30 July - Puffin night - partial

from now on anything that says 'partial' means that I haven't finished writing it but that if I sit on it forever, you'll think this blog is defunct so am publishing and later on will amend.


The fermented shark and the smoked puffin have to be eaten so we gather in the garden P. who's obsessed with Iceland but has never been there, J&G because they're around and my upstairs neighbour who wants to introduce me to another upstairs neighbour.

R. and new neighbour A. seems an item, though no touching. What about my friend S. with whom he's had a torrid few months of texts and emails though they've not been able to meet up? And A. is physically very similar to S, and I'dare say same age. She's a professor of arabic at SOAS. Coool. It seems and his father liked her a lot and discussed Syria. What? she's already met his family? He took her to a party there.

P. is the only one who loves the puffin and takes home what's left over. I think we didn't slice it properly ie. fine enough. Looks like speck to me.

Then I go and slip on a trecherous slug which I could not have seen in the dark on the wooden decking and crash badly. Knob on head and shoulder hurts. Ahi!

29 July - La Bete & La Bete de job

Go and see great play with the unsurpassable Mark ??
It's short and sweet, not a great play but you go for the performance/s. May be 50 quid but you'd pay that at the osteopath for half an hour and this one is just a marvel.

Before it starts talk to S. about her work problems. When you work for just one boss and share the office with him you get every chill going whenever he shifts in his chair and you get caught in his draughts. Long way to say that he's an ungrateful bastard who does not pay her enough and probably resents having to pay her at all or if she has to take 2 hours to go to a doctors appointment. She wants to leave but what are the options? Most of the world is stuck doing what they do where they do it, despite the proliferation of services and consultants who want to help you engineer change. For my side, I'd spend the money at a hypnotist who makes me believe that as soon as I cross my fingers or say one word upon entering work, I will not notice anything and just do what I do as a drone would. Really that's the best. At least she doesn't have to go to any meetings I remind her. The day I also stopped working where am required to do meetings (and report on action taken following said) , I single handedly gave myself hours and hours of peace and no grinding of teeth. Easy. Totally recommend it.

28 July - Icleand return

I don't remember a thing of what I may have wanted to say upon returning from iceland (I'm revisiting this draft post nearly 2 months later). Perhaps I wanted to warn people not to get on little icelandic hroses because they can be lethal despite their size. They didn't kill my famous friend the icelandic poet and novelist but the horse that threw him left him in agony since we were nowhere near a hospital and since I write two months later he's finally out of his cast and trying hard to regain full use of his hand. He says he will just mount bipeds from now on.

Or perhaps I wanted to record that Bjork has a stuffed puffin by an upstairs/kitchen window of her black house? or relate stories of famous poet's almost famous daughter who has entered politics? or that next year Toph plans to go to the Western Fjiords beloved of Viggo Mortensen and I have 3 g/friends he can travel with, all obsessed with Iceland? or perhaps I wanted to describe puffin night back in London where assorted friends drank Brennevin and ate smoked puffin? I took a bite and it seemed very like speck to me, not that I can be sure since not tasted speck since probably 1982.
I'll never know because it's all lost in my memory gaps.

16 July - Iceland

More posts awaiting fleshing out will be published soon, but in the meantime am off to Iceland and we all know about the dangers there what with volcanoes and .. volcanoes with unpronounceable names. If I don't resume by end of July assume I've fallen into some serious crack.

14 July - Summer Cinema - partial

from now on anything that says 'partial' means that I haven't finished writing it but that if I sit on it forever, you'll think this blog is defunct so am publishing and later on will amend.

Under the Westway things have improved and got more creative. Bless. what a splendid effort and poor T. must be knackered as much more work than he's used to I expect, down to the fact he has to drag railings and chunky chains and padlocks to secure the area after everyone shoos off. I love the jamaican guys at the entrance who take your £4 and you somehow doubt all of those 'ticket's make their way to the collective pot they're supposed to go to. I wonde also if they double up as something else but don't want to fall into stereotypes of ganja suppliers just because they're jamaicans.

