POETS PLACE
NOVEMBER EDITION 2024
DODGERS WON THE WORLD SERIES!!!! I am so psyched! My whole family have been Dodger fans my entire life. That’s a long haul. My Mother especially followed the game religiously as well as basketball, Lakers and football, Rams. She was a big time gambler, and whether or not she was betting on the games, she was a super fan. She was in love with Magic Johnson, and he was a topic of so many discussions when hanging around her. Magic could do no wrong in her eyes. I love the Dodgers, plus they are fucking great! Loving the Dodgers is an LA thing and Dodger fans are considered a Nation. They are maniacal. When they won the world series on October 30th, downtown broke out into a frenzy, close to rioting in some areas. Fireworks were heard all over the city, with people screaming and banging pots and pans out their windows. I screamed as well and danced my happy dance.
On another note, when this column is published an election will have been held and decided upon who our next President will be. I, and many others, are holding our breaths and sitting on pins and needles. So much of our freedoms are held in that decision. I’ve actually thought of the possible worst case scenarios. If the criminal becomes President we will all be righteously fucked. I don’t need to tell you how. I'm sure you all are well aware of what He will do. Which is absolutely nothing, for the people of America. His cronies will take over and have a field day on America. I think that if that does happen, the American people will begin to see and feel its negative impact, then there will be a rising. An Armageddon of grand proportions. We will fight back and regain control in four years. But the American people will surely suffer until that day comes. That’s my thought. Hopefully that day of dread wont happen and we can begin to breathe a sigh of relief and all of us, including the other half will benefit from the new and joyous Presidency. Long live Democracy!
As always we have poets and writers here to share in our bounty on POETS PLACE.
Thank you all for continuing to support this column with your generous offerings.
AND… BIG THANKS TO CATHI MILLIGAN OUR PUBLISHER!!!
There was a Huckster in the White House
By Linda Kaye
A psychopathic, narcissistic diabolical and sinister demon spewing over 30,000 lies whilst in office to deceive the American people!
Who: raped women
grabbed pussies
destroyed Roe v Wade
put children in cages
unleashed racism
encouraged the January 6 riot on our nations capital! WTF!!!
claimed Covid was a hoax
“just drink bleach” he says!
dissed veterans dissed war heroes dissed Obama
dissed America!
Listen up people get your head out the clouds!
He is the enemy within
He has created the sins
the sins against America!
that cost has been the loss of our human rights, our freedoms and our respect from the world
wake up and stand up
join the fight stop his blight
millions have followed his reign of terror and all will suffer huge pain
We must fight to regain control
We must fight to feel new joy
We cannot forget what he did
He is the devil in disguise
He is not America’s guy!
wide open
by jerry the priest
wide open
like gems, the lights in this sanctuary glimmer, illuminating
fastidious corners—they serve to lend magic to the darkened room
and the proceedings that have begun
a sequence of self-expression rituals, performed
with no audience in sight, yet intended for the release of all
candlelight, as it will supplies a flickering, amber glow
rising and falling with the distinct yet obscure chanting
there would be ponds and a trickling fountain, a light breeze
playing across the robes of veiled supplicants—there might
be a Lama or supreme healer presiding
the chamber is as lavish as it’s guardians can afford, bedecked
in its array of cosmological geometry with swaths of fabric
draped here and there near hand crafted carpets on the floor
and cushions scattered amid stations for the offering of prayers
another festival of lights
another successful harvest—a chance to thank the gods
and beseech their fickle favor—and now a minor parade
of battered sculptures representing these same deities
proceeds from house to house, blessing each in turn
as traditions ancient and sacrosanct hold sway
that this is happening before our very eyes
should well reassure us of our rightful place
in the continuum where, bathed in aquatic ripples
supplied by one blue window and one yellow,
we lie buried in the relics of those who were born
in the dharma
that this is happening should signify that all is well
in our mood lit corridors
jerry the priest, legal name Jerome Dunn, has been creating material for exhibition, publication and live presentation since 1979, when he studied experimental music at the University of Redlands. A vocal performer since early childhood, his formal study of music began with his first trombone lesson in 1967.
