Wrandom Writing

a better ibiza october 2011

2011-10-21T14:15:00.016Z

"life is what happens to you when you're busy making other plans" John Lennon. Like paella needs rice, a musician needs an audience. Sunshine is good too. No surprise then when I immediately accepted the invitation to explore the gig potential of Pleasure Island. Within a week the librarian was releasing my print job. Showing her the boarding passes I explained my plan. Her eyes lit up. ‘I’m

so dragons you would fight?

2011-10-19T11:10:00.000Z

It was cool resting against the rock. A good vantage point from which to oversee the unsurfaced road along which trouble was bound to come. Snarkleibe turned to Friedlebrund, “So forty years old they are and dragons they want to fight. Why they are not content with their sciatica, their rheumatism, but dragons, dragons, they must have dragons.” “Oy, oy,” hissed his

dragonfly heart

2011-03-18T15:58:00.003Z

out in the ether shimmering, darting i heard your fragile, dragonfly heart begin to beat more calmly.

The Sea Nymph and the Walrus

2011-03-17T14:22:00.000Z

The walrus opened his eye. She was still there. But now she was lying on him. Actually on him as though he were some sort of rock. God, did she have no respect for such an important character as himself? Obviously she didn’t. There she lay sunning herself and probably, although the walrus couldn’t turn his head round far enough to tell, smiling. He had no doubt that it was her. Although he

there'll be a welcome in the hillside

2011-03-14T16:22:00.001Z

swansea, neath, port talbot, bridgend, cardiff - were these concentrations of people ever attractive. industrial dormer dumps smeared over the bleak hills of the south wales coastline, the whole abortion leavened by gagging remnants of its ugly industrial past. especially true of port talbot. 10 minutes out of town by train the harsh spell is broken. morning sun on orange willow shoots.

My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding

2011-01-26T16:02:00.008Z

The clothes were definitely the thing in last night's episode. Unhindered by gorgia taste phantasmagorical, ultra wedding dresses with their battery pack powered lights and tremulous artificial butterflies were a complete delight. After all if you are going to get married you might as well make your statement. And those young women defintely did that.What I found so enjoyable about the whole

Lethargy Counselling - An Investment Opportunity

2010-01-17T13:16:00.010Z

Positive thinking, motivational speaking, goal orientation and general go-getting are finally falling out of favour it seems. And about time too. For far too long wilfully papering over the cracks with rainbow illusions has insulated us from cold reality’s stimulating bite. In the continuing fallout from the sub-prime debacle it has become clear that the world can no longer remain airborne on the

tango mango

2009-10-13T13:52:00.007Z

Dance addict that I am Tango Mango at the Rudolph Steiner School in Dartington sounded just my sort of adventure. There was no way I could get away for the full ten days so I went for the compromise - the five day half Mango. ‘Bring your harmonica,’ the organiser said.Despite assurances of adequate showers I didn’t tick the boxes for the £5 per night camping or dormitory options. A sticky night’s

not today

2009-04-08T11:25:00.003Z

alarmingly elegant ms anna-lise,i'd so like to meet.i don't mean to teasebut you'll have to forgiveif just now i can't come.today i'm in hayand i've taken my mum.

now you're nearly fifty

2008-11-20T16:23:00.029Z

‘It’s the age thing,’You said.My heart missed a beatAnd, in the same breath, went out to you.Which is quite a feat,Especially in someone of advancing years.‘Don’t worry doll,’I said patting your hand.'You’re not fifty yet.’‘Not me,'You said, easing down the Doobie Brothers’ polished doper spirals.'You.I am but a slip of a girl.I don’t mean to be unkind,’‘This age stuff is all in the mind,’I said‘

drowning in your salty tears

2008-10-27T11:38:00.006Z

Your tautened teenage tee-shirt told ofWomanhood too big to handleThat cast you free from your sweet childhoodTo a new blue desolation.This quiet love and sad companionHolds you cold on nights so lonelyCrying to your silent pillow.Hard to bare the pain of livingIn your gently aching body.Dark and deep that rolling ocean,Sea where men shipwrecked and flailingWill your blood to pull them under,One

the fig tree

2008-06-07T14:53:00.010Z

the short burst of warmth in late april succeeded in seducing the fruits into life. green swellings fattened as they sucked their life from the parent branches and, as merciless fledglings, elbowed their scrawny siblings to the ground.this year a crop seemed likely. previous autumns' progeny had clung on, teasing with the promise of bounty to come, only to abort as the year progressed to be

i miss you?

