We awoke at lunchtime, which felt rather lovely. We sept properly for the first time in about a week, and I still spent the day feeling tired. I haven't really hit the food and drink too heavily this year, and feel much better for it, though with a night out at a friends to come, and then New Years eve as well, that story might change. Mrs Plug spent some time tidying, whereas I am ashamed to say, I vegged a little. We left the girls with Dominos Pizza, and went to a friends for dinner. It was a friend who we have known for years, but not really socialised with before, and it was a very pleasant evening, with lovely people. I hope to do more of this next year. So I have one day left to blog, and make it a whole year. Will I continue into next year? Oh I don't really know. I have enjoyed it, and rarely have I been lost for words, though whether they have been at all interesting I am not sure. It's been a useful tool for me in terms of keeping a little discipline, and just writing for the sake of it. I am not at all sure that it has improved my writing, but then, I am not sure that will ever happen now. I hope that I can get through the next few weeks without getting down in the dups, which I tend to so at this time of year. There was a thread of reminiscing about my home town on Facebook today, and it brought back many happy, and many unhappy memories, but realising how many years ago it all was creeps up on me. It gets harder each year, so I am determined to try to "Hit the ground running", or at east limping, in the right direction. This might be difficult if the lure of the drink gets too great on New Year's Eve.
Saturday, 31 December 2011
Thursday 29th December
Breakfast with Sister in law and nephew and Niece, followed by a trip to the local Garden Centre which has a coffee shop with wifi. This has been the first time I can get any meaningful connection to the Internet since Christmas day, so my iPad breathed a huge sigh of relief and downloaded all sorts of crap for me, whilst I nonchalantly sipped a coffee trying to look sophisticated. We then spent too much money in the local craft emporium. We returned home for lunch, said goodbye to Sister in Aw 2 and Niece and nephew, and then went to Market Drayton to browse the charity shops. I found a copy of A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth and a Diary of Kenneth Tynan, so I happily returned home in the knowledge that I probably wont read them for ages. We had tea, and then trotted off back home, arriving in Sunny Bedfordshire at about 9.00pm, rather tired. It is always good to get home, and it was especially good to sleep in our own bed again.
Wednesday 28th December
So we wend our merry way up t'north today, starting off fairly early on the road to Staffordshire. We arrived late morning and had a quick bite before heading off to the New Vic Theatre to watch Alice in Wonderland. It was an odd telling of the story being set in the first place on a canal boat, and with the theatre being in the round, it added a completely new dimension to it. I rather enjoyed it, though our massed party seemed to have differing views. The lead playing Alice had a broad potteries accent which I rather loved, and the Jaberwock which was powered by a mobility scooter was in my opinion a small work of genius. All in all a lovey trip out, and a pleasant way to spend the afternoon. We headed back to Ma and Pa in laws for dinner, and then said goodbye to Sister and Brother in law no.1. We then settled down for an evening of wine and gossip.
Friday, 30 December 2011
Tuesday 27th December
I slept heavily for minutes until the pig woke us up. She drank and gnawed all night, and this coupled with the rather unpredictable blow up bed we were on hardly induced a good nights rest. I spent some of the night sitting up reading Christopher Hitchens essays. The half conscious state that I found myself in for the next day was not entirely pleasant. The kids were all taken swimming whilst myself and brother in law went on a long dog walk, which was very pleasant indeed. We covered everything political, and I was delighted to find so much common ground it is rare to find someone as entertaining and enlightened as myself! We settled down in the evening to watch the Spurs match, and I was delighted to see them win, though the viewing was done through a red wine haze.
Monday 26th December
We set off at 8.30 for the Cotswolds, with a travelling Guinea Pig cage, a small car packed to the brim, and a non festive playlist in the car. A fairly straightforward journey, and we arrived late morning. Having enjoyed the delights of a quiet day yesterday, it was soon apparent that this was going to be much louder. We had about 15 round the table, many nieces and nephews assorted pets and family upsets....all in all a typical Christmas gathering,but pleasant nonetheless. We then went out for a long family walk, which ended at my in-laws friends house, where we again, ate and drank and generally made merry. I have realised that I do prefer quieter social occasions, and I can only put this down to my increasing years. The friends had some elderly relatives staying with them, who gave me the distinct impression that they didn't like me. They were rather well spoken, rather blue rinse, and clearly didn't like the fact that their son was spending so much time talking to someone who was referred to as Plug, and who seemed to be involved in The Arts. At the end if the evening, the father asked where we travelled from, and when we told him, he actually said "poor Bedfordshire"! I am increasingly surprised at the level of rudeness displayed by people. They came from Sussex, and have done nothing to improve my perceptions of the place and it's inhabitants.
Sunday 25th December
I must start by wishing anyone who cares to read this drivel a very merry Christmas. I realise that as an atheist I should feel ashamed to do this, but sod it...it's Christmas. We got to bed quite late, so we were not rushing out of bed too early, and the girls are slightly beyond the whole leaping put at five in the morning. They got to bed quite late as they had set up Mrs Plug. Eldest has a mannequin and decided that it would be a good idea to dress it up, and give it a face...in fact her own face cast in resin. The finishing touch was a lace head dress, and then it was placed in our bedroom. Mrs Plug walked in to a dark room to see a shadowy figure that looked like Norman Bates's mother. Merry Christmas!!! The kids were still awake, and much hilarity ensued and half past two in the morning. We started the day with a little caffeine, but soon moved onto alcohol. Presents were handed out and I think were much appreciated, and we settled down to eat a large lunch cooked this year by Mrs Plug. It was actually quite pleasant to not be on cooking duty this year. We then spent the rest of the day playing board games, nodding off, and watching pretty awful television. A pleasant day all round.
Sunday, 25 December 2011
Saturday 24th December
I went to Luton. This was not one of my finest ideas on Christmas eve. The people in Luton appeared to be rabid. I have done many Christmas Eve's in Central London, and Oxford Street is of course awful at the best of times. However the Mall as its known, was like Beirut. I hated every single last minute of the trip, and was so relieved to get out. I managed to get just about everything I needed, and came home to drink alcohol. I LOVE that feeling when we close the door and shut down for Christmas. Of course I cannot help but go to bed thinking that I have forgotten something. Eventually all the presents were wrapped by three in the morning....
Saturday, 24 December 2011
Friday 23rd December
The excitement was almost existent this morning as we left the house to go food shopping. We decided to push the boat out and go to Waitrose, which, after careful consideration, I would like to pass a few comments. Firstly, I am clearly not your average Waitrose shopper. I was watched with fascination by a man in his early 60's wearing a barbour jacket, and a sense of incredulity, that a long haired, unshaven lout was allowed in the shop. He just stared. There was no hint of an attempt at disguising the fact. It made me cross. The rest of the shopping experience was little better. People seemed intent on standing in the way of where I was looking, shouting over the top of me, and generally being ill mannered, It is, I believe, supposed to be a season of goodwill, whatever your outdated belief system is, but there was little evidence of this. Also, the quality of the stuff on sale was not much better here than at our local Tesco. We ended up buying food from Waitrose, and then going to Tesco to get the Alcohol, as it was cheaper anyway. On reaching the checkout, we were asked whether we would like any bags, and I was very proud of myself for avoiding the answer "No thankyou, we would like to perform a magical juggling act on the way out to the car. I hate shopping, it turns me into Jeremy Clarkson. In the evening, we watched rubbish television, and I had an early night! This is unusual.
Thursday 22nd December
In honour of the late Christopher Hitchens, I have been trying my best to make a cup of tea the way he prescribed in the article I posted recently. How delightful it was therefore, to be told that the tea I had made for Mrs Plug was "A bit tart". I give up. Any how, I decided that today was the day to relax and forget all about Christmas Shopping, and of course, this was not to be with Mrs Plug on the case. Lists continued to be made, and pots were still being glazed in readiness. We have of course not bought any food or drink for Christmas as yet, but we like to do things in a strange order at Plug Towers. We are being catered for in all sorts of different places over the next few days, so we do not need to go mad in terms of food and drink, but lists are still being prepared, and we have to encounter questions from offspring along the lines of "Why do we eat sprouts on Christmas day?" and "Why does Mum only drink Sherry at Christmas?" which of course have no logical answer other than the standard "It's tradition". I have been thinking a lot about why we celebrate the way we do. We are not christians, but then, I don't think the majority of people who celebrate actually are. I also think that you can trace it back to beyond Christianity anyway, but lets not get into all of that shall we? It's Christmas after all, and I don't want religion to spoil it. I have been thinking about my quest for collecting and gathering "Stuff". Most of this hoarding is now reduced to digital "Stuff", which could all be destroyed by the wave of a magnet or something similar. I was wondering what would happen if the Internet and PC's etc etc just simply ceased to exist. I think my stuff collecting would be limited to second hand books, and do you know what? That wouldn't be such a bad thing. So what of next year? Will I continue to frustrate myself? I have been making my plans for resolutions as usual.
