Category Archives: USA

We Lurk Late

Posted on June 19, 2021 by Brian D. Butler

The paper-cut puppetry video below was commissioned by the Poetry Foundation and created by Manual Cinema in association with Crescendo Literary,  it animates a May 3, 1983 recording of Gwendolyn Brooks speaking during an Academy of American Poets reading series held at the Guggenheim Museum in … Continue reading →

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there is no happy ending

Posted on June 10, 2021 by Brian D. Butler

It’s hard to believe that it’s been three years since we lost one of its most entertaining, likable, and exasperating cultural personalities. Anthony Bourdain was one of those special people who found a way to engage folks from all walks … Continue reading →

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Ways to Disappear

Posted on June 8, 2021 by Brian D. Butler

Ways to Disappear Camille Rankine In the dark Down a stairwell Through the doorway Gone west With a new wish In daylight Down the sidewalk In a wool coat In a white dress Without a name Without asking On your … Continue reading →

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I Got Up At

Posted on June 5, 2021 by Brian D. Butler

On Kawara was a 20th century Japanese conceptual artist who was influential in the New York art scene. Although he was widely know for his “Today” series or “Date Paintings,” many considered that the most personal and intimate of his … Continue reading →

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all the trains are gone

Posted on June 2, 2021 by Brian D. Butler

The illustration above, appeared in The Fatal Lozenge which was Edward Gorey’s first published “alphabet book”. In the book series, each letter of the alphabet is represented by a character which appears in a four line poem and each poem … Continue reading →

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Amazing Stories in Amazing Stories

Posted on June 1, 2021 by Brian D. Butler

I recently stumbled upon a link to this issue of Amazing Stories magazine from 1927. What jumped out for me was the inclusion in this issue of H.P. Lovecraft’s of The Colour Out of Space  and H.G. Wells’  The War of the Worlds. … Continue reading →

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All the misery of manilla folders and mucilage

Posted on May 31, 2021 by Brian D. Butler

DOLOR Theodore Roethke I have known the inexorable sadness of pencils, Neat in their boxes, dolor of pad and paper weight, All the misery of manilla folders and mucilage, Desolation in immaculate public places, Lonely reception room, lavatory, switchboard, The … Continue reading →

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The Bradbury Chronicles

Posted on May 30, 2021 by Brian D. Butler

As I have mentioned more than a few times over the years, I was a voracious reader of Ray Bradbury’s novels and short stories as a kid. So, I was excited to see that the American Writers Museum in Chicago … Continue reading →

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Murder At Full Moon

Posted on May 28, 2021 by Brian D. Butler

I don’t remember which book that I read first, Of Mice and Men or The Grapes of Wrath, but both had a lasting effect on me and made me a John Steinbeck fan. Over the years, I think that I’ve read every novel and … Continue reading →

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Maps of States

Posted on May 26, 2021 by Brian D. Butler

MAPS OF STATES Terrance Hayes  A map indicating the state of the union may Yield the statues, static & statutes of grave White men while a map indicating disrepair may Yield colorful groundbreakers uprooting graves.   A map indicating the … Continue reading →

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