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Date: 10/01/14
Edward Blishen - "Adventure In Moving"
All of four years ago now, I referred to a sort of poème trouvée composed by my old chum Alex based on the entries on his television's Electronic Programme Guide, and made reference to something written by Edward Blishen which Alex's efforts brought to mind.
Last night, in an access of 'something to do rather than go to bed too early', I went back through all my old recordings of Stop The Week with Robert Robinson in search of the piece I was writing about.
I found it in an edition of the programme from November 1989, and I thought I might as well share it with you, seeing as I went to the effort.
The background is a train journey Blishen took from Vancouver, BC to Portland, Or. A writer to the bone, he had a little notebook on his lap throughout, and simply jotted down what was written on the signs he saw as the train headed south, without doing anything to put them to any order. The result is as much a poem as anything you could wish for, and it produces an almost incantatory effect:
Adventure In Moving (excerpt) by Edward Blishen
"Adventure In Moving
Food And Gas Next Exit
Snohomish County
Unauthorized Cars Will Be Impounded
Ebb-Tide Flotation Mattresses
Veterans' Hall
Soper Towing (Marysville)
But He Was Wounded For Our Transgressions
Please Park And Lock
The Old Spaghetti Factory
Thrift Store
E-Z-Up Shelving
Fisher Bag Company
Luster-Glow Cleaners
Frogs' Legs $3.98, Squid Salad $4.95..."
© The Estate of Edward Blishen
