AJAX, CHRISTMAS, 2005, & War

Ajax-John Tipton

I went a few weekends ago to see a new translation of Ajax read by John Tipton, Chicago poet. I was prepared to hate it I find allot of the Hyde Park crowd a little pretentious and elitist but i must say the translation rose above all of that stuff.

John did a great job, the play, which I never liked came alive and it was without pretention. Amina Cain read some parts, all I can say is if someone were to read my work aloud I would want Amina to do it.... Peter O'Leary was Peter O'Leary reading well with a touch of sarcasm which is part of his raison d'etre. Eric Elstain did well except for the many times he had to kiss his new girlfriend...but on whole it was a great performance. Not too many of the poeticos at the reading.

Some performance artist did something before the reading that was unspeakably bad.
Jen Karmin did a really silly act where she held up a sign that said Herodotus was the first historian to some bad music the performance was not as good as Ajax.

Christmas

Lots of the normal Christmas kvetching. Secularists want to say Happy Holidays, others Merry Christmas. What i am thinking is that we ought to move the winter holiday. Let Christians have Christmas, but lets move the gifts and the vacation until February, a dreary time we can call it Giftevus!

I for one think that Christians ought to stop giving gifts on Christmas it gets in the way of what is important about the Holiday (Comes from Holy Day by the way) . God is with us Immanuel. God chose to become human and to live with people. God sanctified every human person with this act and whenever anyone hurts another human being he is hurting Jesus who is incarnate... most stupid Christians do not get this- it was not faith in Jesus as your personal savior that Jesus cared about what he cared about was a transforming revolutionary faith in love and care for all people

2005

Was a good year the White Sox won the world series, other good things happened.
I wonder what 2006 with bring? Maybe Ron Silliman will mention me on his blog?
Oh how I pine for this! I heard that some poets are going to put Ron's blog on the big screen at bar on New Years so that his first post of the new year will be running at the same time as the Rose Parade!

War

A young man from my hometown, Matthew Kaiser died in Iraq last week. I went to High School with his brother. I still do not understand why he had to die? Sometimes I think that we ought to mind our own business and take care of our own people but then I remember that we need to send our Children to die. I was born on May 14, 1967 455 Americans died on that day in Viet Nam and for what did they die?