The Spoons That Are My Ears!

I'm back in Wales but life has started to improve here. The weather is still awful. Rain is our main trading resource. We import it from the Atlantic Ocean and export it (in lower quality form) to England. But there have been one or two sunny days recently, not warm days but days with blue skies, and my social life has become more interesting, not necessarily as a direct result!

I am becoming more involved in local cultural events. I joined a drumming circle for a two hour bash in the park. I also attended a Pablo Neruda poetry night hosted by ALAS (Asociación Latinoamericana de Swansea). I need to do more work for them this year than I did last year! And after a break of nearly six months, I returned to the Dylan Thomas Centre for one of the 'Last Thursday' poetry nights. In 2005 I was a regular at these events, together with my friend Sarita. This time I read a piece that was designed specifically for live performance. I've never done that before and the response from the audience was gratifying. I was also invited to give a talk to a group of literature students at Trinity College, Carmarthen. Even though I'm not a natural public speaker, the talk went well and I enjoyed the experience.

In approximately two weeks I need to find a new place to live. I have been making myself more and more portable over the past year by clearing away a lot of possessions that are now useless to me. This process includes giving away books, but I still have far too many of them standing on my shelves. What is one to do about this, I wonder? My solution is to distribute them among many friends (if they are willing to take them) and maybe reclaim them some time in the future. We'll see. Moving house is supposedly one of the most stressful things that can happen to a person, but I don't feel particularly stressed about it, just slightly annoyed!

But minor annoyances will never wipe away the joy I feel at reclaiming my friendship with Lowri, my lost sweetpea. She returned from India a few months ago and we are back in touch and on good terms. She will always have a place in my heart and it was delightful to see her again after more than a year apart.