All comments (page 1921 of 2930)

Tue 11th Mar 2014 11:29

In answer to your question - why shouldn't I use
the old religious come-back: "It passeth all
understanding".
Besides - if we are "given" life (as we know it),
it begs the unanswerable question: what gave
existence to that which provided life for us?
The merry-go-round goes on: perhaps answered in
eventual death...leading to a change of the predominant physical state of "being" into a form
of unseen force free from the constraint and
limitations of the body?
May the Force be with us!! :-)

Comment is about The Miracle of Life (blog)

Original item by John Coopey

Mon 10th Mar 2014 21:33

A rich vein that it would be a shame not to tap into, Gray.

Comment is about I can be horrible if you like (blog)

Original item by Gray Nicholls

Mon 10th Mar 2014 21:29

We're still coming out of an ice age, so it will continue to warm up. But man-made?
Personally I think "Yes" we are accelerating the process.
I tell my kids it's their job to make the world a better place; I didn't do it very well.
One of them is a teacher so she has scope to make many more minds aware than I can.

Comment is about GLOBAL WARMING-how long forming? (blog)

Original item by M.C. Newberry

Mon 10th Mar 2014 20:19

If you thinking of seeing Jamie anytime, don't go if you're wanting miserable rants. You'll be disappointed.
The joy of his poetry is infectious.

Comment is about Can poetry go 'mainstream'? The future's bright, says Valley Press publisher (article)

Original item by Greg Freeman

Mon 10th Mar 2014 20:14

So what is it that makes us alive, MC?

Comment is about The Miracle of Life (blog)

Original item by John Coopey

Pete

Mon 10th Mar 2014 16:54

Or, just self-publish an e-book and cut out the heartache and publisher conformity.

Comment is about Can poetry go 'mainstream'? The future's bright, says Valley Press publisher (article)

Original item by Greg Freeman

Mon 10th Mar 2014 16:18

Hello there - many thanks for taking the trouble
to comment (and kindly) on "Global Warming".
It's a bit like Christianity with me...not too
sure but prepared to be convinced!!

Comment is about Cynthia Buell Thomas (poet profile)

Original item by Cynthia Buell Thomas

Mon 10th Mar 2014 16:11

Anyone who has/has had the nerve to stand and be
heard from public platforms will be encouraged and
heartened by these well considered lines.
One of the best older Hollywood scriptwriters -
a woman called Leigh Brackett - gave John Wayne
some memorable lines in the Western "Rio Bravo" -
and one that sticks in my own mind was his
admonishment to the Dean Martin character....
"Sorry don't get it done".
A lot of today's politicians and other public figures should have that on their desktops.

Comment is about I used to start by saying "Sorry" (blog)

Original item by David Lindsay

Tim Ellis

Mon 10th Mar 2014 15:13

I think if poetry is ever going to go mainstream, Jamie McGarry is the man to make it happen. I think when I first met him was not long after he started Valley Press. I remember wishing him luck with it and privately thinking "It will never last..." Delighted to see he has proved me wrong!

Comment is about Can poetry go 'mainstream'? The future's bright, says Valley Press publisher (article)

Original item by Greg Freeman

Nigel Astell

Mon 10th Mar 2014 14:03

When the room goes dark

Fear cries out

When the room goes light

Silent souls suffocate.

The theme for Stockport W O L tonight is Ghosts.

Comment is about Write Out Loud at Stockport art gallery tonight (article)

Original item by Greg Freeman

Nigel Astell

Mon 10th Mar 2014 13:48

Thanks for your comment M.C.

Comment is about M.C. Newberry (poet profile)

Original item by M.C. Newberry

Nigel Astell

Mon 10th Mar 2014 13:44

Thanks Cynthia going to read it out tonight
at Stockport W O L

Comment is about Cynthia Buell Thomas (poet profile)

Original item by Cynthia Buell Thomas

Mon 10th Mar 2014 13:14

I haven't read the other comments yet. I think this is super - clever, funny, deliciously barbed and hitting way too close to bone.

Later: And, my goodness, wasn't I just right!

Comment is about Surely not! (blog)

Original item by Dave Bradley

Mon 10th Mar 2014 13:07

Hilarious. Are the light-weight pans still called skillets? I think of skillets as heavy iron that could bash a brain, easily. I think my current frying would just go 'bong'.

I haven't seen you here in ages. Is all well?

Comment is about Pancake Days (blog)

Original item by Shoeless Carole

Mon 10th Mar 2014 12:54

Delightful. Greatly enjoyed. And, of course, you crave it because you can't get it - it's a given.

