P.S. Surely it is also time to announce that the postmodern novel passed away some time ago?
Our Protagonist Wonders..
Two questions: How do you say "I would like to buy six live chicken, please" in German? And if I were to say to you: "You look like a one-eyed pirate except you have two eyes," how would you interpret that?
I try to keep track of news in my erstwhile home country of Denmark. The more I read about government incentives, the happier I am that I chose to move to the UK where my being foreign isn't treated as a disease. It would have been far more difficult for my Scottish partner to move across and I dread to think what it would have been like if David had not had a very obvious Scottish surname. One day I'll reclaim Denmark from the people who annexed my nationality and turned it into something completely alien and repulsive. Right now I'll just sit here and wonder what on earth happened to Denmark.
Cooking experiment: Danish rice pudding cooked with coconut milk instead of regular milk and served with fresh raspberries = very, very yummy.
PS. "George W. Bush praises Tanzania" - a news headline from today which I find really quite amusing.
Words Against War
Sundays in February can be quite dreary - so why not dash into Mono here in Glasgow on Sunday at 8pm? Famous Scottish writers such as Alasdair Gray(!), Liz Lochhead, and Tom Leonard will be discussing the war in Iraq. As Mono also houses a record shop/informal gig venue, there will also be live music from local folk artists. Ticket is £5.
(An aside: last time I went to Mono, I ended up having dinner right next to a famous rock star, my word. And my vegan lasagna was rather bland.)
Words, Language and Politics, oh my!
The other day I was watching an interview with Peter Carey on BBC News following the Australian apology to Aborigines. I suspect BBC anticipated an in-depth interview about Australian identity and a smart post-colonial take on Australian history. Instead they got themselves a cagey author who was possibly the worst interviewee I have seen in a long time. Carey didn't answer his questions, he rejected the interviewer's research, he contradicted himself constantly and, let's be frank, he came across as insufferable and self-indulgent. An absolute train-wreck of an interview.
In the wake of Peter Carey being interviewed, I sat wondering about writers and language. I always thought that if you were the Peter Carey sort of writer - i.e. acclaimed, award-winning, Booker darling, taught in universities - you would have a natural affinity for language whether spoken or written. You would effortlessly construct arguments using precise, yet beautiful language. Or am I sorely mistaken? Are writers like Peter Carey (and Martin Amis and Graham Swift and Alan Hollinghurst etc) like me? When speaking, I am still an able communicator but I feel most at ease with language when I am typing away.
Gosh, maybe writers are really just like you and me! But with an agent and a publishing deal and a NYC penthouse, of course.
In unrelated news: I do not miss living in a country which expels people without a trial. I have been asked to highlight a Facebook group for Danes protesting the lack of trial. Go join. Or write indignant letters to your local MP.
The End of an Era
No more polaroids - Polaroid has announced it will stop producing the film that is used to produce its iconic pictures. Apparently stocks will last until 2009.
As a gesture of mourning, my partner has just bought a selection of old polaroids he found in a secondhand shop. I might just scan one..
Saturday Linkage
Why smart songwriting is huge in Sheffield and guitar-pop thrives in Glasgow: You hear where you live? An interesting look at how geography may help shape your taste in music - whether you are aware of it or not. Meanwhile, it's nice to note that Hillary Clinton wants to share her political views with the part of the American public who are devoted to gossip magazines: Hillary Clinton: My Worst Outfits!. Not only is it low-brow journalism - it is also low-brow journalism that panders to stereotypes (i.e. why is nobody asking John McCain to go through his fashion mistakes?) and makes the vast mistake of underestimating women voters.
Finally, I followed the Beeb's The Genius of Photography when it was aired last year and was very pleased when I found Jörg Colberg's blog where he writes eloquently about fine-art photography. His What Makes a Great Portrait? stands out as a wonderful meditative essay on portrait photography. Not only does he cite many examples of portrait photography (and I should point out that some of these may not be entirely safe for work as they include nudity and violence), but Colberg explains why he thinks some photos work better than others. It is hugely inspirational and educational for an amateur photographer like myself.
Oh, and a music recommendation on the fly: Alaska in Winter is on constant rotation in our home. So gorgeous.