Essays, poems, stories and illustrations have appeared in Coagula Art Journal, La Quadra, the Nervous Breakdown, Bombay Gin and others, and his guitar/vocal/ trombone work and lyrics are featured on Cheap Disaster (’92), Stark Aloe Vera (’95), and Lovely Children (2011).
He’s lived and taught in Katmandu, Nepal, Istanbul, Turkey, Boston, Massachusetts, Boulder, Colorado, Portland, Oregon, San Francisco/San Leandro/Los Angeles, California, and written in Banaras, Bodhgaya, Konya, Damascus, Petra, Jerusalem, Mexico City, San Cristobal de las Casas, Antigua, Buenos Aires, Seattle, New Orleans, Chicago, Denver, Santa Fe, Bar Harbor, Vancouver, Halifax, Atlanta, Asheville and Manhattan, among other locales.
Making Love with the Devil
by Alex S. Johnson
Illustration: Sandy DeLuca
Pierced on the
horns of
The eternal
attraction:
His hands so roughly tender
his lips with smoldering kisses
He'll take you from your
small world to
His domain on a
thundering
Crazy
train.
A blast of the
secret
knowledge is
Sufficient to
Light the
wick on
a
Candle that
Burns down through
Centuries of
Dark delights.
None are safe, no woman
no man
No cruelty in his embrace
only the chanting in
The hollow beneath the
church
The rows of Satanic monks
cowelled with
Jewels pierced through
their
Genitals
Like stars.
Known for his dense, allusive, experimental style inspired by everything from Dada and Surrealist literature and art to Beat Generation authors such as Allen Ginsberg and William S. Burroughs, with stops along the way at Philip Lamantia, Andrei Codrescu, hip hop, industrial noise and Norwegian Black Metal, Alex S. Johnson is the author of several books of poetry including THE DEATH JAZZ, SKULL VINYL, THE FLOWERS OF DOOM and THUNDERSTRUCK in collaboration with Sandy DeLuca and Alea Celeste Williams. His poetry has appeared in numerous places such as Horror Sleaze Trash, poeticdiversity, 13 Mynah Birds, HWA POETRY SHOWCASE VOLUME III, ALTERNATE LANES, HYDROPHOBIA from Stitched Smile Publications, Misfits, Crossroads Literary Review, Rye Whiskey Review, Masticadores USA etc. He is a frequent collaborator with Juliet Cook, Daniel . Snethen, Nolcha Fox and Barbara Harris Leonhard. Johnson's forthcoming books include THE JUNK MERCHANTS 2: A LITERARY TRIBUTE TO WILLIAM S. BURROUGHS and THE DOOM HIPPIES III: CHILDREN OF DOOM. After spending twenty years living and working in the Los Angeles area, which included reading from THE DEATH JAZZ alongside punk poetry icon Iris Berry and at the acclaimed Beyond Baroque poetry venue in Venice Beach, Johnson returned to Carmichael, California where he runs Nocturnicorn Books.
mind your own table
by linda m. crate
i see the judgment,
the hate, the superiority
flashing in the eyes
of those who think they're
better than me;
i don't need your condescension
and i won't endure it—
in the end we're all made
of flesh and bone,
more fragile than we care
to believe;
anything can happen in a second:
miracle or nightmare—
i want the world to be
a better place
for everyone,
want to see the world flourish
and flower like in my dreams;
try to break me of my dreams or my magic
& i will ensure you never have a spot at my table
in this life or in the next.
Linda M. Crate (she/her) is a Pennsylvanian writer whose poetry, short stories, articles, and reviews have been published in a myriad of magazines both online and in print. She has twelve published chapbooks, the latest being: Searching Stained Glass Windows For An Answer (Alien Buddha Publishing, December 2022). Linda has four full length poetry collections and a photography collection book. Linda is also the author of the novellas Mates (Alien Buddha Publishing, March 2022), Managing Magic (Alien Buddha Press, September 2022), and The Queen's Son (Alien Buddha Publishing, December 2023). Her first short story collection King Quinlin (Alien Buddha Publishing, March 2024) was published this spring. Her debut haiku collection in these ancient veins was published earlier this year (Alien Buddha Publishing, May 2024).
