I went to Rome

...and brought back a poem.

Only thing is, the poem didn't come for about four months.

I was sitting on the beach about two weeks ago (on one of the few sunny days we've had), cloud-watching and got On Not Seeing Inside the Sistine Chapel from the combination of the clouds and remembering our visit to Roma in late February, and how we hadn't come at the right time of day on the Saturday to gain access to see the famous chapel.

You can hear me read the poem at the Qarrtsiluni site, apparently their first Irish accent (cringe). It's my second poem there - anyone interested in the other one, The Angel's Missing Wings, can check this link.

qarrtsiluni

...is the name of an online literary zine that has just finished it's latest period of issue. qarrtsiluni was edited by Katherine Abbott and Rob MacKenzie; editors from this side of the ocean and that. This transatlantic editorial collaboration made for an interesting mix of works; visual and written.

I managed to get a poem into this issue which is themed around 'making sense.' I've been getting updates delivered to my mailbox, something I don't normally do, but the sheer quality of language and visual art has been breathtaking, throughout - you should go take a look.

Their back issues are also interesting browsing too - check out their sidebar - and look out for the etymology of qarrtsiluni as well - it's a lovely word.