OUT OF THE BLUE
This is my first Museletter to you since the attack. And just saying that gives me the shivers... that i can use the words “the attack” with the knowledge that everyone reading this will know what I am talking about. And how to go about doing so and not sounding cliched or trite and keeping the feelings close to me?... the feelings I encountered those first few days, of how precious and vulnerable life is... It was one of those occasions where I wanted so much to write a poem, but knew nothing I could say would do it justice, preserve those feelings accurately. But, in the spirit of recovery, before we get to the literary happenings in the beautiful Pacific Northwest, this humble attempt:

out of the blue

something unexpected like hail in the sun
a rip in the fabric of blue

blue should be soothing oceans
blue should be candy eyes
but this year
blue was a bomb
blue was a door to a day no one would ever forget
all that summer glory we lightly pray for
turned from weather patterns to fear
of impending demise

why didn't the weather and colors cooperate?
why didn't they warn us with wind and waves and the grayness
of movies or some background music some ethereal heartbeat and thump
and scream or silence
how could blue be so wicked?
how can blue be what i wake up to
when on the other side of the country
hundreds are buried alive?
how can we celebrate birth and poetry
and song and summer
when out of the blue
on TV
i watch bodies drop stories from buildings
and wonder if there's really a heaven
and what color greets the newcomers
on the other side

September 26, 2001
Danika Dinsmore

BUMBERSHOOT 'O1
Bumbershoot is the Pacific Northwest's largest arts festival, put on annually on Labor Day weekend and probably most well known for its musical acts. But Bumbershoot also hosts literary artists, the One Reel Film Festival, visual art, dance and theater -- something for everyone and a much anticipated event every year. One nice thing for literary artists: you don't have to wait to be invited; you can apply to perform at Bumbershoot. Email them for an application at info@onereel.org. If memory serves, the applications are due in January each year.

Bumbershoot is one of those festivals where it's difficult to divide your time. I always feel a loyalty to the literary acts, but when you've got concurrent programming such as Marshall Crenshaw or Meshell Ndegéocello... well, what's a girl to do?

This year's literary bigwigs included Diane di Prima, David Meltzer, Lewis MacAdams, Dave Eggers, Spalding Grey -- all of whose readings I missed (bad poet!). I did catch MacAdams and Meltzer on “The Cool Panel” with Charles Cross and Laura Kelley (Peace) -- which was a discussion on the idea of “cool” through history and how it has been commercialized. I thought it was, well, really cool! I also caught Jeffrey McDaniel, John Sinclair, dan raphael, Daphne Gottlieb and a handful of local poets. Jeffrey McDaniel makes me laugh and cry with his outstanding blend of humor and surrealism that plays on profound boundaries. Daphne, bless her, reveals so much of herself when she reads I found myself clutching my heart. She was very well received by her audience.

HIP HOP OPERA: FREIGHT TRAIN LAND
East Side Eternity is a group of Vancouver artists, musicians and writers with musical backgrounds ranging from hip hop and jazz to classical music. Their third hip hop opera, Freight Train Land, is about the political struggles of the working class and was written and directed by Vancouver poet/hip hop artist C. R. Avery.

Leather Twatson (obviously a pen name) of Nerve Magazine says in his Live Wires review:

“…some things you just gotta see. I am now quite convinced that the creator, C. R. Avery, is a post-modern beatnik savant here on a secret mission, though what that is, I haven’t yet figured out. These days, not everyone can pull off the po-mo beatnik thing with such aplomb, but somehow, with appealing sincerity, he manages.”

NORTHWEST BOOKFEST: OCTOBER 20 - 21
Another biggie, and getting bigger each year, Northwest Bookfest is the region's largest literary festival, featuring over 200 authors including Diane Ackerman, Robert Ballard, T. C. Boyle, Susan Griffin, Amos Oz, Chuck Palahniuk, and Ursula Le Guin. There will be more than 200 exhibitor booths, from large presses and bookstores (Amazon.com and Borders) to single-book authors, indie presses, and literary arts organizations. Throughout the weekend there are talks (“ABCs of Book Arts,” “Introduction to Book Collecting”) panel discussions (“Writing Sex and Death,” “Daughters Tell Their Fathers' Stories,” e-publishing), and readings (from the literary big wigs to teen slams). Activities include a Wizards of the Coast gaming area, a Scrabble championship challenge, Instant Poetry and an Instant Anthology, a Soapbox Stage for local poets, a bookswap, and a juried Book Arts Exhibition, which features more than 50 books made by artists. On Antiquarian Row (collectible, used, rare, and out-of-print books), you can have your treasured tomes appraised by expert book appraisers, and attend panels about collecting books and caring for your collections.

I attend every year, although now I host an exhibitor booth and participate in panel discussions. It can be a bit chaotic with so many simultaneous voices, but if you love books, this is the place to be. They also give quite a bit of stage time to poets and discussions about poetry. Yay! For more info & the complete schedule, visit Northwest Bookfest on the Web.

RASP FALL FOR POETRY: OCTOBER 26 - 27
If you're not familiar with the Seattle area, then you probably don't know about our “Eastside” references. The Eastside refers to the Redmond/Bellevue communities, which are east of downtown Seattle, across Lake Washington, home to Microsoft, and usually dismissed by Seattle-ites as cultureless suburban sprawls. Shame on us! RASP (the Redmond Association of SPokenword) is a group of Eastsiders who have been working for 4½ years to bring literary events to the area. Their monthly open mike is a warm place, usually well attended and well received. They've worked hard to bring a diverse program of literary voices to the Eastside and deserve much applause.

