Friday 29th April

So the big day has arrived apparently.  Some people that we have never met, and we probably never will, are getting married and I have to feel proud.  I detest the Royal family in every way.  I will not waste any more of my life in ranting on about them, but today I really despaired for a country that expresses its so called national pride in a celebration of undemocratic cock waving of the most distasteful kind.

I directed some Shakespeare tonight...it was so thoroughly thrilling for me, and seeing the cast begin to really get it was such an exciting electric experience for me.  If nothing else, I hope this lives with them for  a long time.

I shall leave you with this dear reader...the words of a world famous butter salesman

"God save the Queen
she ain't no human being.
There is no future
in England's dreaming
Don't be told what you want
Don't be told what you need.
There's no future
there's no future
there's no future for you"

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Thursday 28th April

Time continues to fly by dear reader, and so today we return fully to work.  I have been doing this for nearly five years, and things happen each year that remind me how much I have forgotten.  The happiness at the return to a play after an Easter break, and the pride shown by young people for having learnt lines and worked hard....all very life affirming and worthy.  I really knuckled down today and got lots done,  We then moved on to rehearsals for the Semi Final play in the evening with the grown ups.  So much fun, and a reminder for me as to why I do get involved in such things.  Mrs Plug has joined the cast for this Semi final performance, and it means I have to get amorous with her on stage....some real acting required then...well that is the standard joke around these parts at the moment.  We even managed to pop into the pub for a swift one or two as well.  All is well, but I have a sense of foreboding about this horrendous bloody wedding tomorrow,  I shall avoid watching it, but will I be able to avoid arguing with people about it?

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Wednesday 27th April

I shall start with an update on the "Groundlings" issue.  Youngest made a presentation to the whole class and ended with the words "I rest my case"!!!!   It was thankfully well received and a merit was forthcoming....phew.

Today I received a new toy;

I now have my dream set up, with Garageband and the Mac, I can pretty much do all I need to do.  I now just need to magic up that eighth week day and all will be well.  I look forward to being able to spend a little composing time now.  I also received the scripts and music for the regular Summer School so I will be planning that over the next week or so as well.

Busy times.  

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Tuesday 26th April

So today we celebrate the return of the girls, and therefore we become a family again, however briefly.  It was nice to sit around a table and share a meal, and it got me thinking that this won't happen for much longer, so we ought to make the most of it really.  I spent the start of the day ensuring that the house was tidy, as there is nothing worse than returning to a messy house.  We had been pretty good anyway.  As I suspected, all the talk was of the business and how we can make it work, and the quandary that we have with regards to sharing three jobs between the two if us.  I think we have a way forward, but I am of course vary wary of it all.  We are looking at borrowing a large amount of money.  Having looked at the figures, it all seems very sensible, and having had five years experience of running my own business there is a side of me that finds it all less daunting than perhaps I would have a few years back.  

In the late afternoon, we went to School with youngest for her reports evening.  Now I know I am prone to the odd bout of grumpiness, but it does strike me as slightly odd that we have to physically attend the school so that we can have a teacher read out extracts from a report that we have already read ourselves.  Anyway, perhaps I shouldn't moan....the report was excellent actually, and she is displaying signs of really coming into her own and thriving.  Dyslexia has just meant a new way of learning rather than a disability to her, and I hope this is a sign of things to come with her.  She's always had that steadfast, some might say stubborn streak, and I hope that this continues for her.  School tomorrow, and youngest reminded me that I needed to provide her with some evidence.  Some weeks ago, there was a quiz in her class with regards to Shakespeare.  Now it might be slightly weird, but youngest has a bit of love for Shakespeare, and I don't think I can claim responsibility for it.  She played the part of the Nurse in an improvised modern language version of it at a large theatre a few years ago.  Something clicked within her then, and she doesn't find the Bard as daunting, or as boring as many other youngsters.  Anyway, back to theis quiz.  One of the questions was "What were the audience members called at the Globe theatre, who stood on the ground and paid a penny to enter?"  Now, I am educated to degree level in the ways of the theatre, I have visited the Globe, and indeed watched a production from the floor itself.  I have read, at the last count, somewhere in the region of thirty books on the subject of Shakespeare, as well as having read every single one of his plays and Sonnets.  In the light of this evidence, Imagine my surprise when youngest reported to me, that the answer she gave; "Groundlings", was in fact incorrect.  The answer given was actually "Earthlings".  There was a burning sense of injustice in youngest all over the half term, so this morning she has gone in armed with a folder of evidence.  This evidence includes an extract from Hamlet in which the protagonist refers to "Groundlings" himself.  Added to this she has extracts from the RSC's website and the Globe Theatre too.  I have just had to speak to her to ensure that on presenting this evidence , she doesn't end it by saying "I rest my case your honour".  Interestingly, the teacher in question is the head of the school.  I shall report back.

