Ted Kooser, US Poet Laureate from 2004 to 2006. Photo by UNL Publications and Photography.

South Dakota poet Leo Dangel has written some of the best and truest poems about rural life that I’m aware of. Here’s a fine one about a chance discovery.

Behind the Plow

I look in the turned sod

for an iron bolt that fell

from the plow frame

and find instead an arrowhead

with delicate, chipped edges,

still sharp, not much larger

than a woman’s long fingernail.

Pleased, I put the arrowhead

into my overalls pocket,

knowing that the man who shot

the arrow and lost his work

must have looked for it

much longer than I will

look for that bolt.

American Life in Poetry is made possible by The Poetry Foundation (www.poetryfoundation.org), publisher of Poetry magazine. It is also supported by the Department of English at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Poem copyright ©1987 by Leo Dangel, whose most recent book of poems is “The Crow on the Golden Arches,” Spoon River Poetry Press, 2004. Poem reprinted from “A Harvest of Words: Contemporary South Dakota Poetry,” Patrick Hicks, Ed., Pine Hill Press, Inc., 2010, by permission of Leo Dangel and the publisher. Introduction copyright © 2009 by The Poetry Foundation. The introduction's author, Ted Kooser, served as United States Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 2004-2006. They do not accept unsolicited manuscripts.

CONTAGION (Rated PG-13)

After watching “Contagion,” I may never again grab a fistful of nuts from a bowl sitting on a bar counter. It’s also not a good idea to shake hands with a butcher.

Many life lessons are to be found in the scientific thriller “Contagion,” the story of the fast spread of a deadly global plague.

The well-known actors that play pivotal characters are essentially accessory to the central story, and in some cases they prove expendable to boot.

Gwyneth Paltrow’s Beth Emhoff, based in Minneapolis, travels the globe for her business. We spot her in Hong Kong, hobnobbing with executives at a party.

On her return to the states, Beth has a layover in Chicago, which has personal ramifications, but nothing central to the epidemic plot.

It’s upon her return home to her husband Mitch (Matt Damon) and young son that Beth’s health rapidly declines. She goes from feverish sweating to a brain hemorrhage and quick death in relatively short order.

Though the virus quickly takes the life of Beth and then Mitch’s son, it appears that Mitch is somehow immune to the disease and maybe the same holds true for his older daughter.

Meanwhile, reports are coming in from around the world, from major metropolitan cities to provinces in China about a lethal flu-like virus.

The Center for Disease Control in Atlanta, supervised by Dr. Ellis Cheever (Laurence Fishburne), is the command center for coordinating emergency response teams around the country.

Kate Winslet’s Dr. Erin Mears is dispatched to Minneapolis to investigate the mysterious death of Beth Emhoff, the apparent first victim.

On the other side of the world, the World Health Organization dispatches Dr. Orantes (Marion Cotillard) to Hong Kong, which is suspected as the point of origin for the fast-spreading toxic disease.

Back in the states, Dr. Cheever is put in the unenviable position of dealing with news media reports which call into question his integrity after it is learned that he advised his wife (Sanaa Lathan) to get out of Chicago before it is quarantined.

Adding to the public turmoil is the involvement of a popular but annoying blogger named Alan Krumwiede (Jude Law) who stokes fear and confusion with his unfounded conspiracy theories.

Is the rabble-rousing Alan serving a public purpose to alert everyone to the immediate dangers or are his motives steeped in opportunity to cash in for a big payday?

As panic takes hold, the inevitable chaos and mayhem follows. Looting and vandalism occur in markets and convenience stores. Riots break out when the government runs short on medical supplies. The nightmarish scenario seems all so plausible.

Director Steven Soderbergh does an excellent job of building tension with the lingering sense of trepidation that grips the public and medical community.

Matt Damon plays a masterful role as the persevering, resolute symbol of the common man trying to make sense of the world shattering and crumbling all around him.

As a matter of fact, CDC director Dr. Cheever and his staff are also doing their level best to race to find a cure amidst the usual bureaucratic bickering.

“Contagion” plays out a rather plausible scenario for a global pandemic, even if all of its parts are not entirely convincing. Moreover, it entertains as an unsettling medical thriller.

When somebody starts coughing in a nearby row at the theater, you may find it sensible to think about moving away to a safe distance.

Yes, “Contagion” should engender panic, fear and loathing, and even hypochondria. In recent memory, we have SARS, the swine flu and bird flu to thank for that.

DVD RELEASE UPDATE

Since we are on the topic of thrillers this week, it is an opportune time to note that the action-packed “Hanna” has been released on DVD and Blu-ray.

