Woo! Congratulation Simon!

That's got to feel pretty exciting, yes?

Mark: You know it! Also nerve-wracking, though, with lots of proof-reading and cogitation over three nearly identical cover-designs, etc.

It's been a pretty satisfying April for me so far, personally and professionally. In terms of the former, I've just moved in with my girlfriend and couldn't be happier about it. As for the latter, I'm just finishing up the mandatory coursework for my Ph.D. (with a paper on George Herbert, incidentally), and will now be shifting my focus to prepping for candidacy.

I posted on another thread and didn't get a cool reception.

LOL Edmund!

Speaking of cool, you're the coolest (nearly) nonagenarian that I (nearly) know.

Wow, thanks, Michael. Wait till I tell the other thread about this thread.

Good luck with that! Those threads are already out looking for needles.

Needles to say.

Ed, surely what we all hope for is a warm reception?

Having mis-identified you twice on the Internet, I am now happy to acknowledge your unquestioned seniority.

And I'm also happy to note that we now share a very nice publisher.

Looking forward to reading your book, Brian. And, hey, looking forward to reading mine. I've forgotten what's in it.

I was in a super mood the whole weekend. Sun in Boston, so me, my wife, and a bunch of friends went out to breweries in the sun. A few days prior, I got my Smartish Pace contributor's copy with a poem in it I was pretty proud of (and right next to our own Aaron Poochigian). And on Friday a golf match in the horrid rain that promised to be a very late night was cancelled--got to spend it with my wife and a friend, and while doing so learned I passed the MTEL SEI (Sheltered English Immersion) and MTEL Latin after studying for about 3 months for both. I've already passed so for English and History (and teach English Lit), but this offers me a wide range of freedom now.

All in all a good week.

The project I've been pouring most of my waking hours into lately (Voter's Edge California, a non-partisan and free platform for candidates to present their qualifications and priorities to voters...which also shows where candidates' contributions are coming from, so you can follow the money) has a public service announcement out now, in advance of California's June 5 primary election.

Woohoo! I'm delighted.

I am in the process of retiring from university teaching, selling my house, and moving to Iowa. Today I gave my last exams, and soon I will be turning in my grades and clearing out my office (and home in Minnesota). Though I have mixed feelings about stopping teaching and leaving behind my friends of thirty years, I am excited to have more time ahead of me for writing, translating, and actually living with my long-term companion. He and I have been together for over fifty years now, but have actually lived in the same place for roughly half that time. I have had some splendid retirement parties, and tomorrow I will get to hear one of my poems set to music and played by the university orchestra. It is delightful and stressful at the same time, but I am ready for the next step. With luck, I will be able to participate more regularly on Eratosphere once some of these current distractions are in the past.

Susan

More lovely news from you, friends; it's so delightful to hear it all.

Susan... teaching is wonderful, but retirement is even better, trust me! Good luck with the move, and being with your man. (We all met in Cambridge a few years back but I've forgotten his name, sorry.)

My youngest child is having her first baby in three weeks' time, and I'm getting very excited, especially as she and her husband have opted not to know the sex of the baby.
Maybe my next post here will be to say, "It's a boy!"
Maybe my next post here will be to say, "It's a girl!"

Jayne

What a nice collection of great news! Congratulations all, mazel tov!

Cheers,
John

Jayne, try to break it to them gently that they will have to know sooner or later.

Best wishes, Susan.

Julie: "The project I've been pouring most of my waking hours into lately... Woohoo! I'm delighted."

Beautiful work, Julie.
Now I know better why you took exception to us exasperated spherians threatening to leave the country because we “give up”.
The ad is nice and crisp -- retro looking -- and strikes at the viewers conscience quite well. I only wish we could find a way to flood the market with these consumer- oriented educational spots that made enough people wake up, sit up, stand up and pay attention -- and vote.
x

So we have members who are entering and members who are leaving their academic careers. Sweet, congrats to you all. The depth and variety of learning is wonderful around here.

Congrats, Jayne! Speaking of the circle of life…

Julie – non-partisan civic engagement. Hmmmm. There must be a less homely name for such a beautiful thing.

Bank ''Holly'' Day euphoria!

Today is a UK Bank Holiday, and my husband and I have spent it felling a 20ft+ holly tree. Chainsaw, harness, ladder, ropes... damned hard work in very hot temperatures!

The tree has been a bone of contention for many years, as it was on the border of our property but actually belonged to our neighbours. It has been ailing for a long time, depositing much detritus on both sides of the fence. It needed to go!!!!!

The previous neighbours, who ignored the problem, have recently moved Down Under (I would have actually preferred them to buy a house on The Moon, but New Zealand will suffice!) and the new owners are lovely, reasonable people who were amenable to the tree's removal; they were also getting all the detritus from it.

I've waited a long time for this. I love trees, and we have many, but a sick tree causes a lot of problems. I can see a whole new patch of blue sky from my kitchen window -- and I've celebrated today's [exhausting] activity with a bottle of fizz. Cheers!!!

We still have to log all the wood, and deal with the removal of all the foliage, but once it's seasoned we shall enjoy many a winter with a lovely fire!

Happy HOLLY day indeed! :D

Bank ''Holly'' Day euphoria!

