Two on a Choo-Choo: The Dodds/Tierney Poetry Train

"Why Poetry Antimatters" Is the Anticlimax

2009-05-06T21:36:00.009-04:00

Dodds-and-Tierney took their dog-and-pony show to the Ottawa Writers' Festival and were best in show by their own standards.

We provided the "master" and Mr. David O'Meara provided the "class" in our masterclass entitled: Why Poetry Antimatters: Metaphor, Entanglement and Particle Poetics. Tierney's frightmare was double your pleasure--the Q&A revealed not one but two particle physicists in the crowd.

Dodds was a lycanthrope of metaphor, a Frankenlager of poetic process, snapping off one-liners like a strongman ringing the bell at a carnival. Tierney was happy to sound smart without necessarily being so. O'Meara was banana smoothie as host and whipsmart with the mike.

We sold books. We got SWAG. We hotelled with our new Writers' Festival bags.

And just like that. Beery goodbyes.

Falling in Love on the Train / Is Like Drying Your Clothes in the Rain

2009-04-30T15:52:00.006-04:00

Vancouver, which is as far west as these two Choos are going, was a refreshing climatic change. It definitely put the spring back in us two chickens, despite our clearly failing health. There was a good turnout at the Short Line Reading series, held at the Railway Club. Did somebody plan this thematic synchronicity? Evan?

The folks at Memewar put together a scintillating evening. Writers, if you are going to Vancouver, attending and or reading at one of their events is a must-do. Dodds-N-Tierney were accompanied by the fabulous Chris Ewart (Miss Lamp, Coach House Books).

Earlier that day we had been interviewed by Paul G_____ at CBC. Tierney was phenomenally huge, Dodds was hugely phenomenal. The CBC staff fired their staplers in the air to commemorate our leaving the premises.

We stayed at the lovely Adrienne Gruber’s home (This Is the Nightmare, Thistledown) and were serenaded nightly by Ginsberg. He brought us closer together, but cats can do that.

It was awesome sad to leave that fine town, but Our Nation’s Capital had summoned us to her bosom. And who were Dodds and Tierney not to heed her claxon call. Ottawa’s Writers Festival, HO!

Dodds & Tierney Throw Hissy Fit Over Word Detrain and Refuse to Detrain

2009-04-27T15:08:00.004-04:00

The train docked at the Edmonton Trainport at 7:42:03 am. Dodds and Tierney took a chatty cabby to Edmonton’s epicentre and decabbed. Dodds and Tierney checked in, elevatored, room-keyed, zonked out, woke up, met and gret and re-gretted nothing.

Poetry Tour Name Dropping:

Jacob S_____, Liz B_____, David O’_____, Laisha R_____, Marita D_____, Leonard C_____, Gregory Sco_____.

Edmonton Poetry Festival Hijinks:

Reading Survivor style. Simulcast headliners makes for polyfurcated audiences. Readings were accompanied by aggressive percussive espresso machines and screams of joyeaux coffee sippers. D_____ Barbour and S_____ Scobie salted the proceedings with voice box bleats. What tweets! They stole the show. We retreated to the R_____ & C_____ to sup on fresh ale and chicken fingers [sic]. Nerve-ended the eve with bourbon and pizza [sick].

Next day, showdown ho down no mo’ throw down at the Artery, shazam! Walked down Jasper Ave. to the venue. Limited menu. Munched on butterless popcorn. Listened to the gothic berm, power outage, sensitive electrical panel, plaid skirt, tic-talk -- here’s the a-hum moment – Chernobyl.

The Hugh Jackman Way to Travel

2009-04-24T17:13:00.005-04:00

Song-and-Dance men Dodds and Tierney supped late on empanadas and cheese cake. All provided courtesy of Brenda and Kim Ward, whose lovely home set the stage on which we stuffed our yaps while looking out at the Saskatchewan river winding by.

Meanwhile a laptop charged near-by.

The Wards live 30 minutes from the train station. Time tumble-weeded by. Suddenly, it was time to say goodbye. Dodds and Tierney did. Halfway to the station Dodds’s laptop, umbilicaled to a socket in the Ward’s abode, sent Dodds a telepathic note to self: Wake me up before you go go!

Thank god we had 15 minutes to drive the half-hour drive.

Random Adamantium Thoughts:

How many demerit points for going 126km/hr in a 50 zone?

I don’t want to die just to go to Edmonton. But I’m willing to die for the poetry tour.

Which one of the two would Dodds choose to be: Thelma or Louise?

