The Best Weekend of Poetry EVER!!!

These past few days have been so eventful that it has been difficult keeping everything straight, but I think I have it down now. It went something like this:

24 July: One of my favorite artists, David Larsen, calls me up and wants me to do a poster for New Yipes, one of my favorite things to do, and I say yes even though it has to be done by Saturday, which would normally not be that big of a deal except that there is just too much going on right now.

Sara, Vince, Paul, and I go to SFMOMA where they are showing Matisse sculptures, but I get to see a sculpture by Degas that moves me a little more than art is supposed to move someone without a heart. We go to the SF International Poetry Festival Kick-off ceremony in Jack Kerouac Alley, where a guy tries to pick a fight with me because he's crazy, and I suffuse the situation without a big thing, and I am proud. Ruby and Casey and Gillian join us. Gino and Carlos for drinks.

We migrate to Specs where Jack Hirschman puts me in a headlock and sings drinking songs with me well after we should be there. I wear a gigantic smile for the rest of the night. I've been reading Hirschman for like ten years, and I love his work. We take a crazy cab home with Gillian spread across our legs in back and end up at the Grad where we drink more, but it doesn't matter because I am not sleeping tonight. I've got a poster to work on.

25 July: Work on the poster all morning without stopping to eat. Sara and I go to the Andrew Joron reading at Pegasus, my favorite bookstore in the world and one of the best places to get your poetic fix. Joshua Clover is there to prove that the iPhone is the coolest thing technology has given us. I am able to show Joshua the poster that I did for his Holloway reading in color via his iPhone. He'd never seen it in color. Joshua Clover is a favorite, by the way. David Larsen is there, but I don't tell him what my poster looks like in fear that he would laugh me out of the building. Andrew Joron is great.

Many of us go to Jupiter to finally eat. Haters show up, but I don't say anything mean, and I am proud of not starting a fight. We migrate to Ben and Nick's where Cassandra, Erika, and Lara Durback are hanging out. Lara gives me some of her poetry, she's on the New Yipes poster I'm doing. I like much of what she gives me, and I am proud that someone gave me their poetry.

26 July: It's deadline day, and we still don't have a name for the film person. We're freaking out. But it all gets done with only a few bumps that are always present with a crazy deadline, but that's OK because it looks good. David and I print the posters and spend the day eating Indian at my favorite Indian restaurant and drinking chai tea. We go to the Jenny Drai reading at Back Room Live. She's wonderful, and we go to Ben and Nick's. It was entirely cool discussing poetry and art with David Larsen all day and much of the night. In case you didn't know, I idolize him a little bit. I dance with three beautiful women who ask for my number. HA. I'll need to sleep eventually.

27 July: SHIT. I forgot to finish my poster for the Pegasus reading next week. I have to do that most of the day. Tao Lin and Stephanie Young are going to be at New Yipes / Pegasus. I get there a little early and meet Tao. Joshua Clover is there and asks me if I'll work on a poetic Tshirt project with him. Everyone I love in poetry seems to be there. It's a gigantic turn out. Clay Banes comes in like Santa Claus with a box of Tao Lin books. During the intermission, I get to discuss poetry and movies with Joshua Clover. Both readers are fantastic, and most of us end up at Luka's, where Tao and I really hit it off. Just a great, great night.

27 July: Tao calls me up and asks me if he can sleep at my place. NO PROBLEM. I have the most comfortable air mattress known to man. I have to see a property we're thinking about turning into a working gallery / workshop. I see nothing but promise and potential in it. I get to Moe's, where Tao is about to read, at precisely 7:30, just in time to hear Tao Lin say that he isn't going to start reading until his friend, Jack Morgan, is there. But I am there, so he starts and is fantastic.

And even though there were certain people seemingly hell-bent on killing the night, even a spectacular auto-collision in front of my flat, we had a good time because Tao Lin is one of the coolest people in the world

28 July: We ate Indian at my favorite restaurant.
Sara and I took him to the Airport, and he drew us pictures.
I went to sleep.

Sorry this took so long, but this is only the short version. I've been writing ever since, too, so that's nice. Being a poet right now is the only thing I'd like to be. I get to hang out with the coolest people in the world.