Nine Feet Underground

My main priorities for today are helping son #1, and going out tonight. This is on top of my usual priorities, naturally. The working day is coming to a close and I now need to get ready to go out, which primarily means eating something and also sorting out bus times and a ticket. Tonight I'm off out to see the excellent Robyn Hitchcock supported by Jessica Lee Morgan at South Street Arts Centre. Jessica Lee Morgan (who is the daughter of folk singer Mary Hopkin and record producer Toni Visconti (David Bowie, Marc Bolan, Thin Lizzy etc) grew up in the area and made several references to that fact during a very lively set.  She was accompanied on stage by her partner, bass player and backing singer, Chris Thomas.  Afterwards, they went to the merch stall at the back of the theatre, where I chatted with Jessica and got her to sign one of her CDs. Robyn took to the stage promptly and began his set.  Expectations were high as the stage was set up for a bigger band, and sure e...

Big plans for today. Well, maybe not that big, but lots of effort required by at least two of us. More on that in a moment. It goes without saying (so, why are you saying it?) that saying without goes it, which is a roundabout way of saying that, as is usual, I started my day with a walk. Says who? Says I, that's who! Strictly speaking that's not really true. I started my day when the alarm went off and I though, 'fuck this!' and snoozed the alarm. There were several repetitions of this sequence before I decided I really did need to get up, else I'll not be dressed and ready for the first carer of the day with knock-on consequences for the rest of my morning. Theoretically, the plan for the day is to clear a load of stuff we don't need out of the garage and take it to the tip (we have booked a slot - feels like going on holiday, only to a very smelly place). That's step 1. Step 2 is to completely reorganise the way the remaining stuff is filling the garage t...

Work again today, but today's early start was to do yoga at 7 a.m., rather than to start a training course. After that, though, work has dominated the day, so there's not a lot to say, just the usual trials and tribulations of work. After making and receiving several phone calls during the day son #3 established that he'd had a meningitis injection back in 2016 and doesn't need another before heading off to uni, so a visit to the doctor (isn't there a song with that title by Dr. Feelgood?) was avoided. Limiting my thinking to the moment is holding up, so far, and seems to be helping.   A friend is popping over around 6 p.m. for a walk to the pub for a drink and a chat.  I finished work around 5:30 p.m. and am ready to go! The friend duly arrived and we walked, in a socially-distanced way, to the pub. We were standing outside drinking and chatting as a car approached down the lane leading to the ford and the occupant was waving.  As the car drew closer I thought ...

The Dog, The Dog, He's At It Again... ...back once again to the wonderful venue that is South Street Arts Centre, this time to see the even more wonderful Robyn Hitchcock and support, in the form of Jessica Lee Morgan, which is where I'll begin... Jessica Lee Morgan is the daughter of singer Mary Hopkin (best known for her hit single 'Those Were The Days', staple of many a drunken evening underground in the frozen north) and Toni Visconti (most famous, I guess, as the producer of many of David Bowie's albums). She plays guitar and sings and is ably assisted by her partner, Chris Thomas, on bass. I have to confess she and her music had passed me by, but as the set progressed I warmed to the music. Since I was probably less than 10 feet away from her, there's a real intimacy to the performance and a couple of songs from her set, most notably 'Around The Block' (whose lyrics and delivery struck a chord) and 'Cut Down, Broken Down', dre...