Resolutions and Flexibility

I recently resolved to cut back on buying books (and dvds and t-shirts) because I am currently unemployed. To help myself remember this resolution, I wrote a list:
Don't buy anything more from amazon.co.uk, even though they have the best tv on dvd, at great prices, or from amazon.com, even tho it's great for US tv on dvd, and US books that aren't available in Aus;
Don't buy anything more from fishpond.com.au, boomerangbooks.com.au or booktopia.com.au, even though they're good, and Australian/New Zealand owned;
Don't buy anything more from threadless.com, even though they have fab designs, not even if they have a $10 all t-shirts sale.

and I knew without needing to list it that I should stay away from actual bookshops as well as online ones - frustrating given that I've just moved to a suburb that puts me conveniently close to Shearer's on Norton (where I bought some nice books in their sale the other day), and Gleebooks (always a delight to visit any of their stores - new, secondhand, children's, etc), and not that far from Better Read Than Dead.

so today I was in the city, having gone to a meeting at the Centre for Volunteering, and saw that Dymocks was having a sale. I don't often get to the big Dymocks in the city, and even tho the company supported the lifting of Parallel Importation Restrictions (which I was against) and used their Booklover email list to try and persuade customers that ending PIR would be a good thing (which I disapproved of, and emailed them about), they do have a great range of fiction & non-fiction, and are at least an Australian-owned chain bookstore, even if no longer the independent bookshop that Dymocks once was.
(I was pleased to see that they had several copies of F2M by Hazel Edwards and Ryan Kennedy - it's by local Aus/NZ authors, it's YA, and it's about gender identity and transitioning - a first for local YA - and it's a good read. hopefully they'll sell the copies!)

I decided to check the sale out - not committing to buying anything (I have on occasion actually made it out of a book sale without buying anything - not often, but it has happened), just having a look. the stickered sale prices were good - lots of recent fiction at $5, some at $10, and $20 for big hardcovers - so I picked up a few titles - a script book of Little Britain reduced from $39.99 to $5!, John Barrowman's autobiography in hc for $7.50 - and passed over others that were more than $10 and/or not something I'd be sure to re-read.

then a staff member made a charming announcement over the PA "shoppers, if you are in the store right now, consider yourself lucky, we are making you an offer you can't refused. all books and other items on sale tables are now reduced by 50% from the sticker price, so pick up a basket and go crazy, treat yourself, buy gifts for loved ones without costing a fortune. we want to sell all the stock so we don't have to pack it up!"

I did indeed pick up a basket and go crazy, as did many other shoppers. the nice announcer repeated his spiel a few times, changing "so we don't have to pack it up" to "we're doing this as a thank you to everyone who's shopped with us during the year" and adding "consider yourself lucky, it's like a Lotto win!".

so, I decided to be flexible and accommodate this amazing lucky opportunity to help the staff avoid packing up all the stock again, and suspend my "no buy" resolution for an hour or so. and just look at what I got!:

(I'm using pb to mean paperback, not picture book; hc is hard cover; tpb is trade paperback; gn is graphic novel)

Laurell K Hamilton - Blood Noir (hc) $3.75
John Barrowman - Anything Goes (hc) $3.75
Archimede Fusillo - Last of the Braves (pb) $5
Matt Lucas & David Walliams - Little Britain: Scripts and Stuff from Season 3 (hc) $2.50
Justina Robson - Going Under (trade pb) $3.75 (book 3 of Quantum Gravity; I have book 1, now looking for book 2)
Pamela Freeman - Full Circle (tpb) $2 (it's book 3 of the Castings Trilogy, so I'll want to buy or borrow the first two before I read it)
Elizabeth Honey & Heike Brandt - To the Boy in Berlin (pb) $3.75
ed.s James Gunn, Marleen S Barr, Matthew Candelaria - Reading Science Fiction (pb) $10
Kathy Reichs - Devil Bones (pb) $2.50
Brian Caswell - Cruisin' (pb) $2.50
Amanda Lohrey - Vertigo (pb) $1
Gabrielle Bell - Cecil and Jordan in New York stories (hc graphic novel) $7.50
Cristy C Road - Bad Habits (pb gn) $2
Dark Horse ed - My Space: Dark Horse Presents (pb gn) $2
Rehannon Pompey - Smashing Aunty Kathy's Car (pb) $1
Nicki Bloom - Tender (pb playtext) $1
Debra Adelaide - The Household Guide to Dying (pb) $2.50
Hunters & Collectors - Great Australian Albums 2: Human Frailty (dvd) $5
Powderfinger - Great Australian Albums 2: Odyssey Number Five (dvd) $5
Zach Braff - Garden State (dvd) $7.50
Alyssa Brugman - Girl Next Door (pb) $5
ed. Sherman Alexie - Tell the World (pb) $3.75
ed. Amy Goldwasser - Red (pb) $3.75
John Marsden - So Much To Tell You (pb playtext) $2.50
Simmone Howell - Everything Beautiful (pb) $3.75
David Walliams, read with Matt Lucas - The Boy in the Dress (audio cd) $7.50
James Manos, Jr/Jeff Lindsay - Dexter Season 2 (dvd) $10
Melissa Rosenberg/Stephenie Meyer - Twilight (dvd) $5 (now I can make my own Buffy/Edward mash-up!)
Sean Williams - The Dust Devils (pb) $3.75
Jane Godwin - Falling From Grace (pb) $3.75
Cathy Park Hong - Dance Dance Revolution (pb) $2.50
A. Koford - The Laugh-Out-Loud Cats Sell Out (hb gn) $2.50
Quentin Blake - You're Only Young Twice! (hb) $2.50