11 July - WC and BA wages - partial

from now on anything that says 'partial' means that I haven't finished writing it but that if I sit on it forever, you'll think this blog is defunct so am publishing and later on will amend

Shore house etc



Mauri telling us about the £2.50 p/h on BA new contracts. and all the yo-yo trips this person had taken vs M with his cosy 2 days off or some such at each destination.

10 July - The Khazaks & the wives (partial)

from now on anything that says 'partial' means that I haven't finished writing it but that if I sit on it forever, you'll think this blog is defunct so am publishing and later on will amend

Somewhere near Henley where I. has rented a house near g/friend E's family as shes about a week from dropping second child. The gathering includes her father who being not much older than me since E. is only 25 odd, I mistake for a handsome man I could add to the pot of ones to match to g/friends and his 2 brothers, not as handsome as but fine men.

the mother with alzheimer, the other mother and the choice of names for little boy to come 'my first son'. I hate men when they get so proprietorial about the sex of their child. Like my first son is more important than my first daughter.

and dom's bbq and the stoned Arabs?

8 July - more J debacle - partial

the toing and froing with mates. it sort of clarifies in your head how you think. I'm glad these things are not played out on a bigger field, say by neighbouring countries, because it's clear to me that I have the forgiveness levels of the exterminating angel.

7 July - Historians and crowds (partial)

From now on anything that says 'partial' means that I haven't finished writing it but that if I sit on it forever, you'll think this blog is defunct so am publishing and later on will amend.

So last night I went to a historian lecture in St Pauls on USB/Warburg banker . as had mentioned to J. last week , he said he’d go with. arrive and he’s waiting for G.
I said ‘er.. will she understand it?’ since her English is far from amazing. He said yes she would. I reserved comment.
So we listen for half hour and it was hard for me to actually hear (place was packed to the rafters, who’d have thought!) and she didn’t hear a thing/looked at her BB. So of course when time came for questions, which would have been interesting as you know, the lecture is prob available on print, we left to go for a drink as she was clearly bored.
So drink.

Before leaving (she said she was going to HER house and I nearly made a comment along the lines of ‘oh so you don’t want to spend the night with him when he’s still 39? – he’s 40 today) he said he was going to the other J. in west hamps to pick up a small stereo. So I said ‘ah yes you need music for your party tomorrow… er, is everything sorted with Toph? ‘(as I knew he hadn’t called him yesterday) and he said ‘well it’s up to him’. I said oh, T. is not coming then if it’s up to him. Which led to a short conversation where I tried to explain (more for the benefit of G. as I wanted her to know that Toph was not just being bloody minded) why it would be uncomfortable/awkward etc. and it was clear that she’d been given the line of ‘Was 6 years ago, should have blown over by now’. during which it transpires that he sees L. ‘not as much as I see Tops, maybe once every 2 months’ and I missed my chance to say, which would have been a killer ‘So you think it’s ok then to invite her ‘above’ T. but I notice you have NOT invited M. who’s a better friend to you than L. but clearly would be embarrassing as she is not comfortable with you being with G. even though your short relationship with her dates back also to many many years ago.’
Drat drat that I didn’t say. The meaning being YOU don’t want to be uncomfortable, but you don’t care if T. is. Anyway, that’s that.

I can’t tell you how bad I felt in the pit of my stomach for T. I got home and said ‘ darling I know you’re different form me and you don’t hold things against people like I do, but if that had been done to me I’d be a bit gutted’ and I could tell that he had hoped for a different outcome and was soo sad. As this was basically saying ‘well, your problem not mine, I invited you, up to you’.
Really feel bad.
The thing is that J had already asked T. to meet up for lunch today and T. said to me this morning ‘ I can’t not go as that would look like am sulking’ . bless
Oh and J is on holiday this week but spending it in London (am sure did same last year) doing zilch as G. can’t go on holiday, not that she would go with him anyway…and she would most certainly go on her own with own friends later on in August. What a pinhead.

