4951 - Should've been in Prague Day 5

Yes, even today, should've been in Prague
Although the flight was early-ish, it's true
And we'd have been back in Manchester, back
By lunchtime, but we left on Friday, flew
Back after just one night, robbed of a new
And fabulous time, irreplaceable
Memories and excitement. Can't even do
Anything here now either, once the full
Lockdown begins in a week, probable
The day's leave spent busily, but the rug
Pulled at 5pm on the TV news
All social activity has to fall
By the wayside, the virus in its rage
Is shutting us all down just like wars do

4870 - Crowd saucing

Boxing Day, slept over on blow-up bed
Slept okay considering, saw the dark sky
Turn morning grey and overcast like lead
Waited for all to stir. They discussed my
Edinburgh experience and wondered why
I'd do it again, but it's hard to let
It go after that effort, have to try
At least apply, and if I could just get
A suitable venue, I won't regret
It, and not end up so disappointed
At crowd size, the main issue, passers-by
Assaulted by waves of flyerers forget
Your show in seconds. We all were well fed
At Piccolino's in West Didsbury

Thur 26 Dec

4866 - Song sung blue

The main focus of today - to prepare
To go out and play new songs live, video
Footage to be obtained so I can share
The musical side of my act some know
Well, but not Edinburgh venues, although
I've still to decide finally whether
I want to do the Fringe, another go
After the trials of this closing year
I certainly felt it spoiled Edinburgh
All those young flyerers and some cynical fare
Pirates, Potter, sci-fi, and so and so
Not to mention endless takes on Shakespeare
At times it was almost too much to bear
But tonight I went out and led the show

Sun 22 Dec

4832 - Wading through treacle time

I feel, like this time last year, I'm behind
With Edinburgh prep, though it's true I did
Some thinking early September around
What my second year's show could be - a good
Start, based on Amanda's advice, then, hard
Though it was, went back on Facebook, putting
My videos on there for all to see, weird
New ones shot, with friends' help, them appearing
With me in them. But still I'm not doing
Enough. Soon the guilt will spur me to find
The way to get a move on like it did
Last year. It's so tough just motivating
Myself. I don't have the drive. But if kind
People help like last year, then try I should

4796 - Autumn in my step

Not been out today though it was quite nice
Apart from to recycle the rubbish
A few beercans drank Thursday, Friday nights
Dissipated the inactivities
Into a twilight zone but not ghoulish
Just oblivion on my own, and strangely
I was recovering from my cold with this
Remedy of drink, fags and balcony
Soon out there as seasons change it'll be
Dark and cold once more, long gone the delights
Of long light nights, t-shirts, and smoke that wisps
Into a pale blue sky unendingly
A sad summer in some ways, but I'm wise
Compared to spring, feel almost devilish!

4791 - You've got to be in before you can be out

Tired, partly from my own weekend excess
And also I seem to have caught a cold
Out again tomorrow, so I must rest
Tonight, try to recover and enfold
Myself in duvet and sheet. The uke flowed
Tonight, played old rock tunes from a playlist
Made by Spotify, and more practice showed
How great it is to persevere, that is
The secret of art and of fruitfulness
The harvest of my labour through the years
That little uke, so small and light to hold
Brings to life vibrations from my cortex
Some from my childhood. But so much descends
From and depends on young experience

4772 - Olaf, you bastards!

Going out to a comedy show soon
So as I also need an early night
I'll write this diary entry now, return
Later, straight to bed, meaning that I might
Be able to cope with the alarm's fright
At 7:15 so I'm not late for
An important meeting in which I've quite
A big role. I've prepared, can't do much more
So, for now, time to relax, and guffaw
At Olaf Falafel back in that room
I went to last week with some pals. Tonight
It's with Justyna. The last time before
Tonight was two months ago, when, from June
To mid-July we saw some shows - was great!

4760 - The old country

Visited Vee in Ancoats to give her
The scarf from Edinburgh that I had bought
(At her request!). There two and a half hours
And walked home. Not much more now to report
Ate a late tea, watched TV, and I caught
The latest boring non-Brexit news and
Now it's colour film from the war they fought
In the forties. The countryside looks grand
So much beauty lost, the trees and green ground
Makes me nostalgic for my childhood years
When we could always walk for such a short
Distance to find wild brambles and fields, hands
Picking berries for jam. Then the super-
markets were new and fewer on the street

4690 - Alp, I'm a rock

Finished things off at home before leaving
The British weather's suddenly got hot
It's almost a shame that we are flying
To Milan where it's really, well, too hot!
All went well, a taxi to the airport
Had a beer and wine combination while
In the plane, saw the Alps clearly, and thought
Of when I was also with J, some miles
Up over the same peaks, people all smiles
As 9 month old J crawled through the cabin
Returning from Naples' Italian cot
To her home equivalent, family-style
Train to Garibaldi station, getting
A taxi to the Meininger. Up late...

Thur 27 June

4684 - Dreadin' Edinburgh (or getting up early)

Got more beer in, but feeling so weary
That's good, cos tomorrow's an early start
3:45 to be precise (f*ck me!)
So I must begin drinking if I'm smart
It's already 8pm, and I'm sort
Of drinking, but not with the appetite
Of yesterday, when it seemed like an art
I'll knock more back soon, but first I must write
This sonnet, or when Sunday comes I might
Have four or five, backlog of literary
Outpourings to compose, trying to depart
From the mere present in a mental fight
To recall distant events, albeit they
Were just a few days old. Still find it hard!

