[the Writing of Kuypers]    [JanetKuypers.com]    [Bio]    [Poems]    [Prose]

See YouTube video of Janet Kuypers reading her 2019 poems “Quarrel Over the Constitution” (written on Thomas Jefferson's Birthday), “Just Let Me Have My Space” (then showing the Instagram image for it), & “Jumping Genes, & the Infiltration of my DNA” (written for the date of the discovery of DNA), live 6/15/19 at Austin’s “Recycled Reads” open mic (this video was filmed from a Panasonic Lumix T56 camera).

See YouTube video of Janet Kuypers reading her 2019 poems “Quarrel Over the Constitution” (written on Thomas Jefferson's Birthday), “Just Let Me Have My Space” (then showing the Instagram image for it), & “Jumping Genes, & the Infiltration of my DNA” (written for the date of the discovery of DNA), live 6/15/19 at Austin’s “Recycled Reads” open mic (this video was filmed from a Panasonic Lumix 2500 camera).

See YouTube video of Janet Kuypers’ July 2019 Book Release Reading 7/3/19, where she read her poems “Quarrel Over the Constitution”, “Quartermaster General, Burying Bodies”, and her twitter / Instagram / Tumblr poem “Just Names”, along with the online image for the poem (all of which will appear in her upcoming poetry book “Every Event of the Year (Volume one: January-June)” for many holidays and annual events), plus her twitter and instagram poem “every step”, her twitter and instagram haiku “left living”, her haiku “mirror”, and her twitter and instagram bonus line haiku “our differences”, from the Down in the Dirt 1-6 2019 issue and chapbooks collection book “The Flickering Light”, during Community Poetry at Half Price Books (video filmed from a Panasonic Lumix 2500 camera).

See YouTube video of Janet Kuypers’ July 2019 Book Release Reading 7/3/19, where she read her poems “Quarrel Over the Constitution”, “Quartermaster General, Burying Bodies”, and her twitter / Instagram / Tumblr poem “Just Names”, along with the online image for the poem (all of which will appear in her upcoming poetry book “Every Event of the Year (Volume one: January-June)” for many holidays and annual events), plus her twitter and instagram poem “every step”, her twitter and instagram haiku “left living”, her haiku “mirror”, and her twitter and instagram bonus line haiku “our differences”, from the Down in the Dirt 1-6 2019 issue and chapbooks collection book “The Flickering Light”, during Community Poetry at Half Price Books (video filmed from a Panasonic Lumix T56 camera).

See YouTube video of Janet Kuypers reading her Down in the Dirt 4/20 v170 Amazon book “Formative” poems “Xenon & PTSD, to Fight that Spiral”, “Quartermaster General, Burying Bodies”, “Quarrel over the Constitution”, “Eat Your Words”, “Zones of Comfort and Taking a Chance”, and “Karma and Lollipops” during the “Poetic License open mic 4/5/20 home edition” she hosted in Austin, but globally through a Facebook event page (video filmed from a Panasonic Lumix 2500 camera; posted on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram and Tumblr).

See YouTube video of Janet Kuypers reading her Down in the Dirt 4/20 v170 Amazon book “Formative” poems “Xenon & PTSD, to Fight that Spiral”, “Quartermaster General, Burying Bodies”, “Quarrel over the Constitution”, “Eat Your Words”, “Zones of Comfort and Taking a Chance”, and “Karma and Lollipops” during the “Poetic License open mic 4/5/20 home edition” she hosted in Austin, but globally through a Facebook event page (video filmed from a Panasonic Lumix T56 camera; posted on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram and Tumblr).

See YouTube video of Janet Kuypers reading her poems “Quartermaster General, Burying Bodies” in honor of the April 12th date the U.S. Civil War begins, “Quarrel over the Constitution” on Thomas Jefferson’s birthday April 13th, “from Other Souls” for the April 14th date the Titanic hit an iceberg, 3 poems in honor of Arbor Day on April 24th: “nature I”, “Climbing Trees”, and “I’m Sure We Killed It”, the poem “Zouk or Xibelani” for the April 29th International Dance Day, and “People’s Lives Were at Stake” representing the April 29th Los Angeles riots, April event poems read from her poetry book “Every Event of the Year (Volume one: January-June)” during her “Poetic License open mic 4/5/20 home edition” she hosted in Austin, but globally through a Facebook event page (video filmed from a Panasonic Lumix 2500 camera; posted on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram and Tumblr).

See YouTube video of Janet Kuypers reading her poems “Quartermaster General, Burying Bodies” in honor of the April 12th date the U.S. Civil War begins, “Quarrel over the Constitution” on Thomas Jefferson’s birthday April 13th, “from Other Souls” for the April 14th date the Titanic hit an iceberg, 3 poems in honor of Arbor Day on April 24th: “nature I”, “Climbing Trees”, and “I’m Sure We Killed It”, the poem “Zouk or Xibelani” for the April 29th International Dance Day, and “People’s Lives Were at Stake” representing the April 29th Los Angeles riots, April event poems read from her poetry book “Every Event of the Year (Volume one: January-June)” during her “Poetic License open mic 4/5/20 home edition” she hosted in Austin, but globally through a Facebook event page (Panasonic Lumix 2500 camera with a Sepia Tone filter; posted on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram and Tumblr).

See YouTube video from 4/26/20 of Janet Kuypers reading her poems “Xenon & PTSD, to Fight that Spiral”, then “Quartermaster General, Burying Bodies”, “Quarrel over the Constitution”, “Eat Your Words”, “Zones of Comfort and Taking a Chance”, and “Karma and Lollipops” from the v170 “Formative” section of the Down in the Dirt magazine February-Aril 2020 issue collection book “Foundations” for “The 2020 #poetrybomb” (this video was filmed from a Panasonic Lumix 2500 camera; posted on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram and Tumblr).

