Tuesday 1st October 2024
Good session at Waddington Street Centre today. We chose poems from anthologies and made notes then read the poems aloud. We played absurd words and wrote counting poems for National Poetry Day then rounded off with Exquisite Corpse. Bus ride home was okay. I had sausage and beans on cheese on toast. The computer is being a pain – won’t shut down without using Ctrl Alt Delete. Might need to buy a new external hard drive just in case… I did a bit of Poetry Jam promotion and checked out libraries to approach for Meet the Author visits. I listened to Nadine Shah and Suede sing the Wild Ones and Fool. Then played some Michael Monroe tracks. My head is splitting and the tinnitus is bad. Need to get some sleep. 10.49pm.Wednesday 2nd October 2024
I took the Rockhopper to Bits 4 Bikes to get brake pads fitted and a spoke replaced in the back wheel. Shaun said it would be ready on Friday and cost around twenty quid. Which is a third less than anticipated. I’ve mainly been copying up notes and sleeping. I seem to get a lot more tired after a couple of days of work than I used to. And tomorrow is a long day with Poetry Jam. I was saddened to hear that Lorna Windham has died. Husband David was in touch this evening to say Lorna lost her battle cancer. She was always supportive of my efforts and attended Poetry Jams and Lamplight. 11.47pm.
I took the Rockhopper to Bits 4 Bikes to get brake pads fitted and a spoke replaced in the back wheel. Shaun said it would be ready on Friday and cost around twenty quid. Which is a third less than anticipated. I’ve mainly been copying up notes and sleeping. I seem to get a lot more tired after a couple of days of work than I used to. And tomorrow is a long day with Poetry Jam. I was saddened to hear that Lorna Windham has died. Husband David was in touch this evening to say Lorna lost her battle cancer. She was always supportive of my efforts and attended Poetry Jams and Lamplight. 11.47pm.
Thursday 3rd October 2024
The weather has been a lot better. Really nice this afternoon in Durham. Managed to get half-price chicken tikka pasties and a large pork pie, 75p each. I keyed in some Waddy poems at the Centre and prepped for the Poetry Jam. Great turn out. Great open floor readings and superb guests. Many thanks Dean Jolly, Helen Wilko and Rob Walton. We had a full room. Big thanks to Fergus for coming in on his week off to help run the night. 11.44pm.
Friday 4th October 2024
One of the slogans of Sonder, whose Frontier bike I ride, is: ‘Love Mud’. Yeah, riding for over an hour after discovering that what I scraped off the frame with my fingers wasn’t mud. Love mud? Hate dogshit. Clean up after your pet - even in the woods. I got home absolutely fucking stinking. Shit all over the bottom bracket and tyres. Tonight, I fell asleep for a while and woke up with a cold right hip. Put together a 20-minute set of poems for a headline appearance at North Shields Baba Yaga’s a week on Tuesday. The first half is old chestnuts then four new pieces and I’m finishing with a couple from Laughter to Split Glass. Unless I find a couple more recent that I’d rather do. Canny evening's work. 11.19pm.
Saturday 5th October 2024
I got yesterday’s dogshit off my bike frame and tyres but the smell lingered. Love Mud? Hate Dogshit. I’ll say it again: Clean up after your pet in the countryside. The weather was good so I went out to waste ground in Castleside and made up some little sections to ride on. Mainly weaving between trees. Tonight, me and Jenni had pizza and chips and watched The Voice. OK. 11.08pm.
The weather has been a lot better. Really nice this afternoon in Durham. Managed to get half-price chicken tikka pasties and a large pork pie, 75p each. I keyed in some Waddy poems at the Centre and prepped for the Poetry Jam. Great turn out. Great open floor readings and superb guests. Many thanks Dean Jolly, Helen Wilko and Rob Walton. We had a full room. Big thanks to Fergus for coming in on his week off to help run the night. 11.44pm.
Friday 4th October 2024
One of the slogans of Sonder, whose Frontier bike I ride, is: ‘Love Mud’. Yeah, riding for over an hour after discovering that what I scraped off the frame with my fingers wasn’t mud. Love mud? Hate dogshit. Clean up after your pet - even in the woods. I got home absolutely fucking stinking. Shit all over the bottom bracket and tyres. Tonight, I fell asleep for a while and woke up with a cold right hip. Put together a 20-minute set of poems for a headline appearance at North Shields Baba Yaga’s a week on Tuesday. The first half is old chestnuts then four new pieces and I’m finishing with a couple from Laughter to Split Glass. Unless I find a couple more recent that I’d rather do. Canny evening's work. 11.19pm.
