ESPRESSO SPECIALTY COFFEE, CHECK. Funky old record player, check. Love of poetry, check. The scene was set for the meeting of the Souvenirs poetry club. The club's weekly newsletter proclaimed, "Tete Bien Pleine," a quote by poet Rabelais meaning, "A wellfilled head." This was a phrase members said they believed described the 2-year-{)ld club, which met every Thursday night at local coffeehouse, Thanks A Latte. Graduate Tim Nance was the co-founder and president of this poetry appreciation club, which enjoyed a growing membership of roughly 30 members each week. Members participated in dramatic readings, memorization and poetry showdowns, where two people memorized the same poem and battled for the most accurate recall with the fewest mistakes. The winner received a free Thanks A Latte cup of coffee. Nance said &>uvenirs was unique because it was geared toward offering a variety of poets for study. "In class we study mainly older poets like Emerson, but here we study different styles," Nance said. "You chose the ones that appeal to you." Souvenirs was also responsible for the "Beowulf" reading that took place earlier in the fall. Senior Andrea Zahler, co-founder and secretary/treasurer of Souvenirs, helped organize the event and said 33 people attended. "Frankly, I was shocked at the turnout," Zahler said. The members bought a hardcover oopy of" Beowulf" and held a drawing of the readers to see who won the book. Zahler said her interest in poetry began when she was living with an English major who had to learn the "To Be or Not To Be" speech for class. Zahler told Nance about her roommate trying to memorize the poem, and Nance said he thought it would be fun if they tried to learn poetry on their own. "He told me to memorize a piece for next week and after class we would recite it to each other," Zihler said. "When I got to class next week he asked if I was ready. I thought he was joking, but he wasn't. He told me to have one for next week, and from then on we stayed after class and recited poetry to each other." Zahler said after that awkward beginning, she and Nance shared their poetry with friends until a group formed and became large enough to become an organization. Thus Souvenirs was born. Members said the club gave them an appreciation for others' writing and has had a positive effect on their own writing. "} spend a whole lot of time memorizing, taking in an artist's style and adding to my own," Nance said. "It's Bke looking through the eyes of someone else, you absorb their writing and have more to offer in your own." - ALIIA MOLONEY ORGANIZATIONS - 222 SENIOR EVERETT REED listens to fellow students read original work at the Scribblers meeting Oct. 26. Studentswho enjoyedwriting joined the organization to socialize with and encourage others who shared their interest. 'A.lNGRAM SENIOR ANDREA ZAHLER TRIES not tolaugh during graduate Ti Nanc~s dramatic reading of"The Walrus and the Carpenter"Oct. ; at aSouvenirs meeting." Tim's hilarious;' Zahler said. "He did area good job of interpreting the poem, especially when he did the voi ofthe walrus."'A.Bm
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