Today is a UK Bank Holiday, and my husband and I have spent it felling a 20ft+ holly tree. Chainsaw, harness, ladder, ropes... damned hard work in very hot temperatures!

The tree has been a bone of contention for many years, as it was on the border of our property but belonged to our neighbours. It has been ailing for a long time, depositing much detritus on both sides of the fence. It needed to go!!!!!

The previous neighbours, who ignored the problem, have recently moved Down Under (I would have actually preferred them to buy a house on The Moon, but New Zealand will suffice!) and the new owners are lovely, reasonable people who were amenable to the tree's removal; they were also getting all the detritus from it.

I've waited a long time for this. I love trees, and we have many, but a sick tree causes a lot of problems. I can now see a whole new patch of blue sky from my kitchen window -- and I've celebrated today's [absolutely exhausting] activity with a bottle of fizz. Cheers!!!

We still have to log all the wood, and deal with the removal of all the foliage, but once it's seasoned we shall enjoy many lovely fires in winters to come!

Happy Bank HOLLY day indeed! :D

Jayne

Tell us heathen why it is a Bank Holiday. What is the reason? History or whatever, please.

Congrats, Jayne! There's nothing so satisfying as seeing a large problem undeniably dealt with. (Even if your muscles are also feeling it for a while afterwards.)

My good news: my delightful nieces will be coming to town, in just a few weeks.

Allen, Bank Holidays in the U.K. are awarded by bankers to themselves whenever they have made a particularly egregious cock-up involving the loss of billions of their customers' money. It's not so much a question of rewarding themselves, although of course they are always happy to so whatever the circumstances, as of making sure they can't be found by vengeful customers anywhere near their banks at least for one day.

Actually, their more thoughtful customers also welcome Bank Holidays, since the bankers won't be able to do any further damage during those twenty-four hours.

Oh, you cynic, Brian! :D

Allen, here's a link about our Bank Holidays for this year.

Jayne

Thank you, Jayne. I apologize for being so abrupt. I should have shared in your joy over the fixing of the tree, and I didn't. But I did want to know the historical reason for the BH. Your link helped, and further digging suggests that this BH is the Early May BH that seems to me to derive from a premature chronological Scots relative of Whit Monday, the day following Whitsunday, i.e, Pentecost, but I'm not sure about that precisely. I could refine this and clear away my own underbrush, but might not. Others, if any, who are interested in this are encouraged to do so. Thanks again.

No problem, Allen.

More good news from me! After my exhausting tree-felling yesterday, I did a reading tonight at Clipston Women's Institute's Centenary celebration (they spelled my name wrongly on their website) but it was a super gig. I now do a mixture of my humorous poems and magic tricks, which go down well together.

I enjoyed a lovely buffet there, made the ladies laugh (and wonder how I did the magic :confused:), sold a book and came home with a cheque.

Oh,... and our Brian's book "The Ayterzedd" arrived today. He's the one I just called a cynic, but Brian is witty and very funny, just in case you weren't aware ;)

Jayne

Julie - I can't decide whether your nieces are talented and gorgeous, or gorgeous and talented - but the combination (and their list of appearances and credits around the globe) is awesome.

Julie - Totally What Michael Said! :)

Yes, that is a true statement.

John

My poem "Canticle in Noir" received an honorable mention in the Noir Nation Golden Fedora competition and will appear in that publication.

I am picturing you in a golden fedora, J.D. You wear it well.

Yes, J.D., I remember your wearing the golden fedora at West Chester, and it was quite striking, but...to be honest...in combination with the gold shoes, the gold belt, and the gold vest it was - at least in my opinion - a bit much. Looking ahead, as your career progresses, I would suggest that one gold accessory (or two golden shoes) at a time might work better, focus more attention on your poetry.

I will be trying out a more modest look this year.

I read some of my poetry on Tuesday and, for the first time in my life, I don't want to die immediately upon hearing my recorded voice.

If you're interested in hearing me read some of my poems (all honed on the Sphere), you could do so here. The poems are:

1. (sonnet variant)
2. Glint
3. "So priketh hem nature in hir corages"
4. Dialogue
5. Ephemera
6. Poem for John Ashbery

Well read, Aaron. It's so rare to hear the written shape of the poem in the voice of the reader. The power of measured silence is something it can take a lifetime to master. An old poet on the other side of the Atlantic has downloaded you. Do you mind?

Beautifully read Aaron.

My good news is that after quitting my high school job at Christmas and supply teaching for a bit, I got another high school job, but from September I'll be doing only four days a week. We can just afford it. This means no more staying up till midnight planning and marking as I can do all that in the day off. I'm VERY excited. I've never worked less than five days a week since I was 22.

Congratulations Mark! I taught high school for a while back in the day and the workload was killing. I'm very glad you'll have that day off every week.

Cheers,
John

Aaron, I enjoyed your reading quite a bit, even I think preferring to encounter some of your poems that way rather than on the page - the first, for instance. You do make effective use of silence, as Anne says, and your poems demand that. I also enjoyed seeing a photo of you, it and your voice are of a piece.

Cheers,
John

Well read Aaron. I remember all of these on the board.

Mark: congrats on having more time to write!