Fishtailing down the wrong way, parallel to the tracks, we had to crank the van into a cruller before curbjumping: Just drive over it, just drive over it, from the lovely Miss Hancock, who darted from a half-open van door to try and hold our choo-choo. (If Charmaine asks, none of this happened.)

We slept like curdled milk on our coach seats on the overnight to Edmonton city. The choo-choo’s blowhole blowing its own horn the whole damn way.

Interview with a Cheshire

2009-04-23T17:58:00.003-04:00

For today’s blog, Dodds and Tierney have cornered a cagey audience member from last night’s poetry reading at Saskatoon’s McNally Robinson. The lovely Brecken Rose Hancock.

D&T: How did we look?

BRH: Cowlicked.

D&T: We noticed that some people were having trouble coping with the euphoria. In your opinion, how do you think they survived?

BRH: People were clutching their chakras for dear life. I also noticed some were finger-tapping their wrists’ acupoints to combat vertigo.

D&T: Numerous fans who follow this blog have been asking after advanced copies of the topless calendar we have planned for 2010. Which of us do you think should feature in the month of July?

BRH: You know, I really have a lot to do today. How much longer will this interview take?

D&T: We’ll ask the questions, thank you very much. What are the chances of Dodds and Tierney bettering their reading in Edmonton? We’ll give you some multiple choice options to make it easier:

a) 2 to 1.

b) Highly likely.

c) Highly likely.

d) c)

BRH: I really enjoyed Taylor Leedahl’s reading.

D&T: Thank you for your generous responses and for 3 days of tacos.

The Dodds and Tierney poetry train pulls out of Saskatoon for Edmonton tonight at 10:47pm. Come wave your white handkerchiefs on the platform to show your support for poetry.

Not East

2009-04-22T19:30:00.010-04:00

Firstly and foremostly we’d like to say a few things about our accommodations. In Winnipeg we were graciously put up in the home of Chase Ward and Meghan Flanagan. Those two made our entry into the West smooth despite our homesicknesses (four days and counting).

Here in Saskatoon we have been housed in the home of Kim Hancock. Last night was taco night with a bonus leftover taco night tonight. Charmaine is on the record saying that she is happy that Matthew will be tacoed out before returning to Toronto.

Tonight is the night. We read at McNally Robinson (19:30 Mountain Time) with Taylor Leedahl. We predicted on CBC yesterday that there would be a huge crowd tonight. We have yet to be wrong.

Poetry Tour Prognostication: Dodds and Tierney will read to over capacitated crowd in Saskatoon.

Two Vehicles Hotwired During our Stay in Saskatoon.

ICE CREAM RUN

20 MIN JOYRIDE

Would You Ask Tom Waits That Question?

2009-04-21T19:35:00.004-04:00

First full day in Saskatoon? Saskatoon, right?

Overnight on the train--no, wait. 11 hours through pure Canadian daylight. Tierney got to drive the train because he was wearing an engineer's hat. Dodds is pantless in this photo.

We just finished an interview at CBC Saskatchewan. Nailed it.

God’s Field. My Choice.

2009-04-21T00:58:00.004-04:00

Yesterday in Winnipeg: we arrived by Westjet airship via Toronto early in the morning. We instantly lunched. Dodds ate veal; Tierney had a club house with no bacon. There is no bacon in Manitoba due to a State of Urgency.

We did not practice our poems and proceeded to read them at the reading anyway. But loose. The local book peddler’s house, McNally Robinson (Polo Park edition), was grand. People were slow to arrive and quick to move on. Local author Jan Guenther Braun’s reading was a stellar train travel fable delivered with gusto. Yes!

We then met Bruce Symaka, who interviewed us for Uptown, upstairs in an upscale café. We ordered a beer. The bacon still hadn’t arrived. Bruce brought it home regardless. Thanks Bruce.

We then met Mr. John Cunningham, who interviewed us for his show “Speaking of Poetry” at the University of Winnipeg’s station CKUW (pronounced ckuw). SPOILER ALERT: Tierney and Dodds divulged that they would wear lab coats to the Ottawa Writers’ Festival Master Class: Why Poetry Antimatters. RUMOUR ALERT: Tierney and Dodds adamantly deny scooping a taxi out from under a pregnant lady, or even that she was pregnant, or even that there was in fact a lady.

Poetry Tour Truism: Don’t count your chickens until they’re running around with their heads chopped off.

Books read on Train Today: Pigeon, Karen Solie. This Way Out, Carmine Starnino. The Hayseed Unit, Michael Tearny. Crabwise to the Clowns, Jerry Dobbs. Selected Poems, W.H. Auden.

