banana 15 August 2010
Today I shall be testing the theory that banana bread can cure a hangover. It was the Dad’s 5th anniversary yesterday (where does the time go?) and as is traditional the clan celebrated by hitting the many bars of Galway in the West of Ireland. I tried to play safe by avoiding town and visiting a friend to drink wine and eat cheese…it didn’t work. Hopefully the banana bread will have magical properties. Now we plan a spin to Sligo to see where himself is resting presently and there’s a threat of swimming in the sea…It seems a good idea from here…but it could all go horribly wrong…oh, and I had a lot of chat with a four year old very early this morning – she was in great form and had MANY questions for me…mostly along the lines of WHY? oh why indeed…
gulls 13 August 2010
The dawn chorus in the lovely seaside town of North Berwick is LOUD – basically seagulls SHRIEKING at the world and one another…
The sun is shining now and all is well. Event at 2pm – I always love getting out and meeting the readers. Am not looking forward to reading from the new book though as it’s unfamiliar to me to say these new words aloud – but there’s gotta be a first time and this is it! Brace yourselves, ye Scots!
NORTH BERWICK 12 August 2010
Well, North Berwick east of Edinburgh is very pretty indeed. I am doing an In Conversation event tomorrow at 2pm in the Speigletent at the Fringe By The Sea festival and I hope any of you in the area will fetch along.
I met one of the puppets who played the Corpse Bride today and she was very beautiful indeed. It’s always such a thrill to see such wonders up close. I once met Bagpuss, for instance. Also got say Hi to a Noddy, a Postman Pat and some Mars Attacks puppets. The wacky world o showbiz, my friends….
spend... 11 August 2010
As someone has pointed out just now the Large Hadron collider in Cern, which is being used to prove the Big Bang Theory and therefore may aid mankind somehow, cost €15billion. The London Olympics will cost the guts of €12billion and hopefully bring joy to millions, while celebrating human excellence. Anglo Irish Bank, which the Irish Government bailed out by buying it ‘for the nation’, and which was in freefall through greed and extraordinary mismanagement, is now costing the nation €24billion…I’ll admit that economics and figures are nt my strong point BUT even I can see what’s wrong with this picture…set 10 August 2010
one of the great things about this set is that there are always top sweeties to be had. today liquorice allsorts* from wardrobe and last week sal had what seemed like an endless supply of bon bons – till they ran out, of course. i’m usually good to get some chocolate from. good times. and right now a black tongue on the McLynn for filming*…
hypo 8 August 2010
I have a friend who has become a proper hypochondriac of late – not a man either, funnily enough. Anyhow she went through a phase of thinking she had AIDS, which is extreme by any standard. She doesn’t have it, by the way. Here’s the thing – she’s hugely allergic to shellfish and will go into anaphalactic shock if she eats any. She’s supposed to carry one of those adrenaline pencil things with her at all times BUT she doesn’t. And yet she’s worried she has EVERYTHING else. Inconsistent?…eh, YES…
other 6 August 2010
They say hell is other people and from 2 train journeys, yesterday and tonight, I’d be in agreement just now. The first, a metrolink trip in Manchester, was quite amusing – probably because it was no more than 10 minutes of listening to 2 people say the same things over and over again to one another. Basically one of the men involved was DEFINITELY going to get onto his mobile phone company next July (planning ahead) when his contract is up and let them know that he wants the same deal but a new phone as he’s had the same phone three years now. His companion said ‘you should say you’ve had offers from other companies.’ First Man ‘my contract is up in July and I’m going to say to them that I want the same deal but a different phone. I’ve had the same phone 3 years now.’ Companion ‘you should say you’ve had offers from other companies.’ First Man ‘my contract is up in July, etc’ and on and on and on for 6 stops and then I got off. I have the feeling they’re still discussing the issue in another venue now, in exactly the same terms as yesterday.
Tonight it was loud boom box music, raucous chatter from some overexcited youths and youthettes who were going to Brighton via That London and a drunk man opposite me who was convinced I was the character married to Dev in Coronation Street (the fumes were heady). He also assured me I’d get ‘glowceemia’ (sic) from working too much on the laptop.
I was glad to arrive clean and serene to Himself and shall take to the cot now with an abstemious hot chocolate.
Goodnight to Friday, and all who’ve sailed in her.
pedicure 5 August 2010
I have become partial to the occasional pedicure. Today was a new venue and v good – Manchester, by the by. I mentioned it to pals and of course the puns began within a breath or ten – so we have CRIMINAILS followed by FUN LOVING CRIMINAILS – yup, ‘nuff said…
I am doing a talk about writing at the FRINGE BY THE SEA in North Berwick, Scotland, at 2pm on Friday 13th (eek…) so it’d be great to see ye if ye are in the area – also it is a full and wonderful Arts Festival with something for all the family so it is right well checking out.
upside 4 August 2010
And what did you learn today, Pauline, that might never have happened if you weren’t dragged out to a rigorous exercise session with Mel aka The Terminator, who normally shares her torture of you with the other participants of the Monday pilates session on the Chatsworth? Well, while upside down by a wall (unnatural for The McLynn) and trying hard, but unsuccessfully, to ‘walk’ my hands back in to the aforementioned wall I found that laughing upside down is not only uncomfortable (and possibly IMpossible) but, also, it threatens to burst a gal’s head…it is to be avoided at all costs (that’s the 2nd lesson). Miss McLynn also attended a Dance Fusion class given by The Terminator and discovered that she (me) can’t dance all that well and has naff all rhythm or coordination when it comes to following steps. She(me) is also aware of the fact that she’ll be stiff as a board tomorrow (the bod has already started to seize up and there are still hours to go before I sleep and it has a proper chance to fall apart…)
fish 3 August 2010
Read a newspaper over-the-shoulder and over-the-aisle of an airplane tonight and the story that stuck with me was someone winning a goldfish 33 years ago at a fun fair arcade and it was/is still alive. NOW, we all know how in thrall I am to arcades all my years and especially of late…but to win a living creature and have them so long after is, well, strange and a responsibility. I worked with a lovely man once who won such a goldfish and it spanned 2 of is 2 wives and though the 2nd wife is a lovely woman the goldfish was a bit of a reminder of the 1st wife during whose time the fish was won. Dunno if said fish is still alive but I will tell you that he used to put on rubber gloves in order not to ‘burn’ the fish when he had to handle it to remove gravel from its mouth and he kinda blew breath into its mouth once to save it…so maybe wife 2 had a point…