Recalling an Anne Waldman Reading in Lawrence, Kansas
My LiveJournal entry on Arlene Sardine, March 10, 2006, includes an Amazon criticism of the book--that it is as if someone were to write a book for children on Elmer and the embalming process. http://xizhimen.livejournal.com/ This reminds me of what the poet Anne Waldman said at a reading in Lawrence, Kansas. She had once read a comment by a male critic that women poets are really just writing about their periods. This ticked her off, but then Waldman thought about it and decided that it was actually a good idea, that she would write her own poem on having a period. She read "Crack in the World," which was hilarious.

Burroughs, Ginsburg, Codrescu, and others also gave readings that evening; I think that Waldman was second best to Burroughs. Here's a link to "Crack in the World"--it's the first four minutes of the first file. Hearing the poem live was much, much better, though:
Internet Archive--Naropa University, Waldman reading

For a couple of years, I lived just a few blocks from Burroughs. We even shopped at the same grocery store. But I never tried to talk to him because I wanted to respect his privacy. The free Internet Archive includes some readings, talks, and interviews by Burroughs.