Archive - Might Stain Your Shirt

POETS DAY! Keats Gets Snippy About Wordsworth

It’s unclear whether Wordsworth offended him or if he felt others mistakenly took offense to his manner or deeds. It’s a curious little enigma.

Apr 17 • Ben Sears

Mayo Is Evil: A Brief History

I hate mayonnaise. I hate it desperately. I think mayo is vile. My wife thinks it’s evil. Distinction without much difference.

Apr 13 • Ben Sears

POETS Day! George William Russell, Co-Host of the Irish Literary Revival

I can’t decide if he’s mimicking a medieval hierarchy or flattening prejudice and treating real and conceptual on equal footing.

Apr 10 • Ben Sears

Refire A Classic: Deconstructed Salisbury Steak

This is not the comfort food steam table stuff. This Salisbury steak is cleaner and satisfies a different hankering.

Apr 7 • Ben Sears

POETS Day! St John of the Cross as Translated by Roy Campbell

There were during St John's lifetime and after, efforts to suppress or soften his teachings. Not everyone understood his hope for perfect union.

Apr 3 • Ben Sears

March 2026

POETS Day! CS Lewis and Roy Campbell Agree to Disagree

In Tolkien’s telling, Lewis got snippy and accusative and Campbell laughed and brushed off criticisms.

Mar 27 • Ben Sears

Spaghetti al Lent with Tomatoes and Smoked Trout

For those not in communion with Rome, this Spaghetti al Lent is a wonderful dish despite the penitential nod.

Mar 23 • Ben Sears

POETS Day! Ford Madox Ford’s “In the Little Old Market-Place”

It’s a place of exchange. He has his achievements. She has her charms and skills. But around them nothing’s happening. There’s no interaction.

Mar 20 • Ben Sears

POETS Day! D.H. Lawrence

In “Poetry of the Present,” Lawrence extols free verse, especially as practiced by Walt Whitman. But I think he goes too far.

Mar 13 • Ben Sears

POETS DAY! James Dickey

A meta tale where a character breaks from narrative, chooses the wild, and stirs something primal in the teller. It’s all there, and told simply.

Mar 6 • Ben Sears

February 2026

POETS Day! Lies, Damn Lies

Melodic, exotic, and factory preset to slip into a line of iambic. I flogged it to death. It became my ersatz ersatz.

Feb 27 • Ben Sears

POETS Day! A Boy’s Life

There was a time before I discovered girls and beer when I ranged a similar landscape. It’s not long till he moves on as well.

Feb 20 • Ben Sears

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