from the publisher

july 13, 2003     

where it seems all he's ever wanted
was his smear of ink in some magazine,
a stool for one poem at the bar.

~ Erik Leavitt, "Sulking as a Spectator Sport"

For our tenth issue, On the Page assembled poetry, fiction, essays, and general ephemera on the topic of men.

We have two poems from OtP contributor Erik Leavitt, Sulking as a Spectator Sport and Macho, which depict the sighs of unfulfilled dreams and the minor indignities of daily life. Lisa Beatman's whimsical Fix-it Man describes the pleasures to be found in a man who knows "his way around complicated circuitry." And in Hammer Linda Wojtowick reveals how in "deep humiliation...a man discovers his resources, his reserve."

Roberta Kwok's short story, The Insect Parade, tells the story of Marvin, a former librarian whose life changes unexpectedly when he takes a job selling old ladies' shoes. In Plastic Jesus Jason George takes us on a funny, drunken journey across San Francisco streets and into the city jail.

In his essay, How to Pant to Porn, Vincent Eaton humorously suggests that some jobs are better left imagined. And, in time for baseball season, Wendy Bilen's A Paige from History examines the fortitude and strength of a minor league player.

For OtP suggests, we asked a pool of smart, funny, creative guys to provide the male equivalent of "chick flicks"—the films that men rewind in conversations together and that somehow speak to our common cultural definitions of manhood.

We also offer other insights into being a man, gleaned from Homer to Hornby, in our quotes of the day.

Enjoy the issue and your summer.

Best,
nada

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