It's Miller Time
Don't miss my 2025 hystorical webinar! April 24, 7pm PST.
“The written word is a tool latched to the human urge to shift the lens of the world and become a piece of forever.” — Jordan Pastor, VP, CWCBB
This week, preparing myself for next week’s Zoom presentation on Joaquin Miller, sponsored by the CWC, FOJMP, and the Oakland Public Library, I spent a little time in the Oakland History Room looking through their 5 linear feet of archives about the famed poet. Obsessing on his little hill of history has been so soothing to me as they’ve been Making America Gross Again, seeing how Miller and his community of artists and proto-progressives fought against the corrupt, lopsided values of what Mark Twain dubbed “The Gilded Age.”
I’ve woven the recording of my November library talk with my slides, and enhanced them with animation into one of my famous hysterical/historical video essays (like The Deco Diet) which audiences (including you, perhaps?) should find quite amusing, entertaining, and enlightening. I introduce my inquiry with my own journey as a frustrated song writer, and end the lecture with another, more recent and personal, historical moment. Here’s a rough cut of the finale…a music video of the first public performance of “Joaquin Miller Went Walkin’” at the Grand Opening of the Farmer Joe’s in the Dimond in 2005!
The song features Evan Nichols, delightful writer and third grade teacher turned English Professor extaordinaire, and Nancy Peterson of the Infusions on guitar— plus you can hear adorable commentary by my 3rd grade son who is near the camera person. And that little guy on the far left? He grows up to be the amazing Mawi aka Dagmawi Zemedkun Fasil!
I’ve really enjoyed the so so so so many hours I’ve spent creating this talk, since bringing new perspectives on this barely-known shaper of Oakland, America, and the world to a new generation feels important. I love how Miller invented and reinvented himself (like Madonna but less naked), kept nature as his touchstone, followed his muse around the world, spoke up for justice—and how much love HE had for a nascent Oakland and Bay Area. A rowdy pacifist, there's something about his energetic imprint that is a touchstone for Oaklanders. I feel like his voice could be important again as we are shoved back toward a time like his, when unregulated greed, unchallenged white supremacy, and unmitigated poverty were the woof to the silvery warp of the raw social fabric of the times. We can be guided, informed, and becalmed by his voice, intrigued by his mysteries, and inspired by his faith, humility, affection, 19th century feminism, love for humanity, and maybe most of all the balance he found in simplicity and kindness.
Sliding scale tickets are at www.tinyurl.com/ogpoet25. Donations support my work as a historic literary instigator.
Meanwhile–attention local writers! Tomorrow, April 19th, is our Literary Avengers Earth Day Write-In up in the Park.
Come Early, Stay All Day!
Kristen Caven, our Writer in Residence at Joaquin Miller Park is hosting a Write-In with the City of Oakland and Earthday.org. The theme this year is “Our Power, Our Planet.”
10:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m. Literary Avengers Write in. Bring a hat, a picnic and a notebook. Event is free but get your ticket for the afternoon speaker, Nazelah Jamison.
The Literary Avengers Write In is followed by the monthly club meeting. The Program begins at 1:30 with featured member Jasper Ezekiel followed by featured speaker Nazelah Jamison. Tickets here.
(Can’t come? Make some clicks right now! Tell US Lawmakers: Stop Rollbacks and Promote Renewable Energy | Sign the Renewable Energy Petition)
I loved your lovely, creative, and fun video having little kids sing with you. I also enjoyed the cartoon of him walking forward, then backward, and clever words—"woof and warp of raw social fiber." (There must be a way to increase the volume....)