under another sun

A calm day today. Lorraine shattered generally and in recovery mode. I looked after her somewhat, although had been a bit over enthusiastic about the post-Santa beers the evening before so felt a little sadder and wiser. In the afternoon we went for a walk to a nearby Open House and looked at some art. There were some stained glass bits in there, they were decorative enough, but not the kind of epochal meisterwerkes my future self will create. Otherwise I spoke to Mum who made me look at a video with millions of hits about a giant spider terrorising Toronto, which features the Tobster in a cameo role (a Tobeo?) as a passer-by. Luckily he did not scream at the spider that lurks in the doorway he is approaching. The girls are scream though.   Watch it for yourself here . Otherwise a roast chicken was eaten and all was well.

A nice day today. Up early thanks to Calliope. After breakfast I mowed our tiny lawn. Then we walked around and about some of the local Open Houses. Chatting with Lorraine about the art on show. Lots of it quite nice, but always decorative. None of it seems really engaging with  anything other than pleasantness. One place I found someone who was different. This was in the Church of St John the Evangelist, which I walk past most days on the way back from the station. Interesting work by someone called Annelies Clarke who at least to have ideas in it. Lorraine and I sat in the Church and had some cake and a cup of tea. Really enjoyed mooching about with Lorraine and trying not to spend money. Spent the evening working on my computer.  Then Lorraine cooked nice food, and we drank some wine and did not want to go to bed. Below a strange piece by Annelies Clarke, I think, strange faces on sheets ascending into the space of the church.

A hearty breakfast this morning, although I was talking about pitch matters with Yas briefly, before coming down to scarf my bacon sandwich. Krys somewhat better this morning and with her architect's eye looked at our kitchen and gave us some insightful thoughts on how to extend it. Then Lorraine, Krys and I went off to visit some more Open Houses. I fell into conversation with several people, including most interestingly with a man called Brian Mander, who has an extraordinary garden, with a plethora of concrete heads, stag antlers a caravan stage, and a huge tree with chains depending weird antlered heads. Had a short chat with him about Shakespeare among other things. Krys bought some ceramics during the tour too. Then to The Park View where we met up with Betty and John, and John's uncle Martin for a Sunday roast.  Back to ours for a bit, before fond farewells to Krys who left for the station with John and Martin in a taxi. Lorraine and I then walked back down to ...

Feeling the benefits of having had four days to get my life sorted. Up early, wrote a review of the Shakespeare Heptet, went out to buy bread, made tea and a quorn sausage sandwich in bed for Lorraine. I went back to bed for a bit. Then working on the book proposal for the marketing book, which I finally had time to send off today. Another big milestone achieved -- and all before lunch. Lorraine and I spent the afternoon very enjoyably drifting about our side of Brighton and wandering into open houses with Anton, Rosie and Dawn. A few bits of interesting art, but much generic stuff too. If I saw one piece of ceramic modelled on a flower or part of a flower structure, I saw 100. Some of it beautifully done of course. In the last house we ate scones and drank tea in a beautiful garden. This done, off aptly enough, to The Open House pub where we sat outside in its rather good beer garden and ate food and had a few drinks. Dawn is just about to buy a new project house, a lovely little co...

Divas Much needed rain last night, enjoyed hearing it falling on Lorraine's velux windows. Beth and Lorraine off to London for Beth's audition at The Drama Centre in London. Beth somewhat stressed as they departed. I returned home and quietly set about working on Betty the Spacegirl and prevented people being lascerated as they walk past my front garden by exuberant roses which have flowered and doubled in size in about a week. A vase of cut roses in my front room. Nice chat with my neighbour Alex and his mother. Later, while I was working I had my window open and could hear Calliope getting huge attention, and saw her rolling on her back while people cooed over her and tickled her tummy. Fresh from this, the atrocious weasel ran into my house, jumped onto my desk and bit my hand quite hard. Cats have two faces. At lunchtime to Janet's house to check all was well as she opened Diva, her first open house. Everything immaculately organised, and looking good. Two of the artis...

A spot of hanging Business and admin to do this morning, amazing how things mount up after I've been in monomaniac mode. In the afternoon off to Janet's house to help with a bit of hanging, and general milling about before her Open House exhibition 'Diva' kicks off tomorrow. Good chat with Ken's son in law Huss who is exhibiting some rather fine mosaic, fused glass and light combinations. Hung up one or two of Mum's paintings too. Off then to meet Betty and Mark to discuss our latest Marlborough Theatre wheezes on 17th and 19th June. We are going to do Wrong again, plus Betty the Spacegirl , which I am now starting, plus a promising idea Mark is putting together about a Pirate. Should be lots of fun. Naturally had this meeting in the Basketmakers, where by law most artistic conversations must be conducted. Beth also twitching slightly over her audition tomorrow for the Drama Centre, a prestigious thesp school in London. Lorraine off to the funeral of her friend ...

Wrapper's delight Up at 7.00am to work on Defenders of Guernsey . Some time later Lorraine and Mum surfaced. We went down Trafalgar Street to Nia where we had a rather nice breakfast. Slightly pompously I told them afterwards how much the service and food had improved since I was last there. Then a lengthy period of wrapping and pricing Mum's framed watercolours, unframed watercolours,and her Giclée prints. This process rendered slightly more problematic by the fact that Mum is on heavy duty tranquillisers which appears to be the standard treatment for shingles. Although it is understandably making her a bit vague, it has eliminated the pain, which is great. Moments of realisation that prints that had been laboriously wrapped hadn't been signed and so on. Eventually, after splendid help from Lorraine, and a trip to Rymans from me, everything was wrapped and priced and packed into Lorraine's car and driven off to Janet and Ken's house. There Janet is presenting her ...