under another sun

Sent Robin the episode this morning, and she returned it with a few tweaks, uploaded and so on, and a relief to get this one uploaded. In the evening off to Brighton. Reading The Hatred of Poetry by Ben Learner on the train. So far it's a meh from me.  To the Evening Star, where I met Mark and Peter, the Messrs H&H.  They were kind about Mason and Mum, and generally we put the world to rights over some enjoyable quaffs. I gave them each a copy of Snow . A cheeky pizza in Fatto a Mano in the North Laine, and after one in the Eagle, ended up in the Basketmakers. It hasn't changed, but though I keep expecting to recognise people in there, I didn't. A fine night. And nice to be meeting up with old school friends so regularly. Just missed the Seaford train, so hopped on a bus instead, drinking a much needed litre of water. 

Lorraine had arranged for a supermarket delivery to come this morning between 7 and 9. So up before the sparrows. However, when she checked it, the delivery was going to be made to our old address in Brighton. Lorraine having to make lots of phone calls, where she was assured she could drive to Hove and collect the order this afternoon. This a 40 minute drive. She drove off, and she'd been told a load of bollocks on the helpline, and so had to do the whole shop from scratch. Basically sorting this out took hours and was very frustrating considering the whole idea of a delivery was to save time. Meanwhile, I did the stuff for my client and sent it off to France around lunchtime.  Broke off so that Robin and I could re-record a conversation where on playback the channels recorded two Robins instead of both of us. Late feedback from the client, who tryingly true to form, wanted to make changes. Means I am going to have to do it tomorrow morning, which left me feeling a tad irritated. ...

Up early and in a frenzy of tidying up and activity. Sun pouring in through the velux windows this morning galvanising Lorraine and I into a frenzy of tidying up and activity including painting the last remaining mauve wall white. Why does anybody paint mauve onto a wall other than to signify their own moral degeneracy? Lorraine told by Beth to expect a surprise delivery at 11:30 today. And the delivery proved to be of Beth herself and three pals from college, Olivia, Liza and Emily. Lorraine and I had arranged to meet Matt and Wayne in the Bath Arms for a late roast lunch, and the girls came too. Beth's friends proving cheery and likable - although Olivia had just lost a friend in a car crash so was putting on a brave face. Beth took her pals off to look at the pier, where two had their fortunes told, and went on various rides. Matt needed some shoes, so L, Wayne and I went shoe shopping with him. As we were leaving the Bath Arms bumped into...

Zonk out Diet gradually returning to normal, with quorn sausages this morning to start. Pat and Maureen driven off to the station at noon. I am rocking a Donnegal Tweed cap at the moment, and Pat has given me a few insightful cap-wearer's hints such as to leave your cap in your coat pocket when you're visiting someone. Fond farewells. Then off to see The Gandeys, nice to see Richard and Glenda, and of course young Mark. An undertow of awkward there given that Mark and Beth have broken up. Mark wanted to show me something on his computer and his screensaver was of him and his new girlfriend for example. Beth conducting herself with poise. Nevertheless good to see them, before we zoomed off to a nearby shopping centre to struggle in the crowds in the sales. I could find nothing to buy. Home, and Lorraine's old pals Sue and John popped in. They were down from the Cotswolds seeing various people in Brighton. A nice chat with them. After they left a greatly zonk out, eating salm...

Party time So today zooming about getting ready for a large party to celebrate Betty's 20th birthday and me and Lorraine living together. Lorraine off to get an astonishingly red hair cut n' colour which everyone agreed was rather smart. Then Betty, Lorraine and I going off to buy quantities of boozes and food in supermarkets, blow up ballons, prepare food and move furniture about. Very tired all day but a shower and a stiff drink worked wonders. Max, The French Bloke and their cherubic children Tahlia, Zemirah and Elijah arrived an hour and a half early, which effectively started the party with the children zooming about. Betty upstairs glamming herself up with two of her pals, watched awe-struck by young Tahlia and Zemirah. Another pal Linda arrived somewhat before the party started already drunk and slightly chaotic. Then lots of guests, First Matie and Matty Boy, The Shakespeare Trio who gave us a bit of a tune accompanied by Steve Cartwright on banjo, Claudius, Matt and Wa...

