Whoop Whoop Strange Grounds Open Mic

Whoop whoop!!! Last night was open mic, and I'm sitting here listening to the recording I did of it from my mp3 player. (Don't get excited, the recording was horrible, to say the least, but listen-able, lol)

I went to Strange GroundsCoffee-House for a GREAT , GREAT open mic. If you want the best chai tea in the city—you best go here!! From the minute I walked in, I felt relaxed. Now granted, when I walked in I was having a moment, due to some memory/anxiety issues, but my first chai tea and some time cured that.

Now this open mic's ad (which I read on craigslist lol) read like such:

Open Mic Night @ Strange Grounds Coffee!

Are you a musician, poet, or performer looking for a relaxed venue? Strange Grounds Coffee has an Open Mic Night every Tuesday night at 9:00 pm, hosted by local musician Eugene Christopher Bring your music, your poetry, yourself, and your friends, and come enjoy our intimate stage. There is never a cover charge for events at Strange Grounds, but try the chai, it's awesome and we make it from scratch.

For a full schedule of our events, see the calendar at StrangeGrounds.com.

Strange Grounds Coffee
1417 South Broadway
Denver CO
(303)733-7600
Facebook
Twitter: @StrangeGrounds
Live acoustic music on the regular.

So I thought, musicians—am I one, not really, but I kept reading. Poet—I think I might be able to pull that one off. So I felt comfortable in going there and doing my thing. The other thing I thought was hey, to off-set the poetry, and get in decent with the musicians, pull out the sax and join in the music side of the evening—and I did. Now the host (Eugene Christopher), a very cool dude; very welcoming, good guitar player, everything in a host to make you feel like you're in your living room playing with friends.

I had great fun at the open mic, I will be back!! The performers were amazing, you guys kept my head bobbing all evening! Now to review my performance—it wasn't that bad. With the last couple of performances I've had, I was very nervous. (could I remember the words, would I get stuck, stage fright, etc.) I am proud to report that none of that happened!!! This was the best performance I have given in months. One, it is a brand new piece; written about a month ago, and memorized that day. (and throughout the month...lol) But I enjoyed their stage, the people, and I was able to give away THREE CD'S!!!! It always makes me happy to give away something that I worked on, and enjoyed working on for the sake of enjoyment. So if you have one of those cd's, look at it, go to the website, burn it for a friend, tell them about the spot u met me, and ENJOY ALL OF THESE THINGS.

So all in all, the place was fabulous, I had a great time, and I will be back, for the music, the people and the chai!!! Down below you will find pics of some of the performers that hit the stage for this amazing night—Give Thanks, from Clarence, aka Poet402

Eugene Christopher--Your, Mine, Our Host

Matt 2013--Strange Grounds

Mave

more coming.....

Some Poetry From My Days

Lunch in a Behavioral Middle School Class

Slurping up

  chunky milk

from white styrafoam bowl

  he looks up to me w/

     wild jittery eyes

     & says

  "slop! I'm enjoying eating 

     slop"

  --boy, just eat your lunch

What Tension Sounds Like

use inside voices

   to make good choices

you can't allow them

to make you angry.

   stop provoking your peer.

   why are you yelling and 

   posturing toward

                   staff

SHE TOOK MY FUCKIN'

         RADIO

   is that a reason to yell

and get in people's faces??

Untitled

I thought she was gone

with her maple colored braids, 

bright unstained smile; with smooth hands

and arms outstretched to comfort me 

back to childhood.

   No, i don't have mommy issues.

If I did, this soft woman would be 

my zen therapist, blue crunchy zoloft

tab, all wrapped up,

into one.

She empowered me to take chances,

never got mad when I quit a job

big brown eyes watched me fall

   in a cloud of dust; get up

   dust myself off, and plan,

   another hair-brained scheme.

She tirelessly watched me; at the time

I thought she never helped me...

But sometimes,

the most help you can give

is watching someone you love,

   plunge head-first with air rushing out

   their nose, into a deep dark canyon of 

                                            granite!

& not helping up.

