Big Star

What a thrill-packed weekend it’s been!

On Friday night I fulfilled a long-held ambition and got to see Spokes perform on stage for the first time! She's been involved in dramatic ventures for years - most notably in playback theatre - but hasn't trodden the boards in the last few months. So, imagine my delight at seeing her take part in a humdinger of a performance of The Vagina Monologues at the Capstone Theatre! The event was a V-Day benefit for Migrant Artists Mutual Aid (MaMa) to highlight the global issue of violence against women and girls - including rape, female genital mutilation (FGM) and sex slavery - and attracted an audience of about 200 people, who laughed, cried, gasped and were held spellbound.

The cast was a truly multi-national ensemble including refugees and asylum seekers from a range of countries as well as migrants from Europe and North America. And, of course, Spokes - who was, of course, fabulous. As was the whole cast!

The theatre warned of dire repercussions if photographs were taken, so I complied - very reluctantly. However, the performance will be reprised on 8th March at Ullet Road Unitarian Church to celebrate International Women’s Day, so perhaps I'll have a chance to take some pictures then...

Last night we attended an excellent soiree hosted by Spokes' good friend Tom where the food was delicious, the company most agreeable and the conversation lively. Which of the 5 sorts of people in the world are you? 1) Life sucks 2) My life sucks 3) I'm great 4) We're great 5) Life is great. I think we all agreed that we're mostly a mixture of these - with changes of emphasis over time.

Following a couple of late nights we had a well-earned lie-in this morning and emerged blinking into the light (yes, actual sunlight!) in time for a late lunch (veggie/vegan fry-up followed by cake!) at Green Days where I took this sneaky snap of Spokes sitting in front of a wall of William Eggleston prints. Eggleston is noted for his work in colour (as seen on the cover of Ali Smith’s novel The Accidental and on several album covers including a couple by Big Star) but, perversely, I preferred this shot in mono.

Lunch was followed by a spot of DIY at Spokes' flat and then it was back home to mine to book train tickets for an upcoming adventure...

I hope you've all had a good weekend. I wish it wasn't Monday tomorrow.

PS My shed miraculously survived the storms! Thanks for all your good wishes.