2015 Appearances
10 January 2015: Haiku Northwest members read from No Longer Strangers at the Green Lake Branch of the Seattle Public Library, 7364 E. Greenlake Drive N., Seattle, 4:00 p.m. Free. Reading will be recorded by J. Glenn Evans for broadcast on the PoetsWest radio show on KSER 90.7 FM.
21 January 2015: Poets Wanted, Dead or Alive: Celebrating Famous Poets. Open reading and discussion of poetry by Mexican poet Octavio Paz, plus open-mic reading. Guest speaker is Jorge Enrique González Pacheco, director of the Seattle Latino Film Festival, who was also a student of Paz’s in Spain. Redmond Regional Library, 15990 NE 85th Street in Redmond, 6:30 p.m., free.
28 January 2015: Poets Wanted, Dead or Alive: Celebrating Famous Poets. Open reading and discussion of poetry by American poet Robert Frost, plus open-mic reading. Guest speaker is Christopher Jarmick, talking about less-heralded Frost poems. Redmond Regional Library, 15990 NE 85th Street in Redmond, 6:30 p.m., free.
February 2015: Hosting National Haiku Writing Month with daily writing prompts on the NaHaiWriMo page on Facebook (write at least one haiku a day each day throughout February—the shortest month for the shortest genre of poetry).
3 February 2015: Teaching haiku to my daughter’s grade three advanced-placement class at Blackwell Elementary School in Sammamish, Washington, 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon. (The entire class is writing haiku each day in response to National Haiku Writing Month daily writing prompts.)
4 February 2015: Featured reader with Jennifer Bullis at Poetry at the Station Bistro, 110 2nd Street #125, in Auburn, Washington, presented by the Striped Water Poets. 7:00 p.m. (includes an open mic). See also the Station Bistro website, and the Auburn Reporter news story.
11 February 2015: Poets Wanted, Dead or Alive: Celebrating Famous Poets. Open reading and discussion of poetry by Japanese haiku poet Bashō, plus open-mic reading. Redmond Regional Library, 15990 NE 85th Street in Redmond, 6:30 p.m., free.
14 February 2015: Redmond Association of Spokenword contributors read from Here, There, and Everywhere at the Green Lake Branch of the Seattle Public Library, 7364 E. Greenlake Drive N., Seattle, 4:00 p.m. Free. Reading will be recorded by J. Glenn Evans for broadcast on the PoetsWest radio show on KSER 90.7 FM.
17 February 2015: MC for the inaugural Talking Pages reading sponsored by Eastside Writes, at the Historic Shell Station, 232 Front Street, Issaquah, Washington. 7:00 p.m., free. See video.
18 February 2015: Poets Wanted, Dead or Alive: Celebrating Famous Poets. Open reading and discussion of poetry by Bengali poet, Rabindranath Tagore, plus open-mic reading. Redmond Regional Library, 15990 NE 85th Street in Redmond, 6:30 p.m., free.
21 February 2015: Quarterly Haiku Northwest meeting, 10:30 a.m., Graham Visitor Center, in Seattle's Washington Park Arboretum, for a haiku walk, then meeting at the Montlake Library, 2401 24th Ave. E. in Seattle, from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m.
25 February 2015: Poets Wanted, Dead or Alive: Celebrating Famous Poets. Open reading and discussion of poetry by Seattle poet Theodore Roethke, plus open-mic reading. Guest speaker is Leah Mueller, sharing and discussing Roethke poems and themes. Redmond Regional Library, 15990 NE 85th Street in Redmond, 6:30 p.m., free.
27 February 2015: MC for the Redmond Association of Spokenword, featuring poets Kelli Russell Agodon and Martha Silano, Old Redmond Schoolhouse Community Center, 16600 NE 80th Street, Redmond, Washington, 7:00 p.m. (includes an open-mic reading).
1 March 2015: Submission period opens for the Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival’s annual Haiku Invitational contest, which I’m cojudging this year with Katherine J. Munro and Allan Burns. Submission period ends 1 June 2015. Free to enter up to two haiku per person.
