Leaving Tomorrow for Colorado

Last night I went to hear Frank Bidart read at the Tin House reading. He was great. He read outside and it was dark by the time it was over. He said something - which I am no doubt misquoting here - about how the most important thing for a poet to do is to figure out how to get on the page their own understanding of how they determine meaning.

Yes, I have totally mangled that. But it makes sense in my head!

I stood in line to get my book signed. He knew Robert Lowell, so I read some letters to Frank Bidart from Robert Lowell this morning, in my Letters of Robert Lowell.

Tomorrow we are heading for Estes Park. Laura is going to cheer camp at OSU, so she won't be with us. She'll be cheering! 

Here's a link to an Estes Park web cam!

I ran 14 miles today. Now I need to pack!

The Police and Elvis Costello

We saw Elvis Costello and the Police on Friday night!

I ran 9 miles today.

I am reading Anil's Ghost by Michael Ondaatje.

More soon.

4th of July!

It's the 4th of July and Max is in Washington D.C.! Laura and I bought fireworks today and I saved some for him.

I ran 6 miles today. I made a pasta salad to take to Holly's and we're leaving soon. Debbie's in town!

Summer!

We had fun camping although the weekend sure went by fast. That's Michael and Laura at the campground! Bats came out of the trees at night and that was kind of cool.

Max and Laura have new bikes and I rode Laura's last night. It felt great to be on a bike again! I used to ride a bike everywhere in Eugene.

I am reading Without End by Adam Zagajewski. I am going to read The Ghost Writer by Philip Roth once I get my hands on a copy.

Debbie comes to visit next week! My tomatos have yellow flowers on them.

Where I'll be this weekend

Leaving tomorrow for Timothy Lake! Camping with everyone.

Tomorrow is summer solstice.

I have been running a lot. Writing poems in the early morning.

Yay for summer.

Weekend

The weekend is winding down and I had a good one.

Max's team lost yesterday, so his season is pretty much over. But they had an 18 win, 3 loss record which is pretty fantastic. We are going to a Mariners game in Seattle in August!

I watched a lot of the O.C. on Saturday night - season one. Laura wasn't feeling well, so we watched several episodes. Sometimes nothing else will do. This is Laura's last week of middle school.

I'm going to start taking the Max train into work more I think and I was thinking, maybe I should get a bike and then I could ride the bike to the Max. Just a thought. But then I read some things about how it's kind of a hassle during rush hour to find a place to put your bike on the Max. Although I still wonder what it would be like to have a bike again.

I ran 8 miles yesterday. I pulled a lot of weedy grass in my backyard today. I cleaned my office. Worked on poems.

I am reading Strangers by Taichi Yamada. It's a Japanese novel about a man who gos to his hometown and finds his parents living there. But his parents have been dead for over 20 years. It's kind of spooky and I like it.

I Am Supposed to Be Grading Papers

Look, it's the new WITS director at Literary Arts! That's Portland's own Mary Rechner.

The new Deschutes Brewery in Portland is just like the one in Bend. Sort of.

Monday I start my marathon training. Wish me luck.

I brought home some cactus. Tomorrow Max has a baseball game.

I have no quote for the day because I'm supposed to be grading papers.

Here I go.

Quack

There is like four baskets of unfolded laundry in my basement. Maybe five.

I haven't called my mom in like two weeks.

I finished When She Was Good.

Monica is getting ducks! I'm very excited for her.

Very Smart Kids and Queen Cows

The picture is a Rauschenberg painting. I hope he is having fun, wherever he is. Rest in peace!

Max and Laura are very smart kids. I know because they showed Michael and I at their student-led conferences at school tonight.

I am reading When She Was Good by Philip Roth.

Baker City was fabulous. The streets are gorgeous there - wide streets and mountains in the distance. People leave their bikes unlocked on the sidewalk. It's true, I'm not making it up!

I have been reading about cow etiquette. It's really fascinating! There is always a queen cow. Cows who are higher in the social heirarchy don't have to walk as far for their share of the grass.

Leaving Burns, Heading For Baker City

There they are, at the Harney County Libray.

Burns is flat, quiet, pretty.

My motel room has a desk with drawer handles made from bent horseshoes.

You can hunt antelope here in the late summer, by the Malheur River. And elk. Maybe that's where some of the heads at Central Pastime came from. We went there last night. There was a big buffalo head which was kind of cool except of course I felt sorry for the buffalo.

I go now in search of birds and coffee. Then on to Baker City!

If We Reach Idaho We've Gone Too Far

I'm leaving for Burns this morning with Charlie and Lee. Jeff is already there! Robert's on his way.

