It's THIS weekend!

It's THIS weekend!  The 18th Annual Fisher Poets Gathering in Astoria, Oregon!

Me reading in Cannon Beach, 2013

This is going to be a short post because I have a plane to Oregon to catch.  I'll be performing a handful of times this weekend AND will be live on the radio Saturday night about 8:45 (ish).  You can tune into KMUN at www.coastradio.org and stream live!

Friday 4-5 open mic at the Voodoo Room

Friday at Fort George's Lovell Showroom about 6:30 with my fishing buddy Emily Springer. 

Saturday at KALA at 2:55 for a 5 minute read from the  Anchored in Deep Water, the Fisher Poets Anthology.

Saturday night at 8:45 at the Astoria Event Center and KMUN.

Sunday 10-noon at the Astoria Even Center's farewell open mic

Sunday 4-6 at Cannon Beach Art Association Gallery

You can find the complete schedule of events here at www.fisherpoets.org.

Here is a great read about Fisher Poets in Oregon Live online.  They even feature one of my poems!

http://www.oregonlive.com/entertainment/index.ssf/2015/02/fisherpoets_converging_on_asto.html

And here is what Coast Explore Magazine has to say about us:

http://coastexplorermagazine.com/features/fisher-poets-gathering-in-astoria-oregon-last-weekend-in-february-2015

Reading at the Astoria Event Center, 2013

I look forward to seeing you in Astoria!

I'm out.

In the Tote

The past few postings here on PickFish Tales, I've featured fellow Fisher Poets.  Well, I've enjoyed riding that wave so much and decided to ride it a little longer.  This week's blog high liner is Pat Dixon.

Pat Dixon photo by Veronica Kessler

Fisher Poet and fellow blogger Pat Dixon gillnetted Cook Inlet up in Alaska from 1977 to 1997.  Originally from Indiana,  he began dabbling in photography in high school and writing  shortly there after.  He has been published in the Oberon Poetry magazine, The Smithsonian, Pacific Fishing, to name a few.  A retired educator, Pat now works a free lance writer and photographer in Olympia, Washington with is spitfire wife, Veronica.  Also, he is on the organizing committee of the Annual Fisher Poets Gathering in Astoria, Oregon, has a blog Gillnet Dreams, a website Pat Dixon, and an anthology of Fisher Poets called In the Tote.  Here is a list of places to find Pat's work:

Gillnet Dreams:   http://dixonphoto.blogspot.com/
Pat Dixon photo: http://www.patrickdixon.net/patrickdixon.net/Welcome.html
Astoria's Fisher Poets Gathering: http://www.fisherpoets.org/
In the Tote: In the Tote

In the Tote is a culmination of musings, writings, songs, tall tales and of course, stories of the one that got away from folks in the commercial fishing industry.  From fresh greenhorns to salty skippers, Pat has schooled up stories from across the country of sea faring men and women who make the annual run to Astoria's Fisher Poets Gathering (FPG), this year in its 16th year.  On the site, which Pat just recreated, you'll find audio files, video, photos and writings of 36 Fisher Poets, myself included, who have one time or another, performed on the stages at the FPG.  As Pat states on the welcome page of In the Tote, " The material you read and listen to here represents a small fillet of what has been caught at the Fisher Poets Gathering.....since it began in 1998."

photo by Pat Dixon

 

 

 

 

WORD OF WARNING: listening to sea stories can be highly addictive and has been linked to longings for the ocean, the feel of wind in your hair and salt spray on your face.  Eating wild salmon has been known to help.  However,  if gone unchecked, it can result in the insatiable desire to fish commercially, which, as of the date of this writing, there is no known cure.  If you find this happening to you, please join your fellow salty sufferers at the 2014 Fisher Poets Gathering in Astoria, Oregon from February  21-23.  I'm out.

16th Annual Fisher Poets Gathering, Astoria Oregon

I made it!  We made it! We all made it.  The snow in Denver subsided just long enough for me to catch my flight to Portland, Oregon for my third year at Fisher Poets.  At the Portland airport, I met up with fellow Fisher Poets Ron McDaniel and Steve Schoonmaker.  I asked Steve if he was ready for this opener, this weekend of song, celebration, and drink sometimes feels like a fishing opener.  As soon as we cast our first story, its three days of no sleep, just go, go, go.