Saturday 5th October 2024
I got yesterday’s dogshit off my bike frame and tyres but the smell lingered. Love Mud? Hate Dogshit. I’ll say it again: Clean up after your pet in the countryside. The weather was good so I went out to waste ground in Castleside and made up some little sections to ride on. Mainly weaving between trees. Tonight, me and Jenni had pizza and chips and watched The Voice. OK. 11.08pm.
Sunday 6th October 2024
Me and Jenni went to see The Joker: Folie a Deux today at Vue in Gateshead. I thought it was pretty good. Jenni didn’t like the ending. We had a good discussion about it. Tonight there was beef ravioli and Strictly Come Dancing. Toyah was voted off by the judges. Then there was Tipping Point. And Derry Girls. I don’t really have any more to say. OK. 10.54pm.
Monday 7th October 2024
Didn’t sleep well. Went to the toilet at quarter to three and was still awake at half-five. I did morning pages in hopes it would empty my brain but I still struggled. Me and Jenni chatted over breakfast. She uploaded the videos I made of her singing with the band at The Stanza. I read some of Pauline May’s excellent poems on the bus to Consett. At home, I did an hour of workshop prep then decided the weather was too good to waste. I had an ace couple of hours on the Sonder down by the river one final time this year. Tonight, after a sausage and veg dinner, I got the workshop pulled together properly. Typed up last week’s lesson plan then spent an hour considering poems for OUT OF YOUR HEAD Spooky Poet Club. I need to whittle fifty pieces down to fifteen minutes. OK. 11.45pm.
Tuesday 8th October 2024
Me and Jenni went to see The Joker: Folie a Deux today at Vue in Gateshead. I thought it was pretty good. Jenni didn’t like the ending. We had a good discussion about it. Tonight there was beef ravioli and Strictly Come Dancing. Toyah was voted off by the judges. Then there was Tipping Point. And Derry Girls. I don’t really have any more to say. OK. 10.54pm.
Monday 7th October 2024
Didn’t sleep well. Went to the toilet at quarter to three and was still awake at half-five. I did morning pages in hopes it would empty my brain but I still struggled. Me and Jenni chatted over breakfast. She uploaded the videos I made of her singing with the band at The Stanza. I read some of Pauline May’s excellent poems on the bus to Consett. At home, I did an hour of workshop prep then decided the weather was too good to waste. I had an ace couple of hours on the Sonder down by the river one final time this year. Tonight, after a sausage and veg dinner, I got the workshop pulled together properly. Typed up last week’s lesson plan then spent an hour considering poems for OUT OF YOUR HEAD Spooky Poet Club. I need to whittle fifty pieces down to fifteen minutes. OK. 11.45pm.
Tuesday 8th October 2024
Session at Waddy went well. We did some fiction exercises and some autobiographical stuff. We did Noun Diary, Verb Monologue. Looked at the Chimney Sweep story then played Beginning-Middle-End. Looked at first lines, thought about obstacles and conflicts then finished with a discussion about writers. I got the 4.20pm bus home which was jammed with students from New College Durham. They were very well-behaved. Except one girl who exploded when someone used the word nonce: “Is your dad older than your mam? – then he's a nonce. Is your mam older than your dad? – then she’s a nonce. Fuck-off with your nonce-ery!” Tonight I got my set sequenced for the Out of Your Head Spooky Poet Club gig on 24th October. I’ve taken my time and enjoyed the process. I’m not doing many links and intros for this gig. But that’s okay. Enough. 11.30pm.
Wednesday 9th October 2024
Thankfully I was too engrossed in my gig rehearsals today to notice how dismal the weather has been. Didn’t cross the doorstep till eight this evening. I took silver and copper to add to my three pound coins. Toilet roll and orange club biscuits. A couple of five pences and the rest in copper. After paying, I noticed some cheap brown bread, nearing sell-by date: 60p. I pulled out my final pound coin and bought it. Back home, I rummaged around and managed to get my 40p change back up to just over a quid. All because I didn’t want to break a fiver from housekeeping. Tonight, I thumbed through five or six notebooks from this year. It would probably be easier to just do a picture marathon or two or a hometown slog to get material for a new pamphlet. I’ve charged the mobile device three times today and hardly used it. New battery? More expense. 10.47pm.
Thursday 10th October 2024
I don’t know where today has gone and I can’t remember much of it. I reread some of Laughter to Split Glass and thought, I’m going to have to up my game considerably to top it. I’ve slipped a bit. I got my handouts and ideas in shape for tomorrow. I took a couple of hours off this afternoon to ride my Sonder bike, but it was disappointing: the only place that isn’t boggy now is the old waste ground near Castleside. Too tired to repeat last Saturday’s efforts. Tonight, I was meant to be typing but felt a bit rough. Just a bit dehydrated. Going to bed early. 9.32pm.
