Cheryl’s Gone Reading – May 21

Fresh from 20 hours in the car through driving rain and, yes, more driving rain — Florida to Maryland, thank you — I made my way to the night’s poetry reading. Thanks to Wade Fletcher and Big Bear Cafe for having me at the Cheryl’s Gone reading series in Washington, DC. I read with Danika Paige Myers (a 32 Poems contributor and all-around excellent poet) and Marisa Plumb.

I read a poem called “To the Dictator from the Diplomat’s Wife” and the speaker recalls having the dictator to dinner and how she’d really have preferred to serve him a reduction of rodents. When the musician took the stage, he shared a story about his family having a dictator to dinner. See, it does happen.

Should you find yourself near R & 1st Streets or even near 1st and R, NW in Washington, DC, might I recommend the Big Bear Cafe? At lunch, they have sandwiches for $5 and a corner “see-all and see-everyone” view of the neighborhood.

C.A., someone I knew in 7th grade, showed up to the reading thanks to the power of Facebook. I’ll never say Facebook did nothing for me. Another friend wrote to say he planned to surprise me (in from North Carolina!) at the reading but a head cold took him out at the last minute. Then, he had the audacity to pass his head cold onto his wife. Perhaps it’s for the best. I may have been in complete shock at two completely unexpected out-of-town or from-a-long-time-ago folks being in attendance.

The reading was lovely. Breeze blew in from numerous windows. A drunk appreciated us all from the far back, and who doesn’t want appreciation.