Birthday Week, Full Flower Moon, Open Books, Seattle’s Japanese Garden, and More

Me at 53, with Crabapple Blossoms

Birthday Week with Full Flower Moon

This was my birthday week, and it was pretty quiet, although we did a small family dinner celebration with my little brother and my nephew and his family and Glenn took me out to see The Devil Wears Prada 2 and we did a downtown Seattle visit to Open Books, The Seattle Japanese Garden, and Fran’s Chocolates for birthday treats, including a chocolate fig (which is amazing and I highly recommend). I also got two fillings (boo! do not recommend) and struggled a bit with writing/health discouragement.

But I was happy to pick up a few new books at Open Books, chat with Billie the owner, and see the Seattle Japanese Gardens before they close for construction this summer (during FIFA) including razing the iconic azalea rock wall we took a picture with below (for accessibility reasons, but still sad). We don’t get down to Seattle very often, and we definitely will be avoiding it during the World Cup, so it was good to go on my birthday. Devil Wears Prada 2 was great and the theater we went to was nearly empty (pre-May 1, which was the official release date). For a first movie experience after the pandemic, it was nearly flawless—a good movie that I actually had thoughts about (should publishing rely entirely on billionaires’ favors? I felt like it had a lot to say about the fate of journalism and publishing that also applied to poetry), great seats, a really nice local theater, the only thing I was sad about is that we missed out on promised swag by like one or two people.

Full Flower Moon

We had a beautiful full moon right on my birthday, too, and we had lovely sunny weather, so we got out and gardened and Glenn power-washed the deck, so we were ready to entertain. The full moon always gives me insomnia, and this one was no different. I was thinking about an interview with Meryl Streep about the first Devil Wear Prada and how she was thinking of retiring from acting when she was offered the job at 56. I am 53, so it made me think about when we retire as artists. I’m not making the kind of money Meryl is, and I’m much less in demand. If I retired, there probably wouldn’t be as much of an outcry as there would be over Meryl (who was not only great in Devil Wears Prada 2, but if you’ve seen her, she’s terrific in Only Murderers in the Building). It’s surprising to me that she was thinking of retiring but then spoke openly that she did the movie that was so beloved because of the large paycheck it afforded.

Goldfinch notices camera

I’m also thinking about retirement because Microsoft is offering early retirement packages next week. Glenn still loves his job and enjoys working, so it’s not very attractive to him yet. They’re doing it to invest more in AI and less in humanity, which seems depressing. I guess poets can work until they die or decide to do something else, and we definitely won’t be offered a nice paycheck to quit, and AI may try to take our jobs anyway.

This week EcoTheo re-ran a photo I took for them a while ago, and Rattle re-ran an older poem in their newsletter. So it was nice to be remembered in these ways on a week I was feeling discouraged and thinking about quitting.

And I’ll be reading in support of Catherine Broadwall’s book launch for Aftermath at Vermillion in Capitol Hill on May 5!

Anyway, I hope your beginning of May is as pleasant and free of AI-replacement as possible. And stay away from those billionaires (unless they really want to support the arts!)

Kelli’s Reading in Woodinville, Goldfinches Returns with Cherry and Crabapple, Birthdays Approaching and the State of Publishing (And Fear of Failure)

Kelli and I with cherry tree in my yard

Kelli Reads In Woodinville

Kelli Russell Agodon came out to be our featured reader at the J. Bookwalter Poetry Series (just rebooted!) on Thursday night and she did a great job, as did the open mic-ers, and a wonderful audience. It’s always a pleasure to hang out with poets here in Woodinville, and the weather obliged, not being too cold or too hot, and the evening ending in golden light as the last reader read.

We also got to introduce Catherine Broadwall’s upcoming book, Afterlife, which will debut on May 5, and she’ll be our featured reader on June 18. I feel very lucky to have so many talented friends and writers around for inspiration.

