. It was a good day.
———
Word to the nerd.

SUNDAY: HELLO, PORTLAND
I arrived in Portland via Greyhound from Spokane around 6pm. On the bus I ate a handful from a bag of really shitty knock-off brand of Chex Mix. Tasted horrible. Like someone took a bag of Chex Mix, let it sit out in the Port Authority bathroom, coated it in knock-off brand mac & cheese powder, then sold it to me. I was still hungry.

Eirean Bradley met me in front of the depot and we headed to his place a couple blocks away. We stopped and met his roommate Davey and Keats, Davey’s sweet, sweet dog. We left, Davey planned to meet us at Backspace.

We headed to the venue and Eirean was in slammaster/host mode for the rest of the night. I don’t know what the Portland Poetry Slam was like prior to Eirean’s arrival and take-over, but he’s really got it under control. A fantastic host and one helluvan organizer, I think Eirean could really help bring Portland back to the National Poetry Slam and keep it stable. The one thing that kept me away from this city when I first started touring was the lack of any real cohesive, organized poetry slam. I’d really only come through when visiting friends and gigs with The Revival. Lewis & Clark College shows, and our Reed College show last year were extraordinary. I’d performed in Eugene and Corvallis over the years, and a few solo spots at colleges, but Portland was always just a refueling point. Hang out with Anis, enjoy some micro-brew, hug a tree, kick a hipster. Portlandy stuff.

Several friends not usually connected to the Portland Poetry Slam told me they’d be coming. Everyone of them who said they’d attend the slam did. I don’t know that I’ve ever had 100% friend follow-through for a slam. Pretty sweet. My cousin Katie came with a couple of her friends. She requested “Dirty Dimes” and so I added it to my set. The crowd was big, but I didn’t get a head count, looked like 80-plus. They were absolutely attentive and responsive to everything that went on on stage. Fellow Write Bloody authors Michael Roberts and Paul Maziar say with my cousin and I. They read in the open mic, I followed with my feature, a break and then a two round poetry slam. Davey won. He’s good. Very polished. A young woman approached me, visibly shaken, and asked if she could give me a hug. She said it was due to my poem “Lullaby,” which I’ve really only been performing in the last 8 months to music. I wrote it to music written by my long-time collaborator, Bryce Dumont. We formed Monotwin in 1999 and have been recording poetry and lyrics to music since 1997. We’re kinda old school. Bryce lives in England and sent me the track a year and a half ago. It triggered a new poem and we recorded it lat summer when I went to visit him. It feels great every time I perform it live. This young lady seemed to need to hear it last night. She squeezed me tight. I hope she knows she’s loved.

Bryna, an old friend from the Bay Area joined us after my feature. She had sat in the back until I was done. She bought me a beer, which Brian the bartender discounted, then asked if I had any books left. I sold him one. Nice guy. Bryna held her glass up to mine and said, “To Gabrielle,” never having met her, but having kept up online with the friends who did. This is why I love Bryna.

Backspace is your standard, giant Portland café with lots of tables and a huge stage, but warm and comfortable. It probably wouldn’t The coffee and booze bar is split: business in the front, party in the back. At the front, to the right of the stage is a small quad of couches and a coffee table. The comfy spot. I’m sure there were afghans on the couches, but if there weren’t, I’m sure customers could bring their own and cozy up with a book/laptop and some tea. My kind of joint.

Eirean, ever more the working stiff, retired to bed immediately after the slam. I always enjoy being around that man. I introduced Bryna, Paul, Michael and Katie to each other. We all hung out for a bit, then jaunted off to the Baghdad for some late night eats. It was a truly lovely evening. Everything I’d hoped the night would be was.

Bryna dropped Michael and I off at Anis’s house. Anis is in Austin, Texas and Michael is subletting his room while he’s away. I miss Mojgani, but it’s great to hang out with Michael and Anis’s roommates. They are all awesome people.

