#goodmorningspd

Oh, hello there! And a goodly Tuesday morning to you!

We have been a skeleton crew, if not a ghost ship, for some weeks, and it was simpler and less woeful not to chronicle such profound absence. But we are at full sail again, with only sporadic truancy, such as:

Janice is out today, taking a comp day for her contributions to our excellent Beast Crawl event.

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The Perseids meteor shower is at its peak tonight around 2am. The naked eye is sufficient.

Happy Tuesday!

The people cheers poets.

The government fears poets.

Nerds reveres poets.

Wine steers poets.

Good Morning, SPD!

A May-morninged Tuesday, carried in from the sea on a May-nighted gust (which steered me last night against my will into traffic going home) brings news, of clashes around Crimea, prayerful politics, and watermelon cupcakes at SPD. So, it ain't all bad. In celebration of the best part of this morning, here's a quote from Richard Brautigan:

"Perhaps you stared into a river. There was something near you who loved you. They were about to touch you. You could feel this before it happened. Then it happened. That is my name.” --In Watermelon Sugar -----

John is volunteering, 10-2.

Good morning, SPDland,

This weekend, the Cascadia Poetry Festival is underway in Seattle. Cascadia, of course, is the region of the Pacific Northwest that stretches from the tip of northern California to British Columbia. Lesser known is its more compact counterpart, the State of Jefferson, comprised of nearly 2 dozen contiguous counties in northern California and southern Oregon.

Happy Secession Day!

Today is the first day of May, referred to by the ancient Celts as Beltane, the Finnish and other nearby cultures as Walpurgis, and beginning the period known to the Old English as "Þrimilci-mōnaþ," or "Month of Three Milkings." Undoubtedly, the cows preferred June.

Of course, May Day is also a day for recognizing the struggles, historic and ongoing, of workers around the world, to gain rights and recognition. Early today, Turkish protestors clashed heavily with police over the outlawing of May Day celebrations.

In our own little hamlet, the U.S. Senate celebrated early yesterday by blocking a proposed measure to raise the federal minimum wage from $7.25 to $10.00.

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Eric is volunteering today, 9-1.

Happy May Day!

Tonight! Come get your buzz on at the SPD Bee! There will bee:

-A silent auction!

-A spelling bee of super-literary proportions!

-Live-auctioned personalized poems by CA Conrad & Bhanu Kapil!

-Broadsides by Norma Cole!

-Food and drink!

And much, much more!

Today is the birthday of William Shakespeare, third of John Shakespeare and Mary Arden's 8 children, and last surviving son. I guess that's what a government pension will do for you. Take that, Humors!

In honor of the day, I've picked my favorite of Jen Bervin's Nets, #93.

Stephen is volunteering today, 12-4.

We're 5 days out from the SPD Bee!

Happy Wednesday!

Good Morning!

We are just one week away from the SPD Bee! Volunteers are massed, words vetted, and Jeffrey is on his way in 3 days. I don't know about you, but I'm pretty buzzed.

Milcah will be volunteering today, from 10-2