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cityscapes compiledandeditedbyJacobSteinbergNov.2012
This anthologyandalloftheindividualworksincludedherein,withtheexceptionofthoseotherwisenotedbelow, are licensedunderaCreativeCommonsAttributionNoncommercialNoDerivs3.0Unported
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ArqueologadelcalorbyAurelioMeza,andits respectivetranslationAnArchaeologyofHeat, arelicensedunderaCreativeCommonsAttributionNoncommercialShareAlike 2.5MexicoLicense.
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Prologue 1byJacobSteinberg
The Antipodeans
Iliveinamagicalkingdom(Wellington) 7JacksonNieuwland
Wellington 12AliceMayConnolly
thankyouBatman,Ifeelmagicalnow 17(Melbourne)SusieAnderson
Snail(Auckland) 21StaceyTeague
O Canada
WaitingForaFlood(Winnipeg) 25DaveShaw
HunterGather(Halifax) 36FrankHinton
Contents
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God Save the Queen
London 49
AlexanderJ.Allison
excerptfromnaturepoem(London) 51CrispinBest
FinddirectionsforShardeloesRoad,South 54EastLondon
ThomJames
Pada (Brighton) 60GilesRuffer
Best Coast
HighMaleVocals(SanDiego) 67AnaCarrete
PalmTreesAreNotNativeToLosAngeles 72MiraGonzalez
WelcometoLosAngeles 75MeganLent
fromoregon (Portland) 83ZekeHudson
SELFPORTRAITSTAKENONMYSHITTY 91WEBCAMINEVERYPLACEIVELIVED
SINCE MOVINGTOSANFRANCISCOALITTLEOVERAYEARAGO
MKitchell
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East Coast Swing
BodiesinDC 101
CarolynDeCarlo
JesusChristBoyDetective: 106ItsASmallWorldAfterAll (Orlando)
J. Bradley
#FILA:ForeverILoveAtlanta 115MichaelHesselMial
NewYork 121AlexDimitrov
MyDreamsAreShapedLikeYou(NewYork) 124MikeBushnell
innewyorkcity 128ReginaGreen
BreakupSex(NewYork) 130WillisPlummer
OdeToFlatbush (NewYork) 135JacobSteinberg
PleaseHaveNoInterestInProvokingGhosts: 140
PhiladelphiaCityofPoetsCAConrad
Middletown, USA
Chicago 149SamPink
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WhenAnyDecisionCanFeelLikeABetrayal 151(Chicago)CassandraTroyan
Memphis,Tennessee 156JaneySmith
OdetotheGulfWind(NewOrleans) 168RodNaquin
Uncharted Territory
sonilquioemsoPaulo 176AnaGuadalupe
sopaulosomniloquy 177EnglishVersionbyAnaGuadalupe
Ellesouriaitenpensantcetteexigence 180
quilavait (Paris)IrneGayraud
Shesmiledthinkingofthatdemandhe 181hadtranslatedbyCaitlinAdams
TrpticodelaRambladelRaval(Barcelona), 186
dondelamenteeselestmagodeungatocallejero:#cucharachas#gaviotas@elolordelaciudadmeinvadeLunaMiguel
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TriptychFromtheRambladelRaval 187(Barcelona),WheretheMindIsaStreetCatsStomach:#cockroaches#seagulls
@thesmellofthecityoverwhelmsmetranslatedbyJacobSteinberg
KoreaPoems(Seoul) 196NoahCicero
Seoul 199BrittanyWallace
Elreencuentroanunciado.(BuenosAires) 204MalnDenis
TheForecastReunion 205translatedbyJacobSteinberg
thinkingaboutusandremembering 210thesteelfactory(Taipei)BenTownsend
hello hyderabad(thesaddeststoryi 214everheard) (Dubai)
VivekNemana
(TelAviv) 224TahelFrosh
ASummerPoem 225translatedbyEranTzelgovandUriEran
Arqueologadelcalor (MexicoCity) 232
AurelioMeza
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AnArchaeologyofHeat 233translatedbyJacobSteinberg
MxicoMariachi(MexicoCity) 250ViktorIbarraCalavera
MexicoMariachi 251translatedbyJacobSteinberg
PortauPrince 268ArianaReines
Artwork 274
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Mexico City
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arqueologa del caloraurelio meza
Siempre he querido ser un arquelogo de las palabras,
excavar hondo en sus significados. ste es mi trabajo de
campo:
***
Los excavadores encontraron las vas de un medio de
transportedelaViejaCiudad.Alparecereraunaespeciede
vehculo masivo en ferrocarril. Al poco tiempo llegaron a
los escombros de lo que les pareca una estacin de ese
transporte. Alrededor slo haba tierra y ms tierra: se
sorprendieron al descubrir que los habitantes de la Vieja
Ciudad tenan rudimentarias construcciones areas.
