Goldbarth, Albert 1977; 2004
Wednesday, September 29, 2004
It isn’t enough we know this pain
down the ganglionic stem to its roots,
its intercellular ratchets and tufts, it
isn’t even enough the doctor mumbojumbos
various possible treatments, oh an entire
thriving industry of pills and saw-toothed pincers,
no what we want is a name
– Albert Goldbarth, “Finely Written Labels”
Albert Goldbarth on why he turns down interviews:
DIVEDAPPER // Albert Goldbarth
This week, something a little different. A yearish ago when I was starting Divedapper, I sent Albert Goldbarth a postal letter (he doesn’t use email) soliciting an interview for the site. He replied quickly and said he didn’t want to do it, but his rationale for turning it down was as interesting and worthy of attention as any interview I could’ve hoped to conduct.
Sleep, sleep–then the kitchen trap
snaps, and my brain like the bait brie
leaps and lands spinning. Now morning
means a mess to sweep and a similarly
skewed conscience to tidy, so all night,
for the jumpy remainder of night, it’s
hazy half-dreams of Mickey from somewhere
out of a childhood Saturday, manly
– Albert Goldbarth, “Reel Estate”
Listen to Albert Goldbarth at the 2013 National Book Festival:
