Inside was a box of choccies and a poem. No name, no clue.
I have no idea who it is from! I assume they wrote the poem, and it's rather good, so that narrows it down somewhat, but I do know a LOT of poets! But some of the Borrowers could be secret poets!
If they copied the poem from somewhere, that opens it right up again. I am eyeing everyone who comes in with suspicious eyes, looking for sign. I have considered going through all the membership forms comparing handwriting or getting forensics to brush the paper for prints...
But at the same time I am quite enjoying not knowing!
I am afraid you can cross off the name which must be at the top of your list of suspects. It wasn't me...
ReplyDelete...or was it?
Whoever it was spelled my name correctly, so i haven't ruled you out! 8-)
DeleteA little bit of mystery to spice life up. I love the way you put a capital B on Borrowers.
ReplyDeleteIt's only polite.
DeleteYes, it's given everyone a little frisson of excitement at work, a fillip if you will (or a Bob, or a Wilfred, or a Malcolm... or a Dave)
How exciting! Have you tried Googling the poem?
ReplyDeleteI have indeed, to no avail. Now who would rhyme 'laughter' with 'Kafka'...?
DeleteAwwww. Everyone deserves a mystery admirer.
ReplyDeleteHello?
ReplyDeleteHelllooooo?
Is there anybody here?
Is there a Cockle in the house?
M.
Alive, alive oh..... oh.
DeleteYour initials seem to have changed... But then you never know with these anonymous types...
Hello Cockle!
ReplyDeleteIt is currently a bit one sided at the moment, what with you knowing virtually nothing about me so, what do you say to me filling in a few blanks in future messages, and if the feeling takes you, you can chuck a question at me and I'll see if I can answer it?
Just for the avoidance of doubt, though, I have to admit up front that I do not currently own a secret underground lair. However, if it would expedite matters...
Your(As yet still) Most Mysterious Mussel.
P.S. If anyone else comes across this page now, they're going to be seriously discombobulated!
Ahhh! M for Mussel - what is it with you and shellfish, anyway?
DeleteFirst question: Do I know you? I mean, if I saw you in the street would I say how do?
p.s. You should be commended, by the way, for attempting to reintroduce the word 'discombobulated' into the wild.
I have only ever spoken to you in the library - fewer than, say, ten times, but I think you would know me in the street. Though this may just be unwarranted ego on my part. I am tall and dark and not so incredibly grotesque that you would run a mile. Perhaps half a mile. I would tell you more but if I said I was six foot six tall (I'm not) I envisage the entrance to the library having a big white arrow indicating where six six is and all the staff, brandishing photo-fit drawings, looking for a man with a green mole on his forehead (I haven't).
ReplyDeleteThings I like to do for leisure:
play football
play chess
play tennis
climb mountains (that should really read 'walk up quite big hills')
Run (in gym or along New Brighton front- have you seen the new miniature golf course they are building where the tennis courts used to be? Quite impressive!)
Walk
write
read
Listen to Springsteen, Bowie, Meat Loaf and others
go to cinema
rarely go to theatre because so many performances are disappointing.
Hope that has been helpful.
M.M.M.
P.S. If you object to Cockle and Mussel let me know and they will be heard from never again.
All Borrowers are guilty until proven innocent, so you are right about the big arrow and the photo-fit. We make our own entertainment, you understand.
ReplyDeleteI don't 'object' to Cockle and Mussel exactly, although I might be something crabbier and you're a bit of a clam.
Okay, I have the impression you are cool towards 'pet' names so I'll revert back to QW and you can be...um... Clare! (I'm known for my intuitive feel for what a situation calls for.)
ReplyDeleteAnyway, on to my reason for writing.
Further to previous revelations, I can tell you I am about the same age as yourself, give or take a few years (no more than five). I pretty much always have a positive outlook on life and believe it or not was quite sanguine about our lack of meeting on 1st April. I was full of flu, looked a complete mess and was in no way prepared for witty banter - it would have been more like sweaty splutter! All of which leads me to my cunning plans.
I have three cunning plans. The first is to manifest my presence once more in the library, my second is to subtly, and with absolutely no embarrassment to yourself (guaranteed), make myself known. (I think it is unfair to you to continue talking to a faceless person.) and the third plan is to try and pick a time when your auntie from Adelaide hasn't arranged to visit you, and try to recreate April 1st. I would be interested in any comments you have regarding these schemes.