Too Tired, Two Choos

2009-04-19T19:19:00.003-04:00

Two hours of sleep after a breezy pre-trip dinner with Kevin Connolly. We talked Swedish vampire movies; we talked bowled over. We talked why not tour the British Isles?

Real-time data:

Kilometres travelled (actual) = 2 236.95597 of 8759.83642
Present GPS co-ordinates = 49°52.742 N, 097°09.150 W 261 m
Today's caloric intake (actually guesstimated) = 8342
Audience participation = 65%
# times said the word "blog" = 17

Poetry tour fun fact! Frozen perogies are a great way to reduce joint swelling.

Tomorrow we take to the rails, heading to Saskatoon. We'll spill the beans about cliches, the CKUW interview, the McNally Robinson reading, the Uptown interview, and a stunning corrugated building we parked near in Winnipeg.

First stop: Winnipeg!

2009-04-17T17:36:00.006-04:00

The Two on a Choo-Choo tour kicks off this weekend, with Jeramy Dodds and Matthew Tierney reading in Winnipeg on Sunday, April 19. We hope you can join us for the first official stop on their whirlwind poetry tour.

Two on a Choo-Choo: The Dodds and Tierney Poetry Train
in Winnipeg with Jan Guenther Braun
Sunday, April 19, 2009
McNally Robinson, Polo Park (1485 Portage Ave)
2 p.m.
Free

They'll be joined by the extremely talented Jan Guenther Braun, who recently had her first novel published, Somewhere Else. Since then, the book has been shortlisted for the Eileen McTavish Sykes Award.

Read more about it at http://www.mcnallyrobinson.com/product/item/517079/.

And for a primer on what their visit to Winnipeg might be like, please view the below video.

Jeramy Dodds shortlisted for the Griffin Poetry Prize!

2009-04-07T16:05:00.016-04:00

The 2009 Canadian and international shortlists for the Griffin Poetry Prize were announced this morning in Toronto, and we're thrilled to report that Jeramy Dodds was named a nominee for Crabwise to the Hounds with the following citation from the judges:

"'We are only allowed to live / due to some colossal misunderstanding' writes Jeramy Dodds in this astonishing first book. The exploration of this misunderstanding is the subject of Crabwise to the Hounds, and Dodds' language confronts the entropy with some wondrous chaos of its own. There is a cyclonic lexical energy here, deep intelligence, and a serious commitment to craft. His poems build and infold all at once, and opposing forces create incredible tension in them: the reader's mouth, open in awe, next barks a disbelieving laugh. There's more than a little of Buster Keaton here, threading his body through a window in a falling wall: simple marvels that stop you in your own tracks when you begin to think about how they were done. The author seems sui generis at first, but then you sense how lightly he's stepped through the bramble of various inheritances to find his own voice, and on the first try. In 'Making Sure', for instance, Dodds harnesses both Tim Lilburn and William Stafford at the same moment as he's claiming a certain territory for his own now: the natural world occupied by an ineluctable machinery. He builds against it this machine of language in which Glenn Gould negotiates the Danube, Ho Chi Min has gone to 'repair / the night through a colander of stars', the aviary has a recovery wing, and even the act of sipping water is reinvented: 'In stride with the clock's / hypnotics, his throat chops a glass of water / down'. A research archaeologist by training, Dodds is sounding the deeps here. A marvellous debut."

The winners, who each receive C$50,000, will be announced on Wednesday, June 3, 2009, at the ninth annual Griffin Poetry Prize Awards Evening. Tickets for the reading can be purchased here or by calling (905) 618-0420.

All aboard!

2009-04-03T16:23:00.005-04:00

You've heard about it from Open Book Toronto. You've heard about it from Quill & Quire. Now experience it firsthand from the duo of dynamic diction itself.

Coach House poets Jeramy Dodds (Crabwise to the Hounds) and Matthew Tierney (The Hayflick Limit) are about to head west for National Poetry Month, on a journey named 'Two on a Choo-Choo: The Dodds / Tierney Poetry Train.'

Here at twoonachoochoo.blogspot.com you will find thrilling first-hand accounts of the poets' adventures as they hit festivals, bookstores and reading series along the way. These dispatches might be as close as you get to riding a boxcar with the two authors, sharing from their tin can of beans. So make sure to check back regularly!

At the sidebar on the right you will find list of the scheduled stops, links to the books and multimedia extras over at Coach House Books. Make sure also to visit to our sponsor, VIA Rail.