Skip to content

Tag: busking

Pop Up Poetry – Valentine’s Weekend 2016

Saturday, February 13th Brooks Winery, 12:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. Poetry is “on the house” this Saturday, courtesy of the amazing Brooks Winery! Come to their gorgeous tasting room for some exquisite wine flights, a phenomenal view, and excellent conversation. Ask me to type up a poem on my vintage typewriter for you, or as a gift to someone! Give a subject; get a poem. It’s that easy. And what pairs better than wine and poetry? Donations accepted, and don’t forget to tip your server! See you there! Sunday, February 14th Broadway Coffeehouse, 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. As a teaser…

Pop Up Poetry 04.18.2015

Better late than never! I wanted to give you guys another peek into my event this last weekend during our glorious 70-degree sunny weather. 🙂 I set out to perform Pop Up Poetry at two locations on Saturday: first at Broadway Coffeehouse in the late morning/early afternoon, then to Archive Coffee & Bar in the evening. My first time performing a Daily Double, I am merely thrilled that I managed to survive! It was incredibly fun, as always, and I got to meet some wonderful people who were so kind to share their stories with me. Thanks to each of you for giving me a priceless gift time and time again! Hope to see you again soon!

Some Pop Up poems below in order of creation…Hope you enjoy!

IMG_20150416_143131

Busking

Day 2 – “B” as in “Busking”

BDay 2 of the A-to-Z Blogging Challenge, and on to the letter “B.” Which, today, is for “Busking.” This word is not widely-known, and that’s perfectly understandable. I had no clue what busking was until this last year. It is a very archaic term–let’s shed some light on it with an education moment, brought to you by (of course) the letter B….

In the Oxford Dictionary, “busk” is defined as the following:

[to] play music or otherwise perform for voluntary donations in the street or in subways (Oxford Dictionary, 2015).

To simplify that and make it tangible, a busker is basically a street performer, selling their talent on the street for public donations. The Oxford Dictionary goes on to explain a little bit of the “busking” origin:

Busking used to take place not in shopping centres but at sea. The word busk comes from Italian buscare or Spanish buscar, which both mean ‘to seek’. Its earliest use in English was in the nautical sense ‘cruise about, tack’. This became extended to mean ‘go about selling things’, and then, in the middle of the 19th century, ‘go about performing’ (Oxford Dictionary, 2015).

While that’s all fine and dandy, you’re probably wondering what busking has to do with my blog challenge theme of Poetry. And that’s fair. But what many people don’t know about me is that busking has everything to do with Poetry if you’re in my little corner of the world, and that is precisely what I wish to share with you in this post.

Pop Up Poetry 03.03.2015

Improv Pop Up Napkin Poetry with my dear friend, Sharalyn…   Our two loves as our first prompts for one another… 🙂 Falafel for me, Spring for her…Falafel was the first thing she thought of, and I gave her Spring since Winter was giving her the seasonal blues. 🙂  

Pop Up Poetry 02.28.2015

Poems and backstories behind tonight’s Pop Up Poetry gig on location at Archive Coffee & Bar…

Archive’s decor and overall theme just makes me giddy with nostalgia of a bygone era. It always provides with the perfect mood and atmosphere. Combined with excellent coffee, craft cocktails, and delicious food…it will forever be one of my favorite haunts. So thrilled to be doing Pop Up Poetry with them.

PUP Archive Setup

 

Poetry below! 🙂

Pop Up Poetry: “Family”

I never turn down anyone. I love you people. All of you. Come…talk with me. Tell me your story; I want to hear it. And, if I may, I will memorialize it for you because your life is just as beautiful as the next. Lovely meeting this little family of three–mom, dad, and 3-month-old Vincenzo. Hope to see you guys in Portland sometime!

Pop Up Poetry Event: Artists’ Reception at Broadway Coffeehouse

I had the pleasure of being invited to do #PopUpPoetry this Thursday for Broadway Coffeehouse‘s Artists’ Reception, featuring the Friday Artists (showing off their paintings and artwork currently displayed at Broadway) and Branches Company (a local acoustic musician).

This was my first live gig, and can I just say how how humbled and awed I am by how my city is welcoming me with open arms?! Thank you, Salem! It was incredible; the evening had a slow, laid-back pace (rather than the rapid pace I’m used to), but I was grateful for it–I had the opportunity to engage in deeper conversations with the people asking me for custom poetry. We laughed and networked and exchanged stories and business cards. Now this…this is what life should be about–being intentional and authentic with the people around you. Busking is hard, SO hard, but now that I know what I know…I don’t think I can stop. Thank you to everyone who made Thursday night such a wonderful evening for me and for supporting your local artists. Thank you to my dear, dear husband for being the best personal assistant! You made this night seamless for me! See y’all on the streets! (And a special thank you to Eddie Cabbage. I’m the luckiest jedi-in-training in the world!)

Images of Pop Up Poetry pieces are below!

Local Event: Artists’ Reception

It’s legit. This Thursday at 6:00 PM @broadwaycoffeehouse will be hosting an Artists’ Reception for our local “Friday Artists,” whose works are currently hanging in the urban bar of the coffeehouse. The event will  feature music from Branches Company and #PopUpPoetry from yours truly, #JessicaMurdoch the #RhetoricalRedhead. Come hang out with me and support your local artists by kicking back for a relaxing evening! See ya there! ❤

Pop Up Poetry: “Fantasy of Absurdity”

First “Live” Pop Up Poetry Request

Well. I broke the ice. My very first “live” #PopUpPoetry request was for such a sweet, newly-engaged couple at @archivecoffeeandbar. She had just shared with him her long-time dream of being a florist, and I whipped this up to commemorate their new beginnings and exciting future. I was surprised and deeply humbled to receive not only a surprise donation for my spontaneous, impromptu gesture, but also tears of joy and a hug. I couldn’t have asked for a more perfect First than this. ❤ Blessings upon you both, M & B; thank you for your kindness and the wonderful opportunity to…

%d bloggers like this: