2010 Roundup Year-in-Review

Father Time and Baby New Year

Once again, I have looked back over my posts from the past year, and pulled one favorite for each month.

January: Amichai and Nasrallah

In comparing these two remarkable poets from either side of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, I am struck by their similarities.

February: An Unexpected Dedication

A massive sculpture is installed downtown to commemorate the Ojai bear, and remembers another to me unexpectedly.

March: Blogging the End That is the Beginning

A friend who passed away this year started a blog near the end of his life to share his revelations.

April: “Should I Do An MFA?”

I answer the oft-asked (of me) question about learning to write, and share some thoughts about how to know if an MFA is right for you.

May: Unclehood

I crossed both the equator and the International Date Line this year to meet our new nephew, adopting the mantle of unclehood.

June: The Democratization of Poetry

Becoming a finalist for the July Goodreads newsletter (which I subsequently won) got me musing about the role of “gatekeepers” in twenty-first-century literature.

July: The Power of Not Knowing

Cultivating an ability to embrace the mysterious and unknown has led me to greater happiness, and a deeper appreciation of the poet John Keats.

August: Beyond Survival

From my grandmother’s glass cabin, perched high in the Sandia Mountain Range of New Mexico, I reflect on my troubled adolescence, salvation through art, and deep-felt desire to give back.

September: Short Book Forthcoming

I received the great news that my collection of poems will be published in the Lost Horse Press New Poets Series in February 2011. I will be announcing details for pre-ordering soon!

October: Why They Are Called ‘The Humanities’

Most of the arguments for keeping the humanities alive in an increasingly technocratic society miss the point.

November: Rejection Slip

I guess I am not the only person to ever receive one of these. This brief slip I wrote seems to have struck a nerve.

December: Against Defending Poetry

Why poetry requires no justification, explanation, or defense.

It has been a remarkable year. Wishing you and yours all the best in the one ahead!