Dusty Dog Reviews
The whole project is hip, anti-academic, the poetry of reluctant grown-ups, picking noses in church. An enjoyable romp! Though also serious.











Nick DiSpoldo, Small Press Review (on Children, Churches and Daddies, April 1997)
Children, Churches and Daddies is eclectic, alive and is as contemporary as tomorrow’s news.




Volume 57








Children, Churches and Daddies
the unreligious, nonfamily-oriented literary and art magazine

ISSN 1068-5154






janet, by paul weinman

across the room
ebbing around people’s form
sometimes flowing forward
between couples
and singles
pausing or pressing
in your pulsing
sometimes disappearing
as if sinking
beneath bodies
only to reappear
where I hadn’t expected
as if some agreed-upon
game of visual hide
and go seek
had been struk
between us
but with you
always being
my goal
you always
the prey
within this party
of my predation
your flesh
implores my grasp
skin calling out
through eyes that skim
just barely touch
mine in tempting
taunting me
with skin in stretch
of face
and arms
and breasts
that body bobbing
between the others
is not janet
but my lust
come to shore






BEAGLES HE SAYS, by lyn lifshin

I try to
shove them
on the Jehovah
Witnesses. Why
not, they come
and stumble
in in their
twenty dollar
cotton dresses
want me to
buy what they
are selling. I
give them
addresses of
sinners worse
than me. Then,
since the dogs,
the beagles
were what I
got and what
will save me,
sustain me, get
me where I dream
of going, it makes
as much sense
for me to con
vince them they
need a beagle,
figure they
are as crazy
for my dogs
as I am about
what they are
peddling






