Bloomsday Sydney 2012

Bloomsday on Bondi, Sydney 2012

There are numerous Bloomsday events taking place around Australia this year. Sydneysiders will be treated to a day of Joyce by the sea, when the Bondi Pavilion becomes the latest place to celebrate Joyce's Ulysses on Saturday, June the 16th.
Bloomsday on Bondi begins at 10am with individual and group readings planned until 10pm.

Most of the days events are free, but there are two ticketed events for the morning and evening sessions. Buy tickets for Bloomsday on Bondi here:
UNSW, Centre for Global Irish Studies

May 6th Gathering

Present and accounted for, including Hosty GC, Ger and Tahonic, El Monty in the black fedora, Gwin n Tonic and myself, Sweet Mitzybird.   

A wonderful milestone (and stem) has been reached in our reading group. Together we have reached the final pages of Book 1 of Finnegans Wake. The chapter (1,8) is a firm favourite, known simply as 'ALP' for its heroine Anna Livia Plurabelle, or 'The Washers at the Ford' for the two washerwomen who maintain the flow of dialogue about ALP.

Whilte tempting to say we have 'finished' reading Book 1, it's hard to say our joyful work on the chapter is complete. It's a piece we'll return to time and again. There may yet be a bit of a performance from it at this year's Bloomsday.

We completed reading the list of presents given by ALP to all her childer. Some were rude and some were sad, some were nude and some quite mad. An enduring favourite maong the characters for me is Frisky Shorty. A great name for a pet terrier if there ever was one.

Other group members might post their own thoughts and reflections on our humble Finnegans Wake Reading Group as time meanders on its way. Or they mightn't, such as they please.

If you like Bloomsday, use facebook, and will materially occupy your allocated dimension of space in the Sydney region on June 16th, then check out the details for Bloomsday on Bondi:
www.facebook.com/BloomsdayonBondi.
It will have details and a link to the tickets page. Two ticketed events and two free events. Readings from Ulysses by cool people, music by talented people and craic by drunk people. Guinness on tap.

Myself, I will materialise in Dublin this Bloomsday for the first time.

As for the rising moon, it shone whitely and cool all over our pages of 212 and beyond in 1,8 - a mysterious and sad whispering, the watery sluicing of crumpled laundry and the quiet flap of bat wings. All this we heard, and bucketloads more. We shall return.