Poet of the Fortnight #2: BlueJay (May 18 - June 1)

BlueJay has been randomly selected as our second Poet of the Fortnight (PotF)! BlueJay is an 18-years-young woman from the United States. She joined us here on PnQ in the summer of 2011.

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Latest poem:
NaPoWriMo #15 2017

Let the stillness begin,
hang the streamers,
and blow the balloons,
light the fires beneath
the barbeque grills -

and force the real world
to wait outside or down
the street until the party's
over. There's no need to
worry here, not while
we're surrounded by those
we have grown to love
as family and laugh with
as friends. Things have
been way too difficult
lately.

But here and now,
we have a chance to
take a moment without
any of that grief.

I know I've always got a pen,
in my hands and book in my lap,
I dress too much or too little
compared to all of you, and
when I joke back it's quietly

but really I look forward to
our Saturday parties and
midnight banters over
red wine and espresso.
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BlueJay, please take a minute to fill out this public survey so we can get an idea of who you are before we start asking questions. You can write pass if you want to skip anything.

Real name:
Meaning behind your PnQ name:
Birth place:
Languages spoken:
When you discovered PnQ and why you joined:
Favorite poet(s):
Book you are currently reading:
Song you last listened to:
Inspirations for writing:
5 truths about yourself:

I am really excited to be the poet of the fortnight this time around, I feel as though I'll learn more about myself right along side all of you!

Real Name: Madison Rene'
Meaning behind my PnQ name: well at the moment it's a reference to a few things. Firstly I have lived in a lot of houses, but the one that felt the most like home had a nest of bluejays right before we moved and it is one of the happiest moments I've known. And secondly, it is about growing up and sort of figuring out how to use your wings to gain the freedom you deserve or have earned from surviving the first stages of life (the whole you're 18 you're an adult thing).
Birthplace: Bad Windsheim, Germany - and no I don't remember anything from there, because we moved back to the states before I was even a year old.
Languages spoken: Mostly just English, though I have dabbled in learning a lot of them, none stuck.
When I discovered PnQ and why I joined: I was making a birthday card for a friend and looked up quotes on google, literally just "quotes" and somehow found quotes published by authors here. I fell in love with all the different voices and perspectives and I had recently been told by a teacher that I should give more thought to poetry than just journaling - it sorta just felt like the site was calling me.
Favorite poets: well, I actually don't read as much poetry as I'd like to but I love Ian Thomas, the author of Iwrotethisforyou (a poetry and microstory project) and Tyler Knott Gregson, author of the Chasers of Light books. But I think my ultimately favorite poet is a member of this site, though I'd rather not name names because there are so many talented people here, y'know?
Book I am currently reading: Well I am a bad reader I've always got like a million books at once, but the one I am the furthest into is "The Talisman" by Stephen King and Peter Straub
Song I last Listened to: "The Trapeze Swinger" by Iron and Wine
Inspirations for writing: This one is all over the map and I don't really think trying to explain it would make much sense.
5 Truths about myself:
1) I still write letters and have penpals and a letter in the mail literally makes my day every time no matter what's inside it
2) I long to travel but I am terribly afraid to go anywhere by myself.
3) I have called 30 different houses, cars, hotels and other objects home (my mom has gypsy blood I think).
4) I have a little brother by blood and 4 older brothers by happenstance and I love all of them more than words can describe. Even when we fight I wouldn't change that for anything in the world.
5) When I graduated from High school I wanted more of my Poems and quotes family to be in the audience than my flesh and blood family.

And anything else you'd like to know I will happily answer!

Awesome! Congrats!

Now that you're 18 and an adult, what are your plans?
College, work, service, entrepreneur, beach-bum???

I am taking community college classes and I also am working at a fast food restaurant. But I think ultimately I'd like to start my own something or another. And I've started working on a self-publishing project as well that might lead to something or point towards other opportunities.

