Today's Reflection:
“Poems are a hotline to our hearts, and we forget this emotional power at our peril” ― Andrew Motion
Thursday, July 30, 2015
Song Of The Day.... & Daily Reflection 07/30/15
Today's Reflection:
“Poems are a hotline to our hearts, and we forget this emotional power at our peril” ― Andrew Motion
Wednesday, July 29, 2015
Song Of The Day.... & Daily Reflection 07/29/15
Today's Reflection:
“In the spirit of the Alpha and the Omega, in the way the Alpha was the Omega, and vice versa, he knew the beginning was also the end—and that the end was just another beginning.” ― Sol Luckman
Tuesday, July 28, 2015
Song Of The Day.... & Daily Reflection 07/28/15
Today's Reflection:
“I'm always wondering about the what-ifs, about the road not taken.” ― Jenny Han
Monday, July 27, 2015
Song Of The Day.... & Daily Reflection 07/27/15
Today's Reflection:
“Your assumptions are your windows on the world. Scrub them off every once in a while, or the light won't come in.” ― Isaac Asimov
Friday, July 24, 2015
Song Of The Day.... & Daily Reflection 07/24/15
Today's Reflection:
“If you're really a mean person you're going to come back as a fly and eat poop.”― Kurt Cobain
Thursday, July 23, 2015
Song Of The Day.... & Daily Reflection 07/23/30
Today's Reflection:
“Life is very tough and fragile at the same time, it never backs down or surrenders, but will break open to reveal its beauty and ugliness. As a evening primrose that blooms in the flooding moonlight, just before being trampled upon underfoot by the four-legged frost of the night.” ― Anthony Liccione
Wednesday, July 22, 2015
Song Of The Day.... & Daily Reflection 07/22/15
{What Year Was This? This Video Looks Like It Was Shot In Someone's Basement & Edited By Someone In An AV-101 Class From 1986}
Today's Reflection:
“Invade me with your hot mouth; interrogate me with your night-eyes, if you want only let me steer like a ship through your name; let me rest there.” - Pablo Neruda
Tuesday, July 21, 2015
Song Of The Day & Daily Reflection 07/21/15
Today's Reflection:
“Our ancestors have invented, we can at least innovate.” ― Amit Kalantri
Monday, July 20, 2015
Song Of The Day & Daily Reflection 07/20/15
Today's Reflection:
“Accept who you are. Unless you're a serial killer.” ― Ellen DeGeneres
Tuesday, July 14, 2015
Song Of The Day.... & Daily Reflection 07/14/15
Today's Reflection:
“Motherfuckers will read a book that’s one third Elvish, but put two sentences in Spanish and they [white people] think we’re taking over.” ― Junot Díaz
Monday, July 13, 2015
Song Of The Day.... & Daily Reflection 07/13/15
Today's Reflection:
“I'm sorry. I use my rapier wit to hide my inner pain.” ― Cassandra Clare
Friday, July 10, 2015
Song Of The Day.... & Today's Reflection 07/10/15
Today's Reflection:
“And what sort of lives do these people, who pose as being moral, lead themselves? My dear fellow, you forget that we are in the native land of the hypocrite.” ― Oscar Wilde
Thursday, July 9, 2015
Song Of The Day.... & Daily Reflection 07/09/15
Today's Reflection:
"Stop worrying about the world ending today. It's already tomorrow in Australia." - Charles M. Schulz
Wednesday, July 8, 2015
Beast Crawl Is Back!!
Beast Crawl is Back
In its fourth year, the East Bay literary pub crawl is more ferocious than ever.
The East Bay literary landscape is sprawling, and local poet Paul Corman-Roberts likes to describe its diverse subcultures as tribes — spoken word, storytelling, and poetry are a few examples. Thanks to Corman-Roberts and his fellow organizers, all those tribes gather once a year to take part in Beast Crawl, a full day of free literary events spread throughout downtown Oakland. This year's festival will take place on July 11, from 5 p.m. until 2 a.m., and will constitute the largest gathering to date.
This is the event's fourth year, so many people may be familiar with its dense structure. There are three legs that each last one hour, with a bonus fourth leg that's actually an after-party at The Legionnaire Saloon (2272 Telegraph Ave.). During each of the first three legs, twelve readings happen simultaneously at various venues across the downtown area. The first leg begins at 5 p.m., with a half-hour break separating each.
Over the years, Beast Crawl has grown steadily, as has the local literary scene. That's allowed the festival to involve more spaces and curators each year. This time, there are 35 wide-ranging venues, including the Senegalese restaurant Bissap Baobab, the sexy Feelmore Adult Gallery, and the popular new venue, Starline Social Club.
In terms of events, the usual suspects will make an appearance, such as the reading and performance series BustingOut Storytelling, Tourettes without Regrets, and Quiet Lightning. But there will be newcomers, too. One of those is "Brown People Don't Read?" which will take place at AU Lounge (2430 Broadway) during the third leg. Curated by the Mills College-based writing group Sunday Stories, it will feature readers whose stories challenge the notion that narratives told by people of color aren't as central to the American literary canon as those by white authors. "Liminal at the Beast," also a new addition, will be a strong session of female writers curated by author Gina Goldblatt, the founder of LIMINAL, a feminist writing space in the Laurel district. That will take place during the second leg at Farley's East (33 Grand Ave.). Also during leg two, Pochino Press and Spectrum Queer Media will be hosting a new session called "Rise!" at Club BNB (2120 Broadway), in which a number of writers and performers will address the theme of proactive resistance.
