"It is what it is."
Last week I heard these words so many times I wondered: What's going on here? What does this mean? It sounds like a chant, repeated so often and from so many mouths it resembls a mantra, but the end result isn't uplift or enlightenment. The words are often accompanied by a small shrug of the shoulders, or a resigned sigh. It isn't a new saying by any means, but it enters conversation these days much more frequently than before. It's not said in the sense of "what's done is done, move on." It sounds more like "that's the way it is and we can't do anything about it."
What happened to believing you can change things? Why the fatalism, the defeatist attitude? Where did rebellion go? Idealism? Believing in dreams of the future? Setting an example of optimism for our kids and friends and co-workers? Continuing to strive for our dreams despite the difficulties and barriers thrown in our way?
It's as if accepting the status quo has become the status quo. Why? Is it the state of the economy? Are people feeling so defeated they've given up? It's like some weird contagion, some invisible mote floating through the air, sucked in then sucking up all the positive energy, exhaled in this seemingly unrebuttable statement.
Well, I argue that it is indeed arguable. The Resistance during WWII didn't feel this way. 60's protesters, as mellow as they could be at times, didn't feel that way. Years ago, someone said to me, "I decided to settle." That bothered me in my youth like "it is what it is" grates now.
I prefer John Lennon's outlook:
IMAGINE. . .
Monday, September 3, 2012
Monday, August 27, 2012
Reality TV?
It's a pretty telling comment on the state of affairs in America when a fictional t.v. series brings us closer to the truth than anything we hear on the "real" news. Last night's season finale of HBO's +The Newsroomwas so well-plotted and smart I almost started cheering for the issues it raised -- and would have if the walls and floors in my apartment building didn't carry every sound. I did, however, clap!
By focusing on the story of the near-impossibility of a 95-year-old black woman obtaining a photo I.D. in order to vote, newscaster Will (voicing, I'm sure, his creator Aaron Sorkin's concerns) brought into play many of the crucial issues we'll see as we near the election. Sorkin isn't afraid to let his characters passionately discuss the large issues of the day or their quirky obsessions (like the excellent Dev Patel's fixation on Bigfoot). Nor is he afraid to realistically depict how easily misled we can be in politics, love, friendship, and work.
Last night Will fearlessly called the Tea Party the American Taliban, listing bullet points making that analogy clearly feasible. He tackled religion as well, reminding his listeners that our Founding Fathers took great pains to keep church and state separate.
I was glad to see an EW reader refute the thumbs-down assessment of this show (EW called it a snooze-fest) by saying that it may be so for those viewers who don't want to think about the problems that face our country today. I say let them watch mindless reality shows if they (again, in Sorkin's words) "can't handle the truth." It is too bad, though, that there is no non-premium channel willing to be as brave as HBO on the political issues of the day. Another series that seriously discusses these issues is Bill Maher (again, HBO; again, a polarizing figure).
Sorkin has said, "I don't like riling people up. That's not what I'm going for, but I think that when people are talking this much and this loudly about a TV show, it's good for television."
Note that he said "loudly" - maybe I shouldn't have worried about the neighbors last night after all?
By focusing on the story of the near-impossibility of a 95-year-old black woman obtaining a photo I.D. in order to vote, newscaster Will (voicing, I'm sure, his creator Aaron Sorkin's concerns) brought into play many of the crucial issues we'll see as we near the election. Sorkin isn't afraid to let his characters passionately discuss the large issues of the day or their quirky obsessions (like the excellent Dev Patel's fixation on Bigfoot). Nor is he afraid to realistically depict how easily misled we can be in politics, love, friendship, and work.
Last night Will fearlessly called the Tea Party the American Taliban, listing bullet points making that analogy clearly feasible. He tackled religion as well, reminding his listeners that our Founding Fathers took great pains to keep church and state separate.
I was glad to see an EW reader refute the thumbs-down assessment of this show (EW called it a snooze-fest) by saying that it may be so for those viewers who don't want to think about the problems that face our country today. I say let them watch mindless reality shows if they (again, in Sorkin's words) "can't handle the truth." It is too bad, though, that there is no non-premium channel willing to be as brave as HBO on the political issues of the day. Another series that seriously discusses these issues is Bill Maher (again, HBO; again, a polarizing figure).
