NEEDLING

Couple winters ago when I was in Portland, Maine, doing nothing much of nothing and I had plenty of time on my hands to walk through the ice-full streets from bookstore to bar to bookstore to bar, I ran into, while browsing the poetry section of one of these bookshops, a volume of poetry by Edward Sanders, published by Black Sparrow Press. I knew not the poet but have long enjoyed the small press in question, so I picked up "America, A History In Verse". I read pages here and pages there, set the book back on the shelf, and came back the following days to read more pages, always at random and in disorder often going backwards, my elbow resting onto the nearing bookshelf of said bookstore where I bought nothing though I visited often. I did buy several books that winter, mostly second hand books, or books I thought I wouldn’t be able to find elsewhere, such as a nice book of essays by Robert Graves. I never bought Sander’s book, though I really wanted it. I had to carry all these books back with me to Paris via the plane, on the plane, as well as my medically required liquids – necessary for me to stay sane throughout the flight, or pass-out, whatever comes first – and I voted to a majority against buying said book. A total lack of money might also have been an important factor. Recently, having held on to one job for longer than six months, paying rent on a regular basis – a first for me in ten years – and taking care of all the bills without any kind of help from tier parties and still having a penny here and there to spend on myself, I decided to order said book from one of those evil tycoon web-ring bookstores... since there are no independent book traders left in Austin, what difference does it make? The book came in the mail the first time. The delivery man set it in front of my front door in Brutus's reach, and the book got TOTALLY eaten by my dear friend. I was upset and kicked my fence while cursing nasty things to nobody in particular, and specially not to Brutus who can’t help himself when it comes to eating good literature, so I sent an email to the BIG virtual book-trader, and they – to their credit and I appreciate fully and thank them gracefully – sent me a brand new package (three books all together, one on Scotch whiskies, one wine encyclopedia, and one book of poems). The book came a second time, and I’m now enjoying it and glad to have it in my possession.


(Other than that, I went to the store down the highway which sales big planks of wood – 1x12x6 poplars, to be exact – and brought them back home, set them on cinder blocks and thus created some large attractive bookshelves, which I promptly filled up to the ream... and all ready I’m thinking I need more bookshelves. That’ll have to wait for another paycheck period however. I also paid some bills, started up a Savings account with my banker’s help, and had a few beers. Fuckin’ Rockin’.)