826 Blog

826 Seattle and A Story Before Bed and young 826 Seattle author Noah Sather and 826 Seattle volunteer and gifted artist David Lasky have partnered to produce the online version of The Northwest Mythical and Unknown Creatures Organization Meeting No. 66 which YOU (dear reader) can enjoy by going to A Story Before Bed.

Here’s how our collaboration worked:

Dedicated to developing writing skills in children of all ages, we know that a love of writing starts with a love of reading. There’s a new children’s book service from a Seattle neighbor of ours called A Story Before Bed. The service is for parents and grandparents who can’t be near their kids at bedtime. It allows them to choose a book and use their webcam to record a video of themselves reading, synchronized to the pages of the book flipping on the screen. Children can then play that book back whenever they like. The site is great for a parent on a business trip, grandparents who live far away, or a soldier who is deployed for months at a time away from their family. At 826 Seattle, we are familiar with the value not just of parents reading to children, but of children reading to their parents. A Story Before Bed is already being used for exactly that purpose.

We’re proud to announce a partnership between 826 Seattle and A Story Before Bed. The site has published a book written right here by one of our students - The Northwest Mythical and Unknown Creatures Organization Meeting No. 66 written by Noah Sather, and illustrated by local talented illustrator, and friend and volunteer of 826 Seattle, David Lasky. In this book, readers get a sneak peek into a meeting of some of the colorful mythical characters from the Pacific Northwest including Seattle’s bridge troll, the living tree, and rain pixies. Proceeds from the book will go to 826 Seattle. And A Story Before Bed will be donating free recordings to students at the center to record themselves reading the book (and other books) to show off to their family members. We encourage you to check out the site, and record yourself reading this new book.

Last summer, 826 Seattle teamed up with One Reel and the Stranger’s Kurt Reighley to send two members of the Youth Advisory Board to Bumbershoot. Armed with a press pass and crash course from Kurt on Music Reporting 101, Meron and Jake from YAB took to the shows with ear and pen. Here’s Meron’s review of the Black Eyed Peas show in our second installment of YAB reviews- enjoy!

Meron K, Youth Advisory Board

Never having been to a concert, I didn’t know what to expect. I walked down the crowded ramp to the side of the stage. The pit was jam-packed with people jittery with excitement. The energy of the crowd seemed to have flowed up and out, livening up the gray, damp day. After squeezing my way forward through the crowd to get a better view, the announcer arrived. Before I knew it, Fergie’s voice was booming through the stadium revving up the crowd and encouraging the inner crowd surfer in all of us to take over. People ran forward to get a better view. Once The Black Eyed Peas (BEP) started singing, the crowd was jumping up and down and crowd surfers were making their way from the back to the front. There was a point when I felt as though there were more people in the air then there were actually on the ground. The liveliness of the crowd never seemed to diminish as the rain started to pour, wetting the entire crowd. The Black Eyed Peas performed songs from their newest album, The E.N.D. (Energy Never Dies), such as “Boom Boom Pow”, “Rock That Body”, “Meet Me Halfway”, “Now Generation”, and more. They also performed crowd pleasers from previous albums like “My Humps”, “Let’s Get it Started”, “Where is the Love?”, “Pump it”, and “Don’t Phunk with my Heart”. I loved all of the performances. It was all very lively and exciting. Although there were some sound malfunctions, especially in the song “Where is the Love?”, the crowd still sang along with the BEP. As soon as the sound was back on, the crowd started to cheer again. Will.I.Am wanted in on the crowd surfing action and crowd surfed in the front section of the pit. The BEP ended the hour and a half long performance with “I Gotta Feeling”, spraying water with a hose in the pit soaking anyone within 30 feet from the stage and blowing confetti everywhere. The crowd cheered and cheered and the fact that they were just starting to dry off from the rain didn’t seem to faze them in the least. Overall, I thought the performance was extremely entertaining and would love to go to another Black Eyed Peas concert anytime.