In search of bananas First Matie over for breakfast this morning. I sloped off to get middle class food from Arkwrights. On the way back was stopped by a man who asked me to walk him to the bus stop. He said was about to be eighty and was having trouble with his arthritis. As we neared the bus stop, he mentioned he wanted a paper, so we toddled on to the newsagent, but as we approached the newsagent he said what he actually wanted was bananas so I took him all the way back to Arkwrights. I left him at the shop and returned feeling vaguely guilty that I hadn’t waited to walk him home. A persuasive and charming gentleman. Then bacon and eggs with First Matie, who had stayed with pals in Hove last night. She harvested our cardboard boxes for her next move, which will see her living on Strand on the Green. Not under cardboard of course, but in a house. Forced Katie to listen to some of the CD and drank teas before she drove off in her green Subaru. After Kate left, I noticed for a few mome...

Alarms and sweet music Mark had gone out after work with some friends, including Matt partner of Sarah who Beth works as a nanny for sometimes (and is head of the stage school Beth and Mark attended). Mark and Matt where having a chat at about 3:00am sitting down on the beach where they were randomly attacked by a gang of youths. Mark was picked up and thrown into the sea, and Matt who has had army training was set upon by half a dozen youths kicking him in the face. They arrived at our house at about 3:30 Matt covered in blood. Lorraine and Beth tended to them and put Matt to bed after checking for concussion. Shamefully, I was feeling so rough at 3:30am that I didn’t even get up. In the morning poor Matt's face was very colourful with an entirely closed eye, a broken nose and covered in bruises, and after Sarah came around Mark and Matt went to the police station to give their statements. I lent Matt a pair of shoes as his were covered in blood. Sinks full of soaking blood...

It's alive! Walked home this morning after slurping tea in bed made by Lorraine. A beautiful day. Busied myself rehearsing and tidying, until a nice Romanian man came to the Twitten at noon to replace my hard disk, like a heart transplant but less messy. He also fell in love with Calliope as she poked her head into the open computer next to him, and walked on the desk watching him typing. Now I have a Frankenstein's PC freshly loaded with Windows, and got busy downloading my bits and pieces, copying files across and trying to get on with all the business, and by 7.00pm had almost reassembled it. The day interspersed with rehearsals and I am feeling more confident about being able to give a good account of myself tomorrow. Had many windows open and wondering slightly afterwards what people would have made of all the passionate bleating indoors. This interspersed by calls from Beth who had urgent faxes to send to secure a place in a shared house when she goes to college, and almo...

Barbecue of beers Lots of admin this morning. Fairly satisfying to biff through things, including working out at last how to send email from peterkenny.co.uk, which involved a week of helpdesk emails. Met Mark for coffee to discuss the Marlborough theatre dates at the end of Tuesday. Mark's pirate idea sounds very funny. Discussed Betty the Spacegirl too, and talked about the branding for the show. Both came out in a happy place. In the afternoon off to Di and Adrian Turner's studio to discuss the photoshoot next Tuesday. Adrian is going to mooch about during the rehearsal and snap candid shots of us. Always enjoy popping into see them, Adrian printing off prints of his beautiful seascapes as we were talking. Really looking forward to having a proper photographer work on the project. To the Marlborough Theatre to drop off an envelope, before repairing to the inevitable Basketmakers. There had been a planned barbecue, but the unreliable weather put the kibosh on it, so we all w...

