There are bits of family which defy description. I do not mean that metaphorically. They know you are trying and they will resist.

Answer the Ask the Author


  1. Why a dictionary?

    1. Because I like words.

    2. Because they are full of words.

    3. Because I need words.



  2. Why family?

    1. That's where I first had words.

    2. I know them well.

    3. I don't know all of them.



  3. To what extent do the maudlin tendencies of 80's pop inform your tendency towards overt, cheese-laden geezerism?

    1. Its the one thing

    2. More than this

    3. Same as it ever was



  4. Explain the undercurrent of constant, unanchored social discomfort.

    1. Please.

    2. No.

    3. Stop.



  5. You reference rose gardens more than once. Are they:

    1. Political?

    2. Personal?

    3. Allegorical?

    4. Lynn Anderson?



  6. Are you Spider-Man?    

    1. Yes.

    2. No.

    3. I am a grown-up. I have a child.

    4. I'm Batman.



  7. What will you say if I tell you I always read your poems with a fake British accent?

    1. An aspirated "Thank you."

    2. A polite nothing.

    3. I will set cold beans and toast against seven varieties of fried pork.



  8. When you reference one or the other set of grandparents, I get the impression you are keeping score. What is at stake?

    1. Fun vs. stable.

    2. Where neither really is.

    3. But both are.



  9. Your audience.

    1. Ha.

    2. Ha.

    3. What?



  10. Do you think you are clever?

    1. Maybe.

    2. Sometimes.

    3. When I'm at my worst.

    4. Not compared to the person who writes the Internet.



  11. Are you worried that sometimes you're too obscure or personal?

    1. See the question about audience.

    2. As of this writing, I have never put my penis onto social media.

    3. Are you really still reading this?



  12. When will you stop?

    1. Abruptly.

    2. When I get distracted.

    3. When I get disheartened.