Messages

1

General Discussion / Re: New Executive Director reporting for duty

« on: March 02, 2013, 10:43:41 AM »

To Karrie: Welcome and congratulations!

To everybody else but especially Simone: Our new ED chose to use my venue for her profile pic. So there. 

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General Discussion / Re: NPS 2013: Getting in touch

« on: March 02, 2013, 10:31:26 AM »

All of this makes so much sense! Color me impressed!

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General Discussion / Re: Lookin for a feedback on a weird slam idea I have

« on: October 19, 2012, 07:48:41 PM »

As always, I second everything 125 says. Especially the Booper reel.

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General Discussion / Re: What's the slam scene in Philadelphia?

« on: October 19, 2012, 07:47:24 PM »

Thanks Sherod and Dahled.

I'm not often in my hometown, but I'll be back for Christmas and some family visits in the Spring. I went to the Fuze two years ago around Thanksgiving to check out the open mic and the place was locked, chair-on-tables kind of thing. But I'm glad to hear you're still at it and that poetry is still happening regularly there.

Thanks for bumping this back up! I hope to check out your slam next time I'm in town.

Dahled, someday I need to perform my poem about Chester when you're in the room. I don't know if you'll like me more or less afterward, but I think either way it'll resonate with you.

5

General Discussion / Carpool lists for NPS 2011

« on: July 31, 2011, 12:13:55 PM »

Hi everybody:

We've posted carpool/rideshare lists for NPS 2011 on the official Facebook page. You can see the listings here:

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=155008287906868

That page will take you to sub-sections such as "from points NORTH," "rides from the AIRPORT," etc. I decided to go with Facebook instead of these esteemed forums (a change from previous years) because these forums tend to be for PSI members and insiders, while the Facebook page casts a wider net. For stuff such as carpools, we're looking to reach as many people as possible.

Don't let the price of gas keep you from cheering on your team at Nationals. Get a road buddy and get to Boston!

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General Discussion / Re: Underage Slam Poets at NPS - Rules Question

« on: July 23, 2011, 06:02:36 PM »

I am a fan of 2nd best things! I am in!

-Jesster

Uh-oh. Don't let Simone know you're rooting for the Lizard Lounge this year. <ducks>

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General Discussion / Re: NUPIC 2011 newsflash for our poetry fam!!!!!!

« on: July 23, 2011, 01:22:37 AM »

NUPIC 2011.....we are the rumbles beneath the ground of poetry

Don't be scared now.....
"heartbeat sounds like sasquatch feet" -B.I.G.
Woman Up!
Man Up!
Gender UP!
You UP!
THUNDER! THUNDER! THUNDER CATS!.........................and this is the part where you all say HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

(the hell is wrong with the rest of you people, anyway?)

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General Discussion / Re: Underage Slam Poets at NPS - Rules Question

« on: July 22, 2011, 10:05:15 PM »

t's pretty straight forward - there's gonna be stuff they can't do. late night stuff and bouts that are at bars are a no go. anything that says 21+ is just that; there's nothing you can sign, say or do legally to circumvent it. that's the downside, the upside is there's all kinds of stuff they can do. for newbies the day events and cyphers, not to mention all the new friends, is the best part of NPS. sure they'll miss some stuff, but there's so much that happens all at once it'll be easy for them to find something else to get into.

Dahled, I appreciate you being so blunt and so positive at the same time. Everything you just said is true. Simone has me working on the under-21 guide to NPS (which she mentioned in an earlier post) and I am also doing a guide to sober events and AA resources. Like you said, the idea is to give these groups a big pile of events they can do, rather than rub their noses in all the events they can't do.

That said, please everyone be respectful of the venue's age limitations. I was a Cantab doorman for 3+ years, and they will card and it's always an awkward conversation. The Cantab Lounge shares a parking lot with the Cambridge Police Department. Please don't get the place raided.

Also, bear in mind that Boston/Cambridge are among the best cities in the entire world for under-21 nightlife. This is a college town, and not everybody at BU/BC/Harvard/MIT/Tufts gets their kicks by sneaking into bars and frat parties. Harvard never really closes, so there are like a zillion brainy things you can do there for free or for $5. Two subway stops from the hotel and you've got Davis Square: a kick-ass quirky movie theater, the 2nd best barbecue in New England, bowling, a block party every Friday night, and a jazz club that's all-ages until 9PM. The Green Line will take you to the Red Sox game or the zoo, and the Blue line will take you to the aquarium or the frickin' beach. Revere Beach isn't Malibu, but it's a lot better than most of the public beaches in Omaha.

