New Jersey Poets

I recently found out that of poem of mine is going to be published in the Journal of New Jersey Poets. I'm proud to be a part of this worthy and unusual journal, which only publishes poets with some connection to New Jersey. New Jersey, of course, has produced some of the country's finest poets, including the original American everyman, Walt Whitman. As it turns out, I was born in Camden, N.J. (which, coincidentally, was written up in the 1970s as the worst city in America due its thriving drug trade and abject urban poverty) -- hence my eligibility for this journal. It's rewarding and satisfying to experience this connection to Jersey again after so many decades in Texas. Because I was born in New Jersey, I will never be considered a "Texan" by many of the residents here, but, like Whitman, I think I'd rather celebrate the beauty of moving around this great country rather than being identified with a single place and culture.

The Zen of Being Annoyed and Restless

For the past 30 or 40 years, Eastern philosophy -- in the form of a lightly digested stew of various bits of Buddhism -- has enjoyed a special exalted status in the United States. Most thinking individuals accept Eastern philosophy as an admirable and perhaps more efficient route to inner enlightenment and peace.

Although I'm an admirer and casual student of Eastern philosophies and religion as well, I find some problems with fitting these approaches to the Western mindset. Once, when I was working for the newspaper, I said to a coworker about a certain problem that I was "trying to be Zen about it." She replied with, "Zen doesn't try. It just is."

Fine. Then, just a few days ago, I was having a conversation with a friend about not being entirely satisfied with my life and looking for ways to change it. He said, "the Eastern approach would be to accept and appreciate where you are." Or something to that effect.

I snapped back with, "Yes, but I'm not Eastern. I'm Western."

I wasn't trying to be Western-centric, just point out that perhaps a philosophy from around the world doesn't exactly fit the problems and concerns of a Western citizen. It turns out I may be right. According to some theories by scientists working in geneticis, there is something that can be characterized as "American DNA," because of a certain concentration of gene cells in our country. We are a nation of immigrants, as the saying goes, meaning we are a nation of people with a tendency to take changes and set out for new things. We are restless and bored and always seeking new ways to better our situation. Or at least our ancestors were.

It can be inconvenient to be restless and easily dissatisfied, but it has its advantages as well. The American individualist spirit has fostered some of the most amazing developments in arts and sciences the world has ever seen. Maybe the stereotype of the "ugly American" has some truth to it -- we are loud and too sure of ourselves -- but we also know we'll keep improving ourselves and not be satisfied with whatever life hands us.

Quicksilver 1.2

The new issue of Quicksilver is now live. The issue includes essays by Wendy Freedman and Michael Berberich, as well as a nice collection of fiction and poetry and some photos by UCHL prof. Leo Chan.

New Joke Book

The pocket edition of the Titanic Joke Book is now available. This is a streamlined, more attractive and less expensive version of the earlier book. We are going for volume here, as we are still working on making up for the money we paid the original cartoonist. Please buy. Thanks.

Jobs I have had: A List

In no particular order and for no particular reason:

community college English instructor
adjunct university instructor
newspaper reporter and entertainment writer
newspaper copy editor
newspaper book reviewer
bridge caddy
substitute teacher -- all grades
independent telephone-book delivery man (two days)
courier
landscaping and sprinkler-installation worker
high-school journalism teacher
technical editor
scholarly journal editor
summer camp counselor, bus driver, rock-climbing teacher, and adventure director
newsletter editor
freelance magazine writer
video script writer
Miller's Outpost seasonal employee
public relations writer
unpaid wedding photographer (beginning at age 10, when I took Polaroid photos at my mom's second wedding ... exactly one photo came out).