under another sun

Another weekend in Lockdown, with the sun moving into Aries and Spring quickening. A new year in other words.  Lorraine, needing to recover from a tough week via the medium of chatting to folks on the phone, doing a spot of cross stitch, and computer gaming, and calling on her new games consultant Sam who was able to help her get out of a few scrapes.  Lorraine and I took a couple of afternoon strolls, on Sunday we were up at the Hill Fort, and people sat on the wall itself looking out towards the distant sea as if they were at the beach. Also Lorraine collected baking trays from Argos, which were deployed on Sunday. A game of cards with Sam on Saturday night, which was fun.  I had a few bits to do for the podcast over the weekend, mainly reading translations of poets from around the world. Also a nice note from Trevor in Australia, who said 'I absolutely love this podcast! My only criticism is that there are not years and years worth of past episodes to listen to. This i...

Up very early to get on with the last of the job I've been working on with Keith this week, after a few comments came in from one of the team in France. Everyone based in France I work with is really nice. After a focused few hours we were done, thank goodness and I could get on arranging some interviews for the podcast. One will be with one of the editors of a Norton anthology of Native Nations Poetry, which will be interesting. A soul restoring walk this afternoon, listening to Klara and the Sun .  A chat with Anton at lunchtime. In the afternoon after my walk, I watched two more episodes of The Terror  which the Tobster told me about and I really like but is not to Lorraine's taste.   Lorraine had a better day today although this has been a very hard week for her. I cooked a salmon stir fry and we watched Masterchef and the last episode of season 4 of The Wire which is great. Below an image from The Terror, and an adorned tree encountered on my walk. Makes me think pe...

Up a bit later today, but in time to take my 9:30 briefing from a nice new client called Dan, who Keith and I had worked with a couple of weeks ago. I thought this may just be a simple rewrite, but it turned into a technical job with lots to think through. By four I was utterly braindead and feeling very tired. So I negotiated finishing it tomorrow, Saturday. Manacled to my desk most of the day, but had a short walk, and left Lorraine at the post office.  I did an enlarged walk around the block, and when I got home there was a roofer loitering outside, and I showed him the roof of my study to get a quote. Lorraine had called him earlier today. He had done some work on her school. We had another roofer at the beginning of the week in for a quote too. My study is damp and there is a problem that must be fixed, which is likely to hoover up lots of cash. So it goes.  After I could not work a jot more, I sat in the kitchen with Lorraine, watching her cook and simply drinking a can ...

A day slogging on a brief for a new client. Lots of mind maps on this job, which always provide evidence that you have actually been thinking about stuff. A 5.00 meeting confirmed I had done okay. Very pleasant people, called Audrey and Zohra both based in Paris. It was a Microsoft Teams call, but I did not see their faces. Felt pretty relaxed this evening till I got an email at 10:30 from someone I had forgot to copy. Managed to squeeze in a bit of podcast editing, and a short canter once around the park and back streets for a bit of brain aeration. Lorraine and I watching The Wire tonight. It is brilliant, and I have a feeling we are going to watch all of it now. 

Lorraine cheery as she has three days off this weekend. She jumped on the scales and found she had also lost a kilo.  An indoor day, with Lorraine absorbed in playing on the Nintendo switch and we had a enjoyable game of Mariocarts, where I enjoyed racing through the elaborate primary coloured landscapes.  I also read the short story Type by Matthew Rees, a signed copy arriving in the post this morning. Quite a comic story in many ways. An amusing note from him too. A zoom meeting this afternoon with Sam and Jade who are coming to live in Kenny Towers at the beginning of April. Looking forward to having different faces around, and non furry people to discuss things with during the day. Otherwise a peaceful day with two episodes of The Wire tonight completing series one again.  I have the DVD of all of it, and it is so well written and acted. Makes me laugh that Dominic West and Idris Elba are both English, but are utterly convincing. 

Dreadful nightmares. Up fairly early for a Saturday, and we drove off to Hove. We stopped at the small parade of shops on Richardson Road not far from Betty's place, and Lorraine went into a flower shop to buy a a sort of mid autumn Secret Santa pressie they were doing at work. I loitered outside, finding myself looking at Lion Mews, the name of which made me smile somewhat, ('mews' being a cat noise to me.) and even more when I discovered there was a Cat Grooming service in one of units.   I was still Pooterishly chuckling about cat grooming at Lion Mews when a cheery Betty hove to, and Lorraine came out of the shop and we wandered down to the seafront.  Betty was in good spirits, helped by her and James going nicely. She was off in the afternoon with James to see his mum and cousin.  You could really see the sky there, with occasional minutes of blue skied sunshine, when it grew surprisingly hot, and then bands of ominous cloud. Beautiful light. We ambled along and sat ...

Got on with things in which I could make some semblance of progress, such as completing doing my books to send off to Andrew, my accountant. I will be relaunching myself as a Limited Company shortly. Lorraine working at home all day too, and we went for a stroll about in the park this afternoon. Still reading the huge tome of Kingsley Amis letters, about halfway through. I don't much like him, but they are occasionally funny. Lorraine and I watched The Wire tonight. It is a splendid TV show.

Luxuriating in being able to sleep in, because Lorriane is working from home. Up and an indulgent day of working on poems and revisiting Skelton Yawngrave.  In the afternoon off to the gym where I had a highly sweaty workout, and felt more energetic than I have felt for some months. On the way home picked up a day's freelancing, from home for the Shaftsbury Ave folks. After work was done we zoomed off to collect a present for Beth, and then drove off to Hove to stroll by the sea. The tide out very low and the sand at the bottom of the endless pebbles reveals itself. Mrs Kenny and I having a cheerful walk. Lorraine paddling happily for a bit. People cooking barbecues on the beach. Lorraine and I on the edge of our summer. Returned home to a light supper and a couple of episodes of The Wire to which we are now properly addicted. Below long shadows of an late afternoon stroll by the sea.

