What a great way to celebrate Will's birthday

It's World Book Night tonight - what a great way to celebrate Will's birthday! Guess I'll have to read a few sonnets later to celebrate both

Happy Birthday Will

Happy Birthday to Will (Shakespeare) today. What a wealth of wonderful works! 'Much Ado About Nothing' is my favourite. What's yours?

Who could ask for anything more?

The May edition of Writing magazine, a glass of red wine and a packet of Tayto cheese and onion crisps! Sheer bliss. What more could a girl need on a Monday night?

World Poetry Day

Its a really important day today:
In order of importance it's:

1. Dad's birthday
2. the first day of spring
3. World Poetry Day

and the three are all tied up so closely together it's appropriate they share the same special day:

In honour of all three, a few lines from Robert Herrick -

'Fair daffodils, we weep to see
You haste away so soon;
As yet the early-rising sun
    Has not attain'd his noon.
                Stay, stay
        Until the hasting day
                Has run
        But to the evensong;
And, having pray'd together, we
        Will go with you along.
We have short time to stay, as you,
    We have as short a spring;
As quick a growth to meet decay,
    As you, or anything.
                We die
        As your hours do, and dry
                Away
        Like to the summer's rain;
Or as the pearls of morning's dew,
        Ne'er to be found again.

and William Wordsworth -

I wandered lonely as a cloud

That floats on high o'er vales and hills,

When all at once I saw a crowd,

A host, of golden daffodils;

Beside the lake, beneath the trees,

Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

Continuous as the stars that shine

And twinkle on the milky way,

They stretched in never-ending line

Along the margin of a bay:

Ten thousand saw I at a glance,

Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.

The waves beside them danced; but they

Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:

A poet could not but be gay,

In such a jocund company:

I gazed—and gazed—but little thought

What wealth the show to me had brought:

For oft, when on my couch I lie

In vacant or in pensive mood,

They flash upon that inward eye

Which is the bliss of solitude;

And then my heart with pleasure fills,

And dances with the daffodils.

Looking into the past

Great session at Coney Island yesterday (yes, that Coney Island, the location for the Oscar winning film 'The Shore' - its even more beautiful and breathtaking in real life).

Thanks to Maddie and local Coney shop keeper Michael Howland for providing us with a copy of the Down Recorder petty sessions from 1852 as inspiration. How much more interesting were newspapers then than today? And dare I say the style and skill of writing could put some modern day journalists to shame.

Looking forward to the next session when we're going to use an old letter as inspiration.

I havent stopped googling since I got home - so many ideas and one thread leads to another taking me in a new direction. Really enoyed the session and its got me back on track researching my family history and the story contained therein...

As always great company with Maddie, Mairi, Rhonda and Jo and it was great to make Mossie's acquaintance. I'm sure he will inspire a few stories over the coming months as he settles into his new home.

Illustrations Exhibition

Definitely worth checking out this exhibition at Belfast's Crescent Arts Centre - on until 18th March. Beautiful original illustrations for many of Julia Donaldson's books.  I loved the illustrations from The Owl and the Pussycat. Axel Scheffler's decorated envelopes must have been a delight to receive through the post!

World Book Day

So what are you reading on World Book Day? I'm reading Eden Close by Anita Shreve and Anne of Avonlea by LM Montgomery (on my iPod touch). Discussed Hemingway's The Sun also Rises (Fiesta) with the girls at the Chapter Club on Monday night and rescheduling the next book for The Tiny Tangerines - The Hare with the amber eyes by Edmund de Waal. All in all a busy week of books!