Fourteen Days

Monday 8th April 2019

Long day mainly spent on my own stuff, reading up on Brexit and the Faber novel writing course book. I'm almost at 100 Steve achieves, a bit less than a third of the challenge. I posted pictures from My Dark Matter on Facebook, got some likes but no takers for the final three copies. Tonight I got workshop prep done for tomorrow's session in Newcastle. Packed bags, ironed clothes, sorted out route map so I can get there in good time. All I need to do in the morning is get washed, another swift face shave, clothes on and bus into town. Will take a Kevin Brooks novel and look for more of his. This evening I looked at more Brexit stuff. Still don't think we'll leave. Watched Newsnight. 11:37 pm.

Tuesday 9th April 2019

Good day. Up early. Ready to leave by 9.40 am. Checked for money at the bank but still hasn’t cleared. Read ‘Killing God’ by Kevin Brooks. Jenni emailed to say she has big lurgy so I didn't go to see her today. The workshop at MEA House in Newcastle was mint. It was a taster session with about 10 participants. We did some acrostics, ‘finish the sentence’, object and lies and I Am poems. I read five poems: Dark House, My Box, Love Poem and Coming Back to This. After the session I checked out Waterstones, WHSmiths and Newcastle library. Got three more Brooks books: Chocolate Eyes, Naked and Johnny Delgado. Read two of them tonight, mainly in transit. Surfed the net and wrote a pretty good Steve Achieves plus GloPoWriMo list piece. Programme on BBC2 about history of a Newcastle town house. It's been a good day. 11:33 pm.

Wednesday 10th April 2019

Read about twenty pages of ‘Killing God’ by Kevin Brooks. His books are becoming somewhat addictive. Checked up on Brexit then did GloPoWriMo. Took me a few hours. Did some research on what pro authors earn – less than minimum wage for most in UK. After tea I opened up the 1999 – 2001 manuscript for Deluxe Anomalies. Lots of really good stuff I want to include but unfortunately it will all need to be retyped as it on A4 sheets from the travel typewriter. I found some gems and quite a few pieces that shocked me. There's actually enough to make a full book from the one file alone. The writing is 20 years old bit still valid. Lots of prose poems and fictions. Knocked off at ten o’clock  for the news. No verdict from EU on Brexit extension yet. Eat your sandwich, Mrs May, it's going to be a long night 11:39 pm.

Thursday 11th April 2019

Out shopping this morning then home to admin – invoices, gig queries, Poetry Jam guests, etc. This evening I checked out lack of plot in Samuel Beckett’s novels. Read my own book Shades of Grey cover to cover. Feels like a novella of poetic fragments – portrait of the proletarian minimum wage worker artist type thing with no plot. I don't do plot, I never have. I wanted to read more Kevin Brooks but too tired. No Question Time tonight, so at least I should get a better sleep. Checked out a 365-day zine-making challenge tonight. Talked about workshops online a little bit. I want something nice for supper. Want to earn some money. I am dirt poor. Squandering another late night. My property is a disgrace. Need to get grass cut soon. And new soles on my boots. And the computer needs to be replaced. Yes, it's all a bit shit. OK. 11:25 pm.

Friday 12th April 2019

Tough morning. Hard to focus. Haven't done any prep for Waddy yet. Too much other stuff still to sort. Knocked off this afternoon to do the garden. Two hours cutting grass. Big fucking chore. Got word from Lisa at Mind that my payment will go through soon. I got a great Steve Achieves today. And some mint fragments for GloPoWriMo Watched Top of the Pops. It had an assortment of acts from 1987. Def Leppard, Kim Wilde, Motley Crue, Rick Astley, The Jesus and Mary chain. Found out that Wayne Hussey is bringing his Salad Days tour to Newcastle. Amazed he is playing the Cluny – last time, three loud women on the balcony pissed him off. He was so rattled by them that he even referred to his annoyance in the interview on the live DVD recorded two months later. Great punk documentary on YouTube tonight. Also, Alan Moore insights and a tribute to Chas and Dave. OK. 11:38 pm.

Saturday 13th April 2019

Better night's sleep. Please to get a decent GloPoWriMo done. Enjoyed my poem. Read final fifty pages of ‘Killing God’. Jesus and Mary chain references throughout. Fucking hell. The end is really fucking grim. You think he's going to wrap it up, but crucifies his characters. I worked on the assessment form for third term of Ways with Words. Pretty chilly ride to Gateshead. Used Jenni’s cherry bakewell shower gel which was a novelty. Watched Britain's got Talent. Nipped out for juice and biscuits. OK. 10:20 pm.

Sunday 14th April 2019

Long lie in. Then used the old Android tablet plugged into the mains to get today's GloPoWriMo prompt. After a hissy fit I came up with something. Watched Red Bull Soapbox Challenge with Jenni then we went out for supplies. Had cheese and tomato baguettes for tea. I ate lots of brownie bites and watched episodes of Pointless. Jenni went out tonight. I rode home and watched a Toyah interview. Then a Nirvana documentary. OK. 11:29 pm.

