Today, Anobium takes time to ask a few questions of Jonathan Greenhause, author of our first chapbook release, Sebastian’s Relativity. We met Jonathan in cyberspace. Communicated by equal parts Morse and telepathy (it really does work). Q: Place of birth, place of residence, occupation, weight on Mars.   A: I was born in Summit, New Jersey, but spent my whole childhood in Westfield, followed by 4 years at Oberlin College, 4 years in Argentina, & the last 10 years in Jersey City, where I reside with my incredible wife.  I’ve got a job (as a Spanish interpreter) that I absolutely love & which allows me to work on my poetry when I’m at home.   If I’m lucky enough to make it to Mars, I’d weigh only 27 lbs.   Q: Describe your patronymic.   A: My legal surname’s Friedman, but there are a lot of us Friedmans, & there are quite a few Jonathan Friedman poets out there.  Early on, I decided it would be best for all of us if I shed my patronymic & took on my matronymic.  That’s how Greenhause materialized.  It’s got a nice ring to it: It’s evocative; It paints a picture in your mind (of a green house, probably); & it’s a constant reminder of my maternal grandfather, who was one of my best friends.   Q: How many years have you been writing creatively/seriously? When did you realize it was something you enjoyed doing?   A: When I was in 4th grade, I read my stories to the class every Friday, & I remember how fascinated the other kids looked.  Incidentally, I had no clue about copyright laws, most of my stories centering around characters like the Flintstones, Garfield, Charlie Brown, & Dangermouse.  I also included myself as one of the main characters, & it all took place back in “The Time of Dinosaurs”, which was the title of my primary-school saga.   I subsequently went through periods where I wanted to be a journalist, a novelist, or a short-story writer, but I wound up gravitating towards poetry.      Q: Who are some of your favorite authors? Filmmakers? Creative types?   A: Albert Camus, Wisława Szymborska, Ayi Kwei Armah, Toni Morrison, Elizabeth Bishop, Walt Whitman, Herman Hesse, Julio Cortázar, Derek Walcott, & Gabriel García Márquez.   I love the films of Ingmar Bergman, the Coen brothers, Krzysztof  Kieślowski, Stanley Kubrick, Steven Spielberg, Terry Gilliam & Woody Allen.   As for other creative types, the list is boundless & would include visual artists, musicians, scientists, architects, & comedians.   Q: Tell us about Sebastian’s Relativity. What is it about? What sort of person would Sebastian be if you were to bump into him in person?   A: Sebastian’s Relativity is an alternate universe where our standard physics & typical relationships no longer apply.  The idea came out of nowhere while writing a poem which would become “When Sebastian Met His Fathers”.  I’d written series of poems before, but never centering on one specific character like these did.  I felt compelled to write more & more about Sebastian, & then about his Siamese sisters, his ten fathers, his dancing cockroaches, his girlfriend Samantha, his girlfriend Angelique, his plastic dog Fido, & his need to write poetry & share it with the world.  58 of the next 71 poems I wrote revolved around his bizarre existence.   If I were to meet him, I’d probably see a lot of similarities between Sebastian & I, specifically our inherently existential philosophy, though the actual details of our lives are quite different.   Q: What’s your fifty-year plan?   A:  You know: Become Poet Laureate, win the Nobel Prize, travel to the moon, & star in an Academy-Award®-winning film.  But I’d be more than happy with just trying my best at being my definition of a good person, a good son, a good brother, a good husband, & a good friend.    Q: How can people get in touch with you?   A: My e-mail’s jonathan_greenhause@yahoo.com.  Just write, & I’ll be glad to write you back. You can also try mental telepathy: Let me know if that works.   Purchase a copy of Jonathan Greenhause’s new book here. Only 75 are left!
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Today, Anobium takes time to ask a few questions of Jonathan Greenhause, author of our first chapbook release, Sebastian’s Relativity.

We met Jonathan in cyberspace. Communicated by equal parts Morse and telepathy (it really does work).

Q: Place of birth, place of residence, occupation, weight on Mars.

 

A: I was born in Summit, New Jersey, but spent my whole childhood in Westfield, followed by 4 years at Oberlin College, 4 years in Argentina, & the last 10 years in Jersey City, where I reside with my incredible wife.  I’ve got a job (as a Spanish interpreter) that I absolutely love & which allows me to work on my poetry when I’m at home.

 

If I’m lucky enough to make it to Mars, I’d weigh only 27 lbs.

 

Q: Describe your patronymic.

 

A: My legal surname’s Friedman, but there are a lot of us Friedmans, & there are quite a few Jonathan Friedman poets out there.  Early on, I decided it would be best for all of us if I shed my patronymic & took on my matronymic.  That’s how Greenhause materialized.  It’s got a nice ring to it: It’s evocative; It paints a picture in your mind (of a green house, probably); & it’s a constant reminder of my maternal grandfather, who was one of my best friends.

 

Q: How many years have you been writing creatively/seriously? When did you realize it was something you enjoyed doing?

 

A: When I was in 4th grade, I read my stories to the class every Friday, & I remember how fascinated the other kids looked.  Incidentally, I had no clue about copyright laws, most of my stories centering around characters like the Flintstones, Garfield, Charlie Brown, & Dangermouse.  I also included myself as one of the main characters, & it all took place back in “The Time of Dinosaurs”, which was the title of my primary-school saga.

 

I subsequently went through periods where I wanted to be a journalist, a novelist, or a short-story writer, but I wound up gravitating towards poetry.   

 

Q: Who are some of your favorite authors? Filmmakers? Creative types?

 

A: Albert Camus, Wisława Szymborska, Ayi Kwei Armah, Toni Morrison, Elizabeth Bishop, Walt Whitman, Herman Hesse, Julio Cortázar, Derek Walcott, & Gabriel García Márquez.

 

I love the films of Ingmar Bergman, the Coen brothers, Krzysztof  Kieślowski, Stanley Kubrick, Steven Spielberg, Terry Gilliam & Woody Allen.

 

As for other creative types, the list is boundless & would include visual artists, musicians, scientists, architects, & comedians.

 

Q: Tell us about Sebastian’s Relativity. What is it about? What sort of person would Sebastian be if you were to bump into him in person?

 

A: Sebastian’s Relativity is an alternate universe where our standard physics & typical relationships no longer apply.  The idea came out of nowhere while writing a poem which would become “When Sebastian Met His Fathers”.  I’d written series of poems before, but never centering on one specific character like these did.  I felt compelled to write more & more about Sebastian, & then about his Siamese sisters, his ten fathers, his dancing cockroaches, his girlfriend Samantha, his girlfriend Angelique, his plastic dog Fido, & his need to write poetry & share it with the world.  58 of the next 71 poems I wrote revolved around his bizarre existence.

 

If I were to meet him, I’d probably see a lot of similarities between Sebastian & I, specifically our inherently existential philosophy, though the actual details of our lives are quite different.

 

Q: What’s your fifty-year plan?

 

A:  You know: Become Poet Laureate, win the Nobel Prize, travel to the moon, & star in an Academy-Award®-winning film.  But I’d be more than happy with just trying my best at being my definition of a good person, a good son, a good brother, a good husband, & a good friend.

 

 Q: How can people get in touch with you?

 

A: My e-mail’s jonathan_greenhause@yahoo.com.  Just write, & I’ll be glad to write you back. You can also try mental telepathy: Let me know if that works.

 

Purchase a copy of Jonathan Greenhause’s new book here. Only 75 are left!

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