Sorkin has said, "I don't like riling people up. That's not what I'm going for, but I think that when people are talking this much and this loudly about a TV show, it's good for television."
Note that he said "loudly" - maybe I shouldn't have worried about the neighbors last night after all?
Monday, July 23, 2012
Another Publication!
I just found out today that one of my poems will be included in Adrienne Rich: A Tribute Anthology. I feel extremely honored. For those of you who aren't familiar with one of the most influential poets of the 20th century, I recommend you start with either Leaflets or The Dream of a Common Language. She died on March 27th. My poem, "Schoolgirl", was inspired by her poem "The Demon Lover."
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Exciting Publication News!
I arrived home today to a package sticking out of my mailbox. It was the arrival of the Anthology of Short Memoirs, Impact, which is available on Amazon, as well as other avenues, which I'll import for you below. My 9-page poetry sequence, "I Dress In Red," was accepted months ago for this anthology, and now it's out. I'm very excited, as now I have another credit for my author bio.
The blurbs in the front of the book are wonderful -- one of them references one of my poems! It was thrilling to read them in book form.
I'm elated that my persistence paid off and grateful to be published in such a handsome collection. If you have some extra dollars to spend, which I know is tough in this economy, buy the book and send me your impressions. Of course, the book I'm reading now will be set aside so I can peruse my fellow writers in Impact.
IMPACT: A Collection of Short Memoirs
ISBN-13:
978-0982922866
Trade Paperback: 6x9, 270 pages
$21.00
eBook: most formats (Kindle, NOOK, etc.,)
$4.99
Trade Paperback: 6x9, 270 pages
$21.00
eBook: most formats (Kindle, NOOK, etc.,)
$4.99
TOSP (Telling Our Stories Press) uses CreateSpace, Smashwords and Kindle to make print and eBook titles available worldwide via:
- Bookstores and Online Retailers - online and offline retailers such as Barnes & Noble and distributors such as Ingram and NACSCORP.
- CreateSpace Direct - title available to certified resellers and book wholesalers. Title available to millions of customers on Amazon.com. Customers ordering from Amazon.com can take advantage of FREE Super Saver Shipping, One-Day Shipping, 1-Click® ordering, and Amazon Prime® on eligible orders.
- Amazon Europe - A broad title availability through Amazon's European websites including Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.de, Amazon.es, Amazon.fr, Amazon.it.
- Smashwords is an eBook publishing and distribution platform offering multi-format, DRM-free ebooks, for purchase, and readable on practically any e-reading device.
- Kindle - Amazon's eBook publishing and distribution platform
Saturday, February 19, 2011
A World Between Four Walls: ROOM by Emma Donoghue
When I was a senior in high school, one of our Accelerated English Class assignments was a "creative" book report. I chose To Kill a Mockingbird
. Probably because of play rehearsals, I'd waited until the last minute to complete the assignment. I madly searched through my parents' magazines for pictures to illustrate various quotations from the book. Everything was clicking -- no matter where I turned, I found drawings and photos that perfectly illustrated my chosen quotes, or found a picture that triggered a quote to accompany it. I capped the project by writing a summary of the book in free verse, from Scout's point of view, in her voice. I became Scout as I wrote, and when I finished, returned to the world dazed.
I got an A+ on that paper: "Originality A+, Quality A+, Use of Source A+", and Miss Bischoff's comments included this one: "I wish everyone I know could see it!" At the bottom of the page where Scout's "poem" ended she wrote, "This gives me goose pimples, it's so good!" (all exclamations hers). My dad, too, thought it was great and offered me $50 for it. At the time, that was a heck of a lot of money to me, but I wanted to keep it for myself.
I thought of that project all these years later as I read Emma Donoghue's Room. The story is told from the point of view of a five-year-old child who has known only the four walls of one room his entire life. Within those walls, however, his mother has created a world that, to him, is full of wonders. Any unhappiness he suffers is minor. He looks forward to small pleasures with eagerness. He's smart, curious, creative.
