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Doomed Youth
Nov. 11th, 2012 11:29 pmIt's Remembrance Sunday today.
Sean Bean reads Anthem for Doomed Youth by Wilfred Owen. I've read this poem a zillion times but this reading gave me a new appreciation for and of it.
This is part of a series of short films featuring actors reading poetry from the World War One period. In the same video, Gemma Arterton reads a poem by Wilfred Owen too, and Sophie Okonedo reads one of Rupert Brooke's.
Sean Bean reads Anthem for Doomed Youth by Wilfred Owen. I've read this poem a zillion times but this reading gave me a new appreciation for and of it.
This is part of a series of short films featuring actors reading poetry from the World War One period. In the same video, Gemma Arterton reads a poem by Wilfred Owen too, and Sophie Okonedo reads one of Rupert Brooke's.
Tags:
Today, I was sorry to hear that the activist, politician, actor, writer, musician, inspiration, and badass Russell Means has died.
Some videos I enjoyed:
- The beauty of pollination. Exquisite. And did you know that bats are beautiful and take their kids to work? I did not.
- Flight 1549 3D Reconstruction, Hudson River Ditching Jan 15, 2009. My dad (an aviation engineer) used to call airline pilots 'glorified bus drivers.' He thought that this one earned his pay. ;)
- "Thank you, hater." Isabel Fay's response to internet trolls. Glorious.
Sliding doors 1974
May. 18th, 2012 01:08 amOne fine day in 1974, when I was three or four, my mom and grandmother went into Dublin to do a couple of errands. My brother and sister and I were in the car's backseat, along for the spin. My mother did the first errand, going to the solicitor's office, and then couldn't remember what the second errand was. So she didn't go to Talbot Street to see the tailor like she was supposed to. Instead, she turned the car for home, and by chance and by seconds saved us all from dying or being seriously injured in the bombings like three hundred other people that day.
We drove down the street parallel to Talbot Street, and a sobbing woman ran out in front of our car. My mother missed hitting her by inches. But only when we got home to find my dad pacing the driveway did we find out what had happened.
It's the anniversary of the Dublin and Monaghan bombings today. So I'm remembering all the people affected by the bombings and the whole sad history of the Troubles, including my relatives who weren't so lucky on other days. Mostly I'm feeling gratitude for the peace process and, not least, my mom's imperfect memory.
We drove down the street parallel to Talbot Street, and a sobbing woman ran out in front of our car. My mother missed hitting her by inches. But only when we got home to find my dad pacing the driveway did we find out what had happened.
It's the anniversary of the Dublin and Monaghan bombings today. So I'm remembering all the people affected by the bombings and the whole sad history of the Troubles, including my relatives who weren't so lucky on other days. Mostly I'm feeling gratitude for the peace process and, not least, my mom's imperfect memory.
Oh the rising of the sun...
Dec. 25th, 2011 12:35 amJust a quick line to wish you all a happy Hanukkah, a happy Yule, a merry Christmas, happy holidays, and a serene end to the year. And the people going through rough times right now, I'm keeping you in my thoughts and prayers.
♥
♥
Coffee-brewing RSI
Sep. 19th, 2011 09:21 pmMy family and I held a coffee morning to raise funds for the hospice that provided nurses to look after my dad while he was dying. Thanks to the generosity of the people who showed up, we raised well over a thousand euro. :)
Mushroom bake
May. 26th, 2011 02:58 pmhalf cup almonds
quarter cup sunflower oil
quarter cup tamari or soy sauce
quarter cup water
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
3 cloves garlic, peeled
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried thyme
250g mushrooms
1 onion, peeled
Preheat the oven to 350F (175C).
Lightly oil a baking dish.
Slice the onions and mushrooms. It's easiest to do this in a food processor with a slicing blade. Tip them into the baking dish.
Change the slicing blade for a chopping blade. Process the almonds until finely chopped.
Add the oil, tamari, water, vinegar, garlic, and herbs to the almonds and process again.
Pour the sauce over the vegetables and bake the dish for thirty minutes.
Serves four as a side dish.
quarter cup sunflower oil
quarter cup tamari or soy sauce
quarter cup water
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
3 cloves garlic, peeled
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried thyme
250g mushrooms
1 onion, peeled
Preheat the oven to 350F (175C).
Lightly oil a baking dish.
Slice the onions and mushrooms. It's easiest to do this in a food processor with a slicing blade. Tip them into the baking dish.
Change the slicing blade for a chopping blade. Process the almonds until finely chopped.
Add the oil, tamari, water, vinegar, garlic, and herbs to the almonds and process again.
Pour the sauce over the vegetables and bake the dish for thirty minutes.
Serves four as a side dish.
Banana pancakes
May. 26th, 2011 02:46 pm1 cup flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 banana, peeled
quarter cup soy milk
1 tbsp sugar, optional
handful of strawberries or other fruit to serve
maple, agave, or golden syrup to serve
oil for frying
Put the flour, baking powder, banana, soy milk, and sugar in a blender and mix until smooth.
Heat a frying pan and drizzle it with sunflower oil.
