I’m always on the lookout for graffiti and Digbeth did not disappoint. There were no smearcats here.  Pascal Wyse defines ’smearcats’ as posh, pretentious graffiti artists who go to work in parts of town that were previously edgy, but are now swarming with hipster geeks.  A big cartoon cock and balls, or a spot of tagging, will no longer do, and walls become daubed with philosophical turdlets such as, ‘Solid configuration of chance events’
My first port o’ call was the back wall of a building

During my last day in Digbeth last Monday, I spent some quiet moments along the Grand Union Canal, just chilling out and watching the water flow.  Bring your headphones.

It all began at 10:59 am on August 1, 1963 at the Hollywood Presbyterian Hospital on Sunset Boulevard.

Growing up in Southern California, I was a Deputy Member of the Emmy award winning ‘Sheriff John’s Lunch Brigade’ (1952 - 1970) and tuned in every weekday.

Sheriff John started each program by entering his jailhouse office singing “Laugh and be happy, and the world will laugh with you …” before doing a routine which included the Pledge of Allegiance and a safety bulletin

If I had a TV, this is one sporting event I’d watch. I love British commentator Phil Liggett’s clipped, velvet voice. Phil Liggett is the Vin Scully of professional cycling. Known for his vivid language as well as his encyclopaedic knowledge of the sport, Phil has been covering the Tour since 1973. Liggett’s sidekick at the finish line is Paul Sherwen, a former professional cyclist who raced in the Tour de France seven times.

Paul and Phil
What sets Phil aside from the rest is his poetic languag

Nickel Tailings # 30, Sudbury, Ontario, 1996 Photo © Edward Burtynsky
Edward Burtynsky has been acclaimed as one of Canada’s most respected photographers. His specialty is photographs of global industrial landscapes, and they have been showcased in 15 major museums around the world. In a statement, Burtynsky talks about his explorations:
“Nature transformed through industry is a predominant theme in my work. I set course to intersect with a contemporary view of the great ages of man; from

a video haiku from along the riverjourney

May Day celebrations have their origins in the Roman festival of Flora, goddess of fruit and flowers, which marked the beginning of summer. Floralia was held annually from April 28th to May 3rd. There are also links to Beltane, a Celtic fire festival that celebrates of the coming of summer and the fertility of the coming year.

May Day was especially popular in Medieval times. Activities centered around the Maypole, a tree collected from the woods and brought to the village to celebrate the...

Another video haiku; this time without a soundtrack . . . .

This is the first video that I ever made back in 2006 for my friend Anthony who asked me, ‘Melinda, how do you drain pasta?’
It stars my alter ego “Sparky” and Alfred “Al” Uminum as The Colander, is filmed entirely on location at Chez Sparky , Devon, England and has a great soundtrack featuring Gus Viseur et son orchestra. I had borrowed a Minolta Dimage digital camera that had just one minute of video recording time and taped the whole thing in a ‘on...

This is the first video I ever made back in 2006 for my friend Anthony who asked me, 'Melinda, how do you drain pasta?'.

It stars my alter ego "Sparky" and Alfred "Al" Uminum as The Colander, is filmed entirely on location at Chez Sparky , Devon, England and has a great soundtrack featuring Gus Viseur et son orchestra. I had borrowed a Minolta Dimage digital camera that had just one minute of video recording time and taped the whole thing in a 'one-er'.

The writings of John O’Donohue, an Irish poet and philosopher, are one of my touchstones. John’s writing draws the reader into intimate conversation with neglected or unknown regions of the soul.
Language was his greatest gift — and his greatest blessing to others. His writing is grounded in human vulnerability and the desire, the longing, for a connection to the wonder of the divine in nature, and human life within it. He was one of those rare writers whose words help othe...

We had the first and last snowfall of winter early last Sunday morning. Soft flakes that melted as soon as they touched the ground.
I grabbed my camera and went down to the river. I wasn’t able to capture any decent still images, but it gave me the chance to experiment, explore and try something new! I made this video combining movng image, sound and haiku. If you have speakers or headphones, it has a great soundtrack.