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I just finished watching the ‘ Last Picture Show by Peter Bogdanovich. I don’t get it. I mean here is a movie of pure genius . And yet he made perhaps one or two great films afterwards . ‘What’s up Doc? and perhaps Paper Moon. Nothing comes close to The Last Picture Show. A film […]

Ivan

It’s winter, a young boy stands looking out onto a wasteland of snow. A sparrow flits around his head. The boy shows no emotion. It’s as if he has morphed into stone. He was born in the era of Strawberry Fields. Factories and smokestacks smells of Europe ran through his hair. His parents are memory […]

Neighbours .

Do you ever wonder where people are going? Some do the road, the Camino , that’s going somewhere right. I mean it’s a pilgrimage right? The woman next door masked up and all said she did the Camino, goddamn it! She was pretty forceful with the goddamn. Not a bit of ego in her redheaded […]

A story

The retreat began the day after Christmas, it was cold and wet and the day before I had just pigged out on turkey, ham, potatoes, plum sauce, pudding and wine. This was how it was back then. Every Christmas you had to tell a story. Mine was of a time after my mother died. Lonely […]

Ahab

I cannot say I loved my father . Anger and hate often choked my heart with rage yet I admired his will to live. His courage in adversity was awe-inspiring living with cancer day after day for years. And I know somewhere in the depths of my soul darkened by too many nights without stars […]

God is an empty chair

She was speaking about some ritual. I decided to paint the word HOUSE. It glowed in the white light. My brother was there and I thought all this would be mine , the house , the valley, the lot. Sitting at a table was him. He was dressed in white. He was speaking to someone […]

One for my baby, one for the road .

Whata drink said the barman Well, I want a tall glass , A touch of misery and madness, A dash of ecstasy, throw in a night mare , A travelogue of journey Some Coltrane train Some Davis blue Heavy on the Pollock Heavy on the Gogh Give me some Debbie Harry mixed with Dalai lama […]

Dharma bum stories #1

When fear hits you during middle age that’s the time to rage at the machine. A rooming house, a turd laid on the floor a good metre from its target. Time to get out of this shit fucked town. It was cold and wet and I was staying at the Nunnery , a backpacker joint […]

A streetcar named Desire

I like guns he said, they get rid of the bad people. He made me sort of nervous , twitchy I mumbled something or other and slid away like a greasy snake in the hot New Orleans night. I was staying at a place called India House off Canal Street. Took the streetcar named something […]

Hey, you look like….

They came to me that night Oh what a night The band played Waltzing Matilda Waited for me to sing as I roared like a wounded bear San Francisco on Green Street , The owner said put your money away The beer, it’s on the house Hey, ain’t you…. That guy No, I said , […]