Youth Speaks Seattle at Bumbershoot

By Youth Advisory Board Member Jake Lindsay

A mere introduction to this organization could not possibly encompass all the elements that make it so very unique, but an introduction is needed, nevertheless. Youth Speaks is a nationwide nonprofit literary arts organization for young men and women. The Seattle branch holds weekly writing circles (every Thursday at 5:00 PM) at the Teen Center in the Seattle Central Library, and every third Sunday of the month, open mics are held at Cafe Allegro. It is a place where young men and women come to write and share poetry or fiction or any writing, creative or not—a cathartic experience for many, fascinating for most, and, to say the least, a one of a kind experience for every person participating. And this year, Youth Speaks Seattle held their very own showing at Bumbershoot in the Bagley Wright Theatre.

The event featured eight poets from Youth Speaks Seattle, each reading their selected piece; a special performance from Geologic of Blue Scholars, and, reading from her new memoir, The Other Side of Paradise, the celebrated spoken word poet and political activist, Staceyann Chin.

What was truly astounding was the amount of energy this room had. The kids (however, judging by their poem’s subject-material, it would be a misnomer to call the young poets “kids”) would come on stage to wild and uproarious applause, hooting, hollering; a young woman in the audience would shout to the poet onstage before their performance: “Don’t be nice!” another would holler, “Feel it, sing it, spit it!” The audience cheered, moaned, hollered, hooted, whimpered, snapped their fingers, or otherwise at almost every spoken verse—it was an emotionally provocative event, no doubt, and much of it was not for the fainthearted. The young poets were raw—cussing, screaming, even shaking, at some points; images of sex, disease, violence. It was difficult to feel apathetic about the performance because there was so much electricity and fervor in the theatre.

“Y’all had no idea what you were in for, when you walked in here, did you?” the host said at one point. I think we all agreed on some level.

Then out came Geologic: a man of total, eloquent, calm. His rhymes or verses spoke of urban life and urban mentality—some have even called him the Conscience of Seattle. More cheering, hollering, hissing from the audience—there was no barrier or silence or etiquette between the person on stage and people sitting down; I doubt the poets up there would have wanted to be treated otherwise for they were, essentially, being given immediate feedback for pieces they worked days, weeks, possibly months on before their performance.

Time came for the mainliner guest: Staceyann Chin. A Jamaican native; openly lesbian; and, by her own words, a “womanist” activist—she was raw, wickedly funny and powerfully articulate. She was introduced and greeted by the entire cast of Youth Speaks Seattle, and her first words on stage were: “Aw, man, I mean: how f***ing humbling—being up here—being introduced by such pure and unadulterated talent and all that s**t.” She then went on to read a selected chapter from her memoir, the subject of which was sexually explicit and very fitting of Chin’s activism in the gay community—I advise you stop reading here and immediately buy the book (preferably from an independent book store); by and large, whatever energy the audience had in the previous performances was tenfold when Chin was on stage.

Ultimately, this was a truly remarkable event—the excitement of the audience rivaled that of a Black Eyed Peas concert, and this audience, in general, was not nearly as drunk as those at a Black Eyed Peas concert. And though, at times, I’d imagine an audience member or two may have been repulsed, angered, or made terribly uncomfortable by the words coming from the stage, I can equally imagine that that audience member would later bestow at least some admiration to those poets who could provoke such emotions in the first place. I hold this organization in high esteem, and I would recommend any kid to go check it out for him or herself; my words don’t do it justice.

by Alex

We can’t say it often enough: volunteers are the heart and soul of what we do here at 826 Seattle. There are over 1000 names in our database, over 450 “actives” and last year they contributed over 9,400 hours helping us. When summer comes and the schedule slows down (a little), we like to show our vols how much we appreciate them with two events: the coveted 100 Hour Club and the Volunteer Picnic.

The first is a celebration for the mighty few who have contributed at least 100 hours in the previous fiscal year. We generally have a dinner, some speeches, some drinks, some surprises and we award something special to the top two hours earners. In the past two years, these generous folks have attained entry into the coveted “400 hour club.” Seriously. This year we celebrated at the LAWRIMORE project and ate Ethiopian food, had a pinata filled with candy and booze, cucumber martinis, and a sneak peek at the new Greenwood Space Travel Coffee roasted by Neptune Coffee.