Thursday, 22 December 2011
Wednesday 21st December
Christmas Shopping day. Oh heaven help me. We dropped youngest at a friends house, and went off and spent far too much money on presents. We decided that we would not buy for eachother this year, which always leaves the little boy in me feeling a bit sad. I know it's pathetic, but there you go. I am, unsurprisingly ,a difficult bugger to buy for, so I suspect that Mrs Plug will be relieved. I might treat myself to an item of clothing before the week is out...we shall see. I now have my kindle app on the iPad fully up to date with the next batch of books to plough through, and I think the collection will be rather challenging. I will report progress as I go along. We managed, I think, to get pretty much all the girls stuff organised, and we are leaving the food shopping until later on in the week, which should be entertaining. We are only really buying for one day, so that is a relief. We had to take eldest for a Scan today. After the horrendous episode at the hospital before, we have all been worrying about it, and hoping that there is no repeat of what happened. All seemed to go well, and she has such a strong positive attitude to it all at the moment that I couldn't be more proud. After we got out, we continued with shopping, and actually had a good time. Myself and Eldest managed to amuse ourselves by sneaking items into Mrs Plug's shopping basket without her noticing. My favourite was a Garden Gnome. We were tragically, quite helpless with laughter in the middle of the shop, and it makes me happy. We went for a coffee and a bite to eat in bloody Costa. I cannot help but dislike all of these chains of coffee shops, and I am not sure why. I think perhaps that they tell us what it is to be sophisticated, and I simply don't buy into it. I am sure there are lots of other reasons to dislike them, but right now, the fake pretension will do for me. We had a good chat anyway, and it was good for me to be able to articulate why I was feeling a little down after the incident with my Aunt last week. I am enjoying today in spite of myself. In the evening I got stuck in a loop of iPhone upgrade hell on the internet, so gave up and watched football.
Tuesday 20th December
We have read throughs for some plays next year tonight, so we need to be organised for that. We managed an hours Christmas Shopping today, but I have to admit that my heart was not in it, and I wanted to self harm after half an hour of the crowds. In the end we came back early, and did very little. Tomorrow will be the main day to get things done. The evening was very pleasant, and by the end of the day, there was much excitement about the plays on offer and what we might do with them all. I am very much keeping my options open as I am still not sure what I want to do. We still have a play that was written for us that is waiting to be performed, and I can't help but thinking that we ought to do it. We shall see. Myself and eldest popped to the pub afterwards for a quick drink, which was all very pleasant, and then headed home for another failure of an early night.
Monday 19th December
I continue to feel under the weather, which is I suppose a combination of the excesses of the weekend, the continuation of the bug, and general tiredness. I have that horrid feeling of wanting to hibernate. I think it's the season of goodwill to all beds for me. I manage to drag myself from my pit and get up and busy myself around the house. We are still playing catch up from the EC Washing mountain that built up during the Christmas Show week, and I doubt very much whether it will be cleared by the time Christmas actually arrives. I sound like a cheery soul today do I not? I suspect that another couple of days of not stressing will snap me out of it all. It is Mrs Plug's last Christmas Work day, so we look forward to her return, and the fact that it is now the holiday period officially. I have decided to try to think as little as possible about work for the next day or two, and to try to relax. Mrs Plug arrived home late but happy, and we watched the festive classic Rosemary's Baby until silly O Clock.
Monday, 19 December 2011
More writing Software
I spend far more time than I should reading all sorts of blogs and online utterings. However, one of the benefits of this, is that from time to time i get some good advice, and in particular from other more successful writers. I have read all sorts of hints and tips, and this one is for a bit of software called Final Draft. It is, I should add, very expensive (£160), but I am assured it is the industry standard. It works on Windows, and I am also assured that an iPad version is on the way. I suspect that at least one of my friends who reads this will be very interested in getting it for his forthcoming ventures into writing. All I need to do now is to develop some talent and some free time!
Sunday 18th December
Well a week to go until Christmas, and we have done nothing in the way of shopping. Mrs Plug always works at this time of year, and it is this that in effect pays for Christmas. I have been mad busy up until yesterday, and in many ways, I prefer to do things last minute. The whole build up to Christmas seems to be getting more and more elaborate and annoying each year. I endure it most of the time, but I do find it really unfair, particularly on those of us with kids and not a lot of money. I hope that we can just enjoy the break though without feeling all of those pressures. This year we are at home alone on Christmas Day, and then we are off to Sister in Laws for 2 days, then to Mother in laws for a day. I am sure it will be lovely, and I like the idea of switching off completely. I am continuing to read HITCH 22 which is excellent. One of the advantages of reading electronically is the ability to look up the definition of a word from within the book. In this book, I am finding that particularly useful. In the evening we sat and watched the Michael Buble Christmas special, which was awful in the extreme. I just do not get the fuss. He seems like a nice chap, and he has a pleasant voice, but really, is he that good? From young to old, he seems to be commanding a degree of affection that I don't understand. We then watched Ocean's Twelve, which was harmless enough, I had managed to avoid watching any of these films, so it was perhaps not the brightest thing to do to watch the second in the series first, but we managed to work it all out. I will now make the effort to watch the first one I think.
Saturday 17th December
I am not really a great one for dates and anniversaries, with my memory being as appalling as it is. And so it came to my attention that I had missed the 7th anniversary of stopping smoking, You will note that I did not use the phrase "giving up" as this implies that I have in some way lost something. I still get cravings from time to time, usually when I have had too much to drink, but by and large, I think I am happy enough to now call myself a proper ex-smoker. The day was spent doing as little as possible. It was our first Saturday off for a long time. Eldest stayed at a friends house last night, so myself and youngest spent the day slobbing around. In the evening I went to a friends house and got horribly drunk. I really don't enjoy it any more and don't like the person I become. Perhaps another resolution is required. I have sneaked a peek at the resolutions for 2011 and it is a mixed bag in terms of success this year. I will review them properly when we get nearer the end of the year.
Saturday, 17 December 2011
Friday 16th December
The last day of term today. The anger of last night has subsided, only to be replaced my anger at my Aunt who sent a tawdry little hate filled note to me. If ever I doubted my decision to divorce myself from my family, then it was extremely kind of her to remind my of my reasons. For the umpteenth time this year I found myself wallowing in a pit of resentment. I soon managed to snap out of it, but I am now 100% certain that I will never again be dragged back in by anything she says or does. Enclosed was £5 for cat food. I have given it to charity, I couldn't bear to spend it. I other news, the girls are all home for the holidays, and both looked exhausted. I think we are all in need of the next couple of weeks. I am still going to have to get through a good deal of work, but the lack of pressure in terms of the regular sessions will give me enough of a break. We spent the evening watching a couple of trashy but funny films, and went off to bed looking forward to a lie in.
Friday, 16 December 2011
Christopher Hitchens
I adored pretty much everything this man wrote, and whilst I may not have agreed with it all, it was still good to read something I disagreed with and still enjoy it. He wrote on many subjects, most of them were deadly serious and of course important....However, I do not think I have read a piece by him that I enjoyed more than this one...
RIP Hitch
A Fabulous Article
On the day that we learned about the death of Christopher Hitchens, it was good to read such a beautiful put down of the Daily Mail Theatre Critic. I know that criticising anything related to that rag is like shooting fish in a barrel....well particularly stupid fish, in a Barrel of their own putrid stupidity....but it was worth the read anyway....I have read "Saved", but did not have either the time or the funds to go and see it, however, it would seem that Mr Letts does not want me to form my own opinion about it. I didn't particularly care for the play when I read it, and perhaps I needed to see it before I formed an opinion, however, its benefits and good points were a little wasted on me. I do think though, that I ought to be able to make up my own mind about it.....anyway.....See what Mr Rebellato has to say on the subject...
