Scattered Perusers of Harebrained Fables,

It’s difficult to imagine what will shift the gloom that has besieged me for a couple of weeks, perhaps August or September. It’s difficult to explain what this gloom is and I do not know what has caused it.

I have a good sense of hearing. I’ve had to process too much sound of late: listening to the noise, pinpointing its source, giving it meaning and reacting to this interpretation.

I’ve been listening to Idiot Pilot’s Strange We Should Meet Here, Let’s Get Out of This Country by Camera Obscura and Idlewild’s The Remote Part. These seem particularly relevant at this time.

After an episode with a broken down fridge freezer in the middle of the night, I was awake to finish Espedair Street by Iain Banks at 5am. I enjoyed reading this book; it’s the fictional story of the life of a former pop star, Daniel Weir. The book is by the Lord of Time, Iain Banks – it’s almost impossible not to like a book by Iain Banks. I found myself identifying with the main character, even though we didn’t have anything at all in common.

My grudge-uation photograph arrived today. I’ve tried reasoning with it. I can sense the unease that I felt at the time in the rigid pose and the annoyance that I felt towards the photographer who kept trying to get me to pull a daft face. So it’s a rather serious and perhaps sleepy-faced me in the photo, but my hair is nice. I’ve considered switching the photograph for another, there’s about 7 of that same me, I don’t know what they’re going to do with them all, I don’t want to see me peering out from the corner of every room.

Beach Debris was worth reading again today.

The skies were overcast; the temperature was 22 degrees Celsius, visibility was superb. I spent the afternoon in Pittenweem. Mark Radcliffe was doing a marvellous job deputising for Steve Wright on Radio Double One. I took some photos, I really love the one of the Bass Rock and Berwick Law, even though I could see each in greater detail with the naked eye than the inadequate camera captured. I wonder what the prominent feature is on the horizon on the eastern side of Berwick Law.