Books Washington State Now Has a Poet Laureate
posted by on December 17 at 16:53 PM
And his name is Samuel Green. He is the first. He was appointed by the governor. If you’ve never heard of him, well, Wikipedia has never heard of him either. (Here are all the Samuel Greens Wikipedia knows.) According to the press release just issued by Gregoire’s office:
Green is a native of Washington and resides on remote Waldron Island. A distinguished poet and author of ten poetry collections, including his soon to be released book, The Grace of Necessity (Carnegie Mellon University Press, 2008), his work has appeared in numerous publications. For more than thirty years, he has served as editor of a small press focusing on the work of Washington poets. Green has served as a visiting poet in a wide range of settings, including universities, public schools, libraries, mental health centers, correctional facilities and poetry festivals. He has been visiting poet and poetry teacher at Seattle University for several years and is been active with the Skagit River Poetry Festivals.
The press release goes on to say that his passion is infectious, etc, etc.
Here’s a piece from the Seattle University Magazine about how Green is a poem walking around as a person—or something—that includes a photo of our new poet laureate. And his mustache.
I took a poetry comp class with Sam at SU in 2003. He's one of the most amazing, inspirational people I've ever met, and I'm glad to see him honored in this way.
sam green is a warm and wonderful human being--an amazing book artist too.
I once knew a poet who bought a cabin on Waldron.
But instead of writing poems he just stirred a caldron.
When a full moon was out
The island wiccans would shout
You should have just stayed in your condo.
There was an Old Poet on Waldron
Who cooked all his poems in a cauldron
"I am a great poet,
I'm modern & know it,
So what if my poem rhymes not 'Waldron!'"
He's not going to get state money, is he? Urgh. Why a poet laureate and not a novelist laureate, biographer laureate, painter laureate, dancer laureate, Flash programmer laureate, chef laureate?
What sucks is that they're paying him with money. The original bill called for the poet to be paid a firkin of beer.
I heard Green read several times in Seattle: once in Dr. Meyer's class at SPU; several other times at Open Books.
You must read everything he has written.
Here's hoping the trolley SLOOT one-ups Metro and has AUDIO poetry (does the #7 still have that funny tour guide-ish driver?) instead of written blips up above and in place of ADS. Hmmmm, scratch that maybe, one of the first writers to report on the ClitScarTrak was complaining about SMELL, showing his primal motivation, which is cool, because his bsession with drugs leaves me to ask Who's Holdin' really? Bogart? Nope, we call him SKUNKweeddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddd
The poet lauareate/firkin of beer idea came from Sen. Ken Jacobsen, D-Seattle, who has been working on this for SIXTEEN YEARS.
Jacobsen introduced 99 bills last session saying, "I'm into the theory of chaos. And in the theory of chaos, if this particle exists and this one comes into existence and this one doesn't know that one exists? It still affects the behavior of that one."
His other priority: lettings dogs in bars.
Sen. Jacobsen is one of our leading Democratic Seattle Senators, representing the 46th District in North/Northeast Seattle.
Shoulda been Bart Baxter.
I like Seattle's Poet Populace program better because then at least you have some assurance the poet in question is relevant to anyone or anything at all.
I like the idea of a flash developer laureate...
I'm all for appointing a Strumpet Laureate. Cody Castagna, anyone?
I have heard of him. Sam Green came and visited my English class in sixth grade. That was nice.
Oh, you must. Sam is just around the bend from Hopkins and who wants to be left in the cold, sniffing the tail end of a dog passing gas on a sidewalk grate? If so, please hurry over to E. Pike St. by the last bar before payday kicks you over the hill and you'll see what I mean. Sam is the right person at this crucial time for Washington state, and the nation. Congratulations!
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