From the start, the purpose of Beast Crawl has been to make Oakland a literary destination, said Corman-Roberts in a recent interview. And, for a number of reasons, that's slowly starting to happen. When the festival was born in 2012, there were nearly no independent bookstores downtown, and now there is a network of them that consistently open their spaces for readings — Octopus Literary Salon, Bergeron's Books, and Laurel being a few of the newer ones. Corman-Roberts said that gatherings like Beast Crawl are important for building the strong ties that form such a network. "It's not much different than when we were primitive people sitting around a campfire passing a talking stick," he said. "But it still really addresses this human need for connection ... it builds infrastructure for the community."
See the full Beast Crawl schedule at BeastCrawl.Weebly.com
Song Of The Day.... & Daily Reflection 07/0715
Today's Reflection:
"Mama said 'Unless they gonna pay your bills, pay them bitches no mind' The Gospel according to Mama Charles!" - RuPaul
Tuesday, July 7, 2015
Song Of The Day.... & Daily Reflection 07/07/15
Today's Reflection:
“You must give everything to make your life as beautiful as the dreams that dance in your imagination.” ― Roman Payne
Monday, July 6, 2015
Song Of The Day.... & Daily Reflection 07/06/15
Today's Reflection:
“There is something mystically sad and beautiful about how i will
never see you again
but meet you again and again in poetry.” ― Sanober Khan
Two Chances To See Me Read/Perform....
The evening’s theme is proactive resistance. Oakland is going through immense change and many residents, both new and old, seek to engage in dialogues towards making our city a safe and welcoming one. Our readers explore how they define and redefine their own identities, informing broader conversations and community change.
Performers and Bios
Blackberri
Blackberri is a singer and activist whose recognition includes induction into the Smithsonian Institute Folkways Recordings and writing the theme song for the first National Third World Lesbian and Gay Conference.
Kin Folkz
Kin Folkz is the founder of Spectrum Queer Media and a lauded producer of effective social justice gatherings, screenings and community actions across the globe.
Mali
Mali is a multi-talented performer, earning accolades in arenas including singing, acting, and dancing. Among his accomplishments are co-creating the first theatre project addressing AIDS in the black community.
harold terezón
harold was awarded the San Francisco Foundation's James D. Phelan Award in poetry. He is writing his first manuscript Hunting Izotes, a poetry collection based on his family's immigrant experiences.
Jair
Jair is a writer, poet, spoken word artist, vocalist, activist, and arts curator living in Oakland. His work has appeared in numerous magazines, print publications, online, as well as anthologies.
Mona Webb
Mona creates new platforms for lyrical creativity, music, visual art, and dance in all that she produces. Her most recent productions debuted in The National Queer Arts Festival.
Daniel D. Zarazua
Daniel is currently working on a book exploring Black and Latino communities in Taiwan. He draws upon a background that includes DJing, photography, and as a high school educator.
Monica Zarazua
Monica earned an MFA in Creative Writing from the UNLV. Her stories have been published in The Collagist, The Blotter and Asia Literary Review. She lives in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
BEAST CRAWL is Uptown Oakland’s annual free literary festival featuring more than 200 writers in a single night, in dozens of events, spread out over three hours and thirty-five local galleries, bars, restaurants, cafés, performance spaces, and storefronts.
Each leg of The Beast lasts one hour, and offers a dozen different readings to chose from. There’s a half hour break between literary legs for socializing and relocating to a new venue before the next reading begins. We recommend choosing one reading per leg. You can even plan your route in advance.
Crawl maps, curators, readers, and venues are all searchable on our website: www.beastcrawl.weebly.com.
Printed crawl maps will be available on the day of the festival at all the Leg 1 events, and at the Beast Crawl Information Table in front of The Legionnaire Saloon.
Everyone is invited to the Leg 4 After Parties (marked with stars on the crawl map) starting at 9pm at The Legionnaire Saloon (drinks, dancing, 21+) and Telegraph Beer Garden (food, drinks, all ages).
Every city should have its own unique literary identity, and Beast Crawl is the beating literary heart of Oakland.
Beast Crawl Literary Festival
Saturday, July 11, 2015
5pm - 9pm readings
9:30pm - 2am afterparty
Uptown Oakland
Learn more about Beast Crawl on our website: http://beastcrawl.weebly.com/
OAKLAND's QUEER OPEN MIC • 7/14/15 - SPECTRUM QUEER MEDIA's: Pass the Mic Tuesdays - featuring JAIR, THE LITERARY MASTURBATOR
for LGBTQIA and Hetero-Ally Folkz in the BAY AREA, USA
Tuesday June 16th 6pm-9pm - You are invited to Pass the Mic Tuesdays (OAKLAND's QUEER OPEN MIC)
Spectrum at Perch - 440 Grand Ave. Oakland CA
FEATURED SPECTRUM SIGNATURE HOST and GUEST ARTIVIST:
• JAIR THE LITERARY MASTURBATOR!!!!!!
accompanied by Khalil Sullivan
Bring your thoughts, words, short films, music and more - signups begin at 6pm - sharing begins at 6:30pm.
Also, feel free to enjoy the tasty sandwiches, salads, beverages, and desserts available for sale at the cafe.
RSVP
https://www.facebook.com/events/397221707131367/
SPECTRUM QUEER MEDIA WEBSITE:http://www.SpectrumQueerMedia.com/
FREE and BY DONATION: We happily accept (but do not require) donations to help pay for the space costs.
Thursday, July 2, 2015
Song Of The Day.... & Daily Reflection 07/02/15
Today's Reflection 07/02/15
“When I hear music, I fear no danger. I am invulnerable. I see no foe. I am related to the earliest times, and to the latest.” ― Henry David Thoreau
Wednesday, July 1, 2015
Song Of The Day.... & Daily Reflection 07/01/15
Today's Reflection:
"While I dance I can not judge, I can not hate, I can not separate myself from life. I can only be joyful and whole. This is why I dance. - Hans Bos"
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