We start crying as children and then at the drop of a hat, as if to command, but then we are encouraged to stop 'Paid a crio fy ngwas i' 'Don't cry little man'. Therefore at a certain age we start bottling things up, we learn to put up a front. We cry behind closed doors. We cry for many different reasons. We cry for shame, we weep for a lost love or loved one, We sob when Wales lose at Rugby: well some of us do! The first public exhibition of crying I witnessed was on Cardiff Central Train Station. A man on another platform wearing green wellies was crying, loudly and openly. He was quite dignified about it, straight backed, holding himself in as much as he could but it was a sobbing from the bowels of his diaphragm. The platforms were packed but instead of somebody going over, putting an arm over his shoulder and giving him a hug, it was like a parting of the Red Sea on Platform 2. British Rail might as well have trained a Spotlight on to him. It was British Rail in those days because I am old enough to remember nationalised railways. Maybe he was crying because he knew that the network was about to be privatised. Anyway, an adult crying like that to a young un was quite a profound experience. I think I was quite jealous. I am convinced that people need to weep and wail more. We blame Queen Victoria for many things, we blame Margaret Thatcher for many others. Two women, but women who were not typical of their gender. These women and their influence have been far reaching. We prefer our men to drive trains and behave like slabs of meat and we prefer our women, feminine! So we all know where we are, like.
"Croeso i ddyfnderoedd fy isymwybod: Welcome to the depths of my subconscious. Shark Fishing in Wales is one man's odyssey to understand the land of his birth through anecdote, observation and reminiscence! By learning about his country, perhaps he can learn more about himself. A process of individuation which Carl Jung suggests we should all go through. Less assuming one nationhood and more working towards one nationhood before we become Independent." Daf Williams
Cymru/Wales: Bipolar Nation
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Wednesday 30 April 2014
Weep for the World
We start crying as children and then at the drop of a hat, as if to command, but then we are encouraged to stop 'Paid a crio fy ngwas i' 'Don't cry little man'. Therefore at a certain age we start bottling things up, we learn to put up a front. We cry behind closed doors. We cry for many different reasons. We cry for shame, we weep for a lost love or loved one, We sob when Wales lose at Rugby: well some of us do! The first public exhibition of crying I witnessed was on Cardiff Central Train Station. A man on another platform wearing green wellies was crying, loudly and openly. He was quite dignified about it, straight backed, holding himself in as much as he could but it was a sobbing from the bowels of his diaphragm. The platforms were packed but instead of somebody going over, putting an arm over his shoulder and giving him a hug, it was like a parting of the Red Sea on Platform 2. British Rail might as well have trained a Spotlight on to him. It was British Rail in those days because I am old enough to remember nationalised railways. Maybe he was crying because he knew that the network was about to be privatised. Anyway, an adult crying like that to a young un was quite a profound experience. I think I was quite jealous. I am convinced that people need to weep and wail more. We blame Queen Victoria for many things, we blame Margaret Thatcher for many others. Two women, but women who were not typical of their gender. These women and their influence have been far reaching. We prefer our men to drive trains and behave like slabs of meat and we prefer our women, feminine! So we all know where we are, like.
Monday 28 April 2014
Conspiracy of Silence
Saturday 26 April 2014
Tin Can Alley
Thursday 24 April 2014
Where do I go from here?