4632 - TB phone home

Two nights of not enough sleep, but still done
Plenty at work and at home. At work I
Found the wi-fi much better than at home
And so I used the strong office wi-fi
To upload loads of old videos quickly
From Nice, Israel, Romania and Scotland
Even a comedy routine, but tried
And failed with the longer length performance
Have asked Tom what to do... I'm in his hands
Hope he replies. Tomorrow, Instagram
Workshop at Home, First Street, seven quid, try
To learn how to use it, improve my chance
To publicise my show at the Fringe when
I'm there in August. Why not? Why not? Why?

4630 - Pictures of Silly

Hard day at home, Josephine cancelled our
Day out in town cos she's too tired, so I
Have put all my stuff on Dropbox, from the
Sound files from Pinhole Studios of my
Songs for the Fringe show, fresh in my mind's eye
To old snapshots from years, even decades
Ago in some cases, all now put by
Safely on the Dropbox website! Time fades
The memory til you see photos in spades
So many, and when I still had dark hair
Or when my kids were little, tears were dry
And smiles made up of tiny teeth were wide
Now I think I'll play uke for the next hour
Then maybe a beer, settle down nicely

4618 - Justyna the nick of time

What a great evening out that was last night
With Justyna, to XS Malarkey
In the street beforehand we set alight
And it was all good then, reminded me
Of mad times in the eighties. At front, we
Sat at a table, and she was talked to
By Toby H the MC. Now sure how, to see
Three of the four acts again, deja vu
Delightful Sausage, Lindsey Davies, who
Justyna denied seeing before, then right
At the end, Sophie Willan. Only the
Opener, Josh Pugh, seemed like he was new
As in, I'd not seen him before. Polite
Way of saying it, we had fun, did we?...

Tue 16 April

4617 - Burning the midnight oil

I'm staying up quite late, uploading pix
From my phone to Facebook, and later on
This week, I'll copy them all, and the vids
To my computer files, back-up from phone
To the net and my laptop. Vids take an
Age to upload! Forgot I'd filmed that much!
Before this, I played uke like a madman
'This is the Beatles' playlist at my touch
Then two Doors tracks, Jim Morrison and such
Meanwhile, Notre Dame caught fire, it's in bits
The roof's burned through, and all the wood is gone
It's just a stone skeleton now, it looks
Eerie and gaunt in the night as flames lick
Their final spiteful tongues around the stone

4614 - Head, hands and feet

So tired but still I had a useful day
At work, then when home played ukulele
Devastatingly, starting with Roxy
Then Queen, Sparks and Smiths, played incredibly
Well, endorphins released, moving to me
As I play, nodding head and tapping feet
After that, watched a film from Germany
The Edukators, set on Berlin's streets
And then its second half made it complete
Set in Bavarian mountain scenery
Looking down on a lake - the Konigsee?
Dropped off immediately I hit the sheets
Got much-needed rest, and recovery
Was effective, next morning felt OK

Fri 12 April

4523 - Golden years

Felt refreshed after a good nights' sleep and
Sober, even did my exercises
Read 80 pages on Roy McFarland
Ex-Derby player's reminiscences
Of the golden days of the 70s
It's been on the sofa by where I sit
For ages, now I've read it like a breeze
And can move on now to those books I bought
Yesterday, on party games. And I met
Tom and Rhiannon, to get our show planned
Not my solo show, our show. Free Sisters
Is my venue of choice, but we must get
Our 'act' together quickly and then send
Off to the chosen venue our ideas

Fri 11 Jan

4514 - First day back

Second day of the year, and this morning
While at work, a really useful email
Came from Charles at theSpaceUK. Reading
It answered many questions, and I feel
As though things are on track. But there's still real
Work to do on publicity. They won't
Do posters or flyers, I have to wield
My wallet once more, and creative bent
I'll also have to plug my show and hunt
For punters on the Royal Mile. Feeling
I'd much rather do it there though than flail
Around on Cowgate at night - that's defunct
And debunked. Back home from work, uploading
A hundred more photos from old travels

4512 - Boozy-oozy-oozy

Went to Boots again collecting more photos
From Christmas last week, plus a few more best
Of 2018, miscellaneous
Images, and my Belgian trip from last
December, still not filled the album! Guess
What? I ordered more to fill it at last...
Will collect tomorrow when I'm working...:)
So then I worked on the music I must
Compose and record for my show, writing
The silly words, although not worrying
Too much about the tunes, cos I suppose
I can think 'em up later. And the rest
Of New Year's Eve I spent sitting watching
Films and TV programmes until the close
Of '18, washed down by a big booze-fest!!

Mon 31 December 2018

4511 - This Boots was made for walking to

I'm afraid that again I have not done
Work on my comedy show, but I will
Tomorrow, can't see what else that could come
Between that and my aim, although I'll still
Walk to Boots third day in a row to fill
My photo album with more prints, the last
Few from this year, and also my last hol
Of 2017, to Belgium, washed
Down with glasses of beer that got me smashed
Pictures of those beers, not just buildings, from
That trip. Exercises next. The appeal
Of going out and buying booze, a task
To say no to, but last night lay alone
Awake three plus hours. Drink is like a pill...

4510 - How many long strange trips there've been

I'm watching Top of the Pops, yes it's true
They have it annually at end of year
Walked to town this morning while crowds were few
To collect photos from Boots, put in picture
Album, solid memories that I will treasure
And I'll soon print more from my many trips
In the last few years. I've been here and there
And yet I never thought of making prints
Well it's the new old thing, retro but mint
And bought hair clippers, can't be hard to do
Can it? Dyed the back of my head before
And my mate Tom does it, so I'll do it
Did exercises, cooked, music on, new
And old on Spotify, pleasured my ear