Upon entering the living room in Chez Strachan on the morning of 14th February, I was greeted by an unexpected audible ping. With it being Valentines Day, the poet within me romanticised this aural distraction may’ve emanating from Cupid’s bow string. Its source the forceful triggering an arrow in my direction; a gesture of amour…
Tag: prose
Blackbird Envy
Looking aimlessly through the lounge bay window my gaze is drawn to a brood of blackbirds perching on a garden fence. Not having to observe coronavirus social distancing protocols, or adorn the face coverings which’ve been a year long scourge of human existence, these feathered friends appear in chirpy spirits. Currently, they appear to gaze…
True or False?
Via the conduit of Zoom, yesterday I partook in an esprit filled quiz evening with six buddies from the north east of England. This ‘Magnificent Seven’ (including yours truly) contributing rounds of inquisitions covering subjects such as geography, music, alcohol, movies, Fred Dinage’s barnet and football. In between two of the rounds, this entertainment feast…
Pigeon English
Overnight, during a particularly disturbing slumber, my night visions incorporated scenes of being imprisoned in a Turkish jail, similar to that experienced by Billy Hayes in 1978 movie Midnight Express. Unlike the character played by Brad Davis who attempted to smuggle hashish out of Turkey, though, my misdemeanour causing deprivation of liberty was smuggling Pontefract…
Customer is King?
Six days after my central heating boiler started leaking, today an engineer is at last attending casa Strachan to (hopefully) repair the dripping box. Consequential of warranty red tape, ie the installer not sending it to the appliance manufacturer, the progress of securing a gas fitters service has been sloth like. Sadly, the swiftness companies…
Adieu To Grandad Jack’s Ladders
Today’s chronicle is the first I’ve had the opportunity to pen for three days. Far more important existential events have required my attention in the previous 72 hours than sitting self-indulgently crafting prose. Anyhow, yours truly is back with quill and parchment, more as a mental health efficacy than any enthusiasm to wax lyrical. At…
Through The Round Window
During the French Revolution in the late 18th century the nation’s queen, Marie Antoinette, was attributed to’ve displayed a glaring lack of humanity, disdainfully informing France’s starving populace to quell hunger pangs by eating cake. I’d doubt any attempts to facilitate the Great French Bake Off came to pass on the back of the monarchs…
VCR Memories
This morning, in preparation for the arrival of a garbage skip later this week I’ve undertaken the stress busting task of smashing up a single bed with a lump hammer. Like pounding a punch bag, which I undertook during circuit sessions when pre-COVID gym visits were allowed, it’s a chore bequeathing an immeasurable lightening of…
Your Sartre For Ten
Under current COVID-19 restrictions, the cliche of everyday being Groundhog Day has been mooted frequently. However this week, on 2nd February, marks the actual Groundhog Day. An occasion citizen’s of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, observe the behaviour of local groundhogs as they emerge from their burrows. In particular their reactions to that day’s meteorological conditions. Folklore decreeing:-…