A Great Film which I've only seen once but I remember the ending as I remember the ending to Midnight Cowboy and to Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid. Endings are vitally important but it appears that in recent years in TV and Film, endings have been getting successively poorer. I am to experience my own ending soon and one which I will be quite sad about, the ending of my M.A in Playwriting at the University of Salford. Despite my moans and groans about Blackboards and a few technical issues, it has, all in all been superb, not only, in that it has bought me more time away from the world of work, but that it has expanded my horizons away from the South Wales coalfield.. Soon, very soon it will be over and I will have to decide "Where do I go from here?". My gut and my intuition tell me not to go back to Wales. That chapter is over. I have not fully immersed myself in the course because I have made excuses and returned to Wales whenever the teaching element has finished rather than staying 'Up North' and seeing what develops. Me & Wales need to have a divorce! I will be issuing papers soon. I need to have better endings I know that. I think that it is fear of commitment that forces my hand. Fear to commit to any place or person without an escape clause. I should really follow the Greek Maxim and burn my bridges. Make a complete break so that there is no going back. By leaving Wales it will mean that the title of this Blog might have to be tweaked and twerked a bit. Looking back over the plays that I have written, what many if not all of them have in common is that they have poor, weak endings. Perhaps the best ending of all is death. The most definitive ending. There is definitely no coming back from that! If we know that death is a definitive ending then why can't we appreciate that life is finite. That it is a constant stream of endings. We live as if it will last for ever. We waste so much time. I use the royal 'we' because I know that you do also. It appears to be an inherent part of the human condition. I suppose that if we didn't waste time then we would burn out. Time Management is so important in other areas of our life so why don't we Time Manage life itself. I definitely think I'm going to have to do that after this course because otherwise I will start drifting again and another decade goes by and then its the state pension and then it's the wooden box and as the Undertaker closes the lid, he slaps you one more time, just to see if there's any sign of life and shouts "Feeling Lucky Punk?"
Pure Carrot
ensures that it's pure.
Diced, Sliced
mashed
or in a cake
You can't beat Carrot!
Friday 18 April 2014
The Hedgehog of Hendy
Wednesday 16 April 2014
Saturday 12 April 2014
Genius Loci
Today 12th April 2014 the Shark Fisherman of Wales reveals his true identity. Like Banksy he has gone to desperate lengths to hide from the General Public but today with the worldwide launch of his book of poetry 'Genius Loci' the world will get to see the handsome devil in all his glory. There is a picture of the Scarlet Pimpernel, the Artistic Director of http://www.redbuttontheatre.co.uk on the back cover. David admits that he has only ventured into the world of poetry to make money. Money from the sale of this book to libraries across the land will go towards Red Button Theatre so finally 'the vision' can be realised and Theatre can be made.
Don't buy the book, it's not worth the cover price but ask for your local library to order it. My big ambition is to see a copy on the shelves of Canton Library where this Blog began in 2012
http://sharkfishinginwales.blogspot.co.uk/2012/01/toxic-kairdiff.html
So if you are in the Canton area, anywhere along the ley line, please pop in with the ISBN number, print off or copy and hand over to happy librarian. In fact, wouldn't be great to see a copy in every library in Cardiff!!?
Support your local megalomaniac, money making poet today. Thank You/Diolch.
Monday 7 April 2014
Erik Erikson's Stages of Development
Well, I thought that I had failed all the stages thus far but it appears that I've only failed two and a third hangs in the balance. I am now in the Generativity vs Stagnation stage and considering that I have just published two books and started on an MA I would say that I am generating rather than stagnating at this present moment but because the Shark Fisherman of Wales failed the previous two stages rather spectacularly then things could all go tits up any moment. I always feel that I am close to falling into the abyss and this is perhaps because of my isolation and role confusion in the previous two stages. I know that I am not alone. We never discuss our human predicament, especially men, because we are too busy competing with each other. I actually remember having an idyllic life up to 13 years of age so 4 stages must have been passed through successfully which gives me reasons to be optimistic. If you are not familiar with Erik Erikson's stages of Development then I would thoroughly recommend further reading.
Tuesday 1 April 2014
Aqua Nova (April Fool?)
The fact is, the poet does not want admiration, he wants to be believed.
— Jean Cocteau Quotes (@CocteauQuotes) September 21, 2020
Death by Taxes
"Individuals and businesses not paying the tax they should deprives the government of the funding it needs to provide vital public serv...
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Bottom of the Ottoman
Bottom of the Ottoman from David Williams on Vimeo.
Crying in your Beer from David Williams on Vimeo.
Hitler navigates the A487 from Aberaeron to Aberystwyth
I shall never wear tweeds from David Williams on Vimeo.