With all best wishes,
QW
Hmmm. Now I am flummoxed. I must confess I was about 95% sure I had guessed who you were. I'd done the hand writing anaylsis, extrapolated who knew what about me, and even had a theory involving a mathematical equation of working out your true initials from QW. But your 'same age' comment makes me think again - although I have no idea how old you think I am. 8-/
DeletePositive outlook's good, sweaty splutter less so... must thank auntie from Adelaide (actually brother from Armitage - where the wash basins come from).
Hmm, cunning plans huh? First off, I'm enjoying the intrigue and a wee bit scared of escalation. Also I'm more comfortable writing than other kinds of communication, however gregarious I seem (I famously worked daily on the Poetry24 site for over a year without ever communicating with my co-editor by any means other than email!).
But I suppose anyone at all could turn up at World Book Night tomorrow in the library, which will - quite literally - be a free for all. And if the moment seemed right they could say hello. Or something.
Hi Clare,
ReplyDeleteQW are just the first two letters on the keyboard. That's it. I began using them when I first gave comments to another blog, when I wished to remain anonymous. I thought I would do the same with your blog. I would be interested to read the physical description of the person you thought I was and what you learned from the handwriting analysis.
My cunning plan No.2 would not have entailed you having to speak to me for any length of time. Would you be okay with a prolonged conversation?
Actually, it would be fun if I turned up tomorrow and let you pick me out. No more than three picks, though! (I just hope the place isn't full of blonds, women and the less-tall. That would take away some of the challenge.)
Are you still at your computer now? It is 11.35. I'll log back in at 11.40 and every ten minutes after that until 12.00. We can continue this conversation live, if you wish.
QW
Well, Clare, it looks like you're either in bed or out on the tiles. It has now passed 12.00 and no reply.
ReplyDeleteI'll assume that for the WBN event you won't want to follow the 'Clare hits on three likely men' scenario, so I will say hello. What time does it start?
Just to avoid confusion, my opening gambit will be:
'I only heard about this today. It's quite crowded.'
See you tomorrow/tonight.
QW
P.S. I think you are 21, am I close?
Sorry I missed you earlier. I wasn't on the tiles.
ReplyDeleteI say 'analysis' I mean I looked at the library joining card of the person I thought you were and it looked similar. I'm not Cracker or anything. I quite liked your three guesses plan, although it has the capacity to get me into all sorts of trouble.
As for your opening gambit plan, I'd have expected something more prosaic from you. A true statement that any number of people might say in all innocence could lead to (a) embarrassing cases of mistaken identity or (b) not really being registered.
I think it starts at 5.30. I only usually work until 5.45 on Tuesdays but have offered to hang around, though I'm not technically needed. Also, we're venturing outdoors for the giveaway. I don't know where I'll be. If I'm not around I'll have got cold feet and run away! But at least you'll still get your free book, eh?
21? Very cagey answer to serious question. No cigar for you!
Oops. That sounded a bit snappy dudn't it? That's what happens when I wake up at 3am. Crabby, even, instead of a more whelk-come witty banter.
ReplyDeleteAnd I didn't answer your question. The person I thought you were is tall and slim, but in their sixties. That's what flummoxed me. I'm having to go through all the borrowers in my head now and I do witter on to a LOT of people!
P.s. I did give this event a big push on FB though, so there's likely to be quite a few of my chums knocking around - I might get a bit 'bunny in the headlights'. Also, may need some Red Bull by that stage, so make that 'mad bunny in the headlights'. You have been warned.
ReplyDeleteP.p.s. even if your comments don't appear here, I get them by email, by the way, because I have comment moderation on older posts and I see emails on my Batberry
ReplyDeleteHi Clare,
ReplyDeleteThe way you put it, this has all the hallmarks of a disaster waiting to happen for any of multiple reasons. Put your mind at rest, I'm not going to show up, which is a pity because it could have been a melange of cunning plans 2 and 3. I think melange is the word I'm looking for. I'm pretty sure it isn't blancmange.
You went through the card system!!!!!!!!!!
I didn't realise I was dealing with Chief Inspector Morse!
It would be interesting to discover if I made the final five of your chief suspects.
Regarding the bats in your emails. Do you like just Bat-girl or are you a Bat-man fan too, because I can get a costume...
Hope your day goes well.
QW
Hello
ReplyDeleteNo I didn't go through the card system... I had a suspicion and looked at one or two, that's all. Mostly I don't even know people's names because that's not the bit we look at - so it wouldn't have helped if I had gone through all of them!
