Calling all readers: In honor of National Poetry Month, you’re officially invited to enter LEXtoday’s poetry contest.
This contest is open to all, and the rules couldn’t be more simple: Turn today’s newsletter into a poem.
We’ll clarify. Using only the words that appear in this newsletter, craft an original poem of up to 75 words. Unlike an erasure poem, the words do not have to appear in the order they’re found — mix and match how you please.
Any English word appearing anywhere in today’s newsletter is fair game, including the ones you’re reading right now (we’ll throw some fun ones at you: Red. Ambivalent. Fungi.). If a word appears once, you can only use it once.
Include a title + author’s name in your submission. Titles are an exception to the rule, and do not need to pull words from the newsletter.
Poems, excluding title and author’s name, must be 75 words or less.
The fun stuff:
While we’ve placed a pretty big limitation on your poem’s words, the form + direction is up to you — and we can’t wait to see what you all come up with.
The Editorial team behind LEXtoday will narrow submissions down to a group of finalists based on style, originality, artistic quality, and creativity. Finalists will be announced in an upcoming newsletter, and we’ll ask our readers to vote for their favorite poem. We’ll feature the winner’s poem in a newsletter during the last full week of April.
Pro tip: To make the process easier on yourself, we recommend printing out today’s issue, highlighting the words you find most interesting, and crossing them out as you include them in your poem.
Don’t forget to keep track of your articles (words like “the” or “and”).
Drew Holcomb and the Neighbors | Wednesday, April 3 | 8 p.m. | Manchester Music Hall, 899 Manchester St., Lexington | $25-$60 | See this Tennessee-based Americana group in support of their album “Strangers No More.”
Thursday, April 4
Thursday Night Live | Thursday, April 4-Thursday, Oct. 10 | 5-8 p.m. | Fifth Third Bank Pavilion, 251 W. Main St., Lexington | Free | Head downtown for the perfect post-work wind down featuring live music, local beverages, and plenty of food.
Jay Jurden | Thursday, April 4-Saturday, April 6 | Times vary | Comedy Off Broadway, 161 Lexington Green Cir., Lexington | $9-$16 | Have a laugh with this comedian + writer whose work has been featured on “The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon” and “The Problem With Jon Stewart.”
Friday, April 5
LexiCon Board Game & RPG Convention| Friday, April 5-Sunday, April 7 | Times vary | Clarion Hotel Conference Center, 1950 Newtown Pike, Lexington | $10-$55 | Browse through hundreds of board games, role-playing games, and cosplay at this gamers’ paradise.
Saturday, April 6
Joan Shelley and Jake Xerxes Fussell | Saturday, April 6 | 7:30 p.m. | Singletary Center for the Arts, 405 Rose St., Lexington | $10-$25 | See these Americana artists as they showcase their folk sounds and fingerpicking skills.
Family Farm Days | Saturday, April 6, Saturday, April 13, Saturday, April 20 | 9 a.m.-2 p.m. | Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill, 3501 Lexington Rd., Harrodsburg | $0-$16 | Meet new “farmily” members including lambs, chicks, and piglets, and enjoy activities like hay wagon rides, sheep shearing, and pony rides.*
Sunday, April 7
Drag Me to Brunch | Sunday, April 7 | 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. | Wise Bird Cider Co., 1170 Manchester St., Ste. 140, Lexington | $23.18 | Round out the weekend with an uplifting drag show and brunch.
LexArts is seeking artists to submit ideas for an installation that will be displayed at the new Town Branch Park. The piece will be displayed on a building that is part of the park’s amphitheater + will serve as recognition of contributors to the project."The deadline to submit is Monday, April 15.
Try This
The Lexington-Fayette County Health Department is taking extra steps to ensure public pools are safe this summer. The department is now offering pool school, a one-day, $35 course that teaches Lexingtonians about pool sanitation, operations + safety. (WKYT)
Pets
UK’s Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food, and Environment is looking for an extra set of eyes for the solar eclipse on Monday, April 8. Not on the celestial event itself, but on livestock, pets, and wildlife to observe changes in behavior, including vocalizations, feeding, sleeping habits, and more.
Seasonal
Kentucky Native Cafe’s beer garden is open for the season. Swing by 417 E. Maxwell St. for locally sourced bites — we’re already dreaming of the pretzels + beer cheese. Its hours are Tuesday-Sunday, 11 a.m.-10 p.m.
Environment
Bluegrass Greensource’s 4th annual Sustainability Summit returns Wednesday, April 10. The conference invites regional + local community leaders who are interested in boosting sustainability efforts in their respective towns on a grassroots level. Registration is open now.
Legacy
Kate Kaufling, a sophomore on UK’s dance team, died over the weekend. Kaufling was in the College of Nursing while fighting osteosarcoma, a type of bone cancer. (Lexington Herald-Leader)
Shop
Ditch the men’s dress pants — the Dealmaker Pant is the ultimate pant for work or play, with an impeccable fit and feel. Save 15% with code COMFORT15.*
Weather
The 411 on 311
Who you gonna call? Jot down the contact info for these Lexington-area resources.
The city is encouraging Lexingtonians to call 311 in the event of non-life-threatening damage. | Photo courtesy of @lexingtonkygov
April showers bring... storm damage. After yesterday’s storms left ~9,500 Lexingtonians without power, we’re bringing you a few resources to help you stay weather ready.
Flood damage Call LexCall at 311 to report problems or (859) 258-3970 for the Emergency Operations Center. Keep these tips in mind in case of flooding:
Do not drive or walk through moving + standing water
Get to higher ground
Record and take note of any property damage
Be Ready Lexington If you notice any damage while out and about, the city’s emergency management website has resources to help, including:
I’m still laughing at some of the genius April Fools’ jokes local businesses had this year. From CD Central’s announcement of 8-Track Store Day to a cruel joke that Malone’s would stop serving its famous bread + boursin-butter, y’all were on one this year.
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