Writing letters to the editor in the newspaper is a tradition as old as the newspaper itself. Even in a world where people take to YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter to share their sometimes wild and provocative ideas, a few people still pen letters to their local publication, hoping their ideas will sway or incite their neighbors.
Meet “T. Weed,” a Hoboken resident who has provoked Hoboken residents with his letters to the editor to The Hoboken Reporter since 1985.
T. Weed, whose real name is Dale Walker, doesn’t only share his thoughts with the readers of Reporter. He is also the author of five literary works including one published by Random House, and his collection of poems, “Light Spright Bright Tight” will soon be for sale in Hoboken’s only bookstore, Symposia. The book costs $1.
“Hoboken is like a village, and I like that.” – Dale Walker, a.k.a. T. Weed
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Walker said some of the poems are more than 20 years old.
“I first wrote some of them down years ago and kept them in my desk,” he said. “I looked at them occasionally to see if I can revise them. I tried to make them, as the title says, light, spright, bright, and tight.”
The book contains approximately 70 poems. All profits from the sales of his books will go to Symposia.
Other books by “T. Weed” include “Fools Paradise,” “Natural Enemies,” and “Sketches of a Texas Boyhood.”
Walker also published his letters to the editor that appeared in The Hoboken Reporter in a self published volume.
Walker’s letters, he said, are “meant to be provocative.” Walker said he believes the Palestinians got a “raw deal” with the Israelis, and often expresses his opinion on the issue in letters to the Reporter.
He said he likes to write to the newspaper about “taboo issues” and about “the elephant in the room that no one wants to talk about.”
But he has also written short poems about local cats and squirrels.
Traveling teacher
Walker’s experience in the Middle East dates back to 1969, when he first landed a job in Saudi Arabia teaching English. The Hoboken resident has traveled all over the world to countries like Iran, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Saudi Arabia.
“I traveled to quite a few countries,” he said. “I lived in Europe; lived in Mexico, and I’ve been able to see quite a bit of the world.”
When asked for a favorite place, Walker said, matter-of-factly, “Hoboken.”
“It’s changed over the years but it’s still the same in many ways,” he said. “You can’t really change the core of the town. It still has a neighborhood feel. When I was just walking down the street I ran into two or three people I know who stopped me. Hoboken is like a village, and I like that.”
Through his life, Walker said he’s had “hundreds of jobs,” but always had a passion for writing. He said he lived a “bohemian life.”
“You could still do that in America because we were once prosperous enough where you could live off the crumbs of the table,” he said. “Now I don’t think it’s possible.”
As far as his book, T. Weed said, “I don’t do it for money. I just want people to read it and say, ‘that’s pretty good.’ ”
Although most of his books are self-published, “Fools Paradise” was published by Random House in 1988. “Natural Enemies,” a self published novel set in Hoboken, addressed the tenant/landlord hostilities that were fulminating during that decade. It takes a rare look at the landlord’s perspective.
Walker said he’s not working on any new books currently, but is excited about releasing this collection of poems.
“I’m just glad to have my book on the shelves,” he said.
“Light Spright Bright Tight” is available at Symposia Bookstore, 510 Washington St. in Hoboken.
Ray Smith may be reached at RSmith@hudsonreporter.com