Maybe, the best thing she did

was fall into my arms at bedtime,

with silence; Stared at me with confidence

open her smooth legs & accepted me.

I drove her crazy

with my on again, off again; I love you

if only you weren't a single mother,

yes, I'd marry you if we can

have a baby & you put me--first

   I made her hair thin, grey, break &

fall, with each attempt to align the stars

to our dreams; I was collateral 

damage to our relationship.

Being real I had to read

the blood in my veins, realized 

I needed leeches to 

expel & let loose all the 

negative energy

that had gathered up 

in the bowels of my valves--

I needed an exit

like my dad just had.

like my ex finally had.

like my mom just did.

An exit.

a gold-plated pathway, away

from the full bosomed 

support wire that 

snapped the experience of 

expectation.

It, she, they,

    are all

not coming back

Doodles and Other Stuff...mmm...ok

Here are a few doodles that I have done over the past couple of months.  Some have poetry (not real good poetry) and others are just doodles.  I hope they bring a smile, at least, to your face.  Thanks for the visit, keep coming.

I doodle with my poodle

pigs fly in overcast skies

My coping skills are dancing over red sunsets!!

Children make me yell

Big smiles, green teeth make people happy

Trees with leaves kill leaches

Hearts causes farts

The phrase that I hear daily, whether group home/treatment center or the SPED classroom

A Doodle Done at a Special Ed Training
Summer 2013

EYC Doodle
Done November 1, 2013 between group home and SPED classroom

The F'n Recess Doodle
Done in SPED classroom 2013

Doodle done at Group Home/Treatment Center 2013
Kids got a hold of my notebook and added "are amazing"..fuckin' teens

Hot Head Doodle
Done in SPED classroom. Boys struggling with writing papers and anger.

The Math Doodle
Done in SPED classroom 2013
Doodling what the teacher was teaching.  Also brainstorming on lesson plans

Blackburn/Thankful engine is not blown Doodle
Doodle done in various places 10/26-10/31/13

The 3:30 Doodle
Done around 10/24/13; in the SPED classroom as well as the Group-home/Treatment Center

O'Hare Doodle
Done in SPED classroom 11/5/13
Working on reading lesson surrounding O'Hare father and son team

Fly Painting and Poetry Doodle
11/1/13 Done in SPED classroom
Angles
ain't angels
some of
the world
ain't wet;
speaking in
tongues
sometimes we forget

They say [pink]
is 4 Girls
ONLY

tic/tack
dropback
on dominance
to defend from
prominence & pas-
shron nipple
ripple effect in west
rivers

Poem Balloon/Sperm Doodle
SPED classroom 2013

Play computer
games all day
& call them brain
exercises as red -head
deviant cuts out back
door thinking he's slick
Fuck these kids

I tell them
they're amazing

in the most sarcastic
voice I can
muster,

but they don't quite
understand sarcasm;
like integrity is some
foreign word

We talk about english
embedded assessments
and transition statements.
Never dive deep
in the realm of science

I wanna give up
daily

Easily
distracted children
Let them loose in
society--will be sad
lesson, b/c society
no longer cares

For middle school
A.N. boys--good
coloring is a
skill 

Doodle done in SPED class

10/22/13

Better to 

run stairs 

than run streets

where your hustle 

is your muscles 

& you make bread

to eat, no defeat

in deafened shadows

my school is safe &

secure; but I'm 

no longer there

deep in 

manure

The Insanity Doodle

Doodle done at a AN Training

10/15/13

Conversation surrounding best way to support our kids, the issues they face, struggle with, then bring to us.

The Distracted Doodle
Done in SPED room on Halloween 2013.  Children were very distracted and wasted a lot of time on a one page essay

Introduction

So since I can not access my Bras' Blog anymore due to not remembering my password, I decided to do this blog instead--take that Google!! On this blog, I will be posting doodles and poetry mostly, because that's what I've being doing as of late. Most of the doodles will be surrounding children that I work with, because inspiration comes from life and my life is surrounded by bad ass kids--just kidding, but no really, I work with bad ass kids. lol. So read, view and enjoy enjoy enjoy!!