Thursday 15th December
An interesting day. I awoke to the realisation that Mrs Plug in all her generosity had decided to leave me with a small token of her love, in the form of the bug that she has been suffering from. Instead of moping around for days like Ladies do, I of course brushed it off and carried on with my day. Having written my review of the year, which actually makes it sound a bit dull, I then manfully soldiered on with life. Later on in the day, I experienced something which I found annoying and want to vent about it a little. All I will say, is that for a religious organisation to do what they did to me tonight was upsetting, and rather ironic given the time of year...No room at the Inn springs to mind. I feel so angry about the situation that I might have to rethink my approach in the new year. Never mind, we made the most of the fact that we were home early, and ate Curry in front of the Shamrock Rovers vs Spurs game, and generally relaxed. One thing I HAVE got better at this year is the management of my moods. I think that in the past I would have let it eat away at me for the whole evening, but I am glad I didn't....after all.....I doubt that anyone else spent the evening worrying about what they had done to me. Last session tomorrow, and then we can relax a little! :-)
Thursday, 15 December 2011
What was good in 2011
My rather inconsequential review of 2011 follows......
Theatre - I had a great year as far as theatre was concerned. I think there were several highlights in terms of what I was personally involved with as well as what I watched. The Globe Theatre production of Henry IV Part one was my ultimate highlight. Roger Allam as Falstaff was stunning, and the hours spent on the feet flew by. It was particularly good to spend it with eldest.Other highlights were seeing the Tennant/Tate Much Ado, which I thoroughly enjoyed, and felt that the critics ignored, not because of what they actually saw, but what they felt about the celebrity casting. I feel they have forgotten where Tennant and Tate came from. Anyway...rant over....It was also excellent to see Eldest absolutely own the stage in a performance of The Likes of Us. I still get a shiver up my spine thinking of her on that stage. I am so very proud. I had three of my own plays performed this year, and I was pleased with them all in equal measures. It hasn't put me off of continuing down the writing path!Television - Well my eyes have been opened up to all sorts of things this year, but the stand out series (I don't do "Seasons") had to be Game of Thrones. I don't really do fantasy science fiction as much as I once did, but I make an exception in this case. It was just so much fun, and wonderful to watch. I have spent more time watching news programmes and documentaries than drama or comedy though, and there were so many highlights looking back at those that it is difficult to name any favourite moments. However, the newsnight episodes that dealt with phone hacking were extremely entertaining, with Paxman getting better and better.
Books - Where to start? I discovered Kindle and e-books this year, so I have read far more than I expected to. I think my personal favourite read this year has been Caitlin Moran's book, but honourable mentions must also go to Emma Kennedy for the Tent the Bucket and Me, and John Niven for Kill your friends.
Sport - Well my beloved Spurs have been excellent this year, and it will be a year that I suspect I will treasure the memory of for a long time. Seeing Gareth Bale torment the best defences in Europe in the Champions League will last for ever!
Film - I have never been much of a film buff, but have managed to catch up on an awful lot this year. I will include films that I have seen this year for the first time, and mention Four Lions, A Prophet, The Godfather (Yes...I know!!!!!), Inception and Submarine.
Music - Because I have done less in the way of listening, I have really gone back many years and revisited much. I have been to see little in the way of live music, with Carter USM being the only fully fledged gig of the year. In terms of music on the iPod, it has been the Smiths again, with the remastered collection. I have also spent lots of time with the Super Furry Animals, the Manic Street Preachers and the Stone Roses & Happy Mondays, for nostalgic reasons. New music has been hard to come by this year in terms of quality. I enjoyed the Horrors album, Noel Gallagher's solo wasn't half bad, and the Vaccines got a few airings. I am not sure that age is necessarily the reason, but I do feel that much new music has passed me by. I think, like anything, you need to work hard to find the real quality, and my energies have been employed elsewhere. I have enjoyed some classical this year, in particular, Vivaldi, who is not challenging enough to disturb me when writing. I have dabbled a lot, and listened to much that I cannot remember, but did have a long period of listening to Brahms, which was enjoyable. There was much that was released and lauded that was poor. I wont jump on the anti Coldplay wagon as there is much out there that has been worse, but I do feel that many bands have stagnated. REM called it a day, which was not totally unsurprising, but rather sad all the same. I quite liked their last album.
Podcasts - Richard Herring and Andrew Collins have provided me with much entertainment over the years, so it was sad to see them fall out this year. I hope that the recent return to podcasting will be a long one. Herring's continued solo podcasts and Edinburgh ones were excellent as usual, and I enjoyed the sheer insanity of his recent Snooker podcast. I also enjoyed the Desert Island Discs podcasts which meant that you could listen to some interesting people without having to hear their terrible taste in music too much.
Radio - When I did listen, it was exclusively to Radio 4
Comedy - I have been to one comedy gig this year, which was again Richard Herring. I love the man. He makes me howl with laughter, and what a nice, unassuming gentle chap he seems when meeting him afterwards!
Wednesday 14th December
Mrs Plug has the dreaded vomiting bug. Well I say "Dreaded"....I am not sure that is completely accurate. Annoyingly, it kept me awake for a large proportion of the night, which was entirely unnecessary of her. I have made a note of this for future reference. She managed to stop being annoyingly ill enough to go off on he first day of her Christmas Job, which is as it should be. This left me alone in the house for a while, which was all rather pleasant. I managed to get a little work done, and tidy up much of my media collection. I have a collection of external hard drives with all sorts of stuff and nonsense on it, so it is nice to get some sort of order to it all. I managed to watch the first episode of "Boardwalk Empire" an HBO drama set in the prohibition in the US. It seems quite promising, so I may well continue with it. I have also started to watch some of the American episodes of "The Office", which I think are far better than the original UK versions. That is quite unusual in itself. I wonder if this new found love of things American is some sort of reaction to my huge writing career in America? I had the last of the After School club sessions before Christmas and it was all very sweet and lovely, and I am really looking forward to them returning next term. I have a really good feeling about this group. I am beginning to think back on the year as well, and reviewing not only what has gone on personally, but also in terms of the arts etc etc....I can feel a bumper bonus blog post coming on I think. I now only have a matter of days to complete, and I will have written a whole year's worth of posts. I am not sure if I should be proud or not? The word count alone must qualify as a book, sadly, the quality almost certainly does not.
Wednesday, 14 December 2011
Tuesday 13th December
Most of this morning has been spent dealing with the matter I mentioned yesterday, which I am finding frustrating, irritating and annoying. I am sure I will write further about it at a later date, but it is such that I cannot go into detail. My writing website is now updated, and I am creating a Facebook Fan page. This is designed purely so that I can interact with the groups and Schools performing what I do, rather than any particular display of cockiness. I do find that some people I come across tend to be a little bit anti what I do, which is always a shame. I can already taste the relief of the last week at School/Work, and although I still have a lot to do, it all feels a bit "End of term", which is rather pleasant. I remember that feeling well, being able to take games in on the last day, but always feeling a little jealous of what the more affluent families were able to bring in. Typical me....finding something to be bitter about! I was always grateful for what I did have though.
Monday 12th December
With some semblance of relief, we now get back to a routine for a week or two. I have a meeting with my business advisor, and all seems to be heading in the right direction. On the downside, we have a bit of an issue arising from the last couple of weeks. It's always difficult when personal issues arise in situations like this, but I do wish they could be sorted out by looking at both sides. Anyhow....I am trying not to let things affect me as much as they have in the past, so I move on. Mrs Plug will be off doing her regular pre Christmas work again this year, and the girls will be finishing school at the end of the week. Youngest has been sick again, so will be off for the next two days. It makes working at home rather difficult, as I like to spend time with her. When eldest is home for study periods it makes it even more difficult. My solitary confinement of the last year now seems to have gone to the other extreme! I shall of course not complain! We had our last Monday session of the year tonight and all went well, and how nice not to have to dash off to rehearsals immediately afterwards!
Monday, 12 December 2011
Sunday 11th December
I awoke rather late, mainly due to the real ale on sale at the party last night. The afternoon was spent going through receipts and accounts in preparation for a meeting tomorrow. I then whipped up a bit of dinner for the family and settled down to watch an unusual event, Spurs losing. It was one of those games where I was screaming at the referee, and whilst I understand that all fans are biased towards their team, this really was a travesty of a refereeing performance. Anyway, that's the loss out of the way, I hope they get back to winning ways again soon. The rest of the day was spent relaxing as much as possible, but I still found myself going through receipts until midnight! I also received an email from a School wanting to work with us again, which is all rather exciting!
