Jim Martin, April Bullard, Rob Gourley, and Jenney Pauer at St. Johns Booksellers June 9, 2012

Photo by Toni Partington

Printed Matter Vancouver would like to thank Jim Martin, April Bullard, Rob Gourley and Jenney Pauer for representing Vancouver at Dan Raphael’s Market Day Poetry Series on Saturday, June 9. The series, which spans 22 weeks and features a different host each week, takes place at St. Johns Booksellers (8622 N. Lombard, Portland), a great independent bookstore owned and operated by Nena Rawdah. For more information, go tohttp://www.stjohnsbooks.com/ We would also like to thank Dan Raphael for curating this amazing series and Nena for having us. St. Johns Booksellers is simply one of the most enthusiastic and consistent supporters of local poets in Portland.

St. Johns Booksellers owner Nena Rawdah greets the audience

Photo by Mary Slocum

We would also like to thank Steve Williams, M, and Mary Slocum for coming out to support us. In addition, Christopher Luna would like to thank Mary Slocum and Toni Partington for documenting the event.

Below you will find information about each poet, an example of their work, and photos from the event:

April Bullard by Toni Partington

April Bullard resides with her husband aboard their houseboat near Vancouver, Washington. She admits to 50 years of age, over 30 years of marriage, mother of 3, grandmother of 2, navy veteran, and a fondness for absinthe. She creates work inspired by living cradled on the Columbia River as an artist, photographer, poet, and musician. Her work continues to be exhibited in numerous galleries, and businesses in the Vancouver/Portland area. Her paintings have a home at Cover to Cover Books & Espresso, in Vancouver, WA. Published cover art includes: Cover of Darkness (May 2011 and Jan 2012), Potter’s Field 4, Aoife’s Kiss (Dec 2011), and parABnormal Digest #3, all from Sam’s Dot Publishing. Published author credits include parABnormal Digest #2 and #3, Shelter of Daylight Autumn 2011, and two pieces forthcoming in Cover of Darkness June 2012, all from Sam’s Dot Publishing. For more info, visit: http://www.aprilbullard.com

 River God by April Bullard

From the beach, I watch you walk

Waist deep in cool, dark water.

The afternoon sun behind you

Outlines your distinct silhouette

In a living aura of flaming gold.

Tiny blue reflections fail to disclose

Details of your shadowy side.

Out stretched arms create a commanding presence.

Your fingertips caress the surface of the water

Bringing a million sun kissed ripples

Twinkling to life,

Sparkling diamonds wandering on the current.

For an instant, you are a god.

The pure, blazing energy of life surrounds you.

Blissfully omnipotent,

Moving through the refreshing black cold of space.

Your merest whim, stray glance,

Or flick of a finger

Propels billions of burning stars

Through the celestial eddies of infinity,

Until their fever fades into oblivion.

Rob Gourley by Mary Slocum

Rob Gourley: Educated in Antioch College and Central Washington University, my employment career has consisted of 17 years as Teacher/Counselor in Washington schools and another 17 years as Locator/Surveyor in an auto processing company at Port of Portland intermodal transportation facilities, where I operate a Teklogix scanner or sometimes install software upgrades via G-scan equipment.

 Rob Gourley by Mary Slocum

As for the craft of poetry, I was fortunate to have studied under the guidance of professors Milton Goldberg and Nicholas Crome, to have participated in an afternoon seminar session given by Gary Snyder, and to have meditated with supervision of zen master Bishop Nippo in the early 70s. During recent years my avocation has been listening/performing in various open-mic events of the Portland metro area. I’ve followed deer trails upstream in the following watersheds: Rivanna River (VA), Little Miami R. (OH), Puget Sound & Columbia R. (WA). After the canoe was stolen, I sold the paddles.

Rob Gourley reads from a chapbook created especially for the event at St. Johns Booksellers

which includes a brilliant tribute to Miles Davis

Photo by Toni Partington

Draft 20 from Skinflint’s Journal by Rob Gourley

… Caught myself recollecting the names

of those encountered through the dream,

before eyes opened to the light,

as if listing for some index –

“Campbell, Davis, Faulkner, Foster …

put Baker closer to the front.