Since there seems to be some kind of wall keeping poets from crossing the bridge (literally and figuratively), RASP has created a “bite of the Seattle Poetry Festival” called Fall for Poetry, to encourage cross-pollination:

• Friday, Oct 26, 8:30 - 10:30 pm, open mike 10:30 - 11:30 pm
  Evocative, radical, on-the-edge spoken word for the grown-ups. Featuring Michael Ricciardi, Gabrielle Bouliane, Arne Pihl, Dan Raphael, and Uterus Universe.
  
  
• Saturday, Oct 27, workshop 6 - 6:45 pm, show 7 - 9 pm
  A multigenerational, multicultural evening for ages 10 and up. Includes Japanese koto with stories, poems about family, and an interactive word-play workshop. Featuring Elizabeth Falconer, Emerging Voice Youth, Kevin Murphy, Crystal Williams, and Children Remember Their Fathers: Ensemble Poetry.

READINGS FROM THE SAN FRANCISCO EDGE
Manic D Press authors Thea Hillman, Justin Chin, and Beth Lisick are soon to invade the Pacific Northwest. Not only are Hillman, Chin and Lisick accomplished writers, they are also extraordinary performers, whose reading chops have been honed from years of road-touring, poetry slams, and countless readings in bars, rock and roll stages, bookstores, museums, galleries and other savory and not-so-savory venues in the U.S. and abroad. November 1 - 8 they will be performing their work in bookstores, bars, and other venues throughout the Pacific Northwest.

Justin Chin is the author of two collections of poetry, Harmless Medicine and Bite Hard (Manic D Press, 2001 and 1997), and a collection of non-fiction, Mongrel: Essays, Diatribes and Pranks (St. Martin's Press, 1998). His writings have also appeared in The Outlaw Bible Of American Poetry (Thunder's Mouth) and The World In Us: Lesbian, Gay Poetry of the Next Wave (St. Martin's Press), Chick For A Day (Simon & Schuster), and elsewhere.

Beth Lisick is the author of This Too Can Be Yours and Monkey Girl (Manic D Press, 2001 and 1997). Her band, The Beth Lisick Ordeal, has released a CD, Pass (Du Nord Recording). In addition to performing extensively around the U.S. and Western Europe in dive bars, nightclubs, museums and elementary schools, Beth has also played at soul-wrenching corporate affairs like Lollapalooza, the South by Southwest Music Conference and the Lilith Fair.

Not-to-miss Tour Dates:

• Nov 1 - Seattle, WA @ Wild Rose, 8 pm
• Nov 2 - Olympia, WA with Nomy Lamm @ Orca Books, 7-9 pm
• Nov 3 - Portland, OR @ In Other Words Books, 7-9 pm
• Nov 4 - Portland, OR with Zoe Trope @ Powell's Books, 6 pm
• Nov 5 - Seattle, WA with Marcel Parker, Amy Mahoney @ Richard Hugo House, 7 pm
• Nov 6 - Seattle, WA with Tara Hardy and Fran Varian @ Re-Bar, 8 pm
• Nov 7 - San Juan Island, WA @ San Juan Island Library, 7 pm
• Nov 8 - Bellingham, WA with Jamilah Bourdon @ Village Books, 7 pm

BERNADETTE MAYER & JEROME ROTHENBERG TO VISIT THE PNW

• Wednesday, Nov 7th
  Subtext Reading with Bernadette Mayer, Phil Good, and C.E. Putnam at Richard Hugo House, 1634 11th Avenue, 7:30 pm, suggested donation is $5. Bernadette Mayer has been called the Mother of Poetry. A quintessential New York Poet, she has regularly taught her legendary Experiments in Poetry Workshop at the Poetry Project since the 1970s. She will be joined by her partner, poet Phil Good, and local poet C.E. Putnam, who coordinates Subtext's monthly silent open mike.
  
  The Subtext reading series is a collaborative effort by Seattle-area writers and readers interested in new writing. Monthly readings are held on the first Wednesday of each month at the Richard Hugo House at 7:30 pm.
  
  
• Thursday, Nov 8th
  SPLAB Livingroom with Bernadette Mayer and Jerome Rothenberg at 14 S. Division, Auburn, 7 - 9 pm, $10 suggested donation, 253.725.6238 for info. The Living Room is a weekly writer's critique circle at SPLAB. Participate in this special intimate gathering with two of America's significant poets. Bring work to share and/or ears to listen with. Jerome Rothenberg will also be reading at SPLAB on Friday, Nov 9th and teaching a workshop on Saturday, Nov 10th.
  
  The Northwest SPokenword LAB (SPLAB) is an intergenerational spokenword performance, resource, and outreach center dedicated to poetry, storytelling, conversation, debate, consciousness and building community through shared experience of the spoken and written word.

PUBLISHING ONLINE POETRY CONTEST
Publishing Online is a Seattle area online publishing company. Last year they hosted a series of literary contests (from poetry to erotic fiction) and they are repeating the process this year. The prize amounts have been lowered this year, but are still significant:

Poetry Contest
1st place: $1,500
2nd Place: $1,000
3rd Place: $750

And that's the news from my little desktop universe. Be well. Celebrate your art. Share with others.

Yr PNW Poetry Servant,
Danika Dinsmore