2008-05-12T09:59:00.007Z

I miss youYour twatnessYour wetnessYour fatnessYour firey red haired nessYour always prepared nessTo take me on in a scrap.Till you threatened to kill meTo deathWith a knifeSo no more troubleNo more strifeIn fact no more life.Your tendency to obsessionAnd mine to depressionMeant I had to dump youNo longer to hump youOr cuddle you up on a dark cold night.New Years Day

stop press new blog

2008-02-26T17:53:00.005Z

yo blogsters, these Dead C Scrolls have been recently unearthed in the inaccessible caverns and time worn amphorae of my hard drive.

my father - william joseph ellis - 2nd may 1918 - 22nd december 2007

2008-01-01T15:18:00.009Z

Whether he was enjoying my mother’s Sunday lunch, taking the dog for a walk with his stout thumb stick, landing a plump salmon or going for a drink with his friends my father was a man with a serious appetite for life.Private about his innermost feelings and his early years in Ireland, Dad was passionately committed to the hear and now. Beyond my mother his first love was music and it is my

advice to a girl with a nice smile

2007-12-26T12:33:00.003Z

on a cautionary note. you must remember that there are some real weirdos out here on the net. so take my tip .... copyright that smile ... if you're not careful thats just the sort of thing a cyber vagabond might toss into his black trick bag and whisk away into the dark night sky when you're least expecting it. and that would be bad for the smile. bad for you. and bad for the rest of us. so

first base no1

2007-11-24T17:31:00.001Z

i guess i must have been the first bloke to get into her knickers. i'd be shocked if i was told different. i mean she was only ten at the time after all.until last month in the supermarket i'd mostly forgotten about her. then, while gazing at the seventy five different toothpaste products competing for my economic vote, her face resurfaced in the pool of my consciousness.she completely blanked me

first base no2

2007-11-24T17:28:00.000Z

i reckon that sometimes dreams come completely formed. you know like with a past already built in so the struggling with the gunman or combing the lady's hair scene already holds its own backstory. if this is true then, in the same way that the depths and distance of the brecon beacons can be delivered in the single flat plane of a photograph, you can get quite a lot of eternity into no time at

first base no3

2007-11-24T17:20:00.001Z

as she lowered her hand caroline's shoulders began to shake with laughter. 'of course i remember,' she said.as i tried to decide whether i was relieved that i hadn't made a complete prat of myself or affronted that she considered my distress all those years ago so amusing, she carried on. she explained how her mother's relationship with stuart's dad had cooled but that she had eventually married

blogger hazards no 1 ... careful with that compassion, eugene. or ... do fat girls cry heavier tears?

2007-11-16T11:21:00.002Z

i suppose the first question is what exactly you mean by fat. dumpiness, being often in the inner eye of the beholder, is notoriously difficult to define. it may, in fact, ultimately be a function of one's attitude to oneself. ie am i a dollop? am i grosser than i want to be? and, crucially do i, or any body else, actually give a damn?murky waters indeed, but nonetheless deep. and dangerously

dance of the (un)dead

2007-10-11T11:37:00.001Z

dancing partners. who needs 'em? well we all do as it happens. both metaphorically and really. but just keeping to the dance arena for the moment, if you ain't got a partner why bother?of course you can preen and strut all you like in your own girational statement. you can shake your booty and casino turn till your body pops in a wild orgasm of rhythm if you so desire. and the assembled

whats not orange and fizzy?

2007-09-28T10:30:00.003Z

tango of course.especially the argentinian variety. which these days is the clinch of choice throughout the land. only last night i called the shots as i guided a bevy of compliant females relatively gracefully around a dance-floor somewhere in wales, our eager progress driven by the throbbing strain of a music forged in the meat-packing district of buenos aires during the early years of the

bacatta

2007-08-07T17:11:00.000Z

i've discovered bacatta. have you tried it? its heavy on pelvic nudging and has a characteristic stressed 4th beat when, instead of catching your breath as in salsa, you thrust one hip to the side. can look cool ... but if you're not careful you can come across as a kind of lecherous terpsichorean long john silver. its all got to be there but ostentatiously SUBTLE ... if you get my drift.

i'm in love ....................................... wid me camrafone

2007-07-19T07:30:00.000Z

elderflower champagne

2007-05-09T14:51:00.000Z

stuff 6 large elderflower (Sambucus nigra) heads1 gallon cold water2 large lemons juice2 lbs sugar2 tablespoons white wine vinegar how to put it all in a tub and stir it about a bitleave for 48 hoursstrainbottle it in PLASTIC bottleskeep letting the gas off (the stuff in the bottles) periodicallyabout six weeks should do but it is drinkable

ok america, we give up

2007-05-07T15:50:00.001Z

will somebody come and take david gest home now. please.

how do you know if you're driving too fast?

2007-05-05T15:36:00.000Z

letter to a friend following my first salsa class

2006-12-21T15:38:00.000Z

hi buddy, you should see a salsa class. i've had my mits on so many pretty women this evening you wouldn't believe it. of course it takes a lot of concentration. when you are looking at what your feet are doing its a bit difficult not to gaze down your partner's cleavage at the same time. took some pretty determined focussing i can tell you. i wasn't much good at the dancing. but with twice

personal first and last post

2006-12-17T17:11:00.000Z

You probably know how powerful a word can be. Sometimes when one feels a little low in oomph a couple, well chosen and out of the blue can make a big impact. In fact in this case, such a big impact that they’ve brought on a creative crisis. They’ve made me realise that I’ve got a public. And its you, Nava. Oh and a fine upstanding republican chap known as the Johnny b. (No I don’t think he’s