Cuando se public el informe de los hallazgos, algunos
mencionaronenlosforosdeopininqueelNuevoCentro
deba ser demolido para redescubrir por completo al
Eslabn,aunquelamayoraselotomabroma.
***
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anarchaeologyofheattranslated by jacob steinbergIve always wanted to be an archaeologist of words, to
excavatedeepintotheirmeaning.Thisismyfieldwork:
***
ThediggersfoundthepathwaysfromoneoftheOldCitys
means of transport. It appeared to be a type of massive
vehicle on railway. In no time they reached the debris of
what seemed to be a station from that form of
transportation.Surroundingitwasjustdirtandmoredirt:
theyweresurprisedtodiscoverthattheinhabitantsofthe
OldCityhadrudimentaryaerialconstructions.Whenthe
findingswerepublishedinareport,somementionedinthe
opinion columns that the New Downtown ought to be
demolished in order to rediscover the Link completely,
althoughthemajoritytookitasajoke.
***
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Comodecauncientfico,elrecorridodeldesastresepoda
rastrear siguiendo el proceso de urbanizacin de la Gran
Ciudad, como entubar los ros y canales para construir
grandes avenidas, que luego seran el vertedero de las
desgraciasporvenir.
***
Jacintoencontrunoms.Losllambamosdepsitosdela
muerte: burbujas de concreto que no haban llegado a
derrumbarse.Lossobrevivientesserefugiabanahdelcalor
y los salteadores, pero eran muy inestables. En su
depsito, Jacinto supone que los accesos principales se
colapsaron, por lo que los sobrevivientes quedaron
completamenteaislados.Tambinleparecequehuboactos
decanibalismo:enloshuesosdeunniopequeoencontr
marcas de dientes. No parecan mordidas de rata u otro
animal.Lagentequemuriahadentrodebisufrirhoras
realmentedurasantesdepoderdescansar.
***
Alguien logr encender un generador de energa. De esa
casanosllegabannoticiasdelexterior.Asnosenteramos
queelGranTemblordejincomunicadosalSuryalNorte.
No puedeirnivenirayudaalguna.Hemosvueltoalapoca
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As onescientistnoted,thetrajectoryof thedisastercould
betracedfollowingtheprocessofurbanizationoftheGreat
City,forexamplechannelingtheriversandcanalstobuild
hugeavenues,whichwouldthenbecometheoutletforthe
misfortunestocome.
***
Jacinto found one more. We called them death
repositories:bubblesofconcretethathadntmanagedto
cave in. Survivors sought refuge there from the heat and
the highwaymen, but they werent very stable. In his
repository, Jacinto thinks the main entrances collapsed,
leading the survivors to be completely isolated. He also
suspectsthattherewereactsofcannibalism:inthebones
ofasmallchild,hefoundtoothmarks.Theydidntappear
tobebitemarksfromaratoranyotheranimal.Thosewho
had died there, inside, must have suffered through some
verydifficulthoursbeforefinallybeingabletorest.
***
Somebody managed to start up a generator. From that
house,wereceivednewsfromtheoutside.Thatishowwe
foundoutabouthowtheGreatTremorleftboththeSouth
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en que los Estados Unidos nos robaron territorio: las
regionesyanoformanunsolopas.
***
La vida de los pueblos del Desierto est muy relacionada
conlashierbasquelesayudaronasobrevivir:elzacateen
Zacatecas,lacachanillaenMexicali.Laplantadelvallede
Mxico, especficamente de Xochimilco, era el lirio
acutico.LuegodeldesbordamientodelosRosRenacidos,
eracomnqueelolorapodridodelos liriossemezclara
con el de los cadveres. Despus del Gran Temblor, la
hierbapredilectafuelamarihuana.Lagentepreferamorir
drogadayconlabocasecaantesquesimplementemorirse
decalor.Yanadatenasentidoparaeseentonces.
***
Venaal D.F.escapandodelcalordemitierra,enCuliacn,
cuandocomenzaronlastragedias.Elterremotofue loms
impactante de todo lo que sucedi. Lleg en el peormomento,justocuandoelcaloralcanzlosnivelesdelos
Desiertos del Norte. Los trabajos de rescate se
entorpecieron, gente mora mientras intentaban levantar
los escombros y rescatar cuerpos que rpidamente
entraban en descomposicin. Cuando los Ros Renacidos
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and the North cut off from communication. No help can
comenorgo.WehavereturnedtotheerawhentheUnited
Statesstoleourterritory:ourregionsnolongerformasole
country.
