Skip to main content
Anis Mojgani lives a provincial life, in the best way. The former Oregon Poet Laureate lives and works in the Sunnyside neighborhood of Southeast Portland, where he walks or bikes to most places. Spending a sunny spring afternoon with him there does feel like stepping back into a simpler time—one that may or may not have ever existed but seems to still exist for Mojgani—of bakeries, friends, whimsical gift shops and, of course, poetry.
“Everything I do on a daily basis is within a 15-minute walk,” Mojgani, 48, says. “I feel very lucky. I count my blessings.”
For the past four years, Mojgani has contributed to Sunnyside’s whimsy by hosting “Poems at Sunset Out a Window” (3425 SE Yamhill St., instagram.com/thepianofarm), an event that’s just like what it sounds like. His studio (Mojgani is also a visual artist, trained at the Savannah College of Art and Design) has a slightly raised window that looks out onto Southeast Yamhill Street. One day he was chatting with a friend on the sidewalk through the open window.
“There was something about it that just felt really charming and endearing, and we liked having this kind of Sesame Street-like interaction.”
Inspiration struck, and the two held the first window poetry reading that week. The readings are free, seasonal, BYOC (bring your own chair) and occasionally happen at sunrise rather than sunset. Before Mojgani served as the Oregon Poet Laureate from 2020 to 2024, he was a slam poetry champion, so he can project his voice loud enough for the crowd of up to 300 people, with no amplification. It’s proven to be a hardy and idealistic event, one that Mojgani sees as an “offering” to the community.
“We are all allowed to contribute to building a city that we, as individuals, want to see,” he says, “not simply participate in a city that is already made.”
Here is the village that Mojgani lives in and is helping make.
1. Fuel Up
Mojgani writes from The Fresh Pot (3729 SE Hawthorne Blvd., thefreshpot.com/hawthorne) most mornings, the coffee shop attached to Powell’s Books on Hawthorne. “I really love having an external energy to kind of, like, fuel off of, bounce off of,” he says. This is the original location of the shop, founded in 1997, serving Stumptown Coffee and providing respite for window-shopping tourists and locals alike. Mojgani keeps his order simple with cold brew in the summertime, coffee in the wintertime, or perhaps an oat cortado to mix it up. He knows the baristas and a number of the other regulars; his friends joke that he keeps Fresh Pot “office hours.”
2. A Moment for Munchies
By lunchtime, Mojgani is ready to move locations and grab a bite, so he heads to La Morenita (3207 SE Hawthorne Blvd., 503-891-0005, instagram.com/la_morenita_pdx), a delicious Mexican food spot in a small cluster of food trucks. Tacos cost a reasonable $3–$5 each, and are portioned with cilantro and fried onions; the fish taco comes with a huge hunk of tilapia that’s seasoned and grilled rather than fried.
Mojgani’s other brain food comes from Nate’s Oatmeal Cookies (3308 SE Belmont St., natesoatmealcookies.com). Nate Lown opened the bakery in 2024 and creates oatmeal cookies in a variety of flavors, including chocolate chip oatmeal, peanut butter oatmeal, and Mojgani’s go-to order: cherry almond oatmeal ($4). Mojgani has even served as a recipe tester for Nate’s Cookie Sundaes. (Tough work but someone’s got to do it.) The storefront is decorated in a slightly surreal all red-and-white color scheme. “It’s almost like, is this some sort of art project prank?” Mojgani says. “It’s a cookie shop, but it’s almost David Lynch-ian.”
3. Treasure Hunt
Just steps down Belmont is Happy Anyway (3125 SE Belmont St., wearehappyanyway.com) Is this an art gallery, or is it a gift shop? Both. Stephanie Sheldon, who ran the vintage shop Noun on Southeast 33rd Avenue and Belmont Street, opened her curated curiosity shop Happy Anyway two years ago. Sheldon has hidden three secret spots in the store for shoppers to stumble upon; one of them is a small window that opens up to one of Mojgani’s poems.
The largest wall of the store hosts gallery shows; up next is Smoke Show, paintings by Sarah Martin, on view May 15–June 28. Retail-wise, there are tiny vintage treasures, embroidered brooches from India ($95), socks, candy, unusual Oaxacan floral candles ($40), and one candle shaped like tinned fish ($26).
The space also hosts events. On the evening of Mother’s Day, Happy Anyway. screened the biggest box-office hit of 1987: Three Men and a Baby. “Which I’m 100% down for,” Mojgani told WW two days before the scheduled event. “I have my ticket.”
4. Balcony Scene
When Mojgani wants to take in a movie in a more traditional setting, he heads to the Bagdad Theater & Pub (3702 SE Hawthorne Blvd. 503-236-9234, mcmenamins.com/bagdad-theater-pub). In 2013 McMenamins ownership transitioned the ornate 1927 theater back into a first-run cinema after years of being second-run. (Showing now: The Devil Wears Prada 2).
“I love going to the movies. I love old spaces. So going to sit in that balcony at Bagdad is one of my joys of living in Portland. It’s one of those things where, like, even with it not always having the movies I want to see, there are definitely times when I feel like sitting at the Bagdad, so, yeah, I’m gonna go see that movie.”
5. Bibliophile Style
A swing through Sunnyside with a poet wouldn’t be complete without getting a little bookish. The Belmont Library has been under construction since 2024, so Multnomah County set up the temporary Hawthorne Holds Pickup (3557 SE 37th Ave., multcolib.org/hours-and-locations/mcl-holds-pickup), which, in addition to holds pickups, offers “Lucky Day” new releases and a 24/7 book return, among other services. The permanent library is set to re-open this summer, but Mojgani has gotten attached to this temporary spot in a former Goodwill boutique.
“I’m excited and happy, of course, for the Belmont Library to be returned to us in its new glory, but it’s really sweet to have this tiny little library in this strip parking lot. It’s really cute and really quaint and part of my walking routine.”
GO: Poems at Sunset Out a Window, 3425 SE Yamhill St., @thepianofarm on Instagram.