in sickness and for worse, by lois ann morrison

in sickness and for worse

Muzak played softly in the background, James Galway’s flute with Henry Mancini’s “Days of Wine and Roses.” Other tunes followed one after the other unannounced and hardly noticed, just skimming the edges of conscious thought, long-ago songs like muted memories fading with time but never completely forgotten.
The early morning sun broke through a partially drawn shade to bring light into the darkened room. An aged man, having dozed off in his tattered green rocker, was suddenly awakened by the brightness and warmth. He blinked several times as he slowly opened his eyes, pale blue but clouded now with cataracts. His cherrywood pipe had gone out while he slept and had fallen from his lips, spilling tobacco in his long beard and onto his belly. He took pride in his full, white beard and brushed himself clean as he sat upright. His hair, having thinned on top, was allowed to grow long and curl onto his shoulders.
“It’s time to take your pills, Bunny,” the old man said to a frail little woman lying in bed under the window opposite him. The sunlight had bypassed her and she lay in the half-sleeping state of the elderly. Bunny was his wife. She was startled to full wakefulness by his announcement.
“I don’t want to take those damn pills,” Bunny objected with mild anger, her body too weak to protest loudly. A stroke had left her paralyzed on one side and she spent her days passively counting hours, waiting for some unknown event which never occurred.
“They’re too hard for me to swallow, Bear,” she whined. “You know that. “Bear” was the name she used for her husband.
“I’ll crush them like I always do,” Bear said in exasperation as he struggled to get up from his rocker, balancing unsteadily on an aluminum walker. “Do you want chocolate or vanilla pudding?” He asked as if having such a choice represented some kind of control in a captive situation.
“Oh, yuck.” Bunny made a sour face. “It all makes me gag.”
“Then chocolate it is,” dictated Bear. He worked his way carefully into the kitchen area where he prepared his wife’s medicine. His knees hurt from arthritis as he walked and he favored his right hip since he’d broken it two years before. Bunny had been strong then and after his surgery she had nursed him through his convalescence.
Medicine and pudding mixed, Bear came to his wife’s side. Using the walker once again for balance, he leaned over the bed and gently spoon-fed the mush to his Bunny. Her mouth drooped on the left side and some of the pudding spilled through her lips. He wiped it clean with the edge of his shirt.
Bear remembered the first time he fed Bunny. It was soon after the Great War when they were just teenagers on a picnic by the river. He had paid thirty-five cents for that lunch, out bidding Jimmy Crawford and Bill Walker. The owners of the baskets were supposed to be a secret but Bunny had discreetly whispered a description of her basket to him before the bidding began. So they shared a secluded lunch by the water’s edge, away from the curious eyes of the other noisy picnickers. He recalled the lunch in detail-cold fried chicken, biscuits, grapes, fruit punch from a jar-and how they had teasingly fed each other bits of food with their fingers. Later they shared their first kiss. Love was young and she felt so vulnerable and soft in his arms, like a bunny.
His thoughts returned to the present when Bunny began to spit and cough. He’d fed her too much too fast again but she quickly recovered, having taken ail the pudding along with her pills.
“I don’t know why I have to take all this medicine,n Bunny said when she stopped coughing.
nIt will make you better,” he responded with this simple explanation.
“I’m not going to get better,” she said with defeat in her voice. “I might as well be dead.”
“No!” Bear shouted in sudden anger. “I’ll not let you talk that way. I can take care of you.”
He still needed her. He needed her strength, old and weak as she was. He needed her laughter, though it was gone from her life. He needed her to be there, even if that’s all she could do. He needed a purpose in his life and that was as her protector. Yes, he still needed her.
Bunny was unaffected by her husband’s sudden outburst, accustomed to it after all these years. He was still Bear, strong, commanding and taking charge. But he could not control time and he was weakening as she was weakening. How long could they go on? Her mind went back in time as she recalled fondly their early courtship days, stolen kisses, secretly planned chance encounters. She remembered passionately one long-ago October after the Harvest Dance when he first claimed her as his own. He seemed so strong and powerful then, like a bear. He promised he’d always take care of her.
The rest of the morning was spent in silence until their noon meal was delivered by a county agency that provided assistance to homebound elderly people. It guaranteed them at least one hot, healthy meal a day. For some it was the only one they received. Bear set his meal aside in order to help Bunny. Fighting with the wrapper, he spilled some of the preheated contents on-to his hand.
“God damn these things!” He cursed. “Why can’t they make it easier for us?”
Inside was a slice of roast beef, corn on the cob and a creamed vegetable. When he began to slice the meat, Bear found it to be tough and gristly. He threw down the knife.
“How the hell do they expect you to eat this food!” he bellowed as Bunny waited passively for her dinner. “You can’t chew this meat. And corn on the cob?” He dipped his finger in the creamed vegetable and tasted it. “Too salty,” Bear proclaimed as he took away the whole platter. “You’re not supposed to have salt. I’ll have to fix you something myself.”
Bear was in the kitchen a long time and he became tired and breathless after scrambling up some eggs. It was difficult for him because he couldn’t stand without support and he teetered precariously on his walker. He was irritable when he finally brought the plate to his wife. Muzak still played lazily on the air, a watered-down version of an old Beatles’ tune.
“I’m tired of that sleepy mush for music,” Bunny complained then added lightly, “I want to hear some dancin’ tunes.”
“Why?” Bear snapped. “You can’t dance.”
The pain on Bunny’s face was instant, expressing a blow to her spirit and she couldn’t respond. Tears welled up in her eyes.
Bear was immediately ashamed of what he’d said. “Please forgive me,” he begged. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it.”
He reached for her hand which was lifeless in his grasp but the damage had already been done, a wicked reminder of what they’d become. She turned her head away from him.
“I’ve hurt her again,” he agonized to himself, “With harsh and thoughtless words.”
He loved her still after all these years and depended on her love in return. But Bunny refused to eat the scrambled eggs offered to her and Bear returned, defeated, to the green rocker, deep in his own private pain.
“But it’s true,” he thought to himself. “We can’t dance anymore. Why pretend?” He answered his own thoughts. “Because pretending is all we have now. We can only pretend to live. We can’t dance; we can’t love; we can’t care for ourselves anymore and I am unable to be her protector. All we give each other now is pain and heartache.”
Their bodies had failed them but refused to die. In his despondency Bear knew what he must do. He sadly yet tenderly watched his Bunny as she faded into a light sleep. Her body still looked vulnerable and soft to him but he could not bring himself to take her with him at this time. Bunny could join him later. Someone else, more capable than he, would have to be her protector now. Bear rose heavily from his rocker and made his final walk into their darkened, unused bedroom.
The sound of the gunshot awakened Bunny. Her muscles tensed and her heart pounded rapidly as a stab of pain sliced through her body. She looked for Bear in his green rocker but saw it was empty, the only sign of life its slow abandoned rock working its way to a stop.
“Bear!” She called out but received no answer.
Oh, God! What has Bear done? The realization left her breathless, her mind in an uproar screaming wordlessly in anguish. “I’m all alone now,n she thought frantically. “Who will take care of me?”
Her body began to shake and her lungs heaved in uncontrollable sobbing. She cried herself to exhaustion and thought of her husband, fallen in the other room, and his final outrageous attempt at control.

