IN EXTREMIS

glass
done
berry
been back three days from the somerset levels
and still the experience is swimming around my head
like a whirlpool
how to describe this thing?
how to sum it up?
do it justice?
life-affirming injection of raw energy?
premonition of an apocalyptic post-industrial future?
cultural smorgisbord?
gaping hole in pocket?
it wouldn't be difficult to talk most people out of going
150,000 people wandering around muddy fields in their wellies
swearing and cussing
dragging their piles of stuff
from one side of the site to the other
and back again
negotiating every kind of discarded litter item:
rotting leftovers
lost items of clothing
broken furniture
yesterday's papers
plastic bottles
aluminium cans
paper cups
etcetera etcetera
navigating piles of uncollected binbags
sleeping in poky makeshift canvas houses
peeing and defacating in stinking temporary latrines
queueing at standpipes to refill their water bottles
waiting in long lines for a possibly hot shower
or deciding to go unwashed
snacking on fast food from portable stalls
brushing teeth occasionally
choking on smoke from burnt out campfires
and yet...
at any one time
on one stage or another
a score of artistes are doing their thang
rock groups
folk singers
rappers
djs
dancers
poets
speakers
circus performers
mime artists
cabaret artists
craftspeople
the gifted
the charismatic
the quirky
the hilarious
the inspired
the uninspired
the maudlin
the silly
the fascinating
the tedious
and all the ones in between
crowded house are happy to reel off their 80s hits
neil finn enjoys goading the security staff
amy vinehorse totters around the stage
mumbling incoherently
the hoodoo gurus rock
dave faulkner cracks witty jokes
billy bragg calls calls for solidarity
brothers n sisters
leonard cohen is dapper and humble
joan baez is not particularly humble
but she does an uncanny impersonation of bob
i miss neil diamond stranded in a carpark
i wanna hear more of elbow
glenn tilbrook rips up the junction
ron sexsmith walks off after two songs
andrew morris sings about a prisoner's innocence
hannah cavorts around to goldfrapp's floaty synthsongs
hey! that guy's wearing a manifesto t-shirt
just goes to show that nobody's original!