Vascott follows last, no Walker!”

It was but an illusion that

a scene could be revisited –

the dream was not a DVD.

Finding the place I wanted brought

new faces and circumstances.

Giving up, I became awake

listening to bird trills outside,

rolled out, and stepped into jeans.

On the south porch by glass windows

six crimson amaryllis blooms

were leaning forward like fast friends.

Jim Martin by Mary Slocum

Jim Martin: Have you ever had a thought that wouldn’t be tamed? I have, and it won’t leave me alone. I’m a retired biologist and teacher, who spends his time with family, volunteers at animal shelters, does advising and board work in science inquiry education, dances tap and ballet, writes and reads poetry at open mikes, and makes and exhibits photographs. And thinking about who we are and why.

Jim Martin by Toni Partington

 Jim Martin by Mary Slocum

Altitude by Jim Martin

his words

scuttle      like a crab

legs      on autopilot

twist and bend

pulling its body

his lies

close to the ground

unseen from above

while claws wave

in the air

directing your gaze

from its eyes

eyes

fasten on your

vulnerable neck

throbbing artery    that

once breached

heart’s certain

death

scuttles

does the crab

low to the ground

will never know

the joy of altitude

Jenney Pauer reads from Serenity in the Brutal Garden

Photo by Toni Partington

Jenney Pauer is a graduate of Southern Methodist University, where she studied theater and English literature. After serving four years in the United States Army as a Korean linguist, she obtained a Secondary English Education degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Before moving to the Pacific Northwest with her dog and cat in 2008, she taught high school English along the border of Arizona and Mexico. Recently, Jenney co-wrote a short film, Nico’s Sampaguita, accepted into the 27th Annual Asian Pacific Film Festival in Los Angeles, and soon to be released by Sacred Fire Films in San Francisco, California. Serenity in the Brutal Garden (Printed Matter Vancouver, 2012) is her first book.

Jenney Pauer, Rob Gourley, April Bullard, and Jim Martin

Photo by Toni Partington

Fa Mu Lan by Jenney Pauer

Fa Mu Lan is a name from the past,

even if today she is a stone in the woods

waiting for a hand to push her into motion,

she will not roll out into the sun

and grab her sword

and shout out her name

to fight men on the Internet

and women on diets.

She will be at a loss will she not?

Where is the battleground she knew?

Where is the tablecloth

stretched from the skin of her father

that urged her into war

centuries ago?

It is hanging on a wall in the

Smithsonian,

preserved behind a glass case,

and people pass by it quickly

so they can get a look at the body of the

Egyptian concubine—

Na-ret.

The salacious,

the once voluptuous,

Na-ret.

And Fa Mu Lan waits as a stone so that

beetles may nest and turn beneath her

and birds can hit her with their beaks

and shit on her.

She is an old woman left in a room

taught to forget even how to ask a question.

Give her some water.

She’ll live.

Photo by Toni Partington

Photo by Toni Partington

Ghost Town Poetry Open Mic emcee and Printed Matter Vancouver co-founder Christopher Luna

Photo by Mary Slocum

Christopher Luna is the co-founder, with Toni Partington, of Printed Matter Vancouver, whose books include Ghost Town Poetry, an anthology of poems from the popular Vancouver, WA open mic reading he founded in 2004, and Serenity in the Brutal Garden, the debut collection by Vancouver poet Jenney Pauer. His books include GHOST TOWN, USA and The Flame Is Ours: The Letters of Stan Brakhage and Michael McClure 1961-1978, an important piece of film and literary history that Luna edited at Brakhage’s request, available on Michael Rothenberg’s Big Bridge.org.

Christopher Luna reads his poetry at St. Johns Booksellers

Photo by Toni Partington

Ghost Town Poetry co-host and Printed Matter Vancouver co-founder Toni Partington

Photo by Christopher Luna

Toni Partington reads from her book Wind Wing

Photo by Mary Slocum

Toni Partington: I’m a poet intrigued by the investigative process. I work with the narrative form to explore social commentary. I’m always looking for the “sweet” spot between poetry and art where collaborations find a common voice. Vancouver, Washington is my town and visual, literary, musical, and performance arts are my mission.

