Up and Down, Out and About

Monday 5th September 2016

On the couch after breakfast working on notes towards lesson plans. Then some of the afternoon reading bits and pieces from an Alan Moore biography and some Charles Bukowksi letters online; then a few sections of Between Stations by Andy Willoughby this evening. Seem to spend a lot of time doing research for workshops with no guarantee that I’ll get to use the stuff. I much prefer planning sessions after I’ve met the people enrolling on the course, not before. I may end up doing the work twice. 11.20 pm.

Tuesday 6th September 2016

Got some great feedback for my new book today. Aim to use it on the back cover. Read a bunch of poems by Kathleen Kenny from her ‘Goose Tales and other Flights’ pamphlet; it’s the one I bought at her launch in the Irish Centre in Newcastle in 2007 the night I met James Oates for the first time. Also read some Ian McMillan poems – very funny, surreal stuff. Restored my faith in the playfulness of poetry. I wrote a couple of letters this afternoon. Feel a bit worn out – too much time at the computer today. Hope I sleep well tonight. 10.59 pm.

Wednesday 7th September 2016

Was good to spend a bit of time at Waddington Street Centre at lunchtime. Was asked to put together a bunch of prompts and exercises for a service user who is going into hospital tomorrow and may not be able to access as many of the sessions as intended. Had a good one at Appletree. The time flew by and we only got a fraction of the exercises completed. I tend to take much more than I need for fear of falling short and being met with cries of boredom. Slept on the bus back to Consett. Jenni was in touch. She says it’s as hot in Gateshead as Consett. Unusual temperature for September. Watched a great Alan Moore documentary about his life and work relating to comics and magic this evening. Too zapped to go out on the bike or board. Hoping to do one or the other tomorrow. 10.46 pm.

Thursday 8th September 2016

Short lived longboarding session. Five percent chance of rain, the forecast said. Well, it certainly pissed down this morning. I took shelter in the bandstand. An elderly man joined me. “Get far on that,” he asked, pointing to the board. – “Nahh,” I said, “just in the park mainly. There are guys older than me who clock up forty, fifty miles per hour. But when you’ve yet to master sliding to a halt it’s a bit dangerous to take it on the road.” We chatted a while then he left. I practised the stance and movement for slides on the wooden bandstand flooring. Tried it out on the wet ground when the rain stopped. Lethal. Then it rained again. A bunch of C2C bikers arrived and took shelter as I was packing up my kit. They thought I’d been sleeping rough. We talked about their cycle route for a while. They asked what Consett is like. I was a bit stumped, to be honest. Mentioned the closure of the steel works, talked about the bike trails. The rain stopped and they went on their way to Tynemouth. I left soon after. Checked out some graphic novels in the library this afternoon. Not really my thing. Sick of fiction. Just started reading Amanda Palmer's "The Art of Asking". And asking is something I'll probably have to get a lot more used to doing this autumn 10.39 pm.

Friday 9th September 2016

Good to hear 'Skeleton Tree', the new Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds album, this morning. Edited work after lunch. Watched some indie music documentaries on YouTube earlier this evening. Joy Division, Buzzcocks, etc. Then Amanda Palmer’s TED Talk. Also watched a bunch of Ian McMillan poetry videos. Jenni was on the phone earlier just back from a spoken word show. Now watching a heavy metal documentary: Rob Halford, all the Sabbath guys, Biff Byford, Ian Gillan, amongst others. Probably the first genre of music I was drawn to before a bit of punk and alternative rock. Had a bit of a let-down regarding an evening course. Oh well, I’ve got books to edit till Christmas. 11.27 pm.

Saturday 10th September 2016

Keyed in some notes this morning, had a shave then bought a big pizza. Nice gentle ride down the cycle track to Gateshead. Pleased my knees held up okay. Good to see Jenni. We listened to the radio, went out for food supplies. She made a veggie meal then we watched a celebrity music edition of Pointless. Toyah and Fish were on it, but neither made the final. We then watched three episodes of the final series of Breaking Bad. Saving the rest for tomorrow. 10.45 pm.

Sunday 11th September 2016

Morning pages were another three sides of anxiety about not having enough paid work this autumn. Good discussion with Jenni about workshop possibilities. Had fried egg sandwiches then watched two railway documentaries – one about Kings Cross and one about Leeds. Good to observe some real life for a change. Then a mega conclusion to Breaking Bad. Watched the debut episode of Monk from Jenni’s 32 disc eighty episode box set. 10.52 pm.