thoughts from the kitchen

i made sure to get some extra alcohol when mom and i were at the grocery store today. i get the feeling i'm going to need it with all the cancer talk going around and my sister getting ready to board a flight to South Africa. i caught myself checking out ring fingers today at the grocery store. i'm taking that as a sign that my loneliness is starting to get to me now.

for Flashback Friday today, i want to change it up a bit. i want to shine a light on one of my favorite zines EVER, Zygote In My Coffee. Brian was kind enough to publish me so many damn times. as a poet, you can never find those type of humans enough. go to the site:
www.zygoteinmycoffee.com and check out the back issues. i'm in the first one and a ton of the others. but also check out all the other writers in the issues. and bookmark the site for when you need something to read. it's worth it.

WWE Smackdown was pretty good last night. i was very pleased with how Tyler Breeze made his debut:

the New York Rangers fell behind last night. unlike previous games, they stormed back and won 4-1. and a few of the guys got off the snide. plus, The King was The King once again.

i wrote another poem last night. i'm holding off on typing the newly written ones up as i feel i have a ton of shit right at the tip of my tongue.

i hardly watched any of the NFL game last night. from what i heard, i didn't miss much. i did pick the game right though.

enjoy some music kids:

and now some of this and that:

i'm hoping to go to the Red-Blue game tomorrow to see what the UD basketball teams look like. but, i have no clue if i will have a way there. mom is talking like she's going to go up to the hospital to see her brother and i have no fucking clue if she's going to be home in time for me to get to the arena. so, i may be trying to find shit on YouTube if i don't go.

on the DVR tonight will be Undateable, NJPW and The Knick. that should be an excellent night of television.

i have no clue when i'll be on here tomorrow. i imagine if i get a wild hair up my ass, i may try to bust a post out in the morning. but, with most of my sports not starting until the evening, it could be the rare morning i sleep in. ok, i laughed at that as well. that never fucking happens.

i'm sitting here watching hurricane coverage of what is approaching Mexico. i once had a girlfriend named Patricia. vaya con dios mis amigos. this storm looks fucking horrible on the radar.

that's all for me today kids. i hope everyone has a wonderful weekend. as always, call if you need bail money.

be well. be creative. be cool. be quick to send me CASH, panties, hate mail, love letters, broken promises and dirty pennies from heaven.

peace and chicken grease...

music:

Paolo Nutini - Iron Sky
Jeff Buckley - Everybody Here Wants You
INXS - Not Enough Time

"Married men live longer than single men. But married men are a lot more willing to die." - Johnny Carson

and your pro wrestling video of the day:

bring on the weak end

if the pain in my bones is correct, it will be raining here in a few hours. in a perfect world, i'll be home from the grocery store before it starts. in reality, it will probably be raining as i'm putting the groceries into the car. good times.

last night was a pretty fucking funny one. i laughed so damn hard i nearly pissed my pants and passed out, at the same time. you talk about talent. the first thing that made me howl was this from Lip Sync Battle:

Big Brother went as i thought it would. it should be an interesting week with one of the twins as HOH. Married was hilarious last night. and i think i'm really going to enjoy Sex&Drugs&Rock&Roll. that show made me really laugh. and to have Robert Kelly on drums makes me laugh even harder.

then came The Tonight Show. as i told my mother this morning, this completely reminded me of Carson in the 70's:

i haven't laughed that fucking hard in a long time.

now enjoy a long musical break my friends:

i had a fan send me this next song a long time ago. i still think of her even though we have long since lost touch. so, wherever you are Kelly, i do hope you are well.

the baseball season starts back up tonight. the New York Yankees will be at home playing Seattle. hopefully the boys can get on a nice winning streak to start the second half.

on the DVR tonight will be NJPW and Treehouse Masters.

and then late tonight, Manchester United takes on Club America in Seattle, Washington. i'm really interested to see how all the new players look. plus, i never turn down a chance to have a victory beer.

i feel like today is going to be a good one. it's always nice to wake up to poems being accepted. and then i found some new FREE music from Wilco and Third Eye Blind.