***
LifeintheDeserttownsiscloselyrelatedtotheplantsthat
helpedthemsurvive:thezacatelonggrassofZacatecas,or
Mexicalisarrowweed.ThatplantfortheValleyofMexico,
or more specifically, for Xochimilco, was the water
hyacinth. After the flooding of the Reborn Rivers, the
blended smell of rotting hyacinth and dead corpses was
quitecommon.AftertheGreatTremor,thefavoredplant
becamemarijuana.Peoplepreferredtodiedruggedupand
drymouthed over simply dying from the heat. Nothing
heldanymeaningatthatpoint.
***
IcametoMexicoCityfleeingtheheatofmyland,Culiacn,when the tragedies began. The earthquake was the most
stunning thing that happened. It came at the worst
moment, just when the heat had reached levels like the
Northern Deserts. The rescue missions hindered, people
weredyingastheymadeeffortstoliftthedebrisandrescue
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volvieronasecarse,sloquedunaesteladecadveres.
***
Yo slo habra vuelto a esa ciudad con ella, fue una
coincidenciaquesucedieratodoestomientrasyoestabade
paso. Era la ltima semana que el aeropuerto estara
abierto,losRosRenacidosdificultabanlaevacuacin pero
pese a todo, me enviaron en un vuelo de conexin. Ella
deca que la Ciudad de Mxico era como una de esas
morras que cogen con todos y no andan con nadie. Yo
pensabaenunaamantequeera asycomprendporquno
sepuedeatraparconpalabrasaunaciudadniaunamujer.
EntodocasofueunamalabromadeldestinoqueelGran
Temblor me agarrara justo aqu, donde jams me habra
gustadotenerquesobrevivir.Yaunascom,robymat
paranomorir.
***
Eldadehoyfuiporaguaalcentrodeacopio:alas10amestaba fresco, unos 35o C a la sombra. En el camino hay
algunas palapas pequeas para descansar del sol, pero la
mayora est hecha de aluminio y otros desechos, no de
palma.Yonuncamedetengo,sientoquenomsmegastoel
aguaquedebollevarymedamscaloras.Amediodala
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bodiesquicklybeginningdecomposition.WhentheReborn
Riversbegantodryupagain,allthatwasleftwasawakeof
corpses.
***
I only would have returned to this city with her, it wasa
coincidencethatallofthishappenedwhileIwaspassing
through. It was the last week the airport would be open,
theRebornRiversmadeevacuationdifficultbut,despiteall
else,theysentmeonaconnectingflight.ShesaidMexico
Citywaslikeoneofthosechicksthatfuckseveryonebut
datesnoone.Iwasthinkingaboutaloverwhowaslike
that,andIunderstoodwhyyoucannotcaptureacityora
woman with words. In any case it was a bad joke by fate
thattheGreatTremorwouldcatchmerighthere,whereI
neverwouldhavechosentohavetosurvive.Andevenso,I
ate,IstoleandIkilledtonotdie.
***
TodayIwenttogetwaterfromthestockcenter:at10amit
wascoolout,just95Fintheshade.Onthewaythereare
somesmallpalmshelterstorestfromthesun,butmostof
themarejustmadefromaluminumandotherscrap,not
palmleaves.Ineverstop,IfeellikeIjustwastethewaterI
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temperaturayapasdelos40o y eso no es nada, mi pap
nuncamedejairenverano,cuandollegaa60o, dice que
estoymuypequeaparasoportaresecalor.Lodicequien
haestadoensilladeruedasdesdequeuncaminloaplast
entrelosescombrosdeunRoRenacido,laPiedad,quepor
untiempofuerallamadoViaductoMiguelAlemn.Aveces
se le olvida que est vivo gracias a m. En la noche, el
sonidoalolejosdeunosventiladoresdestartaladosnonos
dejadormir.
***
Sabescuandomedicuentaqueestecalornoeranormal?
Cuando por primera vez sent la piel de mis prpados.
Despus comenc a sentir mis ojos calientes, a esa
temperaturalosencendedoresexplotabanenlosbolsillosy
en la sala de urgencias era comn ver a personas con el
muslooelpechodestrozado.
***
Nadie estaba preparado en esta ciudad para lo que vena.
