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Sunday, September 16, 2001

So, it's five days after the event. What now?

I've been trying hard not to think about it, but every so often I get a tapping sound on the back of my head to indicate '5000 people died, y'know'. I feel guilty thinking about it at all. After all, what did I lose? Nothing. Who do I know who lives in New York or Washington? No one. I shouldn't be as obsessed about it as those who saw the planes, plummeting bodies and the 400,000 tons of rubble and dust. I've stopped watching the news, and stopped reading the newspapers (I'm relying on Ceefax for updates). Now comes the task of finding something else to do. I really hope I'm not the only one who feels like this. Hmm, eh?
9/16/2001 02:56:09 PM

Wednesday, September 12, 2001

Well, this puts my problems into perspective

I got up at 8.45pm yesterday. I did my usual 'just after waking routine'. I checked my email and stumbled downstairs to put Ceefax on for the latest news. After seeing the mass of headlines, I swore and switched to ITV (I don't usually watch ITV News, but the BBC's special news bulletin was in progress, whereas the ITV one was just starting). Naturally, they showed the relevant video footage first.

I grew in the last 80s/early 90s, and saw quite a few disasters on the news in that time. I saw the Kings Cross Tube Fire. I saw Lockerbie. I saw Piper Alpha. But this has been the first time that I've seen pictures that have left me wide-eyed and open-mouthed in horror. I can safely say, even only 20 hours afterwards, that this will be my generation's Kennedy 1963. "Where were you," they will ask "on the 11th September 2001?". I'd say you should work hard in remembering the next few days, but in all probability you won't have to.
9/12/2001 10:18:14 AM

Monday, September 10, 2001

Hey look, I've updated the diary page far sooner than any of you could have reasonably expected. Go on, click that link. You know you haven't suffered enough.
9/10/2001 08:25:02 AM

Sunday, September 09, 2001

Saturday was a most amusing day. Went to Hanley with idiot boy, and upon arrival he virtually kicked me towards Waterstones so his girlfriend wouldn't see me. After various purchases (would you believe Another World had something in stock that was actually worth buying?), I went to HMV. When I'd almost reached 'the only music shop in town', I saw the dear boy and his 'gf'. Since he didn't see me, I walked up to him and tapped him with my latest book, and strolled off without saying anything. He told her I was an escaped mental patient, no doubt.

A book about dinosaurs, a copy of Dork #9, a bottle of Wild Turkey (down from £19.99 to £17.01 at Tesco!), and humiliation for idiot boy. Yes, it was a very good day.
9/9/2001 02:23:49 PM

Friday, September 07, 2001

G major - E minor - C major - D7

I received the free-shares-plan-sales cheque from my employers on Wednesday. Naturally, I exercised caution and restraint in the presence of the £315 I got. I posted it off, and went down to my local music equipment shop and spent £273 of it on a bass guitar and accessories. Well, if nothing else, I may get a gig with a Beatles tribute band.
9/7/2001 12:12:34 PM

Tuesday, August 21, 2001

It's been quiet on this page for a while, due to my mind being taken up with T&W. So taken up, in fact, that I didn't even have time to write the T&W progress blog. Oh well. Moderately successful weekend at Caption - sold nine copies, and would have sold more had I not put it on the Caption table where it got lost amongst the Jeremy Dennis' and Tripwires. Will write more about that later.
8/21/2001 11:00:48 PM

Thursday, August 09, 2001

And we'll never be lonely any more

If there's a more perfect song than Chapel Of Love by the Dixie Cups, I haven't heard it yet.
8/9/2001 08:53:33 PM

Sunday, July 29, 2001

Hot

Bah. Roll on October.
7/29/2001 05:42:15 PM

Saturday, July 28, 2001

Ice Cream Hell

Truly, I have seen Hell. And it is made from ice cream.

To the dear people at the Wigan Regional Distribution Centre : Yes, I know it's July. Yes, I know it's warm. But do we really, really need 25 cases of Solero, 18 cases of Magnum, 13 cases of Mint Choc Chip, and 11 cases of those Vitamin ice lollies that we can't shift, even with gelignite etc. etc.? Please think of your underpaid, sleep-deprived lackey in say, Newcastle Under Lyme, who has to drag this stuff the entire length of the supermarket, put on the only three cases that are needed, drag it all back again, and spend ages stacking it all on pallets in the -23C storage area.
7/28/2001 11:03:25 AM

Monday, July 23, 2001

Booked my rail tickets to Oxford for Caption today. Only £10 return, too. An example of Virgin Trains' "Please travel by rail. Please. We won't delay you for seven hours or kill you or anything...." pricing desperation.
7/23/2001 06:47:51 PM

Wednesday, July 18, 2001

Leylandii are evil.

Bastards. I've just found a small Leylandii plant growing beneath my front gate. How it got there, I have no idea, as hybrids are supposed to be infertile. More info on these bastard spawn plants here.
7/18/2001 11:27:31 AM

Sunday, July 15, 2001

Intense, self opinionated stuff

The Demise Of Competence At Comics International

It seems that after departure of 'News Editor' Phil Hall, Comics International has become more error-ridden and 'less professional'. I'll admit it here, I haven't bought CI for over two years. In the days when it was 30p or 50p, I could put up with the dozens of ads, and light-on-content pages. But when it went up to £1.25, I realised that this was too high a price to pay for 'news', or thinly disguised publishers press releases as it seemed to be. The only bits I read were 'Comment' and the letters page. The 'Reviews' and 'Movers & Shakers' lost their appeal shortly after my 22nd birthday, after which I ceased buying comics, except for The Maxx.

I do appreciate that CI was never meant for 'comics casuals', such as what I turned out to be. But would it have been that difficult to introduce more depth and opinion as befits 'real' magazines, rather than the 'free-local-newspaper' style that CI continually adheres to? I do, I really really do, hope that the upcoming Borderline has learned from all this...
7/15/2001 03:03:05 PM

Just what is this I see before my eyes? Prostitute Top Trumps becoming the meme of the moment (here, there and everywhere)? I want it known that I, Matthew Lawrenson, played in the first ever game of Prostitute Top Trumps, and I whipped Petey-boy's and Jez's asses (metaphorically speaking, as you can't be too careful in anecdotes such as this).

And so, I put it to the room that I am the one responsible for its success.

Yes.
7/15/2001 01:19:38 PM

Friday, July 13, 2001

Ok, I'm in my mid-20s, the age that males start worrying about their hair. I'm not going bald, though. Just that my hair seems to be reshaping itself into a bouffant? I must figure out a way to save myself from David Dickinson/Jon Pertwee in 1974 hell.
7/13/2001 11:12:26 AM

Wednesday, July 11, 2001

Fuck me

Many apologies for the profanity, but my brother has just handed me a post-it note. It says :

Matthew, Reunion next July. 45 Whitmore Road, Newcastle

Apparently, this is a school reunion. It appears to have no connection with the Friends Reunited thing, having been given out by someone who's not on the website list. Any ex-Sneydies who read this, it's probably best to contact this address for details. Helen Gardner, so my brother tells me.

Fuck me.
7/11/2001 06:44:10 AM

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