and since those names should have taken you back, welcome to Flashback Friday. today, let's revisit one of my favorite poems i have ever written. and sadly, it's a true story:
http://www.zygoteinmycoffee.com/100s/issue117socialanxiety.html

i smile when anyone says i make this shit up. god, i really wish that was the case. but, sadly, all the "good" poems comes from experience. and i get those published a hell of a lot more often than when i just sit back and let my imagination take over. now i like the imagination ones better, mostly because they didn't involve me going through any fucking pain to make them.

i hope everyone has a great weekend. i will be back on here sometime before the USA plays Cuba tomorrow in the Gold Cup.

the weather is supposed to be really hot and sticky this weekend. just perfect weather for fat people like me.

enjoy that visual.

be well. be creative. be cool. be quick to send me CASH, panties, hate mail, love letters, broken promises and dirty pennies from heaven.

peace and chicken grease...

music:

Wilco - Star Wars
Third Eye Blind - From Third Eye Blind to You: A Mixtape

"I like to deal in the reality of life. I'm too old to sing about women and things like that." - Geezer Butler

and your pro wrestling video of the day:

a truly dreary day

i took a nap this afternoon that was completely unexpected. i feel like old age has finally decided i am on the back half of the circle. and this was after a rare decent night of sleep.

had my truck towed to this local mechanic today. never used him before, but it's maybe 15 miles closer than the place i normally take it to. hopefully, i'll know by tomorrow what is wrong with it. mom and i came to the conclusion today if it costs more than $500 to fix it, we're going to junk it. so, part of me hopes it won't be that much to fix.

the tow truck driver was this old dude that talked like he had about a billion marbles in his mouth. that was fun trying to figure out what the fuck he was saying. at least he knew where to take it to.

Manchester United scored 3 goals in the second half last night to defeat Liverpool 3-1. that was a nice way to finish up the tour.

Monday Night Raw was pretty good last night. i didn't like when they ended it with the contract signing...the match before that would have been a better closer. just my opinion, i've only watched longer than most of the performers have been alive.

the Yankees got just enough runs and some great pitching last night to beat Detroit 2-1. they face yet another former cy young winner tonight. after they face another tomorrow, they will be the first team ever to do that. hopefully the winning can continue tonight.

other than that tonight, i'll be watching Deadliest Catch and Tyrant. looking forward to both of those.

i didn't get anything done i wanted to today. besides the nap, got some news i didn't want to get today.

i heard back from Brian at Zygote in My Coffee on my poetry submission from back in June. he has announced that Zygote is closing down. the site will remain up, as will the archives. it is also the end of Tainted Coffee Press as well. a BIG thank you to Brian for publishing me for over a decade. i truly appreciate it. my best to him and his family.

so, i now have a stack of poems to send out here soon. my apologies to a few of you editors out there before the emails start flying.

it feels like it is going to rain. at least, that's what my back is saying.

lord knows how late i'm going to be up tonight. this feels like one of those days where i pick up some paint brushes and just go nuts until i run out of steam. if that happens, i'll be sure to take some pictures of it.

that's all for today. hope this finds everyone well.

peace and chicken grease my enemies...

music:

Tei Shi - No Angel
Barbarian Overlords - The Harvester
Old Crow Medicine Show - Wagon Wheel
Tune-Yards - Water Fountain
The Chemical Brothers - One Too Many Mornings
Alex Clare - Too Close
U2 - Bad (Live)

"I often quote myself. It adds spice to my conversation." - George Bernard Shaw

not a good night

you might wonder what i'm doing awake at this hour... i decided to take out my anger on some typing. so, let me go ahead and apologize to the editors for the inevitable fuck ups that are most likely involved.

the New York Rangers blew a 2 goal lead and lost 3-2 in OT. i'm really hoping this doesn't come back to haunt them.

the Yankees blew a 4 run lead and lost 7-4. midway through the game it was announced that Don Zimmer died. that made the post game like a wake.

needless to say, my evening kept going from bad to worse.

i sent out 21 poems over the course of the last 2 hours... 2 to BoySlut. 3 each to Dead Snakes, The Camel Saloon, and Fuck Art, Let's Dance. and 5 each to Regardless of Authority and Zygote in My Coffee. when i hear back from these places i will pass along the verdicts.

the Yankees play later today, in the afternoon. Tanaka is pitching, so they might actually have a chance to win. i'll be back on here after that.

