2011 thinking

some bits of inspiration, found lurking on other blogs,
pages from david hockney's essay for paris vogue, dec 1985-jan 1986 [sourced here]

nothing wrong with a "to do" list,

especially this one by johnny cash [sourced here]

and a little casual satchel lust [found here, available here]

the sea ...

i remember watching an adaptation of robinson crusoe years and years ago.
i thought it was a 70s production but my google research tells me it was most likely luis buñuel's 1954 film.
there is a scene where robinson crusoe is haranguing friday, being strict and prim and a gentleman of his times. soon after there is a scene where friday is on the beach, singing to himself,

the sea is a woman,
and i swim in the sea ...

the sea is a woman, and i swim in the sea ...

this has stayed with me for well over 20 years. i loved it. i loved its cheekiness and irreverance and sensuality, and straight up sexuality.

i was reminded of this again when i saw this ring, here
and i thought, yes, that's right, my love for p is strong like the sea
i would like to wear a ring of love (a badge of honour) saying as much.
i love pxxx

do me a ffaber

in the early 90s faber & faber published books with truly wonderful covers
for a long time i was buying faber publications almost exclusively, tempted by the covers
some of my top 5 authors were found via faber's art work:

milan kundera, immortality
(review, selective affinities, ny review of books)

paul auster, leviathan
(second hand, signed copy available)

achel ingalls, the pearlkillers or any of her
rachel ingalls, the pearlkillers (or any of her short stories)
but there were also non-fiction faber fin
find
but there were also non-fiction faber finds,

an intimate history of humanity, by theodore zeldin a book i loved reading, so i lent it to someone and it's since disappeared
i found an 1994 review of zeldin's book in the independent, by alain de botton, the opening paragraph of which suggests (to me at least) that this book may have helped de botton choose his future literary directions,
THE Oxford historian Theodore Zeldin has taken the academically unfashionable step of writing a book which aims to change our lives. It is an accessible, audacious and thought- provoking work which presents history as a liberating force, one which can reveal the multiplicity of human possibilities, and thereby free us from the impasses of the present.
Zeldin's title is somewhat misleading. This is no history in the chronological sense, nor is it specifically a study of love and friendship. Rather, the book asks a host of questions about the nature of human needs and desires, amounting to a grand survey of the ends of life. It is divided into 25 essays, with such titles as 'men and women have slowly learned to have interesting conversations', 'How people have freed themselves from fear by finding new fears', and 'How even astrologers resist their destiny'.

i recently came across the work of psychoanalyst adam phillips. flipping through his latest book*, on balance, i became curious about his (many) earlier texts, with fascinating titles such as
on kissing, tickling and being bored: psychoanalytic essays on the unexamined life.
published by faber in 1993, i soon found a second hand copy and sure enough, the cover art did not disappoint.
(another independent review)


*it was in fact, this very act of flipping that reminded me of my faber & faber obsession. because i was standing in the very same area of the brunswick street bookstore where i had found zeldin, an intimate history ... so many years ago.

taking things literary

the other week, i was listening to the radio and heard an interview about virginia woolf, the role of the character in narrative and a woman she called "mrs brown"

it was wonderful to hear someone talk about virginia woolf, it was wonderful hearing an intelligent and articulate voice, melba cuddy-keane, a canadian scholar, it was good to be hearing with my "literary, intellectual" head - something i haven't bothered with for ages

mr bennett and mrs brown: virgina woolf on character in the novel (ramona koval, radio national)

transcript and audio linked

the book, Virginia Woolf, the Intellectual and the Public Sphere, by melba cuddy-keane

and then again the other night, an interview with james shapiro discussing his book, contested will: who wrote shakespeare?

less academic, more anecdotal, just as intriguing

contesting william shakespeare (late night live, radio national)

transcript and audio linked

people writing about the book -

in the independent

in punch

i like a cock a too

oh, dear, cockie lust has been excited by this image in the design files' interview with lucy fenton

an impusle to find out just how much a cockie lamp stand would cost?

ouch

luckily, i have other cockies to keep me happy,

Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans

i was thinking about this
because i haven't been updating this blog very much.
i've been busy elsewhere

and the winner is ... sydaney

ah juan anotonio

it may not be politick to mention cities/countries being awarded mega-sporting events, as australia's world cup bid is brought down by qatar (achoo), but i happened to be in sydney this week for work

broken heart, ricky maynard

i didn't manage to hop on a ferry

...

or down a schooner

...

two things which i think it is essential to do when in sydney

i didn't even see the bridge or the house!

here is alternative kind of opera house,

i did get to the nsw gallery, though, and saw some regulars, as well as the art + soul exhibition (as seen on tv!!)

i saw a few people listening to commentary, but i was only doing a quick whip around,

some commentary online

mum has asked for the book (associated with the documentary) for christmas, a good present i think.

gallery guards were swarming like flies so i couldn't take many illegal gallery photos and those i did manage were pretty piss-poor as i pretended i was texting when really i was snapping off shots