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2014 Pushcart Prize nominee. (more)

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The trial of Jodi Arias






Crime scene: Photographs shown in the murder trial of Jodi Arias show the crime scene at Travis Alexander's home in Mesa, California after his body was found



June 4, 2008

A bloodied body is found in the shower. A man of 30 had been stabbed 27 times, shot in the head and had his throat slit to near decapitation. 





I've become quite enthralled with this case and have followed the trial since the beginning. (It's being  streamed live). As of this post it's still going. I've written a poem from her perspective, but first a brief background from Wikipedia:


'The killing of Travis Alexander occurred on June 4, 2008. Alexander's body was found at his home in Mesa, Arizona; his wounds consisted of 29 stab wounds, a slit throat, and a shot to the head; the death was ruled by the medical examiner to be a homicide.

A criminal trial began on January 2, 2013, for Alexander's ex-girlfriend, Jodi Arias, who was charged with his murder. Arias pled not guilty and testified on February 6, 2013, that she killed Alexander in self-defense. The case has received widespread media attention.'  (end).





Part of the reason why it's so interesting is how articulate Arias is. She's also a compulsive liar, which has been evident all throughout the trial. First of all she said she was never at his house. Then she came up with a story that two intruders killed him and she miraculously escaped. After two years she changed her story yet again to that of self-defense, claiming battered wife syndrome. In court, she dropped a bombshell by claiming that she walked in on Travis masturbating to a picture of a boy.  Her poor family have had to endure a second assassination, this time of his character. There has never been a shred of evidence to back up any claims of abuse or otherwise. Travis was a Mormon yet the trial has been saturated with stories of their sex life, including a one hour phone sex recording.


The prosecution is trying to prove premeditation, as Travis was moving away from Jodi and I believe that she did indeed plan it. There's much more to it of course. This is a death penalty case. I don't believe in the death penalty but I do believe that she should never be allowed out. She is a psychopath and wouldn't be surprised if she did something similar again.


(L Prosecutor Martinez) Arias was on the stand for an amazing 19 days, mainly talking about herself. States she 'cannot' remember killing him but claims he attacked her first.





Self-belief sister


I’m an artist
And a photographer
In the light
On the crest of a golden wave
In echelon fields
Where the chosen ones dominate.

I’ve lived for a thousand lifetimes
And probably a thousand more
And even if I didn’t
There’s been none like me
For generations.

I’m a survivor
I’m a winning streak
Golden Ticket
That should be respected
More than I am
Who is taking charge
Of her destiny.

I take no prisoners
And give no latitude
As idiocy has threatened me
Too often
Like a scolding bubbly soap
Of bullshit
I can no longer swallow
If they cross me
They will know it
Not the sting of a mosquito
But the death grip of the python.

I’m being dramatic
But I’ve always been special
I don’t care that it sounds conceited
Because I’m simply not ‘some people.’

Respect will be given
And I’ll start with him.

Misconstrued, misunderstood, mishap
Mortal mistake
Motherfucker
The line is dug.

 
(Written during the trial of Jodi Arias).






If you're interested to know more, chase down a 48 Hours episode called Picture Perfect. A good starting point.
No doubt, a movie will be in the cards.

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Coming soon,
A new video poem Alienation Prevails. (perhaps suitable following this post).



POSTSCRIPT
2018

I was so caught up in this trial that I sent a card to the Alexander family. We should always think of the victim first. Family second. Perpetrator last. I received a reply. It was very nice.

Great to see Arias where she belongs and where she will spend the rest of her life. She epitomizes the word 'evil' with no remorse and disgusting conduct throughout all of the proceedings that followed this awful event.

RIP Travis.

Reminisce-zero

 

 Squandered what could be, based on prior opportunities.

 

 




My poem Reminisce-zero is live at BlueStem Magazine.


Available in the March 2013 edition.
You can also listen to it as I recorded an mp3 version.

I really hope you'll swing by and share the link. As always, it's word of mouth that publications like these (and myself) rely upon.






Thank you.
Next post, something very different.


Coming soon,
My first ever poetry collection, Caged Without Walls.


Which is now available at 

https://www.anthonyjlangfordbooks.com/



Poem - Cowboy



Cowboy


Sometimes I’m so lost
I don’t know what to do with myself
Other times I think I know
But I stumble along
Like a fool in the dust
Desperate for one measly drop.

Rarely
I come across a poem
From a kindred spirit
And feel it
In every cell.
Or come up with a paragraph
Or a single sentence
That’s worth something
And I know I’m where I’m supposed to be.





Poem - Diploma




Diploma


I’m a post warrior syndrome dropout
From the dance of the dunces
I’m a dropout from the school
Too young for hard knocks
Being postmodern
So I must belong to
The scholarship of
Don’t give a fuck.

I failed.

Because try as I might
I still give a shit
Not that they deserve it.

Still, I armor up
As I don’t want to die in the gutter
So they can laugh and condemn
As that’s too easy.

I have a semblance of pride left
Though pride is the cause of most of the world’s folly
Pride of nations
Pride of race
And drunken knights
In front of prospective lovers
And other acts
Without aforethought.

So I hang up my hat
Because it never sat right anyway
And even if it did
I could never wear it for long
As I never wanted to belong
Though I felt at times that I wanted to
I just never found any school
Or institution
Or department
Worth belonging to.

And who wants a shitty diploma anyway.





This can't wait - Band Solkyri


Solkyri





I had some footage left over from a trip up the North Coast which I had utilized in the video for She's Adorable . I was very happy with how it turned out so I went back and pulled some more footage I had shot over the past six months and put this video together.

I contacted the band to see if they didn't mind. They didn't (as there wasn't a video for that song) and so here it is.






It's from their first E.P. No House. Their debut album, 'Are you my brother?' is being released in May 2013.

You can find them on Facebook

I was pretty happy with how it turned out. In a way, it's a sister video to the one by Deepfieldview and I made them very close together. I like the idea of instrumentals and nature working together, as though separate from human beings entirely. There's something organic about it. Anyway, I hope you like it.
Feedback (for myself or the band) is always welcome.



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Cheers.





Work published at Foliate Oak.



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I have a poem and two video poems up at Foliate Oak Literary Magazine. (Now defunct) My understanding is that it will remain there for the month of March, 2013 and hopefully archived after that. Apparently 1000 people checked out the issue on its first day. Very exciting!

The poem is called Enough. It's the first time it has appeared anywhere.

The video poems are The Final Result (first placed online in August 2012) and Her Teenage Universe, (Oct. 11). 


Video poems now here; The Final Result followed by Her Teenage Universe

If on phone check out my YouTube Channel










Hope you'll drop by and share it via your social media and perhaps check out the work of the other contributors. There's a solid mix there.

Cheers.


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