5 July - Only in London

One of the reasons I like living here, and must be pretty much what anyone not born here will cite, is the variety of people it throws up. Mostly briefly, but even so always entertaining. Tonight we're out with yoga bod friend of Toph, the Malesyan accountant who lives in the suburbs in a perfectly formed little flat boasting a pole in the living room. In the two years since she took it up, she's become very proficient on it and has made many friends in that field. She doesn't work in clubs but has gone to see new friends performing there and happily spends the evening. She's forbidden from talking to punters though as they could easily mistake her for part of the package. She's an odd cross of homebody and god knows who she picked up her English from but it's full of east end colloquialisms that just sound funny coming out of her mind. She's pretty sharp and seems happy having finally found the older guy she was after.

She's fresh from taking a week off work to spend it at the London College of Fashion learning to cut/make clothes. She has the dress she made in her bag and very pretty it is too, in a 50's Mad Men sort of way. Am flattered that she thinks I should try it and therefore fit into it, since well, she has no bum!

She invites me to go watch her practice on a thursday and maybe get some more classes. I reply that I know myself by now and I just don't have the personality that keeps at something till I get good at it. She's reached level 4 after 2 years but that's with going pretty often and of course practicing at home.

4 July - War & Independence - partial

from now on anything that says 'partial' means that I haven't finished writing it but that if I sit on it forever, you'll think this blog is defunct so am publishing and later on will amend.

The run from the garden party on Saturday at old barrister with the young g/friend and major tiff thereafter, I just fancied seeing how long it would take Toph to notice I had vanished since i was clearly bored and he was busy regaling someone's tits with stories I've heard before.

So I went for walkies in Kensington and then to the Cobden for Gaz's 30 years (predictably full of old people) and CS told me a story about the father's brother top communist back home in Poland and the pressure exercised on him in London to go back and to spy on his bro. No wonder father hated the whole thing and CS never learnt any Polish at home.

Then resolved tiff over repotting of giant monster hebe plant that would not come out of original pot. Interestingly it was Toph who said the first words as I sat immune to feeling I had to apologise and read the paper

Then Toph tells me re the j's 40th .... and am incensed on his behalf.

3 July - Mad Women & Babies

You may remember a little saga that I keep up with since it involves the not yet ex husband of a mate of mine who still lives with him as they're very good friends? Said man is the one who's had the g/friend who for years has also been in his tribute band (he plays, she sings) and also had the Thai g/friend who he finally brough over and for a while entertained the idea he could have multiple mormon style wives? I am sure you can see many flaws in his reasoning but because he likes to smoke pot, he can't see them.

So TG got pregnant last year and the other one had many run ins, tears and so on, since she has the key to his house because that's where tribute band costumes and equipment are kept and that is where she goes and does the laundry for said costumes. Naturally she has slapped TG a couple of times and/or viceversa and they have traded insults via texts for months.

Finally Thai baby was born. My friend, the wife, has taken to him immediately and has been busy being helpful to husband's mum and sister who came to live in the house to help, since TG is hardly integrated yet and her English not good enough to read the back of washing powder packets and instruction on how to wash baby clothes etc.

But you can predict what's coming.. (and was indeed one of my first remarks in email to the wife) . "Better change those locks as surely original g/friend is just biding her time".

So I got an email informing me that OG let herself into the house of one evening and hit TG round the head whilst she was breastfeeding the tiny tiny creature. And tk god she stopped there.

I blame him. Not sure what he's planning to do re. changing the locks since he still needs OG for a while in the band as shows to play in far away countries where tickets for fligths have been bought in her name and not exchangeable. Though frankly money should be the least of issues...

2 July - Rowing & Walking

My good friend R has passed her exam to become a City of London guide which she will do in spare time since she has a job. Very proud of her. Tonight she's taking for a walk my friends M&H and M's 13 year old son and two of his schoolmates. I can't go witness her first cash in hand debut as am stuck on a work do, which involves rowing in a ten/twelve people boat on a lock in Docklands. We're picked at random and sorted into 4 teams and wouldn't you know it, am in the team that consistently loses 3 times and therefore doesn't have to go head to head for the final. So far, so very World Cup and the team which wins contains 3 Germans. Predictable perhaps.