When the oil is hot, pour half a cup of batter onto the pan for each pancake. It's quite a thick batter so it's possible to cook two or three pancakes at a time.
When the pancakes are bubbly and glossy on top, flip them over and brown them on the other side.
Serve with syrup and fruit.
Makes four to six pancakes.
2 tsp baking powder
1 banana, peeled
quarter cup soy milk
1 tbsp sugar, optional
handful of strawberries or other fruit to serve
maple, agave, or golden syrup to serve
oil for frying
Put the flour, baking powder, banana, soy milk, and sugar in a blender and mix until smooth.
Heat a frying pan and drizzle it with sunflower oil.
When the oil is hot, pour half a cup of batter onto the pan for each pancake. It's quite a thick batter so it's possible to cook two or three pancakes at a time.
When the pancakes are bubbly and glossy on top, flip them over and brown them on the other side.
Serve with syrup and fruit.
Makes four to six pancakes.
Kermit soup
May. 17th, 2011 01:53 pm1 tablespoon sunflower oil
4 large leeks
4 large potatoes
4 stalks asparagus
2 litres (8 cups) vegetable stock
a good grinding of black pepper and a pinch of salt
1 carton plain soy yoghurt or a cup of soymilk (optional)
Trim the root ends and any dead leaves from the leeks, and cut the woody ends off the asparagus. Peel the potatoes.
Rinse all the vegetables, and then either slice them thickly or run them through the large grating plate of the food processor.
Warm the oil in a soup pot and add the vegetables, sauteeing them over a medium heat for a few minutes, stirring often, until the leeks soften.
Pour in the stock and turn up the heat.
As soon as the soup boils, turn down the heat and leave it to simmer for ten or fifteen minutes until the potatoes are tender.
Ladle the soup into a blender and puree the soup until very smooth, being very careful with the steam, and then pour the soup back into the pot. Or puree the soup with an immersion blender, but I think a regular blender works better.
Add the pepper, salt, and yoghurt or milk, if using. Add extra water if the soup's too thick. Simmer a minute or two more, and serve.
Notes:
- Slicing or grating the potatoes too finely will make them stick to the pot.
- Don't use white asparagus. White asparagus needs peeling which is a drag and it doesn't taste quite as good.
- It is possible to make this soup without oil; simply put the prepared vegetables in a pot with the water and proceed as per recipe. The finished soup isn't quite as richly flavoured but it is still terrific.
This soup makes six to eight bowls and came out so well that everyone, even the people who dislike vegetables, had second helpings. I named it in honour of the enormous bucket of frogspawn that Liam and I rehomed from the garden pond to the forest pool today.
4 large leeks
4 large potatoes
4 stalks asparagus
2 litres (8 cups) vegetable stock
a good grinding of black pepper and a pinch of salt
1 carton plain soy yoghurt or a cup of soymilk (optional)
Trim the root ends and any dead leaves from the leeks, and cut the woody ends off the asparagus. Peel the potatoes.
Rinse all the vegetables, and then either slice them thickly or run them through the large grating plate of the food processor.
Warm the oil in a soup pot and add the vegetables, sauteeing them over a medium heat for a few minutes, stirring often, until the leeks soften.
Pour in the stock and turn up the heat.
As soon as the soup boils, turn down the heat and leave it to simmer for ten or fifteen minutes until the potatoes are tender.
Ladle the soup into a blender and puree the soup until very smooth, being very careful with the steam, and then pour the soup back into the pot. Or puree the soup with an immersion blender, but I think a regular blender works better.
Add the pepper, salt, and yoghurt or milk, if using. Add extra water if the soup's too thick. Simmer a minute or two more, and serve.
Notes:
- Slicing or grating the potatoes too finely will make them stick to the pot.
- Don't use white asparagus. White asparagus needs peeling which is a drag and it doesn't taste quite as good.
- It is possible to make this soup without oil; simply put the prepared vegetables in a pot with the water and proceed as per recipe. The finished soup isn't quite as richly flavoured but it is still terrific.
This soup makes six to eight bowls and came out so well that everyone, even the people who dislike vegetables, had second helpings. I named it in honour of the enormous bucket of frogspawn that Liam and I rehomed from the garden pond to the forest pool today.
A poem for international women's day
Mar. 8th, 2011 01:28 amMedicine Woman
Medicine Woman
holds tools for healing in her magic basket.
Medicine Woman
dances in the moonlight and sings her prayers.
Medicine Woman knows herbs and signs, seasons and stars.
Medicine Woman is old - is young
is in between maiden and mother, mother and crone.
She is the part in each of us that knows deeply.
That sees clearly. That listens between words.
She moves between worlds.
Medicine Woman cannot be domesticated, at all. ever.
Even when we don't recognize her,
She is there. Always. Calling.
She has butterflies in her hair.
She has on red cowboy boots.
She can be found at the movies
with teenage girls on Saturday night.
She may get a tattoo of the Guadualupe
on her bicep in downtown San Franciso.
Or rollerskate through Central Park at 7 am.
She may teach workshops on tantra
or accounting or raw food or revolution.