Friday 11th October 2024
Two-hour journey to Arts Centre Washington. An hour of prep then the workshop. A lot of people sent apologies. So there were only four of us. But it was okay. Noun Diary, Verb Monologue, big discussion on beginnings, conflicts and endings. Then a look at a few of the source poems and a final last lines exercise. I got the bus to Jenni’s. There was a bass guitar on the chair, but no Jenni. She sent a message saying she wouldn’t make King Ink tonight. I got to Sunderland just after six. A lot of people already in Pop Recs. And a big pile of copies of the King Ink Collection. I am delighted to have a poem in it, alongside the work of twenty-three other North East poets. It was great to see Ann Porro, and Gary the Hat, and Mayira T, and to see AJ McKenna perform again. The event ran longer than it used to. Now I’m on the last bus back to Consett. I will be up early tomorrow to ride the bike over to Stanhope for Aaron Wright’s performance workshop. Anyway, it’s been a busy day. Still in Stanley. Won’t get home until midnight. OK. 11.12pm.
Saturday 12th October 2024
Big ride over to Stanhope for Aaron’s workshop. Enjoyed it. Quite a few people there. Aaron compressed all the essentials into the space, while giving generous opportunities for read backs and feedbacks. The choice of poems to demonstrate the techniques was spot on and there was a lot of humour, encouragement and support. Nice one. Also enjoyed the ride home in the rain. Did the journey in 65 minutes. Which is quicker than ‘Get Directions’ says. Pie and beans for dinner. Then a bus ride out to Jen’s place. Ate nuts and cake. Watched The Voice. Very tired. 10.08pm.
Sunday 13th October 2024
Slept in and did a work plan in morning pages. Lots of online research for workshops. Me and Jenni listened to Green Day, The Cure, Arctic Monkeys and Talking Heads. Plus lots of others. Jenni went for a band audition after dinner and I got the half-four bus back to Consett. This evening I went over finances and thought about what else I could do to advance my career. OK. 11.00pm.
Monday 14th October 2024
Work hassles. Short of money. Harassed by bureaucrats. Told to take a more conventional approach to employment. This evening, I packed my bag for the gig at Baba Yaga’s. I’ve rehearsed the set a few times. Think I’ll just read from the printouts rather than individual books. I’m a bit knackered. I went out on the bike this afternoon. Found a few little bits and pieces to ride over. Had a chicken curry with potato slices for tea. I’ve done a lesson plan type-up and I’ve got stuff for tomorrow’s session at Waddy. Tonight I printed out some inspirational pieces from kind poets who like what I do. And I listened to Lou Reed live in New Jersey whilst typing. And I made up a morning pages book. And that's about it for today. 11.36pm.
Tuesday 15th October 2024
Tough day for a lot of people at Waddy. News of restructuring and redundancies was a bit much for some of the members and the open meeting this afternoon was a bit heated. I wasn’t sure if the writers would want to do the session this afternoon, but they did, and it was possibly the strongest this term with a bit of a picture marathon. Lots of ace vignettes produced. I got one about electronica that I’d like to work up for the stage. Baba Yaga’s tonight was good. I spent ages in the park rehearsing but still used a cheat sheet, even for some of my greatest hits. There were some ace turns. Including Diane Wilkinson and friends with comedy rhymes. Kenn Creen was there. And lots of others. I think my set may have been a bit dark. Which means next week’s for Spooky Poets is even darker. I’m really tired now. On the metro back to Newcastle. Then quite a wait for the next bus to Consett. 10.03pm.
Wednesday 16th October 2024
The bus to Wolsingham was late today so I missed my connection to Stanhope and therefore couldn’t get along to Avril Joy’s workshop in Ireshopeburn. The bus driver pulled in and said, “Well it looks like you’ve missed that now.” I’ve missed it. I’ve fucking missed it? If you’d been on time I wouldn’t have. “Oh, it’s my fault, is it?” Well, yes you’re the driver. I was at the bus stop five minutes early. “I left Consett at nine.” Aye, and it doesn’t take ten minutes to get down a main road with no pick-ups or traffic lights. I can fucking cycle from Consett to Moorside in ten minutes. – So I waited 45 minutes for a bus to Crook then went to Waddy and talked about the impact restructuring of the Centre will have on members. Tonight I prepped for a visit to my GP in the morning. 10.42pm.
Thursday 17th October 2024
Slow day. Too exhausted to get through much work. Hopefully better tomorrow. Hardly read anything for ages. Had a sausage and veg dinner for tea. Read some bits about the upcoming Cure gig at Troxy. Aim to be out on the bike tomorrow afternoon. Hope the Washington workshops keep going. Bed soon. 10.30pm.
