You’ve ridden Metro. You’ve seen the poems. Back in 2005, when the Poetry on Buses theme was “Self-Portrait,” I thought it’d be fun to recite a few to my then-boyfriend as we headed home on a nearly-deserted #26. Little did I know that not only does poetry invigorate the soul but it can also instigate fist fights! After a few stanzas, the dude behind us remarked on how shitty bus poetry is and why don’t I shut up. This prompted the dude in front of us to tell him to shut up, and then throw his 24-oz. paper cup of whiskey on the other guy—and then I ducked. As we watched the kicked-off men tussling on the grass while we sped away, I vowed to keep my interest in bus poetry to myself. This year’s theme is “Dreams,” so I expect the same mix of thoughtfulness and cringe-worthiness from this delightfully populist program (3,000 community submissions were boiled down to 55 selections). Words are powerful, indeed! Tonight’s 2007 Launch Party features readings of some of the new poems, plus spoken word from the Blue Scholars’ Geologic, mischief from the Vis-à-Vis Society, and Jourdan Keith, our most recent Poet Populist, as emcee.

Wed., Nov. 7, 7:30 p.m., 2007