The Michigan Daily
Tuesday, October 31, 1989
Page 7
Poet massages the mind
BY KRISTIN PALM
OLGA Broumas has a great deal of
experience in the healing arts. The
native Greek poet spent several years
as a massage therapist and her writ-
ing takes on the restorative powers
of her second profession through
both vivid imagery and an underly-
ing notion that poetry is, in itself, a
healing force.
In her newest work, Perpetua,
Broumas' work sometimes becomes
the subject of the poem, as in "The
Masseuse": "Always an angel rises
from the figure/naked and safe be-
tween my towels/ as before taboo."
Broumas said she had a practical
reason for choosing massage therapy
as a profession. "It is a wonderful
way to make a living as a writer. It
is quiet work," she said, adding that
she preferred massage therapy to the
traditional writer's occupation of
teaching because it did not involve a
set daily routine. Broumas also cited
a spiritual connection to the profes-
sion. "I trust the body much more
than the mind," she said. "The body
has its own truth."
Although this spirituality is in-
herent in Broumas' poetry, not all of
to places and events she views as
crucial, including her homeland of
Syros, Greece and the Middle Eastern
conflict.
She said these two topics are in-
tertwined in her mind and her work
because they are close geographi-
cally. Conflicts such as the one in
the Middle East have always been
important to her, Broumas said, but
as her life and work have progressed
she has become more attuned to this
concern. "I think as I've grown older
my vision has become broader. But I
think that is how I always felt," she
said.
In much of her writing, Broumas
links the workings of the human
body to the topic she is discussing,
and this issue is no different. "The
body is suffering with different parts
of the globe as they rise and fall,"
she said. "We kind of go numb so
we can go on but that does not mean
we are over it."
Although her homeland is impor-
tant in her writing, Broumas said she
has spent much of her life traveling
and the fact that she has found a
her work is surreal. She also refers
place to settle in a small Mas-
sachusetts town has also affected her
work. "I had no roots so I decided to
go to one place and stay there as
long as I could. That has influenced
me," she said.
Broumas said two other fascina-
tions that affect her work are music
and peace. In using these themes,
Broumas is specific about what she
desires to achieve. "I have two pur-
poses," she said. "One is to be as au-
thentic as possible. Another is to
use what is around me."
OLGA BROUMAS will read from
PERPETUA in the Rackham East
Conference Room at 5 p.m. today.
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The Gargoyle has no pimp -
yet
BY ANDREA GACKI
"KEEP in mind it costs $1.50."
Offering this introductory disclaimer, Gargoyle edi-
tor-in-chief Paul Golin forked over his hot-off-the-
presses publication for review. Guess what? The Garg is
prostituting itself by lowering its price.
Ponder the paradox that the Gargoyle proffers. Linda
Ellerbee is extolled "for having the vision, the character,
rand plain-and-simply the guts to junk a career of jour-
nalistic integrity for Maxwell House" - and the Garg
seeks to imitate her. But Ricardo Montalban and a
Chrysler Cordova rep on the cover is not exactly a
strategic marketing ploy.
Lt"Whoring" is less of a theme (as "Butter" and "Fear"
were for past $2 issues) than a state of being. But the
next Gargoyle is going to have the theme of an '80s ret-
rospective. "All the other magazines are doing it," said
Golin. "And it's in keeping with our overriding theme
of 'selling out'."
Yes, the Gargoyle's humor is more, shall we say,
"palatable." But some demented elements remain. David
Gilleran's "moloch & deimos: the most beautiful boys
on earth" are actually rather horrifying. Gilleran changes
the rules of what's conventionally funny like he bends
the rules of what's conventionally correct English.
The November Garg also features "Angell Hall: On
the go," in which that allegedly "nimble" and
"rambunctious" building takes off on a drunken rampage
across campus. "I'm telling yott, that place smelled like
a brewery," commented one student at the prospect of
Angell Hall entering Benneton and being ignored. A
Daily Opinion page parody occupies the centerfold spot.
"An admittedly easy target," said Golin, who thanked
See GARGOYLE, page 8
PH: 663-5800
1140 S. Universit STORE HOURS:
MON-SAT: 9 AM-10 PM
-directly above Good Time Charley SUN: 11 AMPM
Kimo Ford
Embry-Riddle
University
The Fords
have always.
drvenw
Volkswagens.
Ask Kimo Ford why he bought a Volkswagen and
get ready for some family history.
"Everyone in my family has driven a Volkswagen
at one time or another. My dad had a Microbus in
the Sixties. My mom and sister both drove Beetles.
And my brother, who's also a student, drives an
'83 Volkswagen Rabbit.
"So when I saved enough money to buy a car
there was only one logical choice. A Volkswagen.
My car's a'79 Rabbit. With 145,000 miles on it.
Ten years old and all those miles and it's still
running great.
"If you ask me, it's the perfect student's car.
Good on gas. Fun to drive. And big enough to
carry four friends." Even so, Kimo is already think-
ing about his next car. Another Volkswagen?
"Absolutely. A GTI. White. Gotta have white."
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