Cheltenham Poetry Festival 2012 (by sarah)

Last week saw the Cheltenham Poetry Festival.

I started off by going to see Domestic Cherry - so funny. It was Michael Scott and Hilda Sheechan in the personas of a Swidon Chav and a hyper kitch Housewife.

The I headed out to dinner with one of the stewards and then onto Slak Bar to see Mab Jones and her Welsh Rare Bits - these guys are amazing! Laughter until tears stream down your face. Unfortunatly I had to leave this event early due to illness.

The next morning saw me up bright and early and sitting in The Muffin Man sipping tea awaiting to share my poetry. I was part of the Poetry Cafe Showcase.

I then stayed on to watch The Stroud Pamphlet Poets.

Then I headed over to Waterstones to watch various poets there

Leeum did like a 20 minute show from memory that had the audience reeling (or in one case wanting to give him a hug).

The next day I had a workshop to run - the Monster Writing Game - it was supposed to be at The Brewery but the weather was just too bad so it was moved to Waterstones.

We stuck around for a Jean to take part in Joy-Amy Wigman's childrens workshop - also on monster 🙂

We stayed on for the Childrens Poetry showcase with Francis Axon - Jeany loves her poetry which she had heard at Christmas in the Brewery. The other poet unfortunatly couldn't attend so I ended up performing some of my childrens poems.

The next day saw me back out early for more childrens workshops - this time it was The Poetry Bees and Their Story Tree. My poor Dad had to walk through Cheltenham with a giant papier mache purple tree - only happens to people who know me 🙂

I then got ready for Occupy Poetry - the last night poetry party bonanza.

Alaric was once more forced to listen to poetry - but this time he had company 🙂

I took arty shots

Then the comedy started with Julie Psycho Jones and Josh plus the performance Poet Ash.

It was a brilliant but exhusting week and I wish I'd gotten to see more.

Monster Creation (by sarah)

I have made a short film about the creation of the Muse Monsters from my Monster Writing Game - they turn out to have a complex belief system - some of which is portrayed in this video. Also I like the effect I got with a bamboo flute I picked up a few years ago.

Video is up under Creative Commons Attribution which means as long as you say where you got the material from you can use it in your own creations 🙂

Excitement (by sarah)

For the first time since I had Jean really, I am starting to be excited about my future and to see something like a career forming. I am not forcing anything, I am not planning or going down approved routes - I am just going with the flow.

I am creating... well STUFF, art, craft, writing and finding people want me to share in the form of workshops more and more. I am getting more short stories and things published and winning awards. I am using my art to communicate science concepts and helping instill a love of learning.

I am so excited that today I actually got some material for my mum to help me make a new skirt for the Poetry Festival which is currently happening in Cheltenham - I am reading on Friday at the Muffin Man and then I am going to be running two lots of childrens' workshops.

I have also very nearly gotten the contacts of all my close school friends - there are still some wholes but it is getting there 🙂

I feel I have achieved more since January than I have done in the last six years. I am finishing off projects and starting ones I'd wanted to do. Our debts are whittling away nicely and I have my purple carpet and a purple butterfly on the outside of the house. Alaric, David and my Dad have worked so hard on the house - it is starting to be lovely 🙂

I fear slightly writing this incase it all suddenly tilts again but it is all feeling just so right. I still feel sad about science and my health but I can do science later on and the health stuff I have things in place to deal with now - no I am not going to be an explorer ever again, trapsing up mountians but I have the memories of when I did and you know there is alot of fantastic stuff I can still see - even if it is from the lense of someone elses camera.

Life is good at last.

Havering Youth Circuit Choir (by sarah)

Back when I was about 13 I joined a choir/singing group based at Upminster Methodist church - this would have been in the mid 90's I suppose. We primarily did religous musicals like Witness. I just find myself wondering where everybody is these days and what they have been up too.

I am really rubbish with names though so only remember that there was like John, Clare (not sure how it was spelt), Martin and so on. I even went on camps and things with these guys - me and my school posse were basically the youngest members. I bumped into the Clare whilst at Uni at a pub but she was still that older cool person so didn't really establish contact with her and that itself is now an age ago.

Basically I'm posting this because I tried googling and didn't find anything but now there is something so if someone else tries hopefully they will find this post 🙂

Not The Oxford Literary Festival 2012 (by sarah)

On March 30th I headed to Oxford to read some of my up coming collection Political Converse. Earlier that day I died my hair what was supposed to be purple - it came out not but that didn't matter. I had a weekend then week then month of readings and workshops, it was time to get rid of the four inch roots plus I was nervous and this sort of thing helps me cope and actually go and perform.

Then there was the issue that due to scare mongering there was no fuel to be had so we had which set up a panic but was quickly solved and we were on our way.

We arrived in plenty of time and then spent an hour trying to find somewhere to park - we didn't use the park and ride as our experience with it have not been good and as I'm still struggling with walking we need to be somewhere relatively near the event.

But we arrived in time to catch the end of an interesting session on self publishing and small indie presses. Including a talk from Dennis Hamley who I remembered from my school days! Though this didn't stop me saying that if he ever met my dad and drink was involved - they would never stop discussing the war (as in WWII).

We then had some fantastic music.

And no I don't remember anyones names 🙁 And that goes for the poets too!

This guy had been involved in the UnCut protests and got himself arrested for being in a shop and reading poetry which is menacing behaviour - if I understood it correctly.

This guy is an ex-solider and has PTSD - his poetry was powerful and I also found out that Westminster is trying to make it illegal to help the homeless to get rid of the problem before the Olympics which makes me sick. I shall be looking into that one a bit more - the guy is involved with various charities.

Dan Holloway the organiser and runner of Eight Cuts Gallery.

I'd bought a posse:

And then sang my Shit Creek I was very nervous and struggled to get my voice out - Alaric said it was just quiet at the beginning but I still did it 🙂 I then read my poetry.

More Poets:

The whole thing was run in the loveliest book shop in the world (that I have found so far). The Albion Beatnik in Oxford - it is almost what me and Alaric wanted to ran our Salaric Emporium (books, gifts, tea, think), back in my uni days.

The night ended on a high with much laughter and deep thought. People left to put poetry to the public - stringing it on fences and what nots. We left to grab a veggie kebab and drive back to Gloucestershire.

p.s. my set was similar but not the same as I read at the Art Tournament No Hoax on the Sunday which Alaric videoed.

Sound quality is naff sorry about that!