Go not to the Elves for counsel, for they will say both no and yes

Now utterly hooked on listening to The Lord of the Rings on my iPod. And although it pains me to write this: Anton was right. He told me that I'd experience it differently as an audiobook. Very soothing hearing about hobbits meeting elves in the Shire as you fight your way onto the tube at Victoria station.

Groundhog day at the office: a morning meeting to agree our direction which then the Gnome and me worked on all day. Then at 5pm another meeting which revealed a changed strategy which rendered our whole day fruitless. When they said yes this morning, the actually meant no. Also heard that we lost the pitch last Wednesday despite my stunning performance. Bah.

Escaped this, and met Sarah Freems in the Oriole in Sloane Square after work. I enjoyed the people-watching while I waited for her, but we left as soon as she turned up as she doesn't like it there. Instead we sloped off to a pub that Fras knows, where I was phoned by my boss to have yet another discussion about the pitch and what to do next.

A nice Italian meal with Sarah, where I asked her about Fras, and their bairns, and we did a large amount of gossiping about our many and various mutual acquaintances. She also said that Fraser's health problems had changed her, that these days she thought about what good she could bring to everyone she encountered. Although five foot nothing in her stockinged feet, she can be a scary and formidable little thing, so I said I was pleased to hear it.

Then off to Brighton. Fell instantly into conversation as the train left the station with a recently-retired lecturer who had just been to the Velázquez exhibition. We discussed visual art all the way to Brighton. He had several wrong opinions about things, but in general this was some unexpected fun.

Below, the Gnome hard at work in the boardroom. We'd snuck in to spread out some work...