so I got 34 titles - books of poetry, prose fiction, criticism and plays, dvds of movies, tv series and docos, graphic novels and picture books, and an audio CD - all for $134.25!

and I'm obviously having a lucky book day, cos I just received an email from Text Publishing to say that I'm one of several new subscribers to their e-newsletter who has won a copy of a book published by them! yay!

I wish all who read this may have a lucky book day - lots of lucky book days - whether you're a writer, editor, publisher, bookseller or reader, may you find, buy, win, read, sell to a publisher or to a customer, contract, edit, or write - lots of wonderful books!!!

A profusion of purring furry persons

My dear Readers, I apologise for my long absence from these pages. A whirlwind of Events overtook me, in the form of a gradual return to employment (which culminated in being made redundant) and many, many Kittehs.

So many times I've thought of blogging about something I've read or seen, but instead have let the idea disappear into the flow of thoughts, events and actions that burbles along from day to day.



And if I did write about a piece of fiction, or an Exciting Event in real life, it would most likely be a status update on Facebook, where friends would often respond with comments and stories of their own - a gratifying, interesting and enjoyable interaction that so far isn't happening on this blog.

So, since November I have kitnapped first one kitten, then a second (both of whom are still with me - we are now family); unsuccessfully attempted to kitnap another sibling of those two; successfully taken in, succoured, and then rehomed another; then taken four at once, who are currently with me but whom I hope to find good homes for soon.


In between those kitnappings (very gentle, loving kitnaps, I assure you, resulting in the kittens receiving good food, shelter, necessary medicines, and lots of cuddles) I also trapped (less gently, but still humanely) a number of cats aged between one year and (I estimate) approximately five years old - plus a four-month-old who managed to trap herself when I was trying to capture a pregnant one-year-old.

The four-month-old and all but one of the adult cats have been desexed and returned to their home territory; the exception was a heavily pregnant female who was very distressed by being trapped (she managed to get out of the trap while I was trying to put newspaper in to make it more comfortable, and bit & scratched me ferociously, poor girl) - she I took to the pound, where the vet nurse reassured me that many of the strays they received are rehomed rather than being put down.


Most days (usually at night) I've been feeding the street cats and getting to know them quite well. They certainly recognise me, expect me to produce food whenever they see me, and wait outside my flat at night for me to come and feed them (despite my having trapped, desexed & released about half of them). So that's the story so far (leaving out the various cat-loving, cat-hating, and cat-ignorant neighbours I've met, the issues with my landlady, and the War on Fleas).

The major recurring characters are:

Sandy (loving, friendly, slightly crazy young street cat who has adopted me as her human), a light-brown and white short-haired female with cream swirls in the shape of tie-died circles or parentheses;

Fern, Charlie, Lotty and Blanche, Sandy's kittens;

Shelly (wary of humans, the weakest & least confident of her litter, but very protective of Dragon's kittens), a light-brown and white short-haired female with faint striping, and Sandy's sister;

Dragon (hostile to humans, willing to accept food but will hiss at every interaction), a long-haired strawberry blonde with very faint stripes - another of Sandy's sisters;

Treasure and Rosy, my adopted kittens, offspring of Dragon;
Leo and Rufus, Dragon's kittens, missing presumed dead;

Cheyenne (wary of humans, but not hostile), a pale apricot long-haired cat, another of Sandy's litter-mates;

Wee Rufus and Mini-Leo, killed by cars, offspring of Cheyenne;
Joey, kitnapped & rehomed, and Petal, yet to be caught, both offspring of Cheyenne;

Tabitha (known as Tabby, semi-friendly but somewhat averse to being stroked), a medium-haired black & grey tabby/swirly cat, with clear circles/parentheses - also one of Sandy's sisters;

Tiger, Shadow, Tabitha, offspring of Tabby/Tabitha Sr;

