Episodes

This week Aaron brings a poem he remembered writing years ago that took months to find. Whether the search was worth it is up to the listener. Dave and Aaron discuss the odd way previous Aaron tried to use sing songy rhymes to critique incredibly harmful and dangerous theology such as Prosperity Gospel and Christian Nationalism. It definetaly was a choice. Also ...nation. My Bad Poetry Episode 6.17 "I Want Jesus Back" End Poem from a Real Poet: "A Prodigal" by Emily Pauline Johnson AKA Tekahio...

Dave and Aaron couldn't connect this week so Aaron went back through the raw files of season six to pull some of the cut conversations. Some were cut for time, others... well it's pretty obvious once you hear them. Listen carefully to catch some of our amazing guest's laugh for share a story as well! My Bad Poetry Episode 6.16: "The Cutting Room Floor (Season Six Bloopers So Far...)" Podcast Email: mybadpoetry.thepodcast@gmail.com Bluesky: @mybadpoetrythepod.bsky.social Instagram & Threads...

Aaron finds a choice writing assignment circa 3rd-5th grade that is all about the Bubonic Plague! Why? Probably a book called "Battle for the Castle" and a certain poem about invading rats. Dave on the other hand reveals a far deeper knowledge on the subject and completely schools past and present Aaron on the finer details of this deadly plague. My Bad Poetry Episode 6.15: "The Plague" End Poem from a Real Poet: From "The Uncured World" by Elisabeth Frost Podcast Email: mybadpoetry.thepodcas...

Dave and Aaron are joined this week by the prolific nat raum! nat brings journal poems from highschool that are broad and vague at times, yet deeply ernest in the cringiest ways. Laugh along with us as nat shares their poems and stories as well as their incredible insights and knowledge (as well as some hot takes on obituaries?). My Bad Poetry Episode 6.14: "Unfinished Business, Bittersweet, Death. (w/nat raum)" nat raum is the founder and editor-in-chief of fifth wheel press , "an indepen...

Hello Silence our old friend. If we thought Aaron's dramatic takes started in the Wolf Journal, prepare to be surprised/disappointed. Turns out a 5th grade assignment produced around the same level of emo energy and gave us a proto-Silence saga poem. Dave is begging you all to go write your own bad poetry, so he doesn't have to hear any more of Aaron's old stuff. ;) My Bad Poetry Episode 6.13: "Silence & Pain" End Poem from a Real Poet: "If You're Not From the Prairie" by David Bouchard ...

Megan makes her triumphant return to the podcast with not 1, not 2,... but 4 "bad" poems from journals in the past. Each poem brings a different kind of bad, from the structural to the theological. Dave and Aaron struggle to find a real critique for two of them but the other two make up for it. My Bad Poetry Episode 6.12: "Orchids and Roses, Work of Art, ... (w/Megan McDermott)" End Poem from a Real Poet: "O, Lover of Souls" by Megan McDermott Megan is a writer and Episcopal priest with...

With a rescheduled guest, Dave and Aaron return to Aaron's own bad poems. Having been gifted an old box of stuff from home, Aaron has found poems that predate the Wolf Journal. Dave is slightly more sympathetic to a third grade Aaron's writing, but only slightly. Enjoy a quartet of poems from a single loose leaf lined paper. This episode was fun, but now it's done! My Bad Poetry Episode 6.11: "The Quartet" End Poem from a Real Poet: "Homework Machine" by Shel Silverstein Podcast Email: mybadp...

This week co-host's Dave and Aaron find themselves talking to a person working in the Twin Cities, who has never been to the Twin Cities. And if that isn't a riddle enough, they have to try and figure out his old poems! Adam Shaw brings poems from an old duct taped journal and when these three nerds aren't discussing LOTR's sword names, they are trying to make heads or tales of some moody rhymes that could use some work. My Bad Poetry Episode 6.10: "Windowless Room, Taos Court, & Algebraic Hy...

