A Myriad of Interests

When I have the chance to discuss things with people, on or offline, I will happily touch on a number of different subjects. Music is very close to my heart and forms an important part of my online life in terms of discussion and discovery. It was as Music_Pearce that I reinvented myself on Twitter and as a music writer for Subba Cultcha that I had the opportunity to explore different aspects of the art of communicating my enthusiasm. Some time later, when I started to write this blog, I incorporated nostalgia, both personal and cultural, to set the music in context and to bring out themes and connections that I made with my early life and the environment I grew up in. That led on to writing about favourite programmes of my childhood and the recapturing of emotions and responses that got me back in touch with my old self. Books became a very important part of my writing as I started to share my enthusiasm for particular authors and particular genres. New books that I read and wanted to share gave me an opportunity to explore a different style of writing. I also looked back at books I loved and really enjoyed reflecting on my old interests.

History is another area that I have always been interested in and as a child I was fascinated by it. As a primary school pupil I was introduced to the ‘great and the good’, with dates and battles giving me a way in. Over the years I have moved much more in the direction of social history and the lives led by the people who never appeared in the mainstream history teaching of the 1970s and early 1980s. This led to my Christmas Magazines Through The Years project from last December which saw me take a social and cultural approach and which my few readers found really interesting.

There is one thing I used to discuss as a teenager and as a young adult that I avoid at all costs now, politics. In the old days before social media you discussed politics over a beer in the pub or in a classroom in higher education. It was rough and tumble with no quarter asked or given, but you could discuss the subject with someone diametrically opposed to you, agree to differ and remain on good terms. Nowadays that’s impossible, because if you disagree with someone you are seemingly duty bound to hate them as people. As a result I am only occasionally guilty of being political and then only in passing. Human nature seems to be on a massive downward trend due to social media and hatred is the currency of conversation. Whereas, in the past, I could be friendly with those of a different political viewpoint, now I avoid them or never discuss the subject if I feel that they may be of a very different view. I think this conflating of political viewpoint with personal behaviour is a hugely damaging step, which I am very much guilty of, and will lead to the ruin of society both in the personal and the national forum.

As I have focused on the negatives in the last paragraph I wanted to leave you on a positive note with a picture of Canterbury Cathedral which I visited yesterday. It’s very good value if you are near the city or within reasonable travelling distance because £19.50 gets you a whole year’s entry to one of our great historic buildings. We will definitely be making the most of our year’s ticket, that’s for sure.