Stay in Touch
by Lee Boek
“I go nowhere I do nothing,”
He often says, with a certain finality
Although he is happy it’s not over
It’s not over for me either
Not yet
I’m still breathing.
I can form a thought
I can still go places
I can still remember my date of birth
I can still remember the little pink jacket
Mamma was wearing on the stretcher
When they brought her home from the hospital
The bassinet with the baby
Placed on the high boy
They said he was a boy
But there was no “Hi Boy”
Not for me I was three
Not for him I couldn’t see him
Nobody thought to lift me up
So I could see him
Maybe that’s why we’ve kept in touch so
closely
All our lives
That and all we went through
All we were taught to value and believe
The sheer joy of being boys, brothers
Young men
Fathers, grandfathers
Great grandfathers
Next big step
Ancestors!
When I was a young man, I spent a lot of time
with the "old folks."
I was always fascinated with the way people are...
How we are
We were taught to revere the older folks
Show them respect and even deference
When I became a young preacher
One of my jobs was to go around
Visit the old, the sick and infirm
To offer comfort
Sit with them,
Listen to them,
Make them smile,
Pray with them.
Many have a great confidence in prayer So I would try hard to craft a prayer
Bringing comfort
Support their hope
Things will get better with a little faith.
These thoughts and meditations seem to settle
and satisfy many people.
Others prefer being read to…in my preaching
days they loved to hear bible stories In later
years working with seniors they love
novels, history and poetry
My younger brother and I
Still talk daily on the phone
Both in our early eighties
We usually talk at 4-4:20 in the afternoon
Nearly every day
Yes, it is harder to hear each other
Words slur a bit
But the enjoyment of our communication is still
“High Boy”
ANNIVERSARY OF AN ARTIST
6-5-2022
6:47 a.m.
By Mary Cheung
One Year Later, I originally wrote to celebrate my mom.
Part sadness and part joy.
But today is another celebration of sorts.
One year later, it's a celebration of another momentous report.
I joined the Arroyo Arts Collective.
And it's brought me growth of my heart and soul.
Of opportunities of my self-discovery.
Amidst a country coming back from covid recovery.
I got to find my voice.
And got to find my public.
To shine, to show,
who I am from within.
My scariest parts,
My most hopeful parts
My idealistic parts
My most painful parts
My dreams and hopes....
You were there for me.
Guiding me out from the shadows.
Now I'm out in the light.
Nurtured and growing.
Because of your family, your size and your might.
How do you say, " Thank you " for someone in your life?
Sometimes, one little action that sets things into action.
Changes things forever from one little reaction.
And now, I’ll never be the same.
My life has shifted,
and I only have you to blame.
Change is good, as it should.
And I've hopped onto your train.
Barreling towards an unknown future.
It's the wild wild west out there.
You are leading me out into that open range.
One year later I am growing,
and my life has been forever changed...
Mary Cheung is a multi-disciplinary artist. She has been creating art since she was young. Grew up the youngest in a family of eight. Shecame to America at the age of 2 and grew up in San Francisco. Attended American school during the day and Chinese school at night.
Mary has an AA degree in Fashion Design and a Best Costume Design Award from the NAACP. She often creates costumes for her art narratives and creations. Sometimes building the sets as needed.
Mary was the Producer for the Santa Rosa Spring Festivals 2011 and 2012 which incorporated live performances and festival games.
She produced the EVOLUTION Music and Arts event in 2013.
LUSCIOUS, Music Art, Live Body paint Art Event IN 2014 followed by
OPEN FLOOR IMPROV EXPERIMENT whose purpose was to engage the community, encourage local business growth and artists involvement. Her real passion and drive come from being able to engage the community while bringing hope, healing, joy, and human connection.