Friday 18th October 2024
Not a great day. Pleased to get the Poetry Jam poster done. I got offline at four and have done the copy-ups for my logbooks. And I’ve been writing a lot about the effects short-term memory loss has had on my life since 1998. I don’t remember much unless I write it down straight away. I’m not going to reiterate here coz I’ve said it all dozens of times. I have cold feet. I have tinnitus and I have an urge to get a cheese sandwich. My days are often pretty dull. Jenni loved seeing Punk Rock Factory at NX last night. Pleased it was good for her. I’ve written a lot in another book and am now a bit more confident about my future. 11.40pm.
Saturday 19th October 2024
I went out on the Sonder Frontier for an hour. But it wasn't very satisfying; I didn’t buy a trail bike to ride on tarmac. Went to Jen’s this afternoon. We watched The Voice, Ninja Warrior and Strictly Come Dancing. I fell asleep on the bus back to Consett. Spent seven quid on supplies in Tesco. Thanks to people for likes on my LITTLE TOMMY piece. And Jenni for company, OK. 11.35pm.
Sunday 20th October 2024
Good day. Canny chat with Steve Wood who kindly gave me a lift to Aaron Wright’s performance poetry workshop in Stanhope this morning. Lots of good advice on composition and performance. Talked to Steve on the way back about bookmaking. Rehearsed for Thursday’s and Friday’s gigs. Then sorted out some book stock. Really tired and ready for bed. But a bit of supper first. 10.17pm.
Monday 21st October 2024
I seem to have gotten through quite a bit of work today. Despite feeling a bit shit due to waking at five o’clock and not getting back to sleep, I made up some copies of ‘Queasy, Uneasy’ for the Thursday gig at Out Of Your Head. I love the little pamphlets. I would like another little booklet of sorts by the end of the year. Tonight I keyed in a bunch of Waddy poems. Listened to the first two Iron Maiden albums (RIP Paul Di’anno). Even though I’m not a big fan. I didn’t get out on the bike. I washed some clothes. I didn’t rehearse my set. I’ll do it tomorrow. I haven’t read much lately. I’m tired and my feet are cold. 11.20pm.
Tuesday 22nd October 2024
Today was canny. I thought I had a dodgy line in a poem that’s been anthologized but, as well as Waddy writers, Jenni says it’s fine. Just my overcritical brain. Session took a long time to prepare but I got set up okay with time for dinner. One-minute sentences warm-up. Previous session recaps. Exquisite Corpse spare lines. Revisit typed picture prompts. Mini-fictions from September Scrapbook. Last Lines exercise. It went well. I stayed back to sort out Poetry Jam flyers then off to Jen’s. Bit of bus hassle: someone upset an ex-policeman; he talked to me afterwards for about twenty minutes. I later found out that Jenni knows him. Tonight, we nipped down to the Sound Room so Jen could get keys for tomorrow’s film club set-up. Then we had tea and watched three episodes of Abi Isn’t Normal. We chatted about mental health and films. 10.15pm bus via Chopwell back to Consett. OK. 10.35pm.
Wednesday 23rd October 2024
So today was pretty full-on. The bus was ten minutes late reaching Wolsingham. Just as well a kind man called Peter gave me a lift over to Eastgate. The flash fiction workshop from Rachael Dunlop was ace. But my ability to concentrate was poor after about forty minutes. I enjoyed what I could retain, and I got two good ideas out of it. The second one is up on Facebook with a commentary. I was pleased to hear the other participants but only took in a few moments of each. Peter’s stairs, Ian’s cathedral, Good of Ian to give me a lift back to Moorside. I wanted to ride my bike, but typed and published Personal Trajectory #2 on Facebook instead. This evening I rehearsed my set for Out of Your Head and Spooky Poet Club night. Looking forward to it. 11.16pm.
Thursday 24th October 2024
Canny day. I slept in after initially waking at half five again. I ran through my set for OOYH then went up the waste ground and did some old man trials on the Sonder bike for an hour. Got ready after dinner and went over to Jenni’s place on the bus. Jenni was out so I just went to Tesco for a pie then over to Out of Your Head Spooky Poet Club at the Cumberland Arms. Great night. All the guests were mint. And the open floor stuff was ace quality as well. Aaron Wright did a site-specific poem about Dead Man’s Corner and performed a bit of an exorcism. A schoolteacher did an ace poem written to her future kids plus one on the day-job. Kevin Robson spoke about the terror of the Ikea shopping experience. Brogan Brannan’s set was supernatural with some mental health and a girl from Hong Kong read poems about different kinds of rot. Lews Brown and Ann Porro were mint as well. Thanks to Aaron for a lift back to the Quayside. 11.46pm.
