No, nobody puts a chip in you along with the Covid vaccine — but there’s a side effect where you start to look and sound like Chip Douglas!
Actually … forget it, false alarm. I just remembered that already look and sound like Chip Douglas.
HEY, UNCLE CHARLEY.
Seriously, the side effects from my first dose of the Pfizer vaccine yesterday have been minor. My arm is still sore, and I felt BLECH with fatigue last night — but I woke up this morning back to my usual nerdy self.
I was incredibly impressed with Virginia’s Covid-19 vaccination program. The Virginia Department of Health’s sign-up process was easy enough, the VDH FAQ page covered everything, and the Carilion Vaccine Clinic staff at the Berglund Center off Williamson Road in Roanoke were speedy, pleasant and courteous — even by Southern standards. (I got in and out in no time at all.)
Everyone involved did a truly admirable job. Way to go, VA.
He just seems so goddamn earnest — like your 11-year-old kid trying out for the team.
And he at least looks better in that uniform than I would. (Nolan’s got a spare tire.)
My friend Daniel Heintz: “Boy, what changes will happen in a year.”
Me: “Yep. Heintz’ sight is 20/20.”
Just a nifty stick I found by the Potomac River.
I’m honored today to find another poem of mine featured on the Dead Letter Radio podcast! Host Taize Jones offered a wonderful reading of “hens staring upward” on Episode 15 of the weekly program. (My piece is the last that Taize interprets — it starts at the 13:00 mark in the podcast.)
You can hear the entire episode right here. Dead Letter Radio is also available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and over at Listen Notes. It really is a terrific show; I highly recommend that you check it out.
Thanks again, Taize!
Airmail from Germany!
I am honored to see a poem and a photograph of mine published in Buk 100: Notes for a Dirty Old Birthday! Like the first volume of Buk 100, Newington Blue Press created this second limited edition chapbook to honor what would have been legendary poet Charles Bukowski’s 100th birthday. (You can order your copy right here.)
The short poem is entitled “Ode to a New Black Ball-Point Pen” and the photo appears just below it. (I think my fellow Roanokers will recognize Shaffer’s Crossing Norfolk Southern Railway Bridge.)
Thanks again to Matthias Krueger for selecting my work for this superb recognition of Bukowski’s legacy!