“I love you, Bear,” she whispered hoarsely one last time.

lois ann morrison






nopoem I, by c ra mcguirt

is this sake hot?
some would say
it’s warm
some would say
it’s lukewarm
Buddha says
yip!






nopoem II, by c ra mcguirt

to yawn
is not to
sleep
to pay attention
is not to pay
respect






nopoem III, by c ra mcguirt

i sorrow for
the things
i have not
lost
you brought a wineglass
into my Temple
and a careless elbow
broke it.






nopoem IV, by c ra mcguirt

you still drink
bitterness from that glass...
SMASH
against
the Temple wall






perfect, by Janet Kuypers

once when i was in florida
visiting mom and dad
(i think it was a sunday)
mom asked me,
“what do you want for dinner
tuesday?”
and i thought,
i don’t know what i want
for dinner
tonight, or even if i want
to eat, much less
what i want for dinner
two days from now
i wanted to tell her
to relax,
not to worry about me,
and i thought,
there she goes again
making sure
everything is perfect






poker face, by Janet Kuypers

every once in a while
mom would play cards with us
but her poker face is just awful
she’d draw a card,
one she evidently wanted
look at it down her bifocals
raise her eyebrows
“ooh, ooh, ooh!!”
she’d say
we all knew then
we should fold






how men should put their pants on, by james sullivan

There’s a proper way to put your pants on. Here it is: first, retrieve your trousers from the closet, door knob, or floor where you dropped them last night. Shake them several times to smooth the wrinkles out, to ensure the pants legs are not twisted, and to remove foreign objects. Now, set those pants neatly on the bed, chair, or floor. You’ve got to don your underwear before anything else.
Good, you should have clean and unholey underclothing on now. At least, your mother and I hope you do. Next, sit on your bed, chair, or floor and put your socks and shoes on. Why socks? Because they are kind and gentle on your feet. So are shoes. But why before pants? To dust off your shoes as you put them through your pants legs and to give you better balance when you stand on one foot to pull the opposite pant leg up.
Excellent, you now ought to have your footwear on. And it’s highly recommended that you tie the laces securely at this time, too. Trust me. Bending over is much, much easier with your pants off.
Now, grab your pants again. Stand up and hold them with your two hands, one on either side of the pants waist. Allow your pants to fall neatly in a heap just in front of you. But don’t take your hands off them. Elevate the clothing a little off the floor, lift your left leg, put it into the left pant leg, and pull that side of your pants up as you balance yourself on your right leg.
Great. See how much easier it is to do that with your shoes on? So, hold that portion of your pants up with your left hand, and place that left foot back on the floor. Next, lift your right leg as high as it will go and carefully step into your right pant leg, pushing your right leg through until it touches the floor, as you pull that side of your pants up with your right hand. At this point, you should be holding the right and left side or your pants at the waist.
Okay, then, pull, button, snap, hook, tie, or do whatever the contraption requires to secure the two sides of your pants together. Your next step is to reach down with your right hand, regardless of which hand is dominant, and grab the lever at the bottom of your fly. Making sure that all pants material, and everything else, that should be inside is, delicately, but firmly, pull your zipper up to the top and fold the lever down to lock in place.
If you have a fly that’s not zippered, but buttoned, just start buttoning from the bottom and work your way to the top. If you have neither a zipper nor buttons, you may have a serious problem, and you’d better see a good tailor soon.
With your fly closed, you can put a belt on if you like. On the other hand, your pants may have an elastic waist band, which negates the need for a belt.
The last step is to push in all your pockets to make sure they are not hanging outside your trousers. Also check for pocket holes at this time. Then inspect your pants cuffs, if you have any, to see that they’re not turned down.
If you’re going to put a shirt on next, and I hope you do, you’ll find it easier to unhook your pants, re-open your fly, and drop your pants a little. Then spread your legs apart to prevent your pants from falling all all the way down. Now, put the shirt on, button it, tuck it into the pants, then hook them up again, and rezip your fly.
They say that all men put their pants on the same way-one leg at a time. That’s a myth. Some men put their pants on two legs at a time. To do so, just sit on a bed, chair, or floor. Now scrunch up your pants so that when you hold them up in front of your eyes, you can see through both pants legs. When you have your pants like that, lift both your feet at the same time and stick them through the pants leg holes. Next, stand up on both feet and pull your pants up to the waist. The rest is the same as the one-leg-at-a-time procedure.
I assure you, there is no third way to put on your pants. Several people, however, have tried and failed, dislocating knees, hips, and even arms in the attempt. At the same time, pants have been ripped, punctured, and badly damaged in the process. And all for what? Some third way to put your pants on that just doesn’t exist.
To keep your pants especially clean, you may wish to put them on while standing, not on the floor, but upon Some higher platform, so the pants never touch the floor, getting dirty there. Perhaps the best thing to stand on is a footstool. And you may wish to forgo having your shoes dusted and keeping your balance more easily by putting your shoes on after you’ve pulled on your pants while standing on that footstool.
If you want to be weird like that, go ahead. Just don’t let anyone who knows better see you.
And now you know how to put your pants on.