Saturday 10th December
The start of the final week of work before Christmas, and what a delightful start with the morning session. They really are a lovely bunch. I came out of the session with a big smile on my face. In the afternoon, I prepared a large vegetarian curry to go towards the Christmas party in the evening. It's the first one I have been to in three years, and I spent the day rather looking forward to it. I tend not to enjoy Christmas parties too much, which is probably a throw back to the big build up to Christmas when I was younger and the ultimate let down of it all. I also miss our friends from the group who have moved away, and no matter how nice the people are, it's still not the same. I am coming across as someone who cannot cope with change aren't i? :-) The other thing that plays on my mind was the phone call I received yesterday from my Aunt. After all the abuse etc that I received a few weeks back for trying to help, she phoned me out of the blue to ask if she could send money to the girls. I said no. She rather tersely said goodbye and hung up, and as usual, I feel guilty. I just cannot bear the ups and downs that I get with her, and it seems to me that I only get a call when I am needed. Anyway, in the event, the evening was very enjoyable, and it all passed with no incident, and a rather nice warm feeling.
Friday, 9 December 2011
Friday 9th December
Started off stressing about finances with Christmas coming up, and cashflow etc, but all sorted by the end of the day. I also received notification that one of my plays has now been picked up by an english group! They will be performing it twice next year, and having done a little research, it would seem that they will be entering it into festivals. This pleases me no end, as it was what it was originally written for. It would also seem that the performances in the American schools are being done as part of their exams. I always wondered what kind of strange crazy mixed up country it was, but this just confirms it. When the royalty cheque comes in, it will hardly be a fortune, but it will certainly pay for a nice night out or two. I want to keep it separate just to enjoy it! I have at least two, maybe three more plays that are at a publishable level in terms of my publisher, but there are some edits to do and some formatting issues. I will spend a few days trying to get on top of that over Christmas. If I can get between ten and twenty plays out there in the next year, then i think I can start to really enjoy it all. It's been a funny old week as far as work is concerned. I have felt a little detached from it all, and in need of the rest. We have a good weekend to look forward to though with the annual Christmas bash. I have not attended for the last two years, so it will be good to be there again. I think the mood and atmosphere will be somewhere near what it used to be.
Thursday 8th December
I think I am definitely ready for the break. We went to see eldest in Romeo and Juliet last night, and were deeply proud as usual. She's so talented, and so deserves a crack at a career in it. I hope she gets that bit of luck she needs! We are all a little tired this week still, and I think we have accepted that this is the way it will be for the next week. Mrs Plug will be working at her regular Christmas job next week, and we will finish for the term. I am looking forward to getting a few days to get some writing finished off.
Wednesday 7th December
Just seen that the BBC have adapted Great Expectations again for Christmas.......I wonder why it has been done again. Much as I love the BBC adaptations of Dickens, this one has been done to death....I suppose I should give it a go, but having seen a clip of Gillian Anderson as Miss Faversham, I am not sure that this one will be a winner. Time will tell. I came to Dickens quite late in life, mainly as I was forced to study Hard Times at school, by, well there is no better way of putting it, an idiot. The teacher was obviously bored to tears as he read it out, and was clearly bored with his own life as well as that of others. Hard Times is not exactly the lightest of reads, and I think therefore I suffered as a result. I shall try to read it again one day soon. I digress however, and I wish the BBC would pick up another Dickens story to adapt, there were plenty of them.
Wednesday, 7 December 2011
Tuesday 6th December
A day of paperwork, and Mrs Plug doing spring cleaning. This is either incredibly early and deeply efficient, or so late that it's embarrassing, I am yet to work out which. I received more news of my plays being performed, and again, the United States is the place! I really cannot fathom why on earth anyone from the States would want to perform these plays, and quite what they make of them. I hope to receive some form of feedback, and I will write to them to ask for a copy if they record it in any way. It really is a great feeling knowing that someone has read them, and decided to perform them. I hope that this continues, and that I become massive in America! Of course, back in the real world, I have to continue with the daily humdrum, and I looked at the calendar and realised quite how close we are to Christmas. I must be a lucky person, as on being asked what i want, I genuinely couldn't think of anything. I wonder what this says about me. I am looking forward to tomorrow to see eldest in another version of Romeo and Juliet. I am sure she will be excellent as usual, and it's good to see so many people from last weeks show supporting her and coming along. We are nearly at the final week of term, and I think the kids are looking forward to the break. Youngest was sent home as she'd been sick, so that's another 2 days off! I do wonder about these rules sometimes. Can't we just send kids to school when we think they are better? Oh there I go again getting all Jeremy Clarkson. My beloved MP is closing down her non-blog. I am not so cynical as to think that this is because she has been exposed as less than truthful in it recently of course. However, if she thinks that by deleting the blog, her stupidity will disappear as well, then she has another think coming. I know of several people who have taken full copies of it. She is now going to communicate to a wider audience apparently....Odd woman!
Tuesday, 6 December 2011
Monday 5th December
So back to some sort of reality now what with the chaos and carnage of the last week or so. I think one of the things that I really need to look at in the future with any large show is my diet. Not that I am that worried about putting on weight...the amount of physical work involved covers that. It's more for the energy levels. The last few months have been spent with at least two rehearsals a week. My slot to eat was sandwiched between running a work session and a rehearsal (Clever use of the word sandwiched there I thought). So as a result, the local chip shop man saw me more than his wife. By the end of the run I was heartily sick of chips. During show week we also enjoyed the delights of kebabs, pizza, curry and Chinese take-aways. I just feel completely sluggish. I was much better as far as alcohol was concerned, and probably only had two nights where I should have had less. I am going to try and build more of a contingency in the future for food. I was also wondering if I should take vitamins and go on a health kick for the two weeks leading up to and including the show. There are so many coughs and sneezes around, and our leading man barely made the stage for two of the performances that I think it might be a good idea. We must be one of the only Amateur drama groups that have our own juicing specialist who brings in a variety of healthy potions designed to help the voice! Anyway, I shall be looking after myself a little better over the next few weeks. Today was a slow day, mainly because I had decided it needed to be. Mrs Plug did Housework,and I got re accustomed to working life and the ever growing to do list! We had a quiet session in the evening and then an evening in front of the telly.
We started to talk about Christmas and what to buy the girls, and I always get a little excited about that. We also have the tree up, along with the decorations. I feel this is far too early, but as our tree was on stage all last week we felt it was easier to do this than put it away and get it out again. I think we are all feeling a little down at the moment. Perhaps because of the various things we have taken on? I am looking forward to the break and the family time over the next few weeks.
Monday, 5 December 2011
Sunday 4th December.
I struggled to get out of bed on only a few hours sleep, and felt really sad that it was all over, but tidy up we must. The last push meant that I got home at 2.00pm, for a cup of tea and a nap. we then went to the shops and bought the ingredients for a Roast dinner. I have missed decent food all week, so it was good to sit as a family and catch up on some crap telly and eat well and slowly. The rest of the evening was spent snoozing in front of the telly. Back to reality now
Saturday 3rd December
The final day of the run, and mixed emotions all round. The determination to put on shows to the best of our ability, with the tinge of sadness that this will be the last time we sing them songs together. The matinee is usually the difficult one, but we went for it today, and on reflection it was my favourite of the run. I fell completely flat after this show, and was struggling a bit to get up for the second show of the day, but the practical jokes on the dressing room lifted the spirits, and we blasted it in the evening. The evening over, the stage ripped out, and then back to Plug towers for a few drinks until silly o clock. Ajob well done
Friday 2nd December
The week has flown by, and I cannot believe that it will all be over tomorrow. We have had so much fun in the dressing rooms this week, and I think that has been my favourite aspect. It reminded me of when we first started this, and the fun we had backstage with Mr Pops. The In Laws came over to see us today, which was great, and then they came down to see the show in the evening. I think they were suitably impressed, especially since I made a disparaging comment about "The Wife's mother" as one character. A great Friday performance and probably the best yet.
Thursday 1st December
So one more month of blogging to go, and I will have completed a whole year. I wonder if I will continue? The start of December usually means that we all start to focus on Christmas, but that wont happen until we get the show out of the way. The morning was spent printing programmes and getting the box office up to date, and then off to work for two hours. I have never felt so tired at a session. It was still great fun, but I am of the opinion that I need to be better organised in the future. It's hard to remain focused on everything. The show was excellent again tonight, and we sat at the bar afterwards thinking how much fun it was that we still had three performances. We would have been finished on a normal run.
Wednesday 30th November
The blog will be mainly taken up by musings about the show for the rest of the week, but considering how much it takes over that is little surprise. We were delighted that Mr and Mrs Pops were in attendance tonight, and it was also very considerate of the teachers to be on strike as well. We spent some time relaxing today, and then got down to the hall for about four o clock. The atmosphere was excellent all round, and I felt that it was a good performance, though maybe not as strong as last nights. The reception was again marvelous, so I cannot complain.