If you had to make everyone read one piece of literature, what would it be?
Which one poem, do you think best describes you as a writer right now?
What's your writing process like?

I see you listen to Iron and Wine. What other type of music do you like listening to?

If everyone had to read one piece of literature? Hmm I'll let you know when I think of something.
Which pone describes me as a writer right now? Probably my piece "Flavor" and I think that will always be it.
My writing process is something like "pen in hand, ooh that happened this morning and people would understand it!" OR "line stuck in my head, where's the damn pen scribbe scribe scribble, yes! Perfect done!" Lol. Sorry of that's hard to follow but that's really all it is.

I listen to pretty much everything except rap. Mostly it's 90s grunge stuff but everything else is thrown in alongside that lol!

You are charming, BlueJay, and I like your taste in music. Can't go wrong with some Iron & Wine or 90s grunge. You've got my curiosity running wild about who your favorite poet is... a PnQ poet, I love that. Maybe I can figure it out based on your Favorites :).

Question #1: What are five of your favorite qualities (about yourself)?
Questions #2: What are your strengths as a writer and what is one thing you would you like to improve on?

Well I do have strange music lol so hey whatever, at least all the bases are covered. And you (or anyone) can probably figure it out, but just in case I'll choose the safe side of things.

Question 1: I love that I can turn anything into a poem, it really does make every day a little easier to bear; I love that even in a bad mood I seem to have an ability to make the people around me laugh or smile; I like to believe that I am trustworthy and that I actually do the things I say I will; I love that I am always learning from people and situations around me (and that's probably the best quality I have); and finally I start something and I'm not really the type of person to not finish or to do a poor job (on purpose at least, but we all have bad days, right?)

Question 2: I think my strength is my imagery because that is the aspect I get the most comments on and it is the entire reason I write poetry - I am able to create art while being a sucky painter (some of you will get that, others might have questions, if you wanna know I will share). And ultimately the thing I need to improve on is rhythm. I am terrible with keeping a beat or tempo and I just have so many ideas in my head that any sort of structure really goes out the window.

Maddie, I love the Bluejay story and some of your answers are thoroughly interesting. I've read a lot of your work, so it's nice to have a bit of background about the author.
What would you say is the one theme that features most in your poetry. Or, when you sit down and write, is there one thing that inspires you more than any other?

I have changed my name quite a few times on this site, but I think Bluejay is going to last a lot longer than most of the others, so I am glad you enjoyed it :)

One theme in most of my poetry: this might be a little abstract but I'd have to say honesty. Because everything has a core of truth to it. Even if it's not about my life it happened to someone I know or I am reacting to real events in the the world or in my neighborhood or something. Even the "silly" seeming short pieces are my true real take on something around me. I am not sure if that is quite what you were looking for, but I do hope that it helps a little.

P.s. not that I am thoroughly picky, but I spell my Maddy as such instead of Maddie :)

Hey pretty girl,

Whenever I saw your name written as Maddy, I couldnt help but link the word "maddy" to anger. I think is because English is not my first language, and also because while I was learning it, I was told "mad" meant "anger." So, whenever I read the word "Maddy", my first reaction was to think that Maddy was some type of adverb that could function as an adjective rather than think of it as a nick name per se... But anyhow, are you one to easily angered?

What does being creative mean for you?
If you were to summarize yourself in one word, what would it be?

Lol, I love the little story behind that, and actually a lot of my friends growing up felt similarly, so they started nicknaming me "Happy" because none of them had ever seen me cry or be upset with anyone. In fact, a few of them even still call me that.

Am I easily angered? It all depends on who or what is angering me. Certain people in my life I can't even think of without my blood starting to boil, and a very select number of pet peeves are powerful enough to make me truly angry, but otherwise, no I don't believe so.

Being creative is taking whatever's around you and turning it into something else.

Ooh one word, poetic. There is nothing else that really sums up who I am or what I do as a more conclusive whole. Sorry if that's cliche' considering the setting.