Comment is about Why Is It? (blog)

Original item by Dorinda MacDowell

Mon 10th Mar 2014 12:48

This is powerfully written, strong from first to last with compelling images. Your theme is huge and well-served. I like the turn from first person 'I' to second 'you' in the final stanza - making the ending like a warning. Or not - perhaps simple existentialism - you reap what you sow. (or something like that.)

Comment is about supping at the Silverback Inn (blog)

Original item by Ian Whiteley

Mon 10th Mar 2014 12:33

Enjoyed. Humour with an edgy point.

Comment is about A Ghostly Gift (blog)

Original item by Nigel Astell

Mon 10th Mar 2014 12:23

I really like this. IMO, interpretation is unlimited, especially with the ambiguous ending. The first three lines set an excellent mode, seductive in diction and musical intonation.

Comment is about Tales of a Shattered Monocle (blog)

Original item by Obviously Charming Delinquent

Mon 10th Mar 2014 12:16

Powerful images.

'silhouetting in Wagner' is very interesting. Would you give me some background for this choice?

Comment is about Prisoners of War II (blog)

Original item by Andy N

Mon 10th Mar 2014 12:10

Well done, cleverly constructed with fast easy rhymes, graphic allusions, and making excellent points to seriously consider.

Comment is about GLOBAL WARMING-how long forming? (blog)

Original item by M.C. Newberry

Mon 10th Mar 2014 12:01

I know you are wickedly clever, but I did get a bit lost, even after five readings. I think it must be 'fellow-feminine' that does me in - instead of 'fellow-feminist.' I even went down the LGBT route to see if it applies - and it sort of does, actually. I always enjoy your work.

Comment is about International Women`s Day (blog)

Original item by Harry O`N eill

Mon 10th Mar 2014 11:56

I saw TV shots of an elderly woman wrapped in a
Ukrainian flag being jostled and abused, needing
to be shielded from missiles by police protection.
What flag do those guilty bullies fly - if any?!

Comment is about I Can At Least Bark (blog)

Original item by Larisa Rzhepishevska

Mon 10th Mar 2014 11:49

Tommy, inside your first quotation marks, it will read more accurately if you make the tense present:"I am famished/and that is a fact." It balances the landlady's direct words. Also, IMO, this usage strengthens the humour.

Comment is about Nietzsche declared (blog)

Original item by Tommy Carroll

Mon 10th Mar 2014 11:30

These lines are catsnip to a not so wealthy uncle!

Comment is about A Ghostly Gift (blog)

Original item by Nigel Astell

steve pottinger

Mon 10th Mar 2014 11:28

Thanks to Poetry24 for first publishing this poem. Inspired by the announcement of an inquiry into the police spying on the inquiry into the police handling of Stephen Lawrence's murder.

Comment is about You could have had kids by now (blog)

Original item by steve pottinger

Mon 10th Mar 2014 11:23

Harry - you appear to have an innate oft-expressed sympathy with/understanding of the opposite sex.
I wait with interest for your female equivalent
to appear with frequent poems in sympathy with the male gender.
:-)

Comment is about International Women`s Day (blog)

Original item by Harry O`N eill

Mon 10th Mar 2014 11:08

I'm quite content to "believe" in some unimaginable force behind what we know as life
in all its varied forms on this small planet.
The simplistic human desire in ancient times to put that into some useful religious context to
gain influence and control over minds is another
matter. Even today there are many who are eager
to embrace stories from woefully ignorant times
that bear little scrutiny today. "Faith" is all
very well but a little basic questioning does
not come amiss. Stephen Fry asks what loving
and forgiving "God" creates creatures that lay
eggs in the living body of another creature and
eat it alive from within! Perhaps the old Church cop-out is the answer: It passeth all
understanding!

Comment is about The Miracle of Life (blog)

Original item by John Coopey

Mon 10th Mar 2014 09:43

Indeed Harry. Strange when Diversity and Inclusivity specifically excludes some.

Comment is about International Women`s Day (blog)

Original item by Harry O`N eill

Steve Higgins

Mon 10th Mar 2014 06:25

More of a thought than a poem but there are certain things that bring home the aging process and this moment was one of them.
Thanks for your comments John.

Comment is about Jimmy, do you remember me? (blog)

Original item by Steve Higgins

John F Keane

Sun 9th Mar 2014 19:48

*If we want the disenfranchised underclass to adopt the morality of the mainstream, social housing needs to be integrated into mainstream society. That means individual houses among the private residences.*

I'm sure the owners of private residences will be clamoring for jobless, violent junkies to be dumped on their doorsteps. Or maybe we could put them in Hampstead or Islington, to test liberal good will.