picking my friends, by Janet Kuypers

I had a friend while I was in
high school, her name was Kim,
she was a bit... progressive,
shall we say, a bit outspoken.
She was the type that followed
rock bands with hopes to get
a photograph or sleep with them.
She had bright red hair in a mohawk,
wore dark make-up. I remember once
she came over and dad looked
at her and said, are you going
to sue your hairdresser for what
they did to you?
Well, anyway, I spent a lot of
time with her while I was in
high school, and while I didn’t
chop all of my hair off (I was
too insecure to make a statement
with no meaning at fifteen),
our friendship had an effect on
my well-being. She was often
ill-tempered, and I found myself
getting into agruments with
her, feeling stressed because
of her. And mom saw this, and
long after the fact Sandy told
me that mom considered telling
me I couldn’t see my friend
anymore.
But she decided not to, thinking
I had to make my own decisions
about which friends I had, and
besides, if she told me I couldn’t
see Kim, I’d just want to see
her more anyway.
And yes, I learned, and I ended
the friendship soon after the
trouble began.
Well, I know I’m not supposed to
know about that, but I’ve always
wanted to thank her for the trust,
for letting me make my own
decisions.






excerpt from the big sigh, by laurie calhoun

I remember how relieved he was...
He gazed at me not with interest,
but out of gratitude
and yes, it was relief.
He must have thought
that the others would be happy too,
now that a diagnosis of the disease
had been found.
He forgot that they never wanted a cure.
They prefer the way things are:
false and ugly but apparently
nice and secure.
They don’t like being harasses,
least of all with embarassingly obvious
truths.






blue is the colour, by gary jurechka

Blue is the colour
of his kind,
the blood blue of slumbering
rose petals at night,
the crystal blue of dancing, sparkling
Caribbean waters,
the gray blue of a solitary cloud’s
hidden soul,
the purple blue of dark storms
fierce with power,
the airy sky blue of laughing
childhood summer heavens,
the dusky blue black of twilight shadows
swallowing the fading sunlight,
the cool blue of soft jazz drifting
on the breeze from an open window
one warm evening,
the mysterious midnight blue that is
bathed in pale, lonely
moonlight, and
blue is the colour
of his kind.






the missing onion, by Janet Kuypers

Every Fourth of July mom and
dad would have a party for all of
their friends. Sandy and I at
night would get a ladder and
climb to our rooftop so we
could see the fireworks from
neighboring towns. Well one
year, at the party, mom was
getting all the food together,
she always made so much food
for everyone, and she was
finishing the salad, but she
realized that she was missing
the onions. “I know I cut an
onion for the salad,” she said.
“Help me look for it.” So Sandy
and mom and I were walking
around the kitchen looking for
an onion, cut up. Frantically
searching. Not on the counter,
not in the refrigerator. “It’s
coming to me!” mom yelled out
during the search, and we all
stopped for a clue toward finding
the prized minced onion. “It’s...
it’s in tin foil.” Okay, so now
we’re looking for a smelly ball
of wrinkled metal, this is a good
lead. And we’re all just laughing
so hard because we’re looking
frantically for an onion mom
misplaced this morning. Well,
mom finally gave up and left the
search party because she had to
bring the salad outside, with or
without the beloved tear-jerker,
and so she starts to toss the
salad, but something is heavy
on the bottom. “Oh, silly me,” she
says, and pulls the aluminum foil-
laden vegetable out from the
bottom of the bowl.
To this day, whenever we
remember something, we say,
“It’s coming to me,” and laugh.






