Norweigan Terror Attacks

I was really shocked and upset over the weekend to learn about the massacre that took place in Norway. Anders Breivik killed 93 people in a bloody attack that lasted for one hour and also set off a bomb in Oslo. The man behind the attacks was said to have been planning them for years and is also said to have links with European far-right groups. Just a couple of hours before the attack, he is said to have posted a 1,500-page document online outlining his plans for a total 'revolution of Norweigan Society in which he denounced Islam and called himself an anti-Marxist.

Beyond the obvious shock and horror that such a terrible attack should take place and that all those innocent people died, it is even more worrying when we consider the killer's motives - and that there could be more people like him closer to home than you think. My feeling is that there is a group of right-wing individuals who spew out their hate (anti-anything that they don't understand) without consideration of the consequences. Most of the time, these people are associated with being uneducated and bored individuals - but as in the case of Anders Breivik, the evidence suggests that more of them are also coming from educated and so-called 'well-bred' origins.

No matter what one's beliefs, we should never allow a person (or organisation) to spur on hate towards another group (Muslim, Jewish, Christian) etc. in the form of killing. Free speech, with all its inherent complexities, protects us all, no matter where we are from. I hope this man spends a long time in a dirty jail.

Amy Winehouse

RIP AMY WINEHOUSE

Amy Winehouse, the British singer-songwriter, has been found dead in her North London home. She was known for her powerful vocals and her eclectic mix of genres in her music including R&B, soul and jazz. She received extensive media coverage over her mental health issues.

She was last seen performing with her god-daughter Dionne Bromfield at the 2011 iTunes Festival at Camden Roundhouse last Wednesday, where she was a surprise guest. You can see her impromptu performance here.

Scene: Outside Notting Hill Gate Station, London.
I am approaching a man with a gold tooth trying to get his attention.
Me: (clears throat) Do you have a light?
Gold-tooth Man: Yes, darling! Sorry, I was miles away. (Hands me his lighter and I light my cigarette).
Me: Thank you. (I light my cigarette and the light back).

[SHORTLY AFTER, WHILE I AM SMOKING CIGARETTE]

A short Big Issue seller standing nearby with a dog, who is pissing everywhere.
Big Issue Man: Big Issue!
Tall Police-man (approaches him): Can you move your dog please?
Big Issue Man: What's the problem, man, just because I am not English?
Policeman: No, your dog is pissing and shitting everywhere.
Big Issue Man (getting aggressive, looking up to policeman): Hey! If ai was English it wooodn be a problem!
Policeman: Do you want to relax, or we can go and sort this in the station?
Big Issue Man: Racist!
Policeman (losing his temper): No...Me policeman (points to himself). You Big Issue Man (points to man). So shut UP!
Big Issue Man: Okay.
Policeman: Please move your dog.
Big Issue Man: Okay.

Big Issue Man and Policeman walk away together.

The End. :)

I love London.

RIP Lucian Freud

Lucian Freud has died, aged 88 years old. Known chiefly for his thickly impasted portrait and figure paintings, he was widely considered the pre-eminent British artist of his time. His works are noted for their psychological penetration, and for their often discomforting examination of the relationship between artist and model.

Acts of Kindness

London Underground is currently running an exhibition on the Central Line compiled by East End artist Michael Landy (b.1963) called 'Acts of Kindness'. Six weeks ago he asked people to send in short stories about random acts of kindess on the underground. I thought it was pretty cool.

Go here to find out more: http://art.tfl.gov.uk/actsofkindness/readstories/

Samuel Taylor Coleridge - The Rime of the Ancient Mariner

Part I

It is an ancient Mariner,
And he stoppeth one of three.
`By thy long grey beard and glittering eye,
Now wherefore stopp'st thou me?

The bridegroom's doors are opened wide,
And I am next of kin;
The guests are met, the feast is set:
Mayst hear the merry din.'

He holds him with his skinny hand,
"There was a ship," quoth he.
`Hold off! unhand me, grey-beard loon!'
Eftsoons his hand dropped he.

He holds him with his glittering eye -
The Wedding-Guest stood still,
And listens like a three years' child:
The Mariner hath his will.

The Wedding-Guest sat on a stone:
He cannot choose but hear;
And thus spake on that ancient man,
The bright-eyed Mariner.

"The ship was cheered, the harbour cleared,
Merrily did we drop
Below the kirk, below the hill,
Below the lighthouse top.

The sun came up upon the left,
Out of the sea came he!
And he shone bright, and on the right
Went down into the sea.

Higher and higher every day,
Till over the mast at noon -"
The Wedding-Guest here beat his breast,
For he heard the loud bassoon.

The bride hath paced into the hall,
Red as a rose is she;
Nodding their heads before her goes
The merry minstrelsy.

The Wedding-Guest he beat his breast,
Yet he cannot choose but hear;
And thus spake on that ancient man,
The bright-eyed Mariner.

In Between

Don't hate me just because I am different,
Or because I don't sing the same song as you.
We may not be the same Colour,
Religion, or Age;
But we can share the same view.

So don't reject me because I look different,
Or because I speak in a funny way.
We may speak a different language,
But, halas ana naas kamen.
I am like you come what may.

I breathe,
I sleep,
I wake,
I talk,
I laugh,
I cry.

So do you.

The Sadness of Tomorrow, Today

'Tomorrow be another day', they say.
'And have no thought for the trials of today'.
'Tomorrow be found to find something new'.
Yet they have no desire to show what's true. Not now, anyhow.

So Tomorrow be another day, I think?
The rain may fall, but 'not another drop to drink'.
Or so to Coleridge,
Open your mind to Tomorrow?

I have to. Or else.
Because Today is closed off. In sorrow.

Victoria - 2011