See Facebook streaming video live from 4/26/20 of Janet Kuypers reading her poems “Xenon & PTSD, to Fight that Spiral”, then “Quartermaster General, Burying Bodies”, “Quarrel over the Constitution”, “Eat Your Words”, “Zones of Comfort and Taking a Chance”, and “Karma and Lollipops” from the v170 “Formative” section of the Down in the Dirt magazine February-Aril 2020 issue collection book “Foundations” for “The 2020 #poetrybomb” (Samsung S9).

See a YouTube video of Janet Kuypers reading her poems “Xenon & PTSD, to Fight that Spiral”, “Quartermaster General, Burying Bodies”, “Quarrel over the Constitution”, “Eat Your Words”, “Zones of Comfort and Taking a Chance”, “Karma and Lollipops” from the v170 “Formative” section of the Down in the Dirt 2-4 2020 collection book “Foundations” for The Café Gallery 9/29/20 Book Reading in The Café Gallery 2020 book reading series (Panasonic Lumix 2500 camera; on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, and Tumblr).

See a Facebook live video stream of Janet Kuypers reading her poems “Xenon & PTSD, to Fight that Spiral”, “Quartermaster General, Burying Bodies”, “Quarrel over the Constitution”, “Eat Your Words”, “Zones of Comfort and Taking a Chance”, “Karma and Lollipops” from the v170 “Formative” section of the Down in the Dirt 2-4 2020 collection book “Foundations” for The Café Gallery 9/29/20 Book Reading in The Café Gallery 2020 book reading series (from a Samsung S9 camera).

Quarrel over the        Constitution Janet Kuypers 4/13/2019, on Thomas Jefferson Day, for his birthday, 4/13/1743 Thomas Jefferson and John Adams, both founding fathers of the United States, were good friends, but they never agreed on how the government should run. They quarreled over the Constitution: John thought it is a document that could bend to change to the needs of the time. But Thomas said no way, this is the Constitution, it is there as a structure that does not bend. But as I said, they were friends nonetheless, until John Adams was president. And by 1800, President Adams made the robust declaration that it is illegal to say anything bad about the President of the United States, and the Federal government will get you if you even think of committing this crime. At this point, Jefferson was enraged, thinking that there’s this little thing called freedom of speech, and this is in direct violation of anything this country is supposed to stand for. So, when the next election came, Jefferson had to run against Adams to get him out of the presidency. So the two of them said anything derogatory about the other to win. Apparently because Jefferson would argue for individual rights, Adams would say things like, ‘voting for Jefferson is voting for murder, or incest, because he thinks anyone can do whatever they want.’ And Jefferson was stunned that Adams would stoop so low, so he could only retort with more bad talk about Adams. Now keep in mind, these are founding fathers that are acting like eighth graders, especially when John Adams would say things like, ‘Jefferson has prostitutes shipped in from overseas to have sex with all the time.’ And Jefferson’s response would be to go to the newspaper to tell them that Adams was actually a hermaphrodite, with both make and female sex organs — and they published this, Jefferson’s, words on record. At this point, Adams thought fine, if he’s playing dirty, let’s play, because Adams then spread the word that Thomas Jefferson was actually dead. Not point in voting for a dead man for president, right? I mean, really, the incumbent president’s campaigning strategy is ‘vote for me; I’m alive’? Good call. So, Jefferson found different ways to get him back, like calling upon a hatchet man, James Callender, to publish newspaper articles about Adams, that he wants to go to war with France. (Yes, this was published.) And yes, Jefferson won, but Adams thought before he left that he would appoint into offices below him a lot of people who vehemently oppose everything Jefferson stands for. (Which might be a proper statement of how politicians can get things done while dealing with people with opposing views, but really, who am I to judge.) So, near the end of Jefferson’s first term as President, his daughter died. Abigail Adams, (John’s wife), felt bad, even though they had their differences, so she wrote a sympathy letter to Thomas Jefferson. And Jefferson responded, saying ‘that was very kind of you, thank you, but while I have you here, John tried to ruin my presidency, so I truly only feel bad will toward you. (Jefferson probably wanted to use a lot of expletives, but I don’t have the original letter, so I can’t confirm his true words.) Keep in mind that maturity level of these two founding fathers, who were consecutive Presidents of the United States. So, Abigail said to John, ‘that’s it. Thomas Jefferson is dead to us.’ And a decade went by, them not speaking to each other, until another founding father, Benjamin Rush, told Adams to let is pass, we shared those glorious 1776 days together, those starting-the-country times were magical, so John Adams fondly reflected on the times with Tommy Jeff*, decided to write a letter. Very general. ‘Hey, we haven’t talked in while, How are you doing? I — I miss you. I Hope that you’re doing okay.’ Jefferson got this letter, thinking of his once friend, Johnny Ads,* and wrote a cordial letter back, after ten years. And they kept writing each other, and they realized they had a lot more in common. By the end of their lives, they had exchanged 158 letters. These two were friends again. And by 1826, John Adams is on his death bed, and his last words were, ‘independence forever.’ They didn’t know this, but they both died on the same day, July 4th, 1826. The 50 year anniversary of them signing the declaration of Independence. Which seems like the perfect ending for a tumultuous and insanely groundbreaking, friendship.   * slang from Season 2, Episode 8 of the television show “Drunk History”

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