Tuesday, 21 July 2009

Fresh in from Bruno

Professional Writing and Editing (TAFE) @ Victoria University
Presents

Rotunda in the West: Conversations with Australian Writers
goes to
August Arts =Wyndham Arts Month

Helen Garner :
an afternoon
RETROSPECTIVE
(The Spare Room, Joe Cinque’s Consolation, Cosmo Cosmolino and more)

Plus

Quarter Hour Taster sessions in CREATIVE WRITING (poetry, short short story, non-fiction, life writing)

Saturday 15th August
2pm start for free taster sessions (4 sessions on a speedy rotation)
musical interlude
3.30pm Helen Garner readings


Wyndham Civic Centre
45 Princes Hwy
Werribee (Melways 206 B7)

Free Event

Guests are asked to bring along some wine or soft drinks or a plate for the communal refreshments table

A collaboration between Wyndham Arts and Cultural Development and Rotunda in the West

RSVP (essential): bruno.lettieri@vu.edu.au
0422 29 86 43

Please let us know you are coming
Please circulate among friends and fellow students and writers
Wave back and tell us you’re coming.

Grazie!!

Bruno Lettieri

Ps-Look out for Hannie Rayson, Michael Cathcart, Don Watson, William McInnes, Sarah Watt @ Rotunda in the West

Tuesday, 14 July 2009

Poetry compilation from Rob's Poetry 1 class

Food for thought

Pizza

Your light is like a pizza
It fills the pan and tastes like love
has been baked deep dish into the very crusts
I want to cut it up and share it with the rest of my friends
And I want to save some for the hungry days without hope
The uninspired, tasteless days where nothing is good
Or the crazy flavoured days
where the mix should be tossed out and tried again or given up
burnt pan, cold stove,
I want to melt in the warmth of your deliciousness and fold
generous portions in half and savour each bite
yet gorge myself ‘til I’m sick with you and
still lick up every last crumb.

Tarryn




Chocolate

Chocolate makes you feel sick
It rots your teeth, gives you ulcers
It melts into your clothes
It’s brown and disgusting
360 degrees fat.

Chocolate ate all your homework
It changed the score on your test
It killed your best friend
And when they came to arrest you
No one suspected.

Chocolate is evil
It will betray you
When you need it, it’s not there
It will break your heart and make your head spin
It will contaminate you.

Chocolate sank the Titanic
It started World War 1
It rigged the election
It spat in your face
It didn’t care when you cried.

Chocolate is a drug
It’s a crime wave, a mob boss
There’s no going back
You can’t help it
There’s never enough.

Robert




A Gourmet’s Delight

Mamma Mia an abundance of choice
Spaghetti, Ravioli, lasagne
Hot from the pan
Delicious and yummy
Filled with cheese
Layered with meat
Oozing with flavour
Spinach and ricotta
Tortellini if you please
No wait a minute, maybe
Macaroni and cheese.

My favourite dish
when I was a kid
Spaghetti and meatballs
piled high on my plate
Swirled around and around
On my fork,
Strands sucked in till
It hurts my cheeks
Dripping with sauce
Rolls down my chin
Play catch the meatballs
If you can.

Antonia




Cake
Cake is the Food
that everyone loves.

Cake is the Wedding,
the love, the dancing,
the icing.
The way to celebrate forever.

Cake is the Pan
on a cold winter’s morning,
smothered in butter,
strawberries and syrup.

Cake is the Fairy
that sprinkles its sugar
like dust across
eager fingers.

Cake is the Devil’s Food
that grows in Eden.
It’s forbidden, delicious
and tempting with every bite.

Cake is the Mud
spread across your face.
When you’re a child
everything brown is suspicious.

Cake is the Birthday
the presents and candles,
that represent
a passing year.

Cake is the Sponge
that soaks up the sadness,
bathes you in happiness.
Washes your worries away.

Chris




Death By CheeseCake

Soft
Creamy
Luscious
Decadent
I swallow
Spoonfuls
My eyes closed
Guilty
Enjoying the sin
I mourn
the calories
that will forever
blossom across my
ever-expanding hips
I grieve
loss of discipline
hours wasted in the gym
in just one mouthful
Finally when the last crumb
is laid to rest
On my tombstone
will be written
DEATH BY CHEESECAKE.

Antonia




Liquorice Allsorts

Liquorice Allsorts
are what they were called
Soft and sweet
a taste to behold.
Yellow and green
pressed between black
a wolf in sheep’s clothing.
A sugar attack.
Long sleepless nights
spent in awe of their taste
Where they hung in darkness
Full of soft sugar paste.

John




Cheese

The Cheese is not old;
it’s not mouldy anymore.
It no longer smells;
there is no offensive odour.

It no longer makes you
sick to your stomach.
No
it’s like Brie cheese;
A treat before dinner.
It’s turned into the
cheesy goodness
of a perfectly made sandwich
satisfying and fulfilling
like Christmas lunch.

But it is more than food
more than the fulfilment
of cheese and wine.
It’s a daily intake
of necessity
in my bones.

I could never turn vegan.

Judith




Eat this Poem

Overwhelmed with
choices.

The variety
freezes
hunger!

“If you don’t eat something you will die.”

But I can’t decide
what to eat!

“Just take from this fruit bowl for
‘yes to food is yes to life’.”

So
I
suck suck. suck that orange
swig swig. swig my champagne
swimming up through my nose and around my head

cut cut. cut the camembert
taste taste. taste the meat sauce
Dangle the olives still attached to the vine

try try. the Cajun trevally
sip sip. at the curry laksa
hot to kill any lurgy, taste buds at the fore



Now
I
swallow swallow the apple and guava juice –
Bite bite the papaya –
See see those northern lights –
Ride ride that motorbike –
So much to eat!

And if I see a vague customer I’ll shout at them to:
Eat the moment.
Eat the song.
Eat the book.
Eat the world
Eat the feeling.
Eat the person.
Eat the menu.
Eat this poem.

Melita




Layered biscuit dessert

Layered biscuit dessert
Unforgettable like yesterday
Mysterious like tomorrow
Like life, has three layers
Childhood, youth and adulthood.
Each stage is carefully layered

Layered biscuit dessert
Biscuits come first
Representing childhood
Sour cream next
representing mistakes
Thick custard last
representing consequences.

Layered biscuit dessert
Be careful with each stage
Once it’s done, it cannot be undone
Once a mistake is done it cannot be undone.

Control each stage.
Plan each move.
Perfect each layer.

Huda




Recipe for Poetry Class
Start with a tablespoon of Steph
to add decency
As well as a dash of Antoinette
to add loveliness.

Followed by a half a cup of Christine
to add simplicity
And a pound of John
to add wisdom.

Next add a litre of Judith
to sweeten things up
And a pinch of Mel
to add liveliness.

Mix in a teaspoon of Sarah
to make things sincere
Add a handful of Tai
to add romance.

Splash in some Antonia
to add generosity
as well as three drops of Andrew
to add life experience.

Plus half a loaf of Melita
to add quirkiness
and two cups of Tommy
to turn the mixture honest.

Add in seven grams of Austin
which will make things unique
and a touch of Huda
for wittiness.

Sprinkle in some Tarryn
to inspire
and five mills of Elyse
to add grace.

And last of all
add in an ounce of Rob
to make everything
extraordinary.

Bake in an oven with love
kindness and friendship.
And please
handle with care.

Elyse