Fopped Off

Once upon a time, Bristol, like many other towns, had a number of small, independent record shops. The good folk who worked in those shops knew their stuff, probably knew your stuff too, would comment on your purchases and recommend their top new releases that you really should be listening to, stock extra supplies of locally gigging artists and stick hand-written reviews on CD covers, that sort of thing. They had carpet stuck together with gaffer tape and wrote lists on boards with dry markers. They sometimes even sold our second hand CDs. Familiar old friends were these little shops.

One sunny day, New, Handsome Record Shop came strolling into town and, wearing the badge of independence and putting turntables on its downstairs counter, seduced the local crowd. With its lollipop motif ('suck it and see') and super-bargain stocks, the smaller shops found they couldn't compete and without a warehouse of cheap tat to pimp in customers they all went out of business.

Handsome record shop loved being flavour of the month, though flavour got the better of it as its eyes turned out to be bigger than its tummy. Somehow it thought that buying an extra helping of record store pudding it would get the wings it needed to topple the Big Guys off their perch. Instead, it ate so much record store pudding it couldn't get off the ground and went extinct.

Now all we have are the Big Guys.


How to avoid this happening again:

1. Shop local and actually discover the name of the person behind the counter, who has been there for years and is training up their son/daughter to take over the business. They know where you live. Mr Tesco doesn't (unless you have a loyalty card).

2. Don't use loyalty cards - insist that shops sell things at the price they can afford in the first place rather than making false reimbursement at the checkout. And anyway, credit you get on a loyalty card should really be going to the farmers growing things organically (for example) so if you do use a loyalty card don't complain organic produce costs so much.

3. Don't be seduced into thinking that just because something's cheap it's worth having. Quantity never did equal quality.

4. Seek out the shops where carpet is held together with gaffer tape, because surely they've seen some local action and that counts for a lot. What they have to offer is integrity, and they don't need polished marble flooring to convince you.

and finally,

5. Remember that when New Handsome can't be bothered no more you're the only one that loses.


As you can tell, I'm quite annoyed about bloody Fopp being so stupid and greedy and putting themselves and everyone else in the area out of business. I no longer have a cute local to browse for today's soundtrack. This is just wrong.

And yes, I did doctor that picture. Grrr.


{Today's soundtrack: Nina Simone - Little Girl Blue}

Watch This Space

A rough building site, shadows curling across the rubble and along unfinished walls, and a time designated to sit and watch this space. There isn't even any paint to dry–this time we're watching something take shape from very, very deep down inside.


It's both inside me and inside this wall. You can't see it with your normal eyes, at least, I can't. I have to keep closing those normal eyes so I can see this coming together more clearly, so it helps to sit here in the physical space for a while and let the pictures come on into view.



This is a big commission–the amazing thing I've mentioned before but couldn't elaborate on too much. It is a commission to fill this wall space with images, and while I have a fairly strong idea what kind of images, the specifics are just now being worked out. While that content develops inside it's captivating to see the elegance and grace of these shadows on the wall, the triptych of wire shapes and the soft coherence of a simple colour palette already at work. These things speak a little about the essence of my images to come. There is a peace already here while beauty emerges from the ashes of a derelict place with plans for hope and a bright future. It's good to watch because it confirms that something goes ahead preparing the way, and it's right to watch because the nature of this preparation helps encourage the vision on its journey.



This is an active building site so full safety gear is required. It feels somehow poetic that I should be there in armour, protecting myself from harm while encouraging the ideas out.

(Follow this link to related NEWS article, August 2008.)


{Today's soundtrack: Coldcut - Sound Mirrors}

[ Homeland ]

to be continued once the CD of images reappears... hmph.

[ interlude ]

Apologies for the delay since last posting. The Homeland story will continue soon once the absorbing events of this week are navigated. These include development of that *amazing* job announced way back on May26th (details coming soon), and my Great Aunt's funeral, which was yesterday.

The funeral wasn't really so sad - Auntie Ros was a very old lady who was probably blessed in passing on, and the few family that were gathered had a special and happy time together remembering her. She lived overlooking Dartmoor, and in memory of Ros today's images are only in my head, collected about twenty years ago - the view from her sitting room across the moor to Hay Tor, the bright blue of her ducks' eggs (which I'd never seen before), and tiny, yappy chihuahuas running around chintzy sofas and a muddy stableyard. A lady of the outside places, bless her and her looking out and up to the hills.


"I lift my eyes up to the hills - where does my help come from?"

Psalm 121



{Today's soundtrack: Mahler's Fifth Symphony}

Homeland : episode ii

One by one, they ascend.

Consider this, that as many shapes and colours as there are lifting into the sky, there are people walking the same piece of land as you with a hope they long to let fly. All our hopes are different, but perhaps they all ascend in the same direction, and perhaps the wind carries them all together whichever way it blows. Some hopes are big and captivate many, some small and almost unnoticed.





