There is simply TOO MUCH happening on Saipan these days. I want to go back to those kick-back evenings watching sunsets and drinking vodka tonics or mango margaritas or red red wine.
Tuesday evening, Friends of the Arts is having its annual meeting at the Marianas restaurant on Navy Hill. They usually have some students perform, the price of food is discounted, and there are a whole lot of people who enjoy drama.
Wednesday evening, watch the John Gonzales show. Hawaii guests will share their experience with the national marine monument that was designated in their northern islands.
Thursday morning 7 AM, if you're a morning bird and want to hear more, or missed the Gonzales show, hear from the same Hawaii guests on the Harry
Blalock radio talk show.
Thursday evening, still have questions? Listen to a live presentation (and ask questions?) at the AMP.
Details of all the national marine monument discussion are, of course, on
Angelo's blog.
Friday evening, don't miss the
Karidat fundraiser. $50 gets you into the Aqua Resort Club dinner, and gives you a raffle ticket for some fun prizes.
Saturday evening, it's still Taste of the Marianas time at the AMP field.
I know there's more, but I'm having
scheduling meltdown!
Oh, the woe of so much interesting, entertaining, beneficial happenings!
I love this time of year.
1. Flame Tree Arts Festival 2008.
April 24-27 at Civic Center. Yay!
2. Taste of the Marianas.
Every Satuday evening in May.
These two events alone make me glad to be in Saipan.
And now this Sunday, we also have two more events:
First: Brunch at the Raraina Restaurant, Aqua Resort, featuring the Manta Band (Tumon Bay Music Festival winners) on Sunday, April 27th, 11 am to 2 p m. The concert is a fund-raiser for the SSHS band members who will represent the Commonwealth in Beijing as part of the official 2008 Olympic orchestra performing at the opening ceremonies and at various venues in and around the games.
Second: Free concert, Sunday April 27, 4-6 PM, at the Palms Resort (f/k/a Nikko Hotel) by the Saipan Pacific Winds Concert Band, featuring music from Rent, High School Musical, Pirates of the Caribbean, and by Ray Charles, Aaron Copland, Michael Buble, and many others. The band will perform with dancers from the Angel International School of Dance and also with some of our islands best singing talent (although not my daughter!).
There's an odd point in writing, when you reach a bit that you've known was going to happen for years. Years and years. And then it doesn't happen like you thought it would...
It's as if there's a ghost-story behind the text and nobody knows it's there but me.
Still on Chapter Seven of The Graveyard Book, but I'm well into the last half of the chapter, and it no longer feels like I'm walking towards the horizon, with the horizon retreating as I advance... I've written about eleven easy pages today, and cannot wait to get back to it. If I'm still awake and writing I may pull an all-nighter.
It barely feels like I'm writing it. Mostly it feels like I'm the first one reading it.
Pretty soon now, Mr Ketch will fall down a hole. Mr Dandy, Mr Nimble and Mr Tar will have a gate opened for them, and the man Jack will get just what he always wanted...
...
And look, Bill Hader is selling Lafferty to the world, via the New York Times.
(And hurrah, he's also plugging Joe Hill, Clive Barker and John Wyndham. But it's the Lafferty that put the smile on my face. I'm going to give a talk in Tulsa this summer, mostly because I want to visit the Lafferty manuscripts...) (And here is Lafferty's own short story, "Nine Hundred Grandmothers", for those of you who want something to read.)
The best thing about writing fiction is that moment where the story catches fire and comes to life on the page, and suddenly it all makes sense and you know what it's about and why you're doing it and what these people are saying and doing, and you get to feel like both the creator and the audience. Everything is suddenly both obvious and surprising ("but of course that's why he was doing that, and that means that...") and it's magic and wonderful and strange.
You don't live there always when you write. Mostly it's a long hard walk. Sometimes it's a trudge through fog and you're scared you've lost your way and can't remember why you set out in the first place.
But sometimes you fly, and that pays for everything.
No, it's not quite finished, but I don't mind right now, and I suspect that I can persuade my publisher to wait another couple of days. It's alive, and a real book, even if it's a short one and I cannot wait to get back to it.
....
The Hype Machine is a wonderful music discovery engine and internet music channel, and I've loved using it ever since I learned it on the Fabulist. Now, as you learn from the latest Fabulist posting, it's going to take 10,000 of us leaving the Hype machine window open to launch the new version of Hype Machine. They have about 1800 people right now, so if you wouldn't mind going to http://hypem.com/new and not closing the window I'd be very grateful. Thank you.
Don't forget about soccer this weekend!
Such beautiful blossoms!
Wanted to thank you for your kind comment on my blog when my husband went missing.