Printed Matter Vancouver is proud to report that the reading at St. Johns Booksellers was only the first of two Vancouver showcases we were invited to host in Portland this summer. Please join us in Director Park (SW Park & Yamhill) on Monday evening, July 9 for Poetry on the Piazza, a series of outdoor readings organized by David Abel of the Spare Room Collective. Christopher Luna and Toni Partington will be joined by Vancouver poets Kori Sayer and Jenney Pauer. Live painting by Gallery 360 member DaBat. For more info: http://www.portlandonline.com/parks/index.cfm?c=52454

GHOST TOWN POETRY OPEN MIC
hosted by Christopher Luna and Toni Partington
all ages and uncensored since 2004

7pm Thursday, June 14, 2012
and every second Thursday

Cover to Cover Books
6300 NE St. James Rd., Suite 104B
(St. James & Minnehaha)
Vancouver, WA
360-993-7777
christopherjluna@gmail.com

http://www.covertocoverbooks.net

With our featured reader, Leah Stenson: Leah Stenson serves on the board of Friends of William Stafford, coordinates and hosts the Studio Series Poetry Reading at Stonehenge Studios in Portland, and is a Regional Editor of the upcoming Ooligan Press anthology The Pacific Poetry Project. She worked as an assistant editor in New York City, taught English at a university in Tokyo, and served as Managing Director of the Oregon Peace Institute. Her chapbooks include East/West (William Stafford Institute at Lewis and Clark College, 2005) and Heavenly Body (Finishing Line Press, 2011). Heavenly Body will be available for sale for $12. For more information, visit leahstenson.com.

Night Train

by Leah Stenson

Daylight surrenders
to interior reflections
in a mottled collage
on the coach window.

My twin gazes back,

flickering as we race

through the fading

Van Gogh landscape.

 

Picking up speed,

we hurtle headlong

just above the track

verging on derailment.

 

We slam into darkness.

Plunged into silence,

I tunnel through granite,

pray for starlight.

Printed Matter Vancouver publishers Toni Partington and Christopher Luna would like to give our thanks to the community for coming out to support last month’s reading to celebrate the release of Jenney Pauer’s Serenity in the Brutal Garden. The book launch was a big success. Unsurprisingly, Ms. Pauer delivered a stirring performance of her candid and emotionally powerful work. We were also honored to have Anni Becker, who took the photograph that appears on the cover of the book, as well as her subject, the lovely Kayli Becker, in attendance.

Jenney will be giving a series of readings to support the book, including a benefit for local community activist Ryan Woods on May 18 (https://printedmattervancouver.com/2012/05/03/ryan-woods-benefit-may-18-at-river-maiden-artisan-coffee-in-vancouver-with-poet-jenney-pauer-musician-sarah-arslanian-and-a-silent-art-auction-featuring-the-art-of-kelly-keigwin-and-sam-mackenzie/). I very much admire Jenney for organizing this event to help Ryan and his family. I’m extremely proud of the way that Vancouver has proven its willingness to come together to help others in need.

