Writing workshop

Hello ladies,

it's been a long while since I've posted (or even visited) on this blog. I thought some of you might be interested in a writing workshop that is happening this summer. I saw it on astorians.net below are the details:

Hi Astorians,Here is some info on a community-based writing workshop that I will be teaching this summer. It's happening in nearby Woodside, but I live in Astoria, so I hope that's okay. Respond with any questions and I'll reply. Also, if anyone has any suggestions of where else to post it online or any cultural organizations that might be interested in it, please let me know.Here's a link to a pdf file of the info: http://topazarts.org/downloads/OurSide_Application.pdfand cut and pasted below:Our Side: A Creative Nonfiction Writing Workshop on Cultural IdentityLed by Nancy Agabian at TOPAZ ARTS CenterDates: 10 Sessions, Saturdays, June 6 -- August 15, 10 am – 12:30 pm Participants’ reading: Sunday, August 16, 3 – 6 pmFee: Sliding scale donation: $10 -- $200. Free for the unemployed. Each participant will decide her/his own fee and pay it at the 2nd meeting Description: Our Side is a new workshop for writers of all levels to write in English about the worlds they live in, past and present. For the first five weeks, we will read work by Amy Tan, Jhumpa Lahiri, Junot Diaz, Edwidge Danticat, and others; then we'll discuss the issues these writers address on emigration, dislocation from homeland, assimilation to a new land, mainten-ance of cultural identity, and trans-nationalism. These discussions will prompt writing exercises to explore our own experiences with migration and views of cultural identity. For the following four weeks, we'll read to the group our writing to receive feedback and help polish it into memoirs or personal essays. During the last meeting, we'll prepare for a reading of our work. Eligibility: Applicants must be immigrants or have a parent who is an immigrant. You should have (familial, national, intellectual, or spiritual, etc.) connections to a place outside of the U.S. that you would like to write about.To apply: Write one page on your experience with writing, why you would like to take a writing workshop on cultural identity, and your commitment to attend each session (except July 4, a holiday). Include your name, email address, and phone number. Participants will be chosen on their ability to commit to the workshop and their level of writing. Every level will be included from first-time beginners to advanced. Email your application (or any questions) to nancyagabian@yahoo.com.Application deadline: May 9, 2009. Participants will be notified by May 23, 2009.TOPAZ ARTS is located at 55-03 39th Avenue in Woodside, Queens. Subway directions: #7-train to 61 St. or the R, V, G trains to Northern Blvd. Details and directions are available at http://www.topazarts.org.Facilitator: Nancy Agabian is the author of Me as her again: True Stories of an Armenian Daughter, a memoir on her Armenian American family history. Currently, she is working on a book about her experiences living in a community of artists in Yerevan, Armenia, and an article on the history of the Turkish and Armenian communities in Sunnyside, Queens. Since 1994, she has been teaching community-based writing workshops in Los Angeles, New York and Yerevan, Armenia. She teaches writing at CUNY, Queens College and the Gallatin School of Individualized Study at New York University. She lives in Astoria, Queens. http://nancyagabian.comOur Side is made possible, in part, by the Queens Council on the Arts with public funding from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs.TOPAZ ARTS, Inc. is a nonprofit organization founded in 2000 by artists Todd Richmond and Paz Tanjuaquio. TOPAZ ARTS fosters the creative process, enabling artists to realize their projects. TOPAZ ARTS, Inc. is made possible, in part, by public funds from the NYC Dept. of Cultural Affairs; New York State Council on the Arts, a state agency; National Endowment for the Arts; Carnegie Corporation of New York; Dance Theater Workshop’s Outer/Space Program; Foundation for Contemporary Art; The F.B. Heron Foundation; QCA Queens Community Art Fund; Material for the Arts, a program of NYC’s Dept. of Cultural Affairs, Dept. of Sanitation and Board of Education; and the generosity of private individuals.

