see nerd) log

Domestic Incidental

10 11 8

My kitties came back from the vet slightly lighter on Tuesday. Were they human, they'd be candidates for the original Sistine Chapel choir, should schoolboy myths be true.

After the first evening,

Dress Codes

9 11 8

I went along to the Dublin munch last night, and it was thoroughly sociable if a wee bit underattended.

My only potential problem is that it’s deeply connected with a club event, and that club

I've not found a place to belong. Ireland's as flawed as the UK for me; at least blighty has London's hurricane, all of an artform isn’t much the same.

I wanted France, when I was spotty. I think

Insecure Social

8 11 8

I need to develop some social life here, I think, to gain me a little bit of an anchor, to reduce the alien loneliness I feel towards this alien city. I’m going along to language classes, but whilst

Other companies I won’t use again

4 11 8

There are some other companies I will never use again.

MFI are just incompetent. That they still survive, presuming they do, has to be because there aren’t enough IKEA stores around. I once ordered

Companies I won’t use again: PC World

4 11 8

PC World, the near-monopoly UK computing superstore, have a policy of deliberately insulting customers who use certain banks. I use the Co-op in the UK. If I try and use my Co-op debit card at PC

Companies I won’t use again: Vodafone

4 11 8

I had a contract with Vodafone in the UK many years ago. I’d been paying it to standard terms, e.g. within 28 days of the bill being issued. I’d almost cancelled it, because I couldn’t afford it,

Europe: a chapbook

3 11 8

As part of my reading at Wurm im Apfel on December 17th, I’ve a chapbook coming out. I hope to offer copies for sale here. All the poems are on my site; I dislike artificial scarcity.

But there’s

Why are Word Processors crap?

2 11 8

Every few months, I get deeply annoyed with those software products that call themselves Word Processors. Not one of the damn things processes words. It’s so f***ing annoying. They just don’t seem

Wurm im Apfel

18 10 8

Myself and fellow fenland refugee lillibulero are organising small readings here in gloried Dublin. Actually, I’m hardly doing anything, but will bark in the shadow for cake.

We’ve chosen the name

more french

16 10 8

I went along to some evening classes in French over summer, and found by the end of the four months I’d lost confidence in my ability to use what I was learning. That’s no good; a language is there

more dutch

15 10 8

I’m restarting my Dutch evening classes, even though I’m unlikely to return to a Dutch speaking country. I’d completed a year and a little in Belgium before I left for the Republic. I don’t like

devon on hold

5 10 8

I’ve just posted devon garde’s final two videocasts. I want to see the reaction, if any, to the forthcoming album before I make more music. Without music, it’s a little difficult to make music

the perfect podcast episode

2 10 8

Go listen to Stephen Fry’s “Compliance Defiance”, his latest podgram. It’s an absolutely wonderful rant, the perfect Mr. Angry, the classic exploding English toff. The subject’s perfect, the

needing a social change

29 9 8

I’ve been happily living alone for decades, but now I find I want a woman about. It’s rather like spending decades growing flowers, and suddenly discovering the joy of concrete. Recent events have

still stockhausen

22 9 8

I’ve been listening across the electronic genres, mostly the popular stuff, to make sure I know what’s going on. As good as some of it is, and some is very good, none can touch Stockhausen’s

the four horsemen

20 9 8

Me and my friend lilly nipped out to see The Four Horsemen, performed by the dance group Volcano, in the Dublin fringe, last night.

For me, it was an interesting follow up to the Bergen electronic

electronic literature and new media

18 9 8

I've a mention in the draft ELECTRONIC LITERATURE AND NEW MEDIA authoring software page. Ignore me, go there to explore many other poets works.

bergen elit

18 9 8

Last weekend, there was an eliterature conference in Bergen, at which I presented some of my work. I got some positive reactions, which is always good.