now i'm off to try to get some sleep and not toss and turn and wonder what if...

my 3 poems in Zygote in My Coffee #144

my poems "poor souls on front porches", "on the edge of the world", and "the loving arms of your dreams" have been published in Zygote in My Coffee #144. you can find the issue here:
http://www.zygoteinmycoffee.com/100s/issue144contentsprick.html

direct links to my poems will be below.

others with work in the issue include Doug Draime, William Taylor Jr., Ron Androla, Ally Malinenko, Catfish McDaris and many more.

poor souls on front porches
on the edge of the world
the loving arms of your dreams

response from Zygote in My Coffee

i heard back from Brian Fugett at Zygote in My Coffee today on my poetry submission from October 2013. my poems "poor souls on front porches", "on the edge of the world", and "the loving arms of your dreams" have been accepted for publication in issue #144, due out on 3/21/14.

now that's a damn cold front

woke up this morning to temps in the 40's. it was in the 80's just the other day. i know we got well over 2 inches of rain yesterday. had a little minor flooding in the lane, but nothing compared to some of the shit we've had before.

after i wrote my post for yesterday, i decided to take a chance and get the trash out early. i figured it was heavy enough that it wouldn't go flying in the oncoming storm. (i was right) i figured since i was going to be out in the rain, i might as well feed the cats. all was fine until i got to the second stall in the big barn. there was my cat Michael Jackson deader than dead. must have died in the last 18 hours or so. so, i went and got a shovel and walked in the rain towards the back of the property. said my goodbye and tossed it down the hill. took the trash down and then had to go change my wet clothes.

i thought i was having a decent day in fantasy football until i noticed one of my opponents changed his starting QB to Tony Romo. sadly, that was the same opponent i was already down 41 points to. my team scored 94. he had three players score 91. needless to say i lost by 40. and if i would have played all the highest scoring players, i still would have lost by 19. tip your hat and move on. as for my other match, i have a slight lead going into tonight. but i don't like my chances. i have the kicker for Atlanta while my opponent has the RB for the Jets. i will hope for the best but know that my chances of winning are slim at best.

i did enjoy that shootout yesterday between Dallas and Denver.

as for the Sunday night shows, Boardwalk Empire was great last night. a very gripping episode from start to finish. i thought the suicide at the end was perfectly shot. Eastbound and Down was absolutely hilarious. you can never go wrong when you have an episode that has kids calling their father a dick licker. Hello Ladies was really disappointing for me last night. i didn't find it funny at all. i suppose i will give the show another week, but if next week stinks that time slot will go back to sports. Homeland was good, not great. but it appears that this episode was used to set up the next one that looks really interesting. hopefully that is the case. Masters of Sex was my biggest disappointment of the night. the first show was so damn good and last night just dragged, start to finish. i'm really hoping next week is a much better episode.

tonight will be the hodgepodge of The Voice, Monday Night Raw, some Monday Night Football and after all that, the New York Rangers are playing out in Los Angeles. i really hope they can get the win tonight. the captain is back in the lineup, that should be a boost. i don't want to start the season on a long losing streak.

in my grogginess this morning (went to bed at 4 AM and was up at 8 AM), i emailed 5 poems to Zygote in My Coffee. when i hear back from Brian i will pass along the verdict.

that's pretty much all for today. oh yeah, another thing, i had an excellent glass of Sauvignon Blanc from France last evening. here is a link to it: http://us.nakedwines.com/wines/villebois-sauvignon-blanc-2012.htm

music:

Ivan & Alyosha - The Cabin Sessions
Guided By Voices - Half Smiles of the Decomposed
Charles Bradley - Victim of Love
Foy Vance - Joy of Nothing

"The work of art is a scream of freedom." - Christo

my 3 poems in Zygote in My Coffee #142

my poems "to a beautiful woman in new jersey", "true love", and "control" have been published in Zygote in My Coffee #142. you can find the poems by going to www.zygoteinmycoffee.com. others with work in the issue include William Taylor Jr., Shane Allison, Doug Draime, Luis Cuauhtemoc Berriozabal, and many more.