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Monday 25th April

The last day of Badminton for Mrs Plug, and there is that sense that we have to get back to the real world and get on with some work now.  I have managed to cut right down on my caffeine intake over the last few days, perhaps in some small part to Richard Herring's health regime in his book?  I have now started on the delights of Peppermint Tea, which is strange stuff.  The smell is very evocative to me.  Whenever I smell peppermint I am transported back to my Grandfather's car in the 1980s.  He used to drop me at the station in the morning so that I could go off to work in London, and later on Gatwick.  We never really saw eye to eye during this time, and many of the journeys were frosty bad tempered affairs.  He was a serial sucker of the polo mint, so now whenever I smell it, I am reminded of that mixture of cheap leather in the car, his polo mint breath, and the overall sense of sadness and anger in the air.  It's enough to make you want a coffee I suppose.  Anyway, fortunately, it actually tastes more like Green tea which I do like, having forced myself to last year!  I have ordered some furniture which will make the office transformation complete, other than the boxes of crap that I have to go through and clear.  I am very much looking forward to the girl's return tomorrow.  I have missed them.  The solitude has been nice, but I think myself and eldest would go stir crazy if it carried on for much longer!

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Sunday 24th April

The glorious weather continues, and my work continues also.  Been good to spend some time with eldest, and we had fun last night as I introduced her to the delights of Kill Bill Vols 1 & 2, which I never tire of watching.  I suspect that this is in no small part to the incision of Uma Thurman, who is adorable, both in looks and talent.  We have Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction and Jackie Brown to go in order to have completed her Tarantino badge and make her a fully fledged fan.  I LOVE good dialogue on films, and I think it is why I struggle to enjoy much cinema.  I think that dialogue comes out second best on cinematography and special effects.  This is why I love Tarantino so much.  The conversational aspects of his films are genuinely laugh out loud funny or captivating or both.  In other news, I found a mouse hanging from te bird feeder this evening.  I should clarify that this was not some rodent based suicide, but rather an acrobatic display of greed designed to purloin the birds peanuts.  I administered a shovel, but narrowly missed the little bugger.  More news as and when it happens.

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Friday 22nd April

I have taken the opportunity of the lack of company to spend some time reading...not just the stuff I have to read for my degree, but also the good old fashioned reading a book for the sake of it.  At last week's Richard Herring gig I bought a copy of his book "How not to grow up".  It is the story of his fortieth year, and the effect it had on him.  So much of it rang true with me, apart from the Champagne bottle (You need to read it to understand that reference).  All in all it was a life affirming, laugh out loud triumph of a book, and I hope it will not be his last.  Eldest has pretty much abandoned me for 24 hours, which is good for her.  I think she was getting a little wrapped up in the stressful things in life and needed to relax a bit.  She could of course just be gagging to get away from me?

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Saturday 23rd April

Another relaxing day, though I am still achieving things.  Whilst Mrs Plug is away, she is negotiating the possible purchase of a business.  This has been floating around in the Plug ether for a while, but we are beginning to get closer to the reality of it.  We don't really have to time and capacity for it at the moment, and whilst the additional income will be welcome, I do worry about it having an impact on my business.  I truly love what I do and I do not want anything to affect it.  The money is of course important, but the balance of doing something you love is also really vital to me.  We shall see how it pans out.  The business is not the usual kind of thing that you would associate with me, and harks back to a previous existence for Mrs Plug.  It is a well established, steady business, and will make a significant difference to our lifestyle, both in terms of the work that we will have to do, but also to the income.  I hope it all works out.  Today I broke my iPhone,  I felt like crying when I saw the shattered screen.  I think that if I believed in a god, I would imagine him laughing at me, and telling me it was payback for smugly buying an iPad. I am due an upgrade fairly soon, so I will just carry on as much as I can with the shattered screen.  It could have been a lot worse to be honest, so I am grateful for that at least.  It does make me wonder if I am a little too reliant on gadgets etc though.  

