Chamblee54

What follows is a telephone dictation of notes from the February little 5 poetry bash. … Down at the Java Lord’s emporium, waiting at 7:20 on the 9th of the first Monday of this February. I’m here for the Java bash. This is going to be a hell of an editing job once I get started with it.
Well it’s a little bit closer to closing time, or opening time. People are sitting around talking, and there’s all sorts of conversation going on, and a couple people that I know, but everybody seems to be busy talking to everybody else, and that’s fine. They’ve got this pole here, it’s a column, it’s about about five inches square and it’s covered with stickers. Someone was standing behind it, acting like he was going to be gesturing with it. I thought of using that as a dancer’s pole.  That’s not not going to happen. None of these people need to be pole dancing. I would probably break something if I tried.
I’m one of the least dressed up people here. I’m wearing my boots, and some clunky old jeans and a white dockers shirt. I’m wearing a t-shirt but I can’t remember what it says I’ll have to look at it but Rosser’s setting up the show. I’m supposed to be opening this thing. I can’t imagine what I owe this honor to. This guy, Dennis, who’s a very entertaining person, he’s going to be the feature.
Rosser’s wearing a fleece vest, a day glow green long sleeve shirt, some flowered pants and some silver Lame’ sneakers. He’s the MC tonight, and he’s going around he’s negotiating with people about who’s going to be performing when and I’m just I’m just here, just here taking up space, not really knowing what I’m doing, but that’s how that’s how you know little 5 poetry bash works.
There’s this Aroma that I always seem to notice when I come to L5P. I was walking past this one of the theaters … they are having a concert, and there’s all these hipster type looking people competing with the security for attention. And there is this L5P odor … a combination of cigarettes and old barroom smell and Old Hippie smell and something else but I can’t really describe it that well I probably wouldn’t want to. You wouldn’t want to wear it as a cologne but this is peculiar to L5P and I smell that it smell every time I come down here.
The show was great. Dennis brought a couple of his pals, and they were all good. Of course it was live, so even bad poets are fun to listen to in person. Something called little bird poems kept coming up, which may necessitate further inquiry. … I googled little bird poems, and did not see any of the groovy violence I heard tonight. This one is typical: “Once I saw a little bird, Coming hop, hop, hop. So I cried out, “Little bird, Will you stop, stop, stop?” I was going to the window To say, “How are you?” But he shook his little tail, And away he flew.” … “TO THE TEACHER Read the poem aloud. Make the children repeat it along with you.”
Finally came the ride home, and the search for junk food. Since the taco bell on buford hiway is closed, the one on North Druid Hills will have to do. Unfortunately, this means an interminable wait at the drive through, and food that is cold when I finally arrives. … Pictures today are from The Library of Congress. Russell Lee took the featured photgraph in June 1940. “Group at the literary society. Pie Town, New Mexico”