The launching of the new book "Wednesdays at Curley's" this past Wednesday night at Curley's Diner was a huge success! The book is absolutely beautiful!

Thank you to Ralph Nazareth and Catherine Ednie for editing, Richard Duffy and Pramila Venkateswaran for assisting typing. Thank you to Rev. Ron Sala and the congregation of the Unitarian Universalist Society in Stamford for hospitality and support. A thank you to Bonnie Currie for all she did behind the scene and of course Ann Yarmal for putting it all in motion. The beautiful cover of the book is by Catherine Ednie.

Thank you also goes to Herb Davidson for contributing to PoemAlley's voice in the community. The section title "From the Heart of the Poet" is adapted from a title suggested by Jim Janke. As always, Eleni Anastos laid out a table of goodies for poets and listeners from near and far. Last but definitely not least a thank you to Pat Kane and Lisa Crowley for their perceptive comments as our designated listeners.

It was a truly beautiful evening with beautiful poetry.

A formal reading will be held sometime in the winter at the Unitarian Universalist Society in Stamford. The date will be announced as soon as it has been set.

Hope to see you then if not before.

Eva-Maria and PoemAlley @ Curley's friends

(click cover for larger image)

Dear Poets,

I’m excited to bring you the news that our anthology Wednesdays at Curley’s will be released Wednesday, December 20th, at Curley’s! 7:30pm.

Please come with your friends and loved ones to usher in our third collection of poetry in the last two years. We will celebrate the book with an informal reading at the very site that has nurtured many of the poets in the anthology. Those of you who are in the anthology but are not Curley’s regulars, please try to come and join us in the festivities. We’ll have a formal, full-fledged reading at UUSIS sometime in February.

All the proceeds from the sale of the book will go to PoemAlley which will, in turn, look for new ways to bring poetry to our surrounding communities. We will plan new and imaginative workshops, Writing Fairs, readings and more collections of poetry.

Look forward to seeing you all at Curley’s next Wednesday!

Ralph

Our friend Pamela says hello from Washington DC and sends a gift of two poems for us. Thank you, Pam.




Waiting at the Bus Stop

Ciao amore!
I don't know
If that's your bus
That just pulled in
I'm flashing my lights
Right in front of you-



Peaceful Movement In The Cemetery

The stones don't move
But the trees sing
With fluttering leaves-
The bench is green
So is my bike
My hand writes these words
I'm not dead

Our Writers Workshop on Saturday November 18 was a great success.

A long! thank you list for all who gave so much time and effort to make it a success. Bonnie Currie the most efficient organizer ever, Rev. Ron Sala for his support and being liaison with the other tenants who share the building on Saturday’s, Ralph Nazareth with his calm presence, and helping out where ever a helping hand was needed, Bill Latham and Richard Duffy both volunteering to do the Writer’s Workshops in such a professional and interesting way.

Thanks to our Catherine Ednie with broken wrist and all who came up (on time!) with a much admired poster, George Krajca for contacting schools, Norris Wakefield for creating a poster and putting it up in front of the church, Rolf Maurer for organizing the donated food from Roly Poly’s, Herb Davison bringing his cd player and playing during lunch break very interesting poems, some recorded with the poets’ voices from the 19th century.

Suzy Capone thank you for those delicious brownies and cookies and Karen Davis for setting up coffee and tea. We also thank William for helping Bonnie with the balloons outside. Don, thank you for accompanying Bonnie and the kids to the Museum and Nature Center.

A big thank you to the Community Arts Partnership Program. Without their funding assistance this wonderful event could not have taken place.

Just had very good news from Ralph Nazareth about the coming-out of the book “Wednesdays at Curley’s.” On December 20th copies will be available at Curley’s. A good reason for a visit.

Have a happy Holiday Season.

Eva-Maria from PoemAlley @ Curley’s
and friends.

