Lockdown Diary - Saturday 12th September 2020

Usual start to Saturday - up early to go food shopping with this week's press-ganged son, #2. I dislike food shopping to the extent that the best thing about it, by far, is when it's done.  Apart from the company of one of my sons, the only real compensation is that after it's done we grab a coffee and a bacon roll or equivalent hot savoury offering (?)

Pretty dull Saturday ahead (see yesterday's prediction for the weekend) to be mainly spent doing chores of one sort or another. Today the main advantage this has is that it keeps my mind off other things I don't want to dwell on.  In truth, though, it's not really possible to completely keep my mind off those things, even if my surface thoughts (not sure they are really on the surface?) are distracted, somewhere in the background those things are churning over and over, forcing their way to the surface like molten lava.

I had hoped to find time to read the papers but haven't so far, and as I'm in serious need of loud music, I think the papers won't get much of a look in today.

My natural inclination is to seek out new music, though sometimes I feel the need to listen to music that is closest to my heart.  I guess this is the music that forms the kernel of my appreciation of all other music. I think the music I naturally return to is that which most reflects the inner me, whatever the hell that means. If I took the time to compile it all into one, very large, playlist it would be the equivalent of a detailed psychological analysis of me. It's close to my heart because it's almost a part of me, though I didn't write any of it, though perhaps I've rewritten many of the words. As such it doesn't reflect a single time period - it's not about nostalgia - in some cases I didn't hear the music at the time it came out, necessarily.  Not only that but I may not have appreciated some of these songs at the time I first heard them, their lyrics having gained a resonance over time.

All  that psychobabble is a preamble for saying that I spent a little under 90 minutes mostly listening to Microdisney and Todd Rundgren.  I had taken albums by Caravan, John Martyn, Nick Cave and others into the living room / music room, but didn't get time to listen to any of them. 

I stopped listening as it was time to assist son #3 in making the dinner. It is also film night and it's also my choice.  I spent a little time whittling my choice down to five films: 'A Field In England'; 'Altered States'; 'Being John Malkovitch'; 'Lost In Translation' and 'Electra Glide In Blue'.  I left the final decision down to when we were all together.

In the end I chose 'Lost In Translation', which is a film that I love: as well as being both funny and moving, it also has an excellent soundtrack (the soundtrack is so good, I have the album, and there aren't many soundtracks I can say that for!)  I suppose in the interests of full disclosure, I should say it also features Scarlett Johansson, which does add to its appeal. Everyone seemed to enjoy it, though afterwards I did wonder about the thoughts it surfaced.

After that the usual shit, culminating in sleep.

Continuing a theme from above, this is 'Waling Wall' by Todd Rundgren. It's from the album 'Runt: The Ballad of Todd Rundgren' 

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