Friday 25th October 2024
Today’s workshop went well. We got through six rounds of writing and about 45 minutes of feedback. I had scotch eggs for dinner. I organised/arranged a writing marathon, but I don’t want to announce anything yet. I went to Durham then on to Crook where I got chips and waited till quarter past five to get a bus to Stanhope. The open mic night at St Thomas Church Hall was ace: poems and prose about rural life, mental health, personal demons, a dog's life, walking and rambling. It would be good to go to more stuff at WordFest this weekend but I’m busy in Gateshead. I read A Woollyback Speaks, Cruel and Goth. Just under three minutes. But my sheep poem is too similar to Aaron’s original. I’m taking things easy for a while. 10.40pm.
Saturday 26th October 2024
Woke at four and didn’t get back to sleep till about half six. Got out on the Sonder Frontier bike for an hour and managed to get up a sketchy ledge. Had fish fingers and chips for dinner then a walk to Consett before going to Jen’s place. We went to a Halloween party at her mam’s community residents building. Then saw Ava win The Voice on telly. She was mint. OK. 11.06pm.
Sunday 27th October 2024
Big lie in. Went up to Tesco for supplies and checked out buses to Middlesbrough with a view to going to Whitby next Sunday. Went to the Sound Room for afternoon tea. £5 for live singer and screening of High Society plus sandwiches, cakes, pies, drinks… Top value. Tonight, I watched The Big Freeze of 1963 – when it snowed for weeks. Then Tipping Point and Coronation Street. OK. 9.00pm.
Monday 28th October 2024
Listened to the start of The Cure in concert then remembered I’ll be listening to them on livestream this Friday. I’ve got a coldsore and I’m tired. Listened to Lou Reed and read about his final days. Spent a while looking for a notebook. I’m tired and not up to much. I really want to just ride the bike. My feet are getting cold. 11.08pm.
Tuesday 29th October 2024
Maybe the reason I’m dirt poor is coz I love what I do. I’ve always thought people who have the luxury of doing what they want all day and call it a job should be paid less than a dishwasher or a floor sweeper. It’s why I’ve lived on a third of the minimum wage. Fuck responsibility. I hate responsibility: the more I get paid, the harder I feel I should work. Anyway, today I got out on the Sonder and made a couple of new lines on the old waste ground near Castleside. I was chuffed to do some step-ups. Tonight, I selected exercises for the next four writing workshops. And did admin that might lead up to a surprise event before the end of the year. I feel a bit knackered. Might take some ibuprofen. Chuffed to be back up to date on logbooks. 10.53pm.
Wednesday 30th October 2024
Felt pretty hammered all day. Got the info for the writing marathon sent off to the venue. Then I did some typing. Thanks to Kirsten, Harry, Viv and Mandy for marketing advice. I listened to Suede's Edinburgh Castle concert from earlier this year, then Swans at Islington Powerhaus on their Burning World tour from August 1989. Me and Stephen Clark saw them in Sheffield and Manchester a couple of days earlier. I saw some good black sewn notebooks today. And a really lush pinky-purple diary that I might buy for 2025 instead of a black one.
Thursday 31st October 2024
What is going on with this weather? Best end of October ever. Riding in short sleeves, I managed to get the Sonder bike up a narrow rocky slope on the trail near Allensford. I videoed it and put it online. And a little bit of backhopping. I can’t hop up ledges on the back wheel anymore, but I’m still having lots of fun on the trails. And the main riverside route was dry again... People are starting to ask about the forthcoming writing marathon. I wanted to announce the date this evening but I’m still waiting on the venue for ticket info. The Cure are playing various intimate sets in London this week for the release of their new album, Songs of a Lost World. It’s been great to hear Robert Smith talking about the band, and to catch two sets on BBC radio this evening whilst typing. And here’s Jo Whiley playing Boys Don’t Cry, taking me back to my teens with crimped hair, big black jumpers, baggy pants and white boots. Happy Halloween. 10.05pm.
Wednesday 9th October 2024
Thankfully I was too engrossed in my gig rehearsals today to notice how dismal the weather has been. Didn’t cross the doorstep till eight this evening. I took silver and copper to add to my three pound coins. Toilet roll and orange club biscuits. A couple of five pences and the rest in copper. After paying, I noticed some cheap brown bread, nearing sell-by date: 60p. I pulled out my final pound coin and bought it. Back home, I rummaged around and managed to get my 40p change back up to just over a quid. All because I didn’t want to break a fiver from housekeeping. Tonight, I thumbed through five or six notebooks from this year. It would probably be easier to just do a picture marathon or two or a hometown slog to get material for a new pamphlet. I’ve charged the mobile device three times today and hardly used it. New battery? More expense. 10.47pm.