Comment is about Poet and 'ex-scumbag' Byron Vincent defends underclass on sink estates (article)

Original item by Greg Freeman

Joe Nodus

Sun 9th Mar 2014 16:35

Thanks Greg & Chris for your compliments, which are most humbling to me. I wish I was as good as you imply. Without you guys doing what you do, I would not be able to do what I do. Or, at least, not in the way I'm doing it. It would be very hard to find a place to be accepted, at the end of a days walking; without people running poetry/reader groups, & without the WOL gig guide I'd be truly wandering "lonely as a cloud". P.S. Don't forget to get out & pick some Ramsons; they're energy dynamite. I'm 48 & have just started running with better energy than I have for over a decade; that's after eating 40 Ramson leaves in a Biriani, with Olive oil.

Anne Rhodes of the Castelford monthly friday night 'Poetry & Pals' group, asked me a few questions, which I answered, as follows: I do as much walking as I can, but that's only 150 miles since February. The rest of the time I'm lying down or writing/editing poetry; foraging for food, overeating & lying down again.

I live in a high rise flat in Bramley, West Leeds. I have a computer at home, but not internet. I use the Library internet, wherever I happen to be. I use scrap paper, then write up at home.

It is the instinct to survive that started me off long distance walking, when I was ill. Once I spent 2 years in bed, because my previous job had made me ill. The blazing Summer of 2006 got me out swimming in an offshoot of the River Aire. After that I began to explore canal bank walking & gradually I built my stamina. Now the survival instinct, of exercise & gathering wild foods is interlinked with creativity, as I try to link one poetry event to the next, within daily walking distance; which is about 25 miles, possibly a bit more, under favorable conditions.

Another reason to begin, was the curiosity to find out if, as of old, one could walk from one place of major importance to another, without been poisoned & driven insane by the fumes & noise of traffic. I have found that nice enough routes can get one practically the length & breadth of England & Scotland. Not that I've been that far, but hope to do as much as possible, in the coming years.

Thanks for the encouragement to writing about my walking experiences. But there are a lot more experienced walking writers out there than me. The unique aspect of my travels is the link to the WOL gig guide, from which I can plan routes; e.g. Leeds to Cleckheaton, to Middleton, to Manchester, to Maccelesfield or Wigan, to Congleton or Liverpool, to Stoke or Birkenhead, to Wolverhampton or Chester, to Birmingham, London, Brighton, or via the Welsh coastal path to Bristol, Salsbury, Bournemouth; which from the map, all look achievable, mostly via canal banks & country footpaths. I've been down as far as Stourbridge, West of Birmingham. I hope to go further this Summer.

I’ve just gone self employed, as a self-publicist & salesperson of my poetry. I am also very keen to get hold of other people's self-published writing to sell; door to door. I'd like as wide a range of work as possible, so that whoever opens the door; I may have something to interest them. There's the potential for including a charitable aspect to this idea. So anyone interested in these ideas, please get in touch.

Comment is about Welcome sign of spring as poetry trekker Joe hits the road again (article)

Original item by Greg Freeman

Andy N

Sun 9th Mar 2014 12:26

now i would love to know who this is about.

guess the diceman reference is in relation to luke rhinehart's book 'the diceman'. now that is a mad, mad book.

good stuff.

Comment is about I can be horrible if you like (blog)

Original item by Gray Nicholls

Chris Co

Sun 9th Mar 2014 07:46

Nodus is a true poet, free spirit and a walking/cycling advertisement for his environmental/world outlook.

So many play at this...this guy lives and breathes it. We were privileged to be in his company and honoured by words. Thx mate from me and the rest of us at ThePoetry Spoke, truly humbled by your excursion to be with us that night.

Take care...especially on the road.

Our Best

Chris

Comment is about Welcome sign of spring as poetry trekker Joe hits the road again (article)