Tuesday 29th November
Opening night is here at last, and we spend a lot of time finalising set and lighting and sound and everything really. Costumes are still being altered and added to, and the pace is frenetic. I have done so many shows at this place, and you never quite know what the atmosphere is going to be like, but I was delighted that it has been so pleasant on this one. We had so much fun tonight, and felt that the audience were excellent for an opening night. Only a handful of empty seats, and a fantastic reception. The stilt walking went well, and I managed to scare some children, so a good opener
Monday 28th November
A tense day all round, as we realised the enormity of what was still needed. The stage is built, but a last minute decision to change the bed and the door put extra pressure on the tech team. I think it is all going well, but I am worried that there is no time left to make any changes. The evening session went very well, and we got back to the hall in plenty of time for photos and a rehearsal. I could do with a day in bed before we open, but never mind. I popped to the bank in the morning and also got some boots and a hat for the show. All is now ready, and we just need an audience and a reviewer!
Sunday 27th November
Down to the hall for nine again, and today was lighting day. We also had a rehearsal and a technical planned, but only ended up with the rehearsal as everyone was exhausted. The lights look incredible, but they still have so much to do still, and we open on Tuesday. I can see a lot of furrowed brows! The stilt walking went well, and we have a hand rail to assist me up the stairs! I feel a little edgy still, but thought it went well enough to persevere. The costume will need a few tweaks as well. It got caught in the stilts on the stairs! Home at ten, which was much needed for a glass of wine and an early night.
Saturday 26th November
Down at the hall early to begin. The girls ran my morning session for me so that I could be there to supervise, which was most welcome. I came down at the end of the session to make sure all was well, and was delighted to see the kids having had such a great time. Maybe I am dispensable after all!!? The rest of the day was taken up with building flats, and stages and props, and then having a run through on the stage. Bearing in mind the absentees and the fact that it was the first time on stage I couldn't have been happier really. Some of the technical stuff will be interesting, and I think we have far too much to acheive still but it's all acheivable
Friday 25th November
We spent the day making final preparations for the week, and getting ready for the evening session. I find that day before we can do anything rather frustrating, and wish that we could just get on with it. I am also worried that my costume and stilt combo is going to work correctly, and whether I will actually be able to do it. We got home after the evening session, and had a bite to eat, and then headed back down to the hall to assist with the get in. Tonight we put up the lighting rig, which was spectacular. It was slow going, and we were not able to get the stage up, but we made good progress. We finished at midnight and went home to prepare for the mania that is the first full day in the venue.
Thursday 24th November
The last rehearsal and the last total day of madness for a while. I had my after school club, which was perhaps the most challenging hour of working with children I have ever experienced, followed by a good evening session followed by the last rehearsal before we move to the venue. I think everyone was a little tired and flat, and just needed to get on with the show now. I feel like we have everything in hand. but I always worry that we have so much to do before we open, in particular with this show. I just hope that everyone gets on well. I have not been reading for a while now, and I am missing it, so I am trying to get back into the groove...it's just so difficult when you are as tired as I am at the moment!
Wednesday 23rd November
I cannot believe how quickly the last few months has gone. The blog continues everyday, which I didn't think I would manage, but I am glad I did. I have spent today getting the programme finalised for next week, and realising that I am still waiting for content. The best laid plans and all that. I suspect that there might be a fair few late nights in show week. Ticket sales have been excellent. I wonder how I will manage to keep up the pace as I am already feeling more than a little tired. I am also looking at the girls schedule and wondering how they will cope. The advantage of all of this is that Christmas has sneaked up on us, and by the time this is all finished it will be nearly Christmas!
Tuesday 22nd November
The day was dominated with a meeting about all of our big shows at the big theatre next year. I am hugely excited by all of this, and in many ways next weeks show will get in the way of it all. Having said all of that, I am still looking forward to it, though slightly nervous about my form of transport in one scene. The meeting went well, and we have everything that we want in place. I just need to get the finance side approved by the council, and we will be on our way. I spent the evening in front of a warm radiator watching nonsense on the telly, and thinking that I should make the most of it bearing in mind the future week.
Tuesday, 22 November 2011
Monday 21st November
The week starts with a thoroughly busy day, and the momentum of show week beginning to kick in already. I have ordered my complicated footwear for the show, and await the arrival with trepidation and fear. I suspect that it might be a lot harder than I first envisaged. Got quite a lot done today, and feel like I might be heading in the right direction with everything. Still have a very long "To Do" list, but starting to tick off some big things. The evening work session was packed and constructive, though we had our first incident of vomit in five years! Then onward to rehearsals which went really well, and home for food and footy with Spurs playing. They won again, and are now third, and I don't think I can remember enjoying them play as much as this. I hope they can keep this standard up! Everything else seems to have quietened down now, and we can focus on the positive. I must update my blog with more MP related news soon, as quite a lot has been happening. I am also in two minds as to whether I should blog about the community building that we were after, that is now for sale.
Monday, 21 November 2011
Sunday 20th November
I stayed in bed and read this morning. This time I have gone for something a little unusual for me...."Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" by Hunter S Thompson. I suppose it is good to vary your palette occasionally, and I find that modern Literature can leave me a little cold. However, old Hunter has been in the news a little lately with his latest film starring the lovely Mr Depp, and I thought it was time to give him a go. It is certainly an interesting read, and perhaps challenging. I found myself getting a little impatient at times, and wanting to find a character that I could form some sort of bond with. Early days, but not sure what to make of it all quite yet. We are all tired, and a little bit snappy in the evening, but that is understandable. The girls went out to watch the twilight film in the afternoon, and we stayed behind and prepared dinner and relaxed. So much to do, but the family needs a little down time as well. I watched some football, ate, fell asleep, and then ended up watching Quadrophenia. I realised that I had never seen the end, and was only aware of it through what I had been told. Time has not been kind on the film in my mind, with some of the dialogue and acting being at best cringe worthy. However, it was still watchable, and the ending provided some wonderful views.
Sunday, 20 November 2011
Saturday 19th November
Excellent session this morning with a great atmosphere....got home and put on some football and before I knew it I had woken up after the match. Its been a busy week. Mrs Plug was at an exhibition all day and had great sales again. I'm so pleased for her, she is getting the vindication she deserved and needed. In the evening I was transported back to the late eighties early nineties. We went to Brixton Academy to see Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine. It was a celebratory evening for the band, the crowd, and us Ina personal level, and I lost my voice as well! I love the venue, I loved the band and I loved all the memories that they brought back. It was an excellent end to a busy, sometimes difficult but ultimately wonderful week.
Friday 18th November
We have been invited to take part in a huge regional showcase next year as a result of our Shakespeare production earlier this year. It's very exciting and I hope we can fit it all in. Next year is already looking really exciting for us all, and I now feel like some shackles have been removed. I have mentioned the word "crazymaker" before, and it seems even more apt at the moment. This explains the concept nicely.....
http://thinklikeablackbelt.com/blog/five-traits-of-a-narcissistic-crazymaker/
One more change and I think I will be happy. Our evening session was good fun, and we have hit upon an interesting staging idea borne out of some of the tedium of the last few days. We then went carol singing in the evening to advertise our show and collect for charity. It was fun.
http://thinklikeablackbelt.com/blog/five-traits-of-a-narcissistic-crazymaker/
One more change and I think I will be happy. Our evening session was good fun, and we have hit upon an interesting staging idea borne out of some of the tedium of the last few days. We then went carol singing in the evening to advertise our show and collect for charity. It was fun.
Thursday 17th November
As I suspected, the whole situation has blown up, and instead of listening and reading what was actually said, people have decided to simply stand on opposing hills hurling abuse. A pity, but inevitable. Having discussed the whole thing with many people I trust, I know we did the right thing, but sadly, when you are dealing with people with a lack of emotional maturity and intelligence, the results can be somewhat tedious and predictable. We move on. We went to see a good friend In a play last night, and as usual I have come away with ideas and inspiration. The director was clearly a woman after my own heart, and the only thing that let the whole thing down was some of the acting and lack of lines. Same old story! I had a meeting in the morning in my old home town. The place has caused a lot of misery to me over the years, and I wonder if my project to work there is in some way a form of therapy? We are starting a really big venture there in March next year, and I am hugely excited about it. I think it could lead us into a new era with the business. It was so good to work with professional creative people today, knowing that I would have to deal with the opposite end of the spectrum later on. I will not write anything too much on here, but needless to say, my predictions were spot on, and we have, as a company ended the day In a much stronger position than we started.
