Monthly Archives: July 2009

Ficly. Better than Facebook, and possibly more addictive.

Posted on 30 July 2009 by

Am having a marvelous time reading and writing at Ficly, a smart, inspiring little site for people who want to write and read short fiction. It’s inspiring and encouraging and compelling and fun, and there are some muchos talented writers … Continue reading →

Posted in writing | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Letting go of the last strands

Posted on 30 July 2009 by

It’s an old martial arts exercise. You stand face to face, each on your right leg, each holding up the left hand. Each tries to push the other over. The lesson is simple. The second you stiffen and resist is … Continue reading →

Posted in awareness, relationships, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Winter veggie garden

Posted on 29 July 2009 by

I got surprised today by a large head of broccoli. Not every day you can say that (Note Kolya looking intently at the mud in the spinach bed. Five minutes later he was covered in the stuff.) Turnips and cabbages … Continue reading →

Posted in growing stuff | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Daring Bakers: Stickiest of the sticky

Posted on 27 July 2009 by

Sweetie pies. The sticky stuff of childhood: a vanilla marshmallow heaped on top of a digestive biscuit, and enrobed in chocolate. When I was a kid, I remember them as huge things, the size of a baby’s fist. Just thinking … Continue reading →

Posted in baking, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 5 Comments

Piece of the moon

Posted on 27 July 2009 by

My favourite magazine – well, currently the only one I subscribe to, anyway – is New Scientist. It doesn’t have long articles instructing you on how to get your tummy flatter, your make-up more airbrushed or your sex exploits more … Continue reading →

Posted in media, Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Two new videos

Posted on 22 July 2009 by

I needed a break from book editing. So I stayed up til 2am doing video editing. The first one is on YouTube and you can find it here: The second one didn’t seem to want to embed in WordPress, and … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , | 6 Comments

Two tastes

Posted on 19 July 2009 by

Kindness by Naomi Shahib Nye (from The Words Under the Words: Selected Poems) Before you know what kindness really is you must lose things, feel the future dissolve in a moment like salt in a weakened broth. What you held … Continue reading →

Posted in family and friends, inspiring words and images | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

The heartaching terribleness of being nearly 14

Posted on 17 July 2009 by

A clear midwinter’s evening, a church hall somewhere in the suburbs. Forty or fifty 7 to 14-year-olds sit in a circle on the floor. A piece of masking tape on the wooden floor marks the start of the audience, a … Continue reading →

Posted in observations, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Busy elsewhere

Posted on 14 July 2009 by

Love and hugs to everyone who’s checked in here lately and found not much happening. Truth is, there’s not much happening, and there’s tons happening. Taking a break from blogging for July, I think; too much else on the go. … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Same way, new way

Posted on 3 July 2009 by

I’ve been procrastinating about it for ages. Not that I don’t get in the water – I do. Each time, kicking inwardly against the numbers. One length, ten lengths, forty lengths, sixty. Every time, the same sense of not-reaching-it; you … Continue reading →

Posted in awareness | Tagged , | 1 Comment