sheldrake

Hello. I did hope to bring you another update on the Christmas cactus, which is now looking most impressive, but it always seems to be obscured by drying dishes whenever I think to take its picture... and by the time I've dried them and put them away, it's dark or I've forgotten.

My moods have been a bit odd lately - yesterday was a washout, but I've got a fair bit done today and enjoyed myself. Plus, new Doctor Who in an hour! Hooray!

I've been meaning to link to this for ages. Chimamanda Adichie: The danger of a single story. I love her writing and this is a really great talk, full of wisdom about the stories we tell ourselves about our world. Give it a watch/listen -- it's worth it.

I'm currently rereading Derek Jarman's Modern Nature -- one of my favourite books, and one I can read over and over (it's also full of underlining from when I used it for my dissertation back in college). I love it because it's so calm, full of meditations on gardens (it is in part a chronicle of the garden Jarman created in Dungeness) and history and memories, and yet there is anger and sadness there too. It's wildly romantic, and unapologetically subversive. The journal begins in January 1989 -- 20 years ago. Time flies...

I wanted to share this entry, because it made me smile.

( Dealing with tabloids the Derek Jarman way )

I haven't been posting much lately. Normally I would start off with lots of excuses and apologies for my appalling behaviour, but I'm trying to cut down on that sort of thing.

Nothing to report about the job stuff at present. Nothing much to report about anything, really.

I've said it before, but I need to stop wasting vast swathes of time reading the comments posted to blogs and online news articles. It's like I'm deliberately poisoning myself with other people's stupidity. There are lots of other things I could be doing: knitting, practising the piano, writing... hoovering.

That said, I have been somewhat preoccupied of late by the Carol Thatcher affair. Honestly, I don't even how to begin talking about it. ( but I shall give it my best shot )

Ok, just had to get that off my chest. I'm definitely going to do my ironing now.

I need kittens. Kittens make everything better. Everyone needs kittens! Except people who loathe kittens, of course. (Small birds and so on). Anyway, so -- plz to be posting kittens in the comments, kthx!

Also cats, ta.

Also! Check out my awesome new Martha Jones icon (one of several, no less), courtesy of liviapenn, who has been doing icons for people in honour of International Blog Against Racism Week. Yes, that was indeed my incredibly lame contribution to IBARW! (Actually I was going to say some other stuff about how I've read some really interesting, thoughtful discussion round these parts lately, and how I was at times even forced to exercise my brain, etc, and how this was a good thing. But then I got sidetracked by self-pity and now I am far too drained to talk about anything other than kittens).

Once again, I must post the disclaimer that in real life I don't really say things like 'awesome' or 'check it out'. Because I would sound ridiculous.

Posts possibly to come, if I feel up to it: 'Edwardian School Stories and Why Everybody Should Hate Ruth Craven, or Birth of the Mary Sue'; 'My Dream About David Walliams and a Giraffe'; 'Forcing My Poetry On You Again'; 'Other Stuff'.