Never mind George Michael singing "Freedom", the schools are back here today so I'm feeling a little freer myself all of a sudden (I mean kids are great and everything but, you know, peace and quiet is nice too). And other than that brief mention of George "can I plug my dire new single in the greatest show on earth" Michael I won't say anything more about the Olympics closing ceremony... except to say that all that cringing we didn't have to do for the opening ceremony... well, we got to do it in the end anyway, didn't we? I mean, Take That? On the global stage? Really? Ugh. Recringe.
But there are other things going on...
Peadar O'Donoghue is raising funds for the next Poetry Bus venture so go here and help out if you can. You do get something for your money (mags, books...).
Friendly blogger Solitary Walker is starting a new online writing place. He introduces it here.
Carol Ann Duffy (our poet laureate if you like titles) wrote a poem for the Olympics (read here). I like it but judging from facebook reactions it's about a 50/50 split on yays and neighs (sorry, equestrian effects still hanging about apparently).
Read my first Susan Hill ("The Beacon" 2008). Must say I liked it. Any recommendations for other other books by her?
Hell, I might even write something myself now the schools are back...
Finally, I enjoyed this new song by Betty Wright on the Cerys show on BBC 6 Music this week:
Take that, Take That.
Finally, I enjoyed this new song by Betty Wright on the Cerys show on BBC 6 Music this week:
Take that, Take That.
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14 comments:
And what is a Jesse J? Other than no Freddy Mercury. ;)
I'm glad you're getting a little personal "quiet" time. When I get a minute, I will stop at all those sites you suggested.
I guess JJ is something like our Lady Gaga right now. Bless her, she gave it her all but it was a strange idea really.
I think it was SO disappointing because the opening ceremony and the Games and gone so well and then it was like... ha ha, back to business as usual (i.e. a bit crap... though it had moments of humour and talent in there too of course). It just could have been so much better. More than just pop music might have been a solution (different genres).
And why watch it, you might say... well, we'd watched the opener and much of the sport... so it just seemed a good idea. And we watched it in a big family group and had a lot of fun predicting the Spice Girls arrival (maybe the inflatable octopus will vomit them up etc.).
Looking forward to the Paralympics now. There are some great ads for it on the TV just now.
had gone so well!
I hated that closing ceremony.
Susan Hill — try "Strange Meeting".
And thanks for linking to my new poetry site! I do hope you and perhaps some of your readers will consider contributing something...
Yes, I think most people hated at least part of it. It did things the opening ceremony had already done (pop) but not as well... and very little else. A disappointing end to a (in some ways) surprisingly successful fortnight.
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Unless it was a tactical move - to give people something to moan about... that worked.
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I liked Jesse J - at least she has a real voice (I'm not really into the bubblegum stuff). And I liked that child who did the Pink Floyd cover. And I liked the IDEA of Eric Idle (Idol?).
I am always on the lookout for new series books to listen to in the car & lo & behold Susan Hill has a series - I just checked out (from my library) book one in the Simon Serrailler Series - I'll listen to it once I'm done with this "small Amish town female chief of police serial killer" book I'm listening to currently.
I'm off to check out the walker's site...
Yes, as I say I don't mind JJ too much. The young man is Ed Sheeran... and opinion was a bit split on the Pink Floyd number he did (but then opinion is pretty much always split... on everything). I thought he did OK with it as it goes (and I'm not a fan of his own stuff especially... and I am a PF fan). I liked the idea of getting new artists to do old songs at least - it went with the theme of the new generation and some of the original artists really can't do their own stuff justice on that kind of stage now (and if Annie Lennox wasn't miming I'd be VERY surprised - some of the Spice Girls, of course, made a career out of that!).
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I have enjoyed everything I have read by Susan Hill Rachel - she is one of my favourites.
I'd seen her name a lot but not read anything of hers before. I picked up "The Beacon" in a little cafe somewhere north of Edinburgh - it had a bookcase of second hand books for sale. Better books than food too.
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Back at school? Still a few weeks to go here...
Solitary Walker's The passionate Transitory deserves to succeed.
Ours break up at the end of June. Took a few years to get used to schools going back in August (August! August! Madness!) but it seems normal now.
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Rest is good for the soul. Went to the country barbecue you attended with us last year and thought happily of your family. Wonder what the road holds in store for you this year. Sending cheers.
Chris! Good to read you again! We have visitors here from the US and Canada right now. Our turn to receive the guests.
Love to you and yours.
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