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A Haiku About a Talk of the Town About Haiku About Cardboard Boxes
Filed under: Pick of the Issue Tagged: poetry, Tom Bartlett, TOTT
New York sweltering
Sweet and cool relief arrives:
Zesty fall-themed Talk
Haiku leave so little room for exposition! Also, too much like ad copy, too iambic in the 7, and not strictly accurate. Besides, who ever heard of the third line of a haiku being a hyperlink, except maybe at Brown? How about:
Trees lose last few leaves
Free boxes for poetry?
Turn toward Craigslist
I couldn't let this week pass without pointing out that in the current issue there's a Talk of the Town about poems written on—not on as in with a permanent marker on, but in the sense of "about"—moving boxes. (Moving-boxes, that is, not gerund object.) And that Talk is written by Tom Bartlett, a pal whose Minor Tweaks is a consistent source of amusement, reassurance in the occasional sanity of man, and the backs of strangers' heads. I love this story; public poetry is going around, I think. Remember that mathematical puzzle-formula that inspired a poetical internet explosion? (Don't make me say meme.)
Only semi-unrelated: The History Boys! Go see it!
About us
Hello! We're a small band of media enthusiasts, culture addicts, and journalists based in New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles. Emdashes, formerly a New Yorker fan site, is our collection of conversations—mostly civilized—about magazines, movies, politics, design, punctuation, and other things that stir us.
You'd like to know more about the writers and artists and what our column titles mean? We live to serve!
We welcome tips, questions, comments, and corrections, and are always on the lookout for ardent, obsessive new contributors. Click here to email us.
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Tell me more
Dashes, some say, “are particularly useful in a sentence that is long and complex.” Emdashes—like an em dash itself—provides a thoughtful pause amid the hubbub.
Emdashes, founded in 2004, is written and drawn by Emily Gordon, Martin Schneider, Pollux, Jonathan Taylor, and Benjamin Chambers, as well as occasional guest contributors. All posts before October 2008 are by Emily Gordon.
The site was designed by House of Pretty with illustrations by Jesse R. Ewing.
Additional drawings are by Carolita Johnson and Pollux (author of our web comic, "The Wavy Rule"). The Emdashes pencil logo is by Jennifer Hadley, based on a 1943 Dorothy Gray ad.
Other writing by Emily Gordon
- Writing on theater: reviews (for Time Out Chicago; imperfect but workable search results)
- Profile: Valerie Casey, Designers Accord founder, is spearheading the design of sustainability (for SXSW World)
- Feature: Rea Irvin: visionary art director, bon vivant, New Yorker founding father (for Print)
- Slide show: the Coney Island Mermaid Parade (for NYCgo.com)
- Feature: Muslim immigration iconography in the Netherlands, and an interview with Ayaan Hirsi Ali (for Print)
- Review: King's Gambit: A Son, a Father, and the World's Most Dangerous Game by Paul Hoffman (for Newsday)
- Homage: Celebrating lindy-hop legend Frankie Manning (for NYCgo.com)
- Inquiry: Does a New Republic redesign mean a change of tune? (for Print)
- Interview: James Surowiecki on what's next for the wisdom of crowds (for Assignment Zero)
- Interviews: four up-and-coming designers under 30 (for Print)
- Profile: novelist and dance critic Laura Jacobs (for Newsday)
Blogroll highlights
- Box Office Boffo
- World of Pollux
- Jonathan Taylor
- Carolita Johnson
- Songs for blogroll lovers (more links)
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- Get a t-shirt at the Emdashes store
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