En Hermosillo o Monterrey llevaban muchos aos de
prctica,porasdecirlo.PeroenelD.F.casinadietena
aireacondicionado en loshogares,asquecuandollegla
primeraoladecalorlagentenosabadonderesguardarse.
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needtobringandendupfeelinghotterthatway.Atnoon
thetemperaturewasalreadyover104Fandthatsnothing,
myfatherneverletsmegooutinthesummer,whenithits
140F,hesaysdaddyslittlegirlistoosmalltohandlethat
type of heat. He says it, the one who has been in a
wheelchairsinceatruckcrushedhimamongthedebrisof
oneoftheRebornRivers,Piety,whichforsometimewas
called the Miguel Alemn Viaduct. Sometimes he forgets
thatheisalivethankstome.Atnight,thedistantsoundof
beatupceilingfanswontletussleep.
***
YouknowwhenIrealizedthisheatwasntnormal?WhenI
felttheskinofmyeyelidsforthefirsttime.ThenIbeganto
feel my hot eyes, at that temperature lighters burst in
pocketsanditwasnormaltoseepeoplewithbrokenthighs
orchestsintheemergencyroom.
***
Nobodyinthiscitywaspreparedforwhatwascoming.In
Hermosillo or Monterrey, they had been practicing for
years, so to speak. But in MexicoCityalmost nobodyhad
airconditioningintheirhomes,sowhenthefirstheatwave
camepeopledidntknowwheretotakecover.Thescarcity
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Laescasezdeluzelctricanopudollegarunmomentoms
inoportuno.Luegodelasinundacionesalcanzamoslos55o
Calasombraynohabaaireacondicionado!
***
Todosestabanaferradosalacomodidad.Sehicieronala
idea de que era un derecho suyo, un deber de las
autoridades.Cuandolosgeneradoreselctricosporttilesy
elaireacondicionadoempiecenaserunacosamscomn,
el efecto invernadero se agudizar en el valle. Cualquier
temperaturaarribade26o Cserpretextoparaencenderlo,
inclusoeninvierno.Conrazntodosucedeprimeroenla
ciudaddeMxico:quierenllegarprimeroalinfiernopara
apartarleunlugarasusfamiliaresdelinteriordelpas.
***
Yopudehabermedadocuenta:enMontrealelveranolleg
acasi30o Cporalgunosdas,enMadisonmedijeronqueel
invierno no haba sido tan crudo, las ciudades de BajaCaliforniaregistraronrcordsdetemperatura,lalluviano
parabaenlaciudaddeMxico.Yopudeadvertirles,mivida
estaba diseccionada entre la Hora del centro y la del
Pacfico, saba malabarear entre el vaco de dos husos
horarios.Ynohicenada.
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of electricity couldnt have come at a least opportune
moment. After the floods we got as high as 131 F in the
shadeandtherewasntanyairconditioning!
***
Everybodyclungtocomfort.Theygotusedtotheideathat
it was their right, a duty of the authorities. When the
portable electric generators and air conditioning begin to
be a more common item, the greenhouse effect in the
valleywillgetworse.Anytemperatureover79Fwillbea
pretext for turning them on, including in the winter. For
goodreasoneverythinghappensinMexicoCityfirst:they
want to reach hell first so they save a spot for all their
relativesfromtherestofthecountry.
***
I could have realized: in Montreal the summer reached
almost 86 F some days; in Madison they told me that
winter hadnt been so harsh; cities in Baja Californiarecorded record temperatures; the rain wouldnt cease in
MexicoCity.Icouldhavewarnedthem,mylifewasdivided
between Central Time Zone and Pacific, I knew how to
juggle between the void of two time zones. And I did
nothing.
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***
Tanta muerte me hizo pensar que estbamos tan
acostumbradosalafelicidad.Nosolvidamosdeellahasta
quelaperdimos.Porlomenoslosquepodamospagarla.
Lospobressiemprehansufrido,estnmsadaptadosalas
condiciones extremas, fueron los primeros en comerse
cadveres frescos. Cadveres por lo general de gente rica.
Los canbales arrancaban a pedazos sus alhajas y ropas
finas,lastirabanalsuelollenasdepolvoysangre.
***
LoscadveresquearrastraronlosRosRenacidosquedaron
expuestosalsol.Alospocosdastodalaciudadolaacarne
podrida.Lashoguerasenlasfosascomunesempeorabanel
calorydisminuanlavisibilidad.Lospocosdueosdeautos
queantenangasolinacorranelriesgodechocarsiibana
alta velocidad, pero tambin de ser emboscados por los
salteadoressimanejabanmuydespacio.
