the Personal is Political

06:53 am - geometry

i have four freckles on my wrist in the shape of a parallelogram.

off-kilter

07:01 pm - North rocks

North rocks, originally uploaded by bothy photo.

Upper Garson second from left

02:16 pm - Atlantic spray

Ramnageo spray, originally uploaded by bothy photo.

Feeling homesick yesterday evening, I was idly searching flickr for photos of Orkney when I found a picture of the farm I grew up on: A sunlit view of my house taken by someone else more recently than I have been there. For a moment I was stunned and was glad that there was no one else left in the office to see me upset.
For balance, the picture above is more typical of the climate of the isles.

02:12 pm - Flickr

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

11:07 pm - At the latter I was informal, at the former I wore my suit...

I wore my swimming suit.

Tomorrrow I'll be at Hampstead Heath Ladies pond from around 2pm. Women please join. Men will be shot on sight.object width="425" height="350">

10:12 am - NIGHTBIKE

Tomorrow night at 8. Who can make it?

12:19 am - "Don't let your friends cut yr hair / don't cut yr own hair"

I tried to go to bed at 10.30 like a sensible person but I couldn't sleep, I was twitchy, I needed to change something.

I had read in a women's magazine that haircuts were what one did after a break-up. I'd also read in a psychology journal that the suicidal cut their hair often. It was the perfect moment!

I was tired of my mediocre, hippy-hair (and weird nose in this pic. Maybe I should cut it off to spite my face?)

Nurse! Bring the Instrument! (Blunt kitchen scissors)

I tied it into a ponytail...

...and hacked it off, listening to Nirvana. It took about 60secs. Fuck you Toni and Guy.

At least 18 months worth of blonde. I reckon I can sell it to a wig shop in Brixton.

Et voila! Asymetrical summer hair. Have to wait for someone else to take pics of the back (v short).

See ya later. This might be my most-regreted late-night LJ post yet (and that's saying something)

10:06 am - More supermarket news

Is it possible that Asda could jam my ipod? I was just picking up some groceries (before work which is unheard of, I think I might be having a nervo) when it mysteriously paused in the middle of Herman Dune. I hadn't pressed anything and no pause sign was showing. This coincided with a loud annoucement about 3 for 2 offers on selected fruit juices. As soon as the announcement was over it started working again. Sinister forces are at work my children.

07:57 pm - So long and thanks for all the pish

I'm going to miss Bounds Green. When I got here this evening to pick up the last of my stuff there were ribbons of shit-encrusted toilet paper blowing around outside the front door.

03:01 pm - Lunchtime jailbreak 2

A walk to Mudchute city farm and a talk with the llamas just now flushed my cheeks and put happiness in my chest. I think communing with animals in your lunchbreak should be made compulsory. I finally feel like I can make London work for me instead of the other way round. On Saturday we found a new flat in Bethnal Green and I intend to cycle to work, last night I tarted up my CV and am sending out pitches galore, I'm going to Give Blood later on and feel smug (and possibly get drunk on one pint). Spring is just around the corner oh my brothers and sisters and animal-friends.

10:22 am

I met my friend Regina for a drink last night. She has just moved down from Liverpool to do an MA at St Martins. She needs to get a part-time job and told me that she is looking into becoming one of those abseiling window-cleaners. This excites me a lot. Another job opportunity we discussed was delivering organs for transplantation from country to country. These sensitive organs obviously can't just be chucked on the plane like normal packages but need a person to carry them. Great job for those with steady hands into international travel.

Then Diego and Natalia came along wearing matching jumpers. I am glad to see that the Lazy Ones have adopted a uniform policy. Nametags are only a matter of time. Diego told me that he can only love animals with eyes on the front of their faces (monkeys, cats) rather then on the side (rabbits, sheep).

Daniel was in a happy mood too.

09:47 am

This morning I had a strong urge not to go into work but to visit the London Transport Museum. I think I dreamed it.

10:15 am - British mammals

American mink
Atlantic white-sided dolphin
Badger
Bank vole
Barbastelle bat
Bechstein's bat
Black rat
Bottlenose dolphin
Brandt's bat
Brown hare
Brown long-eared bat
Brown rat
Common dormouse
Common otter
Common seal
Common shrew
Daubenton's bat
European polecat
European wildcat
Fallow deer
Fat dormouse
Field vole
Greater horseshoe bat
Greater mouse-eared bat
Greater white-toothed shrew
Grey long-eared bat
Grey seal
Grey squirrel
Harbour porpoise
Harvest mouse
Hedgehog
House mouse
Leisler's bat
Lesser horseshoe bat
Lesser white-toothed shrew
Long-finned pilot whale
Mole
Mountain hare
Nathusius's pipistrelle
Natterer's bat
Noctule bat
Northern bottlenose whale
Northern hemisphere minke whale
Orca
Orkney vole
Pine marten
Pipistrelle bats
Pygmy shrew
Rabbit
Red deer
Red fox
Red squirrel
Reeve's muntjac
Risso's dolphin
Roe deer
Serotine bat
Short-beaked common dolphin
Sika deer
Stoat
Water shrew
Water vole
Weasel
Whiskered bat
White-beaked dolphin
Wood mouse
Yellow-necked mouse

03:50 am - hahahha

I'm in alex tea's office! On his mac! I've entered the MAINFRAME. Gonna look at his internet history now. gonna get found out. I have to meet 'clients' at 10.30!

07:24 pm - I have my own 'Opie'!

Thanks to 'jus d'orange' AKA Dan.

03:21 am

I'm back in the BG from NY. I want an 'I heart BG' tshirt.
What's with the potatoes? Single tatties on street corners? Art?

10:01 pm - i love bbc

in support to the lees and mira:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbcfour/thickofit/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/downloadtrial/

i might be slow with this...

07:02 pm - I use google instead of my brain

Two contrasting shopping experiences today. The farmers' market at Alexandra Palace where ethically-produced foodstuffs are sold to wealthy Muswell Hillbillies, then Peacocks in Wood Green which practices a stack 'em high, sell 'em low, don't think about the sweatshops approach to clothing retail. A new work outfit cost about the same as my lunch. The cow that made my cheese probably has a better life than the 12-year-old who made my pants. Ho hum. I made it to TK Maxx ('heavenly labels, earthly prices!') but was a bit soggy by then. Now I'm 'doing a Phillipa' dancing in tights and t.shirt with the heating on.

It was my second trek up to Ally Pally in 24 hours. Went with Daniel to the fireworks last night intending to meet up with people but discovered half of north London was trying to do the same. There was no phone reception despite being right under a massive transmitter. The fireworks were the most impressive I've ever seen, though, and I was genuinely 'oooh'ing. It was nice to look back over the city and see all the different displays. Millions of people united in celebrating a failed terrorist attack. I wonder if in 400 years people will be remember remembering July 21 by firing lazer beams out of replica rucksacks? (no Amy, probably not). I always end up comparing London to Orkney on here but it was interesting to relate this expensive spectacle with its soundsystems, dodgems and clean-up operation to a bunch of farmers burning their rubbish (possibly toxic) by the windswept beach while the kids (us) ran wild. I'm content to be living here right now but often something just feels disconnected.

06:18 pm - This is not the kind of thing I usually post but...

09:15 pm - poem

im
forcedtomake
a
freshltalk
a
waytotype
wi9thout
someletters
orgapsatall
i999watttowri9teaotuedi999urghutyouca'tellwhati9'msayi9g
i9watto99999speakaou9ttheadacorssadthei9li9ci9tki9sses
I3ut
eyem
I3roke
Likehavi9g1leg
orhalf
yourthoughts
itsuitsme