Updates and Shameless Plugging

It seems lately all I've been doing is plugging myself in my blog. I can't help it...it's SHAMELESS plugging. Please laugh. Before I get to links to articles, I have some updates for you.

I am at Starbucks typing this out because I either have sporadic internet or none at all. See Hurricane Irene knocked my phone and DSL out, and Verizon are being lazy bums about getting it up and running. When they say they are coming back tomorrow--that means next week. We have a phone right now --with a loud buzzing noise and my internet only allows me to get into two sites-aol to check my email and facebook. So the poor baristos and baristas at Starbucks have been putting up with me all week. At least I've been getting work done! However, I am thinking about changing to Optimum Online, though I am not thrilled with Cablevision, but after Hurricane Irene, after a week after LIPA turned on the  lights-the next day Cablevision was online with EVERYTHING--BUT not VERIZON. Verizon is making as little effort as possible to get everything back to normal.

 Originally the repairman he said that he had to splice a line and he'd be back the next day. A week later we have a phone with severe buzzing on our end and as I stated earlier I can get on to two sites--the rest take between 15 and 30  minutes to load. So if I want to post an article on Y!CN I have to wait a half hour for the page to even load--thus I am at Starbucks again today. The repair dude came back yesterday and told us that the line is down in two places. What happen to splicing? So now we have two different stories, and I have the odd feeling that we are going to have a third. Last night, around 7-ish I had to go to Starbucks to finish up an article because I had no internet at all. When I got home, I discovered I could get onto Pogo for a half hour and then Pogo took forever to load. So I only had aol and facebook. I am getting fed up. So is my mother for that matter. If we didn't have cell phones, we'd be in big trouble, but thankfully we just got new cell phones.

Other updates: Mom had me crying  yesterday. As you know yesterday was the anniversary of 9-11-01. In general it is a day full of anxiety for me. Mom and I were in the car on the way to see my grandma. She started talking about how she was listening to Peter, Paul and Mary and about her childhood and then all of a sudden she skipped to 1968 and started talking about Robert F. Kennedy, and how different the world would've been had he not been assassinated....tears fell down both of our cheeks. All  of this while we were listening to the names of the dead from 9-11 being read on the radio, and Paul Simon singing "Sound of Silence."

So blessed are we to feel,
So blessed are we to begin to heal...
(perhaps this is the beginning of another poem for me)

And now for my latest articles (or rather the ones I want you to check out):

My Favorite Novelist: Michael Jecks
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/8390687/my_favorite_novelist_michael_jecks.html?cat=10

Road Songs
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/8379653/road_songs.html?cat=33

Weirdos On Parade
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/8373779/weirdos_on_parade.html?cat=9

Tales of Irene
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/8355277/tales_of_irene.html?cat=37

Thoughts During the Meeting
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/8344879/thoughts_during_the_meeting.html?cat=47

That Fateful Day
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/8334009/that_fateful_day.html?cat=37

Commerical Complaints
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/8282184/commercial_complaints.html?cat=70

Thank you all for your continued support!!

My Most Viewed Articles (aka shamless plugging)

I've decided to share with you the articles that have been viewed the most on Yahoo! Contributor's Network (formerly Associated Content). Yes, these are articles I have written. Feel to free to have a looksy. Ok, yes this is what we call shameless plugging. These are my most viewed articles, poems, and "stuff" from June 8, 2011 and before.  There's humor, history, trivia, music...everything....something for everyone!These have all had more than 100 views.

1901: History at The Turn of The Twentieth Century I have a love of history, and I love to share what I find with others.

A Short Biography of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle One of my favorite authors.

Etymology of the Months This article is about the origins of the names of the months.

Baseball Trivia I love all sorts of trivia.

Songs With Animals in the Title Every single song listed has an animal in it's title. Duh! :-p

President's Day Presidential Trivia.

Writing Assignment:Humorous Story: Nightmare on Klimptar I write a lot of bizarro fic stories. This is one of them.

Odd and Interesting Facts About the Civil War  I am very interested in the Civil War and compiled some facts that even I didn't know.

Do You Know Edgar Allan Poe? Trivia and tidbits about the author of The Raven.

The Cold Sore Another bizarro fic story.

Love Songs

Come Watson! The Game is Afoot! A guide to some of my favorite detectives.

Famous Toilets Literally, this article is about FAMOUS toilets.

They Don't Make "Em Like That Anymore: Part II Music Record players, cds, record stores, radios,etc.