I was a cheddar cheese gal and he was an American cheese guy, by lisa newkirk



I was a cheddar cheese kind of gal and he was an American cheese
kind of guy
I sat up late Christmas night with him and his roommate
Christmas dinner eaten early that afternoon
every grocery store, fast food place and diner closed
and on the television appeared
an actor holding a powerful suggestion:
a grilled cheese sandwich
before saying it aloud in unison,
we both had the same thought -
we wanted it.
he had the bread
his roommate had cheese -
Swiss cheese
yuck! we both said
I said I like mine with cheddar
yuck! he said
he said he makes his with American
yuck! I thought
and so we sat wistfully
waiting for the stores to open
neither one prepared to
eat a grilled cheese sandwich
made with Swiss

You know, it wasn’t just the cheese
it was his watching television all night, every night
while I wanted to go out
it was his impatient punctuality
when I wanted the luxury of lounging around, get-ready time
it was his wearing old boots to a wedding
while I wore a black dress from Sax Fifth Avenue
tomato, Tomahtoh
we both were thinking the same thing about each other
but neither one was willing to eat each other’s grilled cheese
sandwiches






tuesday nights, by Janet Kuypers

tuesday nights were the nights dad went
out with the boys in the builders tee club
and it was just the girls at home. i
remember a story of when mom and dad
were younger and dad would come home
late on tuesdays, drunk, and one time mom
decided to scotch tape the front door lock,
and dad tried and tried to use his key but
just couldn’t get in the front door.
well for me tuesday nights were spaghetti
nights, because dad hated spaghetti but
we loved it. there was no meat in it, i
could hear him saying. but when i was
younger, i remember thinking that my
favorite day of the week was not saturday
or sunday, free from school, but tuesday,
when he had spaghetti or elbow noodles
in a milk and butter sauce and it was the
girl’s night together.






that dress, by Janet Kuypers

both years i went to prom
you made me my dress
the first, pink and mauve
i looked like a parade float,
i think
the next year,
something a bit more
dramatic
i wanted black with a touch of ivory,
you convinced me to have
ivory with a touch of black
you made a dress
with a fitted jacket
i could take the jacket off
wear a pair of long dress gloves
you know,
you never liked having
your picture taken
mom
but i’ll always keep
the photo taken just before
my prom night
of the two of us
i’m leaning my head
on your shoulder
i loved that dress






jody in the sunlight, by john sweet

jody in the sunlight
motionless
doesn’t make a sound
doesn’t look up
when i talk to her
or when i walk away
doesn’t laugh
at my jokes anymore
doesn’t cry
when i hit het
doesn’t flinch
when i burn her
sits by the window
all day
and doesn’t blink
when i put the gun
to my head
or hers
just stares at
something
i can’t quite see




Nick DiSpoldo, Small Press Review (on "Children, Churches and Daddies," April 1997)

Kuypers is the widely-published poet of particular perspectives and not a little existential rage, but she does not impose her personal or artistic agenda on her magazine. CC+D is a provocative potpourri of news stories, poetry, humor, art and the "dirty underwear" of politics.
One piece in this issue is "Crazy," an interview Kuypers conducted with "Madeline," a murderess who was found insane, and is confined to West Virginia's Arronsville Correctional Center. Madeline, whose elevator definitely doesn't go to the top, killed her boyfriend during sex with an ice pick and a chef's knife, far surpassing the butchery of Elena Bobbitt. Madeline, herself covered with blood, sat beside her lover's remains for three days, talking to herself, and that is how the police found her. For effect, Kuypers publishes Madeline's monologue in different-sized type, and the result is something between a sense of Dali's surrealism and Kafka-like craziness.



Debra Purdy Kong, writer, British Columbia, Canada
I like the magazine a lot. I like the spacious lay-out and the different coloured pages and the variety of writer's styles. Too many literary magazines read as if everyone graduated from the same course. We need to collect more voices like these and send them everywhere.

Ed Hamilton, writer

#85 (of children, churches and daddies) turned out well. I really enjoyed the humor section, especially the test score answers. And, the cup-holder story is hilarious. I'm not a big fan of poetry - since much of it is so hard to decipher - but I was impressed by the work here, which tends toward the straightforward and unpretentious.
As for the fiction, the piece by Anderson is quite perceptive: I liked the way the self-deluding situation of the character is gradually, subtly revealed. (Kuypers') story is good too: the way it switches narrative perspective via the letter device is a nice touch.



