Lewis Feuer
1) How long have you been writing in the DOT?
16 months.
2) What are your favorite ways to stay warm during a long New England winter?
Polypropylene thermal underwear: 2 sets, mittens: 1 pair, fleece scarf, beanie:
1(black)
3) Words to live by. Is there a quote or phrase that captures your philosophy as
an artist or one you've just never forgotten?
“When an artist learns his craft too well he makes slick art.”
-- Sol Lewitt
4) What was the most recent thing that inspired you to write? (could be a
conversation, an object, a dream - tell us a little about it, was it sad, humorous,
just plain strange?)
It may have been when the crotch of a recent pair of jeans finally blew out.
5) Best or worst gift you've ever received for Christmas/Hanukkah.
Iʼve surfed since I was a little kid off Block Island, RI. And over that time Iʼve
developed a loose list of best practices to manage the normal fears inspired by
the fact that each time I paddle out Iʼm merely a small speck floating on the
surface of a vast constantly moving open body of water, filled with many other
living an hungry things. That list includes wisdoms such as: try not to surf alone,
wear sunscreen, and always assume that what just brushed your foot was
seaweed.
One Christmas as a joke (I think it was a joke) my mother gave me this book
titled Surfingʼs Greatest Misadventures. I still canʼt quite fathom why she thought
this book might interest me, and Iʼve yet to read a single page of it. Maybe it was
a jab at my low level anxiety, but most likely it was bought in a Christmas Eve
panic at our local CVS by a very tired but very loving mother at a loss for what to
get her son, who at the time was most likely in the throes of puberty and was—as
the mother may have thought in that moment—impossible.
Jennifer Murphy
1) How long have you been living/going to school in Dorchester?
I've been living here since July of this year.
2) What are your favorite ways to stay warm during a long New England winter?
I currently don't have any way of keeping warm because no matter what I do I am still always cold. As an Arizona native, I am dreading the long winter. Suggestions on how to keep warm are very welcome. All I've managed to do yet is keep somewhat thawed.
3) Words to live by. Is there a quote or phrase that captures your philosophy as an artist or one you've just never forgotten?
I usually keep two things in mind when writing, first is a quote by Lawrence Ferlinghetti, "Think long thoughts in short sentences." I keep this in mind because I don't think prose should be over thought. It is most beautiful when it is honest and too the point. Also some advice on writing from Ron Carlson, "Stay in the room." This helps me stay focused on the emotional state of the world I've created.
4) What was the most recent thing that inspired you to write? (could be a conversation, an object, a dream - tell us a little about it, was it sad, humorous, just plain strange?)
The last thing that inspired me to write is the same thing that usually draws me to the keyboard, a voice. The voice of a character tapping on the back of my eyes to tell their story.
5) Best or worst gift you've ever received for Christmas/Hanukkah.
Best gift I ever received for X-mas was a pair of roller blades when I was about ten. I kept them on for two years straight.
Marquita Niles
1) How long have you been writing in the DOT?
I've lived in Dorchester off and on all of my life.
2) What are your favorite ways to stay warm during a long New England winter?
One, wear tons of clothes and socks, a hefty scarf and eskimo hat and a nice pair of expensive and maybe furry boots. While I'm out and about, I LOVE To drink hot tea with milk n honey everywhere I go....keeps your insides warm right? Singing does the magic for me in the cold. Oh, and while I'm waiting for the train, cross my legs like I swear to keep warm. There's nothing like your own body heat :)
3) Words to live by. Is there a quote or phrase that captures your philosophy as an artist or one you've just never forgotten?
This captures me and has always been my favorite:
"Watch your thoughts; they become words. Watch your words; they become actions. Watch your actions; they become habits. Watch your habits; they become character.
Watch your character; it becomes your destiny."
4) What was the most recent thing that inspired you to write? (could be a conversation, an object, a dream - tell us a little about it, was it sad, humorous, just plain strange?)
Well the last poem I did was called "A Night's Haiku" which includes a portrait. I'm very random and last minute with ideas and sometimes snapping pictures. It was night time. I was inspired. I just arrived to Ashmont station and heading home. As I'm walking to the trolley, ahead I noticed the brick wall of the station that stood out because of the lights that hung over it, giving it a nice contrast in the night. Then what made me fall in love more was the shopping cart off to the left where an old and large square piece of wooden board next to it was propped up against this brick wall. I said to myself, I have to get a picture of this...but with me in the picture. So I asked this woman who had gorgeous grey and curly hair if she could take a picture. I might have passed someone else but she seemed warm and fitting for the task. I just told her what I wanted. She snapped a few. I felt the portrait deserved a Haiku. That's what it got.
5) Best or worst gift you've ever received for Christmas/Hanukkah.
The best gift for Christmas? My play kitchen and shopping cart with all the fake food. The best ever!! Probably why I loved that shopping cart.
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