Beth's birthday Beth's 19th birthday today, but Beth overnight had been in a time machine and was about 10 when she bounced into the bedroom at 6:30am. Soon after she bought cups of tea and her and Mark sat on the end of the bed like talking cats, until Betty's present opening ceremony began. She got a Crackberry from Lorraine, Mark got her a useful combination toy aircraft/fork and some Cath Kidston oven gloves, which matched the Cath Kidston cook's pinafore I got her. Luckily we'd bought the same colour and pattern too. The Cath Kidston shop was where I was accused of shoplifting last weekend. I found it migraine-inducingly stuffed with kitch and flowery stuff in pink and baby blue. I suspect, however, I may not be target market. Beth off to work at the stage school to be sung happy birthday to by small children, and then have a drink with her dad and lots of presents and a party with her mates in the evening. Klaudia now goes to the stage school too and took a ca...

Roll up! Up at seven at Lorriane's house. Lorraine drove Beth and the million sellable things down to the car boot sale in the carpark of local college Beth and Mark go to. Mark and I, in slightly comedic manner, carried a trestle table down the streets to meet them there later. As soon as we started piling the objects out, we were swooped on by pushy traders trying to offer us next to nothing for jewellery. These were rebuffed. I found myself quite getting into the whole thing and bantering with the punters. Beth and Mark donned caps and got straight into character. A fair amount of money was made, but buying the obligatory bacon sarnies and tea in polystyrene cups cut into this somewhat. A fair amount of people and it's a good way to chat to people of all kinds. Although it does mean you are unable to escape if mad people start talking to you. I popped home briefly to feed Calliope and discovered a photocopied anonymous note saying there had been wildness and rampaging dr...

Frak! Woken by South London gangsters pelting down the Twitten with police in pursuit, wheezing directions into their walkie talkies at 4:30am. What a way to earn a living. Wasted lots of time faffing about. Did a mindmap of things which helped a bit. Went to the gym for a session of the Hulk legs machine, and uphill loping on the treadmill. I am enjoying it, and look forward to going to the gym. My God, what is happening to me? Lorraine has almost finished Skelton Yawngrave and is providing lots of good feedback. She's a gem. A cheery interlude this afternoon, when Anna came around for a cup of tea and to show Klaudia and Oskar my fish. Oskar particularly fancying my gold sucking loach, and pressing his nose against the glass. Zombied out this evening watching DVDs of Battlestar Galactica . This is the series made in 2004, and frak me it's good. Having chewed through my phone recharger wire, necessitating a wire wiggling nightmare just to half recharge my phone, Calliope has ...

Meeting Mark in the Cricketers Working on French stuff this morning, and all going well. Still enjoying the work, even putting together the PowerPoint presentation. Also painted my door again, scraping off bubbly bits and putting a new coat on inside too. If I had waited passively for long ages for door atoms to spontaneously assemble in the outer darkness and coat themselves with paint, before plunging unharmed through the layers of our atmosphere to land miraculously in my yard, painting this bloody door could not have taken longer. In the afternoon fairly chilled. General tidying and so on. Amazing how you can tidy up for hours and yet your house looks a smidge messier than it did before you started. In the evening off to the Cricketers to have a couple of beers with Mark and then slope off for a spot of chop sticking in a nice Chinese restaurant. Great to see him - and as usual he seems to be working very hard. Heard all about the family, and his daughter Melissa who is going to d...

An unexpected Mark Woke up at 5:30 this morning brooding about this latest pitch. Took the early train into work to get a flying start, and fortunately things have finally fallen into place, and so today was by far the best day this week. On a Pooterish note. At six had a very cheeky beer with the Gnome (real name Mike) at the work bar. There were two others there: Mike Ferg and Mike O. I looked at them alarmed and said urgently: say nothing secret! Why? one of them said. Because the bar is fully miked! Nobody thought this was funny. And on yet another Pooterish note... I got trapped in a toilet cubicle at work and when I jerked the door open, it somehow viciously rebounded, slamming into the side of my head. Afterwards I read my horoscope, fingering the lump in my scalp, it said I might have an accident caused by frustrated ego energies. Very helpful. The train home, still gripped by the Lord of the Rings, and playing Zuma on my mobile phone. I got a call from Mark apologising fo...