I walk with Squirrels!

I had a great week last week! I had my first week as poet in residence at University Centre, Milton Keynes This has given me a base to work from and somehow, I seem to get more done than when at home.

It's been a week of learning, attending workshops and catching up with people as well as gigs.  I continue to learn poems for the debut of "Poetry Jukebox" at Wenlock Poetry Festival  and this where the title of this post comes from. I'm getting up early to canal along the canal whilst trying to learn the thirty classic poems that form the basis of the show. This morning, I seemed to see a lot of squirrels and as I walked, read and recited, they seemed to acompany me from tree to tree.

I confess to feeling a wonderful sense of freedom at the moment. Perhaps it's the honeymoon feeling of goinf full time but this morning at 9am having walked for an hour and invigorated by the testostorone-laden verse of WE Henley's Invictus, I found an outward expression of the inner freedom. I went for a ride on a zip-wire in a children's playground. Yep! That's right! An eighteen-stone, 48 year-old man at 9am on a beautiful sunny day, when most sensible people are settling in top desks for the day, I rode on a zip wire! It wasn't too long and the gradient didn't seem that steep so I guessed the ride would be a piece of cake. And so it was. Stopping however was a different matter! It is amazing the momentum that can be built up in such a short ride and to be literally pulled up short had a jarring effect. I just about held on and continued my walk home with a smile on my face. 

I leave you with a little poem inspired by the week's news.

Keep writin' and recitin'

Mark

An unpopular opinion

I like David Cameron
I think he's a very nice guy.
He's makes a great Prime Minister
At least, the best that money can buy!

What a week!

I've had a great week which has given me a real feeling of making progress as a freelance poet so... :))  It included some fantastic news and ended with a big gig on a theatre stage meeting real celebrities.

I enjoyed taking part in Scribal Gathering at the Bull Hotel in Stony Stratford on Tuesday. Many thanks to the team and the host Richard Frost as well as Open Mic contributors. A nice set from new Stony Stratford Bard Danni Antagonist and ex-Bard Ian Freemantle made for a good evening and I was pleased to be the poetry headline act to partner Harry Pane's wonderful singer/songwriter set.

One of the things that a few poets have told me is that every gig is a showcase and an opportunity to be seen and I've heard a lot of the phrase "You never know...." as in you never know who may be there, watching; you never know what it might lead to etc. When I started doing open mics four years ago, I took as my motto the Woody Allen quote "80% of success is turning up" Well that all combined to give me some encouragement as I had two enquiries for paid work after the gig. One of which has been confirmed!

The other exciting news is that I have been appointed as poet in residence for University Centre, Milton Keynes. This gives me a base to work from in exchange for contact with students and partnership in some projects. I'm very grateful to UCMK for the opportunity. I voiced a narrative for a digital media student's animated poem last week and that was very cool. I hope we can put it on You tube when the project is finished.

The week was rounded off woth the finals of the Best of Bucks Talent Show at Waterside Theatre, Aylesbury. I was pleased to do well and entertain a crowd of several hundred people which is a rarity for poetry. I got to meet the host Bobby Davro and I had great comments form the panel of Pete Winkelmann, Joelle Taylor and Dave Lee Travis. DLT stunned me with the comment, "That wasn't poetry, that was pure magic" which WILL be on my website soon!  I was very pleased to do so well and nail my set in front of a large audience when my nerves were very stretched. Congratulations to the winner Becca Hoodless.

I've also made progress on  memorising poems for Poetry Jukebox so I'm very pleased with my work this week.

Best to you. Keep writin' and recitin'

Mark