Tuesday, September 10, 2002

The television blares apocalypse, the alarm clock drills incessantly. I ignore both, cocooning myself in my smelly duvet.

Tumble out of bed and stumble to the kitchen and pour myself a cup of damnation! I've run out of coffee. Will Mark would notice if I nick a spoonful of his? Just call me J Alfred Prufrock. Stand the mug in the sink under a blast of hot water to dislodge the mould. Take the coffee into the bath. Lie submerged, unmoving. One of our submarines.

Slack M&S will have to do, and a wouldn't-be-seen-dead shirt. Riffle through the post. URGENT DELIVERY for me. It's from Oxfam - oh joy, perhaps they've sent me a care package. Lock and double-lock the door, weave around the maroon crocodile of pre-school tots. A bus is at the stop. I run uncoordinated and flash my pass. It has expired. Seriously consider rolling down the hill.

Cut someone up at the ticket machine. Not literally, but don't push me, OK? Vaguely scan a rubbish book, taking nothing in. I notice the smell of burning - that's not me, is it? The train rattles on, above ground at first. I go with it into the tunnel of despond. The Lilac Time in my ears:

It was the day before the day before yesterday
When we thought everything would now go our way
We inherited a fortune of innocence
And they took it all away

We travel on the last bus from sanity
Through provincetown to cities of obscurity
And somewhere down the road it occurs to me
That I might have missed my stop

But I will not
Return to yesterday
Or smooth out the human clay
We'll face this new England like we always have
In a fury of denial
We'll go out dancing on the tiles
Help me down

76 comments:

Anonymous said...

rREJyO The best blog you have!

Anonymous said...

mhy7UO Thanks to author.

Anonymous said...

Please write anything else!

Anonymous said...

Hello all!

Anonymous said...

Thanks to author.

Anonymous said...

Good job!

Anonymous said...

actually, that's brilliant. Thank you. I'm going to pass that on to a couple of people.

Anonymous said...

Magnific!

Anonymous said...

Good job!

Anonymous said...

Please write anything else!

Anonymous said...

ReevRy write more, thanks.

Anonymous said...

actually, that's brilliant. Thank you. I'm going to pass that on to a couple of people.

Anonymous said...

Thanks to author.

Anonymous said...

Please write anything else!

Anonymous said...

Thanks to author.

Anonymous said...

Good job!

Anonymous said...

Hello all!

Anonymous said...

actually, that's brilliant. Thank you. I'm going to pass that on to a couple of people.

Anonymous said...

Please write anything else!

Anonymous said...

Nice Article.

Anonymous said...

Thanks to author.

Anonymous said...

Wonderful blog.

Anonymous said...

Hello all!

Anonymous said...

Nice Article.

Anonymous said...

Oops. My brain just hit a bad sector.

Anonymous said...

Lottery: A tax on people who are bad at math.

Anonymous said...

Oops. My brain just hit a bad sector.

Anonymous said...

Oops. My brain just hit a bad sector.

Anonymous said...

What is a free gift ? Aren't all gifts free?

Anonymous said...

Hello all!

Anonymous said...

Please write anything else!

Anonymous said...

Beam me aboard, Scotty..... Sure. Will a 2x10 do?

Anonymous said...

Build a watch in 179 easy steps - by C. Forsberg.

Anonymous said...

A lot of people mistake a short memory for a clear conscience.

Anonymous said...

Magnific!

Anonymous said...

What is a free gift ? Aren't all gifts free?

Anonymous said...

Save the whales, collect the whole set

Anonymous said...

Give me ambiguity or give me something else.

Anonymous said...

Magnific!

Anonymous said...

What is a free gift ? Aren't all gifts free?

Anonymous said...

Change is inevitable, except from a vending machine.

Anonymous said...

640K ought to be enough for anybody. - Bill Gates 81

Anonymous said...

I don't suffer from insanity. I enjoy every minute of it.

Anonymous said...

Good job!

Anonymous said...

Beam me aboard, Scotty..... Sure. Will a 2x10 do?

Anonymous said...

Suicidal twin kills sister by mistake!

Anonymous said...

I don't suffer from insanity. I enjoy every minute of it.

Anonymous said...

Oops. My brain just hit a bad sector.

Anonymous said...

Clap on! , Clap off! clap@#&$NO CARRIER

Anonymous said...

All generalizations are false, including this one.

Anonymous said...

Oops. My brain just hit a bad sector.

Anonymous said...

Build a watch in 179 easy steps - by C. Forsberg.

Anonymous said...

Oops. My brain just hit a bad sector.

Anonymous said...

Oops. My brain just hit a bad sector.

Anonymous said...

Give me ambiguity or give me something else.

Anonymous said...

A lot of people mistake a short memory for a clear conscience.

Anonymous said...

Hello all!

Anonymous said...

Friends help you move. Real friends help you move bodies.

Anonymous said...

What is a free gift ? Aren't all gifts free?

Anonymous said...

Energizer Bunny Arrested! Charged with battery.

Anonymous said...

Friends help you move. Real friends help you move bodies.

Anonymous said...

Oops. My brain just hit a bad sector.

Anonymous said...

A flashlight is a case for holding dead batteries.

Anonymous said...

Build a watch in 179 easy steps - by C. Forsberg.

Anonymous said...

Suicidal twin kills sister by mistake!

Anonymous said...

640K ought to be enough for anybody. - Bill Gates 81

Anonymous said...

I don't suffer from insanity. I enjoy every minute of it.

Anonymous said...

640K ought to be enough for anybody. - Bill Gates 81

Anonymous said...

Give me ambiguity or give me something else.

Anonymous said...

Please write anything else!

Anonymous said...

Energizer Bunny Arrested! Charged with battery.

Anonymous said...

Lottery: A tax on people who are bad at math.

Anonymous said...

Change is inevitable, except from a vending machine.

Anonymous said...

Save the whales, collect the whole set

Anonymous said...

Clap on! , Clap off! clap@#&$NO CARRIER

Anonymous said...

Change is inevitable, except from a vending machine.