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$ (Poetry Is Currency) @poetrycurrency.bsky.social · 3d

Well, for starters, we eat, we sleep. If we’re going to know it,
we’re going to know it this way. It feels like a trick
sometimes, how we start and then start again.

The new $ feature is by John Gallaher!

poetrycurrency.com/feature/john...

John Gallaher | October 2025 – $ – Poetry Is Currency

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J-T Kelly @j-tkelly.bsky.social · 7d

Here's the poem and the link to it in Poetry Is Currency. Thanks so much for the nomination!
poetrycurrency.com/poem/j-t-kel...

Vocation
The lost things. I went out weeping.
Men holding their hats lose
their words to the wind.
Paper drifts against the curbs. I am
dressed badly. My children are the children
of poor parents. Books are insulation
against the cold news. I am late.

I was invited, but my invitation
went stale. The crumbs itch inside
my collar. Constant risk corrodes
the stomach lining and only fresh milk
will help. I am in a constant search
for milk. I miss appointments. My wife
is always making excuses.

My car has broken down and out here
to be in need is to be suspect. In a fit
of patriotism I consider taking myself
over to that tree by the side of the road
to be shot. Haunted by the guilt of my own
execution, I look even more untrustworthy.
I scurry down an embankment.

Where else but the city? What else
but poverty? I drink from cupped hands
and see in the stream faces rushing
to the falls. I follow the rails downtown.
In line with so many others, waiting, singing,
I feel a sense of resolve. Hunger and resolve.
And an eagerness for the work.

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$ (Poetry Is Currency) @poetrycurrency.bsky.social · 8d

Congratulations to our nominees for the Best of the Net Awards!

$ Nominees for Best of the Net

Christy Lee Barnes – If I describe in detail the girl who flew away with the cranes, do you think we could find her?
Ava Chen – Pre-Apocalyptic
Rivka Clifton – Consult
J-T Kelly – Vocation
Larissa Martins – Brazilian Gringa
Lizzy Ke Polishan – Novena for the Year of the Bumblebee
on the Spaceship at the End of the World

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$ (Poetry Is Currency) @poetrycurrency.bsky.social · 17d

In the booths lining the exterior they form
a protective barrier, write down the worst things
they think they’ve ever said on napkins embossed
with tiny dots in the shape of a flower.

The latest $ feature is by Holly Amos!

poetrycurrency.com/feature/holl...

Holly Amos | September 2025 – $ – Poetry Is Currency

poetrycurrency.com

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$ (Poetry Is Currency) @poetrycurrency.bsky.social · Sep 7

On TV, the investment firm ad says
there are three hundred and thirty million dreams,

all American and therefore all special.

The newest $ feature is by Tim DeJong!

poetrycurrency.com/feature/tim-...

Tim DeJong | September 2025 – $ – Poetry Is Currency

poetrycurrency.com

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$ (Poetry Is Currency) @poetrycurrency.bsky.social · Sep 4

"Who as a girl got trapped in the undertow, gulped salt water, thought it might be easier to become fish or stingray. Who wanted to smash every buoy in the ocean."

This $ deep cut is "Dispatch from Planet H" by Julie Brooks Barbour!

poetrycurrency.com/poem/julie-b...

Dispatch from Planet H | Julie Brooks Barbour | $ – Poetry Is Currency

When I went to the shore near my home on Earth, I stood on the beach and listened to the lap of waves. I held a stone in my…

poetrycurrency.com

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$ (Poetry Is Currency) @poetrycurrency.bsky.social · Aug 25

"what it must mean / that someone lost their kicks to the telephone wire / or was it relinquishment? / was it banishment? / were they freighted by birds?"

The new $ poetry feature is by Elisa Luna Ady!

poetrycurrency.com/feature/elis...

Elisa Luna Ady | August 2025 – $ – Poetry Is Currency

poetrycurrency.com

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$ (Poetry Is Currency) @poetrycurrency.bsky.social · Aug 21

I hold her within unpartable
muzzle of gray, in day
on day blank stare of sky.

I’m dreaming the stratosphere,
the she she cannot become,
the layer onto which the glory

of the birds is borne.

This $ archive poem is "Nimbostratus" by Hannah Marshall!

poetrycurrency.com/poem/hannah-...

Nimbostratus | Hannah Marshall | $ – Poetry Is Currency

I hold her within unpartable muzzle of gray, in day on day blank stare of sky. I’m dreaming the stratosphere, the she she cannot become, the layer onto which…

poetrycurrency.com

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Eleanor Ball @eleanorball.bsky.social · Aug 14

Day 14: “Has a Night Named for Its Lace” by Sally Rosen Kindred in @poetrycurrency.bsky.social. What a beautiful, poignant meditation on motherhood. poetrycurrency.com/poem/sally-r...

