Nature writing gems and musical maps
Rose returns with a poem and two playlists
Howdy WLM substack followers!
Rose here with just a quickie today as we’ve been super busy this last fortnight writing a new pattern and some funding applications for an exciting art project in the new year. Apologies, there is no knitting-based content this time, but there is some fun music at the end if you choose to read on :)
Cruising Nature
As part of our funding applications we had to include some examples of our writing, and I thought I’d share one of the poems I submitted. I wrote this after doing an INCREDIBLE online writing course exploring queer nature writing (it was called “Cruising Nature” <3). It was led by declan wiffen on Beyond Form Creative Writing (more information and verrry interesting looking courses here - I highly recommend checking these out). declan’s currently running a course called “Gay Gardens”, which only started on Tuesday and may have some spaces still available: https://www.beyondformcreativewriting.com/gaygardens
We made zine at the end of the course. There’s PDF available to download: HERE, and physical copies are available from @lichencamp (on Instagram) (my poem’s in there).
Anyway… scroll beyond the image for the poem…
Costume (2022)
I would be a lily,
I would wear a comically large, white collar, reaching upwards. My face and neck would be painted a bright reddish-orange, which would stain the collar. My head would be somehow elongated, perhaps with a cardboard tube, with gold glitter flying out from the top!
Or, actually, I'd fart it out. I'd fart out the glitter. Fart out a cloud of pollen. That feels much more apt.
So, the lily would actually be centred around my crotch.
No... I'd bleed it out.
It would be a completely blue costume, in fact, like Viktor&Rolf's Fall 2002 collection, you know the one with all the green screen clothing?
I'd be all in blue and it would blank everything out, a lily on the screen behind me, my perfect bisexual flower, and I'd have one thigh on show, with a thin, sticky drip of red blood down the inside of it.
During the performance, I would behave like my thyroid:
Sluggish, bored and uninspired.
But I'd do it with flair.
I'd dramatically slump in front of the television (a prop)
And nonchalantly look at the dirt under my fingernails.
Little compressed beaches under each one.
"Dirty beaches", I'd purr.
I'd tell you a story about honey sandwiches on the beach. Sand in the tea flask. Grit in our teeth.
A long scar down my inner thigh from a jellyfish.
Watching you pull the wings off a cinnabar moth.
The narrative would be somewhat confusing, not completely linear, but you'd trust that there was a point to it:
I am removing ivy from the garden.
I am pulling the roots up from the centre.
The length is unknown.
They spread out so far underneath the earth.
The roots claw themselves in, you see,
All along the line.
Horizontally, and then down.
They're not deep but they cling on.
Ripping in resistance.
It's satisfying, but my heart breaks a little.
Playlists
I’ve also made a pact with myself to share a playlist every month because I make so many and no one ever hears them and maybe it’ll get one step closer to my dream of having my own radio show (…one day…it’ll happen…)
This month I’m sharing TWO playlists, because WHY NOT. Two totally different vibes so I’m hoping that, whatever mood you’re in right now, one of these might hit the spot.
The first is called ‘CARTOGRAPHY’ and it is my go-to, ambient / chill / classical / slightly unhinged (sometimes) playlist. Mainly instrumental pieces, so it’s great for concentration, and occasionally a wee folk song might come on too, which is like a lovely little tonic. It’s a long one (over 13 hours, no less) and I’ll usually just put in on shuffle when I’m working. It’s a vibe, rather than a theme. I hope you’ll get what I mean when you listen to it.
The second is called ‘SPACE KETO & KETTLEBELLS’, which is (you guessed it) my gym playlist, and mainly consists of garage and clerb classics. I’ll usually put this on if I need a little boost. Or when I’m driving 🕶️
And you may be thinking… Why share these all at once? Space them out a bit!
To which I say… Don’t you worry, I have P L E N T Y more P L A Y L I S T S where these came from.
Have a brilliant weekend.
Rose xxxx