BR E-News for Saturday, March 12, 2012 — Happy St. Patrick's Day

Aloha to the BAMBOO RIDGE 'ohana, and a very Happy almost spring to all of you. Hope you all survived the Ides of March. Reminds my of the Oscar Wilde quote: A good friend will stab you in the front.

Easter is right around the corner, so I hope you're all making your wish lists for the Easter Bunny. Remember, unlike Santa, EB likes it if you've been naughty, so if you're asking for something big like an iPad 3 or a Lexus, you'd better be on your worst behavior for the next three weeks or so.

I received an early Easter present . . . unfortunately. A wild hen, Penny, and a wild rooster, Buddy, have adopted me and my yard. Despite my best efforts to hunt out her nests, Penny showed up with 12 tiny chicks at feeding time this past Tuesday. I think she must have been so irritated with me always taking away her eggs that she decided to construct this nest outside my yard. Very unfortunate for me and for the wild chicken population. They're very cute, but . . .

In case you're not aware of it, the new incarnation of the BR online writing contest is on. We're calling it The Great BR Year of the Dragon Contest. You can check out the rules here:

http://www.bambooridge.com/bambooshoot.aspx?bid=1216

Entries for March must be posted in the Bamboo Shoots section of the website by March 31st at 2:00 HST.

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For a limited time, all BR books in the online store are 30% off. The message I received from our two BR co-founders said that all issues should be 30% MORE, but I couldn't understand how that would possibly help sales. So, I'm assuming it was a typo — and please don't tell arrell-Day and Eric-way that I told you I changed it to a 30% discount rather than a markup : ) Just type

“SPECIALS? SHOOT!”

in the comments box on your check-out page to get the 30% discount:

http://www.bambooridge.com/bookstore.aspx

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In anticipation of the upcoming landmark 100th BR issue, guest writers Moriso Teraoka, Darrell H.Y. Lum, Ann Inoshita, and Normie Salvador will read from their work being published in #100. This will be part of the KCC 24th Annual International Festival: A Tradition of Hawaiʻi Literature at the Kapiʻloan Community College ?Lama Library Alcove, 10:45 – noon, Monday, March 19th. The event is hosted by Mavis Hara, Gail Harada, and Lisa Linn Kanae. Get the details here:

http://www.bambooridge.com/event.aspx?pid=1&eid=439

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And speaking of Ann Inoshita, one of our Renshi Four, the Massie Case renshi challenge is going strong:

http://www.bambooridge.com/renshi.aspx?sid=2

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This Wednesday, March 21st, Lee Cataluna will be doing a book signing at the Desert Writers' Expo from 10:00 – 2:00 pm at the Rancho Mirage Public Library, 1-100 Highway 111, Rancho Mirage CA. Contact John Carrigan of the Palm Springs Writers Guild 760-992-8866. Read about it here:?

http://www.bambooridge.com/event.aspx?pid=1&eid=429

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Lois-Ann Yamanaka and Lee A. Tonouchi will have sessions at the 2012 Biennial Writers' Conference presented by the National League of American Pen Women on March 31st . Information about their sessions — “Just Ask” with Lois-Ann Yamanaka and “Write Pidgin” with Lee A. Tonouchi — can be found at the conference site:

http://www.nlapwhonolulu.org/conference.htm

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The annual Cane Haul Road Seconds Sale will be held March 31st at Kuhio Elementary School:

http://www.bambooridge.com/event.aspx?pid=1&eid=437

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In April, there will be two special reading events, Cathy Song on the Big Island:

http://www.bambooridge.com/event.aspx?pid=1&eid=437

and on Maui with Wing Tek Lum:

http://www.bambooridge.com/event.aspx?pid=1&eid=4350

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Eric and Darrell are busting their buns — their own, not each other's — to get Issue #100 out in time for the annual Hawaiʻi Book and Music Festival the first weekend of May, so mark your calendars for that.

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Don't forget, the Easter Bunny says, “Be bad for an iPad; be fractious for a Lexus.” I do have EB's ear — he spends his time off from his South Pole workshop with me. So if you'd like me to personally tell him about how naughty you've been, please email me an inventory of your indiscretions: [email protected]. I promise not to use any of your confessions in future stories — without changing your name. And if they're really juicy, I may give you an iPad AND a Lexus myself : )

Until next time, take good care, love your families, and write like there's no tomorrow — unless, of course, like Woody Allen, you would prefer to achieve immorality not through your work but by not dying : )

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Bamboo Ridge Press was founded in 1978 to foster the appreciation, understanding, and creation of literary, visual, or performing arts by, for, or about Hawaiʻi's people. BRP is a nonprofit, tax-exempt, 501(c)(3) organization funded in part by the National Endowment for the Arts, the State Foundation on Culture and the Arts, the Mayor's Office of Culture and the Arts, and the Hawaiʻi Council for the Humanities.

A hui ho!