Author: Guy LeCharles Gonzalez

This author has written 2012 articles
An arm with a tattoo: "I was made for the library, not the classroom."

It's felt like an unusually long week and I'm tired as hell. Might have something to do with letting myself get dragged back onto the poetry_slam listserve yet again! Grrrrr... Went to Urbana last night for Cristin's surprise tribute and send-off to Australia for her six-week trip. Hadn't been there in a while and it turned out to be a lot of fun. I lost count of how many of us read but we took over the open mic and each chose a poem of Cristin's to share - except for Orion who did his usual whacked-out Orion thing. I…

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An arm with a tattoo: "I was made for the library, not the classroom."

Thought for the day: Early in life I had to choose between honest arrogance and hypocritical humility. I chose honest arrogance and have seen no occasion to change. -Frank Lloyd WrightI have something of a reputation for being both stubborn and contentious. While it's true that I will debate most anything with a passion - no matter how right or wrong I may be - just for the hell of it, I will only fight for the things I truly believe in. Contrary to popular belief, however, it is not impossible to change my mind on something I believe in,…

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An arm with a tattoo: "I was made for the library, not the classroom."

Nothing representing Latinos

Tonight is Acentos and the cluttered attic that is my brain has been toying with an idea that Rich Villar mentioned last month, a couple of weeks after their show with Louis Reyes Rivera.

When I heard they had a disappointing turnout for it – including my stupid hungover ass among the missing! – I was extremely surprised. Not even the scenesters made the short hike to the Bronx for what was, by all accounts, an amazing experience. At the following Acentos, Rich and I talked about it and some interesting ideas he was considering.

In a seemingly unrelated moment, while preparing for the Oneonta show last week, I was putting together a list of poetry resources for the audience and was dismayed to realize that I had nothing representing Latinos! Spent a while on Google looking for an equivalent to the Asian American Writer’s Workshop or Cave Canem and came up empty.

Nada!

All of this got me thinking about the significant gap that exists between the generation of poets that founded the Nuyorican Poets Café back in the ’70s and my own generation of relatively unpolished but well-intentioned newcomers, echoing the concerns Rich had raised a few weeks earlier.

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An arm with a tattoo: "I was made for the library, not the classroom."

From the Things I never thought I'd say file: 1. I like Rush Limbaugh. Of course, I'm referring to the Rush Limbaugh currently appearing on ESPN's NFL Countdown and ONLY in that context! His input on the show - "Rush Challenge" - has been refreshing and provocative, forcing the regular commentators to dig a little deeper in their analysis and sometimes revealing their inherent biases as former players. What I like most is that he's obviously done his homework and speaks intelligently about the game, even when offering opinion over analysis, and his presence on the show is more substantial…

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An arm with a tattoo: "I was made for the library, not the classroom."

You are The Cap'n! Some men are born great, some achieve greatness and some slit the throats of any man that stands between them and the mantle of power. You never met a man you couldn't eviscerate. Not that mindless violence is the only avenue open to you - but why take an avenue when you have complete freeway access? You are the definitive Man of Action. You are James Bond in a blousy shirt and drawstring-fly pants. Your swash was buckled long ago and you have never been so sure of anything in your life as in your ability…

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An arm with a tattoo: "I was made for the library, not the classroom."

Just wanted to elaborate on a little something I touched on in the previous entry which was initially sparked by a discussion on Phil West's LiveJournal earlier this week: the question of emotion vs. polish or, a bit more esoterically, authentic vs. reflexive. In the simpler of the two debates, emotion vs. polish, I typically lean towards preferring emotion. Polish - especially taken in the context of whom Phil was having the initial discussion with - is often used as a euphemism for "better," with the inherent implication that emotional work is less-polished and, as a result not as good.…

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An arm with a tattoo: "I was made for the library, not the classroom."

Like slipping the medicine in with the ice cream

Oneonta turned out to be a lot of fun. It was weird in the beginning as I realized about 20 minutes before the show started that it was my first solo college appearance and I was all alone! Other than Robb Thibault, who was busy getting things organized, I had no one there with me. The nerves were a’jangling!

They had a great turnout for their first show of the year – 180 people, the most ever! (Coincidentally, it was their 13th show overall!) After a brief open mic, I went up for a 30-minute set, dropping Reality, Manifesto, The Long Walk Home, Prodigal Son, The View From Airplanes and Other Leaps of Faith, Mozer, Betha and I, and Breathless. After the slam, Robb brought me back for one more piece so I went with the energy and did 33-1/3 Revolutions Per Minute (Post 9/11 Remix).

While the whole night went well, it was that last piece that got the best response, driving home a point I’d come to accept long ago. People appreciate the well-written narrative stuff but they love the high-energy, easy-to-grasp, pop culture stuff the most. Even when it’s antagonistic and self-critical, like 33-1/3.

The trick is to be able to give them both, kind of like slipping the medicine in with the ice cream.

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