One of my plans for the future of the business is to continue with writing, and add music to the whole package.  I was heavily into writing music for many years before I discovered a love for the theatre, and I think music is probably my biggest passion over the years.  The idea of being able to meld the two together is very exciting, and to a small extent, I did that recently, when I wrote some incidental music for one of my plays.  I want to write a full musical though, and to do that I need to have the facilities to do so.  I purchased a couple of old Mac machines last year, and with the addition of a little software, and the the office set up, I now have the facility to properly start the process.  It is exciting, as I have missed that creative spark that you get from making music,   I have used some of the investment project money on a small midi keyboard, and adaptor.  This means I will be able to write music on the Mac as well as on the iPad when it arrives.  I am by no means a keyboard player, but I can get around it enough to be able to add strings etc to a piece. We have electric and bass guitars and acoustics as well, and the software is excellent for using them, and I already have the mixing desk that I need.  I spent some time with eldest today listening to some of the music I created over the years, including one piece that used her voice when she was probably about five.  It is funny how much of what I wrote seemed poor at the time, but age seems to have been rather kinder to it than I  expected, and some of it was quite good.   I mentioned that I had been listening to it on Facebook, and immediately there was talk of a reunion gig, which even though I am 45 and should know better, makes me stupidly excited!  We shall see,

As if to add to the general musical excitement, I went to see a band night in Luton in the evening.  One of our friends is the drummer in the band, and I always feel like we have not supported him enough over the years, so it was nice to get out and see some live music again, and whilst watching it, think about how much fun I had doing it

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Friday 22nd April

I have taken the opportunity of the lack of company to spend some time reading...not just the stuff I have to read for my degree, but also the good old fashioned reading a book for the sake of it.  At last week's Richard Herring gig I bought a copy of his book "How not to grow up".  It is the story of his fortieth year, and the effect it had on him.  So much of it rang true with me, apart from the Champagne bottle (You need to read it to understand that reference).  All in all it was a life affirming, laugh out loud triumph of a book, and I hope it will not be his last.  Eldest has pretty much abandoned me for 24 hours, which is good for her.  I think she was getting a little wrapped up in the stressful things in life and needed to relax a bit.  She could of course just be gagging to get away from me?

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Thursday 21st April Part Two

I almost forgot dear reader, that the most important bit of shopping I did on Thursday was of course online.  I purchased an iPad.  It has been tempting me for some time, and much as I love a new toy, the primary reason is of course for work.  A black iPad 2 with and Orange cover fits in with the company colour scheme, and all in all I am rather excited about receiving it.  I have also had it engraved, which struck me at the time as being a really dreadful extravagance, but it was free, and I like seeing my name engraved on things, it makes me feel slightly less insignificant than I really am.  I now have to wait patiently for a couple of weeks waiting for it to arrive, which is a bit annoying, but never mind.

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Thursday 21st April

Easter weekend is nearly upon us, which is always an exciting time in an atheist household.  Plug Junior the first and I decided to go to Luton, or, as the young people's parlance of the day will now have it; "Go Luton".  It seems to me to be peculiarly and unnecessarily lazy to drop the word "to".  I mean how much time and effort does it really save you?  However, "go Luton" is what we did.  We did a little shopping and Fatherly Daughterly bonding.  I realised that I really don't mind shopping if I have nothing to rush home for and time on my hands.  I enjoyed browsing, and investigating things, and then walking away empty handed.  We did make one or two purchases of course.  I bought some flights and shafts for my old darts, more of which later, and Daughter purchased some items of clothing for me to disapprove of.  We had lunch, and also stopped for a coffee and had a rather pleasant time.  In the evening, daughter, having had enough of me, went to her friends house for the night with Wine and chocolate, and I went to the pub with a friend who I haven't seen for a while to play darts.  It was a good evening, and it was nice to catch up.  I also threw two 180's and therefore felt rather smug and superior all evening.  Another good day, although the house does seem a little empty and lifeless without the others. I suspect that if I loved alone I would probably end up being a hermit who stored up his poo in black bin liners and lived on cat food.  Maybe. 