I must confess to quite a tinge of dissappointment about the blancmange. Have we both turned to jelly then? The suspenders are killing me... erm... suspense!
I don't remember where the bat thing came from, now that I come to think about it. It might have been when I discovered Batgirl worked in a library by day. I'm not especially a fan of Batman (the last film was dreadful, although most men seem to like it) but if you appeared in costume that would be an excellent jape. Prefer V for Vendetta, Iron Man.
Which superhero do you most resemble and why? (If you change your mind and turn up, your answer could be your secret, more distinctive, password.)
C
Hi Clare,
ReplyDeleteYou are right, the introduction of blancmange into a relationship (if you'll pardon the presumption)can only be a good thing. I have similar affection towards custard and whipping cream (down girl).
Batman WAS awful. I don't know why the reviews were so positive. I was brought up on a miscellany of comics and discovered American Comics in the early 70s. I was a fan of Marvel comics (Spider-man, Avengers)rather than DC, who produce Batman and Superman. If I were to be a superhero, it would be The Thing from Fantastic Four. Rugged-ish on the outside, a big softie underneath.
So, the obvious question is, apart from Batgirl, who would you be, and why?
The password I chose was designed to be said to you while you were standing in the middle of a crowd without attracting undue attention. I could, of course, have brought a loudhailer and declared myself Clare's secret admirer at thirty decibels, and watched the faces react. Hmmm, put that down as a possibility for a future option.
Now for the tightrope walk without a net. I'm going to go for that cigar. What is Clare's age?
Okay, here goes.
This is it.
Can I just say that this is a complete guess. I've gleaned some stuff from your blog but I haven't scoured the records at Somerset House and I absolutely haven't trawled through any library records!
Okay. Deep breath.
And think of all the guesses I could have come up with. You have to give me points if I am anywhere close.
Right then.
And, I only do this because you asked. If we are still communicating in twenty years time and, hopefully, we have moved on to face to face communication, you are not allowed to yell at me and tell me I was always a bastard because I thought you were x years old when you were actually x minus one years old.
So, the moment of truth.
Is 16th September 1963 the card you chose?
Please don't be angry.
Hope I haven't spoiled your day.
QW
P.S. If you would like a live chat after 11.00 tonight, let me know.
Hello Q
ReplyDeleteWorld Book Night wasn't as busy as expected, and someone of your create abilities could have snuck in the the thing about the Thing into an innocent conversation (no-one would have been expecting you - I haven't repeated any of this to anyone. The only reason my colleagues know of a secret admirer is because said admirer left attention-grabbing packages on the returned fiction trolley.) And actually, you could do the loud-hailer if you wanted. It was your sensibilities I was trying to protect really, I think.
I'll stick with Batgirl, I think: demure library assistant with secret depths. And special powers. And I'd kind of like one of those costumes, too...
Ahem.
Age-wise, I bet you think you're the super-sleuth now but you're six months out and there's really no excuse. The year is on the 'person' bit of my main website and if you type 'birthday' into the 'search this blog' above you get the date! Still no cigar.
We could chat, yes. I don't think anyone will be reading this. Or I could give you a mobile number to text. I don't like phones really, but I'm ok with texting.
After 11? Are you out on the tiles? There never was a Catman was there? I'm the only library assistant that ever existed that didn't own a cat.
So anyway... when did we last actually speak? Is it since you started all this?
C
Hi Clare,
ReplyDeleteI too am happier talking on this page.
I could answer your question in two ways. I could say that since I dropped off the gift bag we have spoken only once or twice. Alternatively, I could give you detail of what was said and, I think, you would remember me.
Your birthday was in February/March time? What a pity I missed it.
Perhaps I am being hypersensitive but when you say 'We could chat, yes.' I detect a certain reluctance. I don't want you to feel coerced into anything.
As to my being on the tiles, no, not guilty, m'lud. I watched some footy on the telly until about 9.30 and then logged back on here. I'll be going to bed about 12.00.
I'll log back on at 11.00 to see if you are here. If you are not here, that's okay.
By the way, in all the confusion, I estimated you to be six months younger than you really are. That must be worth a panatella.
Bye for now.
Q
Yes, you're being hypersensitive.
ReplyDeleteWhen I say six months, I was being vague. I meant 7.5 months. And you estimated older.
Hello there,
ReplyDeleteI'm pleased to see you're there.
Sorry about the previous message. Thinking about it, it sounded a bit patronising. So your birthday is in May?
