all my friends have blogs

When i started blogging, almost a year ago now, I didn't really know anyone who had a blog. The whole idea seemed kind of self indulgent and only appealed to people who were totally full of it. I started emerald eyes with the idea of getting into the practice of writing. I have to say, sometimes it has been successful and sometimes i more or less forget about its existence. These days I don't spend that much time in front of my computer, so my posts are few and far between! haha. My other blog cicusLA has been a fantastic way to journal my trip around the world!

Since I began my lonely journey into blogdom, I have slowly begun to find out that my friends are starting to blog too. Now all my friends have blogs, its fantastic!

of course, i have posted about LC's wonderful blog let me tell you all about it

Now meet:

The lovely Mel and her year a'blog documenting her year abroad, various world travels, her life and things that she loves. She is awfully clever, and has good taste!

Mary and her contribution to the literary world saving ink and paper. If you have ever read Mary's zines you are sure to like this, in fact, if you have ever spent any time with mary you will probably like it. Even if you don't have the slightest idea who mary is, you will most likely be swept away by her whimsical and witty take on the world. read pop culture, fashion, life, art and cats.

MALIA has recently begun let me live in your city which delves into the wonderful world of art she has discovered while traveling. We went to art school together a few years ago, so she has a really good grasp on modern as well as contemporary art. She has just spent a few months in the US of A and is now making her way through europe.

last but not least is the lovely Lola! I'm not going to post a link cos her blog is of the intimate and personal variety and i haven't asked permission. It is beautiful and pretty and delightful to read.

Yay. keep bloggin' girls!!!

Seasons

Summer air reminds me of all the seasons of your love,

Sitting in my room at 3 oclock in the afternoon, still in my pj's. I'm listening to passion pit and I just suddenly became overcome with that feeling of knowing that things aren't going to be like this forever. I have always believed in that idea of your life running in seasons. A season for love, a season for reclusiveness, for being there for your friends and for being there for yourself. Nothing last forever but sometimes its easy to forget that when you're in the middle of something. So, just now, sitting in my room listening to this music that makes up the soundtrack to London, i realised that this too shall pass. It makes me sad because what i have right now is so wonderful, i love my friends, my job (well, most of the time), my house. I guess the best thing about knowing that something isn't forever is that you make sure you make the most of it, commit it to memory, remember this harmonious feeling knowing that your life is pretty brilliant.

Write what you know

Tonight Sasha and I started a creative writing course down brick lane. I have always thought of writing as a practice which is part of the reason why i keep this blog. Unfortunately this i seem to get pretty distracted by life and end up forgetting to post here as often as i would like to, and more often than not, when i do post it seems to be way less writing based and more pretty pictures. As one of the other pupils said tonight, i hope this course will be a literary kick up the arse.

I have decided to post what i wrote tonight in class. Its not genius, its not booker prize winning and i am pretty sure it has some shocking grammar. but, never the less, it is writing!

Exercise one: Automatic Writing

for this one we just had to write for 5 mins, no stopping.

Some of my friends back home have started calling each other by "coffee" names.

"oh Anya, you're such a flat white" suggesting that her character is somehow flat and lacking.

"Anya, why do you have to be such a flat white all the time, you should be more like charlie, she's a Latte"

"haha, charlie's no latte, she's more of a long black"

Sometimes this name calling corresponds to peoples orders. In the same way that people look like their pets.

"that lady just ordered a flat white and boy is her character fitting"

I dont know what i would be if you named me. I guess something annoying like a double soy cap, frustrating to make at times but oh so delicious. people always think twice about soy drinkers.

Exercise two: Thinking differently about authenticating details

For this one we spend a minute with our eyes closed describing the room we were in. then we had to open our eyes and write a description of the room without using any of the words we had previously thought of.

This space is lit and filled with bodies, everyone one foot on the ground, one foot over the knee. Cars echo from outside, we are cut off from the outside world but it still exists. light drapes down upon us from above. we can't smell the books piled endlessly on the shelves. Maybe if i picked on up i could feel the fresh pages splintering from their spines for the first time.

Exercise three: Moving outside ourselves

we had to go out on to brick lane and describe what we saw, felt, smelt, heard and tasted with particular reference to a friend we knew quite well. As iff we were telling them the things they would be interested in. I picked Alex cos she recently sent me the most amazing comic about our beloved Debbie!

Dear Alex

I can imagine being here back in 77. damp spring night with the cool air blowing up my skirt. The dark corners and uneven brickwork keep me on guard. My Grandmothers voice "London's not a safe place, just remember about jack the ripper". I promise you he wasn't the worst.

Debbie's up in front of me. She's all black and white with a fag hanging out of her mouth. The smoke lingers for a second and then drifts away with the night air. Camera shutters click. She's up against the backdrop of the graff. Some street gangs trying to prove they're somethin'.

Alex, i know you'd see it. This back alley place breeds punk sensibilities. You can feel the history and the tension- like razor wire along the top of the buildings. There isn't anyone here who doesn't have a story, who hasn't come to london to be a part of something.

For homework we have to take this and turn it around, so that its Alex telling me about Brick lane. See How she would see it and what she would say to relay it back to me. Its going to be interesting!

Beach House

Dear Victoria, I didn't fully understand how amazing you were until i saw you down at the beach. You are my new girl crush. I wish my hair was as pretty as yours. Love, Adele

when i was a kid...

Storm

images from the hailstorm last week in melbourne.

Spring

Spring is finally here!

O thou with dewy locks, who lookest down

Thro' the clear windows of the morning, turn

Thine angel eyes upon our western isle,

Which in full choir hails thy approach, O Spring!

I decided we should all have a lovely picnic. Come to Victoria Park and we can all sit in the sunshine and feel the warmth on our skin. and maybe even have an easter egg hunt. It will be beautiful. Easter Friday, the 2nd of April at 1.30 see you there!