Author: stevendouglasblog

Born in 1954. Chequered career including Lecturer in English, Social Worker and Lecturer in Social Work. Had breaks related to mental health that also meant I worked in social care. Now retired.

‘I placed my ear on his abdomen and listened to the low gurgle under his skin. The system beneath it  seemed larger and more powerful than the belly of a boy. … I shut my eyes. It was a dark and endless canyon. The deep deep sea, outer outer space’. This is a blog on Nicola Dinan (2023) ‘Bellies’.

October 23, 2023

‘I placed my ear on his abdomen and listened to the low gurgle under his skin. The system beneath it  seemed larger and more powerful than the belly of a boy. … I shut my eyes. It was a dark and endless canyon. The deep deep sea, outer outer space’.[1] In the interplay of exchange … More ‘I placed my ear on his abdomen and listened to the low gurgle under his skin. The system beneath it  seemed larger and more powerful than the belly of a boy. … I shut my eyes. It was a dark and endless canyon. The deep deep sea, outer outer space’. This is a blog on Nicola Dinan (2023) ‘Bellies’.

The end of failure and the beginning of ‘working at’ or ‘working towards’. Just what are you ‘playing at’.

October 22, 2023

Words are terribly significant and phrases are  perhaps more so. Context is probably all important in interpreting them however. To be asked what I am ‘working at’ feels a case in point. How, for instance, does the phrase contrast with a phrase using a different preposition, as in this question, such as: ‘What are you … More The end of failure and the beginning of ‘working at’ or ‘working towards’. Just what are you ‘playing at’.

Rest is a dream yet to happen, even though ‘… others in Elysian valleys dwell, / Resting weary limbs at last on beds of asphodel’.

October 20, 2023

When Tennyson imagined ‘lazy days’ he turned to a myth of a kind of rest that felt like giving up on what till now has seemed your allotted mission in life. He chose, as often, to retell a story about Ulysses from Homer’s The Odyssey to imagine both a man with a mission – for … More Rest is a dream yet to happen, even though ‘… others in Elysian valleys dwell, / Resting weary limbs at last on beds of asphodel’.

A good neighbour is not someone you know but someone who stays close to you when others don’t.

October 18, 2023

Forgive the ponderousness of what follows. I am in that mood again! In that aspect of my character I sometimes talk like a preacher of holy text, though I am neither a Christian nor what one might call ‘religious’. However, it is to Biblical text I turn when faced with defining what is a GOOD … More A good neighbour is not someone you know but someone who stays close to you when others don’t.

‘If I cut these strings / Set myself free. / Let myself fly, / What could I be?’ A journey through the life-transitions of Mike Johnston-Cowley and in the hope of their beautiful future. A blog to honour the life-blood in the anticipatory heartbeat of my friend, Mike, as they bring out their first little volume of poems, covering parts of the story of their life and struggles others too will recognise. I am blogging on Mike Johnston-Cowley (2023) Through These Words: A journey of poetry

October 18, 2023

‘If I cut these strings / Set myself free. / Let myself fly, / What could I be?’[1] A journey through the life-transitions of Mike Johnston-Cowley and in the hope of their beautiful future. A blog to honour the life-blood in the anticipatory heartbeat of my friend, Mike, as they bring out their first little … More ‘If I cut these strings / Set myself free. / Let myself fly, / What could I be?’ A journey through the life-transitions of Mike Johnston-Cowley and in the hope of their beautiful future. A blog to honour the life-blood in the anticipatory heartbeat of my friend, Mike, as they bring out their first little volume of poems, covering parts of the story of their life and struggles others too will recognise. I am blogging on Mike Johnston-Cowley (2023) Through These Words: A journey of poetry

The last of the ‘the first time’ I tried it syndrome.

October 17, 2023

What could you try for the first time? I have felt defeated by this topic for discussion and I turned to references to the ‘first time’ on the web. In large, and on an inspection of them that probably lacked rigour, the pages thrown up by both Google and Bing search engines seemed to fall … More The last of the ‘the first time’ I tried it syndrome.

In terms of how and why we imagine and articulate queer desire this book suggests ‘….how narrow our popular vision is, even now’. A personal look at Sean Hewitt & Luke Edward Hall [2023] ‘300,000 Kisses: Tales of Queer Love From the Ancient World’.

October 16, 2023

In terms of how and why we imagine and articulate queer desire this book suggests ‘….how narrow our popular vision is, even now’.[1] It also emphasises the ‘imperfections and the alterity of’ the ‘idealized societies’ of Ancient Greece and Rome.[2] A personal look at Sean Hewitt (translator, commentator and poet) & Luke Edward Hall (illustrator) … More In terms of how and why we imagine and articulate queer desire this book suggests ‘….how narrow our popular vision is, even now’. A personal look at Sean Hewitt & Luke Edward Hall [2023] ‘300,000 Kisses: Tales of Queer Love From the Ancient World’.

Never let ‘ the good minute’ go. Find a thing to do and do it. The importance of not acting on desire.

October 15, 2023

What have you been putting off doing? Why? When I puzzle about an issue in my life I often turn to poetry for help. We live in a world where time is literally money and action matters more than reflection, which is too often considered passive. It is as if clichés like ‘time waits for … More Never let ‘ the good minute’ go. Find a thing to do and do it. The importance of not acting on desire.

A blog intended to offer a brief and inadequate overview and taste of the new Faith Museum at the Bishop’s Palace in Bishop Auckland without offering knowledge or interpretive skill.

October 15, 2023

A blog intended to offer a brief and inadequate overview and taste of the new Faith Museum at the Bishop’s Palace in Bishop Auckland without offering knowledge or interpretive skill. The Faith Museum from the entrance to the Bishop’s Park at Bishop Auckland: A kind of Tardis offering an overview of faith and belief in … More A blog intended to offer a brief and inadequate overview and taste of the new Faith Museum at the Bishop’s Palace in Bishop Auckland without offering knowledge or interpretive skill.