Fox on a Boat

In the Victoria Embankment Gardens I set out today with a specific goal in mind - to make some sketches and write some poetry. The sun lured me out of my cave  bedroom, and, as is often the case when it is sunny and I am feeling creative, I headed to Southbank. There, I found myself in the Poetry Library. It is a wonderful place - quiet, with few people, and full of books. One night, in the throes of great emotional turmoil (that I don't fully recall), the children's corner, hidden from sight, was a calming poetic haven. It is a little gem of London. Today, I discovered Ted Kooser's Poetry Manual , full of interesting thoughts and quotes. When I go back, I shall have to finish reading it. One thought which I felt rang very true, and particularly enjoyed, was his idea of how a poem changes you, changes your view of the world. If you were to read a poem with a line about the summer evening sunlight, streaming through a willow tree as a nearby musician played sad son...

Hello again, everyone. I am back from my unexpected French travels, having arrived this week. So far, so good - I managed to catch up to the first two episodes of Sherlock, which I had been waiting for with great impatience. I didn't dislike them, but I feel a little strange about them. There was a certain aspect to them in the first two series that is missing in the third one. I did enjoy the episodes, though - with Benedict Cumberbatch's face present in nearly every scene, I'll never be truly dissatisfied.. My favourite line so far probably has to be "He's clueing for looks". Today was a very successful Sunday. I made brunch for the family, then set off to Canary Wharf to check out the ice sculptures created for the London Ice Sculpting Festival . After a (real Belgian) hot chocolate, it was time for my mother and me to try some sculpting of our own.. Our session went by quickly - we had less than twenty minutes, but we were very h...

Battersea Power Station  This weekend was London Open House , and one of the buildings open to the public was Battersea Power Station. Love it or hate it, it is an iconic building. Pink Floyd used it as cover art, and recently it appeared in a Sherlock episode.. I am using these two examples because they interest me personally, but of course it featured in other films - Hitchcock's Sabotage , for example.  BPS, as I like to affectionately call it, is seemingly a magnet for all types of artists. Personally, I painted it for one of my graded art pieces in college. It pops up in the painting of an artist friend of mine.   Michael Collins takes some exciting pictures of it.. There is something for everyone. Being busy all day yesterday, I only had today left to go. As I got ready this morning, I was told there was a five hour queue - I nearly gave up on the idea. Finally I did set off, and it all turned out pretty well. The queue went through Battersea Park, so we...