under another sun

Woke up in Edgware late, and went down to find Mum and Mas up after the talkative carer had been. Dawdled over breakfast of coffee and toast, chatting. Mas sharing his opinions about the badness of tattoos among other things. With weird weather over the UK today, lightning, snow up north and heavy rain down south Lorraine and I left at around noon, after fond farewells with Mum and Mas, and we left clutching a bag of Christmas goodies. A slightly different route home cutting out a congested slice of the M25 pie. Despite heavy rain and water on the surface of the M25 we got home safely and the journey was much faster. For the first time in my life I had a conversation with Lorraine almost entirely in motorway numbers... yes we follow the M4 for a bit, then onto the M25, and head south on the M23. One day I will be able to talk to men at parties. Once we'd had a cup of tea at home, said hello to Sonia and thanked her for the cake she left us, made to her Bulgarian recipe. We buss...

Change of plan today, as I went to bed with a gym twinge in my foot which quickly morphed into a painful attack of gout. I have avoided beef for a couple of years and have avoided gout. The large real beef burger I ate a couple of days ago may have been be the trigger. Unable to walk in the morning and having had no sleep since midnight, had to phone mum first thing to bump the day I had intended to spend with her in London. Recent article in the Guardian about gout and how it is one of the last medical conditions that people feel free to laugh about.     I spent the day shunning work, instead read a novel called Stoner by John Williams  (click through for Julian Barnes writing about this). I'd not read a novel clean through in one day for many years. Stoner is a wonderful book, but the story about an unremarkable university professor is persistently sad and quietly ghastly. It had been a previously obscure work which has suddenly been picked up and become a word ...

The luxury of being in bed till 8:30. Revelling in a quiet day where all travel was on foot. Some billing and admin before a sweaty workout in the gym. Home and a relaxed afternoon, where I caught up with the new Vic Reeves and Bob Mortimer show, Vic & Bob's Lucky Sexy Winners , which in its unrestrained silliness, made me laugh out loud several times. Off at four in the afternoon to meet Anton in Tin Drum, and discuss The Count of Monte Cristo at some length before Anton had to return home to cook for the bairns. Luckily Lorraine joined me instead, before we went for a traditional friendly Friday night curry at the Shahi. Felt like a lucky sexy winner myself, after such a nice day. Fell asleep very early on the gold sofa. Below Bob Mortimer and Vic Reeves being silly.