So remember that snow scene and the picture of this little cottage - well the snow has gone and the cottage is basking here in what is left of a splendid sun that has been shining all day - all day, I mean how is someone supposed to dress for Montana? I awoke f...f...freezing this morning, showered and pulled on two jumpers... walked to the study the Faculty provided for me and then undressed (well almost). It was a case of all change. And then I went for a walk for coffee and breakfast and I came across this cultural artefact - which I have named 'Icarus goes to college'. A couple of cliches in his manner of dress, the glasses and the mortar board and scroll, but hey, a boy has to fit in (and I can confirm he looks nothing like a billings student). But if you look carefully - the wings are still intact. Today has been a fascinating one. I have been working and speaking and generally wondering about lots of writing and stuff. And I met with the immensely kind David Craig over a lecture by the Billings writer-in-residence and extremely likable Virginia Spragg who co-wrote An Unfinished Life (2005) featuring Robert Redford, Morgan Freeman and Jennifer Lopez (whose class I jumped into - no not Jennifer Lopez but Virginia's) and Virginia's husband/co-writer, the novelist/writer, Mark Spragg, of Where Rivers Change Direction memoir and Bone Fire and the Fruit of Stone, along with Tami and Jim and Bernie Quetchenbach and his poet partner who I mistakingly called Carol but is closer to Keira... and oh but I hope she will forgive my not really knowing the spelling because they are coming to the UK (hopefully with a book of poetry) and then there was the sculptor Andrea and Bill who gave me a book on New Orleans and 'don't mess with the power-lifting Sheryl' and as it happens when you spend quicktime with everyone it just zips by, you lose track and names and locations and then you have photographs and memories. And then there is the story of this sculpture of a horse which even looks digital here, but is what looks like tarnished stainless steel (if there can be such a thing) its a remarkable piece. Even in this short time, even though I have engaged with a lot of students and talked about narrative non-fiction, songwriting, scriptwriting, writing for children, I have felt energised and engaged with creative people in a way that has been inspiring, and that has been a real joy and even as I write this (and I may be guilty of betraying a confidence) but David, if you read this, those letters (you know the ones I am talking about) would surely be a wonderful thing to be read as a collection (thank you for telling me about them - they have given me an idea). And then, as the day drew to a close, for the first time (that I know of) I drank a 'corn' beer... the snow has gone, as normal, the sun came out as normal and dropped away again, as normal, the wind changed, as normal, the world kept turning, as normal, and I chased this up as another good day; and as I get ready to leave Billings for New Orleans (where there are flash floods - ochone) I will never forget... I wonder if Billings ever met The Unthanks:
So remember that snow scene and the picture of this little cottage - well the snow has gone and the cottage is basking here in what is left of a splendid sun that has been shining all day - all day, I mean how is someone supposed to dress for Montana? I awoke f...f...freezing this morning, showered and pulled on two jumpers... walked to the study the Faculty provided for me and then undressed (well almost). It was a case of all change. And then I went for a walk for coffee and breakfast and I came across this cultural artefact - which I have named 'Icarus goes to college'. A couple of cliches in his manner of dress, the glasses and the mortar board and scroll, but hey, a boy has to fit in (and I can confirm he looks nothing like a billings student). But if you look carefully - the wings are still intact. Today has been a fascinating one. I have been working and speaking and generally wondering about lots of writing and stuff. And I met with the immensely kind David Craig over a lecture by the Billings writer-in-residence and extremely likable Virginia Spragg who co-wrote An Unfinished Life (2005) featuring Robert Redford, Morgan Freeman and Jennifer Lopez (whose class I jumped into - no not Jennifer Lopez but Virginia's) and Virginia's husband/co-writer, the novelist/writer, Mark Spragg, of Where Rivers Change Direction memoir and Bone Fire and the Fruit of Stone, along with Tami and Jim and Bernie Quetchenbach and his poet partner who I mistakingly called Carol but is closer to Keira... and oh but I hope she will forgive my not really knowing the spelling because they are coming to the UK (hopefully with a book of poetry) and then there was the sculptor Andrea and Bill who gave me a book on New Orleans and 'don't mess with the power-lifting Sheryl' and as it happens when you spend quicktime with everyone it just zips by, you lose track and names and locations and then you have photographs and memories. And then there is the story of this sculpture of a horse which even looks digital here, but is what looks like tarnished stainless steel (if there can be such a thing) its a remarkable piece. Even in this short time, even though I have engaged with a lot of students and talked about narrative non-fiction, songwriting, scriptwriting, writing for children, I have felt energised and engaged with creative people in a way that has been inspiring, and that has been a real joy and even as I write this (and I may be guilty of betraying a confidence) but David, if you read this, those letters (you know the ones I am talking about) would surely be a wonderful thing to be read as a collection (thank you for telling me about them - they have given me an idea). And then, as the day drew to a close, for the first time (that I know of) I drank a 'corn' beer... the snow has gone, as normal, the sun came out as normal and dropped away again, as normal, the wind changed, as normal, the world kept turning, as normal, and I chased this up as another good day; and as I get ready to leave Billings for New Orleans (where there are flash floods - ochone) I will never forget... I wonder if Billings ever met The Unthanks: 
