Begorrathon2015: Rush Hour Waltz

“The Magic Roundabout”

 

Rush Hour Waltz

 

Blackbirds wheel

In evening skies

above Kindale’s

signalized

roundabout,

 

mimicking

warmed metal

motors idling

in similar circles

below.

 

Are they

as confused

about how

to get home

as we are?

 

Frances Macaulay Forde © 2003

@FrancesMForde  #FrancesMacForde  #Beggorathon2015    #Ireland  #TheMagicRoundabout

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Begorathon2015: War Poem

 

Baghdad Ballet                                                                     

(March, 2003)

A young boy sits, on his mother’s shoulders,

smile-excited in the sunshine,  taking part in a parade.

He proudly thrusts the finger-sign of peace.

 

Nice to see in an Iraqi child – family

bombardered by ‘Shock and Awe’ the night before,

forgiving.

 

But the visual is blitzed as it flashes onscreen,

by the plastic Sten gun held aloft,

background-brandished in the child’s other hand.

 

Do you think the young lad plays

in secret tunnels, knows where to hide,

where doubles walk to keep the myth alive,

 

the magic tricks to keep awake illusions

of a still-controlled-city.

Streetlights burn in defiance of invaders largesse.

Traffic moves through the night

while bright glows explode in distant thunder

 

and shower shrapnel as

we sit on green comfy sofas,

presumed warm and safe inside,

miles away watching the performance

 

on TV young Liam wears red and white,

holds his defiant hurly high – a warrior

enjoying the sunshine day parade

– a protest for peace in Shannon.

 

 Frances Macaulay Forde © 2003

 

 @FrancesMForde  #FrancesMacForde  #Begorathon2015  #Ireland  #WarPoems  #Poems

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Begorrathon: Vaccuming

St Mary’s Road, Midleton, Cork. 2003

Vaccuming

 

With every pull toward your body

you expect obedience.

Expect each tiny micron of dirt

to be sucked up and away.

Look at the attention you give stairs…

 

How do I become like stairs?

 

Frances Macaulay Forde © 2003

 

@FrancesMForde   #FrancesMacForde   #Beggorthon:2015   #SketchingInIreland  #IrishPoems  #PoemsWrittenInIreland  #LovePoems   #Romance

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Clare Road Repairs

 

Clare road repairs

 

On a hill, Celtic crosses and angels wings

gather.  We approve the view, weed and go.

 

Suddenly, unattended in a quiet Irish lane,

Temporary traffic lights blink red.

 

Surrounded by green fields, we’re forced

to queue like country others, and reflect.

 

Frances Macaulay Forde © 2003

 

@FrancesMForde  #FrancesMacForde  #Beggorathon2015  #IrishPoems  #SketchingInIreland 

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Meet Sarah Garnett from The Footpath Library

Wonderful work!

WordMothers - for women writers & women’s writing

Interview by Nicole Melanson ~

Sarah Garnett is Founder and Managing Director of The Footpath Library, a truly unique library that gives away books to homeless people in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth. The Footpath Library gives away 2500 books a month via mobile services and libraries it installs and stocks in homeless shelters and refuges.

Sarah is an Australia Day Ambassador, a 2013 NSW Australian of the Year Local Hero finalist, and a recipient of the 2013 Courage to Care Local Hero Award. She was also the subject of an episode of Channel 9’s program Random Acts of Kindness. Prior to her role as MD of The Footpath Library, Sarah had a successful career as a corporate communications and documentary producer.

The Footpath Library

Facebook: /TheFootpathLibrary

Twitter: @footpathlib

HOW DID YOU GET STARTED?

I was a video producer for 20 years before a chance meeting took me in another…

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Wordless Wednesday : Old but Beautiful

Truly…

Retirement and beyond

Old building in Malta

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Meet Patricia Wood

I’m inspired…

WordMothers - for women writers & women’s writing

Interview by Nicole Melanson ~

Patricia Wood was born in Seattle, Washington and currently lives in Honolulu, Hawaii. Her debut novel, Lottery, was short-listed for the 2008 Orange Prize for fiction in the UK. She has contributed a short story in the anthology collection Sunset Inn: Tales of the North Shore, which benefits Hawaii Literacy, and her latest novel, Cupidity, was recently released in December.

While Patricia has always considered herself a writer, she has had various careers from being a medical technologist in the US Army, to giving horseback riding lessons, to teaching Science to high-risk students. She has helped crew sailboats across the Pacific, done shark research at Midway Atoll, and competed professionally in horse shows with her jumper Airborne. While working on her PhD at the University of Hawaii, she earned her certificate in Disability Studies.

Patricia now lives on a sailboat with…

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Furnishings

CastleRedmond Court, Midleton, Co Cork. 2003.

 

Furnishings

 

listening to shower

water rhythms

 

then silence as you

shave sans mirror

 

wafts of Gillette

down the stairs

 

zing straight to

my wanton womb

 

I mouth blues

chopping garlic

 

you appear saying

‘For some reason

 

I am suddenly starving!’

  

Frances Macaulay Forde © 2003

@FrancesMForde  #FrancesMacForde  #LovePoems  #Romance  #SketchingInIreland  #Beggorathon2015

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Re-Blog: Louise Allan

“How Liz Gilbert won me over” by Louise Allan.

 

@FrancesMForde  #FrancesMacForde  #LouiseAllan  #LizGilbert  #PerthInternatWritFest

 

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10 Composition Tips with Award-Winning Photographer Steve McCurry

Excellent advice for photographers or visual artists in any genre!

TwistedSifter

The COOPH (the Cooperative of Photography) explains 10 photo composition tips with the help of Steve McCurry’s incredible photographs. McCurry is an award-winning editorial photographer best known for his photograph, “Afghan Girl” (Sharbat Gula), which originally appeared on the June 1985 cover of National Geographic magazine when she was approximately 12 years old.

Be sure to watch the informative video above. I’ve also written out the 10 tips below so you can check back on this post for reference. For more, visit COOPH and Steve McCurry’s official site.

#1 Rule of Thirds
Place points of interest on intersections

Photograph by Steve McCurry

#2 Leading Lines
Use natural lines to lead the eye into the picture

Photograph by Steve McCurry

#3 Diagonals
Diagonal lines create great movement

Photograph by Steve McCurry

#4 Framing
Use natural frames like windows and doors

Photograph by Steve McCurry

#5 Figure to Ground
Find a…

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