It comes back to you sometimes. Like an old accent you suppress until you hear your native tongue flirting with the tip of your ear drum.
Winning...something came back for the Writing Wrongs squad on Thursday as we were able to win our bout. The team battled hard, performed their asses off and dug deep with a collective grip around their nads (er, ovaries in Barb's case) and did what needed to be done to win. So that gave us a total of a 4 thru pre-lims (3rd place finish on Tuesday, 1st on Thursday). Just so has it a few "4's" got in to semis. Unfortunately we weren't with them.
But I couldn't be more proud of how we bounced back, finishing 27th overall (out of 68 teams with the top 20 making semifinals).
We're done slamming, but I'll have more updates from the National Poetry Slam later
8.07.2009
8.05.2009
Heartbreak...
Well, for Nationals the first night of slamming is always heartbreak hotel. Everyone finds out if they prepared enough or gets to see that they’re no nearly as good as they thought they might be. Writing Wrongs pulled the 3 in their first bout (ie, finished 3rd out of 4 teams). Judging by the performances we put on, that seems about right. Definitely not the type of effort we had prepped all the summer, so in that aspects it’s a little disappointing. We still have our next bout on Thursday in a very winnable matchup, so we are not past our window of atonement. Making semi-finals is probably a long shot at this point, but we can still make a herculean effort towards it by winning on Thursday.
But that’s the slam part of it. From a coaching perspective, while I’m not happy about how we performed, I’m glad everyone got to hit the stage on the first night. Our rookies got a taste of the hard skin of slamming at Nationals and I think they’ll be better for it. We all got to hear some amazing work both in our bout and others, making a lot of new friends along the way.
Wednesday is our off day, so I think our team has made it mandatory that the beach is on the menu. A much needed day of rest, relaxation and at the end of the night, just hearing some good poems.
I’ll check in again soon.
But that’s the slam part of it. From a coaching perspective, while I’m not happy about how we performed, I’m glad everyone got to hit the stage on the first night. Our rookies got a taste of the hard skin of slamming at Nationals and I think they’ll be better for it. We all got to hear some amazing work both in our bout and others, making a lot of new friends along the way.
Wednesday is our off day, so I think our team has made it mandatory that the beach is on the menu. A much needed day of rest, relaxation and at the end of the night, just hearing some good poems.
I’ll check in again soon.
8.03.2009
National Poetry Slam: Take Four
Yeah...so I'm sitting at the Southwest Terminal in Columbus (which is the best for the techy traveler since Port Columbus has free wi-fi and Southwest has bars and stools with electrical outlets and usb powered ports, something visibly and incomparably vacant from 70% of US airports). By 11am (God-willing), I'll be in West Palm Beach, fully immersed in the opening salvos of the 20th annual National Poetry Slam. Got a lot going on this year. Coaching the first Writing Wrongs Slam Team, my second team overall. Getting the first print of my new book in my hands. Trying to sale said book. Setting the foundation for some extensive touring in fall and winter. We shall see.
For the immediate focus, I think the team is ready.
They're fun. They're focused. They're incredibly diverse and probably nervous as hell. I don't think I've been on a team where the poets all felt like they had this much to prove. Including myself. I've got two rookies (Ethan & Wyk) that are desperately trying to make me and everyone else forget that they're rookies. I suppose they're as ready as newbies get, though I'd love for them to already have the experience that they'll get from this Nationals...heading into it. Such is life I suppose. Spike had an inconsistent Nationals performance in '08 and wants to atone for it. He probably had a lopsided balance of prep & partying last year (lopsided away from my desires no doubt) and he's been noticeably focused this summer in improving himself and our team. Probably doesn't hurt that I've been riding his ass for the last year or so because of what happened in '08, but he's been very committed. Then there's Barb. Well, Barb is Barb you know. Smile and hug on you, rip your heart out on stage. Smile and hug afterward. I saw everything from Barb that I needed to see in Toronto during Rustbelt.
Me, a brotha wants to make semis. Somewhere between Nats last year, Rustbelt and hanging out at IWPS and WOWPS, the community started treating me very...alpha. Which I'm cool with. I just know that when in doubt, people are going to expect me to carry the team when necessary. I don't think this team needs that from me...but I need to be ready...just in case.
As for the bouts, we didn't get any favors as far as an easy road. Of course, everyone will have their own favorites, but I've heard the echoes about how tough our first bout will be. Denver Slam Nuba, Oakland & Eclectic Truth (Baton Rouge). Are you serious? Yeah, apparently. But you know what, that's a Tuesday issue. Today, I'm just a travelin man like Mighty Mos. Gonna settle under some Florida sun and wait for my team to arrive (which I think I got 5 or 6 hours before the next one arrives).
For the immediate focus, I think the team is ready.
They're fun. They're focused. They're incredibly diverse and probably nervous as hell. I don't think I've been on a team where the poets all felt like they had this much to prove. Including myself. I've got two rookies (Ethan & Wyk) that are desperately trying to make me and everyone else forget that they're rookies. I suppose they're as ready as newbies get, though I'd love for them to already have the experience that they'll get from this Nationals...heading into it. Such is life I suppose. Spike had an inconsistent Nationals performance in '08 and wants to atone for it. He probably had a lopsided balance of prep & partying last year (lopsided away from my desires no doubt) and he's been noticeably focused this summer in improving himself and our team. Probably doesn't hurt that I've been riding his ass for the last year or so because of what happened in '08, but he's been very committed. Then there's Barb. Well, Barb is Barb you know. Smile and hug on you, rip your heart out on stage. Smile and hug afterward. I saw everything from Barb that I needed to see in Toronto during Rustbelt.
Me, a brotha wants to make semis. Somewhere between Nats last year, Rustbelt and hanging out at IWPS and WOWPS, the community started treating me very...alpha. Which I'm cool with. I just know that when in doubt, people are going to expect me to carry the team when necessary. I don't think this team needs that from me...but I need to be ready...just in case.
As for the bouts, we didn't get any favors as far as an easy road. Of course, everyone will have their own favorites, but I've heard the echoes about how tough our first bout will be. Denver Slam Nuba, Oakland & Eclectic Truth (Baton Rouge). Are you serious? Yeah, apparently. But you know what, that's a Tuesday issue. Today, I'm just a travelin man like Mighty Mos. Gonna settle under some Florida sun and wait for my team to arrive (which I think I got 5 or 6 hours before the next one arrives).
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