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Wednesday 20th April

Mrs Plug and Plug Junior the second go off to Gloucestershire for a few days today.  The house is awash with people packing bags and the unnecessary rush to ensure that the house is tidy before they leave, even though it is never tidy when they are here.  I think it is a deep subconscious effort to provide a service for the man of the house.  Of course I do not object to the house being tidy, other than when I wake up in it, I wonder if I have moved.  The problem is of course, that as soon as they have left, it will inevitably become untidy again.  Today was one of those dates in the calendar that I dread, in that it was the day of the North London Derby.  I love watching Spurs, and they have beaten the old enemy in the last two league encounters, but it has yet to make up for the years of humiliation at their hands that I have endured over the years.  Even when most of the press and media are telling me not to worry and that the gap has closed between the two teams, all I can envisage is a humiliating 5-0 home defeat, and that smug french twit smiling at the camera like a pervert fox drooling over a naked chicken.  In the event, an old friend who has recently moved to the town phoned up and invited himself around to watch too, which was great, as he is a fellow Spurs fan, and it showed all the possibilities of limiting my atrocious language throughout the game.  It was a fantastic match, we were 1-0 down within minutes, and then soon after it was 3-1 down.  I had given up, but fortunately they hadn't and it ended 3-3, with Spurs nearly nicking it on several occasions.  A good day

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Tuesday 19th April

Final day of workshops today, and a lot busier than yesterday.  I have been drinking a lot of water over the last couple of days and the headaches that have been bothering me seem to have gone.  I think I might have been a little dehydrated.  Ironically I am always nagging the girls about this, so my own advice now needs to be listened to.  Felt really tired by the evening, and I think I need to remember that the virus I had is still in the system and will hit me like this occasionally.  In the evening I did a little second hand book and DVD shopping for my modules next year.  Fortunately, the bill will be nowhere near as big as previous years in terms of reading material, as I already have much of what I need.  All the same, some of the books I am supposed to get are ridiculously expensive.  One in particular, I do not seem to be able to find for less than £200!  I wonder if the tutors realise this when they write the words "Essential reading" on the bibliography.  I also spent a few minutes having a disagreement with Jonathan Ross on Twitter about the use of the word Yid.  David Baddiel has made a film on the subject with his brother, and it is aimed at kicking use of the word out of football.  Whilst I think the intention was to get rid of it as an abusvie term, the subject of the Spurs fans use of it has come up again.  It has been "Reclaimed" if you like, and used as a positive word now....when a Spurs players scores it is chanted as a positive.  Jonathan didn't seem to appreciate this, and said all use of it was wrong.  I asked if the now positive use of the word poof by the gay community was similar?  particularly in the light of the use of it by his house band "Four Poofs and a Piano" on his programme.  He seemed to think it was totally different.  At least he took the time and trouble to argue his point with the little people :-) 

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Monday 18th April

So back to a little thing called work.  Well I say that, but sometimes a little break can give you a perspective that you needed.  It's just fun that I get paid for really when it is like this.  I suppose the admin and prep and planning etc that goes with the job adds the stress.  I was Mrs Plug's glamorous assistant for her art workshop as well.  It was fun to get my hands dirty doing papier mache again, and sometimes, it's good to lose yourself in something that is just fun to do.  The end product is not as important as the process I suppose.  Interestingly, whilst we were running the workshops, the school was being extended by some builders.  Watching how quickly the scaffolding went up was quite amazing, and I couldn't help but think that the Health and Safety zealots would have had a field day with seeing huge girders swinging from a crane whilst children were only yards away in the building.  In the evening we rehearsed our "Award winning" play, this time with Mrs Plug playing opposite me.  In one scene my character has to get a little amorous with the character now being played by Mrs Plug.  It was interesting that I felt slightly more awkward doing the scene with her than I did the previous actress.  It was good fun though, and I think I am quite looking forward to the semi final now.

