Nine Feet Underground

Where has July gone? Why do the summer months go by much quicker than the winter months, or seem to at the very least? The last day of July and it felt like it only started yesterday. In stark contrast to last Saturday, today looks like being a Saturday like any other, give or take. Went shopping with son #1 and picked up a bottle of mezcal, which I've been wanting to try for some time. Hunter S Thompson was a big fan of it and so I'm hoping if I drink enough of it, in time I'll be able to write as well as he could. Failing that, if I drink enough of it, I may at least believe I can write as well him. Ate breakfast with son #1 and chatted - it's the only time we ever really stop and talk in the hustle and bustle of our separate, but overlapping, lives. I found time to read the papers after lunch and then try and finish reading this month's book club book, 'The Mermaid of Black Conch'. One of our Thai carers (in fact the one whose house blessing / housewarmi...

Another month bites the dust.  I guess it's probably because of my operation and recovery, but I don't feel like I had an April this year.  Best part of a month mostly confined to barracks. FB does its usual trick of reminding me of happier times whilst at the same time inducing the opposite emotion.  Happy times will always be happy times, that cannot be taken away, but they can be a stark reminder of how much things have changed, for the worse. It strikes me that it's possible that lockdown may soon be over and when it is, I can't really continue calling this a lockdown diary, because it won't be. You might argue that lockdown has been lifted already for brief periods over the past year, but for me it hasn't really, and so the name continues. I want to keep on writing a diary in a similar format, as it has enabled me to find an excuse to write regularly, not just about gigs I've been to (gigs?) or music that has hit the spot, as most of the pre-lockdown po...

The house is noticeably quieter without son #3: as I was waking up this morning I thought I heard noise on the landing and initially thought 'it's only son #3' (I didn't literally think that!) and then I realised, he's not here now. In response to yesterday's restlessness and inner strife I've decided to attempt to have a chilled day - I'm still going to do the boring jobs I need to get done today, but I'm also going to try and read the papers - this weekend's as well as the backlog from the previous two weeks and also listen to music.  I hope to go for a walk later and son #2 may accompany me - we'll see. Success! Caught up on the papers and even found time to read a bit of this month's book club novel, 'The Hunting Party'.  I'm some 100 pages or so in, but it still hasn't managed to lure me in. Not sure why, but there's something about the writing or the plot that is keeping me at arm's length. I will persevere, ...