Reanimated Lavender Granola Switchblade Nun rides again.

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

I'd Like To Thank The Academy...




...but I can't. It was RachelW who gave me this award. Thank you, Rachel! There are rules. Um...can someone please open a window, I feel stifled, suddenly. The rules are...is it hot in here? The rules are, post seven bits of trivia about yourself. Then pass it on to seven people.




1. I keep a book journal. I started it in November of 1987 and can look up every book I have read since then. It's kind of fun to look and see how my tastes have changed, or not changed. The only blank section is "X". No X authors in 22 years. I read the most books in 1988 (41) when I had injured my knee and was off work for quite a while. The least was 13 in 2002. I had other fish to fry.




2. When I was maybe twelve years old, I was taken along on a visit to an aunt and uncle and ended up in their basement by myself (can I go watch television? Pleeeeeease?) watching a vampire movie. All these female vampires were trying to catch this investigator and he kept running around this haunted mansion trying to fend them off. They kept inviting him to become one of them, but he was upright and moral, yawn, zzzz. I kept thinking, if it was me, I couldn't run TO them fast enough. Become a lady vamp, be gorgeous, live forever, offend the bluenoses. There's something better than this? I think part of me left Duckburg forever, that afternoon.




3. One Christmas, I asked for a doll house. I didn't get it. I never got it. I'm bitter, right now still. Next life, I am so all about Barbie's freaking Dream House.




4. I had a dream once, before I started writing poetry again, in which I was walking around the grounds of some university. From a long distance ahead of me, I saw someone running in my direction. He turned out to be a medieval knight, with a black beard, armor and chain mail. He wasn't wearing a helmet, but he had all the rest of it. It was late summer, and he was running in all this heavy stuff and as he got closer, I could see two things. One was that he was working hard to keep running. Whatever he was intent upon doing, it had to be important! Secondly, his left hand, on which he wore a mailed glove, was on fire. He held it out to his side as he came closer, intent on his mission. I stepped off the path to let him pass, but he slowed down and faced me. "I have a message," he said. "Who is your message for?" I asked, amazed at this fiery knight before me. "The message is for you," he answered and pressed my hand to his flaming one, holding my hand fast with his right. What I felt was a wild combination of burning, electricity, pain, ecstasy, and a million more emotions too difficult to explain. I never forgot that knight with the flaming hand. Especially when I began writing poetry again... in the late summer...of 2006.


5. I have an angel. Her name is Lorelei. She is beautiful, lively, and a trip. I adore her. At this very moment, she is saying, "Hey Annie Shakespeare, 'bout time you wrote about me!" and is snapping her fingers and posing. I don't see and hear her in physical space, but in inner space. Sometimes I forget to tune in to her. She is showing me white lotus flowers. I don't know what that means, but she says that someone who will be reading this will understand.


6. I write my poems in a single sitting, longhand, in spiral notebooks. Usually, I begin with a single idea, or point I want to make, and a line or stanza (not necessarily the first one) in mind. Next I visualize the framework I will use for my poem, rather like a crossword puzzle that hasn't been filled in yet, that gives me the basic starts, stops, and cadence. Then I write like mad, just to get something down on paper while inspiration is present. After that I go over it and over it, changing whatever needs changing, but once I am done, that's it, I'm done. The only time I will ever go back to a poem to alter it, is if it didn't turn out. Then I may steal a phrase or section that DID work, for a new poem. I very rarely sit down to write and find that I can't, though. At least 90% of the time, I end up with a new poem I am happy with. Oh, and....when I am writing, I won't stop to eat, pee, answer the phone, or run out of the house if it is on fire. I'm locked in.


7. Cheeseburgers are nature's perfect food. I know, not very dainty, am I? If anyone is going to California, please mail me an In & Out Burger. I'll gladly pay you Tuesday....


The fab seven:


Twin, a.k.a Riot Kitty. I love my Twin!

Vesper, because she is a brilliant writer!

Scarlet, the Chica who IS Miami!

Gabriella Moonlight, because she is so creative about living.

Kay, because she writes such cool poems!

Cloudia, because she is the Queen of clickable photos!