Wednesday 16th November
I find it hard to admit to mistakes, but then I suspect I am not alone in that. We have made a mistake or two in one of our projects, and the upshot is going to be slightly awkward and messy. Breaking things to people is never a pleasant thing to do, and in this case, it has troubled both of us for a while now. The trouble is, I don think anyone realises quite how much we give a damn . Maybe it's why we are ok at what we do? We shall watch this space, but I suspect that the whole thing will blow up in childish recriminations.
Tuesday 15th November
After the general trauma of yesterday, we spend the day together as a family. The girls are both off sick,and we spend the day tending to the emotional bruises,and getting ourselves all back on track. I think we all feel a little better, but I'm sure it will all take a little while to feel comfortable again. I find it difficult to write about stuff like this, as I am also trying to protect the privacy of our family. Some people,close to me read it, and I have no problem with that, but I just hope that no-one else try's to read it and attempt to use it. I mention no names deliberately, and I suspect that one person at least has read something and got hold of the wrong end of the stick. That can be fun, but it can also be dangerous. I might move the blog in its entirety and keep it well hidden.
Monday 14th November
The less said about today the better. I hate arguments, I hate conflict,and especially when it is trivial and unnecessary.
Sunday 13th November
No plans for anything today other than helping with some installation work at the venue for the Christmas show in the evening. Sat and read for much of the day and tried to switch off from some of the frustrations of the world for a while. I am reading the Shaun Ryder book at the moment and reminiscing about the "Madchester" period. Whilst we were not heavily involved in certain aspects of the period we certainly embraced the general feeling at the time and had a lot of fun, and a lot of interesting things happened. Shaun comes across as a loveable rogue, and I think the book will be finished soon.
Sunday, 13 November 2011
Saturday 12th November
Last night we went out with some old friends to an Indian restaurant in Bedford. We met two other people who Mrs Plug knows, and I had not met. I detest meeting new people. Not because I am unsociable, but more that I am rather shy, and worry that they might not like me. In the event, we had a rather lovely time, and I was well behaved, and didn't drink too much or rant about any of my peculiar beliefs to the point of offence. I shall patronise myself by patting myself on the head. I was, as a result of my lack of excess the night before, able to spring out of bed to get on with the day, and I rather enjoyed the feeling. A good session and a much more positive rehearsal and we were able to to relax a little in the evening. I watched the first part of the Scorsese documentary film about George Harrison, and fell slightly more in love with my favourite Beatle as a result. It is a wonderful piece of work, and the second part which is screened tomorrow is essential viewing. I then managed to watch the start of "Let the Right one in" which I really enjoyed, but again, will have to watch at a sensible hour in order that I may finish it!
Friday 11th November
I managed to get a bit of time today to finally finish properly the first draft of the latest play. It was then printed off and away we went with the first rehearsal. During the day, I was completely engrossed in writing and as a result I forgot the 2 minute silence today. Should I feel bad that some dead people will not know that I disrespected them for being too overly focused.? It's all a bit too complicated, and is in danger of overstimulating my mind. I AM of course entirely grateful for the sacrifices made by anyone in the pursuit of peace and freedom, and I am not sure I would ever be capable of the bravery shown by, the Dambusters for example. However, I am becoming a little tired of the "Poppy zealots", who on a daily basis, fill up my timelines and inboxes telling me what is and what isn't an appropriate way to honour the dead and their sacrifices. I believe strongly in the right to make your own decisions, and I dislike banning of anything where at all possible, and much of what is printed at around this time of year, seems to me to be echoing some of the words of people we have fought against in the past. I have bought and have worn my poppy this year, but I did so because I chose to.
Thursday 10th November
Today was hugely busy, and I felt like I needed a holiday after it! A late morning meeting about a possible job next summer, which sounds like really good fun. It's actually at a private nursery/prep school that youngest went to for a while. I shall be putting together a proposal over the next few days, and I hope we can get it! Ten dashed back, got my stuff together for the after school club, then the session and then the rehearsal. All went well up until the rehearsal which was a bit disjointed and tetchy. If nothing else, it gave me a lot of material for some future writing plans! My concerns about voluntary commitments were highlighted even more today.
Wednesday 9th November
I am now beginning to feel slightly human again, but have realised, unsurprisingly that I have indeed taken on too much. I have read an awful lot over the last few years about successful artists and businessmen and they all have something in common. They all seem to be geared towards one single goal and manage to avoid distractions. I need to look long and hard over the next few weeks at what it is that I want to do. I of course want to keep the business going strong. I enjoy it more and more, especially with the added bonus of actually writing plays to be performed. I t makes a good deal of difference to the way I approach the shows. I love the writing side more than I ever thought I would, as I think I may have mentioned on here once or twice. The degree course however, has been little more than a tiresome distraction during busy times, and I think I may have to give it up. I have spent a lot of time and money on it over the last few years, and I have to question why? Is it for the good of the business or is it simply something to boast about? I need to decide I think. I also give up a lot of time to my voluntary work, and I am beginning to share similar feelings towards it that a good friend of mine does to his. Do I really need some of the associated hassle that comes with it? There is also the question of another voluntary opportunity that I have, which is to take on a venture that has been going for 30 years. I really feel quite strongly that this would be a worthwhile exercise, and as a result, I am leaning towards it. It will not involve anywhere near the degree of work that other ventures have...so I am seriously considering it. As you can tell dear reader, I am in a thoughtful mood at the moment, and perhaps feeling a little down. I shall endeavour to lighten up and move forward with my usual joy as soon as possible.
Wednesday, 9 November 2011
Tuesday 8th November
A quiet day, mainly because I am still feeling under the weather. I updated a few websites here and there, and made a few calls. Next year looks like it is coming together show wise, which is exciting all round. I am now the proud owner of an online record label. It was set up with a view to releasing some music to go with some of the shows I am writing, so in the long term, we can sell the script and the purchaser can then go to iTunes and buy the soundtrack. It was very cheap to set up, and is reasonable in terms of pricing going forward. In order to check how it all works, I have released one of my old bands songs "I'm Beautiful" which is available on iTunes Amazon 7Digital and Spotify for your listening pleasure...the band were called Charley. If it does OK we will release some more which is rather good fun. I sometimes think I was born far too early. Had my band enjoyed the benefits of the Internet and the other technology around I suspect we would have done a lot better. Oh well. The song itself was about my family and friends attitude to me at a time when I needed support and got little if any. I played it at my Grandfather's funeral which seemed rather apt. The little voice singing at the end is my eldest, who is now 17, and I suspect that she will not be sending the link to all of her friends! I have some really fond memories of the band and the fun we had, and once or twice, I thought we did some rather good stuff.
Tuesday, 8 November 2011
Monday 7th November
A cold damp day in Bedfordshire was lit up for me with an invite to write and perform a show next year (A paid job as well). I hope that this is the shape of things to come as it is something that I adore doing. I have a meeting later in the week to finalise it all, but it seems to be fitting in well. I have also all but programmed next years events, and am just waiting for final confirmation of bookings. I was looking at the route for the Olympic Torch, and seeing if we could perhaps get something going on near that, but it seems to be doing a big loop to avoid me! I shall foil you Olympic Torch, and hunt you down with a damp flannel, that'll show you. The Novel is now seriously behind, and I am suspecting that I may fall at an early hurdle unless I can get back on track. The trouble is that I am feeling really pretty rough, and it's just difficult to keep my eyes open, let alone be creative. We shall see...perhaps a little burst later in the week will bring me back up to date? Evening session was rather lovely and then dashed down to rehearse, and all is progressing quite nicely!
