The early bird gets the worm but the second mouse gets the cheese, so why doesn’t the last worm get eaten by the early bird? (James Cummings 19 year old Hibs striker)

And so, dear listener, Son Brian and I went to see Still Game on Wednesday night. No, No spoilers. But it was good. Worry not, as I did, about them merely bringing a couple of episodes of the TV show to the stage – they used the stage and at no time was there ever the feel of them trying to jump the shark. 🙂

No. My memories come from other directions, such as Son Brian saying, ‘since you bought the tickets. Dad, I’ll get the drinks.’ Mmmmm…….his Foster’s looked good; my Fanta was very Fanta-esque. Looking at the Finnieston Crane and saying, ‘mmmmmmm….that looks big doesn’t it?’ but getting little response from the 10,000 people I told.

And when he told me that my grand-daughter was beginning to appreciate music, he then looked at me and said, ‘No, big man, (or was it a simple ‘dad’)…none of your weird stuff.’ And I hadn’t even offered. 😦

And apologies to anyone to whom I tried to send an e-mail from my new phone but it never arrived. Obviously, Hillfoot (Bearsden) Sorting Office does not give out a good signal at 1130 at night. Don’t ask……but it was quiet and handy.

And there’s a sign on Kelvin Way (a tree lined street, Becky, in the city’s salubrious West End) which says’ Watch for Pedestrians’……damn near crashed the car watching for them but all they were doing was walking up and down the pavement.

And there may be news on the PhD front. I had a conversation with some uni-ppl which went well. As ever I will be in touch with various ppl on a more personal level to discuss various things and there is a long way to go but as Chairman Mao once said, ‘the first cut is the deepest.’ (Skippy, check the quote please; that doesn’t seem right.)

And thanks to the good Dr W for treating me to coffee the other day in the Hamilton branch of the uny. Yes, I did have six stamps on my card and the seventh is free. How clever of you to notice. [But nice to see you in your natural habitat and nice of the traffic warden to ignore us. Giving me a lift like that saved one helluva lot of walking (lol as Carmen….)] 😀

And the supported accommodation for the homeless project I work is slap bang in the city centre and I often marvel at how the denizens of Glasgow manage to combine the café style of drinking with such an eclectic menu in the area. I couldn’t help but notice that Kebab City is offering a Pizza Cone at a competitive price. So far I have restrained myself. But I often watch Sauchiehall Street at four in the morning wondering, why are people ‘so mad for it with the drink?’

And that would be the basis for the PhD; that and a question posed by good friend e. But those who know about these things can rest assured. The title of the 80,000 words (or so) dissertation will not be ‘Why are people so mad for it with the drink?’

But, and I was talking to a (male) pal about this in a hedonistic lunch (fresh orange and macaroni cheese) the other day in one of the city’s top bars (YesBar in Drury Street, Becky, across from the Horseshoe and next to the lapdancing club), I miss alcohol. I miss the notion of asking a woman out for a drink with just a little hint of what it might lead to; and I miss filling in a boring Saturday night by walking down to the Maryhill Road and going for a couple of pints and then saying yes to the cairry oot and going back to someone’s house and who knows?

And no, I’m not going to say ‘but’ or ‘however’. It’s a statement of fact now we’re in Sober October. 🙂

And finally, I must get out of the habit of when someone says to me ‘nice to meet you’ of replying with ‘Yes. It is, isn’t?’ Thankfully the latest person called clr to hit my life saw the joke….. 😉

Cya, keep(ing) it fun and still wearing that badge? Yes….and I’m not the only one.

Johnt850 and the good Dr W, and yes, we are now both grown-ups with jobs’n’that and all that that entails. We’ll be fine.

And so it is Sober October which intends to raise money for one good cause (Macmillans Cancer) by people giving up the booze for a month. And all around I hear people laughingly (?) say, ‘It’ll be so boring and how will I get by?’. It might change your life if you approach it positively……just a thought.

And I read a smashing article in the Guardian asking why do people feel the need to declare themselves as heroes for not drinking for a month?

‘But the idea of calling yourself a hero for simply not being pissed is neither admirable nor gallant. It’s just not being pissed.’

Still maybe the doctors and nurses in A & E will have a quieter month……..I will watch Sauchiehall Street with interest at four in the morning.

A couple of years back one of the most moving evenings I have ever experienced was in the Mitchell Theatre (Becky, it’s a theatre that’s part of the Mitchell Library – great building) the scene of many amazing speakers and stuff [James Ellroy]…..it was Edwyn Collins and his wife, the lovely Grace, talking about a book they’d written. And then some backing musicians appeared – ppl from Josef K and Orange Juice and Edwyn played a set. He was on TV the other night…something about a new movie about him and Grace?

This is the song he is perhaps best known for. Maybe I’ll dedicate it. Maybes yes, maybes no, but it’ll always be maybes unless you do.