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Sunday 17th April

Very excited today, as we are all off to see Richard Herring in the evening in Harpenden.  This is our first visit to the venue, and it's a venue that we might hire ourselves soon.  It is also the first time that the girls have seen Richard, and the first comedy gig for youngest.  For anyone who is not familiar with his work, Richard Herring is a very clever, sometimes intellectual, sometimes just plain puerile comedian.  He makes me laugh like a drain, which is, I suppose, what he should do.  We sat in the front row, and of course, I got picked on as his disciple for the night.  He decided to call me Trevor for the evening, and generally made mock of me in a funny, and warm way!   We exchanged tweets in the break, and then got stuff signed at the end.  I was fascinated with his pacing and vocal control,  Here is a man who can write a comedy gig like no other (In my very humble opinion), but who seems to be either a complete natural or has worked in huge depth on this aspect of his act.  He is a true pro, and a pleasure to watch.  I think a lot of my young actors could learn a thing or two from what is, in effect, a 90 minute soliloquy.  I bought his book to add to my list of books that I doubt I will finish for a while...but you never know.  We even got mentioned in Richard's blog on the subject of the gig....we are the family he mentions...

 http://www.richardherring.com/warmingup/email.php?id=3093

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Saturday 16th April

We had to get up early today as we had a man coming in to do one or two running repairs etc on the house.  This also meant that we had a fairly tidy house, which is always a good feeling.  I am now happily tucked away in my office, and feeling good about it.  There is a mountain of paperwork that needs to be put away or shredded, but I am going to attempt to do a little each day rather than stressing about it.  I also have to get myself organised to get my assignments done and dusted next week.  I have just myself and eldest to worry about for a few days, and I intend on getting myself all organised and ready for it.  We have some drama and art workshops to plan for Monday and Tuesday, which is good, although I think I'd just got used to doing nothing at home!  Perhaps this little reminder of work will be good for me!   We have decided that we are going out to see Richard Herring tomorrow.  He is my favourite comedian at the moment, and I hope that the girls enjoy it too.  The evening was spent watching the FA Cup Semi Final between the two Manchester clubs, and then watching a few arty programmes and the Piers Morgan Interview with Russell Brand.  I just about managed to watch it without wanting to kill Piers Morgan, but it was a close run thing.

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Friday 15th April

A pleasant day spent shopping with the smaller members of the clan, whilst Mrs Plug went through the torture of "Skills tests".  Purchases were wide and varied, and involved everything from bird feeding acoutrements to DVD's to a new shredder.  All of this was done is a gentle way, with no need to rush about.  In the afternoon, myself and Mrs Plug went to Houghton House which was stunning as you can see

    

Henry VIII used to stay here, and we stood by the fireplace and tried to imagine him sitting here with his feet up. It is somehow easier to like the old Royal Family when they were like Henry, because although he was undoubtedly a bit of a bastard to say the least, he didn't try to hide it.  The place itself affords some good views over Bedfordshire, and makes a very good location for a photo shoot, which has now got me thinking. 

In the evening I sat down to watch "Four Lions" the Chris Morris film.  Sadly, tiredness and Red wine got the better of me, so I will try again soon.

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Thursday 14th April

Dear reader, I try to avoid stooping to the level of ranting in the blog.  It is the simple way to blog, and doesn't need too much imagination.  I could rant about "Political correctness gone mad" or how things "were better when we were younger", and the words would flow and flow, and I could smugly think how clever I was for repeating something that you will already have read somewhere, but can't quite put your finger on.  However, something is causing great irritation and annoyance in my life and I need to get it off of my chest to a degree.  I will not do it as eloquently as the wonderful Johann Hari does here   http://johannhari.com/2011/04/15/this-royal-wedding-frenzy-should-embarrass-us-all?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=facebook but I shall try not to repeat it too much.  There is, as I'm sure anyone with access to the media will know, a Royal Wedding coming up.  I am self employed, and have been told that the day will be a bank holiday, and that I can have the day off.  The trouble is, if I do, I will be massively out of pocket.  I do not believe in faries, Pixies, Ghosts, Unicorns, Mermaids or any other mythical character, and neither do I believe in Princes and Princesses.  I object strongly to being told that I must pay my taxes to cover the costs of these spongeing bastards, and then to be told that I must give up another days earnings on top of it is more than I am willing to put up with.  I have decided to continue working anyway, and if people choose to take the day off then so be it.  I will NEVER understand what there is to be celebrating, and I cannot believe that a country that is apparently bankrupt can afford to pay for this event, in terms of television coverage, security, and the street party permits that we are all apparently craving.  So, if any of you feel the need to have a little chat to me about how lovely the whole day is, and start to speculate as to what her dress is going to be like, then please do not be too offended, if I gently, politely and persuasively tell you to fuck off.