Although our hopes are unique, we're all in it together, carried not in our own strength but by something else beyond us. What is it? And doesn't it make you want to stop looking at your feet?



These are your people. This is your tribe, your clan, and doesn't it look brilliant?


{Today's soundtrack: Koop - Absolute Space from Sons of Koop}

Homeland : episode i

So, we found ourselves getting up very, very early one morning, climbing a hill in Bristol thick with mist and dew, exploring through some strange shapes and unfamiliar noises. The sun was low and warm, but the mist was strong and wouldn't leave, so it was we were shrouded as we waited to see what would happen.


A funny land of billowing fabric started churning, like the sea, then these massive balloons grew up out of the grass, swelling with a proud promise of fairy tale adventures.



The sun bounced highlights off wet balloon silk while the mist still veiled the bigger picture, and we waited and watched to see what would happen next. We stood together expectant but disorientated, a fairy tale promise always having been something defined by not being real.


"Passengers in!" called our pilot.

Imagination and reality were struggling to equal out while we waited for the view to clear, obscured as it was by the balloons all around. One by one they started ascending, one by one...


{Today's soundtrack: Lamb - Soft Mistake from Fear of Fours}

Homeland : introduction

Something has been stirring in the soul. (See 6th July: Homeland.)

When I moved back home to Bristol two years ago I went up on my bike to the Balloon Fiesta, very early one morning, to see over one hundred balloons taking off in thin, clear morning air. I thought there would be only a handful of people watching, but was surprised to discover hundreds of folk settled with breakfast barbeques as the Lighthouse Family (Gonna Get Lifted!) crooned the balloons on their way. It was cheesy but brilliant. After London's strictness and claustrophobia, I was moved to think of my home turf birthing these gentle adventurers, all seeking their radical view of the land with no agenda that makes earthly sense. Not only this, but I was also moved by the desire of those gathered to be captivated and lifted to another place.

It's true, I thought, there really are people who care about living in hope rather than existing in ambition, and this is where I live.

Two years following this, our story begins...

Second Fruit

Yes ma'am, no more excuses, ropy phone kit is drop-kicked for a proper camera at long last–feels like having a new handbag–and I got me tomato number 2. It feels very butch to get excited about technical quality, but I must say, look at the definition on these little yummies.




More later - there's loads to tell you.


{This morning's soundtrack: local radio (?!) }

First Fruit

[ poor phone shot 02 : at the limits of tolerating ropy kit ]


Joyous! The harvesting of one delicious cherry tomato, my very first from a tree that is bearing so much fruit it has asked to be repotted three–yes, three–times, by trying to smash its way out of various homes. I give it so much love and water it every night before bedtime, and have even tied its current pot together with string such is the rebellion and over-excitement of this gorgeous creature.

It's very poetic you know, like life itself.

I tried growing cherry tomatoes a few years ago, but knew squat about plantlife and didn't appreciate how greedy these little ones are. By September that year the harvest totaled just one, sole fruit. Served up with scrambled egg and good bread, it was well worth the wait but over way too soon.

This time things are different–if this little beauty is anything to go by then guys, we're in for some tomato heaven for the next few weeks... I absolutely love seeing this tree laden with fruit, this new tree that has grown from a mini speck of a seed that I planted with my own bare hands! It's great!

Everyone! Grow stuff!!


{Today's carnival soundtrack: Gilles Peterson's latest release}

Circles of Confusion : ii

The circles have been back, really bright and busy this morning. Revisit May's archive for the original posts on this. It was great to emerge in and out of these thoughts while coming to consciousness at 7am.

By the way - (May 22) - does anyone know where the swifts have gone?


{Today's soundtrack: Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - Howl}

Being Here Now

Enough shocking image quality (last post) for the sake of advancing my gadget competence–that's never been a good reason to exhibit photographs. Sorry.

Back to here and now, there are some interesting grown up things going on at the moment with work, but secretly this can be exhausting at times–let's do a little dance and show everyone our tummies instead.

Anyone else know the feeling? Please say yes...




{Today's soundtrack: Ray LaMontagne - Till The Sun Turns Black}

{PS. I know he's appeared before but it's for good reason. If you want to find out why, I would recommend getting along to one of Ray's UK tour dates. If you need beauty in your life you'll find it here.}

Passion Flower

This is great - I've just worked out how to upload posts from my phone! This little flower was blooming in solitude on my balcony last night so I figured it had to be shared.

Did you know that this plant is not called 'passion' meaning love, but the passion of Christ? There is symbolism attached to each shape in the flower, right down to the 72 'radial filaments' in the flower representing the crown of thorns. There's a description here in the last section about its name (although two apostles seem to have been forgotten in order to give meaning to 10 petals).

And I was wrong to tell a friend the other day that it's different from passion fruit. This plant does fruit, but it's not the fruit you would normally eat.

Yummy.


{Today's soundtrack: Beth Orton - Daybreaker}