They Don't Make "Em Like That Anymore: Part I: Television Satellite, Cable boxes, televisions, TV shows,etc.

Novelty Songs

Poetry Evolves:  Interview With Beat Poet, Peter V. Dugan Peter V. Dugan is a beat poet from Long Island, and a personal friend of mine.

The New Queen of Duh! About Christine O'Donnell.

Weird Inventions 

Zodiacs of the World

Birth Colors

Birthstones Galore

Songs About War Peace and Protest 

Songs About Dance

Songs With Weather Phenomena in the Title

The Job Hunt For the Creative Person

What is RNN? an article about a local station that really doesn't have any programs

Songs With Mens Names in the Title

I'm Laughing   Ads and other things that just made me laugh hysterically.

Songs About Sports  (yes I have a lot of time on my hands-apparently.)

Telemarketing Nightmares Just what happens when those dreadful people call?

Summer Songs

Some Facts About Confucious

Weird Monthly and Daily Observances

Baseball Poetry: To the Yanks

Funny Place Names in Canada

Top Ten Pulitzer Prize for Poetry Books

Stop Needling Me All about sewing needles.

Thirteen Random Facts About Sherlock Holmes

Earth Day Poem: Under The Ocean

Healthcare in America

A Brief History of Radio

Dating Site Blunders

Works of Literature You Should Read

Products They Should Invent

Top Ten New Year's Eve Party Songs

Herbal Remedies for Migraines

The Yellow Tulip a poem I wroteth.

People You've Never Heard of Whom are Important Part I

Ways to Generate Heat and Save Money  This article is so not what you think....

Ways to Organize Your Thoughts  This will help you organize your thoughts when you need to write a paper ,article, poem,etc.

Songs With Numbers

Weird Mascots

You Know You're Getting Old(er) When..

American Political Parties

You Might Be A New York Redneck If...

Songs With First Names in the Title

Top Ten Songs by REM

Geographic Songs

Signs in New York What they really mean!

No Time For Sleep A short story I wrote.

Morty The Talking Yarmulke  Another bizarro fic story. :) In fact I think this is the first bizarro fic story I ever wrote.

Earl and Lady Grey Teas

Darjeeling Tea

Observations from Starbucks II a poem.

Redneck New Year's Resolutions

The Best Songs for Your New Year's Eve Party (a different article than one listed above)

The Amazing Offers in Your Junk Email Box

Funny Place Names in the United States

How NOT to Get the Girl

Twelve O'Clock Midnight (a Halloween Poem)

Different Types of Poetry

Read A Banned Book

You Know You're A New Yorker When

Amor Vincit Omnia (Love Conquers All) a poem I wrote using quotes from famous Latin orators.

Dizzy Definitions

What Not to do During a Hurricane

Weird Jobs

The Humor in Infomercials

Feel free to check out ALL my articles (yes there is much much more than those listed above) here http://contributor.yahoo.com/user/150571/lady_samantha.html      Thank you for your support!

G is for Gothic Horror

G is for Gothic Horror
This is a poem I wrote. Story behind the poem: I was taking a course in Herman Melville in grad school. We had a paper due and my professor said in regards to that "Oh! The gothic horror that is a blank page!" I wrote this poem then and there. Enjoy.

gothic horror

the gothic horror that is a blank page
that ghostly disturbance that sits on my desk
that keeps me up at night
i think of nothing else
but what to write

the white is blinding
the lines are blurring
but sometime later

i begin to see things in the whiteness
snow storms
yetis coming out of the invernal forest
to reclaim the earth
squall lines pouring down
on a wooden ship
tipping it to and fro
until it becomes a flying dutchman
white smoke rising from
the smoldering ruins of
the gothic horror that
was a blank page.
c2011 Lady Samantha

Rough Draft

I would like to thank fellow Long Island poet, Peter V. Dugan for the title to this poem. Also, I still haven't decided if I am making this poem longer or keeping it as is. As always, tell me what you think. Thank-you in advance. ;)

rough draft

sketches in words

paintings and ink

the brain fandangos

and the gears of the mind move in time

while the hand waltzes with the pen

gently gliding across the page

blending in, loose ends fading into the background

the focal point—a single “the”

that winds the entire story around “it,”

draws the reader in

and the eyes wander from word to word,

brush stroke to brush stroke

paying fine attention to detail

and then the fuller picture emerges

Ode to My Allergies

No this is not in true ode form. lol. Quick back story to this poem: I was talking to fellow Long Island Poet, Jay Jii, and I was talking about my allergies. He said I should write a poem about it. So I did. This was the end result.

