The Best Flight Ever

These things will never happen again. But let me tell you about the best flight ever.

*Drive to Manchester Airport and get there 3 hours to early. Yes I am a total dork.
*Results in attendant very pleasantly asking me if I want to take the earlier 5:55 flight instead of the 8:05 one.
*I still get my window seat.
*In a span of 20 minutes, I am through the security, quick stop to the bathroom and on the plane.
*There is no one in the middle seat, and the aisle seat has a nice and silent man in it. (Silent is most important when you don't have any music heaphone thing to listen to.)
*Flight was very very smooth.
*There were no babies on the flight.
*Jay is right at the airport, no waiting to be picked up.
*My bag is the FIRST one off the baggage carosel.


Note: these things will never happen again.

Feminist rant for the day... or at least this minute

So, I hate the word "lesbianism." I saw it in an article today about Sheryl Swoopes. I looked at the word and went, eeeeew. I mean the word "lesbian" on its own is not that great. But I love lesbians regardless what you call them. I mean its bad enough that most slang for the vagina is just brutal and gross sounding: meat curtains, tuna boat, cum dumpster, hairy taco, cunt, etc. Most slang for the penis is not that degrading and can be bandied about without much recoil: cock, prick, dick, trouser lizard, little bishop in a turtle neck, etc. I hear those and its like, oh, penis. I hear meat curtains and want to vomit a little in my mouth. And I love pussy or box. Those are ok. But come on, we all love our own genitalia, let's be more loving when naming them.
The word "lesbianism" is out there and it just sounds like a nasty disease. You would only see that word in a mainstream media site like CNN or NBC or something. Doubtful that you would see it in an actual source that cares about all people. It's just such a word that does not sound like something you should be comfortable in.

Sara Recommends

Buckling down
So, yes, this little poet finally did it. I buckled down and worked out a system for sending out submissions. I have at least 10 pregnant little envelopes on their way to get shredded to bits by some nasty mo-fo of an editor. But its all good. My friends from UNH kept a wall of rejection from every grad school or job they gor denied from. I think its kinda a weird motivator. Like you want to prove it wrong. So, I just really want to get published. I have very little ego when it comes to my creative work, but I just really want to share it. One of the RAs that puts together a news letter for the arts living community asked for some of my work for it. And you'd think that Hayden Carruth himself had asked for a copy, I was that flattered.

Cowboy Boots
I have never talked about one pair of footwear as much as I have these in my whole life. Seriously, if I could wear them every day I would. They are that exciting and they make great clomping noises and you just feel like you have a lively swagger with them on. I highly recommend them.

Green Earth toilet paper
You'd think that recycled (not from other toliet paper, but from other paper... duh) TP would be scratchy and bark like. Oh no. it's even quilted. Oh yes, now my bum can be eco-conscious too!

Joss Whedon commentaries on any of his shows
I was feeling a little low, and needed a comforting geeky voice to make me smile. Well, I just turned to my own little idol, Joss. He has this slight little lisp that bleeds the geek he is into what he is saying. He goes off on tangents and love his actors so much. He really uses them to their best abilities. He really is quite brilliant. He creates well-crafted pieces of art out of TELEVISION shows. To me, he made me love good TV again.


Six Feet Under, end of season four
And speaking of good TV... What the fuck?! I need season five RIGHT now. I don't know how long I can hold out. The tension waiting for it is going to be unbearable. But waiting makes it that much sweeter. I just hate to see it end. It makes me Book 7 sad.

Seriously, could we be cuter?

I just had my sister scan a bunch of pics for me. And this was one of the gems. I am cuddling Chronicles of Narnia books in my arms. Torrey said that should get me into the movie for free.

Reasons I work with college students: #256

This morning we took a van full of RAs to Portland Hall for a meeting. On the way back, we were discussing a program that they are doing in Robie-Andrews between the two men's floors: The Great Beard off. Starting on November 1st they shave clean and the day before Thanksgiving break, they judge on several different categories: best overall, fullest, thinnest, patchiest, etc. The conversation was just all together hilarious.

Then we got talking about neck beards. How some guys will shave but miss the neck all together. A concept I had never thought about before, but identified immediately. One of the RAs said, "Well, maybe they don't shave it to cover up hickeys." To which I reply, "Ok, because I would give a hickey over a neck beard." Ewwwww.

So, I love these random conversations that I think sometimes adults are afraid to have. Debates over the better PEZ flavor and how it tastes better out of a certain dispenser (Batman and Muppet ones are the best to me) or beards. And then get into an honest discussion about anti-discrimination and such. My mom calls this profession denial. I call it knowing where its at and not letting adulthood grab me by the proverbial balls and yanking me into mediocrity.

