The Penultimate Issue

Here she is at the LiBerry Music Festival, Carey Seward, musician and playwright, founder of Seward's Follies, on the cover of the penultimate issue of The Ester Republic. Or possibly the last issue, but what I put on the cover was the word "penultimate," thinking that perhaps I didn't mean it but too tired to look it up. Hah! My subconscious really didn't want to let it go.
At any rate, now I have that ambiguous possibility waiting for me, the hope left in print on the early October 2012 issue of Ester's only paper that it might in fact return, left there due to bleary eyes and a late night trying to get the last damn issue to bed and off to the printer, once again without enough of the right kind of help, despite the good intentions of so many good people.
And now, people still ask me from time to time if the Republic will ever return, or they tell me they miss it. I miss it too.

I think about what the next issue tagline could be:

• the Resurrection Issue (implies it'll go on living, if the Romans don't get it)
• the Zombie Issue (much more probable scenario, at least insofar as the condition of Madame Publisher is likely to be)
• the Revival Issue (I doubt I'll get Religion, but who knows?)
• the Reawakened Issue (it was asleep all along, just hibernating here in the north, folks)

See how much fun this could be?
However, the Republic won't be back until the library is built. I just can't handle two enormous projects at the same time. (No guarantees, folks!)

The Republic Rides Again!

Yup, the Publisher is Risen! and the Republic is slooowly hauling itself back to its feet and slogging on into the Land of the Living Media. Urg.

But it's taking a while. So, dear subscribers, don't give up hope just yet.

More to come.

We're not dead yet!

That Monty Python reference holds true: it may be months since Madame Publisher has posted on this blog, but she's still kicking. It's been a far-too-exciting fall and winter (a seemingly never-ending cold, a broken wrist, and serious debt in RepublicWorld), which interfered in the publication schedule. However, the Republic is heading for some pretty cool changes, some of which have already begun:

Twitter: yes, the Republic (although not really the Publisher of same) has joined the modern sound-bite era with a Twitter account. @EsterRepublic (the Publisher doesn't quite understand this esoteric 140-character means of communication, but she has the skilled help of two web-savvy teenagers).

Facebook: the Facebook page now has two new additional admins (the aforesaid web-savvy experts). Actual news may begin appearing.

Website redesign: after an editorial/marketing meeting yesterday, in which several excellent ideas were aired, the assembled group decided that it was time to redesign the website--to make it more functional, take advantage of all the nifty things that the web offers, and easier to find stuff. I actually have a team of people at work on this! Hoo!

Fundraiser: A massive fundraising shindig is being held at Hartung Hall on Feb. 25, 7 pm (that's a Saturday night): the Miners Masquerade Ball. That means costumes! There will be a toasting and speechifying contest (pay attention, Toastmasters!), a beard and moustache contest (men's and ladies' divisions), potluck food (bring edibles), live music (Lost Dog Old-Time String Band!), and DANCING. This will replace the Birthday Bashes, but there will likely be awards for the Publisher's Picks, and certainly prizes and games and other fun things. More info on this festival soon.

Foundation: The Republic is going to be working on creating a long-term support structure for the paper, etc. This will involve creating a nonprofit foundation (as discussed long ago and now revived): the People's Endowment for the Ester Republic, or PEER.

So that's the quickie update. More shall be appearing here in due time.

Revamping the Republic

Life has been exceedingly hectic of late, and looking at the date of my last post on this blog, I realize just exactly how hectic it has been. I've finally reached the point of maximum overdrive, and so in July I wrote an editorial threatening to shut down The Ester Republic if I didn't find help and a way to deal with the workload. I held a meeting in August to begin reorganizing the paper and book publishing biz along some sort of nonprofit lines, and gratifyingly, eight people showed up.

Whew. I wouldn't have to shut it all down after all.

Well, maybe. We had an excellent discussion, and came up with several ideas and directions to go in, which I described in my August editorial (and also notes from the meeting). I set up a few pages on the whole reorganization on the website, but since then I've been able to do almost nothing on the research I intended or the job descriptions. Jeremiah Shrock has been helping me, and has come up with a couple of draft recruitment posters, but in general, things have gotten even worse, and yours truly is pretty fried.

The paper is two issues behind (one is at the printer now) and about three months' worth of data entry in arrears. October looks to be the most intensely busy month in my entire career with the John Trigg Ester Library (annual membership meeting, seed program launch, final design meetings, grant proposal writing, etc.), but fortunately it is my last one as a board member.

