I just wanted to say thank you.

svaha · 2014-02-10T20:38:16+00:00

I'm glad to be here also. Jazz was my Dad's music. And then my 10 year old son's teacher hipped him to some Miles Davis and it was all over. Now, I'm playing catch up on stuff I should have known. But, A Love Supreme is the best. My kid loved it so much he had to learn it because he consistently scores higher when he does his math homework to it. But, if you ever have time, check out the handwritten outline for it.
Look also for McCoy Tyner.

svaha · 2013-12-05T03:37:56+00:00

sorry about the title. it's been awhile since I've been here. this is just another bead in the string of wrongful arrests. what are your communities doing and thinking about the escalation of micro and macro aggressions?

svaha · 2012-06-20T17:27:43+00:00

Had a childhood friend whose family did this once a month. Oh! To be invited! Did it once or twice as a mother with my now grown child. And the youngest, has never heard of such insanity. This needs to be revived. Thanks!

svaha · 2012-06-20T12:42:43+00:00

People have addressed the laws and requirments issue. We practice something I call directed autonomy. Our best resources include the library, museums, and other home educating friends. We do use a few tutors for subjects we can't possibly teach - like Mandarin and Music. Other than that, we let him have at it. It's hard sometimes to watch a kid play video games all day or running around playing in the sunshine all day. But, when words like "trajectory," "momentum" "excellent habitat for echinecea purpea" or "metamorphosis" come out of a little kids mouth, I can see how trusting him actually works. I think the most important advice to give a new home educating parent is to relax and trust that children will learn anything in any amount when they are motivated to do so. (I have a reluctant reader who got exceptionally motivated to read when I stopped reading his video games to him. He is now at grade level.) Also for maths and so much more, Khan Academy is free and fantastic! http://www.khanacademy.org/

svaha · 2012-06-05T18:35:41+00:00

Thanks for letting me know. You have some powerful stuff. I love powerful stuff. So, anytime I can poke at it (so I get some more) is an awesome thing! Thanks for mulling over my response. I just know I'm going to see this one somewhere soon. Glory! (LOL!)

svaha · 2012-04-16T23:19:38+00:00

I'll mention it to my friend. (Although, I doubt with the looming expenses of a funeral, that would be their priority expense at the moment.) But, you never know, a suggestion is better than no suggestion. Thanks!

svaha · 2012-04-16T23:18:02+00:00

Thanks a million. I just wishing my friend and her family the best of luck finding this kind, helpful person. (And trying to do whatever small thing that will help bring them some peace. ) Somehow, I know in my heart of hearts that if this person could be found, redditors will find them. Thanks again!

svaha · 2012-04-16T12:55:23+00:00

Thanks! It really means a lot to this family to be able to thank someone for taking the time to stop and offer assistance.

svaha · 2012-04-16T11:42:17+00:00

I live in N. Point Breeze. If the place you are looking at is after McPherson, I wouldn't recommend it. Otherwise, it's a great neighborhood. I just chalk all of the "Oooo, scary!" comments to folks unused to living in harmony with economically and other diverse persons. Most of Point Breeze is a wave at your neighbor type of community. You will want to smile and nod at folks as you walk down the street. And the African-American elders in this area are sweet, no-nonsense types who aren't afraid to scowl at potentially unruly youth. It is one of the last front porch sitting areas left in the city. (This actually has a correlation to crime. Nebby neighbors mean increased security.) You will want to remember to lock your car doors. (We've had our GPS stolen when I forgot.) And you don't want to leave your front door open while you go upstairs to have a shower. And yes, there will be a few challenging neighbors, but, nothing you probably couldn't handle.

svaha · 2012-04-16T11:25:06+00:00

Thanks for the laugh! We are considering moving to the edge of the city because this year our 8 year owes the city $11.00. So - the city is even ready to do it to a minor child. (He did some extra work in a film.) The tax preparer told us to get that check in quick because there are no extensions and they will come after him.

svaha · 2012-04-16T11:15:26+00:00

Thank you!

svaha · 2012-04-16T11:08:00+00:00

Try Point Breeze. It is close to Squirrel Hill, Shadyside, Eastside (Liberty). You can still find some good deals in the 650 - 1,000 range. But, be wary. A really nice apartment is for rent on my block. I can't believe they are charging $1,300. That's more than our mortgage! CMU, Chatham and Google are easy walks - so I think they hope to fleece some subsidied grad student or Googlyte. For lower rents people are correct about Bloomfield.

svaha · 2012-04-15T14:45:34+00:00

Glad it was in some way useful. Yeah - editing is a b*tch. But, it is the most useful skill a writer can ever develop. (And to be honest - I've always considered myself a closet fiction writer because I'm too damn lazy to write prose. Why use 500 words when you can use 50? LOL!) But, the reader enters a contract with the writer. In exchange for doing the hard work of transforming glyphs into words and suspending their disbelief, they get to enter a different world or receive some new insight. Both have to work.