I'll keep this first message short so you know I am here. I'll log back on in five minutes or so.
Q
Nope, not May.
ReplyDeleteIt's a tricky one. If you give me easy clues (like memorable conversations) and I remember you it kind of spoils the game. And if I don't remember, you may be offended.
ReplyDeleteOn some levels, I quite like not knowing. But then again... oh I don't know.
I'm confused.
ReplyDeletehalf way through September plus 7.5 months takes us to May, unless it is April! In which case sometime about now?
Q
Not exactly now, but soon. But I'm afraid this is a no smoking blog, so you still can't have your cigar
DeleteBut I can buy you a present.
ReplyDeleteYou don't have to do that.
DeleteBut I would like to. Please tell me the date.
ReplyDeleteI told you how to find out about 6 comments ago... at 9:06.
DeleteOh, alright .... click here.
Thank you.
ReplyDeleteThat's a week from today. I can feel a mystery package about to be discovered somewhere in the library!
I'll not reveal anything about our conversation unless you ask me to. Also I'll not make myself known unless you okay it first. However, what I am afraid of is that you may have an idealised person in your mind who is perfect in every way and it will be difficult to live up to perfection.
Q
Sorry about the delay... typical writer I'm re-reading, cutting, over-editing. Now it sounds a bit short and sharp... ah well...
DeleteOn the contrary. Only imaginary people can be perfect. I expect you to not be ideal at all. And ideal for what? We're just talking here. It's all imaginary at the moment.
You should make yourself known if and when you choose to. Now if you like. It depends what you aimed to achieve with the mysteriousness. I suspect you've already achieved it.
Btw you need to be aware that another package would rekindle the speculation. I don't mind if you don't. I can be discreet when necessary but at the same time I don't mind the attention. It's your shout.
Further to the above, I was thinking of suggesting Star Wars Day as April 1st mark 2. You know, May The Fourth: Be with you.
ReplyDeleteIs that something you could manage? By all means just say no if you don't want to meet.
I have written this before you have replied to the previous text, just so you know.
Q
Can't do 4th May. But I can't not meet you now can I?
DeleteI'm just thinking...
Again written before your reply to previous.
ReplyDeleteI thought we were on the same wavelength, but perhaps I was mistaken. I was hoping that something would evolve from the text, but you seem to imply that it is just a game/imaginary. Should I go away?
Q
Sorry - I'm very straight-talking and it comes out a bit aggressive sometimes, so I'm told.
DeleteWhat I mean is I don't know who you are. And you don't really know me. We can only conjecture - so yes, it's imaginary. It's like a story on a page. I'm on the 'I'm flattered and intrigued by who has sought my attention in this way' wavelength.
And you can't say it isn't a game, with the mystery parcels and the cryptic clues, puns and banter. You made it into a game. I like games.
also...
...you may be doing what you worried about me doing - idealising, expecting something perfect.
DeleteHi Clare,
ReplyDeletewritten before reply to earlier text.
As I said earlier, don't feel obliged to meet. I think I have misunderstood. Unless you say otherwise, I'll disappear.
Q
You ARE hypersensitive aren't you? When I say 'I can't not meet' I don't mean I feel obliged, more that I am intrigued and it would be frustrating not to.
DeleteAnd I'm supposed to the wordsmith, the clear communicator *sigh* ... but then I am quite tired and it's past both our bedtimes.
DeleteI'm going to bed in a few minutes.
ReplyDeleteI'll say good night now but wait around for a few minutes in case you reply.
Bye.
Q
Hi Clare, I'll write again tomorrow. Sorry for the misunderstanding of 'I can't not meet'.
ReplyDeleteGood night,
Q
Go on - tell me what we talked about last time we met...
ReplyDeleteI asked you what was happening in part of the library and you told me it was a meeting about potty priors and mad monks.
ReplyDeleteI'll stick around a bit longer if you want to carry on.
Q
Damn! I sort of remember saying that but I don't remember who i said it to.... I do talk a LOT. Damn. That's no help at all.
DeleteAny distinguishing features 9apart from the aforementioned complete and utter lack of a green mole?
Or books... what kind of books do you take out?
DeleteI could just come in with my loudhailer.
ReplyDeleteQ
I just felt like Batman when his secret identity has been revealed but then it turns out it hasn't.
ReplyDeleteQ
How did it feel? Did you like it?