As I read, I thought back to the time when I wrote my poem and created my project, remembering how possessed I felt at the time. I was thinking -- Emma Donoghue must have felt the same, but she sustained that creative possession through 321 pages without faltering. How did she do it? She must have dreamed the book when she wasn't awake writing it. She must have constantly had Jack in her head. She didn't let go of him, and he held onto her all the way through this very disturbing, haunting tale.
Here's a quote that gives the reader plenty to ponder (and believe me, you'll have this book stuck in your head long after you put it down):
. Probably because of play rehearsals, I'd waited until the last minute to complete the assignment. I madly searched through my parents' magazines for pictures to illustrate various quotations from the book. Everything was clicking -- no matter where I turned, I found drawings and photos that perfectly illustrated my chosen quotes, or found a picture that triggered a quote to accompany it. I capped the project by writing a summary of the book in free verse, from Scout's point of view, in her voice. I became Scout as I wrote, and when I finished, returned to the world dazed. I got an A+ on that paper: "Originality A+, Quality A+, Use of Source A+", and Miss Bischoff's comments included this one: "I wish everyone I know could see it!" At the bottom of the page where Scout's "poem" ended she wrote, "This gives me goose pimples, it's so good!" (all exclamations hers). My dad, too, thought it was great and offered me $50 for it. At the time, that was a heck of a lot of money to me, but I wanted to keep it for myself.
I thought of that project all these years later as I read Emma Donoghue's Room. The story is told from the point of view of a five-year-old child who has known only the four walls of one room his entire life. Within those walls, however, his mother has created a world that, to him, is full of wonders. Any unhappiness he suffers is minor. He looks forward to small pleasures with eagerness. He's smart, curious, creative.
As I read, I thought back to the time when I wrote my poem and created my project, remembering how possessed I felt at the time. I was thinking -- Emma Donoghue must have felt the same, but she sustained that creative possession through 321 pages without faltering. How did she do it? She must have dreamed the book when she wasn't awake writing it. She must have constantly had Jack in her head. She didn't let go of him, and he held onto her all the way through this very disturbing, haunting tale.
Here's a quote that gives the reader plenty to ponder (and believe me, you'll have this book stuck in your head long after you put it down):
"In Room we knowed what everything was called but in the world there's so much, persons don't even know the names." (p. 267).
I don't know the names of half the plants and birds in my little part of the world here in Pennsylvania. Think of all we don't know, of all that's left to learn, enough in our own little worlds to carry us through a lifetime.
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Censorship Today - Twain Still Makes the News
It would be interesting to hear Mark Twain's reaction to the censorship of Huck Finn (a new edition has the word "nigger" replaced with "slave" so as not to "offend" African-Americans.) What the ****? To hear Jon Stewart and Larry Wilmore take on the ridiculousness - and seriousness -- of this attempt at censorship, go to this link:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/12/jon-stewart-takes-on-huck_n_807921.html
Wilmore also brings up the Republican reading of the Constitution and talks about how they conveniently omitted the part about African-Americans being "3/5 of a person." As Wilmore - and many others - have said, "You can't whitewash our history."
Bill Maher also took this issue on last Friday with D.L. Hughley was his guest. Hughley said, "They took nigger out of Huckleberry Finn and replaced it with slave. White people, that's NOT an upgrade."
There have also been serious editorials and articles about the Huck Finn censorship; an excellent one appeared in the NY Times on January 6, 2011 by Michiko Kakutani. The title alone is priceless: "Light Out Huck, They Still Want to Sivilize You."
But back to Mark Twain -- what would he say? I'm sure he'd have some choice words for English Professor Alan Gribben, who has taken it upon himself to revise Twain's classic.
What is Gribben thinking? This censorship is of a piece with the 2010 Texas school textbook controversy, in which the Texas state Board of Education is changing the historical record to eliminate Thomas Jefferson from the list of our nation's founding fathers, erase Senator Edward Kennedy and Cesar Chavez completely while highlighting Ronald Reagan as a hero, rename slavery "the Atlantic triangular trade", among other things. I wonder what the Texas Board of Education would call Jim?
