New surprise cultural evening (SCE, new acronym).
I discovered that the café I regularly visit, called "The Cellar" (la Cave Café) has... a cellar. Where poetry is read on Monday evenings. Lots of people, mostly English speakers. Poems, songs, stand-up, "anything goes." Great atmosphere.
I got on stage to recite this short poem by François de Cormière in French and English (translated by ChatGPT) because you have to seize the moment, right?
Then came the special guest of the evening: Bonafide Rojas, a poet from the Bronx who came to read excerpts from his book Excelsior. So funny. So charismatic. They call it poetry, but it's essentially very personal trains of thought which take a new kind of life on stage.
He signed his book for me. Though I've only skimmed through it, I appreciate how each poem is peppered with footnotes explaining cultural references – a thoughtful touch for those not entrenched in the New York poetry scene. Well done.