Episode 13.3: Visions of Gerald, Part 3

John Lennon (and Allen Saunders before him) was absolutely right: life really is something that happens when you’re making other plans.

When I went on this St. Louis and Milwaukee trip, I was fairly excited about both the reading in Milwaukee AND the prospect of meeting Gerry Nicosia. Any lover of the Beat Writers would. I cut my literary teeth on Jack Kerouac right when I was old enough and approaching on wild enough to  truly appreciate the hedonism he described and yet not so removed from the religious and spiritual wonderings that had been such a large part of my childhood that I missed the spiritual underpinning of all his protagonists’ quests.  And while I didn’t  know it yet, the itchy part of my imagination … the part that was always and still is taken to wandering and takes the rest of me along for the ride … had found it’s archetypical mythic touch point. Which is to say, if I hadn’t already been dreaming of the road, I certainly would have started after my first reading of Mexico City Blues.

And in case you didn’t know, I need to tell you  that any real understanding of  Kerouac as more than a pop culture fetish along the same lines as Che Guevara and Sesame Street’s  Elmo starts with Nicosia’s critical biography, Memory Babe. Just accept this as gospel and we can continue this three part tale. Trust me.

The reading in Milwaukee went well. It was a small but dedicated crowd and Erica Floyd, the writer who organized it, did a lovely job putting the whole thing together. I enjoyed the Cream City Hostel in Riverwest, and I enjoyed the neighborhood… especially this funky coffee shop/vegan restaurant about a half mile away from the hostel that was cozy, warm, with decent food… even if the décor was definitely hipster focused.

But meeting Gerry was maybe the best take away from the trip, if only because it reminded me that I need those life and literary touch points now as much as I needed it in my 20’s when I immersed myself in Kerouac, Ginsberg, Burroughs, and those who came after them. Diane Di Prima always comes to mind because she had this amazing poem about eating what she called “menstruation stew… potatoes in Campbell’s condensed tomato soup. Because I was scheduled to leave St. Louis early the next morning, like I talked about in episode 13, part 2, I didn’t get to talk to him all that much. We chatted a little before his performance with George Sams and we chatted some after when I got him to sign his book  for me. 

“You need to bring me to Louisville,” he said. I told him I’d bring it up to Ron Whitehead, another amazing writer we both know who’s had some luck funding local literary events. As the conversation went on, I told him I thought readings and literary events were starting to be more frequent again; those kinds of things tend to be cyclical in my experience and the cycle, as I told him, was turning back in that direction.

“That’s because in these times, people need poetry,” Gerry said. “They may not know they need it… but they need it.”

Amen to that, I thought. I told him again I’d talk to Ron and see what could be done. Over some other conversation via email, and learning more about his life since the publication of Memory Babe, and hearing about his battles in defense of Jan Kerouac and Paul Blake III, the only blood relatives Kerouac left behind when the booze finally killed him, his battle against the Sampas family … the family that owns Kerouac legacy… for his very livelihood, I was reminded that writers … the real ones… aren’t hot house flowers.  Not all writers have to fight something as influential as the Sampas family, but all writers have to fight. For time. For space. Against a culture that champions economic independence over vocation or the search for the universal sacred heart.  It’s a fight. And sometimes it wears a body down. But knowing that Gerry Nicosia is still writing and still scrapping … well that’s just good medicine, right there.

Thanks so much for listening to  Episode 13, Part 3 of a Record of a Pair of Well Worn Traveling boots.  Please be sure to show some love by subscribing to this podcast on ITunes, Spotify, or whatever podcatcher you use. Check out the past episodes and look for Episode 14 in two weeks. If you really enjoy the podcast, please consider becoming a patron on our Patreon Page: www.patreon.com/wellwornboots. It’s only $5  a month and it means you’ll get a little extra for your patronage.  

Thanks again for listening. May the road ever rise to meet your feet.