Various Functions and Malfunctions

Monday 22nd April 2013

Hard to get through work but this lunchtime I was trying out rollbacks, rockwalks and kickturns on the STP bike – so, far from lethargic. Hands a bit sore from the lousy brakes. Nowhere near as grabby as those on my trials rig or big 27speed XC bike. Always find it hard to stay focussed on a Monday. Managed to get through paperwork after lunch and book work this evening. Jenni phoned. She has been getting lots of feedback for her NaPoWriMo poems. The prompts have been pretty poor but she’s made good with them. I wrote 18 lines about observing a cat in the back garden. Pretty cold today. So Much for the Sunshine. Hope the book is ready soon. Dragging on and on. 10.07pm.

Tuesday 23rd April 2013

Stressful day. Would have been willing to bet good money first thing this morning that the papers I photocopied last night were safe in my bag; but no, I got to work and had to reprint from a download. Shaky session but people seemed okay with it. Have wasted some time thinking about how to make the bike ride better, but don’t want to spend more. Need to order bags to make dust jackets for books.

Unable to work this evening. Just needed a break from words on paper.  Watched Batman Begins. Remembered the beginning but not the end. Will watch The Dark Knight another time. Managed to write a triolet in Waddy session for NapoWriMo. Only another week to go. Can’t believe how the time has flown by. Looking forward to my bed. Hope I sleep. 10.00pm.

Wednesday 24th April 2013

Got a good lesson plan down in the morning pages. Early night paid off, went into Waddy optimistic. Turn out curiously low but we had a good one with narrative time lines and character sketches. Stayed back afterwards for lunchtime quiz in the staff kitchen then home to a few updates. Word from print shop: sample of paper I wanted for book jackets won’t go through reprographics machine. Very pleased I didn’t order stock yesterday. Back to the drawing board. Have been coming home feeling worn out and in need of a break from creativity. Finding NaPoWriMo a drain and to be honest will be pleased to see the back it. Whether I edit negative comments from my blog post this week remains to be seen. Back at Waddy to work on student pamphlet tomorrow. Mine will have to wait. 9.28pm.

Thursday 25th April 2013

Didn’t want to do much today. Really lethargic at Waddy. Had meat and potato pie with mash big lunch double trouble. Good to have some time in Newcastle to check out music mags in Smiths before going onto the Cumberland for JibbaJabba. Place was jammed tonight. Reckon over sixty in the room. Good guests and strong open mic. One of Ben Crompton’s poems similar to Bin Truck so I couldn’t get up and do it. Don’t want to read from the page on the Cumberland stage. Rollins piece in LA Weekly about duty and pride was good. Hey, Shotley Bridge. Great! Soon be home. 11.57pm.

Friday 26th April 2013

Probably for the best me and Jenni didn’t go to Whitby today. Jenni had a lot of work to do; I’ve been tweaking bits and pieces for a book that will not reach completion. Also got interested in the Live Below the Line challenge to exist on just a pound a day for five days. A charity event focussing on awareness of world hunger. Had I seen it weeks ago I’d be keen to try it and see if I could get sponsored. I am not very talented. But I do have quite strong will power. Most of my achievements are endurance related. I think it runs in the family. I reckon I could do five days, but there are millions who do it every day. 10.38pm.

Saturday 27th April 2013

Didn’t get much done today. Shopping. NaPoWriMo fragment. Big thanks to art shop for getting back to me about dust jackets. Read some of Factotum by Charles Bukowski on the bus to Jen’s this afternoon. Thanks to Radikal Words for a wonderful meal with poets this evening. Good to see Jeff, Felicity, Rowan and Jake. Had a huge amount of chargrilled chicken. Then a drink at the Cumberland Arms. Strange being there when not involved in a gig. We walked back to Newcastle, bus to Gateshead. Totally stuffed. Good to be at Jen’s place. 10.50pm.

Sunday 28th April 2013

The woman at The Sage box office let me go in the viewing gallery this morning so I could see exactly where the best available seats would be for Sinead O’Connor’s gig. Had a nice afternoon at Borderline Books with Jenni and loads of northeast writers. Great of Amina Evans to organize the day. Read some of Bukowski’s Factotum on the bus home and wrote a fifteen word poem on my favourite colour. Busy week coming up. Hope it goes well. 10.30pm.

Monday 29th April 2013

Productive day. Up early and tidied the kitchen then edited a week of notes. The art shop I emailed last week phoned me this afternoon and are sending what sounds like a promising card sample which may complete my book. I was meant to get the thing published in March. Actually, it was supposed to be a swift low-key pamphlet project ready in time for my final feature performance of 2012; but, like a lot of things I start, it grew out of proportion and required lots of taming and tweaking.

Have planned three workshops for the week and uploaded my penultimate NaPoWriMo piece to Facebook, entitled coincidentally, “Penultimate”. It’s still light outside but already I’m feeling ready to turn in.

Watched early evening local news in hopes of seeing Borderline Books, but unless it was a very brief first item that I missed I don’t think it was on. Rather annoying if it wasn’t coz Amina was busy and pushed for time when the crew arrived yesterday. Oh well, best laid plans and all that. 8.55pm.