below are direct links to my poems

to a beautiful woman in new jersey
true love
control

on a cloudy Monday in June

i wasn't exactly upset last night that they cut the Yankees game short because of rain. the way the game was going, they had absolutely no chance of coming back. the team has completely hit a horrific stretch. and i'm not exactly sure when it will turn around for them. they play Cleveland tonight. thank god i have other viewing options.

i am looking forward to Monday Night Raw tonight. just the promise of some new talent being introduced has my mouth watering. plus, CM Punk will be back soon. that's always something to look forward to. while on the pro wrestling tip, a quick thought about Ring Of Honor over the weekend. every time i watch ACH wrestle, the more i enjoy it. i really hope this kid keeps progressing into a star one day.

i was a little stunned with team USA's victory over Germany yesterday. while i know it wasn't all the German stars playing, a team that struggles to score goals scored 4 on a team whose reserves are better than 90% of our players. i really hope this bodes well for the World Cup qualifiers coming up. highlights from the match are below:

i saw a bluebird eating some sunflower seeds yesterday on the farm for the first time since i have lived here. it immediately made me think of the Bukowski poem...

i did watch the end of the NASCAR race yesterday. Juan Pablo Montoya is my favorite driver of all-time. to see him get passed on the last few laps by another of my favorite drivers, Tony Stewart, was bittersweet to say the least. i'd love for JPM to win on an oval just once so some of the idiots could actually understand how great of a driver he really is. one of these days, it's going to happen.

a big game 7 tonight between the Heat and Pacers. i don't plan on watching much of it unless it's really close near the end or LeBron is having one of those 'holy shit' games.

The Voice is back on tonight. it's down to crunch time now. i'm planning on paying a little closer attention tonight to see who i think will win it all now that my first choice was eliminated last week.

i did go through some poems this morning and have come up with 9 i'll be sending out later this week. hopefully, i make some better choices than i have been making in the past few weeks. although, getting the 3 accepted at Zygote in My Coffee really freshened my outlook, at least for a little while.

that's pretty much all for today. i've got some lunch to get and a long shower to take to hopefully loosen up this back some. i can't imagine why i'm single... always bitching about something in my life. if it's not the back, it's the scar tissue all down the left side of my lower body. of course, knowing it's going to rain 18 hours before it does helps a little. but, since the thought of actually selling off the farm is being tossed around with a little more probability than i was initially expecting, i'm not sure how much good my rain detection is going to do me in the future if i'm living in a condo.

more on that in the coming weeks i imagine.

music today:

The Allman Brothers Band - The Allman Brothers Band
Melissa Etheridge - Greatest Hits: The Road Less Traveled
Young The Giant - Young The Giant
Audioslave - Audioslave

"Poets are Damned... but See with the Eyes of Angels." - Allen Ginsberg

response from Zygote in My Coffee

i heard back from Brian at Zygote in My Coffee on my poetry submission from March 19th. my poems "true love", "control", and "to a beautiful woman in new jersey" have been accepted for publication in issue #142, due out around July 4th.

and the sun came out, brighter than usual

let me quickly recap last night before i get to the plethora of things going on this evening.

the Yankees forgot their bats last night as they only had 4 damn hits. Andy pitched well, but had 2 mistakes and was handed a tough luck loss, 3-0. they are back home tonight. i'm not sure how much i will watch as they fall about 4th or 5th on the pecking order for the evening.

the New York Rangers can clinch a playoff spot tonight with a win in Carolina. hopefully Hank won't have to play on his head again to win there. or, they could just hope Winnipeg loses to Montreal tonight and back their way in. i'll take either.

the NFL Draft starts tonight. i'm mildly interested, mostly from a fantasy football standpoint. i'll be in and out of that for most of the night.

i believe the Big Bang Theory is new tonight. if that's the case, i'll be tuning in.

and finally, the fantasy hockey championship round i'm in is currently at 5-5. so, i'll be popping in and out of just about every hockey game going tonight.

do check out the poems i had published today at Zygote in My Coffee and The Camel Saloon. i really like both of them.

the poet of the day on my Google+ page is Ben John Smith. Ben is one crazy Australian who is an incredible writer. now, keep in mind, you pretty much have to be a fan of filth, sleaze, sex, drugs, horror, and death if you are really going to like his work. thankfully, i'm a fan of all those things. and another thing, the man sends some of the most interesting mail i have ever received from another poet. he's definitely one to not miss out on.

