Elizabeth Gilbert on the Source of It All; plus A Piece of Crap

I don't know Elizabeth Gilbert from a lamppost. I know of her, as I'm in the business of books, and she scored a big time bestseller.

After watching this video, I've fallen in love.

Sent along by the wonderful poet, Michael Newell, this short talk addresses inspiration via her own experience as a writer. The incredible stories of Ruth Stone and Tom Waits (remind me sometime to tell you another Tom Waits story, this one about driving and "the hair in the gate") are why you should show up for this, but what will hook you, reel you in, and land you, happily, in the bucket for this evening's repast is one simple word: inspiration.

In spire ... the breath in. In spire: to inflame, to blow in:

c.1300, "immediate influence of God or a god," especially that under which the holy books were written, from O.Fr. inspiration, from L.L. inspirationem (nom. inspiratio), from L. inspiratus, pp. of inspirare "inspire, inflame, blow into," from in-"in" + spirare "to breathe." Online Etymology Dictionary

Spirit. The thing, that which moves us, moves in us, moves about.

The is.

on my sleeve
catching his breath...
worn-out firefly

Issa
translated by David G. Lanoue

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After a refreshing week in the woods of Southwestern PA, it's time to put the nose to the grindstone. With 4 issues and a chapbook to get out in the next 60 days, I returned to a printer which made like it was giving up the ghost. When I hooked up another (inferior, aka "piece of crap") printer, suddenly it came back to life.

For the moment, all is well. Hopefully more news soon.



best,
Don


PS And, for a piece of crap, it doesn't get much better than this: