Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Random Acts of Poetry hits the streets!



37 POETS TO COMMIT ‘RANDOM ACTS OF POETRY’ ACROSS CANADA

Random Acts of Poetry, a celebration of poetry and literacy, begins its fourth year during the week of October 1st to 7th, 2007. Random Acts of Poetry is a project of the Victoria READ Society, a non-profit literacy organization, established in 1976. Random Acts of Poetry is funded by The Canada Council for the Arts.

During the week, 37 acclaimed poets across Canada, from Victoria to Newfoundland, including three of Canada’s Poets Laureate, will commit Random Acts of Poetry in their cities and adjacent small towns. On buses and subways, in donut shops and cafes, police stations, grocery stores, shelters, curling rinks, on city streets and country lanes, poets will read poems to strangers and give them their books. Poets will also read their poems in ESL and Adult Literacy classes across the country.

Patrick Lane, considered the greatest poet of his generation, says of Random Acts of Poetry, “There are no accidents. Nothing is random. A poem sits in a poet’s pocket and jumps out when you least expect it. It can nestle in a mechanic’s ear, a politician’s hand, a waitress’s bright eye, somewhere, anywhere. You look up from work and there’s a poem. It reads itself to you. It asks you to take a break. It says: Right here. Right now.”

“Poetry,” says Wendy Morton, founder of Random Acts of Poetry, “is the shortest distance between two hearts. I have read poems to hundreds of people, many of whom hadn’t heard a poem in thirty years, and watched their eyes fill up with tears. Some burst into laughter or laid a hand on my shoulder, hugged me, took my hand. Poetry can connect us with each other as humans as no other art form I know. Poetry is a gift that we can create from whatever life has in store for us.”

Across Canada poets will commit random acts in: Victoria, Nanaimo, Vancouver, Kelowna, Calgary, Edmonton, Moose Jaw, Prince Albert, Winnipeg, Stratford, Markdale, Brantford, Toronto, Collingwood, Ottawa, Peterborough, Windsor, Hamilton, Montreal, Fredericton, Saint John, Sackville, Charlottetown, Halifax, Antigonish, St. John’s.

Saturday, October 27, 2007

Joe Blades committing a Random Act of Poetry on The Honourable Andy Scott, MP.

Joe Blades on King Street, downtown Fredericton, committing a Random Act of Poetry on The Honourable Andy Scott, MP during the kick-off of the "Raise a Reader" campaign, 3 Oct 2007.

Sheri-D Wilson's 2007 RAP photos.

Here's a link to Sheri-D's 2007 RAP photos.

http://www.sheridwilson.com/rapseven.html

Joe with an English Second Language Class.

Joe with an English Second Language Class at the Multicultural Association of Fredericton: Students were from Bangladesh, China, India, South Korea. Before my appearance, they had been reading the large article about me and Random Acts of Poetry in The Daily Gleaner newspaper.

Joe Blades steps out.

Joe Blades stepped into the known world to read to Lord Matteao Allesendro Ulisse Rusieri in the Shire of Lyndhaven during a break in his fighter practice with Lord Iord Isard the Grim (photographer).

Joe Blades sends RAP photos finally!

Bruce the Moose is a famed statue outside the B&L restaurant in Doaktown, NB. When I learned that I had to drive to Miramichi for the p-t day job, I knew that I would have to stop and do this reading.

Gloe Cormie poems in the town of Gimli, Manitoba

I read Darcy Orestes a prose poem from my Sea Salt book that was inspired by the "Prairie Sea" (Lake Winnipeg) at Gimli. The poem features an ancient "havfrue" or mermaid, "so long in the sea, the
bronze features have been polished almost to the underside of a
silver spoon." She said "Wow, your poem gives me goose bumps!" I
said "It's probably the weather." But I was thrilled.

Sunday, October 21, 2007

Kim Goldberg poems martial artists.

Kim Goldberg spent an afternoon poeming martial artists at a push-hands playday on a T'ai Chi farm in Ladner, BC, known as Riverbank T'ai Chi. While keeping one eye peeled for flying elbows, Kim poemed different players throughout the afternoon as they engaged in the two-person activity known as "push hands."

Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Josué Solis recibe une poema


Josué Solis recibe une poema
Originally uploaded by elizita
Josué, poète mexicain, invité au Festival international de poésie de Trois-Rivières 2007 a accepté de se faire coller un poème.

Il découvrira Montréal à travers les textes de Walkups:scènes de la vie montréalaise.

José Acquelin se fait collé un poème!

José a participé aux premières éditions des RAP. Le nom francophone, ce bijou de traduction que les "Randonnées aléatoires de poésie", qui permet de conserver l'acronyme, voilà bien une autre de ses créations!!!

Cette année, il a passé le flambeau et a gentiment accepté d'être de l'autre côté de l'aventure... en tant que récipiendaire. Merci José, ce fut une belle surprise que de te croiser à Trois-Rivières!

Lancement montréalais Atwater Library

Lancement montréalais Atwater Library.
Merci Lynn Verge de nous avoir reçu and thank you Maria for sharing the information about Adult Literacy programs in Montréal!

Bravo les girls! We made it!

Angela Leuck & Anne Cimon were my fellow Montréal RAP participants!;0)

Crédit photo:
Marie-Claude Plasse
Artiste-photographe
mcplasse@yahoo.ca
www.flickr.com/photos/mcplasse

Une famille à Jean-Talon


Une famille à Jean-Talon
Originally uploaded by elizita
Une famille à Jean-Talon

Crédit photo:
Marie-Claude Plasse
Artiste-photographe
mcplasse@yahoo.ca
www.flickr.com/photos/mcplasse

Uploaded by elizita on 12 Oct 07, 8.32PM

Véronique de Qui lait cru!?! Fromagerie

Fromagère et bientôt maman, Véro a pris quelques minutes pour écouter un texte.

Merci Véro et coucou à grand loup!

Crédit photo:
Marie-Claude Plasse
Artiste-photographe
mcplasse@yahoo.ca
www.flickr.com/photos/mcplasse
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ÉR & MCPlasse with RAP in MTL


ÉR & MCPlasse with RAP in MTL
Originally uploaded by elizita
On a réussi nos actes au Marché Jean-Talon... merci Gargouille pour ton soutien!

Pas facile facile d'aborder des inconnus...

MORE RAP NEWS & PICTURES THERE:
national-random-acts-of-poetry.blogspot.com/

Crédit photo:
Marie-Claude Plasse
Artiste-photographe
mcplasse@yahoo.ca
www.flickr.com/photos/mcplasse

The winning pumpkin at the Smoky Lake Pumpkin Festival.

The winning pumpkin at the Smoky Lake Pumpkin Festival--I should have read it a poem--DARN!



Jannie Edwards taking the mic at the artisans show of the Smoky Lake Pumpkin Festival.

Jannie Edwards taking the mic at the artisans show of the Smoky Lake Pumpkin Festival.

Jannie Edwards and biker "gang".

Jannie Edwards and biker "gang" from Gibbons at Smoky Lake Pumpkin Festival.

Jannie Edwards reading at Smoky Lake Pumpkin Festival.

Jannie Edwards reading at Smoky Lake Pumpkin Festival.

Jannie Edwards and ESL class.

Jannie Edwards and ESL class with teacher Kamalah Broemling.

Jannie and poet Meagen at Inner City High School.

Jannie and poet Meagen at Inner City High School.

Jannie Edwards and the gang.

Jannie Edwards and the gang with teacher Pam and Devon at Inner City High School.

Jannie Edwards at Edmonton's Inner City High School.

Dallas and Jannie at Edmonton's Inner City High School.

Pam Calabrese MacLean poems on Main Street Antigonish NS.

Pam Caolabrese MacLean poems on Main Street Antigonish NS.


Pam Calabrese MacLean poems Cafe Workers Antigonish, NS.

Pam Calabrese MacLean poems Cafe Workers Antigonish, NS.


Pam Calabrese MacLean at a Kitchen Party Antigonish, NS.

Pam Calabrese MacLean at a Kitchen Party Antigonish, NS.


Pam Calabrese MacLean poems an ESL Class Antigonish, NS.

Pam Calabrese MacLean poems an ESL Class Antigonish, NS.


Daniel Scott Tysdal poems Laura and Glenn.

Daniel Scott Tysdal poems Laura and Glenn near the site of a U.F.O. landing.

Gloe Cormie: A Random Act of Poetry at Long Island Café.

Gloe Cormie poems Hung Tang, originally from Vietnam, now manager of Long Island Café. I read Hung a poem from Sea Salt, Red Oven Mitts and the Blues, about a Vietnamese restaurant owner titled, “She, who would not”, and he read me some stanzas from the great Vietnamese poet, Nguyen Du.


Gloe Cormie poems on Portage Avenue.

Rob Duncan experiences a Random Act of Poetry on Portage Avenue across from the University of Winnipeg.

EAL class appreciatively receives a poem by Gloe Cormie.

This EAL advanced accounting class of immigrant professionals nodded appreciatively when I read them a new poem I wrote about the immigrant experience titled, "Old Home/New Home". Cicley Valel, seated at the left of the photo nearby me, is the instructor of the class, which includes students from The Philippines, South Korea, Vietnam, and Brazil.


Gloe Cormie poems at the University of Manitoba.

John Long, University of Manitoba Education Professor, and dedicated supporter of the arts and literacy issues, takes time out of his busy day to enjoy a Random Act of Poetry.

Gloe Cormie poems ESL/Adult Education Circle at Day Spring Larsh Home.

One of the poems I read for this group was “There now Here, or Vice Versa­-Winter in Korea”, because Jung-Hoon Shin, in the centre of the photo, recently emigrated from South Korea.

ESL/Adult Education Circle writes poetry after being poemed by GloeCormie.

The mini-poem making workshop for Day Spring ESL/Adult Education Circle resulted in creative poems that were laced with enchantment and passion. A delightful experience for everyone, myself included!


Saturday, October 13, 2007

Carmelo Miltano goes Goth.

I am reading to four Goth kids-three boys and a girl- and they loved it. One even quoted me back a melody of lines from songs and lines and made a poem for me. They told me normally people my age cross the street to avoid them. The were happy to be 'poemed' in spite of appearances here and were a polite nice bunch.
Cheers, Carmelo

Marilyn Lerch poems some campers near Sackville, N.B.

Marilyn Lerch poems some campers near Sackville, N.B.

Triny Finlay reading to an employee at a grocery store.

Triny Finlay reading to an employee at a grocery store in Collingwood, ON.


Triny Finlay poeming on the main street.

Triny Finlay poeming on the main street in Collingwood, ON.

Kate Marshall Flaherty at Mill Street Bar.

Kate Marshall Flaherty on the ladder of Mill Street Bar in the Distillery District of Toronto, poeming not only waiters Stephen Koshurba and Kyle MacDougall, but the crowd that gathered in front of the bar patio. The audience that gathered asked for another poeming for the crowd!

Carmelo Militano hanging out.

The fourth photo is a group of teenagers hanging around downtown Winnipeg and a security guard.

Carmelo Militano poems some more.

The second photo is of a woman whose back is turned to the viewer, a mechanic, and a Pilipino man who as it turned out knew me and took some photos for himself and the Pilipino community newspaper.

Carmelo Militano in Winnipeg.

Carmelo Militano on the street in Winnipeg.

Carmelo Militano poems visual art students.

The photo of four or five women I am reading on the street all happen to be visual art students and one of of them in fact had heard of R.A.P. that morning on CBC Radio One (local) She asked me if I was the poet announced on the radio.

Gloe Cormie poems two thesis sculpture students.

Sculpture students Justin Muzyka and Kim Halpenny read from my book Sea Salt, Red Oven Mitts and the Blues, after they have been poemed by me. Kim recruited Justin as photographer from the official sculpture building nearby for the first photograph. He enjoyed the respite of being poemed moments before he was to have a serious sculpture crit on his work, by the department head. Kim invited me back to come and see their thesis work when it's further developed. Can't wait!

Gloe Cormie poems sculpture student Kim Halpenny.

Poeming sculpture student Kim Halpenny in her barn studio at the University of Manitoba was soulful and fun. We had a good talk about art and politics. She and I talked of the challenges of being an artist in sculpture as a woman in 2007 versus two decades ago, when I was a sculpture student. (I did a BFA, Hons. before my degree in English.) Her giant vinyl goldfish is designed so a person can “wear” it. In the above photograph, the goldfish head is on the left and its body is on the right, sporting a RAP sign strategically pasted on its scales. It’s the beginning of her sculpture thesis project that will include goldfish drawings and film work. I read her a poem from Sea Salt, Red Oven Mitts and the Blues, as well as a very recent poem titled, “A Fish Story”, which I also personally signed for her. She loved both poems and said she would be sure to read my book. In my narrative, magic-realist poem a man “begins to wish­throwing his line and lure out” and “Soon he lifts up a small translucent fish bulging with pearls”. I wished her “a handful of those opalescent fish pearls, dancing with light”.

Friday, October 12, 2007

RAP Kick-off Event - Atwater Library.

At the RAP Kick-off Event at the Atwater Library, Montreal.
From left to right: Élizabeth Robert, Angela Leuck, Maria Saloman from
the Centre for Literacy, Anne Cimon and Lynn Verge, Executive Director of the Atwater Library.

Photo: Marie-Claude Plasse

Angela Leuck on Wellington Street.

Poeming at an outdoor cafe, Angela Leuck on Wellington Street, Verdun, Quebec.


Photo: Jacob Harris

Angela Leuck Poeming in the beautiful Westmount Conservatory.

Angela Leuck Poeming in the beautiful Westmount Conservatory, Westmount, Quebec.


Photo: Jacob Harris

Angela Leuck with Maxianne Berger.

Angela Leuck with poet Maxianne Berger at our Kick-off event at the Atwater Library, Montreal.


Photo: Jacob Harris

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

Anne Cimon poeming Franceen Breault.

Anne Cimon poeming Franceen Breault, owner of Ange Neige boutique in Montreal, QC.