Kelli with literary kitten Lady Charlotte

Kelli read from her upcoming book with Copper Canyon, Accidental Devotions, which if you haven’t thought about preordering, think about it! It’s got Alexa solving existential crises, mermaid dreams, Emily Dickinson’s phone messages, and a whimsical take on a world in chaos. Kelli and I have been friends since before our first books were taken, so we were reminiscing a bit, how we’ve changed as people and writers, how we haven’t changed. I think both of us have become better writers, and part of that is a function of having supportive writer friends, and part of it is not giving up, and another part is becoming more comfortable with who we are as people, which somehow translates into poetry.

We also had some folks sign up for the J. Bookwalter’s book club that I curate, which was a fun switch (wait…people coming out to poetry event THEN signing up for a book club? What is happening to us here in Woodinville? Are we actually getting some cultural activity?) Just an FYI to readers outside of the area, Woodinville is about thirty minutes outside of hipster Seattle, but it feels like it’s another universe—farms and wineries sort of dominate the landscape, but I’m happy to be meeting more and more people interested in art and books.

Goldfinches Return (with Cherry and Crabapple Blossoms)

Today was the first day I had seen a goldfinch, and the Rufous hummingbirds have returned to drink all of our hummingbird feeders. We’ve had pleasantly warm (almost seventy!) temperatures, and Glenn and I have been power washing the deck, painting the lamppost, and planting seeds and dahlia bulbs. (In case you couldn’t guess, Glenn did the majority of the heavy lifting, but it was nice to spend time in the garden!) Our lilacs have just started blooming. And the quail family returned to roam our yard in the rain.

My birthday is in a few days, and I’ll be turning 53. I definitely did not think I would last this long, so I’m at loose ends on what to do with a 53-year-old self…Should I have a midlife crisis? Re-brand as a totally different person? I haven’t gotten any Botox or laser peels or tattoos yet. Sometimes I feel like I should be more vain about getting older, or something, but I can’t really work up any anxiety about it, especially since I sort of feel like I outran a mortality race already (see my previous book, Flare, Corona, for more about that). No big party this year, just some family gathering and Glenn cooking at home. I’m getting a root canal (happy birthday to me lol!) and getting my bones scanned, both of which are I guess pretty normal for this age. I feel like I act and look more like myself than I did 15 years ago, if you know what I mean. I try to hide less. I wear what I want and dye my hair fun colors. I prioritize rest more of the time (darn that MS and perimenopause) than I used to, but in almost every aspect, I’m happier and healthier than I was a decade ago. So I guess I should just be thankful and enjoy things as much as I can. Now, speaking of struggling…

Goldfinch with coral bells

The State of Publishing (and If You’re Struggling Right Now, You’re Not Alone…)

Have you felt lately as if the floor is slipping out from beneath you as a writer, as universities collapse, lit mags disappear for lack of funding, and publishers are consolidated into nothing at all?

Vicky Weber’s Substack struck a nerve when it wrote about the state of publishing and what no one is telling writers:

What Nobody’s Telling Querying Writers About What’s Happening to Publishing Right Now

And as you might suppose, it’s mostly not good news. Yes, there is less government support for the arts, but more than that, traditional publishing has been struggling, distribution more limited. All of this means yes, it’s harder for new writers to break in, harder for existing writers to get attention, harder for everyone – from big deal publishers to little lit mags to writers like me—to get paid or even published at all. If you have a fear of failure, it’s probably been activated by rejection or just lack of response in the last few years. I admit I have been feeling not great about not having found a publisher yet for my most recent manuscript, which I thought was better and more audience-friendly than my previous books.

At midlife, and mid-career, I thought I would be doing better, to be honest, in my writing career. Then again, I’ve had mostly good experiences with my publishers, I have an audience that seems genuinely interested if small, I have met a lot of wonderful people in the literary world, and I continue to read books that fascinate me from tiny publishers and the big three alike. We had a pretty good audience for a “poetry” event the other day! I mean, that’s got to be a sign of…something. So, I won’t give up. I wish that I had the money or influence to make a big difference in the art world. Maybe someday! In the meantime, just remember a lot of people in the arts are having a hard time, and try to be kind and supportive when you can.

Poem in the New Issue of Prairie Schooner, Welcoming a Nephew to Town and Tulips, and Hosting Kelli Agodon at Bookwalter’s This Thursday!