The picnic is for all our active volunteers and their friends and family. This year, the weather cooperated (to say the least!) at Carkeek Park. We stuffed ourselves silly on burgers and brats, vegan cupcakes and homemade (controversial!) cheeses, had a water balloon toss, badminton and a sack race. There were prizes. There was poetry. There was the sweetest dog in the universe. I think it’s safe to say people had a rockin’ good time.

We wanted to dedicate this blog post to all the amazing folks who donated their time whether an hour or 438 of them — enjoy the photos!

The 2008-2009 100 Hour Club	Nancy and Doug wearing the official 100 hour club secret society gear
Justin surprised us with his badminton prowess.	Rebecca shows that all that Oscar Wilde practices have paid off.
Jen dons the acceptance speech headdress.	Tilia decides that space travel is indeed for her.
100 hour club gift 2009	Nancy swings at the comma pinata with Teri heckling in the background.

By Samar Abulhassan

As I write this, our summer workshops are nearly finished, as a group of young Muslim students read aloud stories written this week, pausing to celebrate with meringue cookies. Our ever-so-reliable and generous volunteer teacher Jennie Shortridge is gently encouraging a handful of timid students to share their stories. I mention to students something a friend once told me: stories and poems are often gifts that come through us and are meant to be heard. All writers have unique perspectives and voices, but once released, doesn’t a story or poem belong equally to anyone who wishes to engage with it? “For every atom belonging to me as good belongs to you,” writes Walt Whitman, who’s “Song of Myself” spurred numerous poem-songs from seven to ten-year olds earlier this summer.

For the past five weeks, nearly 100 students have filled more than a dozen classes, cultivating the habit of reading and writing. At Occidental Park last Friday (in partnership with ArtSparks, an initiative to celebrate work inspired by the writing of Haruki Murakami) a number of 826 Seattle students experimented with ways to show work: tacking a story to a tree for example, allowing a phrase to catch the eye of a passerby. Or taping “maps” of their minds to the ground. Or reading and dancing their story in front of their parents, or in small groups, while summer’s light flickered around them, as many stopped to listen to a fragment or an entire story. We might celebrate the diverse elements at play in each moment, and the many (and often quiet) ways to showcase work and connect with one another.

You’ll read more about this experience below from 826 Seattle volunteer Loren Drummond. Many, many thanks to 826 Seattle staff, volunteer teachers, assistants and students who made this summer workshop calendar a vibrant one!

Murakami Workshop

by Loren Drummond

We made maps and wrote stories. We mapped our stories on the bricks and sculpture of Occidental Park. We proclaimed them to park-goers and whispered them to parents, pigeons and trees. What a cool, mind-bending week.

When I volunteered to teach one of the 826 Seattle summer workshops, I knew that the student writers would exceed my expectations. And they did.

A princess loses a toe in a quest for knighthood

A shack, the unlikely portal to another land

Five friends from five lands take on one serious bad guy

Atlantis, found

Two brothers, two islands, one stinging disagreement

A road trip to Milwaukee. And aliens

A structurally original spiral of apples and aliens

A protagonist tree in four seasons

A tragic journey outside the bubble

A few novels in the making

And so much more…

As a class of 15, we set out to find stories in all kinds of maps, to play with ideas of place, history, time, and reality. We considered the work of Haruki Murakami and the BFG. We talked about the allure of borderlands (cue the song from the Star Wars bar on Tatooine). We created characters out of cheese and plots out of index cards.

I am so grateful to Seattle 826 for the chance to seek out stories in unlikely places and to geek out for an entire week about storytelling with a room full of smart, funny writers and the brilliant Elizabeth Umbanhowar (Murakami-in-the-parks curator).

The Greenwood Space Travel Supply Co. provides its patrons with free use of the Captain’s Lounge — a quiet, relaxing place to sit and ponder one’s recent or future journeys. In the Lounge there is a Log. We invite the public to read over the exploits, commentary, recipes, and poetry contained in the Log, left there by Captains visiting from around the galaxy. If you are a Captain, or play one on T.V., feel free to stop in and add to the compendium.