DeleteThat was a really busy day, Mad Monks. Lots of people - most of them disappointed if I remember correctly. Not the best speaker we've had and i did the poster - which made it look fun
DeleteYou could. But then you'd always and forever be 'that bloke who came in with the loudhailer'. Only you know if you could live with that. And I'm not in now til Monday
ReplyDeleteIt felt like a weight had been relieved and then plonked back again.
ReplyDeleteWhen you go in on Monday, you can casually ask about any loudhailer incidents you might have missed. you might get some looks.
Q
Oh, well that's not a very good feeling is it? We'd better meet tomorrow somewhere and put us both out of our misery.
DeleteUnfortunately, I'm taking my mother to hospital tomorrow and again the following day.
ReplyDeleteGive me a couple of days to buy your present. Can I get back to you when I've completed that mission?
Q
Yes, but I'm Going to see McGough and Patten in Liverpool on Friday evening and am busy all this weekend.
DeleteHope your mother is ok.
'Night Q
p.s. you REALLY don't need to buy me anything
DeleteGood night Clare.
ReplyDeleteQ
My sub conscious may have unearthed something. Are you more of a Mr P than a Mr E (see what I did there?) and does one of my colleagues think it's you because you asked her where I was when I wasn't around for a few weeks?
ReplyDeleteHello again.
ReplyDeleteI am afraid you are on the wrong path. I remain only a mystery. I don't know what a myst-herpy is but it sounds like little known s.t.d. as in 'Doctor, I think I might have Myst-herpies.' X-)
(I have used an X as a mask in my emoticon so you can't recognise me. I mention this just in case you thought I had:
1.gone completely mad,
2.hit the wrong key, or
3.had a strange X shaped mole that I had failed to mention earlier.
So, I'm not either of your first two guesses. Do you want three more?
Hope your poetry evening goes well.
Q
It's at times like this that I wish I was one of those people that remember everything - who said what and when and what they were wearing. I have a terrible visual memory. I can remember having a conversation about mad monks at the computer by the phone. But I really don't remember who with. Then I thought it was Mr P with the son in Africa, and who probably doesn't really need a loud hailer.
Delete*Goes back to old drawing board*
But I'm pretty sure it was somebody I like chatting to - so that's good isn't it?
Deletep.s. Who IS the masked man?
DeleteDon't be too hard on yourself. It was only a fleeting two sentence conversation among many in a day/week/etc.
ReplyDeleteI'm currently wracking my brains for that gift. I like buying presents. Don't most people? So you'll find me hard to dissuade. I know you are a chocolate-y Clare (get it?) but we've been down that route already. Hmmm more thinking needed.
Best wishes.
Q
Why don't you write me another poem instead? You have no idea how many poets I know and I don't think anyone ever wrote me a poem before... with the exception of David Bateman, but he was being facetious.
DeleteGo on - give me another clue before I guess again. What do you mainly borrow or do in the library? What provoked you to do the Valentine's thing?
I will reply to your latest message in the near future, but first, I have done some more wracking and, though I am a great believer in home made presents, I don't think I have the time to do a poem justice. And besides, I think I may have come up with an answer.
ReplyDeleteI have in mind a music CD from the mid 70s to mid 80s period. Please tell me, do you have an aversion to any of the following (they are all on the CD): power ballads, love songs, foot tappers, slow sad songs, haunting atmospheric songs, songs of everyday life. It is pop/rock music.
If it doesn't sound like something you'd like, I'll think again. Also, are there any artists or bands you either love or hate, so I can get a handle on your taste in music.
Next up: another clue, what I do in the library - apart from skulking around planting Valentine gifts and such, and what provoked the Valentine's Day drama.
Q
I like an eclectic range of music and there's nothing I really hate all examples of.
DeleteJust looking at my faves in iTunes they tend to be lyric-led and/or interesting tunes (not mad about wishy washy pop but I like a good song!): The Animals, Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, David Bowie, Elbow, James, Leonard Cohen, Pink Floyd, and especially Tom Waits. Fave songs? Bitter Sweet Symphony, Eerie Canal, Sit Down, Wish You Were Here... ooh, just thought - I could write a poem comprised entirely of favourite song titles.... *sharpens virtual pencil*
Back again.
ReplyDeleteI mainly borrow novels from the library, usually of the detective and crime variety. I have from time to time borrowed some science fiction, humour, general fiction and others.
What provoked Valentine? Well you did, you saucy temptress, you! There I was happily ignorant, borrowing a book, reading it, taking it back, borrowing another one, etc. You get the drift. Then one say this vision in front of me (that's you) said something (I won't say what because it might give the game away) that was nothing but a nice, positive comment. You didn't have to say it, but you did, out of sheer positiveness.
