UPDATE...

Haven't posted on here for a while. Partly out of being busy, and partly because I've been revising some of my first draft poetry and feeling guilty about the slow progress with my novel. These things don't just write themselves, apparently! So it kind of ruins my enthusiasm to update a blog when I know I should be completing another chapter.... Grrr!

In the meantime, I've been to Stockholm and really enjoyed it (see above). I've also been to a few poetry gigs, as well as weddings and birthdays... and I've been stopped and searched (again!) while taking pictures of Obama's entourage, when they visited London. Apparently, I must just "have that kind of face", which the snipers on the roof picked up on. Yeah, charming!

I've been reading voraciously too but, as usual, buying more books than I can read. And one or two have blown my mind, especially Kei Miller's The Last Warner Woman. I've also been - what a cliche! - cursing the estate agents who are currently trying to sell the flat I rent. And looking for more part-time employment. And that just about sums up my life at the moment.

Then, of course was the sad news of Gil Scott Heron's passing, and the tributes that have begun pouring out. I can count myself among the many people who have written their own version of The Revolution Will Not Be Televised when I was a teenager. Seriously, the amount of times I've rocked up at an open-mic night and heard rappers or poets performing their own twist on it - too many to count! The only other poem that I know has inspired so many imitators is Howl. Both have remained timeless.

Gil Scott Heron was revolutionary; he managed to help shape a culture during a time of great political unrest. The impact of his words still remain today and that's a great testament to the power of words themselves. So on days when I question my compulsion to write - even when I'm not actually doing much in the way of writing - it does inspire me to think that something as intangible as a poem, a book or a song can stir people up and make a difference.

Coming up later this weekend: Today's Random Word, Teen Angst part 2, Gig info, Novel update and maybe a poem or two... Phew!