Ode to My Allergies

Morning breaks and I start coughing

A sign of what's to come

My nose runs the Boston Marathon

No stretching beforehand, it just takes off

Looks back at me, the great Sphinx

And runs further away

Until right before the finish line

It slows down and backs up

Glues itself in place

And causes a traffic jam in my sinuses...

I open my mouth to speak

Only nothing comes out

I haven't a voice

And I admit to some that's a blessing

I clear my throat

I sound like a cat hacking up hairballs

I take a Benedryl, which completely knocks me out..

I wake up and I start coughing again

And then one eye starts to itch

I take a tissue and dab it

Waterfalls emerge from my tear ducts

As if my heart had been broken

Onions look at me and start to cry

Someone asks me “what's wrong?”

To which I reply with a hefty sneeze

And they answer their own question

“Oh it's just your allergies.”

c2011 Lady Samantha

Be Quiet

Be Quiet

I'm dreaming,

laying on the forest floor

Treetops

keeping me calm and cool

I look up as the sun dances through the openings,

making shadows and designs all around me

I listen

to the trees that foster the heartbeat of the Earth,

as they sway in the wind to the rhythms of the Universe

In every direction

There's a new wind blowing,

singing a song

even though we march to the beats of different drummers.

I'm feeling

intoxicated by it all,

overwhelmed by the prospects of my imagination

That's where I get lost the most,

escaping to the far reaches of an ever contracting and expanding Universe

I dive into the creativity head-on

The light bulb turns on

The sun is in my head

illuminating my curiosity.

If you listen carefully

you can hear my thoughts

as they bounce into outer space and back

radio waves of thoughts

flying low to the ground

exploding like firecrackers

bombarding the people with a new sound.

The compass needle is going every which way

but I am not lost here on the forest floor

The scene is changing and I with it

Hopefully for the better.

Time is fleeting

a second ago I was born

and now I am reborn... again

I like this Renaissance of me

learning the old, bringing it into the new

still liking to write, but will settle for Roman type

on a computer that looked very familiar to me

many hundreds of years ago.

And the birds fly by

and offer me a ride

to somewhere they promise is just as fantastic

as where I am now

I pay by check but my

money is no good here said the dolphin on the wing

Go slow I said because man was not made to take off

Yet my imagination flies.

The waterfalls are rushing

as I meditate on the calmness of the pools they form

and I dive in naked,

my thoughts are bare for all to see

some divine illusion by divine illumination

divine proportion, my eye was drawn in

to the center of my own world

in my own time

and a bed that looks quite restless

My head hits the pillow

faster than the speed of sound

I come back down...

Be quiet.

c2011 Lady Samantha

Remembering 9/11

Remembering 9/11


I thought for remembering 9/11 this year I would put up a poem I wrote "with" William Shakespeare. This sort of poem would normally be called a cento, a compilation of lines from one or many poets. However, I did something a little different here. Shakespeare supplied the words; I just changed a few of them to make them relevant to 9/11.



In Remembrance

Two factions both alike in dignity
In fair New York City where we lay our scene
From ancient grudge break to new mutiny
Where civil blood makes hands unclean.
From forth the fatal horror
Comes our faithful foes
With their ignorance, they tried to overthrow
Doth even in their deaths, hatred still grows.
The fearful passage of two death mark’d planes
Into two towers, was not a shower of power,
But one of rage. This was not acting on the world’s stage.
This was all too real. And in rememberance it is hard to have
The feeling we feel. Rebellious subjects, enemies to peace
Profaners of the human race! Will they not hear? What ho,
You men, you beasts! That quench the fire of your pernicious
Rage, with purple fountains flowing from your veins—
On the pain of torture, from those bloody hands. Throw
Your mistempered weapons to the ground. Hear not the hatred in
Your heart. You have twice disturb’d the quiet of our streets, And
Made New York and the world’s citizen’s fearful, but not weak. I am
An American. Hath not American hands, organs, dimensions,
Senses, affections, passions; fed with the same food, hurt by the same
Weapons, subject to the same diseases, heal’d by the same means you are?
If you pricks us do we not bleed? The Weight of this sad time we must obey,
Speak what we feel, not what we ought to say. To be or not to be that is the
Question. Whether tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows
Of outrageous hatred, or to take arms against a sea of trouble. And by
Opposing them, end them.



*note: Some of you may be reading this more than once as I am putting this up on my examiner, associated content, and bukisa as well.*