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General Discussion / Re: NUPIC 2011 (miranda writes version).....Registration begins

« on: May 07, 2011, 03:12:22 AM »

It was all love last year, and by popular demand “it’s on” again this year….FOR A THIRD YEAR. LET’S MAKE SOME MORE MAGIC BABY!

If you have never heard Harlym 125 punctuate a joyful sentence with "BABY!" well, you're just letting one of the finer things in life pass you by.

It don't even need half the page 125 used to sell it.

That's like saying Jimmy Hendrix could have played The Star Spangled Banner in 50 seconds if he'd just been more focused.

10

General Discussion / Re: Slam: "Mock" Competition- What are the national events today?

« on: May 05, 2011, 01:37:41 PM »

Trying to build a career off of slam winnings is like trying to pay your rent every month in a casino.

Slam is a competition the way poker is a competition. Poker is a game of both luck and skill. People who have recently won money at poker will tell you it's entirely about skill. People who have recently lost money at poker will tell you it's entirely luck.

Some of us, of course, just like to wear tuxedos and play cards.

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General Discussion / Re: Give Back to Your Community

« on: May 05, 2011, 01:25:31 PM »

Most of the National Public Radio stations have fundraisers which make use of volunteers who answer phones and process credit cards. WBUR in Boston has a thing where for every 10 man-hours a group volunteers, they get an on-air shout-out.

Five slam poets answering phones would get a shout-out every two hours. It does three things:
1. It's a nice thing to do.
2. It gets publicity for the slam.
3. It gives NPR reporters ideas for stories about poetry slam. Ahem.

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General Discussion / Re: Anybody see Comedy Central's Comedy Awards

« on: April 13, 2011, 03:07:40 AM »

Camaraderie. Legacy. Recognition. Fun. Joy.
All good reasons to think about it.

Aren't camaraderie, legacy, recognition, fun, and joy the putative reasons this community has three big events every year?

Also, wasn't this esteemed organization very hard-pressed to produce those three events just two years ago? Even as a kiddie poet up past his bedtime, what I heard through the heating vents told me the grown-ups in this house were worried about money. Two years later we have the money, manpower, and mojo to add a fourth big event?

I mean, I certainly hope PSI is in great shape. But if all the newfound coin is burning a hole in our 503(c) pockets, let's bring back the summer slam camp before we start giving ourselves trophies. Build the community from the bottom, not the top.

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General Discussion / Re: Anybody see Comedy Central's Comedy Awards

« on: April 12, 2011, 11:05:21 PM »

I've looked for this quote, and I can't find it on a simple Web search, but I have a clear memory of reading it in an interview of Peter S. Jackson (directed Lord of the Rings): "Award shows are strange to me. I mean, if you grow up wanting to be a professional sprinter, you know that you need to run faster than everybody else. I grew up wanting to make movies, so I knew I needed to reach out to everyone else so we could collaborate. So now we've been nominated for these awards and I'm supposed to sprint faster than all the people whom I'd like to collaborate with."

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General Discussion / Re: Anybody see Comedy Central's Comedy Awards

« on: April 12, 2011, 12:11:54 AM »

I don't know what Slam Poetry awards get us as a community. Movies, TV Shows, and Broadway plays have awards shows because they don't have tournaments. Sports teams have tournaments.

1. Boxing doesn't have an awards show. Boxing has championship bouts, and the guy who doesn't fall down during those bouts is generally acknowledged to be the champion.

2. College basketball (men's and women's) doesn't have an awards show, either. The best teams compete in a huge, single-elimination tournament.

Awards shows, in my opinion, would dilute the impact of our three established tournaments: WOWPS, IWPS, and NPS. I foresee one of two outcomes:

1. St. Paul wins the National Poetry Slam and St. Paul's team wins a "Slammie" award for "Best poetry team." People see us heaping awards and praise on a group of people who are already having a pretty good year.
-or-
2. St. Paul wins the National Poetry Slam and Las Vegas's team wins a "Slammie" award for "Best poetry team." People perceive some powers-that-be conspiracy to undermine what the judges thought at NPS.

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General Discussion / Re: WHY DO YOU SLAM?

« on: April 10, 2011, 01:41:23 PM »

I think ohmydad has said it better than I could.  I slam for the power leveling of hoses.

Wait...what? Also, what?