Goose Hill

No longer am I just on the cusp of publication. In the past, I've shared with you my favorite rejection letters. Now I get to share my first acceptance letter! So there it is! My two poems "Vespers" and "Studies in Still-Life" will be forthcoming in the Fall 2011 issue of The Coachella Review . It all starts here, people. I am forthcoming.

This very afternoon my beautiful Chandler & Price tabletop printing press was delivered! Mike (who looks coincidentally similar to Santa Claus) and his two Chinese exchange students (who sadly do not resemble elves) pulled up in a pickup, unloaded her from the bed and settled her in her spot. Here she is: Eventually she will perch on top of a type cabinet in this very floorspace. So next, I must commission my contractor stepfather or some other carpenter of my acquaintance to custom build a cabinet that will both store type cases (full of lead type!) and hold up this (quite heavy) cast-iron printing press. P.S.  I am still deciding on a name for my press. I would like to have her keep the initials C.P., which has made deciding on a name more difficult. Any suggestions? I'm just waiting for inspiration at this point. P.P.S.  If you hadn't noticed, thi s blog of mine has had a little makeover. I felt it was time to update. I ho...

While I scrimp and save and dream about my printing press , whose due date is somewhere in the vicinity of October, I have begun preparing a cozy space for it in my living room: a narrow, just-the-right-size area between the tall bookcase and the kitchen doorway. Today, I picked up a letterpress print that I got professionally framed (as both the occasion and the gorgeous print, I felt, called for this little indulgence).  My "Rules of the Press" art (handset and handprinted by the lovely Jen Malat and Marian Robbins in the Print Shop of the Rose O'Neill Literary House in 2008) is now hung on the wall directly over where the press will be.  Jen and Marian's Rules of the Press 1. Don't die. 2. Don't lose any limbs. Addendum: Avoid paper cutter. 3. Wheel before ink. 4. Shift, don't reach. 5. Have fun ! It's all very good advice, really. Also there are cowboys and horses. What's not to love, right?