This is just a reminder about our next Poet's Open Mic here at the
Harry Bennett Branch of the Ferguson Library. The scheduled time is
for next Tuesday, November 28th at 6:30pm. The event will be held, as
usual, in the auditorium.

Harry Bennett Branch Library
115 Vine Road
Stamford, CT. 06905

I do hope you all can come and support your local poets, or come
and share some of your own writing! And please forward this along to
friends.

Thanks Everyone,
Andrew

Our Writing Fair at the UUSIS brought together many of us who are committed to writing as an instrument for survival and for making sense of a world which seems to want to blunt its edge and limit, if not negate, its efficacy. In continuing to write we resist this attempted erasure.

Those of you who are new to PoemAlley and have never come to Curley's on Wednesday evenings, please join us--in the writing of a life that we choose rather than the one foisted on us by the powers not of our choosing.

In the following essay, Adrienne Rich goes to the heart of what we are striving to be as a community of poets. Please share it with your friends.

Ralph Nazareth


Legislators of the world
Commentary - In our dark times we need poetry more than ever, argues Adrienne Rich

Well, I briefly have to mention the "Haunted House" which took place on the last two weekends of October. Some poets from PoemAlley @ Curley’s read "mildly" spooky stories to the smaller kids for whom the "Haunted House" was (maybe) too spooky. The readers enjoyed their participation in these evenings very much. Thank you also to Bill Latham, whose idea it was to do this reading in the social room.

The poetry gathering in November at Curley’s was again very stimulating and diverse.

The new book Wednesday’s At Curley’s should be ready by mid-December. The date for the reading has not yet been set.

We wish some of you would come and visit!

Eva-Maria and PoemAlley friends
@ Curley’s

Reservations are NOT required,
but space is limited!

Click registration
to sign up online
(or call 203-348-0708)
if you’d like to attend
a particular workshop.

This event is FREE. Food and drink will be available for sale at lunch time (12:30 - 1:30). Book sale table and ongoing open mike will be happening all day.


9:00 to 10:30 Writing When You Don't Want To Write
Presented by Author William Latham, resident of Stamford

11:00 to 12:30 Journaling For Catharsis
Presented by Author William Latham, resident of Stamford

1:30 to 3:00 Writing and Reading Dramatic Monologues
presented by Richard Duffee, writer, resident of Stamford

3:30 to 5:00 Performance Poetry Workshop
presented by Iyaba Ibo Mandingo, poet, resident of Stamford

Click Read More for more information. You may also call 203-348-0708.

Hope you all had a good summer and are enjoying the fall now with its changing of colors.

In the last weeks we entertained some wonderful inspiring poets. We thank them for giving us some of their time: Bill Buschel, who will also read one Saturday at the Haunted House, Frank Chambers from Borders’ First Tuesday in Wilton, Ann Holmes, and Peggy Heinrich. Both Ann and Peggy read about ten minutes each and talked to us about their books and publishing in general.

An update on the anthology. All is moving smoothly. It will be called: "Wednesdays at Curley’s." It should be out by mid-December.

See you at the Haunted House?

Eva-Maria and
PoemAlley at Curley’s Friends

P.S. Please mark your calendar for the Writer’s Fair at UUSIS
on Saturday, November 18, 2006.

Mark your calendar for the Writer's Fair, November 18, in Stamford!

This one-day event will take place Saturday, November 18, 2006 at the Unitarian Universalist Society, 20 Forest Street, Stamford. There will be four wide-ranging workshops:

Journaling For Catharsis
Presented by Author William Latham, resident of Stamford

Writing When You Don't Want To Write
Presented by Author William Latham, resident of Stamford

Writing and Reading Dramatic Monologues
presented by Richard Duffee, writer, resident of Stamford

Performance Poetry Workshop
presented by Iyaba Ibo Mandingo, poet, resident of Stamford

Click Read More for more information on each workshop.

Please call the Unitarian Universalist Society in Stamford at 203-348-0708 for details.

The writers/artists and organizers are looking forward to welcoming you on November 18!