Do you have a favorite form of poetry to write?

I love reading formed poetry but I do not like to write it... unless I am trying it out. I've had phases of a few different forms, but no favorite so far.

Thanks for that...Maddy. (I will remember for future reference) Great answer.

As one who automatically adds an 'ie' I apologize... Maddy.

Do you have favorite roll models, men or women, from literature or movies?
What makes them significant to you?

The ie doesn't bug me, it was just sort of a "hey since I noticed it and it's a thread about me, let's just share the info" (This was TOTALLY a joke because that doesnt come over text nearly as well as it did in my head!)

As much as I love reading, I don't watch a lot of movies and I read way too much to narrow a list down for something like this. However, I think the people actually around me are much more inspiring. Sorry if I couldn't really answer you, Larry.

Interesting to know more about you Maddy :)

What triggers you to write?
-Inspiration?...like the weather, season etc.

-Is there a specific time that you write or whenever you are inspired?

-Have you had a moment where you can't sleep until you have penned
what is troubling you or keeping you awake?

-Do you go back and forth read and re-read what you have written
and sometimes felt no this is not what I want..or did I feel like that or
sometimes even deleted a poem because you don't want to be reminded
about something..?

Son nothing really triggers me, I have so many ideas in my head all the time it's just that whenever I have a pen I start getting those out.

I mostly write at night. But there are days when I don't do anything but write and I literally write all day long filling half a notebook and going through a pack of pens totally motivated the entire way through also... so I mean... hope that helps.

Yes, I am like that most nights of my life.

I do reread everything I write multiple times. But I don't edit very often and everything starts out in pen before coming to the site or anywhere else I share. BUT I never delete, tear out, or cross out anything. For a while I was even against using whiteout for misspellings because it detracted from the natural outcome of my thought process.

Question #3: What are 8 of your bucket list items? 8 things you want to do before you leave this earth.

8 of my bucket list items are:

1) go to Italy with my mom and sip "real" coffee while I write and she sketches.
2) publish something I've written, not for fame but just to feel accomplished.
3) Help more people than I hurt (or will hurt) while I am young and stupid.
4) Take my brother to Japan and be able to help him afford the cost of going to school there.
5) Meet some of my PnQ family face to face, electronics are cool and all, but you all seem much more genuine than that.
6) Find somewhere to not just call home, but feel like it too.
7) Make amends with my middle school group of friends.
8) I would really like to get over my fear of traveling alone and see the world. I feel as though better days are coming for all places if only we could give them time.

10/10 support your dream of going to Italy for the real coffee. Not to mention the dozens of amazing other food options there (my Lordy I'm craving a cannoli right now).

My question is, where'd the cockatoo in your profile photo come from?

For the Italy comment, my mom and I started that off as a joke a few years ago when she wrote her poem (which is on here) Flower Child Pajamas. Because at the time we had a ritual to make my really long days a little bit easier. I was going to school an hour away and it was a very good school for me so I refused to transfer. So my mom woke up with me at 5 am every day, she made coffee and played DJ while I got ready. At 5:45 we would sit on the back porch (nicknamed a veranda but no where close) and watch the world around us come to life. At 6 we started driving to school. I usually read in the car or played DJ for her. 7 school staerted. 3 school ended and I rode the bus to my dads house where I stayed or went to the library until my mom got off of work. Did mountains of homework and pnqed. Because I was working so hard despite all the chaos... around me and the back and forth and super early she joked that I should push to become some next great poet thing so we could see the world. And the first stop had to be Italy (a place she's already been) for real coffee and decent inspiration. Now we mention it in passing occasionally, I dony think she realizes I'm already planning for it to actually happen.