So, November will be devoted to catching up at the Republic. I will be posting job descriptions here and on the revamp pages. Events related to the reorganization will also be posted here and there, and on Facebook. And the fancy new recruitment posters will also be coming up soon.

The Republic ain't dead yet (and neither is the Publisher, although lately she feels like something the cats dragged in). And the Publisher's Deadline will sail at Readers on the Run this weekend, so we aren't sunk yet, either.

Triple Mondo Edition: the Publisher Procrasinate

So, this week (FINALLY) the May/June/July issue of The Ester Republic will come out. It's going to be gargantuan: a minimum of 40 pages. It covers news from redistricting to community revenue sharing to work parties on the park and the stage to the Fourth of July and the Angry Young & Poor concert to gardening and organic agriculture to the EVFD patch collections to reviews of books and movies to who knows what all. And there are song lyrics and poems and photos galore. No view from Ray on the lump this time, though. "Where will it all end?" asks the image on the back cover. "Hit by a Truck," answers my editorial.

No rest for the wicked.

Local Et Cetera, Librarypalooza, and other doings

I have decided that, come hell or high water, layout WILL commence on March 1 on the Local Et Cetera. That goes pretty fast, and then it goes to press. The Local Et Cetera is the little phone and community book that I put out every few years. This edition's contents include:

• Nuclear Ester
• Recipes from The Ester Republic
• the Ester Community Market
• the Ester Hockey League

So get your listing or ad in pronto!

But that's a while yet. In the meantime, the 7th annual John Trigg Ester Library Lallapalooza & Book Bash is coming up on the 27th, and organizing and publicity is in full swing. I've been posting about the JTEL Sewing Consortium over on the JTEL blog. I've been having a wonderful time working (slowly) on a quilt for the auction and fashion show, made from twenty-five old library t-shirts. Maia Luick made some shirts, and Amy Cameron (the organizer for this, as per previous fashion shows) and Shannan Turner have been making skirts. Amy's making a kimono, which I plan to bid on! (The Consortium is just whoever wants to help out with the sewing and t-shirt conversion.)

Completely wacked out

Yers truly hit a wall of overwork late Monday night, complete with stupid insobriety and messy meltdown. I'm just counting down the minutes until the library's annual meeting is over with and I can get back to the usual excess of work, instead of the extraordinarily crazy excess of work. Books coming down the pike very shortly:

• Wings of Fire, by Frank Keim
• The Long View, by Ross Coen
• Freebird, by Layla Lawlor

After these, I may just give up book publishing. I'm certainly not accepting new manuscripts, and I'm now taking one month off a year from the Republic.

The publishing biz

Publishing is, frankly, a pain in the ass. I mean, it's great to bring out all the wonderful works that would otherwise never see the light of day (because they're too off-beat, weird, Alaskan, or poetic), and I just LOVE doing book designs, but most of the publishing business consists of my two least favorite things to do (and this includes changing the catbox, folks): data entry and marketing.

Y'see, publishing isn't just about bringing the creative mind to print: it's about getting the public to actually read those delightful books, which means getting the public to buy them, which means getting the books in their hands, which means getting the books in the bookstores, which, inevitably, means getting it into wholesalers' hands, which means a whole lot of trouble.

And that's just marketing: advertising, sell sheets, catalogs, booths at conferences and markets and bazaars, enticing descriptions sent to booksellers, and so forth.

Then there's all that data tracking: how much of which sold for what to whom and when at what discount. How much postage, how much my cost/profit/loss was, how much royalty to pay, plus the office management stuff and associated bottle washing, counting, and related bottle overhead costs. And the like.

When a new book comes out, it is immensely satisfying to know that a gem like Marjorie Kowalski Cole's collection of poetry has finally gotten Out There, or that Jamie Smith's cartoons will be Preserved for Posterity in collected form, or that Neil Davis' careful research into the American health care system can be shared with people who need to know how to navigate the misanthropic mine field that we call insurance. I LOVE bringing books like these into the world.

But god, I HATE selling them.

Missed the muckraker

AK Muckraker came up to Fairbanks, briefly, for a panel on Palin sponsored by the Sociology Department, the Political Science Department, the UAF Women's Center, and the Women's Studies Program. I heard good things about it from Jamie Smith, but what was nifty was that I received an invitation from Sine Anahita and Kayt Sunwood to come meet the Raker of Muck -- and then when I came in to work today there was a message from Ms. Muckraker on my phone.

I would dearly have loved to come hang out at Gulliver's for an hour's chat, but unfortunately, the Republic could not wait any longer. The subscriptions were three weeks late, and between that and the previously promised attendance at Phil Loring's dissertation defense, Hans (Le Chauffeur) being sick, and the Lallapalooza pickups, I just could not justify going.

