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No more depressing poetry - Take it Outside


Kafka is trying to say that life is no pissing contest. Oh hang on. Maybe it is?

Kafka Museum - Czech Republic

 

Yes, you read it right, there will be no more deep and meaningful poetry (as much as I can manage).  
The catch is, this option only applies until Christmas.  It is the jolly season afterall.

 

  My Books



Take it Outside


A man should piss outside
More often than he does
It is natural
As though connecting with nature
On a personal level
You and me
And me
With all of this
Fluid into the Earth
The breeze and radiant stars
Into the body
The mind is clear
Clearer, it seems
Than it’s ever been.

And there’s barely a thought
(Other than the ones that tick on beyond control)
There is a sense of being
Of deep, internal peace
Synchronise with the external
It is Harmony.

A man should piss outside.




http://times2fun.blogspot.com.au/
 Ahhhhhhhh.
As for women, well I can't speak for them, but happy to hear their perspective. ;)



Hope you enjoyed the change in pace, as much as I did.

Expect another 'light' poem or two soon.

Until then,
Take care





Exciting news - Caged Without Walls


http://joannagambotto.com.au/

Great news! I will have a poetry collection published next year, Caged without Walls.
It will be through Ginninderra Press. As you know, most of my poetry centers around emotional conflicts and the title refers to that in some way; depression, anxiety, being trapped in essence by your own mind and thoughts. It's not all bleak however. I've tried to mix it up in content and style.

More news when it comes.

I have also approached a Sydney artist, Joanna Gambotto who has agreed to work with me. Her work is great.

Very early days, but we will see how it all plays out. You can see some of her work here.


My Books





Back soon with a new poem.
Cheers

My Books



Best songs of 2012 #7 - Danny, Dakota and The Wishing Well








A Silent Film

Danny, Dakota and The Wishing Well






Ah teenage longing. Does it get any better? A great chorus. A great pop song, unashamedly commercial yet with a strong thread of emotion through it, which seems to resonate. It certainly does with me. (Teen at heart?).
It deserves to be a big hit.

A Silent Film are from Oxford, England, forming in 2008, though some members have a longer history together. They released their second album this year, Sand and Snow. Some have compared them to The Killers and Snow Patrol.


Official site.




Other Best Songs of 2012.


Best songs of 2012 #6 - You As You Were


Shearwater

 

 

 

You As You Were

   

 




http://shearwatermusic.com/


Shearwater is an indie band from Texas. They have been around for over a decade, (two members having emerged from Okkervil River). They have produced numerous albums, notably Rook from 2008.

Their album Animal Joy is one of the better releases from 2012. I highly recommend it.




See the other Best Songs of '12.



News update plus Default State


Writing Update - November 2012


Though I have been writing for many years, life as a writer, particularly in the earlier stages of publishing, is usually full of similiar emotions, at least for me. Some do get lucky. For most, it's constant rejection. You get down, you get back up again and get back to it. After some time, years, it becomes heavy on the heart. You become tired. It's a depressing business. We are all faced with rejection in our lives but creatives seem to extra sensitive souls, especially writers.

Occasionally however, there is good news. I've had a couple of pieces get through the slush just in the past week after months of nothing but bad news.

The good folks at Marco Polo will be putting my video poem Malignity up on their site. They loved it and want it up soon. I'll link to it when it's there.

I've also had a story accepted for publication, one that has been rejected numerous times before. In fact, I was just about to give up on it. Ten literary sites rejected it, one after the other (they don't accept similtaneous submissions, so it's a lengthy process). The eleventh didn't.

The story is called City of Great Large, written in the style of someone with poor English skills. I wrote it in China, based on snippets from what I heard on the street, a type of pigeon English you might say. Much of it was written in the courtyard of a temple. China isn't Europe. It's difficult to communicate. It is possible that some considered it racist or just too experimental. Due to the unusual style I kept the story simple. I thought it an interesting concept and a challenge.

You can draw your own conclusions when it's (finally) published at Wilderness House Literary Review.


http://joshsommers.smugmug.com/


 Trudging forward but going nowhere?


Before I get to a new poem, I've just had an agent look at one of my novels, the second, Oblivion City. Usually they reject you based on a Query letter, but she requested the full manuscript. It was exciting. She took a couple of weeks to get back to me. With a no thanks. (She did say it was a 'great book' but that the market was full of dystopian YA and didn't think she could sell it. A little frustrating as it was finished in 2007).

It gave me hope though, and it was a welcome change in emotion from the usual depressive state following rejection. I'm depressed now but for two weeks it was bliss.
Thems the breaks huh?

 

 

Rembrandt - The Philosopher in Meditation

 

Poem

Default State



He’s feeling good

In a way he can’t describe

Not without certain reservations

But a definite inner charge

Which may be misleading

As it’s not his

Default state.


He’s left wondering, if it isn’t a trick

Something, or somebody

Attempting to catch him out.

Give me a little life on the edge

He decries

And has his way

Until this

Idealistic self-assuredness

Which he must admit

Has thrown him off course.


