O tempora o mores

“21st century citizen. Do you belong in this day and age? If you do, explain why – and if you don’t, when in human history would you rather be?” A bit tricky this one, because there’s good and bad today, and there was certainly both good and bad in the old days. In the interests of…

‘Forever in fun’

During my first year as a student at the University of Kent, between October 1970 and June 1971, I lived in room E1 S4 of Eliot College. Why ‘E1 S4’? You may well ask. Simple really: it was room number 4 in the south corridor on the first (ground) floor of the east block of the…

Right back at you, Robert Plant

“When faced with confrontation do you head for the hills or walk straight in? Was there ever a time you wished you’d had the opposite reaction?” This is only tangentially about confrontation (it’s only a prompt,though, isn’t it?), but today I’m going to tell you about the time I heckled Led Zeppelin. Bet that got your…

See me, feel me

“…a magic potion…will make one of your senses…super sharp, but dull the others. Will you sip it and, if so, what sense do you choose?” Happily, most of my senses still function fairly well. Indeed, the only exception is my sight, which ain’t what it used to be, as I now need varifocals to do…

Silver Dream Machine: Dawn Chorus 3

“Earworm: What song is stuck in your head..these days? Why does it speak to you?” The latest instalment of ‘365 Days of Writing Prompts’ provides a handy excuse for another in my occasional ‘Dawn Chorus’ posts. This is turning out to be a rather eclectic series, because following on from the improbable ‘Lambeth Walk’ and…

Dawn Chorus 2

Today’s instalment of ‘365 Days of Writing Prompts’ tells us to write a post about the first thought we had when we woke up this morning. Well, I’m not going to do that – mainly because I can’t remember what it was – but it has prompted me to revisit something that has been sitting…

Give me excess of it

“Musical: What role does music play in your life?” Ah, I can almost hear the groans from my nearest and dearest when they read this latest of WordPress’ ‘365 Days of Writing Prompts’. They know what’s coming. But before we get to the Grateful Dead – as we surely shall – let me answer the…

Good for nothing

“If you could choose to be a master of any skill in the world, which skill would you pick?” As to this latest from WordPress’ ‘365 Days of Writing Prompts’, the world is my oyster. Because I have no skills to speak of. Heaven knows, I have tried to acquire many skills over the years –…

Inside The Actors’ Studio

Today’s WordPress Daily Prompt asks us to answer the ten standard questions that James Lipton asks his guests on ‘Inside The Actor’s Studio.’ Well, that’s a programme I used to like, and lists are usually good for a bit of introspection, so here goes: What is your favourite word?‘Opulente’Some care is needed here to avoid…

The Mist Covered Mountain

It’s been said that everyone can remember where they were when they heard that President Kennedy had been assassinated. Although it’s fifty years ago now, almost exactly, I certainly can. Even as an eleven-year old, less than three months out of primary school, I was aware that this was a momentous and tragic event. Of…