Dennis' 84 th birthday party

Yes, you read that right, a party. An actual party, indoors. Ok, the door was open and we were in a large hall, but still...

Dennis Gould is a poet, letterpress printer, lifelong football player and anarchist. His 84th birthday was back in August, and the party was held tonight for the world premiere of Mark Chaudoir's short film about the life and times of Dennis, entitled The Last Cuckoo. I gather this premiere had been postponed four times already because of the pandemic.

There was poetry, baroque music, poetry and more poetry. And food, and drink, and friends I hadn't seen for a long time. I even dragged myself into the spotlight for just a second to perform a couple of my very short poems (the fear is I'm losing my touch. If I don't do it periodically, I'll lose my nerve and never do it again).

This is Jeff in the above shot. Jeff is also a poet of a certain age, and an old friend of Dennis. They performed together for many years with the late Pat VT West as Riff Raff Poets. We are all old now, and ended up performing under the reading light, which is why Jeff's head looks so white. He's a natty dresser when the occasion calls for it.

A special night, tonight, though we were home before 11 and I was done cold sober because I haven't drunk alcohol for over a year now, apart from the odd glass of anything, that gets me instantly legless. This occasion begins to feel like a tentative return to normality. I even brought up the subject of hosting an indoor games evening once more. It may yet happen!

The market was busy, much more so than yesterday, and the weather much warmer and sunnier, even. I took some orders and sold some stock and tried not to think too hard about all my stock that is stuck in a queue somewhere between the North Sea and Stroud. Rearranging a noticeboard that had (yesterday ) looked too cluttered when I photographed it led to instant sales. Very gratifying.

And for the historical record, my fellow stall holder Wendy told me that the latest consumer item that is no longer available in the shops is bedroom slippers for women. Yes, ladies' slippers! They're all stuck in a vast holding centre somewhere, at least the Clark's ones. As slippers are probably all made in China, they could still be weeks away from the UK in the current slowdown.