return to the fold(ing mirror)

space odyssey
distant humanity
mirror connection
my reflection

My latest Facebook colour background sized poem returns to the Folding Mirror theme of this website and the form premiered here, but it doesn’t take that shape.

The title of the post wordplays: 1. To begin participating in, belonging to, or supporting some group, activity, or field that one left for a period of time in the past.
https://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/return+to+the+fold

Isolation Generation

Nobody built bridges
or dug deep ditches
to where my mind
resides with own kind.

The above Facebook sized poem developed from this thought, that I first posted as a draft here yesterday:
Bridges (positive) and ditches (negative) built in my wake to imply I was diverted away; attention; from reaching my intended destination.

Short Poem, Deep Thought

The Generation of the title mainly refers to generating; as in isolation generating a mindset; but abstractly can also work for those living amongst covid-19: while it’s impossible not to be affected by it, maybe some will learn from it for the better of their mind? 

I think I’m mentally where I thought I’d be at this age; either alone or with a soulmate; but I’m not sure when I started thinking that. Certainly, the greenYgrey decade (2006-2016: 40-50 years of age) was a transition period I set out, and wrote about, but don’t think I knew much about the future before that. 

yggdrasil and asgard?

Ash tree and mountain clouds anyway, a few hours after a heavy thunder, lightning, rain and hail storm cleared the air.

Freebird

On warm thermals sky
sunny space I fly
swoop swift as swallow
no path to follow…

The above poem, like yesterday’s, were written within the Facebook regulations for a colourful setting/large case text.

Fatboy Slim Closes mistYmuse 2019/20

We’re overtime on mistYmuse 2019/20 now, as we started early in October last year – it runs for the traditionally toughest four months of the year weather-wise, and puts a good spin on it by focusing on the late sunrises in the first two months, and increasing light in the second half.

British Summer Time to GMT (Greenwich Mean Time) / UTC (Coordinated Universal Time)

In October the sunrises seemed to be getting towards the late sunrise times of mid-December, which are ideal for the start of most people’s days, being between 8-9am across the UK; as well as giving more darkness for sleep.

As I wrote in a blog here on fmpoetry (October 22nd), focusing on the Leeds time, mistYmuse central!:

‘The sunrise times will reach their BST late peak on Saturday October 26th at 07.53, and with the clocks going back to Greenwich Mean Time (GMT)/(UTC) overnight, they’ll go back to 06.55 – back earlier than the sunrise time of September 25th (06.56).
They’ll continue getting later a couple of minutes a day, and will reach Saturday’s sunrise time of 07.53 again just over a month later on November 27th.’

GMT/UTC to BST

Now, in contrast, we changed from GMT/UTC to BST  last week, moving the clocks forward an hour from 05.48 on the 28th March, to 06. 45 on the 29th March; with the three minutes difference the normal process for this time of year.

The sunrises (really the time when we can see the sun, due to our planet’s axis tilt and orbit around our star, according to astronomy) continue getting about three minutes earlier (as if we’re climbing a stairs in a skyscraper for a better view, with each day a step).

As it took just under a month to get back to the time before the hour clock change in October/November, it will reach the March 28th/29th time of 05.48 over the 22nd to 23rd April: 5.49 to 5.46.

So enjoy the darker mornings and later sunrises this month, and for all those who’ve completed mistYmuse 2019/20 I praise you! (it seems a long time since Scooter opened it!!):

Try not to look directly at the sun; or spend too much time in front of screens.. and avoid groomers and covid like the plague!

Looking on the bright side, I read there’s a bright new comet in the sky that should be visible to the naked eye soon…

Sun Rising Spring Equinox in Leeds Photos

Sunrise quote  by a better runner than me, followed by a few of my sunrise photos from the Leeds spring equinox, from pre to post, and then my books, that also celebrated twilight times, and tried to create a better UK and world, following Scandinavia’s green example:

“Why run? I run because I am an animal. I run because it is part of my genetic wiring. I run because millions of years of evolution have left me programmed to run. And finally, I run because there’s no better way to see the sun rise and set… What the years have shown me is that running clarifies the thinking process as well as purifies the body. I think best – most broadly and most fully – when I am running.” ~ Amby Burfoot

Spring Equinox Leeds Photos and Ancient Astronomy Update

Earlier in the month I posted about using buildings on the Leeds skyline to show how the sunrise can be seen seeming to move northwards after the Winter Solstice in the northern hemisphere; perhaps like ancient astronomers did at henges around the world.