Smoky (quite friendly but averse to being stroked), a long-haired grey & cream tabby/swirly cat with faint circles/parentheses - another of Sandy's sisters;

Spark, Ember, (maybe also Mischka), offspring of Smoky;

William (very friendly, high-ranking tom, loves being stroked, but a bit tetchy since being desexed), a big handsome dark orange & cream swirly/tabby cat with clear circles/parentheses, and mini angel wings on his shoulder blades - probably father of Dragon's first litter of four, Cheyenne's first litter of four, and Sandy's son Charlie;

Lenny (sweet-natured, wary of humans, woebegone-looking, low-ranking tom), short-legged stocky build, very wide face, black & grey tabby/swirls with white chest and paws - probable father of Smoky's kitten Spark, and of New Cat Selene's son New Kitten Sylvester.

Thomas (uninterested in humans), black & grey tabby/swirly tom with clear circle/parentheses - very probably father of Tabby's kittens, possible sibling of Lenny

Guy (extremely wary of humans and impossible to trap) ginger-tabby and white, tall elegant tom - father of Lotty and Blanche

New Cat Selene (very friendly to me) tall, elegant, narrow-faced grey-tabby & white female - clean & healthy, possibly a dumped pet

New Kitten Sylvester (very friendly & trusting with me, not keen on other kittens, quite trusting of adult cats, most of whom are likely to hiss at or hit him), silver-grey/black & white tabby/swirly baby tom - clean & healthy, possibly a dumped pet, son of Selene

Mischka (very poorly when found, malnourished & not eating, happy to be held) black/grey swirly cat, may be one of Smoky's kittens, or Selene's

Pitfalls for young readers

"Look at that view!"
"Yes, it's very picture-skew, isn't it?"
"What?!"

I don't know if this conversation ever happened when I was a child, but it could easily have. As with many kids who learn a lot of words through reading them rather than hearing them, I had a great vocabulary at a young age, but was often a bit off with the pronunciation.

I knew that "queue" was pronounced 'kyoo' (now how's that for unlikely pronunciation?), and was familiar with the word 'picture', so when I encountered the word 'picturesque' I heard it in my head as 'pikshaskyoo', and worked out that it meant 'pretty as a picture'.

And a tall, impressive, good-looking woman was 'statyooskyoo', meaning 'impressive like a statue'. If ever I want to write the word, I have to look 'statuesque' up in the dictionary to be sure of how to spell it - knowing that it's supposed to be pronounced 'statyooesk' doesn't tell me whether there are two 'e's in the middle (one for 'statue' and one for 'esque') or one, or none.

I don't have a clear memory of when I could first read words, but I do have a vivid memory (as well as remembering it as a story told in the family) of sitting in the drawing room with my mother (who was reading), my father (who was reading), and my older sister (who was reading), and being very frustrated because at not quite four I couldn't read yet. Fortunately I did learn to read soon after, first in English (Ant and Bee and Kind Dog) and then some French (Pierre Lapin - which is as far as I ever got).

I also remember being so absorbed in reading that I didn't hear Mum calling me. She thought I was deliberately ignoring her, but I really was deaf to the world - something that still happens now when I'm absorbed in reading, which is apparent to me when I come out of a book and hear that my iTunes has moved on through more than half an hour of a playlist without my hearing a thing.

These thoughts were inspired by reading this post, http://stilllifewithcat.blogspot.com/2009/07/help.html, which for some reason I can't link to.

Weeds: Real and Metaphorical

Poetry Project #2

Weeds: Real and Metaphorical: poems celebrating the discarded and disregarded, the ugly and unloved



three low-lying hills
mark the boundary of a realm;
a dark cold lake of unknowable depth and beaten-metal surface
is ahead of me;
on an island in this lake,
an ancient tower suggests a history of wizards.
There are no dragons in the sky. Yet

Tim Roberts [part 1 of 'Daydreams and Detour Signs'. for part 2 see Tim's 'Notes' on Facebook]



A weed is a weed
when it's in the wrong place.
At home? It's nature.

Margaret Morgan



old tree--
what have you done to deserve
flowers like these?

Myron Lysenko



lost from the last relocation
boxes of flotsam
my first divorce papers;
goodbye letter from the musician
(his others, long ago, burned)
both my plait and my mother's
hers not so blonde, but longer

forgotten, moving, love relics

Kate Dellar-Evans [from Belated Unpacking]



a marriage break-up
she flirts
he flirts
they're tied up
in sexual knots
not learned
in scouts
or guides

wife watches them
and weeps
silent tears

at what was
destined to be

Carolyn Cordon




my old guitar
in the wardrobe
humming tunes
to itself

Steve Evans



my Dhaka friend
picks uncultivated plants
no farming
herbs greens fruit

unmarketable
outside
the number economy
loved eaten

a chaos of plants
each one
adding to the fractal
quantum of food

pluck them
talk to them
nourish them
leave them be

Susan Hawthorne



Who is to say whether weed or willows
Who is to claim wasted tears or pillows
Who is the one whose work it became
To decide what is worthless
Who is to blame?