Mt Baker with Tulips from Rosalyn Garden

April Tulips, Poems, and More!

This week has been so busy I’ve barely been able to catch my breath, and next week looks to be just as busy.

This week my nephew Dustin moved out here with his family and my brother Don, who was their U-Haul driver on the four-day trip from South Carolina to Marysville (pic was right after their move-in so thanks for letting me snap this!) We couldn’t wait to welcome them to town and also took the chance to stop by the Skagit Vallery Tulip Festival so we could bring them some kettle corn and fancy tulips. More on that later…

Sylvia and Prairie Schooner’s Spring 2026 issue

Poem in the New Issue of Prairie Schooner

I also received my copy of Prairie Schooner‘s Spring 2026 “The Loneliness Issue,” in which I have a poem, “If I Will Be Queen, Let It Be Queen of the Dead.” Also check out my friend Aimee Nezhukumatathil’s poem “The Immigrant’s Very Good Daughter.” (I loved the poem and maybe you will too!)

Here’s a sneak peek at my poem too:

With pink tulips in RoozenGaarde

Tulip Festival Notes

This year we had the chance to see apple trees, cherry trees, daffodils, and tulips all blooming at the same time, though we missed our snow geese and trumpeter swans. It has certainly been a weird month for weather—didn’t it just snow here a month ago? We also visited not just RoozenGaarde but also a new smaller tulip farm called Garden Rosalyn. After a dreary cold beginning to April, it was nice to have some warmer temperatures and sunshine. We didn’t really have enough time to do everything we wanted, but it was a good reminder of how beautiful April can be out here. More pics below:

Hosting Kelli Russell Agodon at J. Bookwalter This Thursday!

This week is super crowded, but I am very much looking forward to a poetry break on Thursday, when we’re hosting Kelli Russell Agodon reading from her new collection, Accidental Devotions, at the J. Bookwalter Tasting Room in Woodinville at 6:30 PM (wine and open mic after!)

Kelli’s book is a wonderful combination of thoughtfulness on anxiety, middle age and mortality, and the nature of love and sex, with her usual whimsy and humor. I hope you’ll come out and see her read!

I hope you get a chance to celebrate something poetry-related this month. It’s good to balance the insanity of the world with a little bit of poetry and tulip-gazing.

It’s National Poetry Month! Poetry Book Clubs and Poetry Readings, Poet Friends and Book Parties, and More

Literary Kittens Charlotte and Sylvia with Kelli’s newest book

It’s National Poetry Month! Poetry Book Clubs and Upcoming Poetry Readings

My poetry calendar is getting crowded, and I don’t know about you, but I could definitely use the distraction.

This Wednesday at J. Bookwalter’s in Woodinville, at 6:30 PM we’ll be meeting at our monthly book club to discuss Kelli Russell Agodon’s newest book, Accidental Devotions, just out from Copper Canyon Press. (Well, technically its launch date is in May, but we’re celebrating early, because Poetry Month!) Here are my cats jealously guarding their early copy. I have already read the book and know it’s fantastic. I recommend it.

And on April 23rd, J. Bookwalter’s Tasting Studio in Woodinville is re-starting its Wine and Poetry Night with Kelli Russell Agodon reading from her new book. I’ll be hosting and doing an introduction.

We’ll have wine to buy (I recommend the Double Plot if you like white, and Suspense if you like reds,) books to buy, snacks to eat, and a brief open mic. Starting at 6:30 PM and ending at 8:30 PM. I hope we draw a crowd of poetry lovers and just casual poetry fans.

It should be a fun night!

I am also looking forward to just spending time with poet friends this month!

Poet Friends: Erika Wright, me, and Catherine Broadwall

And just in case this isn’t enough poetry for you, I’ll be reading at the Poetry Book Party for Catherine Broadwall’s new book Aftermath from Girl Noise Press on May 5th at Vermillion in Capital Hill, as part of the opening act at 7 PM. Catherine is the poet on the right in this picture with a Rainier cherry tree.

In between all this poetry month (and early May) excitement, I’ll be welcoming my nephew Dustin Hall’s move to the area, celebrating my birthday, and probably snapping pictures of tulips, daffodils and cherry blossoms along the way.