Photos from Cover to Cover Books

Thursday, April 12, 2012

Jenney Pauer reads to a full house

Photo by Toni Partington

Jenney Pauer

Photo by Toni Partington

Friends of Jenney Pauer, Ghost Town Poetry Open Mic regulars,

and Cover to Cover Books owner Mel Sanders listen to Jenney read

Photo by Toni Partington

Jenney Pauer signs a copy of Serenity in the Brutal Garden for Colleen Becker

Photo by Toni Partington

Book cover photographer Anni Becker

and Ghost Town Poetry Open Mic co-host Christopher Luna

Photo by Chris Martin

Flyer by Anni Becker

Ryan Woods benefit

with poet Jenney Pauer,

musicians Sarah Arslanian and Nicole Sangsuree,

and a silent art auction with Kelly Keigwin and Sam Mackenzie

Friday, May 18, 2012

7:00pm

River Maiden Artisan Coffee

602 North Devine St.

Vancouver, WA 98661

Local poet Jenney Pauer will read from her new book Serenity In the Brutal Garden (published by Printed Matter Vancouver). All proceeds from the sale of the book will go to help Ryan Woods, whose family is facing considerable medical bills due to his terminal illness. There will also be live music from Sarah Arslanian of Ladytown, as well as a silent auction of donated art by Kelly Keigwin and Sam Mackenzie. Join us for all this and a raffle, amazing coffee, and many good people who love poetry, music, and Ryan.

According to Jenney Pauer, “Ryan is a pastor and a community activist.  Before his illness, he was one of the leaders in a movement in downtown Vancouver where local residents were trying to strengthen the sense of community in the area.  Before he was even twenty-seven years old, he and his wife, Jessica, started a couple of new churches and he was a coordinator for numerous community philanthropic work such as Compassion Vancouver.  He also hosts a weekly community dinner called The Arnada Community meal.  Ryan also writes a very popular blog called Musings From the Ground Up (http://www.grassrootsconspiracy.com/blog/) where he has been writing candidly about how cancer has affected him, his family, and his community.”

Jenney Pauer

Photo by Anna Shogren

According to Northwest spoken word legend Jack McCarthy, “If George Eliot were alive today and writing poetry, she would sound a lot like Jenney Pauer. There is an unforced elegance in virtually every line she writes. My immediate response is to stand back and salute.” Jenney Pauer is a graduate of Southern Methodist University, where she studied theater and English literature. After serving four years in the United States Army as a Korean linguist, she obtained a Secondary English Education degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Before moving to the Pacific Northwest with her dog and cat in 2008, she taught high school English along the border of Arizona and Mexico. Recently, Jenney co-wrote a short film, Nico’s Sampaguita, accepted into the 27th Annual Asian Pacific Film Festival in Los Angeles, and soon to be released by Sacred Fire Films in San Francisco, California. This is her first book.

Printed Matter Vancouver, a local small press and editing service, was founded in 2011 by Christopher Luna and Toni Partington, co-hosts of the second Thursday Ghost Town Poetry Open Mic at Cover to Cover Books.

Sarah Arslanian

Photo by Anni Becker

Performing as Ladytown since 2003, Sarah Arslanian has performed throughout the Unites States and her songs have been played internationally. Sarah has released two albums to much acclaim: Ladytown (2003) produced by Bernie Larsen (David Lindley, Lucinda Williams, Melissa Etheridge) and Thirty-Nine Nineteen (2006) – produced by Aram Arslanian (Lisa Marie Presley, Rilo Kiley, Watson Twins). Sarah has recorded and collaborated on numerous projects, working with such notables as Mark Fosson (Bum Steers) as well as providing vocals as a member of the Bright Mountain Choir for the indie rock phenomenon The Mountain Goats.

Nicole Sangsuree

Since the age of thirteen, when she first learned how to play the guitar, the gutsy singer-songwriter Nicole Sangsuree has been composing and performing songs to captive and enamored audiences all along the west coast. It began with impromptu performances in her middle school locker room but eventually brought her onstage to local festivals such as MusicfestNW, Folklife and the Willamette Valley Folk Festival. Her melodies are fresh, her lyrics intelligent and her soulful voice can move from fierce to tender in a brief moment. Her theater background and a passion for telling the truth color her live performances, which are always sexy, powerful and humorous. Onstage, she has been honored to play alongside musicians such as Styx, Alix Olson, Chris Pureka, Toshi Reagon and Michael Glabicki (of Rusted Root). Another highlight of her career was starring in the indie feature film “Down and Out With the Dolls” where she acted alongside Lemmy Kilmister (of Motorhead) and Canada’s triphop artist Kinnie Starr. Check out the film’s website: http://www.facebook.com/l/RAQGvReJiAQGWeL1ikmrZT4yphJIuC6LVtn4WR2Xs1-6Tdg/www.dolls-themovie.com

