Nicholas really really Was, wasn't he?

I was about to drive off and find an all-night supermarket to buy rawhide dog-chews because a dog appears to be teething, and you would not believe the things she's chewed, but something fun just came through, and I thought, I had better post it...

But before I do, a moment of introduction, backfill if you will:

A few weeks ago I noticed on YouTube some wonderful little films people had made to accompany my poem THE DAY THE SAUCERS CAME.

You do not need to play them now, but I'll put them up here in case you get the urge later.

Here's one that uses me as the narrator...



and a couple that have other people reading it...





And I thought, those are really fun. I should suggest on the blog that people do something like that with NICHOLAS WAS... for Xmas.

And then I forgot. I thought of it when I was out walking and I probably got distracted by something like wondering if I should put a lamppost out in the woods, and it fell out of my head.

And then this came in. It was done by a motion/graphics design studio in Beijing as their video Christmas Card.

This is the one you really do have to watch now. Go on.

39 Degrees North: Christmas Card 2010 from 39 Degrees North on Vimeo.

It's wonderful. And it's Nicholas Was, all right.

And if any of you are feeling inspired and want to make your own little Nicholas Wases, you've got a week. Send me links through the FAQ line (NOT Twitter. I am never guaranteed to see everything or even most things on Twitter.)

I'll post them at Christmas.

....

And because I'm now suddenly feeling all Christmassy, here's a link to the Independent article I did a couple of years ago, a memoir of being eight, and Jewish and wanting a Christmas Tree.

And a photograph, care of Jonathan Carroll, that also made me feel very Christmassy indeed:

Labels: cans? She chewed CANS?, Jewish Christmas things, nicholas was, the Day the Saucers Came, weirdly normal labels

Xmas Roundup With Some Good Links and a photo of an author in it

How the hell did it get to be December the 18th? Ohhh. All the links I meant to post. Arghh.

For a start, I want to repost this little true thing I wrote, from last year's Independent: it's about being an eight year old Jewish kid who really wanted a Christmas tree...

http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/features/neil-gaiman-hanukkah-with-bells-on-1203307.html

I wanted to tell you that you can still get the signed prints of "Before You Read This" I did with Todd Klein -- it's a poem I wrote that Todd lettered -- at Todd's website (along with Todd's other unique signed prints -- collaborations with Alex Ross, Alan Moore and J.H. Williams). http://kleinletters.com/Blog/?p=6525. (If you're hesitating, order: they're really cheap, and the second printing will be gone soon.)

Also, for signed things and rare stuff, you can Do Good while last minute shopping by heading over to the CBLDF shop website. Here's the page with stuff related to me on it.)

I just got my author's copies of "A Hundred Words To Talk of Death", the poem I wrote that Jim Lee illustrated and Todd Klein lettered. (Someone wrote to me on Twitter pointing out that it is two syllables short, and unable to figure out why. I will leave that as a problem for you to solve.) It's beautiful -- the same size and quality as the print of "The Day The Saucers Came". It's glorious. (Thinks: I can take a photo to show people.)

I didn't used to think of Jim Lee as a glorious and subtle pencil artist, but he really is, and this is wonderful. (You can order them from here, and read about Kitty's adventures in shipping them out over at http://kittysneverwear.blogspot.com/, with bonus pictures right now of my Very Late Guy Fawkes Part of last month.)

Here is a photo of an author who needs a shave holding a print of "One Hundred Words" poem.

Kitty herself is heading off on tour with Lady Gaga early next year, and Maddy is going to see them in Chicago (where, about eight years ago, I first met Kitty, on the road with Tori) (Who will be interviewed tonight on ABC -- Tori that is, not Kitty or Maddy).

Amanda and I have been having something that isn't quite an argument about Lady Gaga for a few weeks. We have really rubbish arguments, because they normally resolve into the discovery that we weren't arguing at all, just saying the same thing from two different points of view. Amanda posted a ukulele video-song-blog she'd written late last night from her Boston flat when she was probably meant to be practising her New Year's Eve Tchaikovsky, and I discovered that our latest argument wasn't an argument and we were talking about the same things again. It's art. You make it.

I don't think I will ever write songs and post them on YouTube instead of blogging. I'm in awe of someone who can. It's a good song, too, not just a funny and wise end-of-an-argument, even if she has to stop and scroll down at the last verse.




Also, she said "aluminium".

And finally, in keeping with the not-exactly-Christmassy-but-sort-of theme of this blog...

Labels: amanda palmer, Jewish Christmas things, Jim Lee, lady gaga, photo of me holding something, Tim Minchin, Todd Klein