hot!!!! 19 August 2009
Wow, it has been a HOT one in London today – HOTHOTHOT. I took my regular fast-paced walk to Vauxhall Bridge and was probably a bit more elbowy round Westminster than usual (HOTHOTHOT). The breeze off the river was great. I did miss having somewhere to sit out today, though. I live in a flat with no space around it really – there’s a walkway outside leading to the stairs and I suppose I could go out there but I also want to just bask and be left alone to think, read and write a bit and being exposed to the passing human traffic (however lovely) is too much of a distraction. Now, that is not to say that I am SO busy writing that I have no time to chat…indeed, I should be chalking up a lot more words than I am at the moment but this idea of mine to feature a few time periods in the next novel is proving research-heavy so I am mostly reading and making notes right now. Hopefully this sort of immersion in the various subjects will pay creative dividends later. I now know lots about cholera, the 19th century in Soho, music of the 1970’s and pigeons…I am also debating the morality of cloning in my head for a section that features a distant future – my head is a BUSY place right now…and I still haven’t covered WW2 or the painting methods of some of the Dutch Masters…actually, my head might burst when I add all that too, and that would be some sight to see…
riches 18 August 2009
Life can throw up an embarrassment of riches sometimes and that’s all very well if they time themselves so as not to clash – not tonight, my friends. I was gifted the chance to see a show all London is clamouring to get to at the Royal Court, JERUSALEM by Jez Butterworth, and I HAD to jump at that…and it was fantastic, with my old mucker Mackenzie Crook being truly excellent, and ESPECIALLY the mesmerically wonderful Mark Rylance (so so so great and the sort of acting that makes you inspired yet really worried to be an actor, if you have a brain at all, cos you wonder am I actually any fucking good and could I deliver such a performance, in any shape or form – brilliant!) BUT it meant I had to forego DESPERATE ROMANTICS on tv and I am devoted to that show, as you all know…BBC iplayer here I come…
Aside from all that I had a fashion adventure today when I spotted a skirt that would go perfectly with a little jacket I have had for ages and nothing to wear with it – till now! That happens a lot to me – I’ll spot a thing that I know will last me nearly forever and get it and I may not have the requisite items to set it off, then, but I know they will emerge in time – so a big success, there, I feel (shoes not quite right yet, but it’s that perennial battle between heels and flatties and where you’re off to and so on…)
broke 17 August 2009
Am sitting in London’s Town thinking about the money I squandered over the weekend. I could, of course, blame the bookies and say they MADE ME DO IT but they did not. I walked cheerfully into one establishment in Dublin and put money on 2 golfers to whom I will BRING THE PAIN if I ever meet them and then pretty much scattered euros randomly around the dog track in Galway as if I had plenty more at home (I did/do not – I am the woman providing shelter to numerous builders practically out of the goodness of my heart now). Actually, as we were paying in to the dog meet (yes, more money) I did suggest to all involved that we cast our money to the wind and street outside the stadium that others, perhaps the actually needy, might grab it and therefore it could ‘do some good’ in the world. I was scoffed at, mocked, and my plan came to nothing. And as Saturday was also my one nominated day last week for a few jars I had a sore head all day yesterday as well = insult/injury, you know the routine. All of this has shored me up somewhat against feeling too much sorrow as I read of poverty in 19th century London (that was some of tonight’s research for novel 8). And there was some saucy stuff about prostitution in there too, including a man’s contemporary description of a lewd woman showing her wares, among them her ‘cunt-fringe’…nice…I may have to use that phrase in the buke…
confession 16 August 2009
I told a lie about Phil having a shit time last night – it’s just that my sis in law Rebecca instructed me to give him a hard time about not bringing her along on the jaunt westwards and I knew she might read the blog, so…I feel terrible now as lots of you sent him good vibes and told me to buy him a pint to cheer him up (I did the latter, by the way, though he wasn’t in great need of a jar at any stage). Anyhow, the evening was a success and beggaring – if there is a faster or more efficient way of losing money than backing greyhounds I don’t know of it. Even having builders in your house for 14 months or so ain’t as effective, really, not pound for pound (no pun intended).