Born and raised in Portland, Sangsuree believes in the power of art to make positive social change and is a champion for supporting local, sustainable and thriving communities. She has volunteered at Portland’s Rock ‘N Roll Camp for Girls, taught songwriting classes for youth, frequently plays at Portland area farmer’s markets and understands the value of supporting local talent. Her debut album “So Much Has Bloomed”, recorded at Portland’s Mississippi Studios, is available for purchase online at http://www.facebook.com/l/ZAQG_b1X-AQFK2Fd_5PiVqc-NwkSP7JLkr6-RufDxZyY8Hw/www.cdbaby.com and at her live performances. For the next few months, she will be focusing on an exciting new project. She is starring in the independent feature film “Ruby by The River” which will showcase both her acting and musical talents. More details and photos at http://www.facebook.com/l/4AQG9rx_sAQH29EayZt4vPn-ynEUd45ctSJChSFxPFEbbCg/www.rubybytheriver.com

Vancouver’s premiere coffee experience, River Maiden Artisan Coffee is where Vancouver goes for Stumptown Coffee. Proudly featuring Stumptown Coffee Roasters and Nuvrei Pastries. Particular highlights are the rare Clover Vacuum Press and friendly, down-to-earth baristas in a neighborhood setting.

http://www.grassrootsconspiracy.com/blog/

http://www.rivermaidencoffee.com/

http://www.ladytownmusic.com

http://www.printedmattervancouver.com

CORRECTION: Due to circumstances beyond his control, Ric Vrana will be unable to attend May’s Ghost Town Poetry Open Mic. His friend David Matthews will take his place, and Ric’s reading will be postponed until November. More information to follow. Christopher Luna, co-host and founder.  

GHOST TOWN POETRY Open Mic

hosted by Christopher Luna and

Toni Partington

7pm Thursday, May 10, 2012

and every second Thursday

Cover to Cover Books

6300 NE St. James Rd., Suite 104B

(St. James & Minnehaha)

Vancouver, WA

360-993-7777

all ages and uncensored since 2004

http://christopherluna-poetry.blogspot.com

 With our featured reader, Ric Vrana:

Ric Vrana appears regularly in numerous venues and open mics in the Portland and Vancouver poetry scene. His early days of stand-up poetry happened in Seattle where he found himself at the beginning of the long running Red Sky Poetry Theater in the early 1980s. But he fell in with a bad crowd, and after a long slog through graduate school worked as a professor in Portland.

After some disagreeable business with the dean, he found himself a job as a planner, and, upon being called back up to be an adjunct in another part of the university, continues to teach part time in the urban planning program. His writing is infused with the perspective of the geographer, the cartographer, and the planner. He believes place is the connection between where he is and who he is. He writes about this, thinks about this, dreams about this.

Poems by Ric Vrana have appeared in Duwamish Review, Kent Popular Press, Broken Word: The Alberta Street Anthology, Volume 2, Blown Out: Portland’s Indie Poets, and Venetian Blind Drunk. He is a regular contributor to the Three Friends Caffeinated Art Poetry readings in Portland. He has twice been published by the weekly on-line zone, “Work,” and has a poem and recorded reading forthcoming in OccuPoetry.org. Ric’s three chapbooks will be available at the reading for five dollars each or three for twelve: Brain Screams (2010); Postales desde Costa Rica (2011); and Semi-Ambivalent Middle Aged Male Lament #25 (2011).

From “Brain Screams”

Brain screams, primordial

dreams dancing

that white line between

northbound and south city

bus sounds and some

Greyhounds running

through clouds of particulates.

Walking now moving

behind ironrailed fences

in citypark gardens

couples everywhere, people in pairs

people who stare

at me, alone looking skyward

at rubber sheathed wires

carrying unheard messages

sagging in the middle of their span.

How Alone I’ve Grown

not even owned

by a telephone!

Face feeling taught

as the strain of grief being deep

from another night’s empty empty sleep

is this morning disgusted and eagerly seeks

the soft touch and voice of

some woman.