What's even more World Cup like is that my losing team blames mostly our coach. The team who won had the other coach and ours is deemed to have been more into comedy than driving us hard. In other words it's his style which let us down. I refrain from saying that since I was sat at the very far back every time and therefore with a good view of the guys in front, I could tell they were not rowing as we had been told to. My girlie partner was also a bit crap and I was a bit crap though at least I called out the required 'one/two' very loudly indeed.

I go join the walking tour at the restaurant by St Paul's and all are happy. Am fascinated by J who I've not seen for a few months and is now a couple of inches taller than me, and his two equally lovely mates. These Swedish boys speak perfect English. How come the rest of Europe can't be taught in same way at school? Toph says it's because they watch British TV, but that can't be all. J. usually visits his dad on his own and consequently gets a bit bored during our dinners but this time they're in cahoots and run out to play/talk whilst we drink our wine. I demand my portion of ruffling J's hair and then let him go.

We carry on chatting and dad and g/friend let it slip they've put some footage of their lovemaking on the internet. Am not curious to see it. They also say they've showed it to a couple of friends and the woman was enamoured with H. (who's furiously blushing) and well, they're all going to be on holiday together in Spain soon. Oh dear. Easy on the Rioja is all I can recommend.

1 July - Fulham evening

Out for a bite with recently pregnant g/friend. Another g/friend of hers is with us. Terribly lovely woman who has a young son who's lucky to have a benefactor godfather since she was left by the boy's father when she was pregnant and had to struggle for years to get him to acknowledge son was his and to stump up some money. Before I feel sorry for her though, during the course of dinner it transpires she has a flat in Valencia that's lain empty for years. She bought it because she went to Valencia once, loved it, bought flat and then? Just didn't love it any more by why sell?
She currently lives by chelsea fc grounds and also has flat in the development of the former Negresco hotel in Nice or Cannes? something like that. I like that one can have property like I have handbags, they're somewhere but I'm not using them.
Other pregnant g/friend seems home alone a lot at w/ends as hubby is not giving up on his sporty life followed by copious drinks with the sporty pals. I'll mind when she really minds too. For now she's taking it as what it was predicted to be. In every girl's life you have to go through a 1950's period. I support what my husband wants to do. Very Betty and Don Draper.



paris and her flats in valencia and the negresco and chelsea and so on

28 June - Books & Business

Afternoon with published author friend who is not happy with advance being offered for second novel. Truly not much for what will become all in all three years of toil. Thing is, when first one was much touted, she was correctly advised to refuse a two book deal and only sign for first one.
First one came out in many countries but was not runaway success though has nearly recouped advance (and presumably can carry on recouping for years, especially if second one is more successfull and throws new fans back on the trail of first one). So you can well undertand balance of power is with publisher and how my friend does not feel as courted and lusted after as three summers ago. It's not done in the book business to punt novel to other publishers whilst current one is considering and has offered. So quaint. She rather prefers to remain with current as is creme de la creme.

I offer encouragement whilst commiserating on the way this form of rejection must make her feel. Take the amount and hopefully eclipse it in sales and get your returns later. But once again I see how hard it is to make a living in that industry and how they all have to write reviews, maybe teach and so on. She's naturally cautious with money and doesn't relish the prospect of this state of affairs having to carry on. The much touted buying of rights to film first novel also resulted in no green light. or Money. So we go eat lunch on the street at Moroccan fish and she is happy, declaring that her father would love it and he's a grandee! We love her dad. We walk back and she buys us icecream. Then we idle till it's time for her to go meet friends in Holland Park and for us to go spend the night in Fulham at friend's house. Her hubby is away and the various bedrooms feel like a boutique hotel so why not wake up and then go wander in Kings Rd for a change.