From: the guppy<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

oh good god...misti and chris, you guys just broke my brain...are you guys not making a serious issue of people supposedly taking things too seriously?...why do you care???...just be funny, and things will work out fine...ha<BR>
<BR>
gup
<HR>
From: sarah [email-masked]<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

Hi<BR>
<BR>
I feel there might be some confusion about what my point was when we were all slightly heated a couple weeks ago about mispellings and all that jazz.<BR>
<BR>
I just wanted to clarify.<BR>
<BR>
I am not condoning mispellings.  I like to spell things correctly, well i try too at least.  And the occasional mispelling is all good, but yes, some of the spelling here are atrocious.  I give y'all that.<BR>
<BR>
I was commenting more on other posters and comments, about capitalizing and elipses, and other grammatical technicalities.  Which sometimes in certain poetry can make it what it is.  <BR>
<BR>
It wasn't that i don't want to make this place more critical, I think it could work more on critiquing.  That is partly why I do not comment that much, because instead of critiquing, we only hear about the poems someone likes.  <BR>
<BR>
But what could make someones poem, that someone didn't comment about better??? what could make it tighter, or whatnot?<BR>
<BR>
But I think we can't be as technical as other places, such as pffa, where they do literally rip you to shreds sometimes if they don't like you.<BR>
<BR>
They can be downright cruel.<BR>
<BR>
But if we can somehow make this an atmosphere in which to do it in a friendly manner, instead of cutting down criticizing and being condescending, then that would be terrific.<BR>
<BR>
I am not directing these comments at ANYONE, just so no one gets all heated up. <BR>
<BR>
I apologize if I offended anyone before with my comments about this topic.  I did not mean to do so. <BR>
<BR>
If anyone does have any comments, please feel free to email me about it.<BR>
<BR>
regards<BR>
<BR>
sarah
<HR>
From: Angeli<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

Me aka Niki - Thanks for your comments on 'My Butterfly'<BR>
<BR>
I have been having so many ups and downs lately and wrote 'Only Love is Real' last week....it's reflects on my mood that even though I have someone who loves me, my true love is towards someone else, he being 'the butterfly'. We had a chance to be together, but circumstances have kept us apart! :(<BR>
<BR>
Angeli<BR>

<HR>
From: Eric Doral  [email-masked]<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

                            Love is<BR>
<BR>
              Love is a treasure love is a dream,<BR>
<BR>
            Love is a feeling nothing comes between.<BR>
<BR>
                  Love is kind love is true,<BR>
<BR>
          With any hard time love will see us through.<BR>
<BR>
             Love is a sunset it's only the truth,<BR>
<BR>
           Love is a wishing well a fountain of youth.<BR>
<BR>
            Love is a fairy tale a dream come true,<BR>
<BR>
             Because I found love  when I found you.<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
              Eric            TO:            I<BR>
<BR>
                  Keola          Maria         Love<BR>
<BR>
                       Doral          Canon        You
<HR>
From: Eric Doral  [email-masked]<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

Love is<BR>
<BR>
  Love is a treasure love is a dream,<BR>
Love is a feeling nothing comes between.<BR>
Love is kind love is true.<BR>
With any hard time love will see us through.<BR>
Love is a sunset it's only the truth,<BR>
Love is a wishing well a fountain of youth.<BR>
Love is a fairy tale a dream come true,<BR>
Because I found love  when I found you.<BR>
<BR>
By: Eric<BR>
        Keola<BR>
             Doral<BR>
To:Maria<BR>
        Canon<BR>
<BR>
<BR>

<HR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

Sarah, I agree with you -- however having offered a critique I'll never do so again.<BR>
<BR>
I didn't comment on her grammar -- I know mine isn't the best. I did suggest she try using a spellcheck.<BR>
 <BR>
It all comes down to intended audience, and in my honest opinion, if you post your work here you are implying that you are asking for comment, good or bad.
<HR>
From: sarah<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

i guess the only thing i could possibly suggest, is that maybe critique people here (i'm sure many of us regulars like b.k, terry, guppy, gala, me...etc etc etc) who you know wouldn't jump on you.  I would gladly take a critique, i want to know how to tighten my writing, become more disciplined or what not.  <BR>
<BR>
so here:<BR>
<BR>
I suggest a challenge.  Maybe with in the next week, we can do that for each other.  Things that might make our work more concise, or more poetically sound, maybe we can do that for each other.  That we somehow should comment on at least a couple works or whatnot.  (pffa does that, three critiques for every one work submitted, i think that is a good thing about them though).  <BR>
<BR>
Maybe if people see that we do it in a meaningfull manner as friends, they will see that we mean them no harm, just a better way for their poeticism to come across.<BR>
<BR>
how about that?<BR>
<BR>
scj
<HR>
From: deevaa<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