Amazing thunderstorm from about 6:30 in the morning and lasting for a couple of hours with one strike being very close indeed, perhaps hitting the viaduct almost overhead. There was hail too, particularly over in Hove, where it was photographed in drifts like snow. Much flooding around the area, and Worthing Station became unusable due to flooding. The cats both apprehensive and hanging about with us. Calliope hiding under the bed at one point. Lorraine working at home today, so a comparative lie in would have been possible if it were not for the heavenly affray. I busied myself with poetry as I seem to be in a purple patch, also sending a submission off, paying my tax bill, creeping off to the gym (where I did half an hour and left feeling a bit swimmy headed) and, shamefully, got around to sending a poem I had done for Craig and Mel's wedding off to the printers to give it to them as a framed gift two years later. Expecting to be phoned to do some freelance today, but this did...

Feeling well enough today to try going back to the gym, for the first time in ages, for a paltry, but significant, 15 minutes on the cross trainer and 5 minutes on the rowing machine. It felt good to be at least able to do this. Later in the day, it being very hot up in the roof of the Old Church Hall, walked down to the sea and had a paddle.  The beach naturally very crowded, but the water was warm and if I'd had my swimmies on I would have gone in. Was contacted about work next week, but I am in Leeds, so could only offer Monday or the following week. Heard no more. Otherwise a productive day on my own stuff. Lorraine out with work folks tonight. Another large storm in Brighton early in the evening, and I took the precaution of unplugging computers and TVs for a bit, thinking of people I've known who were terrified of thunder, such as my grandfather's family, and when I stayed in the south of Italy with an Italian family once, how one of the older women prayed fervently...

Feeling better slowly but surely. A pleasant enough day working on various bits and pieces - I am revising Skelton Yawngrave prior to sending that out again but I feel almost like I'm on holiday. Miso soup today, bought from the Japanese shop, into which I slung some noodles and pak choi. Lorraine home just after lunch, and I made her one too, and we worked together upstairs in the afternoon. Spoke to Mum, who is on antibiotics for a tooth problem, but looking forward to going to Chicago to see Romy and Toby. A walk through the park this evening, it being full of summer, flowers and happy folks. The meadow flower area is particularly beautiful, the blue cornflowers particularly plentiful. We also then walked down what we hope will be our new street. I noticed lots of fuchsia bushes in people's gardens, which I took to be a good omen. You cling onto anything. I hope to get a cutting from mum's fuchsia when we move in, as her plant is taken from a cutting from my grandpar...

A good night's sleep, and mercifully able to work from home on my Shaftsbury Ave job today. Foot and ankle still far from dandy but I can stand and walk better. Working early, and survived a whole day without painkillers. Lorraine working late tonight teaching governors, so I cooked noodles, and various veggies, enjoyed two episodes of The Wire and wrote to Rhona. Surprisingly worn out this evening, being wan and sluggish is such a waste of time. Reading Fictions by Jorge Luis Borges which I am finding full of bookish, labyrinthine, postmodern pleasures.

A delicate and wan morning. Felt a glow of cheer though, after what had been one of the happiest birthdays I can remember. Lorraine cooked Scotch pancakes which were utterly delicious. Sprawled about on the sofa and chairs with Lorraine, First Matie and Betty (who had gone out clubbing after we left the Basketmakers... Ah the stamina of youth). We watched programmes about Autumn fruits and all chuckled as a male chef commented about a succession of sweet, tasty, surprisingly large plums. Eventually the endless cups of tea and mineral water and breakfast and general slumping did their magic work. Betty back up to London, and First Matie, L and I went up the road to the Signalman for roast lunch. It was nice to walk up Ditchling Rise however, the road gutters gleaming with freshly fallen conkers. Sadly though the food quality at the Signalman has plummeted. Won't be going back there to eat any time soon. I also had a solitary kill or cure beer: a pint of Darkness, a dark malty ...

New and old stagers A hot night and a hotter day. Up at seven to get cracking on Skelton Yawngrave again. Toby sleeping off his jetlag upstairs. Worked for four hours or so and then hung out with Toby for a bit of tea drinking and chatting over lunch. Then he trundled down the Twitten and up to the smoke to see Mum and Mas. I spent the rest of the day working, apart from a dead to the world doze for an hour. Got an email from Jason at Guernsey museums who tells me that there was a Dr Who novelisation set on Guernsey. Amazing. In the evening walked off to BHASVIC to meet Lorraine to see Beth and Mark in a college drama presentation: a collection of monologues and excerpts from plays from Sophocles to Jean-Claude Van Itallie. Beth and Mark were by far the best boy and girl. Both outstanding. Some of the kids are merely walking about saying lines, whereas Beth and Mark and two or three others can genuinely act, and the gulf is enormous. Sheep and goats. And Lorraine quietly proud beside m...

Mark's off A note this morning from Mark Hill who is off on a jaunt across Europe. He has started a project called " The Grey-haired Gap Year , In which your correspondent sets out in his mid-forties to do the backpacking trip he never quite managed in his twenties." Anyhoo Canadian Mark is off to explore the dark continent of Europe and hopefully get a book out of it too. I will link to his site from my blog. My day was fine, sorting out a few prosaic tasks and then getting down to Skelton Yawngrave again. Not quite recovered from mystery wussiness of the weekend but definitely improving. Brain still sluggish. Ate a surfeit of fish fingers as I had to defrost the fridge. Watched the first episode of the third series of The Wire . Never seen this show before, and I can see what all the fuss has been about. It is brilliantly done. I always seem to pick up on TV shows late. If this is what Baltimore is like, makes me feel even more retrospectively grateful for the angelic N...