This year is our second year making the now annual pilgramage  from Portland to Astoria together.  It started with Steve and I talking about carpooling last year.   Then I saw an add on Facebook that the Cowboy needed a lift.  Ron, Fisher Poet's token Cowboy, was going to hitchhike the hour and half journey, but his wife was afraid that someone would pick him up just to steal his leather boots and toss him aside.  With that, our little tradition of splitting the fuel and catching up along the way was born.

 

Ron and Jen's work boots.

Astoria's local paper, The Astorian, generously  printed out this years schedule in the Thursday's edition of coast Weekend. Also HIPFISHmonthy, Astoria's local alternative paper featured FPs on their cover.

HIPFISHmonthy's cover

Camaraderie out the Wazoo

I love that, "Camaraderie out the Wazoo!" Camaraderie is defined as "a spirit of friendly good fellowship". That really sums up the heart of this event and why I love it so much.  For me, its not getting up on stage and performing my poems, that isn't fun, that's terrifying.  But I do it to belong this specific group of fishermen, fishermen who write.   They seem understand my poems because they have all, at one time or another, lived them too.  And I, theirs.  You can see it on their faces, from the grimace at the mention of jellyfish in the eye, to the nod of recognition of bring in a deckload.  We have all had our own triumphs and tregedies on the sea, some bigger than others.  And to be with a group of folks like that all weekend is like coming home.

 Pat Dixon goofing off with Ron's hat last night at the welcome dinner.

16th Annual Fisher Poets Gathering in Astoria, Oregon

Next weekend, February 22-24, 2013 is the 16th Annual Fisher Poets Gathering!  The gathering is an annual event where men and women tied to the commercial fishing industry get together and share tales, song, stories, and poems in celebration of making a living on the sea.  The event takes place every year, the last weekend in February in the coastal town of Astoria, Oregon which is a fishing town rich in maritime history.

Astoria's water front photo by Motoya Nakamura/The Oregonian

Fisher Poets Gathering was founded by fisherman and poet Jon Broderick in 1998 and began with a few folks meeting in a pub sharing stories and sea shanties.  Sixteen years later, FPs are still meeting in a pub, or more accurately, pubs but has expanded to about 70 poets from 11 different states coast to coast, including one token cowboy from Arkansas.  Slinging songs and spouting poetry happens at the Wet Dog, Voodoo Room, Clemente's, Baked Alaska, KALA Gallery, Fort George Brewery and the Astoria Event Center.  KMUN, the local radio station covers FPs from 6:00-10:00 pm (Pacific Time) both Friday and Saturday night.  Tune in to 91.9 FM or stream on the web at: www.coastradio.org.  

Jon Broderick photo by Motoya Nakamura/The Oregonian

During the day you can choose from having coffee with fisher poet Dave Densmore on board his boat, to workshops on creative writing, photography, to political discussions on ocean acidification or the threat of Pebble Mine, to listening to stories of the one that got away. You can even buy FPs memorabilia or your favorite poet's book or CDs at the gearshack.  More information along with this year's schedule can be found at the Fisher Poets website: Fisher Poets.

Dave Densmore photo by Motoya Nakamura/The Oregonian

Fisher poet and photographer Pat Dixon has done a whiz bang job over the years capturing us FPs with his camera.  His collection is called In the Tote.  Just click the link to see snap shots of us on stage along with some of our writings.

2012 Fisher Poets photo by Pat Dixon

There are some great reads out now covering the event. Check back, I'll post more as the come in this weekend.  Last year a few of us were interviewed for  Oregon Art Watch Astoria Fisher Poets Festival The NY Times did a piece a few years ago : For a Weekend, Fishermen Measure Haul in Verse.  The most recent is a wonderful photo essay from last year's FPs that came out last week on line at Portland's own The Oregonian: http://photos.oregonlive.com/photo-essay/2013/02/fisher_poets_gathering_in_asto.html#comments.  And here is the follow up stories along with those photos: Salty Poets of the Sea.

Jen Pickett photo by Motoya Nakamura/The Oregonian

As some of you may know, this will be my 3rd year performing at Fisher Poets and I can't wait!  Its such a special time for me to hear some great stories and to see all my fishing buddies again.  I'm all abuzz polishing up my Xtra-Tufs, rehearsing my lines and practicing my stories without any curse words, which is hard for a fisherman like myself.  Speaking of, I'd better get back to it!