Monday, 7 November 2011
Sunday 6th November
The illness continues and as a result, today has been mainly a lazy unproductive one. I managed a lie in, but then got up and we all had a late breakfast together, which was all very pleasant. Eldest spent the day working on her studies, youngest asked me to recommend a book for her to read for school. Her dyslexia has put her off of any serious reading, and for a girl with the kind of imagination she has, I have always really felt for her. The secret to getting her to read is of course the right book, so I thought back to what got me reading. I started reading prolifically when I was about 7, and devoured books, whereas youngest does not have that drive. With her sense of humour, I suggested the Hitchhikers Guide books, and she went for this suggestion with a little gusto. For someone who will read maybe three pages at a time at best, I was delighted that she read 18 pages in one sitting, and merrily packed the book for school the next day. I hope this is the beginning for her! I watched Spurs beat Fulham undeservedly, and rather enjoyed it. How many times have I watched my beloved team hammer the opposition only to lose? Well the boot was on the other foot this time, and it was a pleasant experience! In the evening I watched two films, Red State, which was awful in the extreme, and Columbiana, which wasn't too bad. It was a modern day Gangster revenge story, with a young girl righting the wrongs of her murdered parents...not particularly original, but it passed the time. Red State was in effect, a gun fight between the Police and a Religious sect, not much more to say about it than that. It finished and I felt relieved, but short changed in that nothing of any interest happened. I rewrote the elements of the ten minute play today, and edited based on the feedback I had received. Having re-read it several times, and looked at the standard of work in previous competitions, I was quite happy, and submitted it. I now just have to wait and see. Even if it doesn't get accepted, the exercise has been enjoyable, and I have learnt more about writing. To bring in a back story, develop character and plot, and to do so within the confines of the brief was a lot more challenging than I expected. The temptation to get the character to make pronouncements to move the plot forward is great, and I hope I have avoided that. The subject matter is, well lets call it "Mildly disturbing". Even if It does garner some success, I think I may have to keep it quiet for fear that it puts off people from allowing me to work with their kids!! perhaps a pen name might be in order in the future!
Sunday, 6 November 2011
Saturday 5th November
I felt absolutely dreadful this morning when I woke up and strongly considered giving the session and the subsequent rehearsal a miss. I carried on though, and had quite a lot of fun in the end. I think there is something within me that has changed quite fundamentally over the years, in that I will persevere through illness far more than I once would have done. Perhaps because I love it so much? Who knows? We had some new girls start this morning, and they both seemed keen, and although one of them is the child of someone who we have fallen out with, it would not be fair to let this affect the child. I hope, in fact that it might build a bridge or two. We continued into the Christmas Show rehearsal with a costume session, and a run through some of the routines. It's all coming together, and tickets are selling well. I'm really rather looking forward to it all of a sudden. In the evening we managed to avoid Fireworks, and went to a friends house who has just moved into the town. It was good to see him, but I wish that I had felt a little more alive.
Friday 4th November
As last night went on, I found a lurgy taken over my body like a small Alien invasion, to the extent that I was forced to forego my planned trip to the pub, and go home and feel sorry for myself. My voice all but disappeared. I think working with kids means that I am exposed to all sorts of bugs and diseases that I would otherwise avoid, so it is inevitable really. My day was spent planning the evening session, but also writing my entry into the ten minute play competition. It all fell together quite nicely in the end, and I am rather pleased with it. I do wonder if it might just be the freedom of not worrying about the content that made it so enjoyable, but I had fun, so that is what counts when you write. The Novel is on hold for a day or two, which means that I might have a bit if a backlog, but that's nothing new really. The Play id called "Roleplay", and whilst the premise is quite revolting and sick, I think that it works within the realms of the competition. The trusty band of people who have read it actually felt that I could make it slightly more disturbing! I shall do this, and make a few amendments over the weekend.
Friday, 4 November 2011
Thursday 3rd November
I may have mentioned before that I have always liked Thursdays. I am not sure why, but they have always given me a little warm feeling. I seem to remember that Thursdays were always good on the school timetable, Top of the Pops was on, and later in life, it was always pub night and the last day of work the next day. I have a slightly odd working week now, so the whole weekend thing doesn't do it for me, but I still get that little frisson. I have today however, started a new After School Club. Today was spent as follows; 10-00 till 3.00, Admin, Writing, planning, and general office duties, 3.30 till 4.30 new after school club, 5.00 till 7.00 Thursday session, 7.00 till 7.30 Grab something from the chippy, 7.30 till 10.30 rehearsals. To add to this busy day, my voice started to disappear at around 6.00 and was fully gone by the end of rehearsal. Now dear reader, please do not think that I am in any way moaning. I have a rather excellent life, but it was with relief that I hit the hay at last and fell almost instantly asleep. I am now a wee bit behind novel -wise, which I expected with a day like that. I have some time to catch up over the next few days, as long as this bug does not floor me. In other news, I have decided the exact nature of my 10 minute play. It is, well how can I put it, nauseatingly disgusting in its conception, and I am not going to write the subject matter in my otherwise angelic and pure blog. You will remember the premise was that it had to be Funny, but borderline not funny, and intended to make the audience squirm a little considering what they were laughing at (or not laughing at). I told Mrs Plug, and she sat mouth open, but she DID laugh! I have, over the years, used shock to get a reaction and to gain attention. I realise that this is perhaps a little childish, but in this case, I think it is OK. My therapist of a few years ago didn't seem to think that it was a problem, and that in fact the majority of successful people in my field are dreadful show-offs. I'm not sure she really got what I did. It does make me wonder though, where it all came from. I suspect that as my novel continues apace, I will find a few answers to that particular question.
Thursday, 3 November 2011
Wednesday 2nd November
I spent most of today getting nervous about the impending After School Club. I was good in that I managed to get all the paper work up to date and ready before there was a last minute panic. The session plan was as good as written already, so again, that was all fine. In the event, we had a fantastic response, with 18 attending. This exceeded my expectations, and they were a lovely bunch. There are some real characters already, so I expect I will have my work cut out over the next few weeks! I came home in a good mood, which was slightly spoiled by a message from the landlords. We have been here for over a year and a half, and we asked once more if we could have a dog. We have proved ourselves to be more than decent and trustworthy tenants, and rather than replace the rather threadbare carpet, we thought we would ask if we could get a small dog. It was dismissed almost immediately, which has really annoyed me. It's part of the joys of renting I suppose. The benefits are there for us, and I am grateful for them, but I have really missed being a dog owner. I just feel that we are being judged on previous untrustworthy tenants, and there is a huge sense of injustice. It's not to the point where I want to move as a result of it, but it did cross my mind. I think we just need to accept it and move on. In the evening I sat down and came up with the idea for the ten minute play. I wrote a list of things that I would struggle to find funny, and then combined two of them to come up with the winning idea! It is, I suppose, beyond sick, but I think that will help it, and it fits within the concept they are looking for. I told Mrs Plug about it, and she laughed. Apparently I have always walked the tightrope of offensive and funny, and teetered on either side from time to time. It will be interesting to see how this pans out! I slipped behind on the novel today, but aim to catch up tomorrow. I don't think my lifestyle necessarily fits with the idea of writing the same amount every day, but as long as I keep adding I think it will be fine. I did find that it was difficult to remove myself entirely from the story though, and I wonder if this idea is playing with fire a little? I don't particularly need to be in the depths of misery right now. I watched the documentary on Grayson Perry yesterday, and he had one of those troubled relationships with his Father, and family in general. He was trying to gain a bit of closure through his latest work, and I wonder if I will manage to do the same should I persevere?
Wednesday, 2 November 2011
Tuesday 1st November
November begins with a day of sunshine. I still laugh heartily when I hear people trot out the old "Whatever happened to global warming" line whenever we have snow. The same halfwits don't seem to be leaping to use the line at times like this do they? Any road up, as the gritty northerner in me would say....today was the first day of NaNoWriMo, and when I awoke, I did not have much in the way of an idea. I had thought about an idiots guide to Amdram, but then having read the rules, it needed to be fiction. In the end I have revisited some old ideas. I started to write a novel about my life so far some time ago. This probably sounds terribly conceited, but what with finding a new family and all that, I felt it would be good to write it down for my girls to read. It would also act as a form of therapy for me. In the event, I wrote about three quarters of it, and then ground to a halt. It was not particularly well written, and well, if I am being entirely honest, the therapy had already worked, and it didn't seem to be as interesting to me anymore. The girls and I have spoken at length about my family, and so the burning desire to write it down was gone. What I realised today though, was that once I strip away all of the emotion and personal detail from the story, it does remain a good yarn. So, the decision was made to write a fictional account based on a true story, the names being changed to protect the dull and tedious etc etc. I re-read the original draft to make sure that this would work, and then just went at it. Within half an hour I had completed my daily Total of 1700 words, and I was rather pleased with them. I have the original chapter plan which will act as a useful guide and a timeline of my own life. I needed to write this down to ensure that I got dates right, as I am notoriously awful at remembering dates and years of anything other than football matches and album releases. I then went on to the forums and twitter to see how many of my fellow writers were succeeding. The smugness and general boasting was quite nauseating. The "Social" aspect of this project was always the side that I thought would be the decider for me, and on first glimpse I would appear to have been right to be suspicious. However, I will try and proceed with an open mind. Who knows...I might be able to help someone else, or they might be able to help me.
