Toxic

So, I finally wrote a new piece that I don't hate and that I managed to finish. This is nothing short of a miracle, so be gentle.

It is about something specific this time, but once again the reader's perception matters more than the writer's. The words should really speak for themselves.

Toxic

The sordid air clings to everything; all-pervading

Swirling, curling, twirling crushed diamond blocks

Streams of red satin and conscience

Laughter and burning eyes

 

We are the life and soul

And the ghost in the corner smiles benevolently

She knows that soon we will touch the sun

And as wings are flicked into a pile of ash,

We fly on

 

With terms of endearment and echoes of youth

One dormant heart now erupts

Tides are turning, and we are suddenly scented

Tainted

 

Eject an apology from a rear window,

And leave for the lamplight-sunrise, far away

Wander across the endless dust to a destination revisited

And finally find, prostrate upon wilting petals,

We linger on

And I Never Understood Really...

No pictures today; I want these words to be concentrated on.

The piece of poetry I am about to present to you is one of my favourite things that I've written. I wrote it a few months ago, I guess, and in a really odd way. I simply put pen to paper and wrote exactly what came out of my mind. This is why I have absolutely no bollocking clue what it's about. But that's good, 'cause it means you can decide for yourselves.

And I never understood really

what time and elegance would bring,

and with it, the soft surrender of darkness

 

My eyes are not yet accustomed to the dim light around them

and so shapes move in colours that don’t try,

and the cool, cut-glass sun streams music onto unsuspecting faces,

upturned and glorious

 

To strive for that day, when man is free –

and woman alike – will come to naught

without the silent tick-tock of the wandering clock,

that sleeps so swiftly

when the neon brights and shining lights are gone

 

The bubbles in the rose-water burst like thoughts and dreams,

and so much else that is fragile and so easily lost,

while machines turn the tide of man

and the warmth of hearts

 

Breathe, for now is when you smile and wonder why

 

The revolutions of every wheel that slaps the backs of innocents

cannot compare to the revolution brewing in the hearts

and minds

and teacups of so many

 

May we one day explode our ugliness,

may we one day throw caution to the wind,

and play with the flames we create

 

May one day the soft beating of the drums warm our souls,

that we make take flight and scratch the stars

 

In their difficult way they gaze their star-gaze, until

with a flick and a kick they spiral away to dance with the gods

In Search Of Posterity

Well, I thought I might as well share one of my reasons for even having a blog (albeit one that I am the sole reader of); this is a little scrap of writing I did in about January. I was in Scotland and out on a walk with my dog, and came across a scene of intense beauty of some kind or another. I evidently felt moved to write the following:

The problem is that not only do I want to do it - live it, feel it, breathe it - I want to capture it; record it. It’s not enough just to have experienced it; you want to be able to hold on to the moment, share it and keep it. Not easy when your camera’s broken, your pen’s decidedly unreliable, your phone has no signal and the only conscious mind in sight is that of your dog, whom the profundity of the time and place seems to be lost on.

Related to this in terms of posterity is my One Million Masterpiece square:

The OMM's a great project that brings together artists from all over the world in the name of world records and charity. It's a wonderful thing to be involved in, and I have come to be really quite proud of my square. You can see a replay of me painting it on my OMM profile here - recommended for hidden messages!

My square is now a little out of date, in terms of what is on it and what is not. For example, June 26th 2007 was not "the first day of the rest of my life", as it turned out, and currently one of the people in the 'photograph' is threatening me for money. Also, my girlfriend does not feature (as she was not my girlfriend at the time). It is therefore not an accurate portrayal of my current state of affairs, but holds a place in my heart nonetheless.

I would like to encourage anyone who might read this to head on over to the One Million Masterpiece and get involved - whether for yourself or in search of altruism...*ahem*doesn't exist*ahem*

Pride & Poetry

'Twas Pride at the weekend (no longer am I a Pride virgin!) and although it was only my best friend and I that were available to go, I had a lot of fun and many pictures were taken, including the one to the right. I have no idea who the arm belongs to, but credit goes to them for waving that flag so well.

Not much in the way of wordiness today, just a wee scrap of poetry-ish-ness that I think complements the picture quite well.

How can you know what I am when I am so lost in time and stars?

We are never far from meaning in our daydreams

We bring the effervescent light of sound; so hard to see

Blinking, and brushing away whirling colours

Photoshopping Goodness

More pictures than words today. I've been spending a lot of time on a new digital painting of the Greek goddess, Athena (in the hopes of doing a series of female Olympians - Artemis will be next I feel). It's been taking the absolute piss to do; rather detailed. I will be posting it to deviantART when it's finished, but up until then I wanted to just post it as a WIP here.

The notes around it are just to myself - reminding me what I want. All credit to the stock artist whose work I used as a reference.

So anyway, I got very bored of Athena after a while (as I'm sure you can imagine), and started messing around on Photoshop, trying to make photographs look vintage, which I like doing. I ended up making a collage-y-type-thing of pictures that worked well being vintagified. That's right, vintagified. It's a word.

Au revoir.