Original item by Greg Freeman

leah

Sat 8th Mar 2014 22:30

WHAT THE DICKENS! NOT ANOTHER SUCCESSFUL EVENING AT FEBRUARY'S WRITE ANGLE!
February's Write Angle evening, guest starring Steve Tasane, brought in a Full house with an enthusiastic audience bursting through the door.
Steve, Writer in Residence for Dickens 2012, is energetic and his poetry and prose, brilliant; his writings, mesmerising. He started with Dicken's 'Old Curiosity Shop', turning a 700 page book into an 18 minute, (120 line) poem! 'We give ourselves ridiculous tasks' he said, tongue in cheek – but they keep us young'! For those unfamiliar, it's a story of young Nell, whose grandfather owns the shop, has a gambling addiction and borrows from the evil 'Quilp who wants to own both the shop and Nell. Nell and grandad escape his clutches but Nell's brother believes they have money so he and friend Dick join the chase. A slew of eccentric characters are encountered including a waxworks owner, Mrs Jarley. All is lost until Kit Nubbles and a mysterious stranger enter the scene. Will they save the day?
Steve's poem manages to capture the suspense and humour of Dickens. 'If honesty's a peerless path, corruption hunts in packs, a jackel joins a greedy gang, that ruthlessly attacks'!
Steve then did ''What the Dickens' – the phrase you won't find in any of his books! But yes, phrases such as 'noble paupers', ill-fated weddings', no Christmas pudding', obstinite ponies, 'beds that are beaten', 'miserly scrooges', 'artful dodgers', 'There's speeches, verses, all kinds of curses', - but there's no 'What the Dickens' in Dickens! It brought lots of laughter! Then, a poem about Bill Sykes and his dog Bulls Eye' -'anxious to attach itelf to his windpipe'. In the second half, Steve read from his wonderful new book 'Blood Donors'- 'nightmarish and utterly convincing' (Anthony McGowan). 'Peoples keep dyin' in the finger'. The scuzzie old tower block where they put us antisociable families. Authorities say it dirty smack goin' round, but them bodies aint all users...It's the story of Marshall O'Conner the First, his mum and lil bro. Dad's in prison, school kicked him out and the bedbugs are drivin' him crazy! True, Marsh got some anger issues....' He ended with some of Marshall's rap poetry including his fight with Killer Bugs! Good original stuff! (we recommend you buy the book!)
Meantime, at the Open Mic - Speech Painter told 'How hard it is to be a writer'. 'He had trouble in the bedroom. He had trouble even parking...ended up with a flick of his zippo lighter (manuscript gone???). The ever-unpredictable Audi Maserati and his uke did some memorable songs. 'Miss Otis Regrets' (she's unable to lunch today')Then, 'Missed the Saturday Dance', 'and 'Please don't talk about me when I'm gone', -Dave Allen, proudly announced he'd had his 'first paid gig' the night before - told of 'backpack and bikes. 'She was late' but 'our bodies exposed, we became like drugs'. He put on his heavy clothes for 'No sign of it stopping..seems like 40 days and 40 nights..this rain's been trained by the Ninjas' Another poet with a 'future', Sven Stears, our metaphor man, 'There's a hole in my city'. (saving the world and/or the relationship) - Both Dave and Sven possess strong lyrical language. Sven's now got his own slot on radio G3 where he'll be talking about music and poetry! So, listen in!
Naturi Thomas did 'Bedtime in our Country' (an imaginary world she and her brother invented) - a lovely poem - 'In the tub, we sailed home. 'Our real country was just down the hall'. 'When it got cold in our country, we burned down the school'. . Mike Knee guitar/sang 'Prospect Lane', (what are we hoping for when we travel Prospect Lane). Then, Pearls Across the Sand'. Gilly Gillingham did 'The Lost Batallion', (where did they go) He pointed to the photo in the room. 'This year, they're marking the 'start of the Great War'. Then, 'Reflections on a Photograph dated 1917. About the soldiers lost, ending with 'But at the end, I must confess. I wish they loved their country less'. (good line)
Ron Jameson, 90 years old (but not a day over 60) - with sparkling eyes, 'Sine Qua Non' - 'In honour of 5 stars and 300 men who didn't quite make it'. His poem, Young Albert, Tail-end Charlie, aptly described the scenes of bombing, and the story of Albert, all alone in the bomber who managed to hit a jerry! They were going to reward him but there was nothing 'special' so 'when Albert got back, they gave him spam'! Leah did a poem about an optimist and pessimist, called 'Possimist'. And, it isn't often enough the compère gets to read. He did 'True Love', about breeding – not about love!' Then, 'I'm a tic tac man. I wave my hands. Can you tell if they speak the truth. Can you believe your eyes?' He also spoke of Irish performers seen at the Royal Court Theatre - a bit of cynicism!
There were three raffle ticket prizes which went over very well! Everyone was in on the buying and keeping fingers crossed.. The first was for a free meal for two at Petersfield's all-time favourite, 'La Piazetta'. The second and third were items provided by 'The Half Moon', won by two pleased participants. Another exciting and fun evening!

Review is about Petersfield Write Angle Poetry and Music + OPEN MI on 18 Feb 2014 (event)

Tommy Carroll

Sat 8th Mar 2014 13:01

K- ''Philosophy made difficult'' Tommy

Comment is about Karin (poet profile)

Original item by Karin

Tommy Carroll

Sat 8th Mar 2014 12:57

Cheers CBT ;)

Comment is about Cynthia Buell Thomas (poet profile)

Original item by Cynthia Buell Thomas

Fri 7th Mar 2014 22:53

I'm having these conversations with people from my past too, Steve. Must be getting old.
Down-to-earth in thought and language. Enjoyed, Steve.

Comment is about Jimmy, do you remember me? (blog)

Original item by Steve Higgins