5 March 2015: MOHAIKU! Displaying my “Haikuseum” and haiku interaction for the free first Thursday at MOHAI, Seattle’s Museum of History and Industry, 860 Terry Avenue North in Seattle. Readings of haiku and other haiku activities, too.
12 March 2015: Guest blogger at the Seattle Japanese Garden blog, with a short essay offering “An Invitation to Spring Haiku.”
27 March 2015: MC for the Redmond Association of Spokenword, featuring poets Jim Bertolino and Anita K. Boyle, Old Redmond Schoolhouse Community Center, 16600 NE 80th Street, Redmond, Washington, 7:00 p.m. (includes an open-mic reading).
1 April 2015: Featured reader for Duvall Poetry, Duvall Library Meeting Room, 15508 Main Street NE, Duvall, Washington, reading mostly humourous verse. 7:00 p.m. Free.
4 April 2015: Featured poetry reader with Sean Bentley and Judith Skillman, Newcastle Library, 12901 Newcastle Way, Newcastle, Washington. 4:00 p.m., free. Sponsored by the Newport Hills Community Club.
5 April 2015: Haiku workshop for Sakura-Con anime festival at the Washington State Convention Center in Seattle, 1:00 to 2:30 p.m, panel 4-C3 (free with Sakura-Con admission).
7 April 2015: “To Say the Least: An Introduction to Short Poetry.” Free workshop, Redmond Regional Library, 15990 NE 85th Street in Redmond. 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
11 April 2015: Guest judge for the 2015 Writer’s Digest Poem-a-Day challenge, with selected poems slated to appear in the anthology, Poem Your Heart Out (volume 2). See submission announcement, guidelines, and the 11 April blog post (see all the comments to read all the poems people entered), plus the announcement of winners. +
11–12 April 2015: Displaying my “Haikuseum,” and giving haiku workshops and readings for the Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival’s “Sakura Days Japan Fair,” VanDusen Botanical Garden, Vancouver, British Columbia ($10.00 garden/event admission charged). Also leading haiku walks at the garden during the festival. See event photos. See 2015 VCBF video.
18 April 2015: Prerecorded appearance with Shannon Waters on Vancouver Co-Op Radio, CFRO 100.5 FM, doing an interview about the Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival’s annual Haiku Invitational, for which I’m serving as a judge this year.
18 April 2015: “The Art of Writing Haiku” workshop and haiku walk at Tillicum House in Pioneer Park (see this site also), 2004 Cherry Street, Ferndale, Washington, as part of the Ferndale Cherry Blossom Festival. 10:00 a.m. to noon for a workshop and discussion, a break for lunch (restaurants nearby or bring a lunch; kitchen available in the meeting room), and then 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. for writing, sharing, and discussing haiku, plus the making of haiku weathergrams. Free. More info at the City of Ferndale website.
19 April 2015: Haiku Northwest reading from its 25th anniversary anthology, No Longer Strangers, at Bellevue Botanical Garden, 12001 Main Street, Bellevue, Washington, 12:00 noon. Free. Read more information. (Reading cancelled; will be rescheduled.)
19 April 2015: Teaching haiku at Bellevue Botanical Garden, 12001 Main Street, Bellevue, Washington, 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. $35, or $25 for garden society members. See registration information. (Workshop cancelled; will be rescheduled.)
19 April 2015: Poem featured on KUSP radio’s “Poetry Show,” in celebration of the 40th anniversary of the Yuki Teikei Haiku Society. www.kusp.org, 88.9 FM, central-California coast, 9:00 p.m. Featured poems are all first-place winners in the Tokutomi haiku contest.
21 April 2015: Talking Pages poetry reading sponsored by Eastside Writes, at the Historic Shell Station, 232 Front Street, Issaquah, Washington. Featuring Jared Leising and Martha Clarkson. 7:00 p.m., free. (I curate the poetry components of this literary reading series.)
