The Dickinson Organization of Poetry Enthusiasts in conjunction with the Folger Coffee Company will host a birthday tribute to Emmett Lee Dickinson (Emily Dickinson's third cousin, twice removed -- at his request) to celebrate the publication of The Garbaged Somethings, a collection of scraps of paper and bits of trash on which Dickinson wrote lines of poetry and complete poems. In December, a similar event to be hosted by the Folger Shakespeare Library will celebrate Emily Dickinson and The Gorgeous Nothings. Information about both events are HERE. |
Below are some of the pages from The Garbaged Somethings that will be discussed at the momentous event to be held in October:
Pictured at the left: A label from a Badger Roasted Coffee can appears on page 25 of The Garbaged Somethings. On the back of the label, Emmett Lee Dickinson wrote, "In the name of the Joe," a line he used to open this short poem: In the name of the Joe – And of the Jitter Juice – And of the Brews – Amen! Dickinson's poem inspired third cousin Emily to write this: In the name of the Bee – And of the Butterfly – And of the Breeze – Amen! |
Pictured at the right: Page 48 of The Garbaged Somethings includes a coffee can lid on which Dickinson wrote his poem "A willing lid o'er weary eye": A willing lid o’er weary eye As Morning on the Day dawns Till I stumble through my House To gain my Coffee Cup Dickinson's poem inspired third cousin Emily to write this: As willing lid o'er weary eye The Evening on the Day leans Till of all our Nature's House Remains but Balcony |
Pictured at the right: Plans for a coffee pot which Emmett Lee Dickinson invented and submitted for a patent in 1853 (shown on page 68 of The Garbaged Somethings). Dickinson invented and received patents for at least seven different types of coffee pots, and on this particular diagram Dickinson wrote, "Who needs a joe to greet the World," a line used in his poem "How good was my Warm Bed" (below on the left). Dickinson's poem inspired third cousin Emily to pen her poem "How good his Lava bed" (below on the right). For more information on Dickinson's other inventions, click HERE. Dickinson also coined the words "joe," "mud," "dirt," and "jitter juice" for coffee. |
By Emmett Lee Dickinson: How good was my Warm Bed, To this soporific Boy – Who needs a joe to greet the World And start the sleepy Day – | By Emily Dickinson: How good his Lava Bed, To this laborious Boy – Who must be up to call the World And dress the sleepy Day – |