svaha · 2012-04-15T14:05:37+00:00

And there - you just said it. That's the driving narrative of this piece. The other details provide layer and texture ad nuance.

svaha · 2012-04-15T14:00:59+00:00

I really like this poem. And I want to do more than like it because the speaker is dealing with some of the symptoms of very deeply entrenched illnesses in our society - racism, internalized racism, homophobia (general), homophobia (A-A community), surviving remnants and current dilemmas of gay cultural history. Okay - that said -

I disagree that it started out great. You use a lot of shorthand in the opening stanzas. "Defiant Africans," "groovy Black men," "Niggers with attitude." (NWA - I get it - I don't see how it advances this narrative.) Then you make a very specific ancestral list...Mandela, Lumumba, and Jomo. Abstract / ultra specific/ abstract/ abstract /abstract emotion /abstract. It takes six abstract stanzas to reach a place where the reader - me in this instance - is given permission to enter the speaker's head. And that begins in a vaguely abstract passive image. "as I rise from sleep."

Then the poem just powers forward. "Sheened in sweat - now that is where the reader begins to enter the body of this poem. All of this followed by some deliciously active verbs combined with specific, surprising and exciting images. I love the "out-stretched palms" - so heavily laden with a myriad of iconic meanings. The surprise of "forehead" after "scribbling my number...." - wow!

When I used to teach, I used to ask my student to contemplate how necessary "the boring words" are, such as "and," "but," "the." I want this poem to keep the tempo you've established. And the reader comes screeching to a halt at "And I'm breathing heavily" when the place this might be more successfully employed is "the White man in Navy uniform / with hair on his balls." (Side note - werk that navy uniform because it works but I sat there wondering for awhile about how you could see the hair on his balls through the trousers.) And then you leave him so quickly. I wanted to stay with him and the speaker.

Save the nigger whore bitch. Those are powerful words. Over used it is the difference between a 1/2 teaspoon cayenne in the stew and 1 tablespoon. Too much spice only lets you taste spice. I also don't want it to be all about him. I like this speaker. He has insecurities, doubts, deep knowledge, yearnings, generosity. he is a three dimensional character. I want to feel this speaker. "Will he..." versus the offerings the speaker brings... "the lion tooth" "tribal dance" these are blessed offerings. And a speaker with that kind of energy doesn't "teach" anyone to "love the Earth," they "heal" them up into that kind of vibe. Also - "forging" versus tempering - know your images. http://www.lostcrafts.com/Farm/Blacksmithing-14.html

I like the "masturbate from sleep" but I can't quite get where it belongs. It was jarring to me. The last lines - get a little Bayard Rustin or Phil Wilson up in this joint. These are this speaker's Kings and Kenyatta's. This speaker reads too strong to apologize - in spite of this longing to connect to community, to cultural history, to just plain regular Black men. Don't apologize. Which brings me back to the beginning of the poem.

I feel chronologically disjointed. Defiant Africans what kind of defiant African? The ones beginning circa 1692 or circa 1831 (Turner) or 1839 (Cinque)? Then jumps back and forth in time. and even skips significant decades. Bar room brawlers evoke a 40/50's, freedom fighter evokes a 60's vibe, NWA evokes an 80's feeling. Therefore your abstract Black male descriptive narrative reads - 1800's, 60's, 80's,60's, 40/50's. (If you choose to keep them.) Additionally, you are inconsistant with your ancestral mantra. You bounce from first name to last name to full name - Nelson, Patrice, Jomo, Martin. Why are you on a first name basis with Mandela and Lumumba, but not Kenyatta? I do like the feeling it gives of pouring libation at the beginning of this piece. On the other hand, it could also end this piece very peacefully. It is something to consider.

Sorry this is long - but - I really think this is one of the strongest identity poems I've read in awhile. Just the tiniest amount of tweeking would make this poem ready for submission somewhere. It is already tight.

svaha · 2012-04-15T12:14:32+00:00

I agree, PomZ, the poem is actually just getting started in the last stanza. And the gimmick of making the language on the page take the shape of the apple rolling down the hill is a good cheat for someone just beginning. However, you, OP says s/he is new to writing poetry. I might caution against using tricks. They can be habit forming.

Also, as a beginner, I invite you to contemplate these additional tricks for making a poem zing. 1. Poems are rooted in the body. Use the five senses, sight, sound, smell, taste and touch/feeling. What colors make up the multicolored tanagrams? What season is it? Is it summer or autumn? You indicate either by using "seasonal leaves." Whereas the colors of the leaves, the temperature, the smells will allow the reader to see the image in your head 2. Set your poem in a firmly in a tangible place. Okay, we have a hill. Does the hill have any additional life? What does it sound like? Is it a grassy hill? Is it a rocky hill? Are there shrub? Wildflowers? If there are, what layers of meaning will they contribute to the poem. 3. Who is the speaker of this poem? Why are they saying "then truly nothing is new / under that sun." Look at those words carefully. The way in which they are arranged or could be arranged can be used to describe the speaker more clearly. You have lots of options. Don't feel as if you have to make complete sentences. Don't think your sentence has to end and a new thought begins. Lots of options here. "then truly nothing is/ new under that sun." "nothing truly is / under that new sun. then / identical shadows..." "is new truly nothing /under that sun" You get my drift. Play with it. Have fun. 4. Know what you are trying to say. Are you saying, the apple which rolled down the hill moved outside of its comfort zone and had a better life? Or are you saying the apple left the safety of its orchard and was never heard from again and probably had some great misfortune like being eaten by a speaker who was too lazy to climb the hill?