Thursday 10th October 2024
I don’t know where today has gone and I can’t remember much of it. I reread some of Laughter to Split Glass and thought, I’m going to have to up my game considerably to top it. I’ve slipped a bit. I got my handouts and ideas in shape for tomorrow. I took a couple of hours off this afternoon to ride my Sonder bike, but it was disappointing: the only place that isn’t boggy now is the old waste ground near Castleside. Too tired to repeat last Saturday’s efforts. Tonight, I was meant to be typing but felt a bit rough. Just a bit dehydrated. Going to bed early. 9.32pm.
Friday 11th October 2024
Two-hour journey to Arts Centre Washington. An hour of prep then the workshop. A lot of people sent apologies. So there were only four of us. But it was okay. Noun Diary, Verb Monologue, big discussion on beginnings, conflicts and endings. Then a look at a few of the source poems and a final last lines exercise. I got the bus to Jenni’s. There was a bass guitar on the chair, but no Jenni. She sent a message saying she wouldn’t make King Ink tonight. I got to Sunderland just after six. A lot of people already in Pop Recs. And a big pile of copies of the King Ink Collection. I am delighted to have a poem in it, alongside the work of twenty-three other North East poets. It was great to see Ann Porro, and Gary the Hat, and Mayira T, and to see AJ McKenna perform again. The event ran longer than it used to. Now I’m on the last bus back to Consett. I will be up early tomorrow to ride the bike over to Stanhope for Aaron Wright’s performance workshop. Anyway, it’s been a busy day. Still in Stanley. Won’t get home until midnight. OK. 11.12pm.
Saturday 12th October 2024
Big ride over to Stanhope for Aaron’s workshop. Enjoyed it. Quite a few people there. Aaron compressed all the essentials into the space, while giving generous opportunities for read backs and feedbacks. The choice of poems to demonstrate the techniques was spot on and there was a lot of humour, encouragement and support. Nice one. Also enjoyed the ride home in the rain. Did the journey in 65 minutes. Which is quicker than ‘Get Directions’ says. Pie and beans for dinner. Then a bus ride out to Jen’s place. Ate nuts and cake. Watched The Voice. Very tired. 10.08pm.
Sunday 13th October 2024
Slept in and did a work plan in morning pages. Lots of online research for workshops. Me and Jenni listened to Green Day, The Cure, Arctic Monkeys and Talking Heads. Plus lots of others. Jenni went for a band audition after dinner and I got the half-four bus back to Consett. This evening I went over finances and thought about what else I could do to advance my career. OK. 11.00pm.
Monday 14th October 2024
Work hassles. Short of money. Harassed by bureaucrats. Told to take a more conventional approach to employment. This evening, I packed my bag for the gig at Baba Yaga’s. I’ve rehearsed the set a few times. Think I’ll just read from the printouts rather than individual books. I’m a bit knackered. I went out on the bike this afternoon. Found a few little bits and pieces to ride over. Had a chicken curry with potato slices for tea. I’ve done a lesson plan type-up and I’ve got stuff for tomorrow’s session at Waddy. Tonight I printed out some inspirational pieces from kind poets who like what I do. And I listened to Lou Reed live in New Jersey whilst typing. And I made up a morning pages book. And that's about it for today. 11.36pm.
Tuesday 15th October 2024
Tough day for a lot of people at Waddy. News of restructuring and redundancies was a bit much for some of the members and the open meeting this afternoon was a bit heated. I wasn’t sure if the writers would want to do the session this afternoon, but they did, and it was possibly the strongest this term with a bit of a picture marathon. Lots of ace vignettes produced. I got one about electronica that I’d like to work up for the stage. Baba Yaga’s tonight was good. I spent ages in the park rehearsing but still used a cheat sheet, even for some of my greatest hits. There were some ace turns. Including Diane Wilkinson and friends with comedy rhymes. Kenn Creen was there. And lots of others. I think my set may have been a bit dark. Which means next week’s for Spooky Poets is even darker. I’m really tired now. On the metro back to Newcastle. Then quite a wait for the next bus to Consett. 10.03pm.
Wednesday 16th October 2024
The bus to Wolsingham was late today so I missed my connection to Stanhope and therefore couldn’t get along to Avril Joy’s workshop in Ireshopeburn. The bus driver pulled in and said, “Well it looks like you’ve missed that now.” I’ve missed it. I’ve fucking missed it? If you’d been on time I wouldn’t have. “Oh, it’s my fault, is it?” Well, yes you’re the driver. I was at the bus stop five minutes early. “I left Consett at nine.” Aye, and it doesn’t take ten minutes to get down a main road with no pick-ups or traffic lights. I can fucking cycle from Consett to Moorside in ten minutes. – So I waited 45 minutes for a bus to Crook then went to Waddy and talked about the impact restructuring of the Centre will have on members. Tonight I prepped for a visit to my GP in the morning. 10.42pm.