Another censorship issue I've come across recently is in the February issue of ARTNews, in a Commentary by Robin Cembalest called "Between a Cross and a Hard Place." The article details the Smithsonian Institution's decision to censor a video by David Wogjnarowicz. Catholic League president Bill Donohue, House Republican leader John Boehner and minority whip Eric Cantor, among others, used this video as an excuse to question the Smithsonian's federal funding. When museums cave in to the right, it can backfire years later, the museum in question having lost the respect of the arts community. This is an excellent article -- I highly recommend it for your reading, as Ms. Cembalest describes the controversy most articulately.
These illustrations illustrate to me how our country is moving farther and farther to the right, becoming more and more conservative. These examples show how fearful people are of reality, true history. How do they sleep at night, knowing they're feeding their children lies?
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/12/jon-stewart-takes-on-huck_n_807921.html
Wilmore also brings up the Republican reading of the Constitution and talks about how they conveniently omitted the part about African-Americans being "3/5 of a person." As Wilmore - and many others - have said, "You can't whitewash our history."
Bill Maher also took this issue on last Friday with D.L. Hughley was his guest. Hughley said, "They took nigger out of Huckleberry Finn and replaced it with slave. White people, that's NOT an upgrade."
There have also been serious editorials and articles about the Huck Finn censorship; an excellent one appeared in the NY Times on January 6, 2011 by Michiko Kakutani. The title alone is priceless: "Light Out Huck, They Still Want to Sivilize You."
But back to Mark Twain -- what would he say? I'm sure he'd have some choice words for English Professor Alan Gribben, who has taken it upon himself to revise Twain's classic.
What is Gribben thinking? This censorship is of a piece with the 2010 Texas school textbook controversy, in which the Texas state Board of Education is changing the historical record to eliminate Thomas Jefferson from the list of our nation's founding fathers, erase Senator Edward Kennedy and Cesar Chavez completely while highlighting Ronald Reagan as a hero, rename slavery "the Atlantic triangular trade", among other things. I wonder what the Texas Board of Education would call Jim?
Another censorship issue I've come across recently is in the February issue of ARTNews, in a Commentary by Robin Cembalest called "Between a Cross and a Hard Place." The article details the Smithsonian Institution's decision to censor a video by David Wogjnarowicz. Catholic League president Bill Donohue, House Republican leader John Boehner and minority whip Eric Cantor, among others, used this video as an excuse to question the Smithsonian's federal funding. When museums cave in to the right, it can backfire years later, the museum in question having lost the respect of the arts community. This is an excellent article -- I highly recommend it for your reading, as Ms. Cembalest describes the controversy most articulately.
These illustrations illustrate to me how our country is moving farther and farther to the right, becoming more and more conservative. These examples show how fearful people are of reality, true history. How do they sleep at night, knowing they're feeding their children lies?
Monday, December 27, 2010
1968: The Year That Rocked the World
Near the end of this excellent history, Mark Kurlansky says:
"The year 1968 was a terrible year and yet one for which many people feel nostalgia. Despite the thousands dead in Vietnam, the million starved in Biafra, the crushing of idealism in Poland and Czechoslovakia, the massacre in Mexico, the clubbings and brutalization of dissenters all over the world, the murder of the two Americans who most offered the world hope, to many it was a year of great possibilities and is missed. . . The thrilling thing about the year 1968 was that it was a time when significant segments of population all over the globe refused to be silent about the many things that were wrong with the world. They could not be silenced. There were too many of them, and if they were given no other opportunity, they would stand in the street and shout about them. And this gave the world a sense of hope that it has rarely had, a sense that where there is wrong, there are always people who will expose it and try to change it."
I was only a junior in high school that year, a senior for the last of it, and was only vaguely aware of what was going on. Not until I went to college in 1969 did I become involved in any sort of protest, first the mild demonstration that occurred on the Muhlenberg campus (I still have the "Peace" armband I wore then) and then some Washington marches. There was definitely something in the air that I felt and absorbed. By the end of my college years, much of the hope Kurlansky talks about was gone, especially after McGovern lost the election in '72n and the Vietnam War continued to drag into the 70's.