Sigh. Would have been good, though.

Her call and presence up here have got me thinking again about where I want to go with the Republic. It's been the ol' hobby paper/magazine for 11 years now, going on 12, and while I like what it's become, I think it could go a lot farther. However, it won't do it with me being 3/5ths time at another job. I have to devote myself full time to it. And that, of course, means it has to pay me a full-time salary. Plus pay for contributors and staff.

I'd like some feedback on this (assuming anybody's reading this these days). One idea has been the nonprofit grant-seeking type of institution, another has been community-sponsored journalism (sponsorship piece by piece). Do people want to see the Republic continue, and more as a serious journalism venture? and if so, will you put your money where your mouth is, and how?

Back into the fray

Well, it's been almost two months since I last wrote here. Things have been happening to a ferocious degree, and I have become so busy that writing on my blog has been low on the list of priorities.

Lessee, here:

LALLAPALOOZA 2010: this one's been taking up a LOT of my time. The 6th Annual John Trigg Ester Library Lallapalooza & Book Bash is taking place this Sunday, February 28, from 1 to 5:30 pm at the Annex gallery, 2922 Parks Highway. For those of you who've never participated or helped out with it, it involves a large amount of preparation. The whole point of the event is to raise money to keep the current library going, but more important, to sock some away to construct the new building. We started them in 2004, and I started writing about them here when we had the 2nd one. While I was away in Hawai'i (see below) I was hoping that other folks on the board would take care of more of the details than they did, but oh, well. Kate Billington and Jan Roberts (neither of whom are on the board) got going on the auction items, though, and there are definitely going to be some cool things at the Librarypalooza. We've got some beautiful artwork so far.

UKE CAMP: Melinda Harris, Greta Burkart, Cris Fisher and I went to O'ahu where we took ukulele lessons, visited ukulele factories, hung out on the beach, snorkeled, and ate lots of fresh fruit. It was fabulous, and I've decided I like a lot of water in my life. I fixed up an ugly fake woodgrain bathroom vanity for Peter & Mom (we stayed at their house on Koko Head) with a much nicer turtle motif, and swam in the pool every morning. I bought a lovely Kanile'a concert ukulele.







UKULELE LESSONS & JAMS: I've also been participating in the weekend jams at Hartung Hall and the Golden Eagle on Sundays, and I've been taking ukulele lessons from Russ Copelin. I haven't been practicing much lately, what with all the other things going on, and I am suffering a serious uke jones....

INSIDE, OUTSIDE, MORNINGSIDE: Marjorie's book arrived from the printer while I was in Hawai'i, but Hans and Leah Hill (my marketing maven) delivered some to Gulliver's and to Pat Lambert. I took care of some more orders when I got back and have been working on the review copies and the other publicity for the book since.

And, last but not least, the FEBRUARY REPUBLIC: it finally got to the printer on Monday, and Hans is delivering it today. Actually, I suppose I should count the JANUARY ESTER REPUBLIC also, since I was madly trying to get that out the door before I left. Both issues were late, February's especially so.

So that's what I've been up to, and that doesn't even count my bill-paying job.

2009 in review

Once again it is that time of year: resolutions and reflections to gird oneself for adventure and mud-slogging for the days of the coming year. In some ways, this was a pretty rough year. So, here's how it looked last year:

January
The Stones' house caught fire.

A letter from Emmonak was published, and all hell broke loose. Sarah didn't notice, though.

I began my descent into ukulele madness, with the purchase of a brand-new baritone uke. Little did I know that this was the start of serious musical obsession. Woo-hoo!

Obama was sworn in to the presidency, and Service was Restored.

I received notice of my 30-year high school reunion. O gads.

February
Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir assumed the post of Iceland's prime minister. This is notable because she is Iceland's first female prime minister and she is openly lesbian.

The Fairbanks North Star Borough School Board decided that bullying on the basis of gender identity was every bit as nasty as discrimination or harrasment on some other basis.

Dave Lacey died of cancer.

March
The Republic's publisher and contributors and fans celebrated ten years of crazed publishing in a MAJOR party with live music (Back Cu'ntry Bruthers and the Slippin' Mickeys) and the Publisher's Picks.

I joined Facebook and set up a page for the Republic. Now it's become a major time drain…WAY too much fun.

I helped organize the first of a series of CSA roundtables at my university job. The group that has arisen from this, the Alaska Community Agriculture Association, gives me a little hope that Alaska may yet feed itself and with good, wholesome food.