After nearly two years of DMs to work out a time, the co-hosts of My Bad Poetry get to chat with Jenny Qi... and it was worth the wait! Jenny brings three poems from three distinct times in her life so one can see the progress of a writer from middle school to after college, and all the pit falls along the way. From personified cats to personified herons with a bull beast in between, this episode is a creature feature for the ages. My Bad Poetry Episode 6.9 "The Seaman's Stray, Minotaur, & Al...

Jay Parr brings their tinkerings with poetry to the show, demonstrating the fun of self referencial poems. While none of them would be considered high art... they really aren't trying to be. A string of bad haiku's bring it home in this exploration in a proser playing with poetry. Also, Dave may have found his favorite poet... CW: The end poem deals with suicidal ideation. My Bad Poetry Episode 6.8: "SONNET DCLXVII & Obfuscatory Exegesis (w Jay Parr)" End Poem from a Real Poet: "Flat Spots...

Lasara Firefox Allen brings work from their April 30 in 30 project (30 poems written in 30 days). These hastily written poems may blow most of the stuff Aaron and Dave brings to the show out of the water in quality, nevertheless the saccharin and specificity within prevents the poems from their true potential. Aaron and Dave learn a lot about the art of writing consistently and looking for one's flow. My Bad Poetry Episode 6.7: "HftRR & Dimestore Shaman (w/ Lasara Firefox Allen)" End Poem ...

To say this experience was surreal would be... partially true? william erickson brings some bad poems from an old chapbook manuscript. Three poems confuse and bewilder Dave and Aaron, but Will's closing poem brings it all full circle with a perfect example of what the previous poems were trying to do! My Bad Poetry Episode 6.6: "Hello Best Wishes, (w/william erickson) End Poem from a Real Poet: "Field of Vision" by william erickson william erickson has a book of poem out called "You Don...

The co-hosts forgot to book a guest for this episode. Unfortunately that means Aaron had to dig for another failed poem in his life. This poem comes from an abandoned reflection written for a church worship service circa 2018-19. It was never shared and all rejoiced! (Except us who have to hear it now...) My Bad Poetry Episode 6.5 "G-d" End Poem from a Real Poet: "little prayer" by Danez Smith Podcast Email: mybadpoetry.thepodcast@gmail.com Bluesky: @mybadpoetrythepod.bsky.social Instagram & ...

Kellie Scott-Reed brings a whole lot of laughter and joy to the show, even when her poems were less than happy. An aversion to ernesty in her old poetry leads to some strange twists and turns of phrases, and Aaron and Dave enjoy every moment of the ride. My Bad Poetry Episode 6.4: "Sunday 11:30 Monday Eternity & Oncology (w/ Kellie Scott-Reed)" End Poem from a Real Poet: "Canidae" by Kellie Scott-Reed Kellie Scott-Reed is the Assistant Editor-In-Chief of Roi Faineant Press and host of t...

Dave and Aaron return from a short break to interview a new guest! Conor aka C. M. Crockford brings some classic cringe and embarrassment with the readings of three uniquely bad poems from the scrap box. From a "faux woke" work to a poorly aged "ode" and all the way to failed song lyrics the hosts are taken on a journey through the work of a Conor in his early 20s. My Bad Poetry Episode 6.3: "Stains, Upon Seeing A Photograph of Charles Bukowski (w/ C.M. Crockford)" End Poem from a Real Poet: "...

Michael VanCalbergh returns for maybe our longest episode to date. He brings with him a Sonnet Crown that fails to reach the 7 poem goal intentionally... yet it feels far more like a mercy. Dave was out sick for this one and in missing he may have avoided one of the worst poems in the shows history! Aaron and Michael talked for over 2 hours and we did our best to stay on topic for most of it. My Bad Poetry Episode 6.2: "A Love's Remembrance (w/ Michael VanCalbergh) End Poem from a Real Poet: "Th...

