More better sooner repeater

As usual at this time of year, I worry about the number of entries to the short story competition. We need more. As to the quality, I'm finding that some fail due to what I would call general clumsiness. Sentences that should flow and follow may have been over-edited and become herky-jerky. Instead of them being a series of stepping stones there may be unfathomable chasms between each and the next. However, I still see a few interesting stories.

Steve

Official sponsor!

Friday evening walk

Donnington Road

Willesden Sports Centre

Willesden Stadium

Lenin's Tomb: "Israeli psychopath"

"Hamid Abu Daqqa was playing football in his Real Madrid shirt when he was shot through the stomach by IDF troops several weeks ago. This was significant for the Palestinians and the wider Middle East, but not for anyone else. Not a single UK broadcaster knows his name. But do they know Muhammad al-Hums, Ranan Arafat, Omar Mashharawi, Isam Abu al-Miza, Hiba Mashharawi Turk, Mahmoud Abu Sawawin, Marwan Abu al-Qumsan, Walid Abadla, Hanin Tafish, Faris Basyouni, or Muhammad Iyad Sadallah? These are but a small sample of the children, pregnant women and elderly Palestinians killed in recent days by Israel. Not a single UK broadcaster knows a single one of these names.

Anyone with an internet connection can hear live feed of the airjets, drones and helicopter fighters strafing the Gaza sky. If you want the sonic experience of airborne death, it's available to you."  

The beginning of Lenin's Tomb commentary "Israeli psychopath" by Richard Seymour

World market and library fair

Library books on display in the concourse

The world market is a regular Saturday event

Cupcakes from the world market in Willesden library centre.
(Somebody's already had one of the Smarties!)

Poverty in Brent

From Brent Citizens' Advice Bureau on Twitter: "We have given out 34 food vouchers this week, including to a pregnant woman and a family with young children."

The Gathering: Dear Mr Kenny

"Dear Mr Kenny, I will not hesitate to invite friends to Ireland when it once again becomes a country I can be proud of. A country that lets a woman die because of archaic religious beliefs is not one I want to show off. Legislate for X."

People ask, 'how can this happen in the 21st century?' (Irish Times)

Belfast tour

Titanica by Rowan Gillespie (Titanic Quarter)

Titanic memorial, City Hall, erected 2012

Poster wall, Falls Road,
new mural to be unveiled 8/10/2012

Sinn Féin HQ West Belfast, with Bobby Sands mural

Section of the Peace Wall, West Belfast

IRSP murals

Front of The Crown Bar

Europa Hotel, viewed from the Crown Bar restaurant

Welcome to the Shankill Road

"It's All Good" graffiti, Shankill Road

Welcome to Sandy Row

George Best mural

UVF mural 1

UVF mural 2

Orange hall

Orange hall silhouette

Tribute to equal rights campaigners

International Day of Peace mural, "Imagine"

Harry Lemon

President Obama's final rally, Iowa

"Let's finish what we started."

Parakeets in Willesden

Rowdon Avenue

A flock of parakeets in a silver birch

These parakeets are newcomers this year. I heard and spotted one about a week ago on two separate occasions as it flew and across the rooftops. Now there's a flock of at least six or more. Pairs of them were flying around in circles, level at tree top height, squawking and back onto the tree. They have a raucous, cackling cry, which I never heard before and is not at all melodious. A magnificent sight when they are flying!

Steve

All Souls College Oxford sells Mark Twain library for flats

"To the Warden and Fellows of All Souls College, Oxford." A most heart-rending appeal in a truly horrific situation, unique in its specific brutality and ignominy. Also a carefully reasoned and inarguable case.

http://www.savekensalriselibrary.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Open-Letter-to-All-Souls-College-from-FKRL-2Nov2012upload.pdf

Jimmy Saveloy joins Herald

We're delighted to welcome Jimmy Saveloy to our team of news bloggers. He will be focussing in closely on the Big Society, the voluntary sector and charities, especially residential institutions. Plus he has some ideas for fundraising events.

Not really.

Still want to keep Heathrow?