25 April 2015: Serving as a judge for the Poetry Coffeehouse at the Redmond Regional Library, 15990 NE 85th Street in Redmond. 2:00 to 4:00 p.m., free—with cookies and coffee, too. Read more details and more.
28 April 2015: “Haiku Writing: A Goal-Setting Workshop” at Kirkland Library, 308 Kirkland Avenue, Kirkland, Washington. 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Free.
2 May 2015: “Haiku in the Woods” presentation and guided haiku walk, 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. (bring a lunch), Beaver Lake Lodge at Beaver Lake Park, 25101 SE 24th Street in Sammamish, Washington. Sponsored by the Sammamish Arts Commission and Sammamish Walks. Free for adults and families, but registration is requested.
9 May 2015: Presenting “Taking It to the Streets: Urban Haiku Workshop” for the annual Haiku Northwest meeting in Seattle’s Fremont district and Fremont library. Free. See event schedule.
12 May 2015: Facilitator for the Poetry & Prose Circle at the Redmond Regional Library, 15990 NE 85th Street in Redmond, sponsored by the Redmond Association of Spokenword and the Friends of the Redmond Library. Bring a poem or two, or an excerpt from a novel or short story to share for genial feedback. 6:30 to 9:00 p.m. Free!
15–17 May 2015: Haiku Canada weekend in Victoria, British Columbia.
31 May 2015: Staffing a haiku table, displaying my Haikuseum, and providing two haiku workshops for children at the Seattle Japanese Garden Children’s Day festival, from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. (gate opens at 10:00 a.m.). Free with garden admission (children 12 and under free). See the new garden website.
1 June 2015: Submission period ends for the Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival’s annual Haiku Invitational contest, which I’m cojudging this year with Katherine J. Munro and Allan Burns. Free to enter up to two haiku per person.
9 June 2015: “Taking It to the Streets: Urban Haiku Workshop” for the Commencement Bay Haiku Group, at King’s Books, 218 St Helens Avenue in Tacoma, Washington, 6:00 p.m. Free.
20 June 2015: Poets in the Park festival, book fair, and poetry picnic at Anderson Park in Redmond, Washington. Free, full-day poetry festival with readings, workshops, and more. See event photos. + +
23 June 2015: Featured poem, “True Colours,” complete with audio recording, on the website for Rattle magazine, from the Japanese Forms issue published in March 2015.
24 July 2015: Installing “Haiku on Sticks” at the Seattle Japanese Garden’s annual Garden Party fundraiser, in celebration of the garden’s 55th anniversary, from 6:00 to 8:30 p.m. $75 admission, available June 1. See the new garden website.
27 July 2015: Poet laureate reception and presentation to the Redmond Arts & Culture Commission, Redmond City Hall, 15670 NE 85th Street, Redmond, Washington, 6:30 and 7:00 p.m.
8 August 2015: Quarterly Haiku Northwest meeting in Seattle, at the Olympic Sculpture Park, featuring my presentation, “Spiritual Freedom: Learning from Wassily Kandinsky.”
22–23 August 2015: Arts in Nature festival, sponsored by the Nature Consortium, at Camp Long, 5200 35th Avenue SW in Seattle. $10 admission. “Haiku on Sticks” installation, haiku workshops, and more. See West Seattle Blog posting and event photos.
29 August 2015: Judging a free haiku contest, and reading the winners, at the Seattle Japanese Garden Moon Viewing Festival, 7:00 p.m., with Tanya McDonald ($15 admission to the event). See the new garden website. See moon viewing report and haiku contest results on the Seattle Japanese Garden Community Blog.
12, 13 September 2015: Staffing a haiku table at Aki Matsuri (Japanese fall festival), Bellevue College, Bellevue, Washington.
19 September 2015: Reading by Haiku Northwest members, featuring its 25th anniversary anthology, No Longer Strangers, at Bellevue Botanical Garden, 12001 Main Street, Bellevue, Washington, 12:00 noon. Free. Read more information.