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Wednesday 13th April

School holidays mean I never quite know what day it is, so this week has been pleasantly disorientating.  Continuing the office re-organisation, we went to a charity shop today that specialises in furniture.  Sadly we found nothing that was going to fit our rather specific bill, but we became art collectors.  Mrs Plug found a signed print from an artist that had soem work sold at Christies, and we think it might be worth a few quid.  Nothing earth shattering, but a nice find, and more importantly, a nice picture.  I found three prints of London theatres that I rather liked.  Two in one frame, and one in another. The two together were by AH Payne and are of Covent Garden Theatre and Haymarket Theatres

          

 

The singular one is by Thomas Hosmer Shepherd and shows the old Surry Theatre in Blackfriars.

They only cost a couple of quid, and are probably worth something like about £80, but I love them, and I worry that this may be the start of a collection!  They will take pride of place in the new office and I will try my hardest not to spend money on more for a while!

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Tuesday 12th April

As is so often the case with our involvement in creative projects, we come across negative people, and I have referred to them in the past.  Once again, this has reared its ugly head, and something completely different has happened; I really couldn't care any less.  The pointless and spiteful are to be ignored in favour of doing what I enjoy doing and what I do best.  Moving on, I have decided on my modules for next year's study, and this time I will be working on European Theatre Direction and the heyday of American Musical theatre.  The second unit in particular will bring me into close contact once more with some old musical friends; Lerner and Loewe, and My Fair Lady.  I wonder what more I will get out of this wonderful show from an acedemic perspective?  I am rather excited about this, and am eagerly awaiting my bibliography so I can go second hand book shopping once more!   I love this aspect of it, and unwrapping the books as they arrive.  Mrs Plug believes I have an obsession, and I have decided that shall now be referred to as a "Biblioperve".  The new investment into the business is progressing at a pace, and soon I will be able to start making some purchasing decisions.  Life is all going very quickly at the moment, and I have to say, it's rather good.  On the minus side, I will be enduring Spurs in the Champions League quarter final second leg tomorrow night...I'm sure that has the potential to spoil everything.

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Monday 11th April

Today, we started the process of moving me into what was known as the dining room.  This is a massive job really, and if I am honest, my heart was not in it at the start of the day.  However, after what seemed like an eternity, I had managed to build the new desk, and set up the office into some sort of workable space.  The old office has now returned to being a "Breakfast Room", and looks quite sweet really.  I also emptied what was really a cupboard full of junk, which is now going to be the larder.  There is still much going through of paperwork required, but for the moment this will all work quite nicely I think.  I expect to be spending many hours in here, and it really is a lovely room, so it's important to get it to feel right.

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Sunday 10th April

Sun shining, sitting in the garden and generally making plans for the rest of the Easter break.  Tea and the occasional beer, and an all round relaxing day.  I have realised that as we speak, I am half or part way through five books.  This is ridiculous, and I am now going to endeavour to actually finish them all before I start another one.  They are all completely different, and as a result, I am not getting them all mixed up, but it is the very nature of me that means I need several things "On the go" at the same time.

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Saturday 9th April

The weekend started with a lie-in, followed by a trip to pick up youngest from a sleepover, take her to get fitted for a leotard, and then off to her first Ballet lesson.  It was good to start the weekend in such a relaxed way, and we enjoyed watching her first lesson,  The lady who runs it was very good, and I hope youngest continues with it, as I think she will get a lot out of it.  We then cam home and sat in the garden with a book and a beer, and generally did very little.  I watched the Spurs game on the internet, and thoroughly enjoyed a 3-2 win over Stoke....I hope this continues.  In the evening, we sat and nodded off in front of some awful television, but I rather enjoyed watching the Piers Morgan interview with Andre Lloyd Webber.  I rather like Llloyd Webber, even if I don't particularly enjoy his music.   

