No matter how “free” it is, it’s not worth the hour that you will spend waiting in line(s), going through “security” (ahem! my mace made it through totally unquestioned, I can’t even get into the Troc with that stuff), and then enduring the “tour” (haha! jokes about the genocide of Native Americans is funny — woohoo! [yes, that's sarcasm]).

I went this week with my wonderful & patient friend who was visiting from San Diego. It was TERRIBLE! I’m lucky I still have a friend.

So don’t do it. Walk by, take pictures from all sides, and move along. You’ll thank me. I swear.

So, according to the Program Director, they’ll be playing the poem in three parts today @ 12.45p, 2.45p, and 4.45p. You should listen — really, what else are you doing that’s so important? After today, I’m pretty sure they’ll be throwing into their regular rotation of poetry that they play around :40 to :50 after every hour.

And if my world-(or City)renowned poem isn’t enough to get your attention (for shame!), you should listen because Skin Radio is good. They have a really engaging format that throws in a little comedy, a little poetry, local bands, and very few commercials (a surprisingly unintrusive amount). And the music is a mix of old and new alternative — Radiohead, The Decemberists, Pearl Jam, The Killers, Better than Ezra, Arrested Development — it’s pretty good stuff that you don’t hear that much on the FM side of the dial.

Oh yes — that’s me there on the cover of this week’s Center City Weekly Press.

My good pal, Kerry O’Connor, Sports Editor for the Weekly Press, wrote a feature on my Eagles poem (and my general fanaticism) and then printed the poem in the paper, on page five. Check it out!

Maybe now the Eagles organization will finally recognize my deep and abiding love. Please. Please. Love me back. Just a little bit. Please.

And, in honor of the Eagles triumphant return to the post-season, I give you “Brotherly Love,” a poem I wrote just before the Eagles trip to Superbowl XXXIX in 2005. To Jeff Garcia, Brian Westbrook, David Akers, Brian Dawkins, Jeremiah Trotter, Andy Reid, Jim Johnson, and even Donovan off in recuperation — we love you, fellas!

Brotherly Love
for James Phillips and the Philadelphia Eagles

A local man [James Phillips] said he shoveled snow at Lincoln Financial Field for 30 hours getting ready for the big NFC championship game, and now he is in the hospital, in danger of losing his fingers, his toes, his ears and possibly his nose.

–reported by NBC 10, Philadelphia, January 27, 2005

We love you more than fingers or toes.
Remember that.

Remember when they call us dangerous,
when they issue warnings throughout the league
and hold him up us as proof of just how crazy we are.

Remember, we love you
more than mere digits,
more than appendages—ears or nose.

We love you more than the scent of sweet fried onions
on a cheese steak on an Amoroso roll.
We love you more than Tony Luke’s, Pat’s, Jim’s, or Geno’s.
We love you more than soft pretzels,
more than water ice, Tastykakes, or $4 Pitchers of Lager.

We love you more than the sticky floor at Dirty Frank’s,
more than Tattooed Mom’s, the Continental, or Buddakan.

We love you more than the girls at Delilah’s,
more than the men of The Cave.

We love you more than William Penn, Ben Franklin, or Betsy Ross,
more than the Constitution,
more than the Liberty Bell and its ridiculous crack.

We love you more than Cape May in August,
more than the Mummer’s on New Year’s Day.

We love you more than Rocky,
more than counting the steps at the art museum,
more than jogging along West River Drive.

We love you from the Schuylkill to the Delaware,
from the Blue Route to the Boulevard.
We love you more than South Street,
more than parking in the middle of Broad on a Sunday afternoon.

We love you so much
we shovel snow for you,
30 hours in a blizzard with no gloves
for you.
This is how we are dangerous:
after all these years, we don’t see ourselves
turning purple in the mirror,
our fingers, black and green,
the colors of your uniform.

Some folks may be familiar with PoetryClass, an old blog that I’ve kinda abandoned. This blog won’t be quite as thematically focused, but I’m sure to climb up on my soapbox every once in a while.

Otherwise, you can expect event notices and reviews, news about where and what I’m publishing, and general ramblings about what I’m doing, reading, listening to, watching. You should also keep your eyes out for photographic examples of my domestic prowess, including my knitting and baking exploits. Woohoo. Hold onto your hair!