Poetry readings for More Joy Day.

Because I don't need a reason or excuse to post James Marsters poetry commissions, but it's good to have a reminder to do so, and they're such a good, renewable source of joy these days.

"Reasons to Live" by Alison Luterman, which lists some very good ones,

"Fog" by Alison Luterman, which is my first time commissioning a second poem from the same author, but come on, fog,

"Reflections on a Gift of Watermelon Pickle Received from a Friend Called Felicity" by John Tobias, which is a summertime feast of a poem,

"Great Things Have Happened" by Alden Nowlan, which is beautiful in its modest wonders,

"Poem For People That Are Understandably Too Busy To Read Poetry" by Stephen Dunn and "Ode to the Apostrophe" by Elizabeth Zetlin is a doubleheader because his original reading of "Poem for People..." omitted a stanza and he was willing to re-record it without me having to re-commission him for it, though I was fully prepared and ready to do so, which speaks highly of his kindness, generosity, and professionalism, and I'll happily share the original reading as a bonus outtake if anyone's curious, and

"Who's That" by Ana Božičević, which speaks of days to come.

Souvenirs from better times.

Challenge #7

In your own space, tell us about 3 fandom resources, spaces, or communities you use or enjoy. (One or two is fine, especially if you're in a smaller fandom!) Leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.

1. Fans older than me - because they've had more time to gather experiences and stories and knowledge and skills, who are willing and eager to share, who can help me figure out what words need to go to give a story more jump and offer practical advice on all kinds of adult topics from how to hire a plumber to navigating tricky workplace conversations,

2. Fans younger than me - because they've grown up in a world very different than the one I come from, and they've got new ideas coming out the wazoo, they've got all sorts of new ways of looking at old things, and though I usually don't quite understand their precise choice of words used to communicate their enthusiasm, they're coming to fandom with absolutely no preconceived notions of how anything should be done, which makes for a lot of excitement,

3. Fans my own age - because we're no two of us alike, because they vid and I write and they draw and I beta and they sing and I dance,because we all bring something different to the table, because we all have our own way of doing things and I can't do what they do but they can't do what I do and we're all of us stronger, better, happier together, because other fans are who I'm here to meet and I want to be that other fan for people who are new to this whole thing and people who've also been here for years and are looking for someone new to talk to, because people are why we're all here, because without fans there wouldn't be fandom as we know it.

Oh, also, if you want to toss The Internet Archive a few dollars, please do so, because a couple of months ago I finally found an archived copy of a fic I hadn't read for nearly fifteen years that was just as strange and weird and wonderful as I'd remembered.