In Further Pursuit of Elegance

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A great piece of art is composed not just of what is in the final piece, but equally what is not. It is the discipline to discard what does not fit -- to cut out what might have already cost days or even years of effort -- that distinguishes the truly exceptional artist and marks the ideal piece of work, be it a symphony, a novel, a painting, a business, or most important of all, a life.

-- Matthew E May

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Catching Up: Publications, Interview, Reviews, Teaching Gigs, Etc

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 In which I discuss the works of the late great Virginia Hamilton Adair, with thanks to Ashley Hajimirsadeghi of Sundress for the invitation:   Videlock on Adair Thanks to editor Tim Green of Rattle for publishing "Here in the West" back in September and "On Ceremony" back in January:  Here in the West, Wendy Videlock On Ceremony, Wendy Videlock Thanks also to Tim for interviewing me for a Rattlecast in March of this year:  Videlock Rattlecast My thanks to editor Rick Kempa for including "Ode to the Slow" in the anthology, Deep Wild, Writing from the Backcountry:  Thanks to Brian Palmer of THINK for printing "The Spare" and "The Old Wrangler" in a recent issue, and for accepting The Language of the Land, by the light of the moon , (a prosimetrum) for an upcoming issue: THINK, Videlock Thanks to Melissa Bailman for her inclusion of "Everybody's a Critic" in a recent issue of Light: Everybody's a Critic Thanks to Alex P
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Summer Solstice 2021

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It is good to live in the sticks.   It is also difficult to live in the sticks. As most of the country gets vaccinated and recovers from Covid,  our stubborn red county here in western Colorado suffers disturbing  numbers and more deaths than ever from the ongoing pandemic.  We have less than a 30% vaccination rate, and no precautions in place.  As the drought continues and record-setting temperatures soar, the fires continue throughout the west.   The river depletes.  The groves expire.  What blooms in summer is wildfire.  It is good to live in the sticks. It is also difficult to live in the sticks.   Let it be said of our kind  when surrounded  by fires        still they sang. We were invited to a lovely summer solstice celebration on the Monument over the weekend.  Mary Hertert, Jere Friedman, and Heather Hayden, and their nine  beautiful gongs raised the vibration throughout the canyon and through the valley.   I couldn't help notice that as with poetry, it wasn't just abou
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Judy Grahn

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You are what is female and you shall be called Eve. And what is masculine shall be called God. And from your name Eve we shall take the word Evil. And from God’s, the word Good. Now you understand patriarchal morality. - Judy Grahn
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