The sunrise is apparently really about our axis tilt and orbit around the sun. We are seeing it earlier now in the north because our half of the planet is pointed towards the sun. The tilt stays the same all year around; unlike a motorbike racer going around a circuit, always keeping their head leaning inwards at corners.

Last time I wrote how the sun had moved from south of two iconic buildings to the centre of them over the course of five days, and the sunrise was ten minutes earlier: from 6.51 to 6.41.

2nd March, sunrise at 6.51

6th March, sunrise at 6.41:

Now, a fortnight later, on the spring equinox, the ‘sunrise’ has moved much farther north on the horizon, with those two buildings now towards the far right of today’s photo. The sunrise is also thirty-four minutes earlier at 6.07:

20th March, sunrise at 6.07:

I took lots more photos this morning and will post them soon. It’s been a long day! Great in the sky, but difficult on Earth (in the news!).

Equinox Poetry

It’s only a week now until the March equinox (spring in north, autumn/fall in south) and the end of mistYmuse 2019/20. Here’s some equinox time thoughts from yesterday evening:

The time has come
for the part
of our planet
that I am writing this
to turn away from the sun.
The light will last
another hour;
like passing headlights lasting
longer than the vehicle view;
and then evening
will become night.

In the week before
one of two
annual equinoxes
when the northern
and southern
hemispheres
balance sunshine
like no other time
light will return
in about the time
it lasted today…

Heilung Changeling’s Subtle Changes

The biggest thought – I don’t know if it could be seen as spiritually inspired by the shamanic music – I had while watching Heilung’s excellent show was about change actually; yesterday’s little wordplay philosophy poem was an idea I had before, that may have been brought to the fore by those thoughts, and a reposte to those who’ve tried to change me by negativity.

Maybe it was influenced by the first night of the Descended from Odin festival (February 19th) being on the 40th anniversary of Bon Scott’s death; what I remember as the biggest single inspiration on me becoming a full-time metaller in 1980. I had been born in the 1960s anyway, and grew up in the glam rock 1970s:

Moreover, famous DJ and producer, who also crossed over between guitar and electronic music, Andrew Weatherall (somebody I’d heard of, but didn’t know much about), had died earlier in the week at 56, two years older than me; that closely followed Caroline Flack’s rock star reminiscent style death (again, she wasn’t someone I knew well, but knew her name).

While Ozzy sang of going through changes, he’s often lapsed back into his old behaviour. Lemmy seemed to be loved for not changing, but maybe he could have survived a little longer if he had; although he’d made clear in his lyrics he wasn’t bothered about lengthening his life through not living how he wanted. Even Lemmy made subtle changes that could be called selling out though, such as writing ballads and moving to sunny California.

Any changes I’ve made have been due to age or inspiration from positive influences, such as Jane Tomlinson on my fitness, inspiring my marathons. If the negatives have inspired anything, it’s to prove them wrong. While some people were trying to retire – or kill (see Tucker and Dale vs Evil!) – me off in my thirties when I returned to education and was still out clubbing, I still felt young then. In fact, my clubbing endurance was an inspiration to my marathon running; thinking I could transfer the biology.

Watching Heilung’s red-haired singer I thought it was a coincidence, with Axl Rose of Guns N’ Roses also red-haired, and my favourite vocalist in the 1980s. So over the last thirty years I have changed from wanting to watch a male-fronted LA Metal band the most to a female-fronted Nordic pagan folk band, but they are both within the rock genre.

I was surprised how energetic the Heilung concert was too, more like a rock concert than the more spiritual ritual I expected. It even incorporated some trance-style tribal dancing that reminded me of the dance music I got into during the 1990s, as LA Metal was all but killed off by grunge.

So to people who want me to stay in the 1980s or 1990s; or some period since; they are still in my mind and persona, but they are a part of the past, rather than the present.

 

Leeds Sunrise Month After Midwinter

There was a nice sunrise yesterday morning, mistYmuse midpoint for the 2019/20 event, as midwinter and the spring equinox are on the 20th.

There was probably a similar one this morning, but the sun rose without waking me today! Consecutive days may make me seem too much of a sun worshipper anyway!!