Some of the writing already contained within:

I did, you know, I did, once, lose my towel.

It’s just one of those things, right? You say it ain’t ever gonna happen to you – no way, not you. Those kinds of things only happen to the OTHER guy. Any you tell yourself this, and you tell yourself this, until one day you wake up and that “other” guy is you after all. And there’s nowhere - and I mean nowhere - to buy towels on the south-side of Venus.

And it all goes downhill from there.

- anonymous

——–

Hey. I know this may be abrupt. We’ve just met and all…but I don’t think I can go on without you. Please marry me, outer space. Your cosmic beauty is undeniable.

Will you have me?

Love nebulously, Lili Money aka Aline Dollar

——

It’s not nearly as exciting as I thought it would be, now that I am here. The fries are good though.

Hooley Binfroe Lt. Captain at Arms + Large

by Rebecca

I can hardly believe we’re at the end of our fourth year of tutoring at 826 Seattle. That September 2005 volunteer orientation I attended doesn’t seem that long ago—but when you think about it, many of our current elementary school students were still in preschool then. And students who started coming to us as freshman are graduating and preparing for life outside high school. Holy moly. But, luckily, events exist to distract us from the relentless, bulldozing march of time—like the annual Tutor Idol! Tutor Idol, which takes place on the last day of tutoring every year, is a talent contest in which 826 tutors, staff, and students flaunt their ability to bend funny, play instruments, manipulate decks of cards, and do normal activities at slightly faster-than-normal speeds.

Tutor Jen started us off with a very impressive talent—she identified every state and its capitol merely by looking at the outline of the shape itself, only briefly stumbling when South Dakota and Kansas conspired against her. Student Meron wowed us with her flexibility, executing a bridge position any yogi would be envious of. Fearless leader Teri brought back her impressive speed-typing again this year, but this time with help from Breannah and Hannah, who read chicken + road jokes aloud as Teri typed along.

Next up was Yasin (assisted by Natty), who managed to find the audience’s card, the four of diamonds, from a full deck. 826 Seattle is indeed a magical place. And to celebrate our literary side, tutor Corey performed e.e. cummings’s “maggie and milly and molly and may,” but did the verses out of order by request, and accompanied each one with some effortlessly improvised modern dance. I defy you to find a volunteer corps more talented than ours.

After Corey, Breanah drew mountains really quickly (twenty-two seconds!), and she was followed by tutor Raphaela, who improvised refused-restaurant-service jokes based on suggestions from the crowd (example: “Cell phone!” “Okay…ninety-nine cell phones walk into a restaurant. The restaurant owner says, ‘We don’t serve cell phones here.’ The cell phones say, ‘Well, that’s a pretty lousy reception!’ ”). Following that, Laura stepped up to the mic and sang a beautiful version of “Lean On Me,” with the audience backing her up on the chorus. It was a very sweet moment, which was followed immediately by Store and Events Manager Justin bellowing “Jabberwocky” in (purportedly) Irish and Australian accents.

Skyler also performed some magic tricks (disappearing penny and face-changing card!), and I followed her with a speed-crocheting act (and filled the time by bantering with Breannah) in which I made a cozy for one of our tin-can pencil holders. Student Simon was up next, performing what I think can be classified as front and back handsprings, though since I’ve never been able to do a handspring, I never really figured out exactly what they are. In any case, they were bouncy and upside-down briefly and cool-looking. Tutor Steve broke out his guitar and a sweet folk song , and then student Justin drew a very awesome oak-tree/sunset landscape (timed at 1:22). Last up, after much deliberation (“She won’t do it and I don’t want to do it by myself…”), Terlona sang several verses from “Girl, Put Your Records On” while Katie stood on stage for moral (if not vocal) backup.

