Things That I Think Are Good

Found out this afternoon that my manuscript, After the Ark, was selected as a semi-finalist for the Walt Whitman Award over at the Academy of American poets and has been sent to Marvin Bell for final judging. The email said they received over 1,000 entries and have sent 34 on. They expect to announce the results in May. Until then, I'll sweat, certainly, but I'll have no expectations. This is an amazing honor and confidence booster for the manuscript, but I imagine those other 33 manuscripts must be freaking sterling. But man, LSU f-ing Press...


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First thing I did: called my dad. He's done so much, I often feel as nothing I do could compare to what he's done, but he's the most supportive and enthusiastic Dad I could ask for. And he's certainly got an eclectic, talented bunch of kids, I often look around at my 3 brothers and wonder how I fit in. My brother Paul is a doctor doing AIDS research at Harvard, my brother Chris is an amazing musician living in St. Louis, and my brother Dave is incredibly bright, still finding his way in Ithaca. But all this merely to say, I'm not sure I'll ever grow out of wanting to make my father and family proud of me, and I'm not sure that's a good thing or a bad thing, but it's for sure a thing.

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I thought this post was beautiful. If you've never wandered over, this is a blog by my former professor Drew Perry. Can't wait to read his first novel (dig the great cover) coming out with Viking Penguin in April. I've pre-ordered, you should too.


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Um. Skittles vodka?


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Killer first line of the moment:

"We need some pines to assuage the darkness"

from Marvin Bell's "Around Us"
(Rampant, Copper Canyon, 2004)

(how's that for continuity?)

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I've been digging this song as of late.