It seems to me that people were less afraid in the 60's. They spoke out. They fought for their beliefs with their bodies, not just via e-mail or text or Facebook. People have not given up - I applaud the Veterans for Peace who protested (130 of the protesters arrested) December 16th when they demonstrated against the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and President Obama's decision to move our troop pullout from 2011 to 2014.
What's so amazing is that, despite certain governments thinking it was all a conspiracy, the student revolutions happened at the same time, independently of each other. I was aware of Paris and Czechoslovakia, but didn't know - or didn't remember -- the details, and don't remember hearing about Mexico and the other revolts that happened back then, in Italy, Spain, Germany.
The government learned how to work the media for their own ends. We don't see the coverage we should be seeing today; the war is a footnote. How many of you knew there was a protest in December in Washington? The numbers are manipulated, photos destroyed and data skewed (that went on in the 70's too) so that the wars can go on. It happened then and happens today. There will always be truth-tellers who can't be silenced, though (Joe Sacco, Michael Herr, Michael Moore).
I knew nothing about Alexander Dubcek, and plan to read more on him (HOPE DIES LAST: THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF ALEXANDER DUBCEK)
. He seemed to me a wise and compassionate man. If you want to learn some sharp history with a slew of anecdotes, connections, and references to music, feminism, art, philosophy of the times, read this book. It may not make you a revolutionary, but it will make you think about what matters, about what makes a nation great. It will teach you much and if you already know all about it, will make you remember.
(You may be able to get a used copy at http://www.powells.com/ like I did.)
"The year 1968 was a terrible year and yet one for which many people feel nostalgia. Despite the thousands dead in Vietnam, the million starved in Biafra, the crushing of idealism in Poland and Czechoslovakia, the massacre in Mexico, the clubbings and brutalization of dissenters all over the world, the murder of the two Americans who most offered the world hope, to many it was a year of great possibilities and is missed. . . The thrilling thing about the year 1968 was that it was a time when significant segments of population all over the globe refused to be silent about the many things that were wrong with the world. They could not be silenced. There were too many of them, and if they were given no other opportunity, they would stand in the street and shout about them. And this gave the world a sense of hope that it has rarely had, a sense that where there is wrong, there are always people who will expose it and try to change it."
I was only a junior in high school that year, a senior for the last of it, and was only vaguely aware of what was going on. Not until I went to college in 1969 did I become involved in any sort of protest, first the mild demonstration that occurred on the Muhlenberg campus (I still have the "Peace" armband I wore then) and then some Washington marches. There was definitely something in the air that I felt and absorbed. By the end of my college years, much of the hope Kurlansky talks about was gone, especially after McGovern lost the election in '72n and the Vietnam War continued to drag into the 70's.
It seems to me that people were less afraid in the 60's. They spoke out. They fought for their beliefs with their bodies, not just via e-mail or text or Facebook. People have not given up - I applaud the Veterans for Peace who protested (130 of the protesters arrested) December 16th when they demonstrated against the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and President Obama's decision to move our troop pullout from 2011 to 2014.
What's so amazing is that, despite certain governments thinking it was all a conspiracy, the student revolutions happened at the same time, independently of each other. I was aware of Paris and Czechoslovakia, but didn't know - or didn't remember -- the details, and don't remember hearing about Mexico and the other revolts that happened back then, in Italy, Spain, Germany.
The government learned how to work the media for their own ends. We don't see the coverage we should be seeing today; the war is a footnote. How many of you knew there was a protest in December in Washington? The numbers are manipulated, photos destroyed and data skewed (that went on in the 70's too) so that the wars can go on. It happened then and happens today. There will always be truth-tellers who can't be silenced, though (Joe Sacco, Michael Herr, Michael Moore).
I knew nothing about Alexander Dubcek, and plan to read more on him (HOPE DIES LAST: THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF ALEXANDER DUBCEK)
. He seemed to me a wise and compassionate man. If you want to learn some sharp history with a slew of anecdotes, connections, and references to music, feminism, art, philosophy of the times, read this book. It may not make you a revolutionary, but it will make you think about what matters, about what makes a nation great. It will teach you much and if you already know all about it, will make you remember.(You may be able to get a used copy at http://www.powells.com/ like I did.)
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