Hi Alphas,
Welcome to Alphaday 5, Season XV. This is the last Alphaday of 2018 and I expect you’re ready for a mid-season break. In fact we’re only just over a third of the way through, but I think we’ve packed a lot into this first part. We’ve been treated to a wealth of varied writings and – more importantly perhaps – we’ve had to consider the qualities of every piece and question our own methods. Add the extras supplied by the Log and Writers’ Reads and we certainly have been busy enough to look forward to mulled wine and mince pies for a change; for some of us you’ll have read that as a metaphor for whatever seasonal treats are available.
Talking of treats, the Alpha agenda is studded with them, as follows:
- This Bulletin from me
- Results and feedback re. the Open Page 1st edition from Christine
- The collated entries for the Photo challenge from Sarah
- The brief for Challenge 4 from Jackie
- A Writers’ Reads prompt from Morgen
- A call for Log entries from Sally
As usual every single Alpha member has contributed something to the above agenda. Thanks can be scattered in all directions and we appreciate this willingness to contribute and the fruits thereof which you’ll receive in the course of the day.
Alpha News:
We welcome a new member today. Martin is an all-round writer with an interest in poetry. He hails from Sheffield which seems fairly close to the part of the world that’s densely populated by Alphas. We hope you’ll soon feel at home with us.
I’d like to send my best wishes for the festive season to our two senior members who for health reasons have taken a back seat in this season’s activities.
Best Season’s Greetings to you both, Olaf and Chris!
General news:
I wonder if it would take another two years to put all the laws that were taken out of the EU system and transferred to the UK system back the other way again? What a waste of time! As for the frightening, destructive fury that reared its ugly head in Paris and other large French cities one wonders why a civilised society needs that type of argument. As David Attenborough said, “The collapse of our civilisations is on the horizon.” He was talking about climate change, and that’s a very serious threat, but it’s clearly not the only one.
Author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie who presented the Turner Prize to the winner, Charlotte Prodger, made an excellent speech in which she said that art was essential for a wider, more imaginative vision of every aspect of our culture including the sciences. Of course she’s right!
Let’s have a peaceful festive season with more goodwill and mulled wine than wrangling or violence. With all the extreme weather we’re getting we might even have a white one here in Europe … and I hope the fires in Queensland, the floods in NSW and the earthquakes in Nepal have calmed down.
Season’s greetings,
Christine