Lockdown Diary - Friday 15th May 2020

It's Friday, and another working week draws to a close.  I should be feeling a surge of energy as the weekend comes into view, however this is not how I'm feeling today.

As so often happens, several negative influences conspire to combine at the same time to cause a more overwhelming wave of gloom. None of these influences are in my control, so there is nothing do to change them, only change how I respond to them. Like many things, easier said than done, but I am trying to change how these things are making me feel. 

Work is the number one priority today: I've been dragged into help with an IT incident which is exercising the mind this morning. This will keep me occupied.

Almost three hours later we have identified the cause of the problem and also a solution. Over to those who do the hands-on stuff to fix it. Back to the day job now.

Great hot lunch provided by sons 2 & 3, which means I can carry on working. Deep joy.

It's just gone 5pm and it's really not worth me starting anything new work-wise, plus today's been pretty full on so I've decided it's officially wine o'clock. 

Just noticed that son #1 and I would have been heading off to the O2 arena this afternoon to see Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds. Not a venue I'd choose to go to see any band at normally, however I couldn't pass up the opportunity to see Nick Cave live. Only now it'll be May 2021. Good things are worth waiting for, or so I'm told. Which brings to mind the words of an old t-shirt slogan (which featured two vultures, so what follows is more acceptable) as a retort to that: 'Patience, My Ass I'm Gonna Kill Something' (it was clearly American, since vultures don't own donkeys). Below is an updated version of the t-shirt I recall from the (adopt hushed tone) 1970s. I think it used to be monochrome, like much of that decade.

Where is that wine!

The evening unfolded as it often does, with me playing music - tonight's sounds were provided by The Beach Boys, Captain Beefheart and The Magic Band, Prince & The New Power Generation and Pixies. Still really enjoying old albums afresh on the new speakers.

I prepped the potatoes and got them in the oven, after which son #2 told me he was taking over dinner - I didn't need a second invitation.

Then TV blah blah blah bed blah blah blah book blah blah blah sleep, to return for another day of the same  

Chances are the band would have played this tonight, so it was prime candidate for the blog. As I've been a fan of Nick Cave since his days with The Birthday Party, way back when, I still rather enjoy the wilder stuff.  Since he's matured into the darling of the Sunday Supplements, and all that goes with that, it's good that he still has the fire & passion to do songs like this. It seems that his other band, Grinderman, is the place where he lets rip these days, outside live performances. Live, however, the Bad Seeds can still kick up one hell of a storm on songs like 'Stagger Lee', and, as here, on 'From Her To Eternity' (from the album which it gives its name to). Rather than go for the studio version, which I also love, I thought I'd choose this version from the Copenhagen live film. 

[[I know that girl]]

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