Words by

The Reykjavík Grapevine

@rvkgrapevine

Dear Editor
Great idea to have a memorial service for the Hiroshima anniversary. Maybe not such a great idea to use the American aluminium and oil industries to do it? Ok, paraffin wax candles in foil trays on the lake look pretty. But whilst remembering Hiroshima, let’s spare a thought for our roles in other humanitarian and ecological conflicts too, Kharanjukar, Iraq or wherever. A joining of hands around the lake might do the same thing?
yours,
a visitor.
Yes, there is more to be done. But hats off to the organizers of the Hiroshima observation. It was beautiful and tactful. Speaking of tact… well, for starters, it’s spelled Kárahnjúkar.
Hi
Saw in the latest issue of Grapevine that you list Icelandic courses and I thought I’d bring to your attention a free online course in Icelandic:
http://www.icelandic.hi.is/
thnx for a great mag
gunnar
Thank you.
We were on our way back to Keflavík airport on Saturday 13th August, when we found ourselves just ahead of what looked like a fairly large motorbike convoy, complete with flags.  The police stopped traffic to let them all through as we were leaving Reykjavík.  We’ve been trying to find out what was going on, but with no luck and we’re REALLY curious!  Do you have any information?  We’d love to hear.
Jackie and Colin Rowell
Could be Alice Cooper fans. Could be hidden people. Could be a spot of underdone potato.
Hail Brother Bart and Squire Paul The reason I am writing to you is out my untold love for the Grapevine
newspaper. The witty comments and articles I read every few weeks make me fall off my seat laughing especially those replies to letters, I felt for the Italian guy at the “unnamed” bank. People surely criticise you just to release the best material you guys have in the responses to them?
I thought that surely I would never find myself trying to throw a verbal wrench into your editorial and yet I now find myself doing this very thing and akin to Homer J Simpson realising that all the “doughnuts” have run out. I was mortified…
My qualm, so to say, is through your actions rather than your words. The current Grapevine “bad taste” tour is most excellent and welcomed by myself and many others, especially the Bart Dylan recital, most recently. I personally can’t help but feel this coverage and limelight could have been used in a more productive manner, not only to promote more unknown Icelandic bands but of the general multi-cultural aspects of Iceland and the ideals that Grapevine, allegedly, represents.
The other day I was walking through downtown and right outside the Grapevine offices I found myself watching a four man indigenous North-American ho-down, so to say. The guys were wearing full traditional Sioux or Apache costume and dancing, to what I believe was some sort of shamanic celebration. It was truly amazing and I would have much preferred to have seen this amazing, soulful, historically and enlightening piece, rather than the drab, grey and to quote recent Grapevine reviews, “screaming” bands, from the escalator of Icelandic indie/metal mediocrity. Grapevine it is a crying shame that you cannot have used your media platform and this opportunity you had here to show the amazing music, talent and diversity that the different cultures present in this land and you didn’t…
All I can say that you can go somewhere to repairing this drift between us through a) a witty comment in response to this, b) finding those said Sioux tribesmen and use them to replace the wailing crap which seems to be headlining this month’s tour and finally C) Using the correct “International English language” for your “International English language paper”, therefore not Americanised English. I am expecting no more Colors from now on but Colours and it is doughnut, a nut of dough, not a Homer J “Doh” nut and so and so forth…
Lots of love
Mervyn J. Puffin (Connoisseur of all things doughnut and not the manager of afore mentioned Sioux tribesmen)
Hello Mervyn,
We use American rules of punctuation and British spelling. Donut is actually correct in the King’s English. Sioux is rarely used anymore, as most members of the Lakota tribes prefer not to use a name passed on to them to by Frenchmen. Icelandic music is the best music in the world. Our reviewer was mistaken.
But, to pick a scab, actually the GRAPEVINE BAD TASTE CONCERT SERIES had nothing to do with Bart Cameron or Paul Nikolov.
And what do you mean no diversity? The series had Nortón. Nortón! That is diverse. And they even played twice. You only get that kind of diversity when the organizer is in the actual band Nortón.
RE: I’d Like to Link to Your Cat Sitting Page
Hi there,
I’m writing because I’d really like to link to your site from mine. I
have a site dedicated to locating cat sitters all over the United
States. The URL is: http://www.catsitting.net/
Each page has a “Related Sites” section where related links go. Your
link will go in that section.
You can add your link to all 16,000+ pages of the site by filling out
the form located here: http://www.catsitting.net/index.php?addlink=true&url=www.grapevine.is&id=29449
PLEASE do not share that URL with anybody, since I am very particular
about which sites get added to my related sites section and I don’t want that form to get abused by link spammers.
I appreciate the hard work you’re doing on your site!
Keep it up!
Thanks,
Jon
Actually, we do offer a cat sitting service, though we’ve never written about it, Jon, you nasty little spammer. Can we recommend you visit Reykjanes, here in Iceland, where they will take your cat and promptly euthanize it—they seem to do a humane job. And they’ve got a lot of practice; as of August 30th, they’d killed hundreds of cats in a special program to fight overpopulation. Otherwise, I guess you can mail your little songbird-killing mutant feline to us and we’ll gladly sit on it until it stops squeaking.
Ahem… I may need some sleep. All you cat-loving, lonely people, please email letters@grapevine.is between Sept 1 and Sept 14, when I’m on vacation. The interns or Paul will apologize for me.