Poetry, purple and interests

[matgb]

From both tyrell and lithium_doll, and she even saved me the effort of looking up Purple.
Poetry Meme
When you see this, post a poem you like in your LJ.
Warning: When I am an Old Woman I shall Wear Purple

When I am an old woman
I shall wear purple,
With a red hat which doesn't go and doesn't suit me.
And I shall spend my pension on brandy and
summer gloves. And satin sandals, and say we've
no money for butter. I shall sit down on the pavement
when I'm tired. And gobble up samples in shops and
press alarm bells. And run my stick along public
railings. And make up for the sobriety of my youth.
I shall go out in my slippers in the rain. And pick
flowers in other people's gardens. And learn to
spit...
But, maybe I ought to practice a little now? So
people who know me are not too shocked or surprised
when suddenly I am old and start to wear
purple.

by Jenny Joseph
Always loved this poem.

Upon Westminster Bridge

Earth has not anything to show more fair:
Dull would he be of soul who could pass by
A sight so touching in its majesty:
This City now doth like a garment wear

The beauty of the morning: silent, bare,
Ships, towers, domes, theatres, and temples lie
Open unto the fields, and to the sky,
All bright and glittering in the smokeless air.

Never did sun more beautifully steep
In his first splendour valley, rock, or hill;
Ne'er saw I, never felt, a calm so deep!

The river glideth at his own sweet will:
Dear God! the very houses seem asleep;
And all that mighty heart is lying still!

Whenever I'm in London, I end up on the bridge. Still not been on the Eye, which is daft really. Shame about the boards up blocking the view on one side last Saturday.

Xanadu - Kubla Khan
a poem by Samuel Taylor Coleridge

In Xanadu did Kubla Khan
A stately pleasure-dome decree:
Where Alph, the sacred river, ran
Through caverns measureless to man
Down to a sunless sea.

So twice five miles of fertile ground
With walls and towers were girdled round:
And there were gardens bright with sinuous rills,
Where blossomed many an incense-bearing tree;
And here were forests ancient as the hills,
Enfolding sunny spots of greenery.

But oh! that deep romantic chasm which slanted
Down the green hill athwart a cedarn cover!
A savage place! as holy and enchanted
As e'er beneath a waning moon was haunted
By woman wailing for her demon-lover!
And from this chasm, with ceaseless turmoil seething,
As if this earth in fast thick pants were breathing,
A mighty fountain momently was forced:
Amid whose swift half-intermitted burst
Huge fragments vaulted like rebounding hail,
Or chaffy grain beneath the thresher's flail:
And 'mid these dancing rocks at once and ever
It flung up momently the sacred river.
Five miles meandering with a mazy motion
Through wood and dale the sacred river ran,
Then reached the caverns measureless to man,
And sank in tumult to a lifeless ocean:
And 'mid this tumult Kubla heard from far
Ancestral voices prophesying war!

The shadow of the dome of pleasure
Floated midway on the waves;
Where was heard the mingled measure
From the fountain and the caves.
It was a miracle of rare device,
A sunny pleasure-dome with caves of ice!

A damsel with a dulcimer
In a vision once I saw:
It was an Abyssinian maid,
And on her dulcimer she played,
Singing of Mount Abora.
Could I revive within me
Her symphony and song,
To such a deep delight 'twould win me
That with music loud and long
I would build that dome in air,
That sunny dome! those caves of ice!
And all who heard should see them there,
And all should cry, Beware! Beware!
His flashing eyes, his floating hair!
Weave a circle round him thrice,
And close your eyes with holy dread,
For he on honey-dew hath fed
And drunk the milk of Paradise.

Because, let's face it, it's the greatest unfinished poem of all time, and Fanthorpe wrote a great send up of his excuses for not finishing it. Still, in this case, the drugs do work, right?

Oh, also first seen on tyrell but I didn't have time to do it last night so half the rest of you have done it now...

LJ Interests meme results

1. caffeine:
   This needs explaining? I wake up. I demand caffeine. After application of at least 2 cups worth, I may be able to function. Unlike others I could mention, drinking lots (or even just one cup) does not make me nuts; not drinking it makes me morose.
2. democracy:
   Worst system of govt ever, excepting all the others that have been tried.
   
   If a Liberal can't misquote Churchill on a regular basis, what's the point of being one?
3. events:
   Events dear boy, events! Without them, life would be dull. Doesn't matter if they're local, national or international, events make life interesting and provide us with challenges and entertainment. Oh, they sometimes kill people.
4. independent bookstores:
   Well, y'know, books are good, places that sell them are good. That is all.
5. long hair:
   I've tried making it short. It's just not me. I hate it. So my hair is long. Weirdly, I seem to prefer shorter hair on some women, but, well, that's me being contrary. And on some it looks awful anyway.
6. paignton:
   I was born there, I work there, I spend a lot of my time there. Doesn't always interest me, but it's a good way of searching on LJ, right? Tis a nice place, and the Zoo is huge...
7. punk:
   Oh, I dunno. How do you explain an interest in something that is both a musical genre and a social movement? I just like it, OK? Oh, we're talking real punk here, none of this modern "punk sound" stuff made by pretty young things signed to big labels.
8. sci-fi:
   Ideas. What will the future be like? Can we do stuff to shape the future? What are the threats, what are the dreams? SF has helped shape the modern world, it will undoubtedly help shape the future world.
9. the west wing:
   I like quality TV shows. I like politics. I'm an instinctive liberal. Why wouldn't I love this show? Besides, occasionally they let Sheen loose with a nice long rant scene, and that's always worth watching. Really must get around to buying the DVDs.
10. wagner:
    Blame Apocalypse Now! I was already interested in orchestral music, but just watching that film and listening to the soundtrack sold me on Wagner. Don't listen to it enough though, but you can say that about most of the music I like.

Enter your LJ user name, and 10 interests will be selected from your interest list.

Comments

:D

[stonefox84.livejournal.com]

for reasons muchly not to be explained here I needed cheering up tonight....and these have done it :D never heard the first one but it's great, and actually, i have been lucky enough to stand on westminster bridge with hardly anything around. Tres good and he was completely right. But yes, thank you for cheering me up :D

Re: :D

[matgb]

Always happy to be of service; if you need more substantial cheering up, grab a lift with mapp to the zoo tomorrow...

[doccy.livejournal.com]

Still like the Long Dark Teatime of the Soul... And the reason in there for why it was never finished (and a thousand thousand slimy things crawled on, and so did I)

[matgb]

Gah!

*adds another book to the list that need rereading sometime soon*

Actually, if that list keeps growing, I can stop buying new books completely, which would help the bank balance substantially. I completely forget why now. Ah well, it'll come to me.

[faeriecween.livejournal.com]

Caffeine? Nuts? I have no idea what you're talking about... honest...

[matgb]

Right...

Sell coffee for a living but can't handle actually drinking it. Makes sense, honest ;-)