I was pottering in the garden this afternoon when, quite suddenly, it seemed important that I listened again to Joan Baez. (Don’t ask me why.) So, while a prepared dinner I rooted out one of my old LPs which I bought back in about 1963. I think that originally I borrowed a copy from the … Read more
So often in life small details can make a large difference to what is said, or seen. The gig I went to last night was great! But it was not quite what I had expected. The place in which it took place was a performance venue of which I had never previously heard …. the … Read more
Tonight we are going to a concert which features the celebrated Black Dyke Mills Band, playing a selection of music by Leonard Cohen. It is hard to imagine a musical conjunction which could better suit my preferences. What is more, this takes place just up the road, in Queensbury. Whatever have I done to deserve … Read more
I lay in bed this morning for short time reading. I have just finished Durrell’s novel Justine …. the first in his celebrated four-part work known as the “Alexandria Quartet”.* Becoming aware of the number of occasions on which Durrell pays homage to the Greek poet C.p. Cavafy, I have just got hold of a … Read more
While I was preparing dinner tonight I decided to listen to one of my favourite CDs, Leonard Cohen: Greatest Hits. This carries with it layer after layer of reminiscence, going back to my days as a student in Leicester. Later, when I learned to play the guitar, quite a few of these songs figured in … Read more
We watched the Alan Yentob film about Mel Brooks last night. Brooks makes a great deal about his Jewish identity (despite having adopted a pseudonym that conceals it.) At one point he talks about relishing a meal of spaghetti with meatballs and parmesan cheese. Hoy vey! What kind of Jew is that? The Mell Brooks … Read more
The young Chinese woman on the ‘phone made it sound so very simple. “You will find it very easy”, were her exact words. A ‘phone call out of the blue from our internet provider informed us that, as we had Mark I of their hub, and this was now thoroughly out of date, they were … Read more
Do you know that Leonard Cohen song? One of my sons thinks that Cohen lacks a sense of humour, and this is one of the things I fling at his head in riposte. Check it out. It came into my head today when I was sorting some pictures. Because of the amount of space I … Read more
While watching the snooker World Championship this afternoon for some reason I started to ask myself if it mattered to me which of the players were to win. After some deliberation I decided that I was not very bothered either way. It did occur to me to ask myself, however, on what basis I might … Read more
It has been ailing for some time, but I reckon that our CD player is certainly on its last legs. Last night I became so fed up with the problems we have been having in making it play that I powered up my old Hi-fi and dug out some of my old LPs. It worked … Read more