Aaron and Dave return for Season Six of My Bad Poetry without the Wolf Journal to guide their discussions. So they bring in more friends! Phil Goldstein brings his Jr. High and High School works salvaged from an old computer. We talk about HAD Skulls, favorite seasons, sneaky rhymes, and old loves we would never ever forget (expect when their name now escapes us). #WeBelievein9thGradePhil. My Bad Poetry Episode 6.1 "Popular, Snows of Tears, & Autumn's Vow (w/Phil Goldstein)" End Poem from ...

For the Season 5 finally, Dave and Aaron reach the final page of Aaron's high school Wolf Journal. From Truth to a random line about running ice, they have covered it all. And it only took 100 some episodes with friends joining the show along the way. Aaron offers a new apology poem for all the cringey poetry he previously wrote and forced Dave and the shows dear listeners to experience. The new poem can be read here. My Bad Poetry Episode 5.25: "A'Paw'Logies" End Poem from a Real Poet: "Tell...

Aaron dug back through his old external harddrive to find an audio recording he knew existed and found more than he bargained for. This unplanned sequel to "Bad Songs Giving" provides listeners with even more high school winey-piney Aaron belting his poor lyrical heart out on a basic Windows microphone. Dave resists the urge to walk away, but even if he did his bluetooth earphones would keep this new horror directly in his ears. My Bad Poetry Episode 5.24: "Regret & Better off Friends" End Poe...

A grammatical error misses the mark in more than one way this week as Aaron's old Wolf Journal entries finally try a rhyme. Dave and Aaron go off the rails towards the end with tangents on owls and salads, but what can we say...the hosts are but mortals. Also included in this episode, is potentially the longest context to poem ratio so far in the Wolf Journal episodes. My Bad Poetry Episode 5.23: "Three Day Girl & But, Mortals" End Poem from a Real Poet: "Her Father" by Thomas Hardy Podcast E...

Dave and Aaron edge ever nearer to the end of the Wolf Journal this time with a prose poem that perhaps wasn't as celebratory as previous Aaron would have wanted for the page. Dave also brings back the potty humor with an inspired hastily written poem of the week. My Bad Poetry Episode 5.22: "He Sat Alone" End Poem from a Real Poet: "I Sat in the Sun" by Jane Hirschfield Podcast Email: mybadpoetry.thepodcast@gmail.com Bluesky: @mybadpoetrythepod.bsky.social Instagram & Threads: @MyBadPoetry_T...

Presidential Inaugural Poet Richard Blanco comes on the show to bring his less than stellar work. From "Emily’s Recurring Dream of a Failed Bridge" which was too long for the show title that is full of "—" in honor of Emily Dickinson...let's just say the concept failed to connect. Blanco brings along two other rough poems that eventually got reworked to great success. My Bad Poetry Episode 5.21: "One Calculus & The Only Island (w/ Richard Blanco)" End Poem from a Real Poet: "Looking for The Gu...

Dave tries to redeem his French in this weeks hastily written poem, but may have offended the entire language. Aaron tries to start a beef with Swifties?? Dave and Aaron discuss a brief word of relationship advice from high school Aaron. And just a little over halfway through the episode, we get to a halfway decent poem in the Wolf Journal?? Or maybe it just sounded good after all that came before it. You can be the judge. My Bad Poetry Episode 5.20: "The Awakening Sun" End Poem from a Real Po...

After an incredible streak of amazing guests, Aaron and Dave dive back into the pages of Aaron's high school Wolf Journal for what may be described as an Epistolary poem if one were generous. Dave brings "nothing" to the table with his poem of the week and Aaron may have brought to much. Also, if you are celebrating #NaPoWriMo maybe these failed lines could be generative for your daily work. My Bad Poetry Episode 5.19 "To My Dearest Love" End Poem from a Real Poet: "Letter to N.A." by Elizabet...