Has a Night Named for Its Lace | Sally Rosen Kindred | $ – Poetry Is Currency

Every mother’s nightgown has a sill and a jamb. Has a child who touches her face and walks through. Each nightgown dreams it’s made of glass or is hungry for…

poetrycurrency.com

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Sally Rosen Kindred @sallypoet.bsky.social · Aug 10

Deep thanks to @poetrycurrency.bsky.social for featuring these two poems--which are proof I'm a) still writing about foxes and b) still writing, even though a doctor drilled a hole in my head. 😂🦊🤷‍♀️

$ (Poetry Is Currency) @poetrycurrency.bsky.social · Aug 10

Every mother’s nightgown has a sill and a jamb.
Has a child who touches her face and walks through.
Each nightgown dreams it’s made of glass
or is hungry for a name to hold the wind inside.

The latest $ feature is by Sally Rosen Kindred (@sallypoet.bsky.social)!

poetrycurrency.com/feature/sall...

Sally Rosen Kindred | August 2025 – $ – Poetry Is Currency

poetrycurrency.com

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$ (Poetry Is Currency) @poetrycurrency.bsky.social · Aug 10

Every mother’s nightgown has a sill and a jamb.
Has a child who touches her face and walks through.
Each nightgown dreams it’s made of glass
or is hungry for a name to hold the wind inside.

The latest $ feature is by Sally Rosen Kindred (@sallypoet.bsky.social)!

poetrycurrency.com/feature/sall...

Sally Rosen Kindred | August 2025 – $ – Poetry Is Currency

poetrycurrency.com

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Duotrope @duotrope.com · Aug 10

The Smart Search List of the Day is: Fee-Free Literary Poetry feat. @dialogist.bsky.social @poetrycurrency.bsky.social et al. https://duotrope.com...

Smart Search List of the Day

The Smart Search List of the Day is: Fee-Free Literary Poetry feat. @dialogist.bsky.social @poetrycurrency.bsky.social et al. https://duotrope.com/search/smart/poetry/fee-free-literary-poetry-0I0yAp98

duotrope.com

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$ (Poetry Is Currency) @poetrycurrency.bsky.social · Aug 7

The poem:

poetrycurrency.com/poem/kathryn...

IT ISN’T UNTIL I’M LECTURING MY STUDENTS ON FIRE SAFETY AND THEY’RE ALL LOOKING AT ME LIKE I’VE GROWN TWO HEADS THAT I REALIZE MAYBE I’M NOT TAKING YOUR DEATH AS WELL AS I THOUGHT | Kathryn Bratt-Pfot...

And maybe my little PSA has well and truly gone off the rails, maybe I look like that man in the memes with the red thread crisscrossing the bulletin board…

poetrycurrency.com

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Kathryn/Катя Bratt-Pfotenhauer @kcbrattpfotenhauer.bsky.social · Aug 7

So this happened. Many thanks to @rosswhite.com for the notification and to Best of the Net for acknowledging my poem pubbed by the lovely folks at @poetrycurrency.bsky.social as a finalist for this year.

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$ (Poetry Is Currency) @poetrycurrency.bsky.social · Aug 7

Congratulations to @kcbrattpfotenhauer.bsky.social, whose poem "IT ISN’T UNTIL I’M LECTURING MY STUDENTS ON FIRE SAFETY AND THEY’RE ALL LOOKING AT ME LIKE I’VE GROWN TWO HEADS THAT I REALIZE MAYBE I’M NOT TAKING YOUR DEATH AS WELL AS I THOUGHT" from $ was a finalist for Best of the Net!

2025 Finalists – Best of the Net

bestofthenetanthology.com

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$ (Poetry Is Currency) @poetrycurrency.bsky.social · Aug 6

The day breaks / saffron
as butter / as egg yolk
seeping in through the
window / slips to the
centre of the pan

Today's $ archive poem is "Breakfast After the Fact" by Elizabeth M. Castillo (@emcwritesthings.bsky.social)!

poetrycurrency.com/poem/elizabe...

Breakfast After the Fact | Elizabeth M. Castillo | $ – Poetry Is Currency

The day breaks / saffron as butter / as egg yolk seeping in through the window / slips to the centre of the pan / water bubbles / sachet splits…

poetrycurrency.com

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$ (Poetry Is Currency) @poetrycurrency.bsky.social · Jul 27

The boys wear

creased trousers and clip-on polyester ties they
tear off when the bell

rings at lunchtime. Then they wriggle
on the blacktop

like earthworms drying up.

This $ deep cut is "Point of Stasis" by @jasutherland.bsky.social!

poetrycurrency.com/poem/jennife...

