"Problems with Hurricanes" by Victor Hernández CruzSometime in the beginning of my second-grade year in Mandeville Elementary, I got my first hurricane tracking map, which is funny because Houston (where I was born) wasn’t exactly immune to tropical weather, and the little towns in Brazoria County where I’d mostly lived until then were not far … Continue reading It's Hurricane Season Y'all
I'm asking for money
Not for me though.As I’ve mentioned in the past, I’m one of the poetry editors at The Rumpus. Senior Poetry Editor, though that’s because I’ve been there the longest, not because I have any special authority. In fact, I’m the last remaining editor of the original core when the site went live in January of … Continue reading I'm asking for money
It's that day
"Eating a Muffuletta in Des Moines" by meThis isn’t a real post, not the way I think of the writing I’m doing in this space. It’s more an excuse to post some pictures of something and also talk about a poem I wrote a while back. I’ve got a real post in the works right … Continue reading It's that day
Backwards Poets Write Inverse
"Dad Joke" by Amorak HueyMy twin daughters have, at the tender age of nine, mastered the exaggerated exhaustion response to dad jokes. Sagan’s is sardonic, a “nice dad joke” combined with an eye roll, while Tesla usually comes back with an elongated “daaaaaa-aaaad.” Sometimes they laugh first, if they’re not hungry or in a huge … Continue reading Backwards Poets Write Inverse
A little personal news
I’m currently working on the latest piece for Another Poem to Love. Sorry for the delay, but it’s the end of the semester and I’m trying to get all that done and my “write other things to avoid the work I need to do” strategy hasn’t quite worked like it usually does. Weird. But I … Continue reading A little personal news
Everybody's got a Jeoffry
On "Jubilate Agno" by Christopher Smart and poems modeled after itThere’s a scene early in The Lego Movie where our protagonist Emmet Brickowski is saying good morning to everyone and everything as he begins his day and heads to work. Along the way he meets Sherry Scratchen-Post and her many cats, and Emmet knows all … Continue reading Everybody's got a Jeoffry
Crochet Projects and Giving Back
Did I mention my hobby yet? I really thought I had, but I glanced back at my introductory post and bio and didn’t see it. I know I mentioned it in the comments over at Isaac Fitzgerald's Substack, Walk It Off in a post about helping yourself while you help others, so maybe that’s what … Continue reading Crochet Projects and Giving Back
When the first thought isn't always the best thought
On Matt Donovan's "Here the Thing with Feathers Isn't Hope"The first and so far only time I fired a gun was when I was a kid. Maybe a teenager but I don’t think so, not quite. We were visiting my uncle Bee in Tennessee and one night, not long after dark, he asked us if … Continue reading When the first thought isn't always the best thought
The Need to Swim with Predators
on Camille Dungy's "Notes on what is always with us"Near the end of spring break in 2020, back when we thought maybe we’d be able to control Covid with a couple of weeks of lockdown, my uncle Dave went into the ICU and straight onto a ventilator. Over the next two weeks, he died twice … Continue reading The Need to Swim with Predators
An Origin Story of Sorts
and "Love Poem Beginning with a Yellow Cab" by José OlivarezThis is a love story. This is the story of how I fell in love with poetry and what it can do to me. Is it going to be corny? Oh hell yes. So let’s get in this TARDIS over here, the dingy one that … Continue reading An Origin Story of Sorts