She's my boyfriends pet. Her name is Jermy. She's a triton something. She's 26 and can live to be in her 150s. Anyway, when his parents first got married (and even a few years before) they worked in a totally humane pet shop here in the south bay. Shortly after their wedding they went to a pet expo to see if there were any new marine fish for the shop they were working at. As they were walking, they passed a table with birds. Lots and lots of birds. They still have pictures of this whole thing. Well, they stopped because my boyfriends mom was an art student and she was amazed by all the colors and varieties, while admiring other birds this little tiny chick ran out of the hands of someone petting her to the end where my boyfriends parents were. The next thing they know the person running the booth table thing comes over and says, "these birds, all varieties of the ones I display, they are mated for life based off of a single instance, and you my friend have been mated." There's more to it, but I don't have the energy to type it all out. When the person from the booth finds out they've just been married he practically gives the bird to them. In the end they paid like 1/10th of her usual cost (food and everything) and have had her ever since.

Well, that was a really long story. I wasn't sure how much info to give ya. But I love her so much. Everyone in that family jokes that we need to get married someday cause were the only two that don't wanna kill her. (She's really loud! And still technically a baby so she squats at night and is still frightened by things like the mailman and the garbage truck oh and the doorbell terrifies her. But the phone ringing she enjoys and holds fake conversations with herself because of lol).

If you listen to any of my poetry recordings you can usually hear her whistling/talking in the background or my boyfriends dog.

Whoa, I totally forgot your mom came on here. You were both in Like the Flowing River at the same time.

Yeah, she hasn't been on in like forever, but yeah we were.

Your mom sounds like a lovely person and she seems so dedicated to you. You were making two 1-hour trips on school days, but it sounds like she was doing four? That's a lot of time and gas money. I hope the two of you make it to Italy together someday and drink coffee while writing poetry.

Love the story of the bird. How long have you been with your boyfriend? It sounds serious :).

Question #4: Of the "30 different houses, cars, hotels and other objects" you've called home, which has felt the most like home? Which has felt the least like home? Which was the strangest?
Question #5: What are three of your fears?

Well her work was half way between my school and our house, so it evened out a little but... still. And gas wasn't all that bad because the prices were really low where we were, but I do understand the sentiment. Italy would be amazing.

I've known him for 12 years now, but we've been dating for just shy of three years.

Answer 4: the most like home was the one with the bluejays in Benton, LA. The least like home was probably the garage/unattatched space we rented from one of my mom's clients. And honestly I have no clue which was the strangest.

Answer 5: Three of my fears are: 1) losing my brother, 2) my current neighborhood and 3) I am still terribly afraid of the dark.

What is your favorite animal??

squirrels are my favorite animals

I'm sure you're far too kind a person to wish this on anyone, but I'm not, and seeing as it's you in the spotlight, you will have to do your best to answer! If there was one person in the world right now you would quite literally like to see drop off the face of the planet, who would it be and why? A bizarre sort of question, perhaps, but there you have it...

Is your mom a professional artist?

So when I was a freshman in high school I met a guy through some app or website or whatever, turned out he lived like 20 minutes outside of town. We met once or twice. nothing too much came of it on my end. (Look back to my poetry at the time anything about Butterfly lover or specifically saying "That man" will be about this). Well eventually he turned into a stalker and a very abusive person. Even after everything was said and done HE WAS EVEN IN JAIL! I continued to get letters from him. Obviously this was not a good thing, well as I got older I learned more about him and I started to hate him even more. Now than I am living somewhere else and he's probably already dead or if not he certaintly needs to be that would be my choice.

Sorry if that's hard to follow but I'd really prefer to keep the rest of the story to myself and I really didn't want to use his name.

Larry, no my mother is not a professional artist although my god she should be. Instead she is a professional massage therapist.

What one fruit would best describe you?
If you had to listen to one song for the rest of your life, what would it be?
You can make a 30 second call to your old self (at any age), what age would it be and what would the message be?

Mark, Strawberry, but don't you dare ask me to explain :P
One song would be Pretty good year by Tori Amos.
30 second call to my old self it would be my 14th birthday and all I would say is stop. There's no need for this.