The average person checks his or her cellphone 110 times a day. Many people lament humanity’s loss of human contact and the decline of the written word. Technology has erased the last residues of the spirit of collaboration from this earth.
Or has it?
One group of poets has sought to return to authentic, individual connections: Typewriter Rodeo.
They sit at a table in front of vintage typewriters, and wait for a person to arrive in front of them and present a prompt. Three minutes later, the typers present an original poem for the visitor to take home as a gift.
“I type them a poem on the typewriter, right there on the spot. It maybe takes two or three minutes, and then they get to keep the poem,” said David Fruchter, one of three members of Typewriter Rodeo who came to visit BPR’s broadcast at the Boston Public Library.
The members of Typewriter Rodeo remarked on the symbiotic relationship between the poet and the reader. They said writing can be solitary, and custom-ordered poetry can be a way for poets and readers to come into contact, a rare experience.
“Writing poems to-order for people is so social, and it’s so community oriented, and it allows both writers and people wanting poems to interact with each other in a very tangible way,” said GretaRose Netherton.
Jim and Margery solicited Typewriter Rodeo for poems about what Donald Trump’s first day as president would look like. Sean Petrie wrote this poem:
“Oh look at this place
So much to do,
And so much money.
Hey, that’s new.
This office is nice,
Perhaps my best one yet.
And hey, best thing ever,
I can write off all my debt.”
To hear the interview in its entirety (plus more original poems), click on the audio link above.