I am looking to set up a small Write Bloody tour with Maziar, Roberts and Brian S. Ellis this year. I think it would be a good combo.

Before falling asleep on the couch, I decided I would make Chex Mix in the morning.

MONDAY: WORLD’S GREATEST CHEX MIX
I woke up around 8:00am, showered and left the house to acquire coffee and Chex Mix ingredients. I asked my Facebook status update for ideas on this. 30+ responses provided me with a ingredients so odd and wonderful that I made a recipe out of it. If anyone was to ever actually make this recipe, I think it may ruin their oven, appetite and friendships with roommates. Thanks to everyone on Facebook who responded with recommendations. It was a good laugh.

INGREDIENTS
2 sticks of butter, melted
3 cups of Wheat Chex
3 cups of Corn Chex
2 cups of Cheerios
1 can of Sardines
1 can of Anchovies
1 can of Spam, diced
handful of Butterscotch pieces
1 bag of Cheetos
1 cup of Pecans
1 cup of Dried cranberries
handful of Brown, orange and yellow Reese’s Pieces
1 cup of Pretzels
handful of Yogurt clusters
1 cup of Chocolate chips
handful of Coconut
1 cup of Banana chips
1 cup of Pumpernickel bread crunchies
handful of Marshmallow
1 cup of Almonds
1 cup of Raisins
1 Ham
1 cup of Cashews
1 cup of Barbecue peanuts
1 cup of Wasabi peas
handful of M&Ms
1 cup of Cheez-Its
1 cup of Rice crackers
handful of Sunflower seeds
1 bag of Pork rinds

SEASONING
3 tbl of Worcestershire sauce
Brad Pitt’s secret soup ingredient from Fight Club, to taste
Spanish fly, to taste
1 tbl Cayenne pepper
1 tbl Sea salt
1 tbl Ground pepper
1/2 cup of bacon grease
Skoal, sprinkle to taste

Pre-heat oven to 250 degrees. Mix all ingredients in a bowl. Place mixture in a shallow baking pan with sides. Bake for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes.

I ended up making two batches of mix, one spicy (cayenne) and one regular. It consisted of Wheat and Corn Chex, Honey Nut Cheerios (all off-brand), cheddar Goldfish, Craisins, almond slivers, crushed macadamias, and cashews.

In order to visually differentiate the spicy from the regular, I added one of those very tiny bags of Fritos to the cayenne mix. I can eat spicy all day, everyday, but the housemates here may not handle it the way Michael Roberts and I do. I wanted to be considerate.

I washed clothes as the mixes baked. Roberts woke up and left on a coffee adventure. My hometown friend Maxwell Aloysius Borkenhagen called me looking to make hang. He’s a student at Lewis & Clark college and lives two blocks aways from Anis’s house. He came by a while later and I introduced him to Roberts. We ventured out to Bread & Ink for their happy hour lunch special. I ate an awesome $3.00 house salad with a sherry vinaigrette and a cup of black bean chili. I washed it down with a $2.50 pint of Laurelwood Tree Hugger porter. DEE-lish!

On the way back to the house we saw a city-commissioned, adobe-ish gazebo at the corner of an international hostel. I immediately felt that we needed to sit in it for a little while. Maxwell called the actual material cob, which I had never heard of. There’s been a pretty constant and annoying drizzle since I got here and probably since I left here in November. The cob gazebo, looking out onto the intersection, was just what I needed. Just as we sat, a woman was crossing the street toward us, lead by her small pug who then joined us in the gazebo. We all took turns petting and scratching the dog, Wasabi. We all introduced ourselves. Wasabi’s owner’s name was Rachael. I remember her saying it was the Hebrew spelling and that it means mother. She was on her way home to make dinner for her girlfriend. She had picked up some very beautiful flowers for her love and ingredients to make a traditional Hawaiian dish. Her girlfriend is half Irish, half Hawaiian, and hasn’t been able to find good Hawaiian food in Portland.

