Month: June 2003

Gah. I’ve been sniffing, sneezing and suffering from itchy and puffy eyes all day long. We desperately need a shower of rain to lay the pollen a bit.

Good Spanish dry white wine should definitely be shared.
I think I’ll put one in the fridge, just so I’m ready.

Sorry. Quiet. Too busy at the moment. But had my first full day of working for PFE, which was good, although interrupted at several points by Croftway Nursery issues. I shall be monitoring that, don’t you worry.
I’ve just driven umpteen miles and sponged up a whole bunch of illegal signs. Now, after I’ve had some dinner, I intend to flop on the sofa and read a book, whilst listening to some good music.
I also note that I have two of the music recommendations in Wallpaper already – the latest releases by Broadcast and The Cinematic Orchestra. I am übercool, it’s official.

Sure is hot.
Observation: I need to get a blind for my office window – can’t see my laptop screen very well due to the bright light behind me.

[written earlier this afternoon as I sat in the park]
Remarkable! I’m currently sitting in Priory Park, on the banks of the city’s defences in the shade of a beautiful holm oak so that I can see my laptop’s screen on such a bright day, and before me is a ladies cricket match in progress! Such advances in social standards in Chichester are hard to believe! A pity that they are not all wearing proper whites (I spy a couple of pairs of dark shorts, and at least three pairs of black trainers), and one of the umpires is barefoot (risking injury, I’d say – I wouldn’t fancy having a fast moving cricket ball clobbering me on the big toe!) but I guess we should just be grateful that such a match is taking place.
Chichester vs Eastleigh – looks like the teams are pretty well matched.
Still, it doesn’t seem to matter who is playing here – there’s always a bunch of prats who come onto the pitch and start larking about with a football, ignoring the requests of the umpire to get off the pitch and away from in front of the sight screens.

Surely this is what the English summer is all about – sitting on a park bench in the shade of a tree, watching a cricket match beneath a glorious blue sky, whilst in the distance the Cathedral bells ring across the city’s rooftops. Children are playing with a football away to my right, whilst to my left the grass is scattered with sunbathers, singly and in pairs or groups, enjoying the warmth of the June sun. On the other side of the cricket pitch, elderly folk are playing a gentle game of bowls and catching up on the week’s gossip.

The only downer is that I’m here with a laptop, pounding away at building the new website for PFE (I should be working on a licence agreement form, but left some paperwork I need in the office), instead of enjoying a good book and a pint.

Right: let’s deal with all the questions you want answered:

• What did you cook for Charlie and Peeet, Graybo?
• Lime and chilli trout fillets. Strikingly simply and very tasty, using a Waitrose recipe. Served with new potatoes, and chocolate mousse for dessert. And, of course, much wine was consumed, with lots of conversation and Jenga.
• What did you buy in Brighton?
• Stupidly, not the one thing I really needed – a new shower curtain. The one I bought recently isn’t quite long enough, so water trickles down the side of the bath and onto the floor. So I need a slightly longer one, which I was going to get in Habitat, but forgot. So I’ll look in A&N later. But what I did buy was some cheese at the food fair by the Pavilion, some shoes and five CDs, as well as a beer in a pub and some bread and olives to go with the cheese for a late lunch at Kate’s new flat.
• What CDs did you buy?
• Susumu Yokota – The Boy and The Tree
• Susumu Yokota – Sakura
• Appliance – Six Modular Pieces
• Animals That Swim – The Moon And The Mothership
• Amon Tobin – Bricolage
• Any amusing anecdotes or observations for us, Graybo?
• Not many. Has to be said that Brighton has a real attitude, and I’m not sure it is entirely good. Yes, it is an amazingly interesting and exciting and vibrant place, which I love visiting and walking around, with a real cosmopolitan and slightly continental flavour. But it also has a strident arrogance that is all-pervasive – there are people there who firmly believe that they are cool just by being in the city, and have a real "look at me" mentality. If you’re not cool, there must be something wrong with you. Unless you’re being deliberately retro or something. That whole attitude strikes me as a little unhealthy, and is one of (several) reasons why I love Brighton, but wouldn’t want to live there.
• What are your plans for today?
• In spite of it being Fathers’ Day, I won’t be seeing Dad today. I do need to go and buy him a gift, so I suspect a trip to the off-licence is in order. I also need to buy a shower curtain, as I’ve already discussed. And I need to go to Waitrose for some provisions. Other than that, I may take the laptop down to Priory Park, as I need to do some work, but it is much too fine today to stay inside.

Beer with DA, DA (as I said I’d mention him twice for failing to mention him last time), Kearn, Jeremy, Simon, Stein, James, Paul F, Helen, Hamish, Ruth, Al, Lyn, Arron, Matt, Cat and various other usual suspects.

Charlie and Peeet over for dinner last night.
Poked about the shops in Brighton today with Kate.
Full report later. Now pooped.
Sometimes text messages at 1am are an annoyance. Sometimes they are almost exactly what you want.

Furniture construction completed. Now to nip out and break the law with some illegal signs. Again.

A tartan of old ladies.