dreams dreams dreams

2006-12-16T15:51:00.001Z

they're bastards really. dreams. and ironic bastards at that. you can't live without them. apparently. the argument goes that if you can't pretty up the future in your own image what is the point of putting up with the slings and arrows of the outrageous present? there is something in that i suppose but you have to admit that they do absolutely nothing to protect us from the elements. or keep us

sounds of travelling ... work in progresss

2006-12-14T21:57:00.000Z

listening to the traffic drive up the swansea valley through clydach where i now live digs deep. to when i used to lie in bed in granny's house as the few 1950s cars slowly puttered through resolven illuminating my bedroom ceiling as they passed. it gave me the sensations of excitement and security at the same time. a big adventure negotiated from the cosiness of my own blankets. guess i've

wedding kaylee @ pyllaucochion farm, carmarthenshire

2006-05-22T08:45:00.000Z

i am not completely at ease. it isn't raining but, although we've got a contract, and amazingly enough a deposit, word is that the bride's mother has booked another band. could this be an ugly rumour? or just poor communication? who can say? hurtling down the motorway towards the wild green yonder that is carmarthenshire this particular saturday evening there is no alternative but to press on

the old game in an old town

2006-04-13T18:22:00.000Z

if for any reason you do find yourself at a loose end this evening you may be interested to know that sex is apparently for sale on swansea pavements. it seems that a posse of aspiring turnip polishers and mascara testers from what used to be the eastern bloc have decided that the city's streets are lined with gold.are they in for a shock? they might actually pull a few punters but will they get

thats hats

2006-03-18T16:00:00.002Z

At the end of the day, at least as much as at the beginning, it all comes down to who you can live with. Guy Richie can live with Madonna. Elton John can live with aptly named David Furnish.* And Victoria can live on the same planet as the wonderfully talented David 'Poor Sod' Beckham.But there are those for whom one is not enough. Me for example. And now is the time to come clean. So bear with

the trouble with john humphries

2006-03-10T15:14:00.000Z

i am very sorry to hear that john humphries has once again upset a strident element of the bbc radio 4 listening public. how could he be so impertinent to that nice mr cameron on the today program? especially when the latter was wriggling like a worm on a hook, desperate to oil his way out of the inconvenient contradictions in his position on income tax. it's high time that young

sunset over the worm

2006-02-06T20:55:00.001Z

rearrange until enlightened

2006-02-06T17:41:00.000Z

cameraman & i & i

2006-01-19T11:37:00.003Z

me and she be dancin'under smoochy light,heart to heart and tum to tumin shady crazy night.for posin' more than pullin'we airborne, in the groove.me pilotin' me partner.we cut we coolest moves.i twirlin' her and curlin' herwe don't know we nameshe got bad boy lover?maybe on the game?but feet astride the rhythmwe burn love's bitter rindflying wild latino styleexcitement in we mind.him shaggy and

They just can't get the glass

2006-01-11T10:51:00.000Z

They don’t make mirrors like they used to. They just can’t get the glass. I remember a mirror once. Was it last year? No, maybe the year before. No, come to think of it, it must have been longer ago than that. Well, whenever it was, that was a cracking mirror. Oh a joke, cracking mirror geddit? But it was a cracking mirror. Clean and clear, in a plain frame, honestly reflecting the

Dear Charles Kennedy

2006-01-09T14:30:00.000Z

hi charles,i must admit that the ghoul in me has thoroughly enjoyed your recent mugging. the reality beneath the airbrushed surface of british politics has been wondrous to behold. very hieronymus bosch if i may say so.you really should have gone earlier you know. had you done so your loyal assassins could have continued their writhing and spitting masked amongst the shadows. and the great

Seascape, Oxwich Beach, Gower Peninsula, UK

2006-01-01T12:21:00.001Z

Seascape looking south from Oxwich Beach, Gower Peninsula

Lowering the Tone

2006-01-01T12:19:00.000Z

Dear Mr Blair,I understand that you, like so many of our country men and women, enjoy the odd snifter. Why not after all? It helps one to unwind at the end of the day. And encourages a good night's rest. From time to time I have been known to take a drink myself.Hopefully unlike yours though, my imbibing has occasionally got out of hand. It got so out of hand at one stage that I experienced a

Heres Looking At You Kid

2005-12-31T21:53:00.000Z

Seascape due west from Llangenedd beach on the western extremity of the Gower Peninsula.A grim sky makes for a moody image. No two the same.© Patrick Ellis 2006

Seascape between Rotherslade and Lambswell on the Gower Peninsula UK

2005-12-31T15:09:00.001Z

Seascape looking south towards the North Devon coast. The image was made between Rotherslade and Lambswell on the Gower Peninsula. This is where I was lucky enough to grow up. If I ever did.I find seascapes like this one both contemplative and rewarding. The colours and the lines are simple and you might think predictable but the variety is infinite. You never get the same one twice.© Patrick

Oystermouth Square Re-visited I

2005-12-31T15:03:00.003Z

My earliest, and possibly closest, brush with celebrity's sparkling firmament occurred when Snowfy, our family cat, bore a litter in Harry Secombe’s uncle’s airing cupboard. Although I didn’t appreciate the depth of her understanding at the time Doris, the lady of the house, was particularly forgiving. Her husband Cyril didn’t turn a hair.