Contracts and meetings

First off, here’s this morning’s meditation, which is the first time I’ve had the energy for it since last week. Nice to get back into the poetic routine once more, I must say:

Meditation 70

No room for disability
or weakness
in this new world.

Let the stone
around your neck
pull you down

through salt and weed
and strange sea monsters.

What hope then
for any of us?


Back into the work fray today, though I’m wearing my scarf and sipping Lucozade – I always like to look the part of the recuperating invalid, as well as be it … And I’ve spent a lot of the morning arranging meetings for the boss. I think that’s his diary sorted till 2012 now, with absolutely no breathing room, poor chap. Here at the cutting edge of Student Care, the pace never stops, I can tell you.

I’ve also (hurrah!) posted the signed contract for The Bones of Summer back to Dreamspinner Press, so that feels like a major step forward. And it certainly takes away any existential pain resulting from this morning’s rejection of three pieces of 55-word fictions – my dears, today it’s the proverbial water off a duck’s back … Suspect that won’t last however!

This lunchtime, I had to take the minutes for the Student Experience executive group – I don’t really feel as if I know what’s going on, but I write like crazy and nod at the appropriate times. Well, I’ve never been much of a high-flier. As you can probably tell. I like to keep my head down and type. But it’s all good stuff, I'm sure – just way out of my league.

Tonight I was supposed to be discussing Jodi Picoult’s marvellous My Sister’s Keeper at the University Book Group, but I’ve cried off as I started to flag quite early on in the day. My main aim is to collapse as soon as possible onto the sofa and take a few smelling salts. So my usual evening entertainment then …

Ooh, and there’s the glorious Whitechapel on TV later – the last episode which I absolutely must watch. More please. Sad to say though, Lord H seems to have caught my cold, poor chap (which he rarely does), so I am ministering Lemsip and cooking chips. The perfect cold cure combination, I hope ...

Today’s nice things:

1. Poetry
2. Posting the Bones contract
3. TV.

Anne Brooke
Anne's website - battling on gamely ...