In my final two years at the Exchange, a dread-locked young man was hired to work data entry under my supervision in the gold futures pit. Carlos was an original, his life filled with drama. There is a bullet lodged near his heart, inoperable, from his wild years. Even though he drove me crazy with his careless errors, I found it impossible not to like him, especially after he bought and read my first novel, Close to the Edge. Just about everybody liked him. One day as I was checking the sign in book, I noticed that he had an Italian last name. His family's origins are in Ethiopia, which was once conquered by Italy. When the Hughes brothers, two brokers whom I had the pleasure of knowing and ridiculing for 20 odd years, found out Carlos had Sicilian blood, those Irish dogs never let me hear the end of it. Anyway, Carlos would frequently show up carrying a notebook. He had many filled with his writing. I read some of it. It was good but sloppy, just like his work reporting trades. I encouraged him to attend open mike poetry readings. He was intimidated by it.
When the Exchange adopted electronic trading and the need for floor staff diminished, Carlos was in the first wave of those let go. I lost track of him, although I heard he'd had some luck and moved south. 18 months later I was given the boot. Some time last year I had a friend request from him on Facebook. He has adopted the moniker WrittenInPain. He sent me several of his poems, which I enjoyed despite the spelling errors. He even worked up the nerve to appear on blogtalkradio.com. And now he has issued a CD. I bought it about two weeks ago and have listened to the tracks several times. I am so impressed. It is so professionally done, beautifully recited in the way the pieces are meant to be heard - without the distraction of spelling errors - and accompanied by appropriate music or effects. And the profanity is at a minimum. I remember three cuss words in the eleven tracks, and there was not even a single use of the N word or bitches or ho's, which impressed me more than anything else. Of course, I disagree with the politics and worldview, but that's no different than how I view most of the stuff that comes out of the arts. And some of the rhymes are clever rather than logical, but, overall, the disc is wonderful, teeming with sincerity and passion. I particularly enjoyed the pieces on Jesus and Grandma. Kudos, cugino.
Sample the Final Warning track here:
http://www.reverbnation.com/play_now/10730183
Thanks to the three kind folks who purchased books today on Avenue U.
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