I thoroughly enjoyed these short interviews, part of the NewsHour Poetry Series. (via Rockslinga)

GHASSAN ZAQTAN: But you have to start from the details.

JEFFREY BROWN: So, where do the details come from in — for your poetry?

GHASSAN ZAQTAN: Memory.

JEFFREY BROWN: Memory?

GHASSAN ZAQTAN: Memory is very important.

JEFFREY BROWN: As always on our trip, we were offered coffee. Here, it turned out to be a good way into talking about poetry.

GHASSAN ZAQTAN: For this uncertain place, for uncertain life, which we have in this area, we have to — to protect our personal history.

and

TAHA MUHAMMAD ALI: I thought that, if I want to express myself, I have to know what is poetry and what is good poetry. And this went together, reading and trying to write.

JEFFREY BROWN: In one short poem translated as “Where,” he writes that poetry hides.

So, poetry hides. How do you find it?

TAHA MUHAMMAD ALI: You have to take the pen and to take a paper, and to be ready to wait for him. Otherwise, he will come and you are not there. As a writer, you have to train yourself to write. Write anything, but every day.

Leaving Beirut (live in NY pts 1 and 2)

This is one of the greatest lines I’ve heard in a while:
Every time a smart bomb does its sums and gets it wrong
Someone else’s child dies and equities in defence rise


It would be nice to catch him in TO this summer, but I should sleep on it for a couple of weeks and see if I still wanna do it then.

An Evening with Roger Waters
Rogers Centre, Toronto, ON
Sat, Jul 14, 2007 08:00 PM

Leaving, leaving, leaving, leaving…

Egypt Song
Elvira Nikolaisen - Quiet Exit (2006)

often it is the only

thing

between you and

impossibility.

no drink,

no woman’s love,

no wealth

can

match it.

nothing can save

you

except

writing.

it keeps the walls

from

falling.

the hordes from

closing in.

it blasts the

darkness.

writing is the

ultimate

psychiatrist,

the kindliest

god of all the

gods.

writing stalks

death.

it knows no

quit.

and writing

laughs

at itself,

at pain.

it is the last

expectation,

the last

explanation.

that’s

what it

is.

by Charles Bukowski
from blank gun silencer - 1991

I am sure (at least some of) you are familiar with TED:

TED (Technology Entertainment Design) … is a forum for revolutionary ideas held annually in Monterey, California and recently, semi-annually in other cities around the world. TED has lived up to its description as a “group of remarkable people that gather to exchange ideas of incalculable value”. Its groundbreaking 20 minute lectures cover an extremely broad set of topics including science, arts, politics, global issues, architecture, music and more.

But I particularly bring it up at this time cause I just came across the TEDConferences google-video user, who has posted lots of really good presentations; for e.g. check out this really interesting talk by physicist David Deutsch on species survival, or this very well done presentation with amazing graphics by professor of international health Hans Rosling titled myths about the developing world, or this extremely entertaining and profoundly moving talk by Sir Ken Robinson about creativity and the education system, as well as presentations by Gladwell, Negroponte, Dawkins, Al Gore, and many others.

If you’re not a streaming-video kind of gal, turns out you can also download the talks (mp3/mp4) from the TED website (there’s an option to watch/listen online on that link as well). Or even better, you can subscribe to the audio or video (sorta weekly) podcasts. If anyone’s watching, let me know if there are particular ones that you (dis)like.

via sharkawy (arabic)

I am a big fan of Sir David Attenborough, and I try to catch his shows on TVO or PBS when I can. I must’ve missed the episode where this amazing sequence played though, cause I would’ve definitely posted it up here. It was rated Sir Attenborough’s number 1 TV moment by BBC viewers. If you haven’t heard (of) Lyrebirds before, you’re in for a treat. Enjoy.