A new link added to the sidebar: on old friend from Edinburgh is blogging at Travels with my yak.
Elaine dropped me an email after I did my falling-out-of-touch thing. She is an entertaining writer and a cracking person as well.
Go, read, enjoy.
So, yesterday the daily posting got overlooked. Unexpected passing of a family member, busy with gatherings, etc. It’s been a hectic couple of days.
As I work myself up to it I guess I’ll have a lot to tell round here. The last… well, five or six months, really, have been an experience that caught us by surprise. It’s been a tricky time, and one that has left wounds that may or may not become scars.
The question then becomes one of appropriate self-censorship. Not everything is to be shared with the web at large, of course, yet at the same time there’s been some learning about myself and about life that is worth telling. There’s things we’re not good at talking about, especially in churches, and I feel strongly that we need to learn some openness, but that’s easier said… Laying yourself open to the judgments and sympathies of people you know and don’t know is tricky, and can have unintended and unforeseen consequences that I am concerned about.
How best to proceed? In the period that things have been quiet on this site I have rediscovered the discipline and pleasure of writing a real dead-trees journal as a personal thing rather than in a work/recording context. That’s something to hold on to, and to maintain, and should help me pile stuff on here.
A side-effect of the recent experience has been my almost total failure to maintain communication with anyone outside my immediate family. That’s tough, and leaves me feeling quite sheepish thinking about trying to pick things up again. If you are one of the neglected, thanks for bearing with me and I hope I’ll get my act together soon.
Meantime, we’re okay, really.
Just off an HSS full of Rangers fans returning from the Old Firm game.
That was fun.
You’re out shopping with your wife (stroke girlfriend stroke s.o.) - bear with me, I’m writing from a male perspective, here - and she’s going into the fitting room to try some clothes on. You know you’re going to be called on to offer an opinion, so what are you going to do?
You have to be close enough to see and converse when she comes out, but you can’t go too close or you look like a weirdo guy hanging around outside the ladies’ changing room - not so bad if your companion is the only one in there, but much worse if someone else comes in and sees you hanging around. There’s the changing room attendant always there; maybe she’ll chat to you and have a bit of banter, maybe she’ll ignore you, maybe she’ll look at you like you’re that weird guy. It’s even worse if it’s the underwear store.
And then when your better half comes out you’ll have the questions to answer, and the attendant will be listening carefully to that, too.
It’s like womanhood is assessing your ability to function as a responsible and civilized member of society.
Do you think I passed?
Another easy daily post: a friend has started publicising her hand-made jewellery. Go check out Beadecked.
Further to yesterday’s, being just back from the GP I am now thoroughly medicated for the back pain. With luck the pills will kick in soon…
I have been absent from here of late due to various circumstances and an extended period of ill health. But, getting back on my feet, I have been challenged (you both know who you are) to get a week of daily posts in in order to get marramgrass up and running again.
So today’s post is:
Back pain. Aargh.