Relax, Conserve Juices...

Well, well, well. Isn't the Tory leadership race exciting! 

What's that? It's not? Not even a little bit? Not even the teeniest, tiniest bit exciting? No? Fair enough, you've convinced me. To be honest, I only brought it up because I was looking for something newsy to riff on for this opening paragraph. Aside from horrific wars, and gossipy sideswipes at the new UK government, that's about it. Of course there's the US election, or the awful hurricanes that seem to be regular fixtures these days. Lots of people enjoyed the Northern Lights last week, and some Nobel Prizes were announced. Can I riff on that? Nah, I'm just not feeling it. Maybe all my creative juices have been spent on my book. Why don't you read the next paragraph to see if that's true.

A still from last week's vid

Writing News

I've finished the first draft of Chapter 4 and started Chapter 5. Hurrah! If you follow me on TikTok, Insta, or YouTube (and why would you not?) you'll have seen me talk about my self-imposed deadlines for this draft. By the end of October I'm aiming to have finished to the end of Chapter 6. If I keep up my skej, I'll be done with draft one by the end of February 2025. This is massively quicker than my usual writing rate and I'm properly proud that I've stuck to the plan so far. Let's see how it goes over Christmas. That's the time when whatever wheels I have, truly come off. I'll need to conserve the juices wherever possible, and write my ass off the rest of the time.

Culture

A real life museum exhibit for you this week. You know, like, PROPER culture, not just me banging on about the TV I've watched? Last Sunday I went to the Holly Johnson Story exhibit at the Liverpool Museum. It was marvellous - filled with  art, costumes, album covers, and with Frankie Goes To Hollywood's tunes blasting throughout. Scarily, Holly - icon of my childhood - is now 64 and having a bit of a resurgence. I've got tickets booked for his tour next year and now I've immersed myself in the exhibition, I'm well up for it.

It's not bad, ya know

Food and Drink

In a vague bid to be a touch healthier, I've been investigating non-alcoholic wines for use on an odd evening, now and then. I've tried this before. Several years ago, I turned up at a house party that I was driving home from, with a bottle of non-boozy red wine. It was gross. I drank it because I'd bought it and that was the plan, but urgh! It was like the warmest, weirdest berry juice you've ever tasted. I assumed that was to be my first and last foray into non-alcoholic beverages. UNTIL NOW. Kylie's only gone and done it. Minogue not Jenner's fizzy pink non-wine wine is actually pretty good. Would I mistake it for the real thing in a blind taste test? No, course not. Have I had several bottles over the past few weeks and enjoyed them regardless? Hell yeah! In related news, Guinness Zero is actually delish. For real. Taste testing would be genuinely interesting because I'm not convinced I'd spot it.

Widnes looking good

Out and About

The recent weather has been OPTIMUM for morning walks - where I'm located, at least. Bitingly cold but with bright sun emerging mid-route. Some mornings require a scarf as well as the hoody, and these days we're at the point of wearing T shirts underneath. It's a thrill to get out of bed right now, so long may it continue.

Wherever you are, whatever you're doing, whoever you're doing it with, remember what Frankie said? Relax!

Have a lovely week, folks.