I also have a poem in the upcoming “Loneliness” issue of Prairie Schooner, along with friend Aimee Nezhukumathil, and another upcoming in the next issue of Cimarron. So keep your eyes open! Until next week, friends!

Happy Easter (with Easter Bunny,) Poems in Presence (Elegy for Martha Silano,) and Mortality with Cherry Blossoms

Possible Easter bunny?

Happy Easter (with Easter Bunny)

Hello and Happy Easter to those who celebrate! This is the first Easter in recent memory to have a bright, sunshine-y, warm day on this day of rebirth, even though this one seems early? This was the first day since my trip I felt energetic enough to get up to much, so we went to the Seattle Japanese Garden to see what was blooming. It’s still early spring, so we did see camellias, azaleas, and some early magnolias, but to cheer us, there was: 1) a possible Easter bunny, 2) many turtles with their heads out, 3) a very large frog, and 4) many ducks and geese, which felt very seasonally appropriate. We spent Saturday night getting into the Easter spirit by watching Jesus Christ Superstar (tradition!) and making Easter cookies. The post is getting more serious after this, so just prepare.

Presence in daffodils

Poem in Presence – Elegy for Martha Silano

I was very proud to be in good company in Presence: A Journal of Catholic Poetry, with an elegy for my late friend, Martha Silano. Besides our mutual friends Ronda Broatch and Kelli Russell Agodon, I was happy to see my former professor Don Bogen’s work in that section (who was an editor at Cincinnati Review). I still miss Marty palpably, and it seems appropriate for her memory to be celebrated in this season of resurrection and rebirth, among daffodils. How many characters in mythology go to the Underworld to bring a friend back? None of them were successful, a reminder of even legendary heroes’ mortality. Maybe the internet is our new way to keep out loved ones immortal.

Here’s a peek at my poem, “Internet-Age Elegy: After You Die, I Promise Not to Forget You:”

Mortality with Cherry Blossoms

Having just returned from a visit to Cincinnati for my dad, who is very ill, I was also confronted with other reminders of mortality: a visit down to UW for more testing for me, a good friend’s longtime partner passing away suddenly, other friends dealing with aging and ill parents. April is the cruelest month, right? I am turning 53 at the end of the month, reminded that exactly ten years ago I was told I had barely six months to live, and then was diagnosed with MS a little bit later. I am lucky to still be standing, as it were. My dad and I used to joke “Every day above ground is a good day.” Not sure where we got that. Two cross-country flights and the visit took a lot out of me, more than I expected—I had to spend two or three days in bed, caught a stomach bug, and couldn’t really walk for a bit (MS + virus = increase in symptoms). Yes, we all have limitations. Some of my friends slipped away from me in the last year, some with long-term illnesses, some, like my friend’s partner this week, suddenly, in sleep. When I saw my old friends and family back in Ohio, I was reminded that we are all aging; one old high school friend has already had three heart attacks—my older brothers are starting to think about retirement. I am the age I strongly remember my grandmother being when I considered her “old.”

Late camellia in my yard

So yes, it is important to celebrate this strange season when people can disappear but the earth reminds us that disappearance isn’t final—a flower that hasn’t bloomed for years suddenly shows brilliant blooms. I realized I was in a hurry to get my next book published so that my dad might be able to see it, although I can’t pressure publishers for this reason any more than I could when I thought I had six months to live. Poetry is a slow business, my friends. To go back to the garden with the metaphor, you can spend a lot of money and time on seeds that don’t take, trees that a careless lawnmower kills in infancy. The cherry blossoms and daffodils and birds will return whether I am there or you, whatever losses we face. Poetry has an uncertain lifetime as well; some poems will live beyond our lifespans, perhaps, although our voices and styles will almost certainly fall out of fashion (see H.D. or Edna St. Vincent Millay—how many kids today are reading them?) But we keep writing and sending our work out into the world. We do the business of living and try not to despair at the news or the difficulties of our little mortal lives—we do our best to enjoy the blue skies and pink cherry branches.