Cold windy weather today after bright blue skies over Christmas. A time to take stock, tidy up a bit, or, if you are the dog, lie flat out on… read more →
We are fast approaching the shortest day. Thank goodness – or at least I do – for the distraction of Christmas and the gift of bright, cold weather in Kent… read more →
Here’s a famous poem by Anne Sexton. Her Kind explores with the hinterland between sanity and madness with a specifically female take. – and it’s a popular one for… read more →
I was going to blog on the new book by my dear friend and colleague Niall Hickey of Maynooth in Ireland. But I’ve had vivid dreams recently, of people… read more →
I dislike the closing-in of the evenings at this time of year. The way dusk comes earlier and earlier each day feels oppressive, as if someone’s lowering a lid over… read more →
After yesterday, I’ve been thinking about community – something about civilisation and the wild – support and restrictions … That’s made me think about taking the bus and Adrian Mitchell’s… read more →
I have been dilatory at blogging recently – plenty to reflect on but …. And here come excuses, but I have just read Anthony Wilson’s excellent blog on blogging… read more →
Here’s a snap of the Canterbury Festival Poet of the Year event at St Gregory’s Centre for Music. It’s a newly converted church and looks stunning but has all kinds… read more →
I’m a bit of a zumba bore but I can only counter that my whole life goes better if I regularly attend classes where we move to a mixture of… read more →
The seasons have been vacillating between summer and autumn. Early yesterday the garden was festooned with huge, dew-laden cobwebs but the afternoon was so hot, Canterbury was full of people… read more →