Thursday 17th October 2024
Slow day. Too exhausted to get through much work. Hopefully better tomorrow. Hardly read anything for ages. Had a sausage and veg dinner for tea. Read some bits about the upcoming Cure gig at Troxy. Aim to be out on the bike tomorrow afternoon. Hope the Washington workshops keep going. Bed soon. 10.30pm.
Friday 18th October 2024
Not a great day. Pleased to get the Poetry Jam poster done. I got offline at four and have done the copy-ups for my logbooks. And I’ve been writing a lot about the effects short-term memory loss has had on my life since 1998. I don’t remember much unless I write it down straight away. I’m not going to reiterate here coz I’ve said it all dozens of times. I have cold feet. I have tinnitus and I have an urge to get a cheese sandwich. My days are often pretty dull. Jenni loved seeing Punk Rock Factory at NX last night. Pleased it was good for her. I’ve written a lot in another book and am now a bit more confident about my future. 11.40pm.
Saturday 19th October 2024
I went out on the Sonder Frontier for an hour. But it wasn't very satisfying; I didn’t buy a trail bike to ride on tarmac. Went to Jen’s this afternoon. We watched The Voice, Ninja Warrior and Strictly Come Dancing. I fell asleep on the bus back to Consett. Spent seven quid on supplies in Tesco. Thanks to people for likes on my LITTLE TOMMY piece. And Jenni for company, OK. 11.35pm.
Sunday 20th October 2024
Good day. Canny chat with Steve Wood who kindly gave me a lift to Aaron Wright’s performance poetry workshop in Stanhope this morning. Lots of good advice on composition and performance. Talked to Steve on the way back about bookmaking. Rehearsed for Thursday’s and Friday’s gigs. Then sorted out some book stock. Really tired and ready for bed. But a bit of supper first. 10.17pm.
Monday 21st October 2024
I seem to have gotten through quite a bit of work today. Despite feeling a bit shit due to waking at five o’clock and not getting back to sleep, I made up some copies of ‘Queasy, Uneasy’ for the Thursday gig at Out Of Your Head. I love the little pamphlets. I would like another little booklet of sorts by the end of the year. Tonight I keyed in a bunch of Waddy poems. Listened to the first two Iron Maiden albums (RIP Paul Di’anno). Even though I’m not a big fan. I didn’t get out on the bike. I washed some clothes. I didn’t rehearse my set. I’ll do it tomorrow. I haven’t read much lately. I’m tired and my feet are cold. 11.20pm.
Tuesday 22nd October 2024
Today was canny. I thought I had a dodgy line in a poem that’s been anthologized but, as well as Waddy writers, Jenni says it’s fine. Just my overcritical brain. Session took a long time to prepare but I got set up okay with time for dinner. One-minute sentences warm-up. Previous session recaps. Exquisite Corpse spare lines. Revisit typed picture prompts. Mini-fictions from September Scrapbook. Last Lines exercise. It went well. I stayed back to sort out Poetry Jam flyers then off to Jen’s. Bit of bus hassle: someone upset an ex-policeman; he talked to me afterwards for about twenty minutes. I later found out that Jenni knows him. Tonight, we nipped down to the Sound Room so Jen could get keys for tomorrow’s film club set-up. Then we had tea and watched three episodes of Abi Isn’t Normal. We chatted about mental health and films. 10.15pm bus via Chopwell back to Consett. OK. 10.35pm.
Wednesday 23rd October 2024
So today was pretty full-on. The bus was ten minutes late reaching Wolsingham. Just as well a kind man called Peter gave me a lift over to Eastgate. The flash fiction workshop from Rachael Dunlop was ace. But my ability to concentrate was poor after about forty minutes. I enjoyed what I could retain, and I got two good ideas out of it. The second one is up on Facebook with a commentary. I was pleased to hear the other participants but only took in a few moments of each. Peter’s stairs, Ian’s cathedral, Good of Ian to give me a lift back to Moorside. I wanted to ride my bike, but typed and published Personal Trajectory #2 on Facebook instead. This evening I rehearsed my set for Out of Your Head and Spooky Poet Club night. Looking forward to it. 11.16pm.