She definitely runs with wolves and wolfey women.
She is fierce about many many things.
She is compassionate about, well, almost everything.
She plays hard. She takes action.
She tree sits and marches and prays.
She may paint glitter on her toe nails
and let her armpit hair grow, and her mustache too.
She is not one way, we cannot say,
oh yes, that is how she is.
Because she is the changing one.
She is the place within us that wants it all.
And wants to give it all up. And live simply.
She swims naked in the ocean.
She rides a motorcycle up the coast.
She paints, she writes, she dances, she dreams, she runs businesses.
She is medicine woman.
She heals the unexpressed in us.
She asks the question -
Who are you not being?
© Shiloh Sophia McCloud 2007
Medicine Woman
holds tools for healing in her magic basket.
Medicine Woman
dances in the moonlight and sings her prayers.
Medicine Woman knows herbs and signs, seasons and stars.
Medicine Woman is old - is young
is in between maiden and mother, mother and crone.
She is the part in each of us that knows deeply.
That sees clearly. That listens between words.
She moves between worlds.
Medicine Woman cannot be domesticated, at all. ever.
Even when we don't recognize her,
She is there. Always. Calling.
She has butterflies in her hair.
She has on red cowboy boots.
She can be found at the movies
with teenage girls on Saturday night.
She may get a tattoo of the Guadualupe
on her bicep in downtown San Franciso.
Or rollerskate through Central Park at 7 am.
She may teach workshops on tantra
or accounting or raw food or revolution.
She definitely runs with wolves and wolfey women.
She is fierce about many many things.
She is compassionate about, well, almost everything.
She plays hard. She takes action.
She tree sits and marches and prays.
She may paint glitter on her toe nails
and let her armpit hair grow, and her mustache too.
She is not one way, we cannot say,
oh yes, that is how she is.
Because she is the changing one.
She is the place within us that wants it all.
And wants to give it all up. And live simply.
She swims naked in the ocean.
She rides a motorcycle up the coast.
She paints, she writes, she dances, she dreams, she runs businesses.
She is medicine woman.
She heals the unexpressed in us.
She asks the question -
Who are you not being?
© Shiloh Sophia McCloud 2007
Well, that was mental.
I had forgotten how crazy live gigs can be. I was right in the middle, ten foot from the stage, and it was moshpit central, although security kept trying to break it up. But good luck to them even trying to get in there in the crush. I'd have thought that being in a heaving mass of sweaty strangers would be unpleasant, but I just threw myself in and elbowed anyone who was aggressive, and actually it was fun!
My Chemical Romance are fantastic live. They played it like they meant it. Frank Iero is incredibly rock and roll, even in a dodgy green cardigan; Ray Toro is amazing and note-perfect; Gerard was excellent; and Mikey was cool. They came out in Irish football shirts for the last song, which was well-meaning but kinda bizarre. The new drummer guy, whoever the hell he is, was fine; even the two support acts (LostAlone and The Blackout) didn't suck.
The music was such a rush. I danced and sang and screamed my guts out for four hours, and now my face hurts from smiling and I ache all over.
Brilliant.
I had forgotten how crazy live gigs can be. I was right in the middle, ten foot from the stage, and it was moshpit central, although security kept trying to break it up. But good luck to them even trying to get in there in the crush. I'd have thought that being in a heaving mass of sweaty strangers would be unpleasant, but I just threw myself in and elbowed anyone who was aggressive, and actually it was fun!
My Chemical Romance are fantastic live. They played it like they meant it. Frank Iero is incredibly rock and roll, even in a dodgy green cardigan; Ray Toro is amazing and note-perfect; Gerard was excellent; and Mikey was cool. They came out in Irish football shirts for the last song, which was well-meaning but kinda bizarre. The new drummer guy, whoever the hell he is, was fine; even the two support acts (LostAlone and The Blackout) didn't suck.
The music was such a rush. I danced and sang and screamed my guts out for four hours, and now my face hurts from smiling and I ache all over.
Brilliant.
Utterly fabulous
Feb. 13th, 2011 09:37 pmSome youtube links for your viewing and listening pleasure:
Greig's Hall of the Mountain King played by Apocalyptica. Come for the exquisite classical music, stay for the long-haired half-naked biker dudes playing itwhilst on speed. Unf! (Thanks to Rakshanda for the link.)
White & Nerdy featuring the Doctor! Oh, how I laughed. And while I'm on the subject, how about the Doctor Who theme played on Tesla Coils? (Thanks to Itsaslashything and Maychorian.)
Greig's Hall of the Mountain King played by Apocalyptica. Come for the exquisite classical music, stay for the long-haired half-naked biker dudes playing it
White & Nerdy featuring the Doctor! Oh, how I laughed. And while I'm on the subject, how about the Doctor Who theme played on Tesla Coils? (Thanks to Itsaslashything and Maychorian.)
I was cleaning up my hard drive and came across a text file of Seven Sunday Mother-Daughter Mornings by Hradzka (Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles). I just read it again. I can see why I saved it. It's a short and not exactly cheerful story, but well worth reading, in my opinion.