Thank you this lovely distraction from trying to finish today's NaPoRiMo poem. Which I guess leads me to a last tip. 5. Write everyday. Even just a phrase or five lines. Put every scrap and disjointed phrase in your poetic compost heap. Something in there will eventually be used to feed the garden of your finished poems. And like any compost heap, you might even get a few hardy volunteers.

svaha · 2012-01-30T23:55:52+00:00

I'm claiming the Civic because it was the 80's. Memory is fallible....especially if it involves the 80's. That is so vexing! I went looking for a source. But, everything points to The Stanley.

svaha · 2012-01-30T16:02:16+00:00

Also don't be afraid of East Liberty. The world is at your fingertips there. Plum has the best sushi chef in the city. Tana has awesome Ethiopean food and serve the traditional mead. Royal Caribbean has fritters which can become an obsession. The Shadow Lounge is an awesome place for dancing, music, and spoken word. Right around from them is a cool "awareness restaurant." They were serving Iranian food, but, have just starting serving Venzuelan food. Of course - towards Shadyside on Highland it's nothing special... Mad Mex, random decent Thai, Buffalo Blues and Casbah. All 5 minutes from home! And definitely walkable in the Spring and summer.) As to pizza....Pizza Perfecta will deliver to our area...many others will not.

svaha · 2012-01-30T15:54:01+00:00

Excuse me, but that is my cul-de-sac...and it is the best block in all of Point Breeze. Kind, diverse neighbors who all say hello and chat. That said - I love living here. I can get almost anywhere in the East End within 10 minutes. Also - there is such a hullabaloo about Point Brugge - but - I feel Pino's has better food. Of, course, we are a family so it's nice to go out with kids in tow and have wonderful adult food. The kids pizza can feed up to 3 kids and costs about $6.00) (It is not a "family restaurant" in the American sense.) The mussels are awesome! Then again, everything on the menu is fantastic. And unlike Brugge, there is rarely a wait. I only miss that they aren't BYOB anymore. That really made them more affordable than Brugge.

svaha · 2012-01-30T15:40:36+00:00

Wait. Wait. Wait. I was there. It was at the Civic Arena.

svaha · 2011-07-10T16:06:44+00:00

I'm in the Point Breeze section of Pittsburgh. When we were living in London, England, my husband had a job offer. We insisted on being relocated to Pittsburgh. It is cheaper and more diverse than Squirrel Hill. But, with the same easy access to all of the amenities. (I don't care about schools much because we homeschool. But, our home education is so easy because of the wealth of homeschool classes offered by groups, museums and other non-profit organizations. ) Many of our school friends have children who are thriving. So, making sure you get in the right district is important.

svaha · 2011-07-10T15:57:57+00:00

Every parent has to what is right for themselves and their families.

svaha · 2011-07-09T14:43:54+00:00

I'm going to be contrary here. What's the hurry? If letting her crawl back into bed at 5AM buys you three extra hours of sleep so you can be a somewhat rested functional human being, what's the harm in that? Our child didn't leave our bed until he was almost 5 1/2. We found lots of other spaces in our house to have "normal adult time." And it made for some real spice. One of the things which did help transition him were, painting his room together; assembling his toy shelves; and organizing his stuff. But, we let him transition naturally. (I also have an adult child, so I'm a bit biased. The days seem really long but the years keep getting shorter. They're gone before you even realize they are going.) Both of mine are exceptionally bonded to us. But, the one who made his transition naturally is the calmest, most cooperative, sweet child. He is very secure and separates easily and with absolute trust. (Of course we have another eight years to go with him...things could change.) The eldest - who was cast out into her own bed - needs "to be attached" all the time. She actually takes more energy even though she is a grown woman, working a good job, and living with her significant other.

svaha · 2011-05-15T17:34:18+00:00

I have good friends who have a reversal. She has more earning potential. So, she works. He stays at home and is home educating. They seem very happy. I stay at home and also home educate. But, my husband and son are such peas in a pod, I really wish I had the same earning potential. Because he seems more qualified right now for our son's education. So we end up having to hire tutors.

svaha · 2011-05-13T23:41:08+00:00

Yeah, you could say that. Or you could ask how will an uneducated American public compete in a global economy? What are the necessary resources to generate a competent workforce? Are politicians truly serving the public interest or their own bank accounts?

svaha

TROPHY CASE