This is not a [seeahsuckah] suit. As Benjamin Nardolilli* tucks his '70s-style sunglasses into his jacket pocket, he reveals the origins of his original ensemble: Goodwill, on different trips and at different locations. The tropical pink shirt hails from Cali; the linen suit only lists washing instructions in Spanish; and the tie was bought for his middle school production of "Guys and Dolls." Needless to say, this twenty-something NYU graduate and published writer from Arlington, Virginia favors thrift shops (and, as you may have noticed from his work in The Unreal, poetry.) You gotta admit that this fella has style. Or, at the very least, you'll spot him right away at a crowded Metro platform. Screw subtlety. Here Benny Boy stands proudly among the buttercups in Arlington's Benjamin Banneker Park. While the park features boundary markers for the original District of Columbia, it does not include any other men who can pull off collars pinker than a flamingo. But enough about pink and on to that other "p" word. Go read Ben's poetry.
*Yes, ladies, he's single.
Springtime in Parkfairfax Once upon a time President Franklin Roosevelt complained that there wasn't enough housing near the Pentagon--and this is why my walk to work seems like a picture out of a storybook about smart suburbia. You see, FDR's Lefty whining (hey, not knocking it) led to the creation of Parkfairfax in Alexandria, Virginia. This neighborhood chock-a-block with brick garden-style condos is not only listed on the National Register of Historic Places and the Virginia Landmarks Register; it's also full of flowers right now. Nothing exotic, just run of the mill Mid-Atlantic flowers, but beautiful in that East Coast/deciduous forest kind of way. Anyway, back to the mini history lesson: The Metropolitan Life Insurance Company of New York jumped at FDR's request and built over 200 buildings on 132 acres, making 1,684 condo apartments available to federal workers and whoever else felt like living just close enough to Washington, D.C. without actually being there. And so Parkfairfax (which interestingly is NOT located in nearby Fairfax County) was born in 1941. The neighborhood lies 3 miles from the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia and about 6.5 miles from D.C.'s popular Chinatown. Here's how Parkfairfax first looked: Here's how it looks today: And this is why I'm a happy pedestrian commuter:
The Smithsonian Latino Center Wants YOU Quail Bell Press & Productions, LLC. can make videos for your initiative, too. More at QuailBell.com.
The Vienna/Fairfax-GMU Metro Stop Incorporated in 1890, Vienna, Virginia is a suburb of Washington, D.C. and the home of a WMATA Metro stop (which popped up in 1978). Wikipedia told me so. That makes it real. Besides, the Vienna Metro stop's garnered 23 reviews on Yelp.com, so it has to exist, right? It's not just a figment of our quail imaginations. And yet, like all WMATA Metro stops, Vienna possesses a sci-fi vibe. It's a classic example of Brutalist architecture. Even in broad daylight, you get this feeling that The Jetsons' aerocar will land right next to you. Maybe one day it will and aliens will watch the re-run of that episode lightyears from now.
A fool and his money are soon parted Pet cred: Sorcha Patricks This is no longer just a mere rumor, folks: Argentine bazaar salesmen have been caught selling weasels on steroids and marketing them as toy poodles. This urban legend was confirmed when a recent customer brought his "poodle" to the vet--only to learn the truth. It reminds The Quail Bell Crew of when medieval merchants used to sew bat wings to lizards and sell them as "dragons"! For the full report...
Values--they're not for the birds. Poster cred: Kathleen Barron & Christine Stoddard
Out with the Blossoms
Spring has finally arrived in Virginia. But just a week shy of Easter, the Old Dominion was a frightful place full of flurries (truth be told the snow is never too nasty here.) With the birth of spring also comes the re-birth of Quail Bell Magazine. Welcome back. We missed you, fledglings.
Send us your photos of spring--wherever you live!
Fiction News--not Fictitious News Photo cred: Paisley Hibou
It's official, fledglings: Author Elwin Cotman, fan and affiliate of Quail Bell Magazine, will be releasing his long-awaited book, Hard Times Blues (Six Gallery Press, Pittsburgh), this July. So why are we telling you now? So you read his first book, The Jack Daniels Sessions EP, if you haven't already! [Psst...Read an excerpt from his short story, "Graveyard Shift," right here on Quail Bell.]
Elwin and our Executive Editor Christine Stoddard were originally going to release their two books (Christine's is Once Upon a Body) together as a double, but have since decided to release their books as two separate entities. Six Gallery Press was kind enough to let them have their way. Christine's book comes out later this year. More TK--promise.
Documentary Film: "The Persistence of Poe"
In a letter, Edgar Allan Poe wrote: "I am a Virginian--at least I call myself one, for I have resided all my life, until within the last few years, in Richmond." That proclamation and sense of personal identity inspired the first documentary film by Quail Bell Press & Productions, LLC. It's called "The Persistence of Poe" and was co-directed by Christine Stoddard and David Fuchs. The film gives you a taste of Poe's life in Richmond, Virginia and the continued influence his mythos and lit have on RVA today.If you've missed the screenings and can't make one in the near-future, never fear. Now this flick is available for your home viewing pleasure on our affiliate website, PoeRichmond.com. Get out the popcorn and open up your mind for 24 minutes (or 48 if you want to make this a bizarre double-feature.) Supplemental material--like an original experimental dance choreographed for a reading of "The Raven"--is reserved for screenings only. So even if you've seen the film, come out and watch the 'suppies,' fire away in a Q&A with the co-directors, and maybe even meet Chris Semtner, Poe Museum curator, author, and painter.
Thanks to VCUarts and the Poe Museum of Virginia for making this film possible. Otherwise, we might've used milk money to fund this.
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