You posted a memory from three years ago and, even though I had seen the photo before, when you originally posted it, something about it struck me for the first time. In the photo your running gear is neatly laid out upon your bed prior to the marathon and the bedsheet on your bed is one that I gave to you. It was one that...
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These days I cling to things, little pieces of happiness like the renewal of credit on a travel card or the arrival in the post of an envelope containing shuttle bus passes for the month. These pieces of happiness exist in direct opposition to the equal moments of mini-despair when the credit on one’s travel card dwindles towards zero and the last boxes of the...
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Tonight the rain falls heavily. It has done so all day long. It is beautiful and a bit scary at the same time. Possibly scary because my apartment in Madrid leaked so frequently when it rained this heavily. I lie here tonight and wonder if the people living on the top floor of this building are facing leaks. Looking out of the window I see...
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It’s like extracting teeth, or trying to break through a wall with one’s fingers. It’s like punching someone in the fist with one’s face, or pulling a bus up a hill. This is modern day communication. Trying to exchange with someone, trying to engage in conversation with someone. Everyone is receiving so many text messages and whatsapp messages and they have facebook and instagram and...
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Strange thoughts on a dark day like why did I call my dog ‘Mr. Peebles’ (his real name was Sam). I think it may have been something I read in a book. I think there was a character named Sam Peebles. How long it took to remember that is something of a surprise too and, on this day, the birthday of an ex, I remember...
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I checked out of that New York Hotel room and started to walk the icy cold streets, the wind cut like a blade that had been buried in ice. The only destination I had in mind was the Public Library and that only opened at 1pm, it was now 11am. I walked past a comic shop that looked interesting, opening time 12:00, so I walked...
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A freezing cold day in New York and an extremely long walk… but such an incredible place it is. After a train trip through a winter wonderland from Boston I arrived at my charming hotel – my room reminds me of an English bedroom in a family home – had a shower and then set out for the East Village and the original home of...
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It’s a time to pause for thought. A time to contemplate the concept of relevance and how to remain relevant whilst growing older in a world of constant change. It’s a rare day off today and in a few hours I will board a train destined for New York City. With thoughts of J.D. Salinger, Henry Miller, Woody Allen, the Beastie Boys and many of...
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The captain came over the loud speaker and announced our location, estimated time of arrival, and the weather conditions in Boston. He then went on to tell us that he was turning off the seat belt sign as we were expecting a very smooth flight. No sooner had he made this reassuring announcement and the plane dived and started to shake in violent waves of...
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The things that happen in the secret dark corners of miles away are often unbelievable. Out there, across the ocean, over a fence, behind a hedge, on a bench, in a park, fuelled by wine, a friend might kiss the one you love and it always all means nothing. The one you love might already be married and the friend might have a girlfriend or...
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