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Playing with pictures

February 21, 2013

I have been very busy so far this year. I have a new camera and I have treated myself to Lightroom 4 to edit the pics. I'm still learning how to use it but here are the first two pics that I've played with.

I'm also working on an eBook celebrating 50 years of Doctor Who in haiku. My working title for it is Fifty, Eleven, Seventeen (50 years, 11 Doctors and 17 syllables). There will be at least one haiku for each story with some other haiku for returning monsters, companions and a narrative of the history of the show. I hope I'll get it done in time for the 50th anniversary this November.

Thank you for taking the time to read and I hope you'll enjoy the pics.

Forth Bridges

Purple Wheel

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It’s been a while

November 3, 2012

It’s been a while since I’ve posted here so I thought I’d check in and let you know what I’ve been up to.

I’ve been working on a series of zombie shorts that will hopefully be appearing over advent. I have written a prologue to it which can be found here I hope you will enjoy it. I have a few ideas for it but I may just see how it progresses.

I have also written a blog to commemorate the anniversary of the very first regeneration in Doctor Who which can be found here. As 2013 is the 50th anniversary of Doctor Who, I am hoping to complete a celebration of Doctor Who in haiku. Watch this space for more details as they happen…

Health wise, I am currently battling a cold and yesterday had my braces serviced.

Poetry wise, I’ve not done much recently but you can find some stuff here

Thank you for reading, please feel free to leave a comment and I hope you’re having a fun day.

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Brace yourself

May 28, 2012

I thought I’d do an update as I have progressed onto the next stage of recovery after my operation last year to remove a bone growth in my jaw. The operation was a success and there is a great improvement in my jaw movement. But my jaw hadn’t returned to its former position.

The next stage is for me to have braces fitted to my teeth which will keep them in a consistent place while preparations are made for the surgery on the other side of my jaw to balance my bite out. The moulds taken of my teeth suggest that if the positioning is done correctly, everything should proceed well.

Last Friday (25th May 2012) I had the braces fitted. I’ll be in them for about 2 1/2 years (during which I shall have the second surgery). I am still getting used to them and I need to improve my ability to put the wax over any protruding bits of steel. I still am unable to raise my right eyebrow so if you need a Roger Moore tribute act, you know who to call.

Brace yourself…

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A mouth of metal
The steel shines in the sunshine
As I bare my teeth

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A Christmas Poem

December 22, 2011

I have been a little short of blogging time recently (busiest time of year at work). But I wanted to do something special for Christmas and this is what I have done.

I hope you will like it and watch this space for more possible exciting news regarding an illustrated version of the poem.

I hope you will have a wonderful Christmas and thank you so much for reading my words.

Thank you for reading

Have a wonderful Christmas

And a great New Year

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A Stupendous Saturday

November 7, 2011

I am sometimes lost in this sandstone.

My figure was once beautiful,

My name whispered by mortal men.

Now my name is foreign to their lips.

They stumble over it

As if it were made of stone.

As I if I were some old lover from a past,

Replaced by another. Remembered

In vague memories,

But with nothing there worth dwelling on. 

I hope you had a nice weekend. I certainly did, with most of the fun being on Saturday.

What happened on Saturday? I imagine you asking.

I’m so glad you asked. On Saturday, I went into Glasgow and was part of an Instagram meetup. For those of you who don’t know what instagram is, let me tell you. It is an iPhone camera app. It’s kind of like twitter with pics instead of tweets but also like facebook with the likes and comments.

If I am clever and remember, I will put a link HERE. (Unfortunately, you need to view the instagram pics through the app but check out flickr and twitter

The Event was organised by @igersscotland (aka @nannyf) other members of our merry band were; @ladrumbot @lupsv @mmosoca @r2builder @shazzerini  @socobloke @socobird @t_baws and pics were tagged #scotwalk1

They all took amazing pics and unbelievably for Scotland in November, there were blue skies and sunshine….and no rain.

We met up in George Square. As it was the first time we had met, it was wise to look out for people playing with their iPhones.

Their prayers fall upon deaf ears.

There are no gods left and

Even if there were, we would not help.

I have been blind now for many years,

The smog from the city burns my eyes,

But I doubt much has changed.

They that wander below go no where.

They replaced us for another god

And now he feels our pain.

He is second to a god

That gives them their heart’s desire.

How long before he is carved

Into this sandstone,

Like a gargoyle?

We walked along George Street and up to the gardens where the maternity hospital once stood. The sun continued to shine and we went onwards, past the High Kirk of Glasgow and up to the Necropolis. There we wandered round the graves as the sun set.

My figure is scratched away

Layer by layer until I cannot feel a thing.

But hell hath no fury than

A woman scorned,

Or forgotten. So I wait

With those who hide against the sandstone,

Where human eyes glaze over us,

As we forgotten gods hold their arches

And their proud buildings tall.

Then we headed back into Glasgow, where I had to bid farewell.

Why?

I had to return to Falkirk and then onto Linlithgow so that I could hear my friend perform at an open mic event that was part of the Linlithgow Book Festival.

I enjoyed the performances of the other speakers but I really enjoyed the poem that you my have noticed in this post. The poem is called Aphrodite and my friend’s name is Karyn Dougan (@missnovocaine on twitter, next time you’re there, please tell her how amazing her poem is). Karyn also recited a short story, but that will be for another time…

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Getting organised

October 21, 2011

So, this is the end of my first week of trying to organise my blogosphere. He is the story so far.

On Mondays (not necessarily every Monday), I shall post Dave the Zombie or other zombie stuff (zombiehaiku may appear randomly so keep a look out)

I will also be continuing on my Doctor Who quest (to watch/listen to all the episodes in order) and I will post other Doctor Who related stuff from time to time. I think I shall post these on Tuesdays.

Wednesdays will be a day for poems and pixels, as the name suggests, a poem and a picture.

I have also stated a new blog called Simon’s Stanzas which will be where my haikus and short stories may find a home. I have posted (and lost track of) so many haiku on twitter that I thought that I should create a home for them, especially after some previous haiku had been reintroduced to me. I would also like to have some guest spots on here for the awesome writers/poets that I have encountered on twitter. If these people will agree to be guests, I shall post on Thursdays.

Which leaves Fridays, where I will post here at Simon’s (a)musing. I may use this to ramble on about something or just an update of my week or if I have any guests at the above blogs, I shall mention it here.

I also have a neglected baseball blog that time has prevented me from expanding but I may add the occasional baseball book review or some such.

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And the winner is…

October 3, 2011

As you may know, I was running a competition to win a copy of Alan Bissett’s new books “Pack Men”. I have just drawn the name out of the hat.

Congratulations to Jenny. The book will be winging its way to you sometime this week.

Many thanks to all who entered.

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