Monday 15th April 2019

Full day of admin. Mainly editing texts for the start of the new Waddy course which begins tomorrow. Put in about ten hours. Also did GloPoWriMo – very poor melodramatic monologue about school. Saw video of Queen drummer Roger Taylor's new single. Me and Jenni always have a chuckle about his lyrics. She doesn't rate him at all. ‘Gangsters Are Running This World’ probably doesn't do much to change her opinion. Notre Dame cathedral in ruins. I've had no time to read anything for pleasure today. Listened to Bad Pollyanna and Iggy Pop this evening. Didn't get blog up. I'm at Babble Gum tomorrow evening. The new NAWE writing in education magazine came today. Will get some workshop ideas from it. Just need more workshops. 11:25 pm.

Tuesday 16th of April 2019

Waddy a bit quiet because the session fell on a school holiday. Assessment questionnaire exercise took three quarters of allotted time, but that's ok – it took me a few hours to prepare it. Afterwards I read some of Naked by Kevin Brooks on the bus to Newcastle. In the Central Library I looked at some Read Regional books – fabulous poems in Black Cab, the debut pamphlet by John Challis. Checked out other titles and short stories. Read another Barrington-Stoke book – ‘Watcher’ by L.A. Weatherly. Great to get another Kevin Brooks book as well. Bought a steak pie at Morrisons in Byker then hit The Cumberland Arms. Absolutely mint Babble Gum tonight. Loved every minute of it Jenny Lascelles gave us a great twenty minute opening set of songs at the keyboard, reminiscent of early Tori Amos stuff, and was worth the price of admission alone. Enjoyed Rue Collinge, the Gateshead based storyteller mixing poetry and prose to bring us tales of cats in washing machines and poignant fragments of adolescence in reverse. Cracking mix of open mic from the likes of Pauline May and Sean Turner plus a load of new people I’d never heard before. There was a canny crowd of about thirty in the room. Jake Donaldson was a funny guy but now I can’t remember his routine. Ellen Moran gave us a closing set of two halves with equal measure of page poetry, inspired by her dad’s career as a shipwright and a scientist, and her more hip-hop influenced material including a poem about feminism and mental health. Gig finished early enough for me to make the dash over Byker Bridge and across town into Eldon Square Bus Station in time to catch the twenty-five past ten back to Consett. Should be home by midnight. 10.31 pm.

Wednesday 17th April 2019

Super long lie in because I didn't get to sleep till after half three this morning. Did admin in bed and up by eleven. Decided to read Stephen King’s memoir ‘On Writing’. Got through about half of it. Some a bit dull, but some actually very poignant – especially the passages in which he reveals where the idea for Carrie came from. I read till about half five. Did chilli and rice for tea then read a bit more. Switched big computer for Steve Achieves and a couple of GloPoWriMo poems. Started Poetry Jam poster for 10th anniversary event. I’m using bits of old posters and trying to collage it together. Been listening to The Mission. Mainly old stuff. I have a cold sore, am pretty knackered. Not getting my own stuff done. Fuck it. OK. 11:43 pm.

Thursday 18th April 2019

Stayed up till half two this morning finishing flyer and event page for Poetry Jam. Pleased to get a decent response. I'll repost links over holiday weekend. Mam and Ernie dropped by. We went into town, did shopping, visited Diane and Kyle. It was about half four when I got back. Had a drink of chocolate, slept on the couch. Read a great article from the LA Times by Rollins on Joy Division. One of the best pieces I've seen from him. Not much self-referential about it. Just one line about when he first encountered the music. I watched the Joy Division documentary DVD again tonight. Brilliant film. I like the CONTROL biopic as well. Still don't know very many song titles even after twenty years of listening. 11:15 pm.

Friday 19th April 2019

Good Friday. Please to get my Lit Salon and Arch Remarks gigs rehearsed today. And to make use of the dictation function on my Bush Spira 3 android tablet. Had a lush veggie burger with egg and cheese. Enjoyed listening to Toyah and The Mission. Checked out some Kevin Brooks interviews. Read some of Tom Kelly's Dreamers in a Cold Climate again this morning… Pleased my toilet isn't making strange noises today. Jenni isn't coming to my house till tomorrow. She asked if I could go to hers instead but I've spent a lot of money on food for the weekend but I can't afford busfare to Gateshead and can't carry much stuff on the bike. The house is still a tip. No matter, I've enjoyed my work today. I want to read more of Stephen Kings ‘On Writing’. Be good to finish it this weekend. OK. 11:05 pm.

Saturday 20th April 2019

Up at half five. Computer printer creaking away. Read Stephen King. Cleaned kitchen. Got grease out from under the George Foreman grill. Finished ‘On Writing’. Tidied front room. Jenni arrived this evening. Veggie burgers and an Oscar Wilde documentary. I'm done here. 10:41 pm.

Sunday 21st April 2019

Woke early. Drafted a GloPoWriMo poem . Me and Jenni ate some of our chocolate eggs. Watched a bit of snooker. Had vegetarian dinner: sausages, mash, steamed carrots and potatoes, gravy and mint sauce. Out this afternoon for a walk along the cycle path. Fell asleep watching Television. Ate chocolate and porridge. That's it really. 10:56 pm.