sarah, several of the regulars have gone to fields greener, one commented that the blender has become more like a teen chat board than somewhere they wanted to share their poetry, go to new subs I'm not the only one who has been posting less and less this month.
<HR>
From: deevaa<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

by the way -- thats a great idea.<BR>

<HR>
From: the guppy<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

dee,sarah,misti,chris,anyone else who doesn't like to critique here because of being jumped on---just go for it if you want to...yes, some people are hyper-sensitive, but you guys should consider a decent critique as a desensitizing agent of sorts...go ahead and tell somebody that they should use a spell check...and maybe after the fiftieth or so time they'll get the point that you're not attacking them, just commenting on their writing...either that or they will ignore you, or see you as a big meanie, or whatever...but you might, just might, actually make a difference...be a meanie, damnit!!!...my chemistry teacher in high school was the biggest prick if you didn't know the answer to one of his questions...he would make you answer every question for about a week...i thought he was the devil at the time, but i look back at him as someone who actually gave a rat's ass about what his students learned...and he was one of the very best teachers i had...<BR>
<BR>
part of being a critic is being seen as a jerk by some people...don't let it bother you...it goes with the territory<BR>
<BR>
and damnit, sign your name to your comments...speak your mind, and don't pretend it's not yours<BR>
<BR>
enough of my long-winded crap for now,<BR>
<BR>
gup
<HR>
From: sarah<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

but if we dont' post our stuff deevaa, then it is going to become a teen chatboard.  We know what is substance and what isn't.  Things go in cycles, and maybe those things are cycles.  Maybe the posting of sappy teenager love stuff is just a phase the blender is going through.<BR>
<BR>
Then maybe instead of giving up on it, we should do something about it, and preserve what brought us all here and kept many of us here for quite some time.
<HR>
From: deevaa<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

ummm oppps, nameless was me. I always own my comments, I wrote it in another application (with spell check) first... that was an honest mistake.
<HR>
From: deevaa<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

I'm not giving up on it, I'm just posting less of what I write. <BR>
<BR>
The stuff best stuff, except yesterdays sub that went with "the lady of autumn" which was crap.
<HR>
From: Brian ([email-masked])<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

Y judge people on there spelling and grammar of a poem, it's not the details of writing the poem that matters.  It's all about expressing a thought or feeling you have in your mind and putting it on a piece of paper, so other people can read it and experience the same thought or feeling that you have had.  That is the true beauty about poems that there doesn't have to be any rules or regulations, and that you can just be free and let your thoughts flow on a piece of paper, so other people can experience how you feel and relate to you in an unbiased and welcomed atmosphere.
<HR>
From: the guppy<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

spelling has much to do with the meaning of writing...their, there, they're all mean different things<BR>
<BR>
if you don't care about spelling, then you have to be comfortable with the fact that a decent amount of people are going to relate to your work in the same way they relate to chewing on tin foil...<BR>
<BR>
gup
<HR>
From: sarah<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

gup,<BR>
<BR>
i love you man, i love you!
<HR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

Gup, if you care about spelling so much, you should really work on your grammar for a perfect piece of literature. : )
<HR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

...and I haven't seen you commenting on much poetry, Mr guppy.
<HR>
From: sarah<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

wow<BR>
you have a great lack of knowledge and/or heart if you are saying that to gup<BR>
<BR>
who happens to be one of the most wonderful people on the face of this earth, with a heart to match<BR>
<BR>
unfortunate others do not have one
<HR>
From: Brian ([email-masked])<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

Hi all, I submitted a few poems today called "Angel on Earth" and "You, Who?" and was just wondering what you guys thought about it.  If you guys have any opinions about the poems I wrote, I would love to hear them whether they are positive or negative.<BR>
    THX Brian
<HR>
From: scqueen<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

since things are a little hot around here, i want to make sure no one confuses me with [email-masked] who just posted a poem, since many of you know that's my first name. <BR>
just so you know...
<HR>
From: deevaa<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

