A fantastic title. Full of wit, charm.

Hooray for food! Hooray for eating!

As you can see this is a test post. I'm testing something out on another blog I have (this time on Wordpress) so I'm testing the RSS feed. But it's nice to be posting on this blog again. In fact, I thought I'd forgotten the password. I haven't.

The caff on Hanbury Street which originally inspired me to start this blog has been shut for about a year now. There was little word of warning. A half-attempted petition to the landlord from some regulars, pleading with the landlord to renew the lease. But even the nice ladies behind the counter discouraged us from signing it. "It's too late." How sad. The price of tea is now £1 higher everywhere in Spitalfields. There's even one of those Kiwi coffee outfiits charging £3 for a mocha. You should see the size of it!

Oh well, the time, it moves on. Right, that's should be about all I need to say for my test. Good to see you again, Mr Blogspot. I'm moving house soon and looking for a new job, so you're still pretty far down on the list of priorities (at least I'm honest). See you around.

Cafe Open

Christmas Eve
London E8

It's Christmas!

New Poem - Gloom Cupboard 70

Lovely Richard at Gloom Cupboard [who I'm sure is lovely for more reasons other than the inclusion of my poem] has posted his last issue of 2008, Gloom Cupboard 70. There are some fine bits of work by Malerie Yolen-Cohen, Stanley H. Barkan, Enaam Alnaggar, the poet Spiel, Willie Smith, Dan Mootz, Dr. Ehud Sela, Maris Hurt and Steve Meador.

I would appreciate you checking out and supporting Gloom Cupboard.

In other news, I've been working a lot and cooking a bit more successfully in recent weeks. Pictures and thoughts to follow. I especially plan on force-feeding this blog over the Christmas holidays. Fois Blog!

Fifty Pounds

So we're budgeting now. Our combined weekly household/food spend is set at £50. We write down everything we purchase, how much it cost and who bought it. I'm amazed at how much money just flies out of my hand.

We're 3 days into it. Too early to tell. It's still the Blinking Mario period. But £50 is a lot of money. That's £200 on food. Surely that's easy to follow. No? We are budgeting 'cause Steve's retiring at the end of the year. Going part time and collecting his pension. Time to prioritize. I pop into Tesco for fresh chives and two pints of milk then magically appear clutching two bags of shopping, some coins and a receipt shoved in my mouth. I don't know. I'm an impulsive asshole.

Smarts

A double-edged obit for David Foster Wallace is in this month's PROSPECT.

Back in Texas, I often wondered if people in Europe felt left out that not all our movies got European releases. Since being here I understand why most aren't given a go. A few every year make a stab at the teenage market, but they couldn't be more American; excercises in adolescent silliness.

A most interesting point about the insular and self-serving American psyche has never been put into words better:

They waste time on America's debased, overwhelming, industrial pop culture. They attack it with an energy appropriate to attacking fascism, or communism, or death. But that culture (bad television, movies, ads, pop songs) is a snivelling, ingratiating, billion-dollar cur. It has to be chosen to be consumed, so it flashes its tits, laughs at your jokes, replays your prejudices and smiles smiles smiles. It isn't worthy of satire, because it cannot use force to oppress. If it has an off-button, it is not oppression. Attacking it is unworthy, meaningless. It is like beating up prostitutes.

This coming a month after Liz Forgan professed her hatred for Sarah Palin on Radio 4 citing, among other things, her "candy coated philistinism".

Little 'Ole Me's Gettin Published, Proper

Super dear, Bill Shute who is Kendra Steiner Editions is creating his first chapbook of unsolicited poems. His project Last Poems invited submissions briefed "If you had 6 hours left to live, and you had one poem left in you, what would it be".

Check out the winning authors here.

I can only say I'm chuffed.