Children, Churches and Daddies.
It speaks for itself.
Write to Scars Publications to submit poetry, prose and artwork to Children, Churches and Daddies literary magazine, or to inquire about having your own chapbook, and maybe a few reviews like these.

Jim Maddocks, GLASGOW, via the Internet

I'll be totally honest, of the material in Issue (either 83 or 86 of Children, Churches and Daddies) the only ones I really took to were Kuypers'. TRYING was so simple but most truths are, aren't they?








what is veganism?
A vegan (VEE-gun) is someone who does not consume any animal products. While vegetarians avoid flesh foods, vegans don't consume dairy or egg products, as well as animal products in clothing and other sources.

why veganism?
This cruelty-free lifestyle provides many benefits, to animals, the environment and to ourselves. The meat and dairy industry abuses billions of animals. Animal agriculture takes an enormous toll on the land. Consumtion of animal products has been linked to heart disease, colon and breast cancer, osteoporosis, diabetes and a host of other conditions.

so what is vegan action?
We can succeed in shifting agriculture away from factory farming, saving millions, or even billions of chickens, cows, pigs, sheep turkeys and other animals from cruelty.
We can free up land to restore to wilderness, pollute less water and air, reduce topsoil reosion, and prevent desertification.
We can improve the health and happiness of millions by preventing numerous occurrences od breast and prostate cancer, osteoporosis, and heart attacks, among other major health problems.

A vegan, cruelty-free lifestyle may be the most important step a person can take towards creatin a more just and compassionate society. Contact us for membership information, t-shirt sales or donations.

vegan action
po box 4353, berkeley, ca 94707-0353
510/704-4444




C Ra McGuirt, Editor, The Penny Dreadful Review (on Children, Churches and Daddies)

cc&d is obviously a labor of love ... I just have to smile when I go through it. (Janet Kuypers) uses her space and her poets to best effect, and the illos attest to her skill as a graphic artist.
"I really like ("Writing Your Name"). It's one of those kind of things where your eye isn't exactly pulled along, but falls effortlessly down the poem.
I liked "knowledge" for its mix of disgust and acceptance. Janet Kuypers does good little movies, by which I mean her stuff provokes moving imagery for me. Color, no dialogue; the voice of the poem is the narrator over the film.



Children, Churches and Daddies no longer distributes free contributor's copies of issues. In order to receive issues of Children, Churches and Daddies, contact Janet Kuypers at the cc&d e-mail addres. Free electronic subscriptions are available via email. All you need to do is email ccandd@aol.com... and ask to be added to the free cc+d electronic subscription mailing list. And you can still see issues every month at the Children, Churches and Daddies website, located at http://scars.tv

Also, visit our new web sites: the Art Gallery and the Poetry Page.

Mark Blickley, writer

The precursor to the magazine title (Children, Churches and Daddies) is very moving. "Scars" is also an excellent prose poem. I never really thought about scars as being a form of nostalgia. But in the poem it also represents courage and warmth. I look forward to finishing her book.








MIT Vegetarian Support Group (VSG)

functions:
* To show the MIT Food Service that there is a large community of vegetarians at MIT (and other health-conscious people) whom they are alienating with current menus, and to give positive suggestions for change.
* To exchange recipes and names of Boston area veg restaurants
* To provide a resource to people seeking communal vegetarian cooking
* To provide an option for vegetarian freshmen

We also have a discussion group for all issues related to vegetarianism, which currently has about 150 members, many of whom are outside the Boston area. The group is focusing more toward outreach and evolving from what it has been in years past. We welcome new members, as well as the opportunity to inform people about the benefits of vegetarianism, to our health, the environment, animal welfare, and a variety of other issues.




Gary, Editor, The Road Out of Town (on the Children, Churches and Daddies Web Site)

I just checked out the site. It looks great.



Dusty Dog Reviews: These poems document a very complicated internal response to the feminine side of social existence. And as the book proceeds the poems become increasingly psychologically complex and, ultimately, fascinating and genuinely rewarding.

John Sweet, writer (on chapbook designs)

Visuals were awesome. They've got a nice enigmatic quality to them. Front cover reminds me of the Roman sculptures of angels from way back when. Loved the staggered tire lettering, too. Way cool. (on "Hope Chest in the Attic")
Some excellent writing in "Hope Chest in the Attic." I thought "Children, Churches and Daddies" and "The Room of the Rape" were particularly powerful pieces.



