By: Patrick Interviewer: In daily life we refer to different kinds of meanings: we talk about the meaning of a person’s actions, the meaning of a word, the meaning of life. What sort of meaning that you have in mind as a philosopher? Are these sorts of ‘meanings’ all the same? Patrick: The kind…
Author: ShiverWriggle
Sunday, Around Midday (2)
By: Patrick Walking back to my car, And suddenly the present, uninvited, emerges. It’s a cloudless, sunny day. I take in the birds, the cars, The voices of a couple of neighbours On the other side of the road. Autumnal colours And all that stuff That poets manage to capture so elegantly: A tree…
The Woman at the Foot of the Bed
By: Vague It was a dark and stormy night. Actually, this is a lie. It was a clear, windy, and typically Northern-Scottish-Autumn night, with the moon shining through the sloped window in my attic bedroom. I had no blind or curtain, not a problem in winter, but at this latitude summers are light, all…
Viola
By: everylittlething Earlier this month I was delighted to discover that one of my young friends has chosen Violet as the second Christian / given name of her daughter. “Vaahlut” as it was spoken locally when I was growing up is such a pretty name when pronounced clearly – “Vi-o-let”. Even prettier is “Vi-(ee)-o-letta”, as…
Saturday Morning (1)
By: Patrick Today My world drags Like a bad movie. I stare at the murky surface of a cup of green tea For minutes on end, Without a thought in my mind. Yesterdays confuse and amuse. Today Is about being slow, Above all about being slow. Silence, time, solitude, All seem eternal, Like the…
Sweet Potato and Peanut Curry
By: Lash Serves 4. Well hi there! It’s getting all autumnal, and that means that the vintagetraceygoodness kitchen is going for hearty, filling, warm-the-cockles dishes that we can bung in the fridge/freezer and dig into when we’re home from a long day. I learned to make this dish yonks ago (I think it was probably…
Willow
By: everylittlething Growing up in the northern reaches of England’s fen lands, willow has featured in my life from the very beginning. Now, in the northern highlands of Scotland, I see it growing steadfast at the edges of the flow country. Some willows should be classed as shrubs rather than trees – like the…
The Wait
By: Hugin The castle stood on the edge of the cliff. For centuries it had stood there, and it was as strong and majestic in ruins as it had been in its glory days. Instead of the hustle and bustle of busy servants, and the dancing and feasting of the earls and their guests,…
Mustelids
By: everylittlething Imagine a park for mustelids. How much freedom, how many fences, might you allow these relentless killers? Would the weasel be able to live alongside the pine marten? The ferret and stoat could make good bedfellows – on the other hand – well – who can say? They are a villainous crew….
Quartz
By: everylittlething Silica has never been top of the list of most-often-written-about subjects for poets. One might argue that quartz, because of its crystalline property, should inspire heavenly thoughts – but it doesn’t seem to do that in great works of literature generally. Perhaps it is because, after feldspars, it is the most abundant…