Shop Class

by Jason Visconti

“They couldn’t burn me, not me“, I’d say looking back at the class where I drifted aimlessly like a balloon popped with hysteria. “No brains for metal shop”, I thought while the others labeled me as weirdo or freak. No time for salvation—my mask was the only thing stopping me from dying. A critical burn would be my kiss on the cheek—a chapel of flame, hunched over, was my stinging endurance. These screws spitting out were not my expertise—this blade that slipped my skin. I had forgotten everything but the crow in my dreams that screams for me to cry louder. Crow, teacher, pupil, all arranged to meld this bookend where I’d shove my bible and my cartoons. And the bookend was warped; dented, crushed. . .I see how it went. My drawings were wrong, my seed. . . and the whole thing collapsed. My pencil shook and Mr. Grossman told me to see a doctor. My hands, stupid, it was my hands. And there are no doctors for shop-itus . . . rather, yes I will sir. . .yes I will. I’ll go with my arm sawed off.

So that’s how I learned shop—missing bolts with a whistle. There were two periods, one for working and one for resting—I’d rest during both. I was like the patron who sat and drank only water. Rumors of masturbation circled the board while the other children dropped close their eyes like machines melting metal. Everything was an incident, my fingers, musically, argued which chord to pluck first. Practically I wanted the project to die— to go into bookend heaven, some other space besides my “personals” shelf. I had created junk—but it wasn’t “mine” junk because I didn’t give a shit about it or the scandal I must be retarded for making such an ugly looking thing. Maybe they were retarded—some of their snickers truly sounded like it, mute even, alien gestures from where the belly can explode. It was only my fist to hold that so called “creation”. I stared at it , blankly, like it was someone else’s child put on my porch step. How is this different from last year’s napkin holder? Or the way I swung my bat? Or tied my shoes? Why am I crying when it wasn’t a poem, a song?

So you tell me the distance between junk and a wastebasket. Three feet? Nah, much farther. I couldn’t miss. I couldn’t afford it to even make a clink. And metal clinks.

One thing I knew is that metal clinks, a trait I picked up from my klutzy hands. I couldn’t stand up because I was frozen. Today was a turning point, the day we take home our work. No time for standing, sitting was much more in due. After all, the shop teacher, Mr. Grossman, was giving his final farewell, the gall. Good riddance to you too! It wasn’t till I got out in the street that I realized I had someone else’s bookend in my hands. And you know what—his was screwed up too. Just screwed up in different places, that’s all, nothing to brag about. Who reads books?

Submit to AMERICANISADO!

CALLING ALL WRITERS AND ARTISTS: Americanisado is dedicated to fostering an online venue where budding writers and artists may have their work published and/or featured. Below you will find the submission guidelines for writers and artists interested in seeing their work published on www.americanisado.com.
Writers:
We will be accepting:
Personal essays, short stories, & poetry. The piece must be well-written and original and as entertaining as possible.
Essays and stories:
500 - 2,000 words

Poems: up to 10 Poems per person, per month.

Send your submission IN THE BODY OF THE EMAIL to submissions@americanisado.com

Artists: We will be accepting paintings, visual arts of any media and photography. Please send your work in jpeg format to visual.submissions@americanisado.com

Artists and Writers reserve all rights to pieces submitted. Please indicate if the piece has been previously published. We do not pay.

Also send us a quick note on the history of the piece as well as mentioning something of yourself (hometown, interests, etc.).

STAY TUNED FOR OUR SUBMISSIONS CONTEST! Contest rules and guidelines (as well as prizes) will be posted soon!

Submit to Americanisado

CALLING ALL WRITERS AND ARTISTS: Americanisado is dedicated to fostering an online venue where budding writers and artists may have their work published and/or featured. Below you will find the submission guidelines for writers and artists interested in seeing their work published on www.americanisado.com.
Writers:
We will be accepting:
Personal essays, short stories, & poetry. The piece must be well-written and original and as entertaining as possible.
Essays and stories:
500 - 2,000 words

Poems: up to 10 Poems per person, per month.

Send your submission IN THE BODY OF THE EMAIL to submissions@americanisado.com

Artists: We will be accepting paintings, visual arts of any media and photography. Please send your work in jpeg format to visual.submissions@americanisado.com

Artists and Writers reserve all rights to pieces submitted. Please indicate if the piece has been previously published. We do not pay.

Also send us a quick note on the history of the piece as well as mentioning something of yourself (hometown, interests, etc.).

STAY TUNED FOR OUR SUBMISSIONS CONTEST! Contest rules and guidelines (as well as prizes) will be posted soon!

This selection is titled “Raw Art Kills”, from California based artist Mr. Juan Montoya.

Juan started painting his Junior year of high school, way back in 2005. He picked up the paint brush quite easily from the first time. Artistically, he enjoys photography and film making besides painting. He is currently working on an untitled short documentary film about the ideas and inspirations behind a painting he is currently working on as well as the painting process.

In Juan’s own words the piece showcased here, “is about sex, violence and Rock ‘n Roll”.

The youthful Mr. Montoya is also the founder of RedRoom Clothing. He hand draws and then paints designs on all kinds of clothing items.

Our premiere pick is the following visual titled “Virgen Guadalupe Pasties” submitted by Yoli “Sacred Snatch” Manzo. Ms. Manzo is Mejicana and hails from Sacramento, CA

Model: Marcella Ibanez; Photographer: J. Hyde Photography
Yoli Manzo, creator of the Sacred Snatch artistic label, was born and raised in the Silicon Valley. She now makes her home in Sacramento, California where she immerses herself in cultural art exhibiting muse from latin folk art such as Dia de los Muertos, Frida Kahlo and religious saints. Her signature has been described as having a very sharp edge that is admirable for a woman artist. She uses mixed media, strong colors, plenty of glitter and her edgy wit worthy of her label. Yoli Manzo and her art work, including shrines, jewelry, handbags, dolls, skulls and paintings have been featured in art galleries, television, and art festivals throughout northern California as well as internationally via the web. She is a member of the Scary Art Collective and the Sacramento Craft Mafia.

For more on Yoli and Sacred Snatch, visit www.myspace.com/sacredsnatch , www.sacredsnatch.etsy.com , www.myspace.com/pielaesthetics4u
Interested in submitting your own artwork, short story, poetry, essay or photgraphy to AMERICANISADO?