Thursday 24th October 2024
Canny day. I slept in after initially waking at half five again. I ran through my set for OOYH then went up the waste ground and did some old man trials on the Sonder bike for an hour. Got ready after dinner and went over to Jenni’s place on the bus. Jenni was out so I just went to Tesco for a pie then over to Out of Your Head Spooky Poet Club at the Cumberland Arms. Great night. All the guests were mint. And the open floor stuff was ace quality as well. Aaron Wright did a site-specific poem about Dead Man’s Corner and performed a bit of an exorcism. A schoolteacher did an ace poem written to her future kids plus one on the day-job. Kevin Robson spoke about the terror of the Ikea shopping experience. Brogan Brannan’s set was supernatural with some mental health and a girl from Hong Kong read poems about different kinds of rot. Lews Brown and Ann Porro were mint as well. Thanks to Aaron for a lift back to the Quayside. 11.46pm.
Friday 25th October 2024
Today’s workshop went well. We got through six rounds of writing and about 45 minutes of feedback. I had scotch eggs for dinner. I organised/arranged a writing marathon, but I don’t want to announce anything yet. I went to Durham then on to Crook where I got chips and waited till quarter past five to get a bus to Stanhope. The open mic night at St Thomas Church Hall was ace: poems and prose about rural life, mental health, personal demons, a dog's life, walking and rambling. It would be good to go to more stuff at WordFest this weekend but I’m busy in Gateshead. I read A Woollyback Speaks, Cruel and Goth. Just under three minutes. But my sheep poem is too similar to Aaron’s original. I’m taking things easy for a while. 10.40pm.
Saturday 26th October 2024
Woke at four and didn’t get back to sleep till about half six. Got out on the Sonder Frontier bike for an hour and managed to get up a sketchy ledge. Had fish fingers and chips for dinner then a walk to Consett before going to Jen’s place. We went to a Halloween party at her mam’s community residents building. Then saw Ava win The Voice on telly. She was mint. OK. 11.06pm.
Sunday 27th October 2024
Big lie in. Went up to Tesco for supplies and checked out buses to Middlesbrough with a view to going to Whitby next Sunday. Went to the Sound Room for afternoon tea. £5 for live singer and screening of High Society plus sandwiches, cakes, pies, drinks… Top value. Tonight, I watched The Big Freeze of 1963 – when it snowed for weeks. Then Tipping Point and Coronation Street. OK. 9.00pm.
Monday 28th October 2024
Listened to the start of The Cure in concert then remembered I’ll be listening to them on livestream this Friday. I’ve got a coldsore and I’m tired. Listened to Lou Reed and read about his final days. Spent a while looking for a notebook. I’m tired and not up to much. I really want to just ride the bike. My feet are getting cold. 11.08pm.
Tuesday 29th October 2024
Maybe the reason I’m dirt poor is coz I love what I do. I’ve always thought people who have the luxury of doing what they want all day and call it a job should be paid less than a dishwasher or a floor sweeper. It’s why I’ve lived on a third of the minimum wage. Fuck responsibility. I hate responsibility: the more I get paid, the harder I feel I should work. Anyway, today I got out on the Sonder and made a couple of new lines on the old waste ground near Castleside. I was chuffed to do some step-ups. Tonight, I selected exercises for the next four writing workshops. And did admin that might lead up to a surprise event before the end of the year. I feel a bit knackered. Might take some ibuprofen. Chuffed to be back up to date on logbooks. 10.53pm.
Wednesday 30th October 2024
Felt pretty hammered all day. Got the info for the writing marathon sent off to the venue. Then I did some typing. Thanks to Kirsten, Harry, Viv and Mandy for marketing advice. I listened to Suede's Edinburgh Castle concert from earlier this year, then Swans at Islington Powerhaus on their Burning World tour from August 1989. Me and Stephen Clark saw them in Sheffield and Manchester a couple of days earlier. I saw some good black sewn notebooks today. And a really lush pinky-purple diary that I might buy for 2025 instead of a black one.
Thursday 31st October 2024
What is going on with this weather? Best end of October ever. Riding in short sleeves, I managed to get the Sonder bike up a narrow rocky slope on the trail near Allensford. I videoed it and put it online. And a little bit of backhopping. I can’t hop up ledges on the back wheel anymore, but I’m still having lots of fun on the trails. And the main riverside route was dry again... People are starting to ask about the forthcoming writing marathon. I wanted to announce the date this evening but I’m still waiting on the venue for ticket info. The Cure are playing various intimate sets in London this week for the release of their new album, Songs of a Lost World. It’s been great to hear Robert Smith talking about the band, and to catch two sets on BBC radio this evening whilst typing. And here’s Jo Whiley playing Boys Don’t Cry, taking me back to my teens with crimped hair, big black jumpers, baggy pants and white boots. Happy Halloween. 10.05pm.
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