Point of Stasis | Jennifer A Sutherland | $ – Poetry Is Currency

I am waiting at the foot of the concrete steps beneath my neighbor’s maple tree. Every day we walk to school together in these pleated skirts, cardigan sweaters,…

poetrycurrency.com

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$ (Poetry Is Currency) @poetrycurrency.bsky.social · Jul 21

I’ve been waiting lately for my heart to stop.
On a phobia survey, fear of a heart attack
ranks between fear of long words and fear of being
abused, but a bit ahead of fear of moths and butterflies.

The new $ feature is by Michael Meyerhofer!

poetrycurrency.com/feature/mich...

Michael Meyerhofer | July 2025 – $ – Poetry Is Currency

poetrycurrency.com

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$ (Poetry Is Currency) @poetrycurrency.bsky.social · Jul 18

Our queue is a little empty for the summer, so if you've been thinking of sending us poems, now is a great time to get noticed!

poetrycurrency.com/writers-guid...

Writer's Guidelines | $ | Poetry Is Currency

Given our anti-capitalist stance, we want the poetry that means the most to you, regardless of marketability or monetary concerns. Theme and subject matter are up to you. Anyone can…

poetrycurrency.com

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$ (Poetry Is Currency) @poetrycurrency.bsky.social · Jul 13

Here I am,
said God, and there he was, and there
we all were, decked out in purple shirts
and cargo pants, standing in rows like cows
awaiting supper.

This $ throwback poem is "Intimate Disgrace" by Franziska Hofhansel!

poetrycurrency.com/poem/franzis...

Intimate Disgrace | Franziska Hofhansel | $ – Poetry Is Currency

Animals are infrequent traitors, only honest atop boat, malicious when washed to sand. Here I am, said God, and there he was, and there we all were, decked out in…

poetrycurrency.com

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Robert Krut @robertkrut.bsky.social · Jul 6

I love @poetrycurrency.bsky.social so it is a real thrill to be the feature on there as we speak...

$ (Poetry Is Currency) @poetrycurrency.bsky.social · Jul 6

The darkness is a circle at the center.
At the center of what.
The darkness is a circle in the center of your chest.

The new $ feature is by @robertkrut.bsky.social!

poetrycurrency.com/feature/robe...

Robert Krut | July 2025 – $ – Poetry Is Currency

poetrycurrency.com

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$ (Poetry Is Currency) @poetrycurrency.bsky.social · Jul 6

The darkness is a circle at the center.
At the center of what.
The darkness is a circle in the center of your chest.

The new $ feature is by @robertkrut.bsky.social!

poetrycurrency.com/feature/robe...

Robert Krut | July 2025 – $ – Poetry Is Currency

poetrycurrency.com

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Donna Vorreyer @djvorreyer.bsky.social · Jun 30

Thanks for rebooting and taking a chance on this one!

$ (Poetry Is Currency) @poetrycurrency.bsky.social · Jun 30

When it rains, it whirs, a sad hum of stand mixer and wet
ingredients, storm clouds beaten into stiff peaks.

No, it’s not like that.
I’ve been watching too many baking shows.

This poem from the $ vault is by Donna Vorreyer (@djvorreyer.bsky.social)!

poetrycurrency.com/poem/donna-v...

Higher Barometric Pressure Leads to More Pain, Worse Function | Donna Vorreyer | $ – Poetry Is Currency

When it rains, it whirs, a sad hum of stand mixer and wet ingredients, storm clouds beaten into stiff peaks. No, it’s not like that. I’ve been watching too…

poetrycurrency.com

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$ (Poetry Is Currency) @poetrycurrency.bsky.social · Jun 30

When it rains, it whirs, a sad hum of stand mixer and wet
ingredients, storm clouds beaten into stiff peaks.

No, it’s not like that.
I’ve been watching too many baking shows.

This poem from the $ vault is by Donna Vorreyer (@djvorreyer.bsky.social)!

poetrycurrency.com/poem/donna-v...

Higher Barometric Pressure Leads to More Pain, Worse Function | Donna Vorreyer | $ – Poetry Is Currency

When it rains, it whirs, a sad hum of stand mixer and wet ingredients, storm clouds beaten into stiff peaks. No, it’s not like that. I’ve been watching too…

poetrycurrency.com

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$ (Poetry Is Currency) @poetrycurrency.bsky.social · Jun 22

The angels demand I gather snowdrops.
They say: Snowdrops have to be picked at sunrise.
All the way, you must carry a piano on your back.

This poem from the archive is "Self-portrait with snowdrops" by Réka Nyitrai!

poetrycurrency.com/poem/reka-ny...

Self-portrait with snowdrops | Réka Nyitrai | $ – Poetry Is Currency

The angels demand I gather snowdrops. They say: Snowdrops have to be picked at sunrise. All the way, you must carry a piano on your back. However, they forget to…

poetrycurrency.com

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