C Ra McGuirt, Editor, The Penny Dreadful Review: cc&d is obviously a labor of love ... I just have to smile when I go through it. (Janet Kuypers) uses her space and her poets to best effect, and the illos attest to her skill as a graphic artist.

Cheryl Townsend, Editor, Impetus (on Children, Churches and Daddies)

The new cc&d looks absolutely amazing. It's a wonderful lay-out, looks really professional - all you need is the glossy pages. Truly impressive AND the calendar, too. Can't wait to actually start reading all the stuff inside.. Wanted to just say, it looks good so far!!!



Dusty Dog Reviews: She opens with a poem of her own devising, which has that wintry atmosphere demonstrated in the movie version of Boris Pasternak's Doctor Zhivago. The atmosphere of wintry white and cold, gloriously murderous cold, stark raging cold, numbing and brutalizing cold, appears almost as a character who announces to his audience, "Wisdom occurs only after a laboriously magnificent disappointment." Alas, that our Dusty Dog for mat cannot do justice to Ms. Kuypers' very personal layering of her poem across the page.






Fithian Press, Santa Barbara, CA
Indeed, there's a healthy balance here between wit and dark vision, romance and reality, just as there's a good balance between words and graphics. The work shows brave self-exploration, and serves as a reminder of mortality and the fragile beauty of friendship.

Mark Blickley, writer
The precursor to the magazine title (Children, Churches and Daddies) is very moving. "Scars" is also an excellent prose poem. I never really thought about scars as being a form of nostalgia. But in the poem it also represents courage and warmth. I look forward to finishing her book.

You Have to be Published to be Appreciated.

Do you want to be heard? Contact Children, Churches and Daddies about book or chapbook publishing. These reviews can be yours. Scars Publications, attention J. Kuypers. We're only an e-mail away. Write to us.






Brian B. Braddock, Writer (on 1996 Children, Churches and Daddies)

I passed on a copy to my brother who is the director of the St. Camillus AIDS programs. We found (Children, Churches and Daddies') obvious dedication along this line admirable.



The Center for Renewable Energy and Sustainable Technology
The Solar Energy Research & Education Foundation (SEREF), a non-profit organization based in Washington, D.C., established on Earth Day 1993 the Center for Renewable Energy and Sustainable Technology (CREST) as its central project. CREST's three principal projects are to provide:
* on-site training and education workshops on the sustainable development interconnections of energy, economics and environment;
* on-line distance learning/training resources on CREST's SOLSTICE computer, available from 144 countries through email and the Internet;
* on-disc training and educational resources through the use of interactive multimedia applications on CD-ROM computer discs - showcasing current achievements and future opportunities in sustainable energy development.
The CREST staff also does "on the road" presentations, demonstrations, and workshops showcasing its activities and available resources.
For More Information Please Contact: Deborah Anderson
dja@crest.org or (202) 289-0061

Brian B. Braddock, Writer (on 1996 Children, Churches and Daddies)

I passed on a copy to my brother who is the director of the St. Camillus AIDS programs. We found (Children, Churches and Daddies') obvious dedication along this line admirable.






Dorrance Publishing Co., Pittsburgh, PA
"Hope Chest in the Attic" captures the complexity of human nature and reveals startling yet profound discernments about the travesties that surge through the course of life. This collection of poetry, prose and artwork reflects sensitivity toward feminist issues concerning abuse, sexism and equality. It also probes the emotional torrent that people may experience as a reaction to the delicate topics of death, love and family.
"Chain Smoking" depicts the emotional distress that afflicted a friend while he struggled to clarify his sexual ambiguity. Not only does this thought-provoking profile address the plight that homosexuals face in a homophobic society, it also characterizes the essence of friendship. "The room of the rape" is a passionate representation of the suffering rape victims experience. Vivid descriptions, rich symbolism, and candid expressions paint a shocking portrait of victory over the gripping fear that consumes the soul after a painful exploitation.

want a review like this? contact scars about getting your own book published.




Paul Weinman, Writer (on 1996 Children, Churches and Daddies)

Wonderful new direction (Children, Churches and Daddies has) taken - great articles, etc. (especially those on AIDS). Great stories - all sorts of hot info!