And then—oh, and then—the agonizing wait of the tally for the votes. Justin announced the new name for our brand-new copper rocket in the store (“Copernicus’s Ride”!), and students Isiah and Hannah took the stage to buy the vote-counters time and tell some jokes (“Why did the cow marry the horse? Because the cow accidentally kissed the horse!”). Raphaela reprised her act, as well, and then the results were in! *

For students, Justin and his quickly drawn tree got runner-up, while Laura’s “Lean On Me” earned her first place, as well as its attendant honors of some delectable truffles from Chocolati and wearing the coveted Tutor Idol sash. On the tutor side, there was a three-way tie for runner-up, shared by Steve, Justin and Corey. I was gratified to share the first place spoils with Raphaela, whose talent I am very jealous of and hope to somehow steal for my own. In these difficult times, it is comforting to know that the citizens of 826 Seattle still appreciate the finer things in life, like improvised comedy and improvised fiber art.

We wrapped up the night with a potluck, with food provided by students and their families. The kids (and let’s be honest, pretty much most of the adults) gorged themselves on pink lemonade, a variety of spicy, cheese-flavored snack things, fried chicken, cookies, fruit salad, and a handful of other dishes. It was a good end to a good year. Now we head into the summer, a time not for tutoring but for summer workshops, math help by appointment, and softball (click here to read about the Oscar Wildes, 826 Seattle’s slow-pitch softball team, and how they also ended the night of Tutor Idol in a tie).

It’s been an amazing four years—I feel like I get so much more out of my time at 826 than I give. I can’t wait for year five.

* I am pleased to report that Mahmoud Ahmadinejad did not place in the rankings at all.

By Alex

Ever wonder what the first line of your memoir would be? On April 10th, 826 Seattle participated in the Seattle Summer Streets Event in Greenwood and our Youth Advisory Board interviewed passers-by and then crafted these fabulous memoir openers.

I love to hike and it was first realized when many years ago as a child I accidentally hiked all the way up into the wrong car. - Wendy

I’m happy but I wasn’t so much when a bullet went through my leg. - Gary

Food is the way to my heart, and helping people in the food service is my way to theirs. - Elaine

After I fell off the balance beam I just wanted to hang out at the mall. - Artina

It all started when I was three and my toothbrush found its way to the toilet. - Jinhee

I was cooking soup on a beautiful spring morning while thinking about all the changes I need to make in my life. - Hilary

Splash! I was soaking wet and snorting with anger at my brothers– for god sakes I was just trying to go to the bathroom. - Randy

My actual memories get mixed with recollections of photos, yet an ever present desire of world domination persists. - Jonathan

I have been foolish, but I am filled with joy. - Walt

Seattle playwright and teacher, Ramón Esquivel, said it best: “Playwriting will save the universe.” This eloquent truth is the opening line of the forward to the most recent 826 Seattle publication: In Our Hood: 52 short plays you can perform in any place. The book—a compilation of plays written by students at Hamilton International Middle School, and 826 Seattle writing workshop students—was created in just four weeks. It is the remarkable end product to a month of nonstop brainstorming, drafting, re-writing and copy-editing on the part of dedicated students and 826 Seattle volunteers.

This week, everyone involved in the project saw the culmination of his or her efforts realized. As part of the book release celebration, the playwrights, their families, and everyone at 826 gathered to watch a quartet of Seattle-based theater luminaries infuse these masterpieces with dramatic life. The results were dazzling:

Riotous applause erupted at the close of the proverb-rich: “Let Us Play Table Tennis.” The work’s author, Xiaoli, stood hesitantly at first, his spine straightening gradually as he accepted the crowd’s enthusiastic response.

Playwright Morgon beamed happily, observing the audience’s rolling belly laughs in response to the witty rapid-fire dialogue in his Mamet-esque comedy, “Bob’s Bad Day.”

Co-authors Noah and Will nodded with solemn, contented approval as a trio of actors recited in unison the lines of the psychologically torturous character, ME, in their play, “Grey and Me.”

The plays ran the gauntlet of genres—tragedies, comedies, action-adventures and love stories. The characters were diverse—a spoiled young man, Rich Boy; a rotund sushi enthusiast, Mr. Turnip; a talking basketball; Chuck, the lost squirrel. Regardless of the specifics, in each play, the characters confronted a problem. They struggled to solve the problem. They changed.