RE: THOSE nameless comments ... as shaggy would say: "wasn't me."<BR>

<HR>
From: the guppy<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

I'm not grammatically challenged.  I just pretend that I am.  Yes, I do recognize the previous thought as a symptom of denial, and I am actively seeking a support group.  The Literary Society for Elliptical and Capitalizational Awareness has sent me their newsletter.  They don't like me much.  I don't blame them.<BR>
<BR>
gup 
<HR>
From: scqueen<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

gup ~ i love your attitude :-)
<HR>
From: [email-masked]<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

                     MY LOVE,<BR>
              MY LOVE IS SELF LOATHING, A PAIN SO DEEP THAT THE HEART REMEMBERS EVEN IF THE EYE DOSENT..<BR>
A VOICE IN THE WIND,TEAR STAINED CHEEKS,A SHUDDER A CURSE A PRAYER NO ONE HEARS,SCARS DEEP WITHIN SHUDDER TO BREATH,THAT LIFE GIVING BREATH ONLY MY MOUTH CAN GIVE LIFE TO THE LOVE WITHIN, MY SELF LOATHING......TO SUFFER ALONE IS THE GREATEST SIN......<BR>
   <BR>
              BY:SHARON J GOODE...1/29/2001<BR>
              
<HR>
From: the guppy<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

I don't comment on specific pieces of poetry very often.  <BR>
<BR>
sarah...thanks, but no need to be protective...if this conversation progresses towards ridiculousness (i'm not sure that's a word), i'll be the first to laugh about it<BR>
<BR>
gup
<HR>
From: sar<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

ah well gup<BR>
<BR>
i've known you for how many years now<BR>
<BR>
of course i'm gonna be defensive on your behalf<BR>
<BR>
you are wunderbar!<BR>
<BR>
hey i'm having kittens, want some?<BR>
<BR>
(i'm not specifically having kittens, my cat is having kittens)
<HR>
From: Ali<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

Elaina~ Aw, thank you! Thank you very much, glad you liked them...I really thought all your new stuff was great...I especially loved, 'I've got you figured out'...that was really awesome!<BR>
Love and dream, Ali
<HR>
From: Elaina <BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

CORRECTION: sorry after I pressed send I decided I wanted to retitle "a place i once knew" to "a place they once knew"<BR>
thanks. it makes more sense that way.<BR>
<BR>
xoxo<BR>
elaina<BR>

<HR>
From: Elaina<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

Ali~ I really liked then I will.  <BR>
PS contradiction makes for the best poetry...I believe.<BR>
<BR>
xoxo<BR>
elaina<BR>

<HR>
From: Angela C Ubaldo    [email-masked]<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

~Ali: I really liked your poem, saving grace.  It was beautiful.
<HR>
From: Brian ([email-masked]<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

Hi, -ALI- I just wanted to let you know that most things bore me and it's hard for anything to grab my attention, but I read your most recent poem and found it so beautiful that I ended up reading all of your poems in the new submitions section, because each new poem of yours I read pulled me to the next.
<HR>
From: slug<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

dee - please don't stop posting. i know that i don't so much - but this site has become a cornerstone in my life - and your poetry is as much a part of that. you and gala (who never did judge those sappy poems...) and guppy and jack, and scqueen, and oh - everyone who's been here and been so supportive. i missed a few days - crazy weekend and came back to see all is discord. i don't care that guppy's grammar is off - let it be. that's my favorite thing about cummings and the beats. i don't care that there's an occasional misspelled word. i care that i can open this site for the ten minutes i get free a day and see that there are other people in the world who are very similiar to me. which, in the outside the computer world, are very rare. i guess this wasn't just to you - but i know that people read almost everything (we're a community of print-junkies we are) and if it weren't for kirk and his marvelous blender i would never EVER share my poetry. so don't stop sharing yours, which was the point of this.<BR>
<BR>
and who cares if guppy never comments? it just makes the rare comments he makes that much more impacting. so there.
<HR>
From: Galadrial<BR>
Date: 29 January 2001<P>

Okay folks...<BR>
<BR>
            I've been stressing and straining here, and I have come up with five entries that I think match the criteria for "icky with style". All of them were fun---and I truly enjoyed reading them.<BR>
<BR>
            But since I am a tease---(very evil grin) I am not annoucing my picks until after the Big Kahuna does the Feb Blender! Go ahead...beg...plead...ply me with costly trinkets...it will do you no good. But since I had a private challenge going as well, I must admit that one of the entrants has "OUT ICKED" me, but good...<BR>
<BR>
            So Kahuna---drumroll please?<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
                                          Love Gala,<BR>
<BR>
                                      Grand Mistress of the Icky Supreme Poetry Challenge 2001<BR>
<BR>
<BR>

<HR>