Saoirse Ronan stars as Hanna, a 16-year old girl raised in the desolate, icy wilds of Finland by her ex-CIA agent father Erik (Eric Bana) and trained to become the perfect assassin.

Every moment of Hanna’s childhood and adolescence has been spent building up the strength, stamina and survival instincts she needs to prepare for the day she must strike out on her own.

That day has now come; armed with the skills her father has imparted to her and the mantra “adapt or die,” Hanna must cross Europe and face her family’s longtime enemy, lethal intelligence operative Marissa Wiegler (Cate Blanchett).

Both the DVD and Blu-ray feature an alternate ending and deleted scenes, along with commentary from director Joe Wright.

Naturally, the Blu-ray edition has more bonus features, including a look at the Chemical Brothers’ creative process of writing and scoring all of the music in the film.

In the spirit of Alan Krumwiede, let me just say there is a conspiracy to put the better bonus features on the Blu-ray editions, so that you’ll buy the more expensive product.

Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.

From left, Bert Lams and Tom Griesgraber will perform at the Tallman Hotel in Upper Lake, Calif., on Sunday, September 11, 2011. Courtesy photo.

UPPER LAKE, Calif. – The Tallman Hotel in Upper Lake hosts a periodic series of informal “Concerts with Conversation” for 40 to 50 guests in the Meeting House next to the Hotel.

This popular series continues this Sunday, Sept. 11, at 7:30 p.m. with Tom Griesgraber, who is recognized as one of the world’s true masters of the magical but complicated instrument called the Chapman Stick. He will be appearing along with classical guitarist Bert Lams.

Tom Griesgraber, whose father John is a longtime Kelseyville resident, tours widely performing on the Chapman Stick, a 12-stringed instrument built around the idea of tapping on a fretboard with the fingertips of both hands with the resulting amplified vibrations producing a full range of unique sounds.

“I’m proud to see one of my instruments used in such a creative way,” said Emmet Chapman, inventor of the instrument.

Griesgraber is an active composer and arranger for the instrument and his shows include a mix of original material as well as arrangements ranging from Bach to the Beatles.

Lams initially gained notice in 1980 as first laureate in a youth music contest in Brussels. He then went on to earn an honors degree in the study of classical guitar, eventually teaching at the Brussels Academy of Music.

Since 1993, he has toured the world and released six albums with the California Guitar Trio.

Coffee and cookies will be served at the performance.

Tickets at $25 plus tax are available by calling the Tallman Hotel reservation desk at 707-275-2244. People interested in the show can get a preview at www.thossounds.com and www.bertlams.com.

Second Sunday Cinema believes that those who died then, and those who have died since due to exposure to many toxic chemicals, and the citizens of the US deserve the truth about what happened that day.

The movie “9/11: Explosive Evidence – Architects and Engineers Speak Out” will be shown on Sunday, Sept. 11, at the Clearlake United Methodist Church, 14521 Pearl Ave., Clearlake, near Mullen in Clearlake

Doors at 5:30 p.m., with the film at 6 p.m.

If you arrive early, you can grab a snack and get to know your neighbors (or network, if you like).

The film provides understandable, extremely interesting science-based information to correct the deeply-flawed "official explanation" produced by the 9/11 Commission.

The physics and chemistry are very clear: Towers One, Two and Seven fell at virtually free-fall speed. In other words, if you dropped a ball off the top of any tower, it would land at the same speed as those buildings disappeared into dust.

The 47-story Building 7 is of particular interest because it was not hit by an airplane. There were a couple of small fires – and down it went. In fact, no steel buildings on fire have ever collapsed anywhere on the globe, even when fires have raged within them for days. All of the evidence points to a carefully planned demolition. The facts are compelling.

This is not a conspiracy theory documentary. More than 1,540 architects and engineers are behind this film and say the buildings could not have collapsed as they did without being formally demolished.

As one reviewer said, "The question is not one of politics or nationalism or loyalty, but one of simple physics. Does steel melt in open-air fires? What caused the core to vanish in seconds? No agenda. No finger-pointing. Just the facts and the questions."

Please note: There is a small chance that SSC will screen another film, “9/11 Mysteries, Part 1: Demolitions instead of Explosive Evidence.” The reason? “Explosive Evidence” is brand new (SSC is part of its world premiere). It's only being shipped out on Sept. 6, so we can't be sure we'll get it in time.

“Explosive Evidence” is a riveting film, from the long trailer we've seen. Demolitions is a superb, science-based film as well. Both are fascinating, well-made and fact based, and very highly recommended.

For more information call 707-889-7355.