Jackie Hosking



The weeds grow here
The weeds grow there
Those dratted plants
grow everywhere.

I pull them up
I rip them out.
I turn around
and more will sprout

I mow them once
I mow them twice.
And back they come.
Not once ---- but thrice!!!

Trevor Hampel


Spare a thought for the hand-written letter
rare as those hen's teeth
shy as a red setter.
A relic of those olden times thought better
by those beneath
the hand-knitted sweater

Belinda Webster



I'd look at the runny blue letters
curved and flowing like waves
and I wouldn't be in the classroom
anymore ---
I'd be down at the beach.
One day it came
to an end.
Inkwells went out.
Biros came in.

John Malone [from 'Inkwells']



In the 50s
in the playground
in the gravel
we found little green weeds
and underneath their clover-like leaves
were little fruit
and even tinier seeds.
We called them "Plummies"
and ate them with gusto
(or relish if we preferred)

Judy Dally



Edited by John Malone, with Deborah Green assisting.

We hope many people read this and add comments so the poets can receive some well deserved feedback.

No copyright infringement is intended with the use of these images; the photograph of the lake is by Slug; the painting of the old guitar is by Geoff Benzing.

The poems are each copyright by the writer.

but who is Branwell? Voldemort?

A friend of mine posted this pic of a Harry Potter movie poster on her Facebook page recently. Looking at the composition, I was reminded of a group portrait with a similar gap between two of the three persons portrayed.



In the portrait of Anne, Emily and Charlotte Bronte, there is a column of light between Emily and Charlotte where the artist Branwell Bronte painted himself out.
In the poster for Order of the Phoenix, there is a column of dark cloud between in between Ron and Hermione.

So who was replaced by the dark cloud?
Voldemort, who really longed to be part of a group of cool nerds like Ron, Hermione and Harry?
Cedric, come back as a non-glittery ghost?
Or JK Rowling herself, the author of the book, and thus the artist behind this 'portrait'?

PS. my sister Rebecca suggests the dark cloud may represent the tension between Ron and Hermione - interesting thought...

11 Ways of Looking at a Magpie

The Mag-Pie Poetry Project: a collaborative celebration of all things 'magpie', edited by John Malone and written by John and fellow writers on Facebook, in haiku or haiku-like verse.
These poems were collected over a period of only two days and appear in roughly the order in which they were received:

11 Ways of Looking at a Magpie

low-flying magpie
dips wings, changes direction;
watching child applauds.

deborah green


punch-drunk magpie: pounding his reflection

john malone


black and white;
surely brown and grey?
half there in yellow grass

abigail dunleavy


heat wave ---
a magpie looks up
at the closed tap

myron lysenko


sticky-beak --
a magpie flies away
with the cat's lunch

maya lyubenova


persistent begging
of baby magpie. Gaping
mouth worm-filled. Silence

trevor hampel


cracking dawn
black white flash of
magpie beak

susan hawthorne


evening worship
in the silence between chants
magpie carolling

lyn reeves


after the shouting
two magpies in the garden
keeping their distance

rob scott


The 'Pies are out of the finals.
He sits and scratches at
the Magpie on his chest
but it won't fly off.

andrew burke


spring morn; cycling
through smoggy traffic, skirting parks
with trees --- and magpies

amelia walker


thank you to John Malone for the concept and for editing; John thanks all the contributors for what was for him a first and an exciting project.

if u liked it then u shoulda put a ring on it

having just seen the football team from William McKinley High give a truly wondrous interpretation of the original choreography for Beyoncé's Single Ladies, I'm moved to list my favourite videos for/about the song:

the bestest, for comedy, drama & dance skillz:
the scene from Glee on the football field

the second bestest, for great chorey & dance skillz:
Penny and Charlie dancing a futuristic vampire routine choreographed by Tiana Joubert (sorry about the fuzzy video clip)

third best for chorey (Open category), but first in the Toddler category:
Cory, in Baby Dancing

fourth best for chorey & style (I'm not a fan of high heels), although best for singing: the original, Ms Beyoncé Knowles

fifth, not such a great dancer, but full points for courage & sense of humour: Joe Jonas

and an honourable mention for Justin Timberlake as a backing dancer for Beyoncé in her parody of her own video

please note: these are my personal preferences; I don't claim to be an expert in judging dance, choreography or video skills, just an enthusiastic amateur who did jazz ballet as a kid :-)

so no flaming, please!

but please feel free to respond with your own thoughts and feelings about this important question:
Which is *your* favourite clip for Single Ladies?