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Friday 8th April

So finally the last working day arrives.  I spent much of the morning suffering with what can only be described as a migraine.  I tend not to get them very often, but this was so bad that I was on the brink of cancelling the evening session,  Fortunately the combination of rest and water seemed to do the trick, and I was able to function in the end.  I have been considering several new purchases lately for the business.  A new batch of PC equipment for starters, some decent office furniture, and some sound and lighting equipment.  All in all, it will be expensive, but I feel that it would all be a wise investment, in terms of the cutting down on hire costs, as well as the ability to be more flexible in what I can offer business-wise.  I have decided to try and get the finance to do all of this,so I will be on tenterhooks waiting for the decision.  The last session of the term had an air of the demob happy about it, but it was a good turn out, and we go into the holidays with a sense of relief and one of achievement. 

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Thursday 7th April

So Nick Clegg announced in his New Statesman interview that he "cries to music".  I am not sure whether that was designed to illicit some sort of sympathy in him or not, but ultimately, I am sure that most people realise he is just a human being like you or I...whether we think he is an idiot or not, is of course an entirely different matter.   It got me thinking as to what music makes me cry.  It tends to be either music that I associate with particularly sad moments in my life or it can simply be music played live, which stands a very good chance of getting me blubbing.  A rousing chorus in a musical, or a ballad delivered with a sense of poise at a concert will always get me.  I must get around to writing a list, as I think that is what is expected of either bloggers, or middle aged men in general.  I have discovered a bit of a love for the music of Ennio Morricone lately, though it doesn't make me cry.  I have been listening to it as we are going for a spaghetti western theme to one of our productions.  It fascinates me how t transports you to another world within a few bars.  I wonder if this is because I have seen the movies, or if I would be transported anyway?

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Wednesday 6th April

Second day running on the project and it is really beginning to come together.  I feel like I am actually capable of doing this really well.  Very excited, and in some ways the Holidays have come too soon.  Spurs got hammered 4-0 by Real Madrid last night, it was nice while it lasted I suppose.  There was a sense of the inevitable about it after about five minutes if I am being totally honest.  I am feeling very edgy and snappy at the moment, and I recognise that feeling quite clearly now...I need a break.  Fortunately, we do not have too many plans over the next couple of weeks, and I am going to make sure I get some real downtime, and read a book or two, as well as doing all the things that I know I need to do.  One last push till the end of the week and the sigh of relief will be heard from all over the United Kingdom.

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Tuesday 5th April

Back to the School today for the project, and although I am loving it, I still can't quite get over the fact that I am doing it, and therefore, i get terribly nervous.  I think, deep down there is still a nagging doubt that I will get a tap on the shoulder and told that I have had my fun, and that I need to go and get a proper job.  I shall endeavour to enjoy it nonetheless.  The kids were all pleased to see me which is a good start, and we got a good afternoons work done.  I think the morning's prep was essential.  It is easy to get into a habit of just busking it when you do what i do. Sometimes that approach can work, but when I am being paid a lot of money to get it right, there needs to be a lot more work involved.  There were some lovely little moments today, and I wish I could bottle their enthusiasm.  We spoke about the part in Theseus and the Minotaur, where the children are chosen to be sent to feed the minotaur.  Some of the sadness of their real lives seeped through, and that is when you realise what a precious little bundle you could be dealing with.

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Monday 4th April

A constructive day, in which the bank actually offered to lend money to the business, which is unheard of in these difficult times.  I of course didn't accept straight away.  I need to have a good think about it before committing to such things.  It is heartening to know that we are at least deemed worthy of such things.  He said good things about the business, which makes me slightly proud.  Managed to get a fair bit done today, but still feeling slightly overwhelmed with things to do.  I will be very glad to reach the weekend, and we have a decent break.  I mustn't take my eye off the ball completely though, or the return from holiday will be a nightmare.  Spent the rest of the afternoon and evening with a fantasy shopping list for the business, seeing what we needed and whether the loan was a sensible thing to go for.  Still in two minds.  It will be very useful and it will mean I can be more flexible in what we do and what we offer, but it is still a debt.  In the past, I have always gone into these things with a sense of optimistic "Oh it'll be ok".  I need to be more realistic this time.  On a different note, I heard some info today that, whilst I do not smile at others misfortune, did make me wonder about the existence at least, of Karma.

