Shoot the Chutes!

From Chute Collection  I

Chute Collection I

From Chute Collection II

"The artist in me cries out for design."

Robert Frost

Bob Dylan - In A Basement Black as Coal

After living in Vienna for almost 8 years, it still fascinates me that there are always reminders of just how different this city is from Sydney. Of course it is older, but the reminders are often the most simplest of things as they never existed, or at least not in the same form, Downunder. This was generally due to different living conditions, environment, culture or building codes.  Many times I have small moments of enlightenment or discovery that can lead me on the path to a small, or sometimes a big, adventure of discovery.

Recently, doing a welcome favour for my ex-flatmates, I wandered between my apartment and theirs, with my iPhone in hand and the necessary culinary items to make two feline “friends” extremely satisfied. The setting, for both apartments, is the area of Gersthof, which is located in the 18^th district of city. Gersthof has a colourful history, which is another story, and is an area where a large percentage of the dwellings and apartment blocks date back to the last quarter of the 19^th century. Lovely ornate buildings with relief decorations, tiling, mosaics, friezes, of ornamented doors, ironwork, dotted with statues here & there and mostly always painted in a variety of subtle aged building colours typical to Austrian towns and villages.

Turning the Page. Closing the Book.

* Photo Credit Below

“There comes a time when you have to choose between turning the page or just closing the book.” 

 Unknown

The Beatles - Paperpack Writer

I know this post is for a totally different situation than alluded to in the above quote; however I have decided to adopt it for this piece. Most people are aware I do prefer a real printed book with those lovely crunchy pages. Some people also know I am now the owner of an iPhone. The dragged and kicking owner I may add. I hate mobile phones of any type by the way, but stuck with it for contact purposes in this modern age.

Anyway before I digress, let’s return to the subject at hand. There are books these days that are just not available in print, coming only in electronic book format – the eBOOK. I hear the gasps of horror and even the sighs of, even the astonished wonder. Nothing wrong about that, unless of course you don’t have the right tools to be able to read electronic books.

The Foodbook: Embarrassment, Innovation and Gadgetry - a reality check

Junk - Paul McCartney 

The Foodbook, I do not find this clever or innovative, sorry to say, (see the below clip). Even less do I the suggested idea one Blogger put for using it as a lunch-box - EMBARRASSMENT. Should we be embarrassed by carrying what is obviously the food we will be consuming lunch later in the day? Get real! What is embarrassing about carrying a bag of food or normal lunch-box to work? Have we evolved, or maybe I should say "devolved", socially that eating and the way we transport our food should be so embarrassing, that we need to hide it. As a friend pointed out, a lunch-box was once a form of social distinction. This distinction died decades ago.

Are people losing their sense of social reality in the face of aggressive media which promotes fads, so called “new ideas” and advertisements of products, pushing them down our throats as encouragement to how we should think or feel? We are living in a world that is promoting so much  innovative junk and  gadgetry as simplifiers in life for the kitchen, for the house, for work or just for use in everyday life. They do not generally make life simpler or heaven forbid less "embarrassing", just encourage people to waste financial resources and clutter their lives with trendy garbage.

Art, Books, Movies, Music, and all that jazz

"A true critic ought to dwell upon excellencies rather than imperfections, to discover the concealed beauties of a writer, and communicate to the world such things as are worth their observation." 

Joseph Addison 

It is all a point of view. Rediscovering my old blogs and and what I want to do with each of them. So what the hell am I going to do with them? Well that is finally coming to some sort of epiphany of thought and hopefully leading to a new era - for each and every one of them.

The new era for "The Celestial Poet" will encompass the multitude of themes not covered by the theme dedicated blogs. Some of those blogs may, on occasion, share posts with this one. This one is however going to be about me, my interests and on occasions my ramblings as a  mad poet and writer.

Yearning for the chic

Barbie A Fashion Fairytale

Yesterday, as I wandered through my district in Vienna (well my part of that district), I realised how few shops had any decent chic or elegant summer clothes this year. The softer look, or even a bolder elegance. This year seems to be all about colour - in your face colour, not much choice of pretty softer colours or bold elegant colours.

I don’t think it is getting older that is driving this yearning for a chicer or elegant look. I am sure there will be plenty of women who live in Vienna, of all ages, embracing the “new” season’s colours. Colours, which crop up every 4 to 5 years, in an endless cycle, by a need of some fashion houses, designers, and manufacturers to satisfy the “what do we do next” question. I get the impression, that when they can’t find an answer, they rush for the in your face colours, that can’t even be described as primary colours. I actually like primary colours.

So it begins...AGAIN!

A number of circumstances in the past few year, saw me abandoning any attempt to add posts to this blog. Well the time has now come to revive. It has been a long journey getting back here, culminating last year in the loss of the dearest person in the world. My one constant support and lifeline through my entire life - my Dad. He was with me, even when I failed to see it. I still believe he is with me now, just not there when I would like to talk to him. he liked my blogs when I started them, and I owe it to him to revive them.

Hopenhagen

Next week commences the most important Conference facing one of the most dire issues affecting our planet.

Please Seal the Deal and at the same time why not get yourself an environmental passport. I just did:

Horizon’s Kiss

Horizon’s Kiss

I look out,

I see earth kiss the sky.

I reach out,

Am I earth or am I sky?

You reach out,

Are you earth or are you sky?

I see you there,

Where earth touches sky.

© W. Heron, 2008

Time is the villain...

Salvador Dali - The Persistence of Memory, 1931

Time is the villain...

Time is the villain that makes childhood a place of sadness by the ego of a self-centred parent.

Time is the villain that denies the child her formative years by serious life choices.

Time is the villain that causes life to be serious, devoid and robbed of joy by the falsity of friends.

Time is the villain that shows false friends to have only loyalty to enhancement of their petty egos.

Time is the villain that reveals the truth of human nature which saddens and truly breaks your heart.

Time is the villain that proves an individual will sell their soul for the guise of seeming mediocre fame.

Time is the villain that robs a spirit the ability to trust in the ideal of promised happiness based on a lies.

Time is the villain that kills a kind soul's refreshing faith in the existence of goodness in others.

Time is the villain that challenges your ideal of truth when it is finally documented and revealed to you.

Time is the villain that endeavours to convince you that evil behaviour should be paid in kind.

Time is the villain that makes your pray nightly that the ones you love will remain while you go first.

Time is the villain that is no more when conquered by friends of truth, who devoid of ego, value loyalty.

Time is the villain that takes a new dear friend's loved parent and yet they apologise for not being there.

Time is the villain that defeated shows the friend’s talent to be glorious in creativity and glorious in written word.

Time is the villain that once subdued can refresh the weary soul, by words so wonderful and pure.

Time is the villain that can be mastered by remembering that ego receives fleeting insignificant reward.

Time is the villain that is overcome by the generosity of the spirit and the happiness given to others.

Time is the villain that can be vanquished by the acceptance of truth and the glory of generous friends.

Time is the villain that is surmounted by strength of character and the heart which is pure and as fresh as white snow.

Time is the villain that the victory of hope can destroy, unless time is the villain that assumes the guise of death.

© W. Heron, 2008

Dave Small - A dear friend and a great musician

What can I say about Dave, a lot and never quite enough. I have been to a number of concerts in Second Life, not to discount those in Real Life, and of all those I have been to, no-one compares to Dave. In voice or that amazing talent for composing lyrics, Dave is unmatched by anyone in SL and I suspect if he had gotten the right exposure in RL he would have been up there with the best of them.