day 3 - happy hallowe'en!

greetings from portsmouth. since i last wrote i've been in oxford.

i'm merching inside the venue again tonight. so agian this might be a bit scatty...pretty sedate crowd tonight. getting to know the set and starting to recognise my favourites by the intros. i think i've shimmied more that anyone else here and i'm not even paying attention.

last night was really cool. on the DC bus for the first time. it was emptier than usual as the london based band members headed home for a few days of commuting to and from the gigs. i had a really nice welcome from neil (frontman), tim (drums), john (guitar), and simon (bass). they taught me how to play a cool dice game called Perudo and we had a lot of fun with a drink and a small wager. i lost my 5 euro fairly swiftly but it was a small price for a really entertaining night. neil sang, carrie doesn't live here anymore by sir cliff and that was it, i felt right at home. i went to bed relaxed and woke relaxed and by the sea.

so duke special has a new voluntary position. he's now become purveyor of snacks for me. jayne will be cheering at this... when he comes off stage he comes to the desk to see if i need anything. tonight i was feeling hungry as i hadn't had anything since lunch. so i've just polished off a platter he created with his own paino playing hands,
and containing,
3 rounds of sandwiches - cheese and tomato and veggie pate with veggie chicken
banana
plum
mini twix
mini skittles
mini milky way stars
bottle of mineral water

at last, the place is starting to liven... neils been doggedly trying to get the crowd to loosen up and now the gay contingent are starting to get into the groove. the 'cover' in the set on this leg of the tour is prince's raspberry beret...lovin' it.

right, better get this posted,

only a few mins to the end of show and then my busiest part of the day begins...and in less than hour it's all over for another day.

i've loved it so far...
LB,x

something for the weekend, sir?

hello

didn't expect to be online so soon but there's a lovely wireless connection here in the liquid room in edinburgh.

so! this is the first gig. i may have to stop suddenly and this may be a little incoherent, my apologies...
the divine comedy are on stage as i type (man, they are good! i'm impressed), and the audience are rapt, so business is in lull mode, but the gig has sold out and it'd be a mean feat for anyone to reach the merch desk through the crush. i say merch desk, it actually consists of 2 huge drum boxes but alas they are on wheels that don't lock and the crowd are a persistantly swelling tide pushing us backward into the corner.
duke did a great opening set, pete's tour manager's writing emails on her laptop, i'm munching on a banana as i type, and chip has joined us in our dark little corner to say hello and we are now trapped.
neil hannon has the sexiest voice when he drops an octave in speech... christopher robin meets barry white.

i spent last night with my aunt. we had a few glasses of vino and stayed up rather late chatting 'bout important stuff we have in common. it was moving and wonderful. i did a little shopping this morning and then some prep work on my laptop outside a cafe on cockburn street and the sun shone and i thought for all the panoramas on offer in this my favourite of my home cities, the view down that street just fills me with a sense of delight...

but so far, all is well and folks have been friendly and welcoming. but we'll see if my stock and takings add up before i can even remotely relax. i'm on the duke coach tonight. pete and i are gonna discuss tattoos i think...

right better get back into work mode. something tells me this is going to get a little crazy at the end of show. the end of the night is when all the hard speedy graft has to be done.

well, who knows where i'll be next time i post... when i said i'd try and post from the road i didn't actually mean from inside a gig...

oh, i think i know this one... it's about a ferris wheel...someone stuck it on a compilation for me a few years back... it's all very miss marple this stuff... if feel the need for a pair of seamed stockings and a rations book ...

LB,x

take the national express special

well, this is likely to be my last post for a couple of weeks.

i head off today for the duke special/divine comedy tour... can't believe it's finally here. i am no longer an administrator, i am now, albeit temporarily, a merch roadie. i'm packed, and chris has given me the first 2 seasons of spooks has a comfort blanket for any lonely or insomniac moments on the road. thanks bro, much appreciated.

for those who have it i'm contactable on my mobile. i'll try and get internet access at some point.

i'll be back in belfast on friday 10th november for the belfast gig on the 11th and derry on the 12th. i'm hoping robin and i can coordinate our schedules on the 10th to get my tattoo done.

i'll be back in irwin and joining the ranks of the unemployed on monday 13th nov.

::

advance notice:
i'll be on a trip to Ontario from 19th december to 3rd january and then i'll be hauling my jet lagged ass to edinburgh for the lovely kirsty's wedding on the 5th jan. back in belfast sometime on the 7th january.

::

gailers - adam philips is on the dining table at the house for you to collect at your leisure.

::

mark - have a blast with team fury - so sorry to be missing your first couple of weeks. hope you and team F have a lovely couple of weeks.

::

padraig - sorry we didn't get to IM the other day. looking forward to catching up on my return.

::

Jude - hope you are having an amazing time. i love ya. a mission: please give julie lee a massive hug for me and thank her for the stunning gift. i'll write to her from the tour. get her to email me her postal address.

::

willow - you rock. as the number zero said to the number 8, "LOVING the belt".

::

ricky, jayne: i'll be in touch to hook with you guys on the 10th. i'll be missing you and know there will be many a time when i'll be wishing i could turn to you guys in random moments with secret looks that say, "WTF?" and speak out of the corner of our mouths about general weirdnesses witnessed. or indeed grin at cool shit.

::

keli - welcome home lovey. i'll be in touch to coordinate the tattooing. please god it works out. you've been missed.
::

right better get my ass into gear. i leave in an hour and i'm still in my PJs.
so, see y'all in a couple of weeks. you shall be missed.

take care of yourselves. and each other.

much love,
LB, x

SCHEDULE
sunday 29 edinburgh (apologies to buddies in edinburgh that schedule doesn't allow me time to meet up)
monday 30 oxford
tuesday 31 portsmouth
wednesday 1 norwich
thursday 2 london
friday 3 no gig
saturday 4 liverpool
sunday 5 nottingham
monday 6 no gig
tuesday 7 galway
wednesday 8 cork
thursday 9 dublin
friday 10 belfast, no gig
saturday 11 belfast mandela hall
sunday 12 derry
monday 13 return to belfast. no doubt with screaming hangover. do laundry.

you got the love

cheryl,

well, it's after 2 in the morning.

jayne and i have just done a marathon 12 final eps of s6 satc in one sitting.

i cried. and i cried. and i cried.

the two lines that undid me...
smith: "just because the trees are bare, it doesn't mean they're dead..."
magda: "what you did - that is love. you love."

and as we said our goodnights, we admitted beneath our cynical exteriors lie romantics. somewhere there just might be a harry, or a smith, or a steve, or even a fucked up took 6 years to realise she was "the one" all along Big, who will make us feel nothing short of fabulous.

but i'm bloody glad we got each other to share a night of friendship by the fire, while outside the rain was beating on the windows. 'cause it's a lot more than a lot of folks have got.

LB, x