Poetry finds you where it can…so here I was going over all these new poetry books I got for Christmas, and then I noticed this book Silverfish Review Press sent me (for just the cost of postage!) when I entered their book contest. It’s called “Dime Store Erotics” by Ann Townsend, and it kicks. Do you know that thing where you’re reading a poem and you could swear you or some future (better) version of you wrote it? That’s what happened to me with that book. Check out the poem “Mall Life.” Great, funny, sad, weird stuff. Plus, any poet who writes about her childhood obsession with the musical “Jesus Christ Superstar” gets my respect. Anyway, now I have found another publisher to love and respect. How many can there be?

My new graduate residency and my move “off the island” are drawing ever nearer, which means everything, everything is in boxes. We still put up a Christmas tree and ordered a little ham, because dang it, I want to celebrate even if we are in the middle of chaos. Haven’t been writing much but have been hopping around playing Dance Dance Revolution in a sadly obsessive way.

I’ve been rearranging the poems in my first book MS and decided to rename my MS for a new set of submissions to various contests from “A Thousand Tongues” to “Becoming the Villainess.” Perhaps less poetic but more indicative of the post-feminist, pop-culture/mythology-oriented themes. Hey, time for a vote: Is Villainess a real word? And who likes the new title better than the old one? Leave a comment if you have any strong feelings about any of this.

In merry old Seattle, the lights on the houses are bright, the moon is shrouded in fog, and Santa is just waiting to drop a winning-contest announcement on my house at midnight on Christmas Eve. It could happen, right? Yesterday Santa brought me two rejections. I must have been naughty instead of nice.

Best holiday wishes for everyone out there. May happy elves bring you new shoes.