An interlude in Lewes

Took a brief with Keith this morning, from the old FB, Pat and Perky. Keith and I spent the day batting bits back and forth as usual. This against a backdrop of breaking off to man&womanhandle metal bed frames downstairs and other bits that Lorraine was getting on with. 

In the evening I made off to Lewes to the Needlewriters poetry, where I heard Antony Mair read, a lovely man, plus Beth Miller read some prose and Frances Presley gave us some selections from her collected works. 

A bizarre interlude where one of the staff of the John Harvey Tavern poked her head in, as Beth Miller was reading and the audience were listening attentively, and said to Janet and Rachel sitting by the door that 'you do know it's a £50 charge for the room don't  you?' Something apparently not previously mentioned in the years the Needlewriters have been meeting there. 

I sat on a table with SJB, Charlotte and Stephen Bone -- who were giving me encouragement with pursuing the collection -- and chatted to Janet Sutherland, Robin there too hanging out with her Hastings posse. Nice atmosphere and good to say hi to lots of writers. After the reading, everyone else seemed to leave early apart from our table, with Janet and Lesley joining us as well as Frances Presley. After a while, a woman called Jasmin wandered in looking for the poetry reading, so she came and joined us and told us she had been at a Jazz event in London. Interesting person who told me she had done some work with Radio Seaford. 

I must learn the times from Lewes as I always seem to arrive at the station a couple of minutes after the Seaford train has gone (there are only two an hour).  

Walking home, I noticed the stars again, much more visible in this little town. Nice to be home to Lorraine, sitting in bed with the cats, playing star dew valley.

However the fuses started tripping not long after I arrived. Cue creeping about with phone torches like scenes from the X files. We think it is to do with the dishwasher -- or some kind of alien.