Now he’s not feeling good

He’s uneasy

Unsettled

All those un words

Which were so distant

Only moments before

While looking over his

Proverbial shoulder

And rubbing his chin.


He realises,

That he is abruptly back to familiar territory

And while it’s not such a pleasant place

It is home after all.




Albert Toft - Spirit of contemplation



Coming soon,

My final video poem for the year, This tiny fortune.
Cheers



Best Songs of 2012 - #5 Dizzy Eyes



Best songs of 2012

Dizzy Eyes - Let's break up the band.







The irony is, that they've broken up!
Dizzy Eyes are, sorry  were a three piece from Canada. They lasted less than a year and as far as I can tell only made three songs (and one demo). Their songs were actually released in 2011 though seemed to be getting around various music sites only this year.
I hope they return. Let's break up the band is a cracker.


http://www.facebook.com/dizzyeyes

Official site with the three tracks.



Next post,
A new original poem.

Until then,
Take care.



Best songs of 2012 #4 - 7 Days in the Sun


Nameless - 7 Days in the Sun










Nameless are from France. Four friends formed the group in their high school years in 2003. It's a very catchy song, pure pop with a great chorus.

Facebook page. 

Official site. 





Plenty of great tunes to come, plus a variety of original poetry.

Until then.


Greatest Written Films - To Kill a Mockingbird





Greatest Written Films


Harper Lee wrote her famous book based on her childhood in small town Alabama; specifically, an event which occurred during that time, in the mid-thirties. It is this nostalgia which drenches the first half of the film version of her only novel, To Kill a Mockingbird. It is endearing without ever being schmaltzy. Most can relate to the wonder and freedom of childhood, and it’s easy to see how adventurous and imagination filled it was for children who grew up pre-television and video games. Something has been lost. Indeed the title itself is a metaphor for the loss of innocence.



Harper Lee with Gregory Peck


The second half of the film is a courtroom drama based on racial prejudice. It centres on a rape case, a black man of a white woman, highly contentious issues at the time of publication, 1960, though the story is set much earlier. Lee was ahead of the game when she began writing essays about racism in the fifties, especially as she was from the South.

The film was released in 1962 by director Robert Mulligan with the screenplay by Horton Foote (which won an Oscar). With the charismatic Gregory Peck in the role of Atticus Finch, it's a dream combination. Peck gives one of his best and certainly his most well-known performance. It also won him an Oscar. He remembered it with reverence. Many say there was no difference between Peck and his character.



Film scene.


Lee was a friend of Truman Capote. She is depicted in the films, Capote and Infamous. Interestingly, she never wrote another novel, and remained out of the spotlight. The character of Atticus was based on her father, who was an attorney. He actually defended two black men accused of murder. After they were convicted hanged and mutilated, he never tried another criminal case.



Truman Capote with Harper.


The film is told with great authenticity, compassion and integrity. It is one of cinema's great stories but carries with it, the all-pervading essence of truth.

For more information about the novel... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/To_Kill_a_Mockingbird

More Greatest Written Films



My Books


Best Songs of 2012 #3 - Sigur Rós - Varúð



Best Songs of 2012 #3


Sigur Rós - Varúð








Varúð is a beautiful piece from the ever amazing Sigur Ros - taken from their sixth full length album Valtari. When the chorus hits, it is impossible to not be profoundly moved. Theirs is the only concert I've been to that has brought me to tears.

I will be seeing them for the third time when they play the Harvest Festival in Sydney on the 17th of November.





Until next time,

Cheers

I did know what to do with myself


http://www.davidho.com/


Poem



I did know what to do with myself


There was a time
Without hesitation
When life changing moments
Were created on instinct
Before now
Before it was all uprooted

Upside down
Thrashing
In a mire of indecision
Contemplating at once
The endless possibilities
Each pathway
With its own spinning combination
Nothing comes easy
Nothing worthwhile
But it is absurd
A shattered
Untraceable trail behind
And no way forwards
Without a death-fuck of errors
Locked into a code
Unable to be released.

All there is
Is stillness
Where no mistakes can be made
Yet no progress either
A myriad of musings
Inexorably
Eroding time.


http://www.nightgalleryceramics.com/wp-content/media/rochelle_post.jpg


Coming soon,

A new entry in the series on Greatest Written Films, and the last video poem for 2012.




Best songs of 2012 - #2 Muse





Unsustainable  




Unsustainable is from Muse's sixth album, The 2nd Law. Aside from the strong message, (an economy based on growth is unsustainable), the work is a marked departure from previous Muse albums. It utilises elements of dance and dub-step in comarison to their rock pop (rock opera) past. It shows that Muse are willing to take risks and indeed have caused controversy among their fan base by doing this. And yet they have still managed to capture their essential sound, primarily through their vocals of lead singer Matthew Bellamy.



The band have stated that this track was influenced by producer, Skrillex. While I wouldn't classify it necessarily as a fantastic song, I have included it here for what it represents, a bold move for a band that could have kept repeating their 2006 hit album, Black Holes and Revelations ad infinitum, and for the core message of the song itself.

Plenty of 2012 tracks to come, plus new poetry.

Until then,
Cheers.