i had no clue my book was available on amazon.com until my mother just happened to mention it this morning. so, if you feel more comfortable purchasing it there, go right ahead. type in Sofisticated White Trash  in the amazon.com box on this blog and it will take you to the page. or, if you'd like to help a friend out, go to the podcast page at notsam.com  and use the amazon.com link from there. then you could get my book and help out Primetime Sam Roberts as well. 2 birds with one stone or a win win, whatever you feel more comfortable with.

until tomorrow, and hopefully i will have more good news to bring you.

music today:

Wolfmother - Wolfmother
Smashing Pumpkins - Siamese Dream
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis - The Heist
Metallica - Beyond Magnetic

"I am a kind of paranoid in reverse. I suspect people of plotting to make me happy." - J.D. Salinger

the lost art

i just happened to go to Zygote in My Coffee this morning and noticed issue #141 was up. my poem "the lost art" is included in this issue. you can find the poem by going here:
http://www.zygoteinmycoffee.com/100s/issue141theloastart.html

others with work in the issue include Mather Schneider, William Taylor Jr., Bradley Mason Hamlin, Holly Day and many more.

a good morning

i got my shit together (a little) and sent out some poems today. 6 poems total. 5 to Zygote in My Coffee and 1 to Jeremy Benson for his next Potters Wheel Anthology. if you're interested in sending Jeremy some poems, check out this link for all the information: http://jeremy-benson.com/issues/PWissue2.html.

i wasn't too pleased last night after watching the New York Rangers get completely manhandled in the first period last night. thankfully the rest of the game was the complete opposite. a much needed 2-1 shootout victory. highlights are below. a huge game tonight against the Devils. another 2 points would be very nice. and needed. of course, i won't see it until much later on as i'll be at some basketball games tonight. not sure if i will try to keep up on the score at the game or not.

congratulations to the Dayton Flyers women's team on making the NCAA tournament. of course, they got completely hosed by getting a 7 seed. that's a tough pill to swallow for a team with just 2 losses all season. but, that should give them a nice huge chip on their shoulder.

enjoyed a few parts of Monday Night Raw. didn't catch all of it as i was sneaking peeks at the Miami Heat vs. Boston Celtics last night. i laughed when the Heat were down 17 early and watched them win the game by 2. a quick rule of thumb i have developed over the years. if you ever want to watch a NBA game, you only really have to subject yourself to the last 5 minutes. that's really the only part of a regular season game that is great. this rule does not apply for the playoffs.

back to Raw, the triple threat match last night was excellent. wouldn't mind seeing that again. also, the look on Triple H's face after the career on the line stipulation was revealed was perfect. not a perfect show by any means, but good enough to keep the car moving on the road to Wrestlemania.

hope everyone has a great day. updates on this blog may be a little spotty given all the basketball games. but, if there is a great night of games, you might see a 3 in the morning update. who knows. until we meet again.

music today:

The Steel Wheels - Live @ Ignition Garage

"If you want to be thought a liar, always tell the truth." - Logan P. Smith

my poems in Zygote in my Coffee #140

my poems "the fountain of heartbreak", "pariahs", and "decisions" appear in issue #140 of Zygote in my Coffee. you can find the poems by clicking on each below. others with work in the issue include A.J. Huffman, Carl Miller Daniels, Chris Butler, Brian Rosenberger and many more.

the fountain of heartbreak
pariahs
decisions

what goes up must come down (and incredibly hard)

where do i begin?

i survived yesterday, barely. getting my blood drawn was much easier than i expected. was probably in and out of the facility in 20 minutes at most. they took 3 vials of my blood. i guess i will get the results later this week. i will take it if i don't get a call, that's good news. my left arm did hurt for awhile afterwards, but i expected that. hadn't had my blood drawn in over 4 years.

as for the DMV, not bad either. got in and got out. my dumb ass wore my cheap glasses so i nearly failed the vision test. i guess they are cheap for a reason. (i'm back to the expensive pair today). the new Ohio driver's license has to be nearly impossible to duplicate and make it look exact. feel sorry for the kids today on that one.