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Sunday 3rd April

We did Family things today.  It was just "Nice".  We went to the local antiques fair at the Village Hall, and then got a taste for it and went to an Antiques shop and then another Antiques fair.  Eldest bought an old powder compact case, which was delightful, and reminded my of my Nan.  She used to smell of powder.  In fact, she used to work at a company that produced it, and brought home samples.  Various cupboards and drawers used to smell the same way also.  I do a lot of work in Drama about smell being a real key to the memory and therefore the emotional memory, and this just summed it up for me.  Many memories, not all of them altogether comfortable.  Youngest was rather taken by a wooden box, which was duly purchased, and then some old coins, which have always held a fascination for her.  Mrs Plug was given a book on Degas, who she likes.  Today was Mother's Day, and Mrs Plug was spoiled to the extent that bathtime products were given to her, and breakfast delivered according to the UN regulations that apply to Mother's Day.  I struggle a bit on Mother's day each year for obvious reasons, and even now, it leaves me feeling a little reflective and maudlin.

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Saturday 2nd April

Last Saturday Session of the term, followed by a day of tidying and re-organising.  Decided that the Office set up was not working and as a result, the dining room will now be the office.  Quite a lot of work to do to get that to a practical state, but it will be worth it.  Feeling rough still, and it is really annoying now, but we soldier on.  On a brighter note, we have now set our week in the Lakes with lovely people, so very very much looking forward to that.  Out to the Curry House in the evening with the cast and crew of the Festival winning play, which was fun, but I always find big meals a bit frustrating in that you want to talk to everyone, and you never get a chance to.....Perhaps we should move seats every ten minutes next time.  Our friend Alex was there, he has Downs Syndrome, and he insisted on trying some Chicken Moricha, even though we warned him against it...It has quite an effect on him!  He recovered after a while, and then proceeded to talk about Dr Who with my youngest for half an hour....I'm very proud of her.

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Friday 1st April

I always found April Fools day somewhat annoying, and the jokes in the newspapers somewhat tedious....still do really, so I avoided them all day.  Today was the day to start directing Shakespeare for me.  A bit daunting, but something I am looking forward to.  I produced the scripts today, pausing only to catapult tea all over ten of them due to overzealous holepunching.  It's not all glamour this theatre business you know!?  I also tied them together with string, which gave me far too much pleasure than is either normal or healthy.  There is something about using real string that makes me feel grown up.  This doesn't happen too often.  Scripts were dispatched in the evening, and first rehearsal went really very well.  If I were feeling more healthy, I think I would have loved this week, but nevertheless, having only a week to go till an Easter break is a good feeling.  I have stopped myself from using the word "nice" several times in this post.  I am now worried that this happens when you reach a certain age i.e I will now start asking for a nice cup of tea, or a nice piece of cake

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Thursday 31st March

Being self employed has many many advantages, and I will always be grateful for them.  One of the disadvantages however, is the inability to simply not work for the day.  I would lose hundreds of pounds if I decided to take the day off...so...Whilst both Mini Plus were dispatched to their respective educational establishments, My good lady Mrs Plug and myself, remained "Off sick"....This lasted only until 4.30 when I needed to get "Up and At em" as far as running a session was concerned.  This I managed without too much grumpiness, but on my return home, I spent most of the evening nodding off in front of the television.  Tragically, this could be either the illness or the onset of old age...I suspect of course that it is the illness, as I am far too sprightly.  I was cheered up by the news that I have received more sales of my two scripts.  One from a High School in Scotland with an excellent reputation for Drama another from an Amateur Dramatics group in Surrey, and lastly, one from Germany from a School that from what I can gather, used one of the plays for a reading competition.  This is all very gratifying for me, as, although I was pleased with what we did with the plays, It really needs the approval of others who do not know me.  I will not try to get the panto published as I think it will really only work with the kids it was written for.  I might try and edit it down to a smaller more manageable show one day, but for the moment, it fits its purpose.  We shall see.  I am very much looking forward to the Easter holidays, where we actually have a gap, with no plans at all.  This is very rare, and I am eager to fill this gap with very little and see how we are all feeling at the time.  

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