Pt. Reyes Books owners Steve Costa and Kate Levinson with Fire Monks author Colleen Morton Busch and San Francisco Zen Center Central Abbot Steve Stucky at Pt. Reyes Community Presbyterian Church Aug 13th.
Thank you to Kate and Steve for hosting a great event. Read about Kate’s book, Emotional Currency, here.
Eventful August
July turned to August while I was in motion. Had a great event in Guerneville (thank you Susan Ryan of River Reader Bookstore!)–outside on a warm evening with redwood trees listening in.
The tour is winding down. I’ll be reading this week in Sonoma and Pt. Reyes, then early next week at the San Francisco Public Library. Possible September events are in the works for Lake Tahoe and Nevada City. Stay tuned.
Reunions
Moving on to Vancouver (by the slow boat–Amtrak train) today. The last few days have been a whirlwind of seeing old friends, making new friends, and sharing the Fire Monks story. Here’s one of those moments captured visually–me chatting with a former nursing student of my mother’s (in Michigan) while two friends from the Berkeley Zen Center wait to have their books signed.
Boulder-bound
This week I’m headed to Boulder, Seattle, Portland and Vancouver for Fire Monks events. I’m really looking forward to seeing friends in each of those cities. Back for the next Bay Area event 8/4 in Guerneville and 8/6 at Berkeley Zen Center.
P.S. My cat Jai is home from the hospital! He had something called DKA–diabetic ketoacidosis–and almost died. Whew…
Kron4 News Weekend
David Zimmerman and I will be on Kron4 News Weekend on Sunday 7/24 at 9:15am, interviewed by Henry Tenenbaum. The segment is only four minutes, so tune in on time if you want to watch!
Fire, wind, water, earth…
“We are a uniquely fire creature on a uniquely fire planet….Other animals knock over trees and dig holes; we do fire.” Fire is an “ecological signature” of who we are. “It forces us to act and to chose.”–Stephen J. Pyne
Tuesday night I had the honor of conversing with fire historian Pyne and our host Bill Deverell at the historic Los Angeles public library as part of the ALOUD program. This was the first in what promises to be an intriguing series on fire, wind, water, and earth. You can listen to the podcast here or on the player below.
Speaking of animals digging holes, one of my cats is in the hospital receiving continuous fluids, in critical condition. I held him in my lap today. He was earth, water, wind. Very little presence of fire, and yet, his illness is yet another kind of fire to meet, right there alongside the exhileration of my book tour.
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On deck
Capitola Book Cafe (near Santa Cruz) tonight at 7:30pm. Tomorrow, Los Angeles central library’s Mark Taper auditorium, 7pm. Thursday I’m back in Berkeley at Mrs. Dalloway’s. Ici, the ever-popular ice cream place, is just down the street so you can cool your taste buds after hearing me read about fires in the forest and in the mind.
SFZC Launch event
Live radio show at 1pm PST/3pm CST on Wisconsin Public Radio’s Here on Earth. Click here to learn how to listen or call in. Tonight I’ll be joined by fire monks, firefighters, and fire alumni at the San Francisco Zen Center for a reading, discussion, and short film viewing.
three years
It’s been three years since the fire passed through Tassajara on July 10, 2008. I spent this weekend there, reading, signing, hanging with friends, and admiring how beguilingly beautiful the wilderness is. Here is a photo of me with fire monks David Zimmerman and Mako Voelkel.
Fire Monks Book Tour
Tomorrow is pub date, and my book tour gets underway on Friday in Big Sur at the Henry Miller Library. I’m excited to be appearing there, where the Basin Complex fire left a lasting impression, with David Zimmerman. Stay tuned…