The magazine Children Churches and Daddies is Copyright � through Scars Publications and Design. The rights of the individual pieces remain with the authors. No material may be reprinted without express permission from the author.



Okay, nilla wafer. Listen up and listen good. How to save your life. Submit, or I'll have to kill you.
Okay, it's this simple: send me published or unpublished poetry, prose or art work (do not send originals), along with a bio, to us - then sit around and wait... Pretty soon you'll hear from the happy people at cc&d that says (a) Your work sucks, or (b) This is fancy crap, and we're gonna print it. It's that simple!

Okay, butt-munch. Tough guy. This is how to win the editors over.
Hope Chest in the Attic is a 200 page, perfect-bound book of 13 years of poetry, prose and art by Janet Kuypers. It's a really classy thing, if you know what I mean. We also have a few extra sopies of the book "Rinse and Repeat", which has all the 1999 issues of cc&d crammed into one book. And you can have either one of these things at just five bucks a pop if you just contact us. It's an offer you can't refuse...

Carlton Press, New York, NY: HOPE CHEST IN THE ATTIC is a collection of well-fashioned, often elegant poems and short prose that deals in many instances, with the most mysterious and awesome of human experiences: love... Janet Kuypers draws from a vast range of experiences and transforms thoughts into lyrical and succinct verse... Recommended as poetic fare that will titillate the palate in its imagery and imaginative creations.
Mark Blickley, writer: The precursor to the magazine title (Children, Churches and Daddies) is very moving. "Scars" is also an excellent prose poem. I never really thought about scars as being a form of nostalgia. But in the poem it also represents courage and warmth. I look forward to finishing the book.

You Have to be Published to be Appreciated.
Do you want to be heard? Contact Children, Churches and Daddies about book and chapbook publishing. These reviews can be yours. Scars Publications, attention J. Kuypers - you can write for yourself or you can write for an audience. It's your call...



Dorrance Publishing Co., Pittsburgh, PA: "Hope Chest in the Attic" captures the complexity of human nature and reveals startling yet profound discernments about the travesties that surge through the course of life. This collection of poetry, prose and artwork reflects sensitivity toward feminist issues concerning abuse, sexism and equality. It also probes the emotional torrent that people may experience as a reaction to the delicate topics of death, love and family. "Chain Smoking" depicts the emotional distress that afflicted a friend while he struggled to clarify his sexual ambiguity. Not only does this thought-provoking profile address the plight that homosexuals face in a homophobic society, it also characterizes the essence of friendship. "The room of the rape" is a passionate representation of the suffering rape victims experience. Vivid descriptions, rich symbolism, and candid expressions paint a shocking portrait of victory over the gripping fear that consumes the soul after a painful exploitation.

Dusty Dog Reviews, CA (on knife): These poems document a very complicated internal response to the feminine side of social existence. And as the book proceeds the poems become increasingly psychologically complex and, ultimately, fascinating and genuinely rewarding.
Children, Churches and Daddies. It speaks for itself.

Dusty Dog Reviews (on Without You): She open with a poem of her own devising, which has that wintry atmosphere demonstrated in the movie version of Boris Pasternak's Doctor Zhivago. The atmosphere of wintry white and cold, gloriously murderous cold, stark raging cold, numbing and brutalizing cold, appears almost as a character who announces to his audience, "Wisdom occurs only after a laboriously magnificent disappointment." Alas, that our Dusty Dog for mat cannot do justice to Ms. Kuypers' very personal layering of her poem across the page.
Children, Churches and Daddies. It speaks for itself.

Debra Purdy Kong, writer, British Columbia, Canada (on Children, Churches and Daddies): I like the magazine a lot. I like the spacious lay-out and the different coloured pages and the variety of writer's styles. Too many literary magazines read as if everyone graduated from the same course. We need to collect more voices like these and send them everywhere.
Fithian Press, Santa Barbara, CA: Indeed, there's a healthy balance here between wit and dark vision, romance and reality, just as there's a good balance between words and graphics. The work shows brave self-exploration, and serves as a reminder of mortality and the fragile beauty of friendship.
Published since 1993
No racist, sexist or homophobic material is appreciated; we do accept work of almost any genre of poetry, prose or artwork, though we shy away from concrete poetry and rhyme for rhyme's sake. Do not send originals. Any work sent to Scars Publications on Macintosh disks, text format, will be given special attention over smail-mail submissions. There is no limit to how much you may submit at a time; previously published work accepted.