busy busy busy around the clock

It's been rainy/cloudy/gray lately, but it's a very pretty sky. On a happier note, the sunshine is back today -- it's gorgeous. The leaves are a beautiful orange-red color; the outdoors look so October-crisp and just right. I love weather like this, where it's not too cold and not too warm.

Another thing I love is that tomorrow is my blogging anniversary. I have a surprise planned, and of course it involves poetry. Later this week, Erin and I will be sharing another very special (and very cool) surprise, and it's going to be so much fun. You're going to love it, and I'm so excited to post it up.

Have a safe and happy Halloween.

{we create love}

places i visit:

FASHION + DESIGN
camilla engman
lena corwin
my little corner of the world
oh happy day
seesaw designs

LIFE
book crumbs
eating a tangerine
freefalling me
just me
miss erin
over the rainbow
seeking neverland
the curly q
the summermoon chronicles

WRITEWRITE
beth kephart books
carolee sherwood
first draft: leonardo likes gulls
i am maureen
my gorgeous somewhere
on point
poet mom

7:30 p.m.

Police. Crash. Hill.
Ambulance.

Spinning colors. Traffic.
Red light: we stop.

Smashed metal to the left,
the wreckage of two cars.
We shake our heads and
move on.

*****

Saw this mess of an accident on the way home. Praying for them.

(Poetry Friday roundup at laurasalas.)

the first happiness is the deepest.

I'm excited about reading my contributor's copy once it arrives in the mail. This is my very first acceptance -- the Summer 2009 edition of Crab Creek Review -- so it's very special to me.

The cover is beautiful and I know the pieces will be as well. This is so cool.

let's make music tonight.

This 5th grade elementary-school choir, the PS22 Chorus, is from Staten Island, NY. Their renditions of songs from mainstream radio have caught the attention of MTV, VH1, and big names in the music business (who have paid them a visit!) including Stevie Nicks, Beyonce, Rihanna, and Lady GaGa.

To view more of this incredible choir's performances (and for more information & celebrity endorsements), visit http://www.ps22chorus.blogspot.com/.

and you just might find who you're supposed to be.

My one-day-late birthday cake. It was heavenly anyway.

(Click on it to view it larger. It'll make your mouth water.)

*****

The third stop on the RWP tour is at Amulya Rajan's Piper in the Desert. Please stop by and leave a comment as she put so much time and effort into her review and it's an incredible review. You'll love it.

Kimberlee Titus Gerstmann hosted the fourth stop at her blog, Scraps & Sass. Another great review.

Thank you!

*****

My latest poem is titled 'Eliza.' It's the first one I've written in a few months, so it was nice to be able to get over that wall. Out of all the poems I've written in my life, this is my favorite. (In other words, this poem is pretty big news.) It's lonely and reflective and pretty and I'm head over heels in love with it. It has hints of regret and reminiscence and quiet things. It rocks.

*By the way, I have a new fascination with titling poems with girls' names. Don't ask.

*****

I came downstairs this afternoon to find a package from a blogging friend with the most brilliant accent ever. It has two CD's (one for my sister, one for me), a birthday card for the two of us, Vegemite, and other foodstuffs. Oh, and a little guide on "How to Eat Like an Australian."

That package made my day. Thank you to the corners of the world!

around the internet

Check out Donna Vorreyer's blog for the second stop on the ReadWritePoem virtual book tour for Apologies to an Apple. (Note: the stops have been changed on the tour; the stop at My Gorgeous Somewhere will now be at the end of the tour.)

The first stop on the book tour was at Book of Kells. Kelli reviewed Apologies earlier, and this is her second review. Stop by the link "book press" in the sidebar to find Kelli's initial review.

What I love the most about Twitter is getting incredible news from followers & fellow tweeters. This news is crazy. I'm so humbled. Thank you thank you thank you!

Make sure you read the review of Apologies to an Apple at Savvy Verse and Wit, by poet Serena Agusto-Cox. She's also hosting a giveaway for the book -- deadline is October 9, so hurry hurry!
(She also tweeted about the book and called it "some of the best contemporary poetry" (see the Twitter feed on the sidebar of her blog). In addition, she featured my poem "September" in the 14th Virtual Poetry Circle. Thank you!)
(Re-tweet here. Contest featured at "Win a Book" here.)

More Twitter goodness here. Even the littlest things make such a difference.

This is the cover of the anthology I previously mentioned I was featured in, titled Words Only I Can Speak. 6 of my poems are in the anthology; I now have my contributor's copy and it's incredible. It's a million times better than I thought it would be, and the quality of the work in here is just amazing. They're very, very talented teens. Do check it out -- it's a very lovely collection. You'll enjoy it.