My cleanest fishing boots photo by Motoya Nakamura/The Oregonian

See you in Astoria!

15th Annual Fisher Poets Gathering

15^th Annual Fisher Poets Gathering

Work is our joy – Matt Korpela

I’m here, I’m here!  I arrived in Astoria, Oregon last night after a long slog cross-country from Miami.  I met FisherPoet (FP) Steve Schoonmaker and Ron McDaniel, our resident Cowboy (https://www.facebook.com/pages/Cowboy-on-the-Side/140325332754121?v=info&sk=info) at the airport and we all piled in a rental car and headed out of Portland.  Ron kindly removed his cowboy at for the ride so I could see out the passenger side window as I drove us to Astoria.   It was great getting to hang out with both of these highliner FPs!  I also finally got to meet Tele Aadsen, who writes a blog titled Hooked http://nerkasalmon.wordpress.com/tag/tele-aadsen/.   We’ve been following each other’s blogs for months now and it was great to finally put a face with the name.  She’s making her maiden voyage this year at FPs.  Go get ‘em Tele!

The event kicked off last night with a welcome dinner and open mic at Clemente’s, a local restaurant here in downtown Astoria, OR.  The dinner menu included Willapa Oysters, Poke, Bristol Bay Sockeye Salmon and Chips, Oyster Casino, and what I had, Local Fresh Halibut and Chips. 

The drink menu included “Fisher Swills” that went by the names of Red Summer, Chum, Mug Up, and Muddler Minnow.  Little menus were printed up that included a well said quote from Bill Carter’s Red Summer:

“To fish is to be part carpenter, plumber, welder, weatherman, cop, mechanic, businessman, mother, father, sister, brother.  Part priest, drill sergeant, cop and outlaw. The have to believe in good and evil, and little prayers

 to the fish god don’t hurt.”

Well folks, the engines are all warmed up and we are about to put it into gear!  The official event kicks off tonight, Friday at 6 PM.  There is lots going on this year with about 10 different venues, a silent auction, workshops, onsite poem contest, films, open mic, story circle, and a photo exhibit titled When Crab Was King, Faces 1950 to 1982 by Toby Sullivan of Kodiak.  More details can be found at the Fisher Poet Website at http://www.clatsopcc.edu/community/fisherpoets-gathering.  They are on Facebook this year at https://www.facebook.com/FisherPoets?sk=wall and on Twitter at FisherPoets.   More about each FisherPoet can be found at Pat Dixon’s In the Tote: http://web.me.com/dixonphoto/Fisher_Poets_-_In_the_Tote/Welcome.html. 

Oh, and I'll be live on the radio today, Friday at 3:20 Pacific Time on Arts!  Live and Local on KMUN.  I think you can stream it live at coastradio.org.

 

Saturday night at Clemente’s is a special event to raise awareness of the proposed Pebble Mine at the heart of the world’s largest salmon run up in Bristol Bay.  The event features FisherPoets with Bristol Bay connections and a reading by author Bill Carter.   Proceeds from a silent auction as well as a percentage of food and drink sales(way to go Clemente’s!) goes towards Trout Unlimited’s Save Bristol Bay Campaign: http://www.savebristolbay.org/.  I hope to see you there!  I leave you with a poem I wrote for the fundraiser event tomorrow night.  It’s an offshoot from Walt Whitman’s I will take an egg out of the robin’s nest. 

Value

By Jen Pickett

I will take a sockeye salmon out of Bristol Bay.

I will take the roe from its belly

and go and preach to the world;

you shall see

I will not meet a single

heretic or scorner,

you shall see how I stump congressmen,

and confound them

you shall see me showing a scarlet egg,

and a gold pebble from the beach.

I will ask you to weigh their value.

The Ocean Almanac

As I prepare myself for the up and coming Fisher Poets Gathering in Astoria, OR, February 24-26^th, I turn to my favorite book for inspiration: The Ocean Almanac. Being a Copious Compendium on Sea Creatures, Nautical Lore & Legend, Master Mariners, Naval Disasters, and Myriad Mysteries of the Deep by Robert Hendrickson.  If you are a fisherman or mariner, or like the ocean in any way, shape, or form and don’t own it, I insist you stop what you are doing right now and find yourself a copy.  I think the best place this day and age is Amazon.com.