I was invited to speak at the Alaska Press Club annual meeting as part of a panel of bloggers. It was quite entertaining, but I got stuck in Anchorage (flight cancellation on account of belching volcano). One of the big topics was Mike Doogan's outing of Mudflats, the resultant fracas, and whether it was appropriate for bloggers to be anonymous. Hans drove down to fetch me, o noble spouse that he is.

April
The Ester Republic got a new office! Photos here and here. Here too.

John Reeves decided to shake things up in Ester a bit with a nuclear power plant proposal. Ester may or may not be a nuke-free zone.

May
Lee Shauer, Dwight Deely, and Linda Patrick committed suicide, all in one week. Ester was reeling.

The Banana Girls Ukulele Marching Band started practicing for the 4th of July. I started taking strum classes with Jean McDermott.

June
The Ester Community Market began its second season.

Emma Creek West reared its ugly head again. Or rather, Land Management did, with an old, previously rejected development plan. They just don't get it.

July
The Ester Fourth of July parade was GREAT. And the Banana Girls were there.

Sarah Palin's resignation speech got edited by Vanity Fair. More hilarity I haven't had in a LONG time.

August
The Onion once again published prophecy, this time on how Congress works not to provide health care.

Our cat Archie died of throat cancer.

September
I found a great song to learn.

Adam and Kelly Hullin of Wasilla embarrassed themselves publicly in an interview in the Frontiersman. Sadly, they probably have no clue just how stupid they made themselves appear. Sigh. Another blow to the Alaskan reputation.

October
Marjorie Kowalski Cole, scheduled to be the first speaker for the Ester library lecture series, was unable to make it but sent in her talk in written form anyway.

Mike Musick ran for borough assembly again and won, but Luke Hopkins and Tammie Wilson had to go through a runoff.

November
I got serious about Facebook.

Monique Musick gave the first lecture for the John Trigg Ester Library, a slide show and talk on her trip to China in 2008.

December
Marjorie Kowalski Cole died of cancer. I sent her book of poetry to the printer.

Addendum 1/5/10: (I never did a 2008 in review post), 2007 in review, 2006 in review

Marjorie

Marjorie Kowalski Cole died on Friday, December 4. I'm in the process of working on her book of poetry, which is ready for the printer for all extents and purposes (except that the biography of the author needs to be rewritten slightly now).

There was a memorial for her last night, to which Hans and I intended to go, except that we couldn't find St. Raphael's Catholic Church, where it was held. We drove around and around looking for it, Hans getting steadily more and more frustrated and tense because of the traffic, and me finding it funnier and funnier because the church was obviously well-protected against the possibility of atheists ever darkening its doors. We even stopped in to Fred Meyer's in a vain attempt to find a phone book and asked directions, which turned out to be to the Church of Latter Day Saints. We finally gave up and went to the Eagle, where we drank a toast to her honor with Irish whiskey.

I'd only gotten to know Marjorie (although I knew her by sight before that) from her contributions to The Ester Republic. I was delighted that she submitted her book manuscript to me for publication; Inside, Outside, Morningside should be out in January or February. My favorite poem by her is still "Ice Cream."

One of the things I liked about Marjorie was that she was feisty. She stood by her convictions. She founded Call to Action Alaska, a chapter of the national Catholic activist group Call to Action (which supports women's ordination, among other things). They helped bring Col. Ann Wright up to Fairbanks for her first speaking tour in Alaska. I think Wright stayed at Marjorie and Pat's house.

Ester and Alaska have lost a good person and good writer who made the world around her a better place. I will miss her.

We're screwed

Yep, that's what the headline reads in the New York Post. Well, the edition published by the Yes Men, that is. From the press release:

Early this morning, nearly a million New Yorkers were stunned by the appearance of a "special edition" New York Post blaring headlines that their city could face deadly heat waves, extreme flooding, and other lethal effects of global warming within the next few decades. The most alarming thing about it: the news came from an official City report. [74-page PDF]

Distributed by over 2000 volunteers throughout New York City, the paper has been created by The Yes Men and a coalition of activists as a wake-up call to action on climate change. It appears one day before a UN summit where Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon will push 100 world leaders to make serious commitments to reduce carbon emissions in the lead-up to the Copenhagen climate conference in December. Ban has said that the world has "less than 10 years to halt (the) global rise in greenhouse gas emissions if we are to avoid catastrophic consequences for people and the planet," adding that Copenhagen is a "once-in-a-generation opportunity."

Although the 32-page New York Post is a fake, everything in it is 100% true, with all facts carefully checked by a team of editors and climate change experts.