In the evening, I received an email with a new writing competition. Typically, this competition really appeals to me, in that it is for a ten minute play. The winning entries would be performed in a London Theatre in a few weeks time. I have roughly two weeks to write it should I choose to enter. I know I don't have the time, but this one kept me awake last night with ideas, and once I start, it shouldn't take too long to finish. The subject is "Funny, not funny"...or "A theatrical exploration of the boundaries of humour ...When should we stop laughing?....Or should we?" With all of the fuss and nonsense about Russel Brand, Monty Python and Ricky Gervais, this subject really appeals to me. It will also give me a chance to write something theatrical without worrying about the children performing it for a change. Perhaps that should form some of the subject? Perhaps I shouldn't be writing it at all, but the chance to have something performed in that there London seems an opportunity too good to miss.
Tomorrow I start our new After School clubs, and I am pleased with the response we have received and the numbers we have. I will of course not be happy until I have a couple of them under my belt and I have got to meet all of the kids joining in. It's an exciting time at this stage, but my nerves do get the better of me.
Tuesday, 1 November 2011
Monday 31st October
So Halloween has arrived, and as usual, I have managed to avoid anything other than awful scary films. I don't mind Halloween as such....after all, it seems to get the average Daily Mail reader into a froth over celebrating evil, which is ironic considering their history. I do, however, dislike the concept of trick or treat, which seems to me to be begging with menace. Fortunately we were out for the evening at various Luvvie type ventures and as a result, I missed the stream of beggars with talcum powder on their face and a couple fo bits of yoghurt carton for teeth demanding confectionery. As we drove through the streets of the two towns and the village this evening, we did see hundreds of them everywhere, and several people I spoke to seemed to be resigned to the fact that they had to buy sweets for them. I say next year we fight back, and bring in the water cannons.....Oh you see what happens...? One mention of the Daily Mail and I turn. Today, I measured all of my new scenery, and then made scale models of it all so that I can play Stage design. This is extremely pleasing to me. I find the idea of models very exciting, as it means playing like I did for hours as a kid, but with a proper grown up reason to do so. At some point this week, I will produce a decent scale model of the set for "Screw Your Courage", which is I hope, going to prove really useful. You might well be able to tell that I am quite pleased with this acquisition. Tomorrow is the first of November, which means that I am supposed to be writing my first pages of my novel. I have no idea as yet, what this masterwork will be about. There are several half ideas floating around, and lots of advice that tells me to plan plan plan. I know about all of this from my various forays into writing before. However, this is the first time I have done it in this way, and I think I might go a little freeform and see where the wind takes me. I rather like the idea off this as it will encourage the imagination I hope. I shall report back tomorrow when it has all gone horribly wrong.
Monday, 31 October 2011
Sunday 30th October
We are fast heading towards winter, and leaves have built up in the garden, the holly bushes are heavy with berries and the birds are being fed again. I have always liked the Autumn into winter period, and I am looking forward to it again. The clocks went back last night, and so I felt even more rested than usual today. I read the paper and generally had a relaxed morning, and then we hopped into the car to go and pick up the display units. In the end I gave the very pleasant old man £20 for it all, which filled up our car. It is excellent, and will be more useful than I anticipated, with it's optional shelving. I think we could fill a stage with it all, and it is going to be extremely flexible. So pleased! We then settled down with a roast slowly cooking, a couple of beers and watched Spurs play the beautiful game. I just love watching them at the moment. So many exciting players. I remember watching them as a child and being excited when Hoddle or Ardilles got the ball...or in later years Gascoigne or Waddle. This team has several players who are exciting on the ball, and seem to be playing the game attractively and successfully. This will of course never last! Bale, Parker, Lennon, Van der Vaart, Adebayor...Assou Ekotto, Walker....all over the pitch they seem to have players who can do things with a bit of style. I can't wait for the next game! I watched Paranormal Activity 2 in the evening. I am an idiot.
Saturday 29th October
And so we enter a weekend with little in the way of plans. We ran the session in the morning which was gorgeous as usual. Then we relaxed into a bit of televised football, and then went off to see Mrs Plug's exhibition before it is dismantled. She had another healthy set of sales, and all in all can look back at the last week or so with a lot of pride. I hope it spurs her on to keep plugging away at it. I bought a picture at the exhibition for her to say thank you. A rather delightful Pastel study of a lake with a boat on it. Some of the standard of work is really excellent at a local level. In the evening we watched all sorts of dreadful Saturday night nonsense, and I then actually had an early night! This will never catch on, but I think last night's documentary marathon caught up with me.
Friday 28th October
Another quiet day today, and the last one for a week I would suspect. I managed to get a little more planning etc done, but finding getting into the groove of everything a little difficult at the moment. I am sure it will all be back to normal soon. I have won some "Display Units" on ebay for a silly price of £16.99. They are designed for conferences and stalls really, but give me the flexibility to use them for scenery. I suspect that I have bought a bargain, but until Sunday I will not know the truth. Fortunately they are in a nearby village, so they will be cheap to collect. This is mainly for the forthcoming Macbeth rewrite. I am rather a long way down the line in terms of organising that, so to get the scenery sorted in advance will be excellent. We ran a good session in the evening, which was again relaxed, but very funny, and then collapsed into take away Pizza and wine in the evening. I sat up until silly o clock watching documentaries on Creation Records and then Rough Trade.
Friday, 28 October 2011
Thursday 27th October
I wrote yesterday about some projects that I would like to take part in, but the lack of available time concerned me. This became even more apparent yesterday when working on a voluntary project that we have all become involved in. We have, to date, spent over 100 hours of our time devoted to this particular project, and I would never begrudge it. However, when some of the other participants don't seem to show any commitment, or even seem to care, it makes me question my participation. There are of course a large number of people who ARE committed and ARE playing a valuable part in the whole project, but it is the few who can really let the side down. It's a shame.
We spent a quiet day today, eldest was working, and we had a quiet session as it's half term. I always enjoy the half term sessions, they are very relaxed and have a demob happy feel about them.
Thursday, 27 October 2011
The websites I mentioned earlier
Just in case any of my loyal and talented readers wanted to investigate further...here are the websites that tell you all about it
http://www.nanowrimo.org Wednesday 26th October
It is at about this time each year that I get sent many emails from NaNoWrimo and NaPlwrimo. "What are you talking about?" I hear you cry dear reader, well let me tell you. Nanowrimo started out a fair few years back with the intention of encouraging people to write a novel in a month. Ridiculous though it may seem, It became very popular, and had over 200000 participants last year. If you hadn't already guessed, November is the month in question, and people are gearing up to write. I have always been tempted with it, and have started on two occasions, narrowly failing to reach the 50000 word deadline, by approximately 49500 words each time. Naplwrimo is a play version of this and seems to me to be far more achievable. However, November is a rather busy month for me, in that I have two assignments to hand in, a Play to produce and perform in, two new clubs to start and a couple of new sessions to start. Am I mad even considering this? Why don't I leave it till December and just start by myself? The whole point of this scheme is that you can "Socialise" with other writers online and compare notes etc...It sounds ghastly to me, but I am strangely drawn to it. The whole aspect of writing this little blog each day has helped me enormously, and I wonder whether the freedom of writing either a full length play or a novel might do me good? There would be little if no time to edit, worry or stress about the details, and the freedom of that....just writing for the sake of it might be a great experience for me. The rules are quite specific, in that you cannot write something that you have already worked on, and you are supposed to log in each week to update the website on your progress. Of course, I doubt that there will be any form of prosecution should you fail on either of these, but I do suspect that it would be worth abiding by them. I am very tempted. By writing 1700 words a day, you would complete a novel. The five minutes it has taken me to write this blog so far, means I am already a fifth of my way to the daily total. Of course, if the novel was just this, It would be pretty dreadful, but the point remains that it is far more achievable than my first impression. Perhaps that WOULD be a good novel? A month in the life of a non-entity would be a good title! Of course, You don't have to write every day...there will be days where real life gets in the way, or that poor substitute that I sometimes refer to as a life. As you can tell, I have almost certainly already decided to do this. On top of the 1700 words a day of course, I would also need to keep up with the blog, which might then turn out to be me moaning about how appalling my novel is, and asking why on earth I started this when I have better things to do with my time? If for example I wrote the full length play, it might then serve as a draft for next years production based on Peter Pan? Oh questions and quandrys be gone!!! I need to make a decision.
Myself and youngest went to Luton today to pay money into the bank and to do a little shopping and Father daughter bonding. I am never sure about such things, but I suspect that she is a genius. She is just the best company for a 12 year old, and makes me burst with laughter and pride all at once. In the evening we had a Christmas Show meeting and then curled up in front of the latest Attenborough documentary. A pleasant day all round!
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