Bill

Bill
Originally uploaded by paintMonkey.

....and his bike.

mid afternoon Lunner at CJ's, moo showed me how to frame a photo with her hands

mid afternoon Lunner at CJ's, moo showed me how to frame a photo with her hands
Originally uploaded by paintMonkey.

i am reminded of a someone i used to know

i am reminded of a someone i used to know
Originally uploaded by paintMonkey.

As with all good games of ping pong, the ball of bitchy comments must be returned.

the current epac island

the current epac island
Originally uploaded by paintMonkey.

well, all good things come to pass, as i'm sure someone has said at some point. No sooner had i taken the photos and put them together, i find out that the apartment wont be mine for very much longer. which is a bit of a bugger, i was just starting to turn things around.
i like this flat and it's little modern luxuries, the big silver button for a flush above the floating toilet, the hidden fridge and the dimming lights above the worktop. I've become really very fond of it over the last couple of years. it is effectively the longest i've lived anywhere since the 1980's. i have gotten used to my space being my own, of knowing where things are in the midst of my own mess, of having things the way i want them, when i want them... the thing is what to do now? a quick scan of the local paper reveals only a handful of small one bed apartments in my price range, all of which say 'no children- no pets' which isn't very helpful at all, bearing in mind i have both and neither of which is disposable, and anyway i need something more than a one bedroom box... so will i now have to share my space with someone else again?....yikes and crikey. don't know how i feel about that. if i wasn't me, i'm not sure i'd want to share with me.

Goranga! be happy!

[forces smile]

moo n mei

moo n mei
Originally uploaded by paintMonkey.

had a good mate and my god-son over on friday night, we watched some Star Wars. Brilliant, watching those films with 7 & 8 year olds really makes it special, what is especially amazing is how well Moo n Flix get on, almost like they inherited some of the friendship Flix's dad and i share by proxy. sweet.
We put the kids to bed and then drank a very sharp box of wine 'til the early hours. felt rough on saturday on only a few hours kip. then another old freind came up in the morning, which was just brilliant, hadn't seen her for years, we hung out mostly and went for dinner. Being a gentleman, [sic] i let her have my bed on saturday night.... which leads me to an apology.... anyone (tofu) who has had to use the cushions from my sofa to sleep on at any time....oh my god, i'm so sorry, i had no idea it was so uncomfortable.
i'm way too knackered to type anymore. except to say that i shaved my beard and moustache yesterday... now i feel and look like a potato.

i sat for ten minutes to get some air, i hoped maybe you'd drive by in your little red car so i could wave. but you didn't.

i sat for ten minutes to get some air, i hoped maybe you'd drive by in your little red car so i could wave. but you didn't.
Originally uploaded by paintMonkey.

Full English breakfast with a chipped mug at CJs with Tom Hodgkinson. Tom was ranting on about How To Be Free, "huh...?", i thought.

Full English breakfast with a chipped mug at CJs with Tom Hodgkinson. Tom was ranting on about How To Be Free, "huh...?", i thought.
Originally uploaded by paintMonkey.

I have been full of cold/stuffed up/headache since saturday morning, drinking lemon tea and eating bags of Haribo, Tunnocks Tea Cakes and Battenburg Cake. I've loved it. Feel sick and fat though. I went and had a sunday breakfast to fill up on some real food. It was the best i've had in there so far. Spent the rest of my time taking and editing photos and pondering a painting.

Bill, the old guy who looks like St Peter, with white beard and hair, a weathered Roman nose and too many dogs at any one time....he lives a few doors down, has lent me the above mentioned book to read. I've not read too much yet but it seems to be full of Anarchic Buddhist philosophical daydreams so far. Interesting stuff, it strikes some familiar and comfortable chords with me....and i'll save judgement until i've finished it, but i kinda feel i've heard it all before. It should be maybe called "Chicken Soup for the Lazy Liberal Anarchist who still has a chip on his shoulder about the introduction of the police force in 1828...".
The chapter titles give a pretty good clue as to what the book is trying to get across;
Chapter 4 is titled " Reject career and All Its Empty Promises"
ha!,
Chapter 7; "Cast off your watch", Chapter 12 "Forget Government", Chapter 22 "Stop Worrying about your Pension and Get a Life", Chapter 24 (my particular favourite) "Self Important Puritans Must Die
and finally chapter 29 ;"Stop working, Start Living".
Bill, the guy who looks like St Peter, was very enthusiastic about the book, which was quite refreshing, he is the same age as my father, who wouldn't have been.
Its a sweet sentiment i suppose, its all very intersting to read about 'the climate of fear and political power abuse', but it's kinda like being preached 'charity' at by a hippy who is sitting comfortably on an inheritance fortune. The sincerity is there, but then you suspect they're just interested (and can afford to) in making the grand gestures in the Sunday broadsheet column their Daddy probably bought them. And similarly that bloke on Channel 4 with the double/tripled barrelled name from the RiverSide Cottage. More power to him n all, he's demonstrating that that way of life is possible... but, i uncomfortably find trustafarian treehuggers a little patronising....hmm.

[rolls eyes at own public school boy hypocracy].

I prefer Douglas Coupland's take on it all, he doesn't try to offer any solutions, just writes a world that is slowly falling in on itself whilst the disposessed generation aimlessly and powerlessly watch on.

The painting remains unfinished. I'll have to ponder further...

flickr fun denied in toy town sparkle shop ftw

flickr fun denied in toy town sparkle shop ftw
Originally uploaded by paintMonkey.

the balls of my feet ached and the tie i was wearing felt to be getting tighter on my adam's apple again. I wanted to gag. i havn't worn a tie for years.

working in a jewellery and sparkle shop is possibly one of the weirdest career tangents i've ever taken. i spend most of my time there moving bits and pieces around on glass shelves, folding price stickers onto various chains and bracelets, gift wrapping gifts and feeling that there should be some reason why i should actually be at home. did i leave the iron on? did i turn the oven off after breakfast? did i leave my life in a bag at the back of my now spacious closet? although thats not necessarily because of this job. Any job..... and i inevitably think similar thoughts.
its fun though, the others that work there are interesting and we do have a sometimes flirty and sometimes bitchy laugh, gives me a chance to wear my good shoes and occasionally get my 'gay' out.
and i'm sure moo will appreciate the discount i can get on sparkly stuff once in a while.

my coffee addiction and her tamagotchi care trance syndrome

my coffee addiction and her tamagotchi care trance syndrome
Originally uploaded by paintMonkey.