Mama Zen, because. What? I need a reason? ;-)

_____________

18 comments:

  1. Certainly deserved.

    Good list.

    #4...dreams can be awesome. Had a few like that myself.

    I am so with you on 6. I could work for 6, 8 hours straight without stopping, eating, drinking (so no need to pee), nuthin' till I was done. Not healthy in my case which involves some convoluted postures and intense concentration. Learned a lot from a Navaho tale about Spiderwoman. Now I make myself take small breaks.

    Number 7...that's what Husband eats when we travel. Says it's pretty hard to screw up a hamburger.

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  2. Why, thank you, darling, for the award!

    And, thank you for #6. When you say visualize, are you being literal? Are you actually picturing the structure on the page?

    And, do you pace? I pace when I write. Frankly, I'd stand on my head if it would get me one bit closer to your kind of talent.

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  3. lotus flowers are beautiful and make me smile...hope you get your dream house. smiles.

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  4. Congratulations on your award and on your choices for conferring to seven bloggers. Only one of them I have met...Gabi, and yesss--she IS creative about living.

    #3. For my 16th birthday (May 1949) the hired hands, my sisters and brother, even neighbors whispered to me I was to be getting a new Jeep ($650 in 1949). At breakfast that birthday morning, sitting by my cereal bowl was a 1-inch long brand new Jeep. I have never forgiven ANY of them!

    Like your interesting list Shay. Thanks.

    PEACE!

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  5. Be still my Cuban heart! ¡Muchisimas gracias, Chica! You are much more deserving.

    I want to SO give you a doll house and play Barbie's with you!!! It's never too late! :)

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  6. Thank YOU!

    You are so impressive, so creative, so ballsy.


    Now I want to thank the academy.....*Blush*

    Thanks for the lovely card.


    Aloha, Poetess

    ps: you noticed that my photo click wording is different every day, didn't you!
    Comfort Spiral

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  7. >Congratulations on such a well deserved award!!!

    This is autobiographical post is one of your bests... but then our poems are too. I love #6 because I relate to it, except that i need to get up to light cigs when i am about to finish... and use the dictionary much more than you-for sure!

    I also love all the angels, witches and ghosts surrounding you... and miss what you know. ;)

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  8. Thank you for sharing this. If I thought it might help, I'd "borrow your proccess and maybe become a better writer myself ;-)....And, yeah, I like Lady vampire too !

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  9. this is THE right award for you, congratulations!

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  10. Congrats ... and your trivia is not so very trivial ..

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  11. I don't think it's too late for Barbie's dream house in this life. I think it's long past time to buy a little Christmas present for yourself.

    Congrats on the award.

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  12. although I am humbled by your award, I am horrible at following rules, but feel, I can place my 7 here and one day, perhaps, create another blog of acknowledgments, as I do find them extremely rewarding and fun :)

    1. I don't really know what trivial things there are about me?
    I am very point blank. just ask.

    2. I have kept a journel since I was 8 years old and can reflect back to any time in my life and know, that I have always been me.

    3. I hate rules and defy authority at every oppurtunity

    4. I wonder at this very point if I could possibly think of anything else, hence why I defy the rules?

    5. I am the youngest of six children and live 2,000 miles from my family (all of which live with in 30 miles of our mother) and I like it that way :) not minding the criticism or 'black sheep' title

    6. I still don't know what I am doing here

    7. I love reading. (period)

    :) enjoy this Halloween :)

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  13. I'm still waiting for my Easy-Bake oven...Hmmm...maybe that's why neither of us is Susie Homemaker.

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  14. It's so sweet reading about you! :-) You are so... girly... hahaha! You really should buy yourself that dollhouse; that's the beauty of being a grownup and having control of the purse strings. Why wait for the next life if you don't have to? ;-)

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  15. Congratulations for the award! It's really, really, really well deserved!

    And thank you so much for thinking of me. I couldn't tell you how honoured I am by this and by your praise. Thank you!

    You have a very interesting list of 7. I'll try to come up with something in a post... :-)

    And I'll come back to read your poems. I'm not at all in a mood for blogging these days... :-)

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Spirit, what do you wish to tell us?