Wasabi and Rachael made my day. Maybe even made the day for all three of us boys. Had we not sat in that cob, we wouldn’t have met them then. We returned home, ate some Chex Mix and thoroughly enjoyed Royal Tenenbaums again. Paul came by and Roberts tried to get me to watch Darjeeling Limited, but I got sleepy and napped.

I woke at one am to the DVD menu playing over and over and no Paul or Roberts. I figured they went out. I regret sleeping so long, but hey, whatevs. It was a good day.
———
Word to the nerd.

Originally published at Mike McGee Town. You can comment here or there.

The sun looks like it wants to stay out. It’s telling me to hit the road, but I’m way ahead of it. I know the title of this post is cliche, but it’s all true.

Alone at the Riddle house last night, I spent most of the day writing about Gabs. I took a few phone calls, specifically one from RC Weslowski. A delightful call. Full of love.

I published my post and had some toast. I attempted to watch Amelie, which I hadn’t seen in quite some time. I simply adore that style of filmmaking. At about seven and a half minutes into the DVD, there’s a shot of a bunny cloud in the sky. Nice coincidence.

I fell asleep probably 20 minutes into the film. When I woke at midnight, the house was dark and quiet, aside from some strung up Xmas lights in the dining room. So subtle and warm. Little lights are always welcome to my eyes. Waking up to nightlights is like a visual version of: ‘No worries, bud. Go back to sleep. We got everything under control.’

I fell right back to sleep and woke at 4am. A bit sore from couch tossing, I knew I needed another hour or so. I showered and planned my travels to Portland. I had bought my ticket online two days ago, for travel yesterday, but decided to take’er easy and wait. I am glad I did, I just hoped it wouldn’t cost me to much to change it for today.

At 6:30am, feeling the need to sleep some more, I laid back down on the couch, this time, sleeping for 3 more wonderful hours. I woke feeling ready for the day. Much, much needed sleep. I love to nap. Anyone too busy to nap is going to regret it by the time they’re my age.

I put on my shoes and headed out the door. My phone rang as I exited the building. It was Knowles, calling to check on me and to give me audible hugs. She’s great. I walked to Brew’s Brothers for a small coffee, then off to Greyhound.

I am half way now to Portland. It’s a good day. Eirean Bradley is picking me up. Gonna meet up with a few fellow Write Bloody authors and have myself a nice little poetry slam feature. Tonight, I will have a beer for me and Gabs. Tonight I will look a stranger in the eye and hope they see love coming right at them. Tonight I will hug many and be hugged back. I love this life. I love this world. So immensely.

As C.R. Avery once said, “Quit your fucking day job and hit the road.”

This bus is rolling fast, headed right for the sun. The west is calling. Here I come.
———
Word to the nerd.

The sun looks like it wants to stay out. It’s telling me to hit the road, but I’m way ahead of it. I know the title of this post is cliche, but it’s all true.

Alone at the Riddle house last night, I spent most of the day writing about Gabs. I took a few phone calls, specifically one from RC Weslowski. A delightful call. Full of love.

I published my post and had some toast. I attempted to watch Amelie, which I hadn’t seen in quite some time. I simply adore that style of filmmaking. At about seven and a half minutes into the DVD, there’s a shot of a bunny cloud in the sky. Nice coincidence.

I fell asleep probably 20 minutes into the film. When I woke at midnight, the house was dark and quiet, aside from some strung up Xmas lights in the dining room. So subtle and warm. Little lights are always welcome to my eyes. Waking up to nightlights is like a visual version of: ‘No worries, bud. Go back to sleep. We got everything under control.’

I fell right back to sleep and woke at 4am. A bit sore from couch tossing, I knew I needed another hour or so. I showered and planned my travels to Portland. I had bought my ticket online two days ago, for travel yesterday, but decided to take’er easy and wait. I am glad I did, I just hoped it wouldn’t cost me to much to change it for today.