There is something special too about the age of the contributors to this book that uniquely qualifies them as playwrights. Middle school is an inherently dramatic time of life. The roles of hero and villain are constantly being re-cast—sometimes multiple times within a single school day. Character motivations are difficult to discern and require careful study. Conflicts arise, and the plot, inevitably, thickens. The In Our Hood playwrights succeeded in harnessing the essence of the unfolding daily dramas around them, and used it to create art.

After the dramas had been performed, there was a celebratory meet-the-author mingle. The young playwrights ate cake and sipped their milk delicately out of slender champagne glasses. They signed fans’ copies of In Our Hood, and provided sophisticated answers to question about their artistic methods and motivations.

Their lust for writing insatiable, many of the playwrights stuck around after the event to participate in another workshop. 826 Director Teri Hein presented the eager authors with their task for the day: write a Memo to President Elect Obama. The McSweeney’s publishing company, which is affiliated with the 826 National organization, recently put out a call to the seven 826 chapters nation wide, soliciting young authors’ entries. Their Memos will be compiled and published in a book in time for the impending January 20th inauguration.

Debate was lively and suggestions prolific as the students offered up their ideas in response to the following prompts:

-What would you like Obama to do for you? For your family? For the United States? For the world? -What would you like Obama to know about your life in Seattle? -What advice would you offer his family? -What are you willing to do for your country and the president in return for his help?

No doubt the finished products of these letters will brim with creative, idealistic, and eloquently worded solutions to our nation’s most pressing problems. Thus, my memo to Obama is simple: Read the words of these artists, Mr. President-Elect, and heed their advice. They are playwrights. They are citizens. And they are going to save the universe. -Alicia

Fall means publishing season at 826 Seattle. Currently, the writing center is in the midst of putting together a book of dramatic works by students at Hamilton International School and 826 Seattle students entitled: In Our Hood: 53 Short Plays You Can Perform in Any Place.

Included in the book will be a short “about the author” paragraph beside each student’s photo. Each student completed a brief questionnaire about themselves and their experiences as playwrights. Forgoing the traditional “what’s your favorite hobby” inquiries, the majority of the questions focused directly on the students’ writing experience (e.g.- Who is your favorite character? What did you like about writing with a partner? Etc.)

One question, tacked on at the end just of the survey just for fun, proved to be quite revealing: Would you rather have the power of flight, or invisibility? Why?

So much of the students’ personalities, their hopes, and their fears shone through in their answers. Students who picked flight seem to land in one of several categories.

1.The confident, boisterous, and adventuresome flight enthusiasts: -I’d rather have the power to fly. It would be hella’ tight -Flight! Don’t question me! -Fly, because that would be boss. -I would rather fly cuz I like to travel country to country.

2. The pragmatists: -Fly, because if you don’t have a car, you can fly to the store. -I would pick fly because it would be fun to fly to school.

3. …and the dreamers: -I’d rather have the power to fly because just imagining how it feels to be far away from everything and the escape; it gives me a carefree feeling -I would rather fly cause I’m tired of feeling invisible

Similarly, those who choose invisibility had their reasons:

1. Mischief: -Invisibility, because then I could poke Uri in the head. -Invisibility because then I could play pranks and steal stuff! Just kidding! (or am, I?) -I would like to be invisible because I could play the ultimate prank on people (and not tell them who did it) Mu ha ha! -Invisible. You could do things without people noticing, like open and close doors.

2. Pragmatics: -Invisible, because then you could disappear. Nobody would know where you are when you forget your homework. -Of course I would rather be invisible! Because I will be able to know where my mom hides the Christmas presents!

…And then, there was this heart breaking response which really belongs in a category all of its own: -Invisibility, because when I feel sad people won’t see me cry. I don’t want my dad and mom to worry about me.

I’ll be celebrating the holidays with my family for the first time in two years this winter, and thus seeing a multitude of long lost relatives and friends from back home. With limited time to catch up in the face of all these impending reunions, I’m thinking of side-stepping the bland “What are you up to these days?” inquiries and getting right to the heart of the matter.

“So tell me, really. Flight? Or invisibility? Defend your answer.”

-Alicia