***
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Primero hubo una enorme inundacin, o ms bien una
seriedeellas.Elprimerro quesedesborddelsistemade
***
So much death made me think that we were used to
happiness.Weforgotaboutituntilwelostit.Atleastthose
ofuswhocouldpayforit.Thepoorhavealwayssuffered,
theyremoreadaptedtoextremeconditions,theywerethe
firsttoeatfreshcorpses.Corpsesthatwereusuallytherich
people.Thecannibalsrippedtheirjewelryandfineclothes
topieces,threwthemtothefloorfullofdustandblood.
***
The corpses that the Reborn Rivers dragged along were
exposedtothesun.Afterafewdaysthewholecitysmelled
of rotten meat.Thebonfires in themass graves made the
heat worse and diminished visibility. The few carowners
thatstillhadgasolinerantheriskofcrashingiftheywent
at high speed, but likewise being ambushed by thehighwaymeniftheywenttooslow.
***
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Firsttherewasahugeflood,orbetterput,aseriesofthem.
The first river to flow over from the drainage system was
theNationalCanal,inthestretchknowaslaViga,oneof
drenajefueelCanalNacional,eneltramoquesellamade
la Viga, uno de los primeros que entubaron en la Gran
Planificacin Hidrogrfica, a mediadosdel s. XX. Fue una
gran irona para los ms viejos. Al Canal de la Viga le
siguieronotrosros:elHondo,elChurubusco,elMixcoac,
elMagdalena.LaredacuticadeXochimilco, queantesse
extendahastaelCentroHistricomismo,reviviporunos
cuantos meses. Se cumpli otra prediccin, la de los Ros
Renacidos,msporplaneacindeficientequeporelclima
o por acto de Dios, como decan los abogados en sus
contratos.
***
Yonosoyhumano,yosoyelsolmismo.Nacdelyhacia
lmedirigemimuerte.Unhilodeluzseescurrepormi
boca y mis lgrimas son cristales de azufre. Huelo apodredumbre ypolvo. Ayudo a los zopilotes y la valenta
me da risa: todosmorirnbajo lamarcadel cncer en la
piel.
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the first ones they channeled in the Great Hydrographic
Planning, in the mid1900s. It was quite ironic for the
elderly.AfterthelaVigaCanalcameotherrivers:elHondo,
elChurubusco,elMixcoac,elMagdalena.Thewaterwaysof
Xochimilco,which used to extend all theway toHistoric
Downtown, came to life again for somemonths.Another
prediction came true, that of theReborn Rivers,more so
because of deficient planning than the environment or
ActsofGod,aslawyersputintheircontracts.
***
Iamnothuman,Iamthesunitself.Iwasbornofitand
towardsitIdirectmydeath.Astringoflightslipsfrommy
mouthandmy tearsaresulfur crystals. I smellof rotand
dust. I help the buzzards and courage makes me laugh:
everyonewilldiebeneaththecancermarkontheirskin.
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____________________
Aurelio Meza was born in Mexico City in 1985. Poetry: Sakura
(2008), La droga (2010) and Sombra (Unpublished). Essay:
Shuffle. poesa sonora(2011).
Jacob Steinberg was born in Stony Brook, New York, in 1989.
He did his undergraduate work at NYU and currently lives in
Buenos Aires while working on his Masters in Spanish and Latin
American Literature. He works as a translator and edits Chronos(loves) Kairos.
____________________
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It is well known that people ascribe to different cities their
ownidentities.Oururbanlandscapesmostcertainlyhavetheir
ownuniquewayinwhichtheyarerepresentedinculture,film,and writing. But the focus of this project was the ways in
which those identities are so often transplanted onto their
inhabitants. While dispute continues over terminology to
definecontemporaryliterature,thereisanundeniable, shared
qualityinhowwewrite,publish,andconsume literatureinthe
internetera.
The cityscapes in this project are reflections on the urban
environmentsthatweallknowandhowthecurrentgenera
tionofwritersrelatestothem.
The city exists as a fruitful, generative space, a locus ofculture, and Cityscapes explores this space, probing the
intersectionsbetweenartand life.Thesepiecestakethereader
aroundaspinoftheglobe,inhabitingandevokingspacesinall
theirsplendorand squalor.-Rachel Hyman, Co-founder of Banango Lit
OneofTHEMOSTambitiousandamazingcityprojectsthatIveeverseen!!-CAConrad, Contributor, 2013 BANFF Fellow, and author of ABeautiful Marsupial Afternoon