At 6:30am, feeling the need to sleep some more, I laid back down on the couch, this time, sleeping for 3 more wonderful hours. I woke feeling ready for the day. Much, much needed sleep. I love to nap. Anyone too busy to nap is going to regret it by the time they’re my age.

I put on my shoes and headed out the door. My phone rang as I exited the building. It was Knowles, calling to check on me and to give me audible hugs. She’s great. I walked to Brew’s Brothers for a small coffee, then off to Greyhound.

I am half way now to Portland. It’s a good day. Eirean Bradley is picking me up. Gonna meet up with a few fellow Write Bloody authors and have myself a nice little poetry slam feature. Tonight, I will have a beer for me and Gabs. Tonight I will look a stranger in the eye and hope they see love coming right at them. Tonight I will hug many and be hugged back. I love this life. I love this world. So immensely.

As C.R. Avery once said, “Quit your fucking day job and hit the road.”

This bus is rolling fast, headed right for the sun. The west is calling. Here I come.
———
Word to the nerd.

Originally published at Mike McGee Town. You can comment here or there.

I want to make (it) out, with the women, the cash, the alive. There is a passion I’m feeling that is very mature, but different for me. I dig life experience, but I’ve been such a vicarious-type most of my life, and now I am yearning for all sorts of stuffs involving life, liberty and love.

I was in Manchester, New Hampshire last week and it was more than interesting. I had a blast hanging out with my host Matthew Tremblay (aka: Unseen the Poet or USP), his ladyfriend Meg, Mark Palos (ate w/him at Red Arrow! Good times!), his roomie Rem, and a score of other cast and crew involved in the ManchVegas scene. I very specifically enjoyed my time with Frumpity:

Experienced my second Noreaster of the year. I’m collecting a bunch of weather stories for ’07.

We ate lobster, my first actual lobster in New England. Nice! Matthew scraped out my lobster poop for me.

Matthew, pictured with Frumpity and I, is one of the swellest hosts there is and can be found slamming at the Bridge Cafe in Manch, or at the Boston Cantab. He’s one of the few poets I know who owns his own badass house.

Had one of the best gigs of my life at the University of New Hampshire, in Durham. The kids there were stupendous and I performed for over two hours. I’ve been doing that a lot lately. On average, I perform for 1:25. It is nice to pull out such a long set, but my show has been getting more and more personal, with responses from those in attendance equally as personal after the show and by email. If you’ve emailed me in the last month, I’m getting to your message.

Then I headed out to Portland, Oregon to hang with Anis Mojgani, Sarah, Ted, and Chris. Met up with my friend and old Kinko’s boss Tadashi Andrews, who also took the black and white image that is my “Smoking Quasimodo” userpic.

They all joined me in McMinnville, OR for my show at Linfield College, which went very well.

My time in Portland was far too short and I hope to spend more time with those homies this summer.

I then made my way to Bellingham, Washington where I napped at Ryler Dustin, Jake Tucker, and Graham Isaac’s house. I had a noon show at Whatcom Community College with Ryler opening for me. If you have not heard of Ryler, or his poetry, you have missed out. He’s fabulous.

The one and only Jack McCarthy made his way up for my show. It was pretty damn swell to see him.

I hung out throughout the night with the B’ham peeps, then Greydogged it to my friend Art’s place for a day and night and a day.

I caught a red-eye to Cincinatti, where I am lay-overed toward Hartford, Connecticut for a gig at Quinnipiac University. Been to Manchester and Hartford several times this year now. It’s good.

Due to scheduling, I had to back out of Chicago’s Mental Grafitti Slam Final, but I am available for Berkeley’s slam semifinals. I am also hosting San José’s Slam Final on May 11. Lots of finalization.

I will be featuring at HawaiiSlam on May 3, 2007. Looking very much forward to it.

I head to B.C. on May 12. Won’t get to spend too much time in Vancouver, so I hope to make plans with a large group of people on May 12.

I cannot get enough of R.E.M.’s “Imitation of Life.” Great fucking song.
–––––––––
Word to the nerd.