Coming Soon!

I've a few more pics from that fabulous Indian trip and will post them here soon. Then I returned to Ireland in time for the onset of the Covid pandemic. All plans to go to Japan end of 2020 and Canada this summer were scuppered. Plus I was seriously ill after my 1st shot of AstraZeneca, months of headaches, pain and fatigue. Death by vaccine. Refused the 2nd shot so spent the summer with chronic fatigue in semi-isolation waiting for Ireland to catch up with the science and allow me to have a different 2nd shot (both Canada and Germany recommended that you get a mRNA after one AstraZeneca). FINALLY got a Pfizer in September, hurrah, so now fully vaxxed and ready to travel to Spain for the Christmas season. New book coming out in 2022 and a few other exciting things happening. More anon.

Talks, readings and Networking in India

Flying north from Bengaluru (old name Bangalore), I arrived in the ancient holy city of Varanasi (old names Benares, Kashi) for the week-long 144th International Convention of the Theosophical Society. There was also a cruise along the Ganges and a walk along the ghats. From there, I flew south to Chennai to visit Adyar, World Headquarters of the Theosophical Society and the Krishnamurti Foundation. And then further south again, to Pondicherry where I gave readings in schools in Auroville. Thanks go to Culture Ireland for grant support for this leg of the journey involving readings and networking.

 

Indiahhhhhh!

Not long back from a six-week magical mystery tour of India, my favourite country in the world. A mix of spiritual pleasure, research and writer's work, it began in Karnataka. Travelling with fellow Buddhists, I stayed in a Tibetan monastic guesthouse while attending the teachings of the Dalai Lama for two weeks. From there we spent Christmas in Mysuru (old name Mysore) and did some sight-seeing at Mysore Palace, St Philomena's Cathedral and Sri Chamundeshwari Temple atop a high hill. Then off to Bangalore for two days rest.

OCTOCON THE NATIONAL IRISH SCIENCE FICTION CONVENTION

The Trance Mission Diaries: Friday 19th October 2018, 7pm – 8pm THE TRANCE MISSION DIARIES is a performance art piece about life, the universe and everything. It tells the cosmic tale of a ruined lightship, a lost crew, a forgotten mission. With creator/narrator O.R. Melling, electronic sound artist Cha Krka, and vocalist Sylvia Teva. “I felt I was in … Continue reading "The Trance Mission Diaries"

THE TRANCE MISSION DIARIES

A ruined lightship, a lost crew, a forgotten mission. Memoir as cosmic myth narrated by O.R. Melling with electronic sound by R. O'Sullivan plus guest vocalist. Fasten your seat belts for a test pilot flight into life, the universe and everything. Bray Arts Club, May 1, 2018. Klinkerdin Experimental Art Space, the Commonground, Bray May 19, 2018. #AreYouCrew (Image thanks to Brant Wilson, Bittbox)

The Trance Mission Diaries

It's showtime! Next Saturday, March 3, my first original performance art piece will be happening at the Klinderdin Experimental Art Salon held in the Common Ground, Beverly Studios, Church Lane, Bray, Co. Wicklow, Ireland. I've done a few performance pieces in the past - The Life of Merlin on the Main Stage at the Mythic Journeys Conference in Atlanta with John & Cailtlin Matthews, Ari Berk, Toby Froud, and William Todd Jones; a gloriously wild piece with poet Michael Casey, in memory of Joseph Beuys, at the Ballyvaughan Poetry Festival in County Clare and some years after that, a performance of the work of Irish poet Frank Golden, In Daily Accord, at the Burren College of Art also in Co. Clare along with Frank and another poet, John Doorty. I love peforming but my own work hasn't created the space for me to do it until now. I've written a half-hour piece to be performed with an electronic sound artist and back-up vocalist and I'm ready to take it on the road. (May also put it online, we'll see.) My own version of Laurie Anderson crossed with Spalding Gray, The Trance Mission Diaries is memoir masquerading as cosmic myth and metaphor for life. More to come! #AreYouCrew

Emerging from the Dark

Well we may be heading into the dark of winter but I am just coming out of my cave and re-entering life! It has been a long year of mourning and depression and very little work but I am back writing again at last. I'm revising the book I wrote about my mother's dying and death and I am also working on a small performance piece that I will be doing with two others - a man who works with electronic sound and music and a singer. I am moving slowly though. Softly softly ...