was totally psyched to get the 4 poems published yesterday between The Camel Saloon and Thunder Sandwich. 2 of my favorite places to send to. check the poems out if you haven't. i believe 3 of the 4 are some of the best work i have ever done. also, if you ever have any comments on my work, feel free to send them my way or post somewhere. i do read them and respond when necessary.

was happy to see Manchester United win today in their FA Cup replay against West Ham. welcome back Wayne Rooney. nice goal in the 9th minute. would have been nice if he would have made the pk later on. but, a win is a win.

so, as i was readying my victory beer, i check my email and see a reply from The Gap Toothed Madness, a new print zine out of Sacramento, CA. they decided to pass on my work. i always find it funny when a place asks you to submit and then rejects what you send. oh well, been at this too long for that to stop me.

and then came the Dayton Flyers. no team that commits 24 or 25 or whatever un-fucking-believable amount of turnovers they did should be close in any game. but, of course they managed to lose by 2 to go 0-3 in conference play now. i can live with freshman doing stupid shit, especially on the road. but, when it's the seniors that suck ass, completely unacceptable. this is going to be one painful season.

thankfully, after the game, in my email, was the advance copy of the new book from RC Edrington, Scarred Canvas. holy shit, one of the best poetry books i have read in years. i believe the book is to come out later this year from Underground Voices. i urge all of you to pick up a copy when it does. it's fucking brilliant.

i will have four more new poems published whenever the new issue of Zygote in my Coffee comes out. be sure to check back here on the blog for that.

music today:

Mazzy Star - So Tonight That I Might See

"The stupid believe that to be truthful is easy; only the artist, the great artist, knows how difficult it is." - Willa Cather

response from Zygote in my Coffee

i heard back from Brian Fugett at Zygote in my Coffee on my poetry submission from November. my poems "the fountain of heartbreak", "pariahs", "decisions", and "the lost art" have been accepted for publication. they are scheduled to appear in issue #140, due out Jan. 15.

frustration and poetry news

got my daily chores (getting the paper and mail from town) done early this morning so i could try and watch the Dayton Flyers via the internet this afternoon. let's just say i would have been better off forgetting they were playing today.

the feed was spotty at best but i hung with it because Dayton was winning. as soon as the game turned to shit, i gave up on my supposedly high speed internet feed and just turned on the radio. a loss by 10 points to Colorado is not that bad in the general sense. the game was much closer than that for most of it. the shitty part is you are now in the losers portion of the bracket and the teams you will face in that will be a drag on your strength of schedule and RPI later on in the season. all shit you need to be good to get into the NCAA tournament. needless to say, i'm not a happy camper.

so, the only way i know how to blow off some steam and not kill something, music and poetry. turned on some tunes and sent out some poems today to The Camel Saloon and Zygote in My Coffee. 2 of my favorites and 2 that i figure i have the best shot at some good news coming back. i'll pass along the (good) news as soon as i get it.

the rest of my day will be spent on dishes, google+, checking fantasy football injury reports, and getting ready for a Thursday of tv viewing.

i really wouldn't mind if the players i have going tonight in NFL action actually have great games so the stench of last weeks 3 losses can finally come off of me. fingers are crossed.

music today:

Shooter Jennings - The Wolf
John Prine - Souvenirs

"I've been absolutely terrified every moment of my life - and I've never let it keep me from doing a single thing I wanted to do." - Georgia O'Keeffe

my 3 poems in Zygote in My Coffee #139

i must be finally getting old. here's another set of poems i nearly completely forgot about. i have 3 poems in Zygote in My Coffee #139.

different does not equal evil
a good lesson to learn
pride gets in the way

enjoy them. email me any comments or leave them here. i might blog something later on, while i'm awake.

response from Zygote in My Coffee

i heard back from Brian on my recent submission to Zygote in My Coffee. my poems "pride gets in the way", "a good lesson to learn" and "different does not equal evil" have been accepted for publication. those poems will appear in issue #139. they should appear online around 8/31/12.

my poems in Zygote in My Coffee #9

my poems "issues", "i use the extra money on gas", "all the barn cats", "nine years old again" and "the bitch with the black eye" are in the print issue of Zygote in My Coffee (#9).

for more information or for purchase, go here.

a great issue, great poets, i highly recommend it.