Go ahead.  I’ll wait.

It is 408 pages of nautical facts, tidbits, poems, and stories.   You name it, if it has to do with the ocean, it is in here.  You simply open the book up, anywhere you wish, and start reading.  Here, I’ll give you an example: hypothermia, the myth of the unsinkable ship: the night the Titanic went down, pirates and mutineers, weather rhymes, horseshoe crabs, walruses, jellyfish, grog, marines, the persecution of captain Stanley Lord, seasickness, red tides, and how to hypnotize a lobster and, well, you get the idea.  I could go on, but don’t want to spoil the fun for you.  Ok, one more. These are epitaphs for those lost at sea:

HERE LIES A SAILOR’S BRIDE

WHO WIDOWED WAS

BECAUSE OF THE TIDE:

IT DROWNED HER HUSBAND:

SO SHE DIED

He went down with his ship, and where his bones

are rotting only seabirds know

The waters were his winding sheet,

the sea was made for his tomb.

Yet for his fame the ocean sea,

was not sufficient room.

HERE IN THIS URN

FROM MALABAR

THE ASHES LIE

OF JONATHAN BARR:

HE SAUGHT A HIGHER LIFE

AFAR

AND TRAVELLED HOMEWARD IN

A JAR

There are fathoms of these, and other poems, rhymes, flotsam and jetsam, which are, by the way, referred to the goods that were found floating on the sea and belonged to the Crown and cargo purposely thrown overboard in order to lighten the ship in an emergence, respectively.

I’ll give you a sample of a poem I’m working on that was influenced from The Ocean Almanac:

One obese oafish octopus occupied on opium and oarlocks occasionally obediently oared oarsman, oarswomen objectifying, obscene oarsmanship and ogles opening oysters on outboards of obtuse oceanic odysseys.

The silliness continues a few more lines, but you get the idea.   It’s still a work in progress but I’ll let you know when its ready.  

I’m out. 

2012 FisherPoets Gathering is coming!

The 15^th Annual FisherPoets Gathering in beautiful downtown Astoria, Oregon is right around the corner.  It kicks off at 6 PM Friday February 24 and goes until Sunday afternoon.   The FisherPoets Gathering is an Astoria tradition, bringing folks in  the commercial fishing industry together to share original poems, stories, songs, memoirs, essays and art in celebration of the work and its folks.  (http://www.clatsopcc.edu/community/fisherpoets-gathering).  Check out their Facebook page at (https://www.facebook.com/FisherPoets?sk=info).

This event has been on my radar for years.  Last year, I decided to finally make it happen but instead of just being a spectator, like a normal person would, I took the bull by the horns.  I performed.  My first act was at the  biggest venue,  live on the radio.  No pressure.  I walked up on stage and those lights blinded me and my mind went blank.  Completely blank, like a deer in headlights.  Good thing I wrote down what I was supposed to say.  “Hi, my name is Jen Pickett and I’m a commercial fisherman.”  Once I started reading my script, I eased into it a bit and it was smooth sailing after that.   I had a wonderful time and met some wonderful folks.  

I’m looking forward to this year's event and I’ve been working hard on some new stuff to read.  So if find yourself in the Astoria area the last week in February, stop on by!  See you in Astoria!

But, here is a sneaky peak, this one’s for you, Suzie!

To all the fish I’ve caught before
Jen Pickett

To all the fish I’ve caught before

For whom I’ve traveled way offshore

I searched far and near

I dedicate this beer

To all the fish I’ve caught before

To all the fish I’ve dressed

And baby I’ve dressed the best

For giving up their roe

I owe a lot I know

To all the fish I’ve caught before

The winds of chance are always blowing

And every time I try to stay

The winds of chance continue blowing

And they just carry me away

To all the fish I’ve snared in my reel

Who are now someone else’s meal

In my fish hold I did stow ‘em

I dedicate this poem

To all the fish I’ve caught before

To all the fish who’ve died for me

And kept me from bankruptcy

They live within my heart

And will always be a part

Off all the fish I’ve caught before

Those winds of chance are always blowing

And every time I try to stay

The winds of chance continue blowing

And they just carry me away

To all the fish I’ve caught before

For whom I’ve traveled way offshore

I searched far and near

I dedicate this beer

To all the fish I’ve caught before