It is her goal to be able to continue to do this while making an impact on society’s values and thinking.
“I hope that I can be a role model for others to find their own true voice in life through my art."
Arc
By Richard Q Russeth
I wake, all aching hips and arcing mind.
Emerge from the deep space of REM, quilts and blankets,
where I orbited a star for seven thousand years
and traveled from Monday to Tuesday.
I make coffee, about which I am not fussy.
Though hot is good.
Maxwell House. Folgers. Really.
I drink it from a heavy mug
inscribed with the Hendrix lyric:
Excuse me while I kiss the sky.
Waiting on sunrise, horizon tinged
but soon ablaze with the heat of its forge.
There’s no going back in this world.
Richard Russeth is a poet, albeit a late bloomer at 68. He recently completed a collection of poems entitled “Ghost Heart.” He is currently working on a sci-fi novel entitled “Code Plague.” He lives in Ohio with his green-thumbed, clever spouse of twenty years. He loves a dry martini and a good mystery novel, sometimes at the same time.
high q.
by daniel schack
At best, perhaps, existence is just a strange warmth emanating from a strange cold.
Daniel Schack, a New York based poet/artist. More verse can be seen on poetry soup.com
Going Hollywood
By R.G. Carrillo
They’re going Hollywood
Putting their lives
In greedy hands
Movie moguls
Of golden West
Like plantation owners
From all over
They journey
These hopeful hordes
Ready to cash in
Their small town lives
For palm trees
Celluloid dreams
Stardom futures
Golden statuettes
To receive
In Tinseltown
With bright eyes
Seeking the prize
Big smiles
Camera ready
Surprise settling
For the reality
Of minimum wage
And rejection
Those that realize
Their passion
Are few
Paying costly dues
To devil agents
Studio heads
Cracking the whip
Grooming and bleeding
Their stars for mor
The sleazy underside
Of Hollywood exposed
City of angels
And orphans
Looking for guardians
And fake nirvana
Out there
Where they say
Let us be gay
A Black Dahlia
Was last seen leaving
The Biltmore Hotel
Our Dorothy from Kansas
Is now over the rainbow
Looking for the man
That got away
Marilyn stuck
With the fuzzy end
Of the Hollywood
Lollipop
Those shiny diamonds
Are a girl’s best friend
The studio system
Was a blueprint
Of master and slave
Conditioning the masses
Toward belief
Allegiance
Patriotism
Escapism
Conform
Shut off
All your devices
Enjoy your popcorn
Ronald G. Carrillo is a native Lincoln Hts Angelino, living in Eagle Rock and a retired LAUSD educator and influencer. He writes of his passion and rebirth into the golden age of living. He has been writing since high school and was initially influenced from the songwriters, Keith Reid, Joni Mitchell, Laura Nyro, Neil Young.
From G. Billie Quijano
This month's submission is to honor our ancestors. A welcome to fall, a welcome of spirit, a welcome to celebrate love.
This photo is of the Goddess XolaXia. She is a Goddess of protection, transformation, peace, beauty and love. She protects those who have been affected by violence in all it's forms. She protects the souls who are on their journeys of transformation to the cosmos and guiding them on a peaceful passage. She is a warrior. The moon is one of her mentors. She embraces and exudes beauty and love from our artistic expressions. Her philosophy is that arte is medicine and nourishment.
La Duende's essence in the winds of papel picado
Ancestral whispers
Copal smoke lingers
Trails of Cempasuchitl
The elegance of memory
The fluidity of time
Causing pause in my dreams
Sublime energy of ritual and ceremony
My love floats on moonbeams
Their brilliance shines upon the cosmos
Grief eternally present
The weight of iridescent tears
In symphony with La Sirena's waves
Endless poetry in the hemisphere
La Monarcha swaying and swooning to the rhythm of the ancients
Rebirth ignited
My soul no longer in fragments
Lunar wisdom in their passage
Sweet vibration
Corazon pulsation
Please come and drink with me
I welcome you with joyful glee
We will dance, the dance of time
I know that the beyond is where you will always be...