I had intended to recite live, but I was

black loft

7 9 8

I've only been to one Dublin fringe event, an attempt to auction some art for a play, and then I only went along to meet a Hungarian who shares my reaction to the continent of Ireland.

I did my

exploring electronic music

7 9 8

Since I'm generating music, it makes immense sense to listen to what other people are up to. I gave up on non-classical music in about 1981, so I've a great deal of catching up to do.

I'm doing

flock state album

7 9 8

This website has seen heavy traffic growth over the last few months. This is down to three things:

(i) an annoying indexing engine that isn't labelling itself as an index engine; normally indexing

bergen laptop

7 9 8

I've been waiting for the right moment to get myself a new laptop for six months. Then I got an invite to perform at the Bergen eliterature conference, presenting the material I put on my poetry

sound eye 2008

7 7 8

I visited the Sound Eye Poetry Conference in Cork last weekend. It was good to hear some challenging poetry again, although I think I should have taken a couple of days off beforehand; I was too

kitties

1 7 8

Madam, my old lady cat, died in May.

A work colleague’s queen had given birth to a litter of five. Two survived.

I’m not sure my house will.

Living in Dublin

9 6 8

Bluntly, Dublin is far too British for me; I won't be staying.

There are differences to the UK. An obvious one is political; the main Irish parties openly don't stand for anything in particular,

down down

24 5 8

I’m feeling down.

It’s not because my cat died, although that doesn’t help.

It’s not because my new job isn’t working out, although that doesn’t help either.

I think it’s the country. Ireland’s

poetry in andere talen

8 4 8

I’ve often allowed phrases from my other languages to creep into my English poetry. Many poets do so. Now, though, I’ve written a poem in German, I’ve written one in Dutch.

Speakers of those

goodbye hello

3 3 8

The Belgian national symbol is perhaps the Manneken Pis, the fountain of the boy taking a pee. The boy’s attitude is roughly that of each Belgian community to the other, and, for that matter, most

essex

29 2 8

In the early 1990s, I took a contract with an Essex based company. They offered me a weekday place in the company B&B, which was convenient given the alternative was 3 hours a day commuting.

The B&

jazz and the prozac factory

22 2 8

Well, finally I've heard some jazz that doesn't sound like the background music in the Prozac factory. If I'd have heard this in my youth, and it was certainly available in my youth, my musical

deep in grrr mode

17 1 8

Excuse me; I'm deep in grrrr mode.

I went to my second Dutch language exam last night, having done quite badly in the first, on Monday. About half way through the exam, the teacher ermed, then

horrid coincidence

20 12 7

I’ve received another set of CDs from Stockhausen Verlag, which, not surprisingly, remains active despite the death of the great composer. I find I really am enjoying these recordings of his late

Stockhausen

7 12 7

I’ve just heard of the death of Stockhausen. This is very saddening news.

I was hoping to get to his 80th birthday concert series next year, having managed to attend a concert in last year’s

nowhere to park?

4 12 7

There is a chance I’ll be leaving Belgium for Switzerland next year, swapping one small country full of different tribes that keep arguing with each other for another small country full of different

change

11 11 7

I want to give this site a major overhaul.

I’ve tried packages such as Apple’s iLife. This blog, and the new ‘casts, are produced by iLife. It creates good looking results that fit neatly into a

for devon garde

27 10 7

Devon’s been in touch, complaining about my mixes, again. “You’ve got the copyright”, he scuffed, “but you ain’t done ‘em right”.

He’s got a point. So I’ve acquired some decent kit, & I’ll be

classic poetry aloud

21 10 7

I found an interesting podcast in iTunes: classic poetry aloud.

The guy who recites this English language poetry is clear & precise, and sounds the poetic effect very well. I'm not always convinced

recited poetry online

14 10 7

It’s an impressive recital can blast through my workplace. So here’s a nod to Geraldine Monk, who’s startling texture has twice broken me out of some arbeital reverie.

I’ve been hoovering Ubu’s