riding a bike

They had a deep sense of camaraderie — a spirit that had more of fun in it than simple solidarity. There was a connection, a bond forged on long, boozy lunches, nights out, nights in, soul-searching discussions and a commitment to honesty, to truth, to telling about themselves in order to tell something about others.

I used to have the most amazing coat made of 100 squirrels. I got so many compliments wearing it. I deeply regret that. It didn’t occur to me what had happened to make that coat.

A person is a fool to become a writer. His only compensation is absolute freedom. He has no master except his own soul, and that, I am sure, is why he does it

The preference for colour tones in Polaroid pictures is not only personal but cultural. At one time, Polaroid had different machines producing different formulations to account for regional preferences. “A blueish tint on people’s faces makes them look like chickens in a freezer,” says Bosman. “But if you ship film to Japan, looking reddish suggests you’re drunk, so they prefer skin tones to look more blue than red.

When an aeroplane’s engines fail, it is not the end of a flight. Aeroplanes don’t fall out of the sky like stones. They glide on, the enormous multi-engined passenger jets, for thirty, forty-five minutes, only to smash themselves up when they attempt a landing. The passengers don’t notice a thing.

Bright Star follows the final years of Keats’ brief life in which he meets 18 year old Fanny Brawne, falls in love, becomes horribly ill and ultimately dies far from her side in Rome. Poets have the worst luck.