Blog – Page 9

12/17/13

Diabetes, World War II, and a new poem

This week, I’ll be spotlighting a poem I wrote a few weeks back that centers around two topics: World War II and diabetes. So how are these two topics linked exactly? First, let me describe my relationship to diabetes. Like many Micronesians, if I was told to think of my cultural foods, the comfort food that I grew up with, I… Read More

12/03/13

The Micronesian Question

On Tuesday my class, “Contemporary Pacific Poetry and Poetics” (with my instructor Craig Santos Perez, Chamorro poet activist and scholar) finally got to the section on Micronesian Poetry. Our assignments to prepare for that section was to Read Pohnpeian poet Emelihter Kihleng’s book “My Urohs” http://www.amazon.com/My-Urohs-Emelihter-Kihleng/dp/0979378834, Read her poem “The Micronesian Question” http://tinfishpress.com/?page_id=512 Watch this video: [vimeo http://vimeo.com/42044060] which is called “Micronesians Abroad,”… Read More

11/21/13

Capturing Waves of Change at the Palolo Ohana Learning Center (a workshop reflection)

Yesterday wrapped up the end of a weeklong workshop on photography and poetry at the Palolo Ohana Learning Center – a center which caters to the Palolo Housing community here in Honolulu – entitled “Capturing Waves of Change” (pretty cliche of a title but hey, I was cramming during the application). The workshop was funded by a grant from the… Read More

11/13/13

What I’m currently working on at this very moment

So it’s recently come to my attention that I’ve been majorly slacking in this blog. I saw this blog as just another platform for contacting me and for gaining access to some of my better known my poetry – basically as a promotional tool. Because, honestly, posting actual blogs discussing real things just seems scary – for many reasons. For one thing, I’m scared of people… Read More

09/20/13

My book review inspires another book review: Albina Riklon’s take on “Don’t Ever Whisper”

Note: My review of Giff Johnson’s book “Don’t Ever Whisper”, a biography of Marshallese nuclear activist /grassroots organizer Darlene Keju-Johnson was published in the Marshall Islands Journal (you can read it in my previous post or here:http://jkijiner.wordpress.com/2013/09/19/book-review-dont-ever-whisper-by-giff-johnson/ Apparently, Albina Riklon, whom I know through CMI and have hung out with before (an awesome teacher btw), read the review and it prompted… Read More

09/19/13

Book Review: “Don’t Ever Whisper” by Giff Johnson

Note: This review was published in the August 2, 2013 issue of the Marshall Islands Journal. You can order copies at Amazon.com or BarnesandNobles.com. When Ormita Jorelang first received training as a peer educator in a 1992 Majuro Youth Health Leadership seminar with Darlene Keju, she recalls the harrowing first time experience of being forced to recite a prayer in… Read More