G. Billie Quijano-Mestiza, Hija de East Los. Poeta, natural creative, photographer, assemblage artista. Bruja, instigator of beauty, palabra mujer.
The 5th of November (U.S. Version)
By ChampionElCid
Remember, remember!
The fifth of November
The orange man's treasonous plot
I know of no reason,
His attempt at treason
Should ever be forgot
Donald Trump and his traitors
Did scheme and conspire
To steal the vote
Set our country afire
Twas only three short years ago
That they did try this overthrow
And now here we are again
With Trump even more insane
A choice, a choice we must make
To once more suffer this vile snake
Give me someone else
Any but him!
If re-elected,
Our prospects are grim
So I ask of you that you not forget
The fifth of November
And Trump's evil threat!
Remember, remember!
The fifth of November
And your civic duty that day
Remember, remember
The fifth of November
And let us send Trump away
"ChampionElCid lives in Los Angeles, he currently works four different jobs so he doesn't often have the time he'd like to write. When he was young he read Don Quixote for the first time and that book left an impression on him. He later learned of a real-life Spanish Knight named "El Cid" who embodied many of the ideals that Don Quixote strived for. Thus he decided to take that name when creating a profile on the internet and that name has stuck. You can see more of his poems and thoughts on things on his Deviantart profile. Thank you for this opportunity, I hope I continue to impress you…"
Thanks for joining us! We will continue to host writers and poets of all genres.
Please submit your written work to: lindakayepoetry@icloud.com
and include a short bio
Linda Kaye writes poetry, curates poetry, produces films, produces spoken word and art events and produces a poetry column POETS PLACE for the online publication LAARTNEWS throughout the Los Angeles area.
Linda’s poetry events have included several summer poetry salons, and shows at the Align Gallery, 50/50 Gallery, Gold Haus Gallery, Ave 50 Gallery and Rock Rose Gallery in Highland Park .The Manifesto Café in Hermon, Pilates and Arts studio in Echo Park, and Native Boutique, Zweet Café in Eagle Rock, The Los Angeles Makery in Little Tokyo. And at the Neutra Institute Gallery and Museum in Silverlake. Her first short documentary film “BORDER POETS” was a socially and politically inspired event with poets and musicians filmed at the border wall near Tecate, Mexico on the Jacumba, Ca. side of the US. The film co-produced by MUD productions is available for viewing on her website and on youtube. https://youtu.be/5Te4-dlhxco
Her rap music video project in collaboration with Mary Cheung, “ERACE-ISM” can also be seen on youtube. https://youtu.be/NfrbveNUBgg This video was accepted into the Ontario Museum of History & Art show “We the People” Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow. February 2- April 16, 2023. So honored
And… February 19, 2022, she debuted her staged poetry production of “20 Years Left” at the historic Ebell Club in Highland Park! Two sold out shows with 2 standing ovations!! Check out the links to reviews and the video!
https://thehollywoodtimes.today/20-years-left-new-show-performance-poetry-music/
20 Years Left youtube live stream 2/19/22
Linda Kaye is a native Angeleno who grew up in the San Fernando Valley. She claims to be both a first-generation Valley Girl, and The Original Hipster. Educated at Antioch University and Cal State Long Beach in psychology and social work. Linda, now retired from medical social work, was working for her last seven years of employment as a psychotherapist and licensed clinical supervisor for an out patient mental health clinic. She was a licensed medical social worker for 30+ years working on the front line of healthcare, a private consultant for Physicians Aid Association and for skilled nursing facilities throughout California and Arizona. She was also an adjunct assistant professor at the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work. Oh yeah.
Twitter/Instagram: lindakayepoetry
http://voyagela.com/interview/daily-inspiration-meet-linda-kaye/https://
shoutoutla.com/meet-linda-kaye-poet-poetry-and-theatrical-producer-filmmaker/