I have never been to Burns. I have Diet Coke and Oreos in my car. And soon, a full tank of gas.

Wish me luck!

May Day

So you know what that means! But if you don't remember, refresh your memory here and here.

I need to make more collages! I haven't made any in ages.

Next week I"ll be in Burns and Baker City. This weekend I'm running the Eugene Half-Marathon.

Tonight I'm going out to dinner at Jake's with my husband of 18 years.

I love him.

The View from My Hotel Balcony

I'm in Astoria this morning. Last night Tom Blood, Monica Drake, Susan Fletcher and Kristian Williams read at the Cannery Pier Hotel, where we're all staying.

Their work is all very different, but somehow it all comes together in an interesting way. Monica's book is about a girl who works as a clown, Tom's a lyric poet, Kristian's book is about government torture and Susan's book for young adults takes place in the Middle East. It always happens in these readings that I notice connections, even in work that seems very disparate.

The picture to the left is Tom at the reading last night.

I'm spending the next hour or so trying to finish some of my own poems for poetry group Sunday! Then I'll explore Astoria a little. On foot! And drive down to Newport for the reading tonight.




My internet connection seems intermittent. I'll post this now, while I can! (the ship was passing by my room so I took a picture of it)

Friday It Is!

Do you like my Yoda title for this posting?

It is Friday. I'm going to the Oregon Literary Coalition meeting at Marylhurst today.

Michael and I are going to Sometimes A Great Notion on Sunday.

Max has a game tomorrow and it might snow!

I got up early this morning and worked on my poem which is nearing completion.

Next week I'm going to Astoria and Newport with the Oregon Book Awards Author Tour.

One of Laura's fish may have had a baby fish.

Marjane!

Well she was lovely. I really enjoyed her visit!

Michael is re-doing our kitchen. He took out a cabinet today that had been between the dining room and the kitchen. So now there's plenty of light in the kitchen. I wonder how it will all end up!

Yesterday the office was closed. I wrote drafts of two poems. I made lasagne for dinner! That was a treat as I hardly ever have time to make dinner anymore during the week. And Max has baseball practice several times a week and doesn't get home until 7:00.

Sunday poetry group is meeting at my house.

I am going to read Joe Sacco. Marjane mentioned him.

Katy Lederer will be in the next Caffeine Destiny. I asked her two years ago. She remembered!

Two to Go!

In our event parade! Lucille Clifton will be here Sunday, and Monday it's Marjane Satrapi!

Elizabeth Gilbert was amazing. The audience was mostly women! It was a great evening.

I need a new book to read. I'm between books, although I have seen books I want to read and by this time next week I should be reading something!

Laura will be a cheerleader next year! And Max is switching to the tuba.

I have to clean my office. Tonight Battlestar premieres.

It's National Poetry Month but I have yet to write a poem in April.

Gilbert and Clifton and Marjane oh my!

It's a busy next few days for me!

I'm looking forward to all our events.

We had a great time in Leavenworth, and it snowed!

I haven't been on Facebook much. The new term started. So it's a busy time but it's Spring!

Happy Birthday Debbie!

Max's baseball season starts Saturday. Tomorrow Laura has cheerleading tryouts.

Happy Easter!

Edward Hirsch will be reading here in Portland on Monday, March 24th. Please leave me a comment if you'd like to see him!

The kids are on spring break. I'll be on spring break after Tuesday.

I read last night in Salem. That was really fun, and Dad and Jane came and that made it even more fun.

It was great to hear Cecelia read.

Always very reassuring to look out in the audience and see Michael. To know that even if I totally make a complete fool of myself, he will still like me.

Mom coming up tomorrow. Happy Easter!

Holy Week

It's hard to believe Easter is a week away.

I started reading A Concise Chinese-English Dictionary for Lovers last night. I like it. The narrator is learning English, so at the beginning the English is halting.

Stephen Sondheim was here last week, with Frank Rich. It was exciting to meet him. I have been listening to Sondheim tunes ever since.

Tomorrow is poetry group, and then I'm at the Multnomah Library, for the writer's resource fair. Giving out information about the fellowships and the book awards.

It's raining and I need to take a shower.

Michael is done with school!

Seven Notebooks

I am reading Seven Notebooks by Campbell McGrath. It's poems and prose and I'm really enjoying it. I'm also still reading The Theory of Clouds. Clouds and notebooks!

Laura and I saw the movie The Other Boleyn Girl today. That was fun. We shopped a little too.

Debbie sent me a scarf she made and a shawl. They are both lovely and I like to think of Debbie in her studio apartment in Manhattan knitting her niece a scarf. How sweet. I have been wearing the shawl tonight while I look at student papers. It's a nice deep burgundy.