The London estuary airport should replace Heathrow as the capital's main airport. Heathrow should be downsized and eventually closed and replaced with housing and parks.

Don't get pisky in the park

Reverie on a Theme

It’s a hunger.

It’s a raft in a flood.

It’s a pitiful wound.

The tide in a lonely bay,

insanity of a saint,

the echo of silence,

sleepless weeping,

call of the nightjar,

triangulated moonbeam,

shared time,

when summer performs cartwheels.

It’s a song on a loop,

merry-go-round of the heart,

plaintiff squeak of a mouse.

It’s waiting for a letter,

the sound of your own name,

transfiguration of another’s,

the grumble of a pet.

It’s a mating call,

howl of the night wolf,

dove on a windowsill

waiting for bread,

help of a teacher for an idiot,

note left out on a table -

“Your dinner is in the oven.”

--
Stephen Moran

Unpublished Cigarette Packet

A la D.T.

For once in a bishop's soutane soaring,
A moon went riding on the haggard
When all of Christendom was snoring,
Coarse as a belfry-batted blaggard,
Polite as the rood of time.

Till and never till the cashiered soul,
Demobbed as a rookery rifle-shot,
Wills and bewails the testament told,
Feathered down in a satin cot,
Swung for a capital crime.

Oh harrow me sideways, if I ever
Desecrate the rushy lake of marrow
With one red cherry stone whatsoever,
Or deflower the bed of passion's farrow
With an ill-winded rhyme.

--
Stephen Moran

October update

October 2. Henrietta Rose-Innes has taken the runner-up prize of £2,500 in the BBC 2012 international short story competition for her story "Sanctuary". The results were announced at a ceremony in London, broadcast live on Radio 4 arts show Front Row. Miroslav Penkov took the first prize with "East of the West". Details

October 24. A. J. Ashworth has won the Negative Press short story competition. Judge Evie Wyld says: ‘It was the voice that attracted me and Nicholas Hogg to this one. Her story is strong and understated at the same time.’ Details

For more news about previous finalists and prizewinners, see Willesden Herald short story competition. Closing date December 21.

Mowed autumn

The wildflower meadow

has gone the way

of all meadows yearly.

A picnic bench vandalised

Worlds of wanwood leafmeal lie

Oak leaves

?

Ash trees

Donnington Road

Ash leaves

Launderette

Willesden High Road

Huge funfair Fri 26 Oct to Nov 5

Poster

George Irvin's funfair returns to Roundwood Park through Halloween and Guy Fawkes night.

Word 2010 ".docx" now accepted

The short story competition website has been upgraded to support the new Word 2010 ".docx" format files in addition to ".doc" and ".rtf". If your upload was rejected, please retry.

Unite union: March for a future that works

"The government's austerity measures are biting hard. Hard pressed families are feeling the squeeze. One in seven children go without a hot meal and the only growth is in foodbanks. With pay cuts and rising bills many are unable to make their money last a month and in desperation are driven to take out pay-day loans. We need an alternative to austerity and cuts. We need a program of growth to build the economy. You can help send that message by joining us on 20th October." (Unite)

The mass demonstration is assembling from 11 a.m. along the Embankment between Hungerford Bridge and Blackfriars Bridge. It is planned to move off at 12 pm and march to Hyde Park. (Details)

Petition to stop the demolition of The Queensbury

FAIRVIEW NEW HOMES: STOP THE DEMOLITION OF THE QUEENSBURY | Change.org:

"The Queensbury is a well loved gastropub with the community at its heart and soul. It provides one of the very few meetings places in the area offering a wide range of well kept products and homemade food. The Queensbury emulates the communities passion and spirits."

Sharmine Chowdhury-Tse shows award for Busy Rascals

The Queensbury, formerly known as The Green, is as important a venue to Willesden Green as the library centre is to Willesden. The daytime community activities have won awards (see our report about Busy Rascals at The Queensbury). It stands near the location of Willesden Green within Willesden.

[Can somebody bring back Willesden Borough council and free us from the culturecidal reign of Brent? Ed]