No tree house, but a fort is a possibility

We are lucky enough to have a small house with a little patch of grass -- ok, weeds cut very short-- in the front, and a tiny garden in the back. My big boy, 4 1/2, has always enjoyed hunting for bugs and worms in the earth, and it has long been a requested outdoor event. We have recently spent some time in parks with real "woods" to play in. And have been to a few homes with real back yards to romp in.

It's reality time: we have no yard to play in.

Now, there are many other things that I could worry about, and do. But, sometimes I allow myself to sweat the small things. And this is a small thing, but a real gripe for some about living in a city. "Don't you want them to have a yard?" I have been asked, and have asked myself more than once.

There will never be a tree house. And that's ok-- I didn't have one growing up in the suburbs, either. And, eventually, I would have to rip it down to prevent it being a possible place to be up to no-good once the kids got old enough to figure that out.

I will get over myself. I chose to live in a city, and will make sure that my kids get to enjoy all the cool things about it. We've been collecting big sticks whenever we see them-- those that have fallen from street trees on our block, in the park, from the backyards of friends.

This year, I'll move a garden in the back because we need some room for fort building.

What a great day......

What a fantastic day.....

It's MLK day, the day before Barack Obama's inauguration, AND a day with snow, snow, snow. We went sledding in Astoria park for the second day in a row! Fun!

To celebrate MLK day, I've signed us up for volunteering as a family. We're doing the community garden thing again, which is good, but we're also doing some fundraising, and will be helping to clean up the parks and waterfront this spring.

Clarification in order: I checked the parks dept, and the Astoria Waterfront websites, but haven't seen the dates yet for cleaning, BUT, I will be checking to make sure that we are there. And if not, we will call and make our own date to help out.

To help out with little kids is super hard. I do have the time, if I make it there without incident, but bringing them along can make the actual helping part almost impossible. My commitment depends on my ability to take my husband along with me, so that someone is with the little guy, and the other adult can help our big guy understand that we are there to have fun, but also help others or our environment. Maybe something will actually get done with all of us there.

Doing "walks"-- breast cancer, autism speaks, the american cancer society event in Astoria park, and whatever else we can squeeze in this spring and summer (AIDS? Hunger? we support it all.....) is really easy to do with kids, though, so we will try to do more of those this year.

Of course, I am often torn. It's not like I'm a rich dowager. So, my fundraising is usually pretty small. Does one do a lot of walks? Is that a good use of the rather small amount of money that I use for donations? I emailed folks I knew once for a breast cancer walk and got some pretty substantial sponsors. But, should we really be spreading out our money like that-- I mean, we could give ONE organization one nice check, instead of giving a bunch little teeny checks.

I do want to support the organizations that mean something to our friends, though, so I guess that we will be doing a bunch this year, regardless.

And, I feel that these walks are also a good way to introduce philanthropy and trying to make a difference (TRYING) to our kids. Are there other ways? Sure, but this is something that we can do as a family, and with others, and can say, "See all these people? They also care about this and want to help."

So much of "volunteering" in my house when growing up was done in hiding. My parents wrote checks to organizations, and I never heard about it. My parents gave time to our church, but I didn't learn about it until later. Giving to others was not something that we talked about. Like money. And I never thought that it was very important to my parents. Volunteering doesn't really do anything for my dad, so he says. Why does it do something for me?

I don't want to be "showy" about volunteering with our kids, like it's something that needs to be flaunted or deserving of great pride, but I do want them to know that it is something that is really fun (most of the time, at least), needed, and an important part of being a good citizen and person here. And, it's important to me. I hope that it becomes important to them.

I wonder how much of what will begin tomorrow will affect them? I grew up with Regan, mostly, during my formative years.

I read an interesting article about the Bush presidency, and consuquential handing over of the reigns to Obama in the Financial Times (of all places!)

"Tomorrow Mr Bush will hand over to a man who won a thumping victory by rekindling a dormant American enthusiasm for public service. Mr Obama could not have done it without Mr Bush. Among the epitaphs available, Prof Lindsay's from his home state of Texas might prove the most enduring. 'I can summarise Bush's legacy in two words,' he says, 'Barack Obama'."