Quote from Sonia Sanchez

"All poets, all writers are political. They either maintain the status quo, or they say, "Something's wrong, let's change it for the better.' That's what my life has really been about."
-Sonia Sanchez

I saw this quote yesterday, and I got caught up in it. What do I do to change wrong as a writer? I know what I do as a person, but as a writer, there has to be more. I am not just talking about content, but community, or pushing envelopes in the world. Not just writing poetry for poets. Exposing myself and others to art that can change the world. I once got into a conversation with this drunk writer at Geno's who really just wanted to hear himself talk, and occasionally I got a word in -- but it was interesting how passionate the conversation got when we talked about poetry being a key to social change. Imagine if you knew what lit the fire for everyone. Use that to get people to move, and change the apathy, bring a little heart into what makes bureaucracy run, to the political system, to people waiting in lines, hell, I will do anything to get one more SUV off the road (short of guerilla tactics, but I did just sharpen my knives last night.... anyway...).

Poem by Martha Collins

Lines

Draw a line. Write a line. There.
Stay in line, hold the line, a glance
between the lines in fine but don't
turn corners, cross, cut in, go over
or out, between two points of no
return's a line of flight, between
two points of view's a line of vision.
But a line of thought is rarely
straight, an open line's no party
line, however fine your point.
A line of fire communicates, but drop
your weapons and drop your line,
consider the shortest distance from x
to y, let x be me, let y be you.

-Martha Collins

Sara recommends

Serenity
Were we all waiting for this from me? Not only did it meet my expectations, but it exceeded them. My expectations were also pretty high because I have been waiting for long and I also worship Joss, as we all know. Somethings happened in the film that elicted a stronger reaction from me that they normally do. I don't want to spoil anything. But seeing it I was so fully immersed in it, that coming out of the movie theatre, I just wanted to sit there and process and leave that 'verse on my own terms. I love silence coming out of a movie. Usually by time I get to the car, I am ready to talk. I have seen it four times. And oh my, it will never get old. Bring on number two.

Organizing your CDs
I have rediscovered jems I forgot I had -- Aretha Franklin, Velvet Underground, Morphine. And unearthed somethings that I am ashamed to admit I owned: Pavorati and Friends 2 and the soundtrack to Phenomenon. Yes, this was back in the day where you could not buy one song off an album, so my whims cost me 15 bucks a pop.

Bringing back TV shows that the networks were too blind to see their genius
Case in point, Firefly is the perfect example, this got turned into a film and made its cult fan status even higher. Browncoats unite.
Other shows that need to be brought back: Wonderfalls, My-so Called Life (although, I kind of don't want the question at the end answered, I like not knowing). But thank god they let Point Pleasant die. Oh, Marti, what were you thinking.

Listing things I do not care a lick about. But admitting I might be prone to bitching about later, because no one is infallible.
*Ashlee Simpson
*The DaVinci Code
*Reality plastic surgery TV shows
*High School reunions
*Wedding cake
*Football
*Donald Trump
*Cars that imply status
*Brad, Angelina, Ashton, Demi, Jen, Tom, Katie and all those other relationships that sour my happy buying food time at the grocery store because all I see is their freaking faces at the checkout line

Poem by Maggie Nelson

A Misunderstanding

I thought Zen poems
were supposed to sound wise.

Now I'm going to buy
as much beer as five dollars

can buy and drink it
right here on the sofa.

-Maggie Nelson

Wear green, be a rebel.

PROTEST "YES ON 1"
Wednesday, October 5th - 4 to 6 PM
Masterton Hall Steps
USM Portland Campus

Mike Heath, Executive Director of Christian Civic League and the leader on the campaign to make discrimination legal, will be speaking on campus to tell people why we should ALLOW discrimination in Maine. We will stand on the steps of Masterton to let everyone know that we will not be fooled by scare tactics and disillusionment. We need to make it clear that USM is not going to allow discrimination to happen.

When asked to move their venue to a larger space where everyone could participate, the "YES on 1" campaign said NO! We were also told that our questions must be submitted before hand to be asked at the event! They are not supporting FAIRNESS, OPEN DISCUSSION, or EDUCATION at USM!

We will show Mike Heath that the "NO on 1" campaign is about doing the right thing - making discrimination illegal. Please join us on the steps of Masterton Hall to protest the event. We will all be wearing green, there will be plenty of posters and the media will be present! Don't forget - WEAR GREEN!!!

Please pass this on to everyone you know, we need all the help we can get! If you have any questions please do not heisitate to ask.

Together Against Discrimination,
The Coalition to Vote Louder


Who submits questions before an event? I typically think of a forum or speaker of a topic might be open to an opportunity to engage with people about a topic they love to talk about. Part of me wants to listen to this crack pot. Hmmm, I love protests. Just one more thing to not get me elected president. Oh, wait... I am already a woman and can think for myself... that is -2 points for me from the get go. Damn. See you there!



You don't want to make the sisters angry by discriminating. Look at the narrowed eyes, see, you are afraid, eh?