19 September 2015: Teaching haiku at Bellevue Botanical Garden, 12001 Main Street, Bellevue, Washington, 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. $35, or $25 for garden society members. See registration information.
19 September 2015: Artists’ reception, 6:00 to 8:00 p.m., for “We Are” art exhibit, to which I'm contributing photography and poetry, at artEAST Art Center, 95 Front Street North in Issaquah, Washington. Exhibit runs 31 August to 31 October 2015.
22 September 2015: Speaking about the Seattle and eastside poetry scenes, and my own poetry activity, for the Kirkland Rotary, 7:30 a.m., Hector’s Restaurant, 112 Lake Street South, Kirkland, Washington.
25 September 2015: MC for the Redmond Association of Spokenword, featuring Jack Straw Writing Program writers Clare Johnson and Laura Da’, and its current curator, Kevin Craft, Old Redmond Schoolhouse Community Center, 16600 NE 80th Street, Redmond, Washington, 7:00 p.m. (includes an open-mic reading).
25 September 2015: One of my haiku is featured on a balloon for the “Poetry Circus” in Los Angeles, curated by Nicelle Davis.
27 September 2015: One of thirteen featured readers for the launch of the ninth issue of Clover: A Literary Rag (see my haiku sequence about Japan from this issue, “The Mended Shōji”). Join us at Village Books, 1200 11th Street, Bellingham, Washington, 4:00 p.m. Free. See a video of me at this reading.
2 October 2015: Featured poet on Carpe Diem Haiku Kai (1 of 5).
1–4 October 2015: Directing Haiku Northwest’s eighth annual Seabeck Haiku Getaway at the Seabeck Conference Center in Seabeck, Washington, featuring guest speaker Randy Brooks (our theme for the weekend is the sense of touch). See the full and exciting retreat schedule. +
8 October 2015: Featured poet on Carpe Diem Haiku Kai (2 of 5).
14 October 2015: Featured poet on Carpe Diem Haiku Kai (3 of 5).
14–18 October 2015: Haiku North America conference, Union College, Schenectady, New York. I gave the opening welcome, chaired a panel on haiku education, led a reading from the new 25th anniversary HNA anthology, Fire in the Treetops, which I edited, and give a presentation on “Spiritual Freedom: Learning from Wassily Kandinsky.” See the full conference schedule. (I’m a director of the nonprofit corporation that runs this biennial event.)
18 October 2015: Codirecting the Tanka Sunday event for the Tanka Society of America, at the Desmond Hotel in Albany, New York. In addition to MCing and participating in several readings, I also gave a short paper on “Why Do We Write Tanka.” See the complete schedule.
20 October 2015: Featured poet on Carpe Diem Haiku Kai (4 of 5).
28 October 2015: Featured poet on Carpe Diem Haiku Kai (5 of 5).
29 October 2015: A poem of mine is the poem of the day on Seattle’s 2015 Poetry on Buses website. This poem has also been featured on a placard on a RapidRide Poetry Bus (an entire bus dedicated to poetry) departing the East Base that serves Line B in Bellevue and Redmond, and a RapidRide Bus departing the South Base that serves Lines A and F in Tukwila, Federal Way, Burien, and Renton. If you see my poem, take a picture and let me know!
8 December 2015: I’m the solution today to puzzler #5 in Anita Krumins’ Haiku Crypto-Quiz on the Haiku Foundation website.
8 December 2015: Featured haiku on the Haikuniverse website: “chess men in boxes . . . / the café’s ceiling fan / turns by itself.”
9 December 2015: One of fifteen spotlight readers in the final “Take a Poem from Your Heart” reading at Parkplace Books, 348 Parkplace Center in Kirkland, Washington.
15 December 2015: Poem featured on Kathabela Wilson’s ColoradoBoulevard.net Poetry Corner blog: “winter rain . . . / the spaces between ocean waves / closer together.”
Click to see current appearances.