Climate change is no joke, folks, and it's stunts like these that are attempting to get through the massive cultural denial we have about it. Humor is often effective at reaching people so they can bear to think about a horrible thing—and maybe do something about it.

Alaska, like the city of New York, is actually looking at the effects of climate change, rather than pretending it's not happening. Alaska, of course, is already feeling the effects—the Scenarios Network for Alaska Planning at UAF has produced several reports and projections on climate and how things like hydropower projects, water availability, growing season length, and permafrost will be affected by it.

Publication prognostication

Right. So, assuming my various authors haven't given up on their extremely tardy publisher, the list of forthcoming books from the Ester Republic Press stands as follows:

• Inside, Outside, Morningside, a collection of poems by Marjorie Kowalski Cole;

• Freebird, the collected comic strip by Layla Lawlor;

• Wings of Fire (tentative title), a collection of poems on birds, by Frank Keim (possibly illustrated);

• a collection of poems by Ann Chandonnet;

• a cultural history of Fairbanks revolving around the Nenana Raft Classic, by Ross Coen (manuscript pending);

• a collection of history columns by Ross Coen (possibly; manuscript pending);

• Letters from Siberia, a collection of letters home from a then-young geologist in Soviet Russia sent to work in the area of the Siberian gulags (this will depend on receipt of the complete manuscript from David Stone).

An interesting batch.

That's MY mom

My mother, the publisher, recently interviewed on 49 Writers.

The Return of the Blogging Editor

It came from the crypt of old back issues: the publisher has FINALLY managed to get on line at the office once again. No more waiting for the computer at the bar or borrowing the laptops of various friends! The office computer is functional, thanks to the amazing Darwin Cameron, Mac dude and computery fix-it man. Many recommendations and thanks in his specific direction. (And he's really cheap, too--I gave him a healthy tip and told him he's not charging enough.)

The reason I've been unable to post from my office (or send or receive e-mail, or factcheck, or update the website, or do any of those other things one needs to do via the Series of Tubes) is that my computer, which has an AirPort card and an internal antenna, did not have said card and antenna hooked up together. Hence, I've never been able to use AirPort to connect to the local wireless network. So John Henry (another seriously cool computer geek of the non-geeky ilk) managed to make my connection work, but I had to use a router.

Now, no router necessary! I am ONLINE! Wahoo!

Which means, of course, I've got a heck of a lot of website updating to do.

The Editors' Revenge: hilarity at the expense of politicians

It's an occupational hazard: editors, if the ones I know are representative of the field, compulsively edit. And that includes the often poorly composed political speech. We do it for money, we do it for amusment, we do it because we love picking nits. Vanity Fair decided they couldn't stand it, and provided this priceless edit of Sarah Palin's sayonara speech.

Say I: HAH HA HA HA HA HOO HOO HAR HAR HEE HEE HA HA HA!

Ahem.

Big tip o' the hat to Ross Coen for forwarding this link to me.

History of Alaska music

Suzanne Summerville just sent me a link to her website, AlaskaMusic.net; rather an interesting site. The actual name of the page is North to Future: Musical reflections on Alaska's history. There are lists of songs that pertain to Alaska, some lyrics and recordings, a chronology of events in Alaska from the 16th century through 2008, a page on the Alaska Flag Song, a couple of lesson plans, some samples of old sheet music, and a bunch more. She was inquiring about the Chena Ridge Militia's songbook, which I have a copy of for publishing purposes (from Niilo Koponen, a member of said militia).

A little Fourth of July problem

Her Editorship made a tactical error regarding the reportage on the Ester Fourth of July Parade: no lists.

Every year, the volunteers at signup create a big long list of who got what paper plate number. They give this to the judges, who assign prizes and make up names for the awards. Then they award them, hilarity is had, much bribery imbibed, and a lot of chaos ensues. Then, if the Publisher has been on the ball and asked them nicely ahead of time, they hand this precious information over to her and she publishes a story with the list of who and what in The Ester Republic.

Alas, Her Editorship, being preoccupied with playing her ukelele, FORGOT about this all-important detail. So she has no lists to work from. Which means the story in the Republic is going to be awfully short. If you know which award went to who, please let me know. The judges only have a hazy, incomplete memory of the event....

Desperate Househusband makes the News-Miner

Dan Darrow got himself the spotlight article this week at the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. And, speaking as his regular publisher, I can attest to the truth of this little tidbit:

“I wait for the deadline to come and panic,” he said.

Yep, that's my cartoonist.

The article describes his lampoons of Sarah Palin. This month's is a doozy…