Earlier in the day Ian, Phil and my Mum went to Sligo to see Himself as that’s where he rests presently and they visited Strandhill a few miles out the road from the town where we used to holiday (caravans, usually, though latterly houses when we got to teenage years) and Phil went surfing. It’s quite a dangerous beach although we used to swim there during the summer – you’d feel a tremendous tug of undertow always – and it kinda ruined tame beaches for me thereafter as I never found them as much fun as Strandhill (obviously some death-defying in the water suited me as a kid). I still wouldn’t really thank you for a timid stretch of sea now.
shit time 15 August 2009
by the way, my brother phil is having a truly shit time
syndicate 15 August 2009
oh lord – trying to convince my brother ian that it’s a bad idea to go with a syndicate tonight – especially if he is in charge of said syndicate. i have a feeling my Dad (in wjpse honour we are getting down and dirty) would have had the proverbial field day with this and would be most ‘on’ for it to happen as then he would be able to TORTURE us from here on out with our foolishness…i’ll let ye know…
money 14 August 2009
Well, my golf wager is going nowhere at this stage (even with 2 days of the competition still to go). I’d say both of my players – justin rose and sergio garcia – will make the cut for tomorrow but they’re not really in the running anymore, seems to me. It’s actually a great, personal lead-in for the greyhound racing tomorrow night in honour of my Dad as its got me used to losing and tomorow will just be more throwing of good money after bad and, lord knows, Padraig McLynn had enough of those days himself (so you see, tis homage, really). Philip is over from London so the little childhood nucleus of McLynns will be reconvened, though sadly without The Daddy. It’s not that often that we all get to be together so it’s good to take the opportunity as it arises. Actually, it would be hilarious if my Dad did turn up…and I’d say I could get tremendous odds on that as a wager…
wager 13 August 2009
I took a rush of blood to the head today, went into a bookies and put some money on 2 players in the US PGA tournament (golf, for those who don’t know). 1 of them is doing ok and I can’t locate a score for the other which leads me to believe he won’t be featuring from tomorrow onwards…It’ll sort of get me into betting mode as I am off westwards to Galway to do some greyhound racing with the rest of the clan in memory of my Dad (his 4th anniversary is tomorrow, Friday – where does the time fly away to?!). My brother Ian has had 2 sorta spooky experiences in the lead up to the event – his car has broken down twice, in as many weeks, in Castlebar, which is where my Dad ended his days in the hospital (he was taken ill while out at work) and we spent 10 days there, shacked up in a hotel, looking out for him and although everyone did their best for him, and all were tremendously nice to us while we were there, it’s not a town any of us will be rushing back to – though if we are in Ian’s car we may have no choice…
cryptic 12 August 2009
Well…it didn’t get finished today. The builder and electrician were to be here at 1.30 – instead they were across the road farting about in another house. They arrived, after some texted prompting at 5 and had a look at what needs doing then left again with a promise to do all tomorrow and Friday. We shall see…
As to the wifi and alarm upgrade (which are somewhat linked now) a lad arrived first thing, sold me a system and left again without installing it – apparently that’ll be another department and it won’t happen this week…
Yup, inside I’m SCREAMING!!!!!!
I started to clean the house and get things back to normal properly today though – I have waited and waited on the grounds that more mess was going to happen but even I have limits and they have been reached, and indeed breached, at this stage…
The clean up and clear out is revealing all sorts of notes I made about little things that might get put into books or written up for your delight and I shall release them in due course (when I decide what some of them actually mean – turns out I am mistress of the cryptic note)
solar 11 August 2009
The solar panels we put on the roof are working a treat. There were (fairly big) problems with them initially (which the builder* was actually mostly responsible for) but now they are giving lashings of hot water. And they are a tremendous source of company in as much as when you’re upstairs you can hear them whirr and click into action whenever there’s a stray sunbeam about to be ‘translated’. The (former) hot press is positively alive with activity now.
I am not looking forward to tomorrow, however – even if it does mean the building work may be mostly completed – as it’s also the day when we are supposed to be getting wireless broadband on the back of the alarm system, which needs to be rebooted and upgraded. I just know that whoever comes to do all that will find some fault in the basics here and will ask questions that I don’t know the answer to…why can’t they ever just come, assess what’s got to be done and DO IT? And if I knew how to do it myself, let’s face it, I would – in fact that extends to the building work – I’d’ve finished myself a LONG time ago if only I could!!!
*no, they’re not finished yet though tomorrow is a BIG day when the electrics are to be completed and after that it’s snag list time – mind you, after 14 months on this 5 month job you’d expect those to have been sorted out too, wouldn’t you?…yes, in the Real World, perhaps…and perhaps also when this is all done I may name and shame…