A New Resource

Announcing the start of a new resource for writers and other creative types.

Cafe Connoisseurs and Writing Capers

Join Jenny and me as we wander the streets of Portland (or wherever else our feet or vehicles take us) in search of places to write. All content generated will be completely biased and based on our own personal experiences at said establishments.

Trust us, we are fair minded people.

Usually.

photograph by Dot.

event 5/16: open mic

Lunacy Stageworks Presents:

OPEN MIC NIGHT

Saturday May 16th, 8:00pm at the Sellwood Masonic Lodge

7126 SE Milwaukie Ave, Portland, OR / $3 cover at the door

Act

Sing

Dance

Juggle

Read a Poem

Tell a Story

Come in Costume

Come as you are

JUST COME

event 5/13: A Night of Clowns & Owls

There's going to be an exciting event next week:

An ASIFA Night of Clowns & Owls
With Misha Klein and Dan Ackerman
Wed. May 13th,
7pm-9pm @ Studio 13
13 NW 13th Ave.
Admission is FREE for card-carrying members
$3 for non-members

Owl Pals, directed by Dan Ackerman
"Our evening host, Dan Ackerman, Director of Photography, will present his latest stop-motion project, Owl Pals, a promotional trailer based on the children's book illustrations of Luba Goninda. Dan will be on hand to talk about the rewards and challenges of directing this visually rich combination of original 3D characters, flat puppets and multi-plane camerawork, as well as show off some of the actual puppets and designs.

Fred the Clown, created by Misha Klein (clip)
Coraline animator Misha Klein will also be showing a sneak preview of his brand new animated film, recently competed at Studio 13. A labor of love years in the making, this 7-minute vignette focuses on Fred the Clown's internal struggles and performance anxieties, above all with a palpable dread of his boss. Featuring spontaneous camera work, gorgeous sets and atmospheric lighting, Misha will be on hand to talk about his travels on the road to finishing this amazing film."

Thank you, Sven, for bringing this to my attention!

Thank you to Mead Hunter at Blogorrhea for passing along this interesting idea! Hmmm! I like it.

Not long ago, playwright Fin Kennedy brought a cool new scheme to my attention: the Adopt a Playwright Award, in which contributors can pool their resources to make sure at least one unsung new voice gets produced every year.

What I love about this concept is that it completely bypasses the galumphing machinery of the play selection process that is more standard – you know, the one in which a play is test-marketed as though it were a new brand of snack food. Fin elaborated on the strengths of the program yesterday on the Guardian’s TheatreBlog – thank you, Mme. Kollodi, for leading me to this.

Read all about it, and let’s talk about what it would take to launch this
here.

I support the idea of doing this for a playwright (and still need to finish reading the article myself *grin*), but I think there may be other applications of this idea for other dreative types!

Hmmm!

TADA : The demise of balloons.

This made me smile!



Part of the clean-up after PICA's TADA! festival was to get rid of a bunch of balloons. Which was done by, well, popping them!

Haven't you always wanted to do this?

intention: a poem

I sent an email out and attached my "writer" signature (I have one for interpreting, one for my adjunct faculty job, and one for writing). I rarely look at the content of the signatures any more -- isn't that why I set them up? So I can just select which one applies, press the mouse, and voila, there you go!

But today I did notice. It was one of those emails which didn't really require a signature attachment but it seemed like a good idea. But it doesn't fall into the interpreting category at all and it is not a writing thing.

So, today, I noticed.

At the bottom of my "writer" signature is this poem by Mary Ann Radmacher. Fitting. It's where I am mentally and spiritually and, I suppose, even physically at this moment in time.

.............................................................
live with intention,
walk to the edge,
listen hard,
practice wellness,
play with abandon,
laugh,
choose with no regret,
continue to learn,
appreciate your friends,
do what you love,
live as if this is all there is.

..................................................by Mary Anne Radmacher

It's a reminder I wanted to put out into the world today to anyone else who may be needing a little boost or confirmation of intention.

passage

I decided today that Dragon Boats is my gateway drug. There's probably a more politically correct way to say that - but there you go.

On Thursday - I replaced my lost kayak. A different model, of course. But I am ready to get back in the boat and can't wait until 5/16 when I will be going for a lesson and a flat water ride. Also will be going on something on 6/20 - I'm sure that one will be a lower level shorter ride, because of who I'm going with (my partner's 80 year old step-father and his approach is definitely a more conservative route to skill building; he goes on major whitewater himself, but that day will be for friends of various skill levels and I'm sure he'll put me on something calm). I'd like to get one trip on my own boat (Ridgefield will be their boats) before the birthday ride.

And today I'm poring over the route and details of a high desert relay race I'm going to participate in! I'm putting together a team. My trainer is going to help, because I have never done it before and, until now, haven't really hung out with a long distance relay, boating, hiking, crowd.

Then this morning I went for a walk on a circuit I used a couple years ago, which took be 45+ minutes. I did a little speed walking (for me, remember it's all relative) and did it in just under 30 minutes.

What? Me? Huh!

See: gateway drug. Only better for me than ol' maryjane.

This does relate to writing and creativity. It does. And I'm only beginning to explore that aspect!

*prompt for May Day*

for a poem, a collage, a story.

complete the following list. if one takes you in a particular direction, follow.

create.

I am
I wonder
I hear
I see
I want
I am
I pretend
I feel
I touch
I worry
I understand
I say
I dream
I try
I hope
I am

time keeps on ticking, ticking

I posted my writing for this week in the Lit Star Training class. I stayed up until 4AM to finish it because I wanted this one to be on time. I never posted last week's; time has slipped away into work and leavings and sleep and workouts and practice. Last night I interpreted "Frost/Nixon" at Portland Center Stage so I will have back another big chunk of time.

No, wait. Not really; I'm interpreting "How I Learned to Drive" at Portland Community College just two weeks from today.

Night before last I slept eight hours and fifteen minutes. That was waking up on my own time. It was nice. Last night I slept four hours because I had to write - I couldn't let it go. Then I had an appointment with my trainer.

Tonight I'll sleep. And I just gained two hours on Sunday because I was over my allowable hours at my part-time job for April so they are having me go in two hours later on Sunday. No problem.

Time.