Well, it is true what they say. A man's gotta do what a man's gotta do. It doesn't matter whether you find yourself looking an idiot, if you have an overwhelming feeling that you would like to know someone better, you have to act. So I did.
It was your niceness what done it. I hope you now have a warm glow all over because you deserve it.
Q
P.S. If only I hadn't tried to be so clever last night, I might have had more success in the age guessing fiasco. If I had simply said 49, surely you would have had to hand out the best of cigars. You wouldn't have said 'sorry chum its 48 years and 51 weeks. It's forevermore the doghouse for you,' would you?
Down boy!
DeleteI wonder what I said? And how would it give the game away...given my track record of remembering what I said but not who I said it to? Unless it was something with a really big clue in it like: 'What a lovely guide dog!'
p.s. Yes, I meant to ask - what led you to September 17th?
DeleteOkay, you may have holed my idea below the waterline. I was thinking of Springsteen. Do you have many of his albums?
ReplyDeleteQ
Erm - Born in the USA, Magic, Devils & Dust, The Essential, We Shall Overcome (my personal favourite, although Born in USA is the classic). Was there an album called Nebraska as well as the song (I LOVE that song!)? I'm sure I used to have more of his earlier stuff too, but that may have been on cassette.
DeleteGood choice! 8-)
Well, you did ask. Did you expect me to reveal that it was the expert and efficient way you stamped my book?
ReplyDeleteThere is a reason for September 16th and I may reveal it one day.
Q
I do stamp them expertly, though, don't I? Except when I drop them all.
DeleteNo, I only asked because it just hasn't happened before.
Okay, don't buy any more Springsteen albums until after 30th. The Nebraska album is a very pared down sound and is my least favourite.
ReplyDeleteYou didn't comment on the cigar vs doghouse controversy.
Q
OK - you're the boss (I was talking to Bruce!)
DeleteNo controversy. I'm not precious about my age I just wasn't impressed at the quality of your sleuthing... although it turns out mine is worse, so we're quits!
Actually, I think I have a cigar somewhere. I'm not sure why. If I find it you can have it.
Actually, I don't smoke.....
ReplyDeleteI was going to make another comment but I refrain. I've already been controversial enough for one day.
While it occurs to me, a couple of questions.
Are you in the library on 30th?
Do you like The Who?
I only have one Tom Waits album, Rain Dogs. My favourite track is Downtown Train. I love the spooky quality he gets into his songs.
ReplyDeleteAn excellent choice of album. Probably my favourite, but I think the best track is Jockey Full of Bourbon. Also I love 9th & Hennepin.... 'No-one brings anything small into a bar around here'. The man's a poet.
DeleteDid you find in your travels the poem I won the Big Issue competition with - Rain Dog Man? It's kind of based on a Tom Waits character.
Yes, I thought you might. And I just thought of a really good double entendre to add just then, but I don't want to be too provocative so I'll let that one slip.
ReplyDeleteYes I'm in the library on 30th.
I only just discovered The Who - a bit of a late developer, me. I heard Baba O'Riley on 'House' (In fact I've just put it on now since you prompted me), went in search and got their Greatest Hits for Christmas. That's all I know.
Oooh, I love that violin bit. There's something about Eastern European/Jewish/Gypsy violin music isn't there?
ReplyDeleteDo you mind if I come in on 30th and give you the present. I promise to behave myself, be quiet and not at all attract any undue attention.
ReplyDeleteNo of course I don't mind. Like I say, I don't mind attracting attention, although I may seem more shy than usual (perversely it's easier to be relaxed with strangers). I don't know where I'll be - sometimes cover in the children's (which is very quiet in the daytime) or upstairs in the Ref. I usually have my break at 11am, lunch 12 -1, break at 3pm. Occasionally sent on relief to other branches but I'll plead birthday if they ask!
DeleteSorry if it's messing with your head, but I've replied above to a couple of your earlier posts - just the one about the stamping and the one about Tom
ReplyDeleteI can't claim much knowledge of EE/J/G violins, but I do like lively violin music.
ReplyDeleteWinner of the lamest reply on the internet for 2013.
I've had worse
DeleteThanks for the heads up. I make a note of how many comments there are as I leave the site and then see how many have been added when I come back, so I have some idea where we are up to, but your Tom Waits reply may have got past me, so thanks.
ReplyDeleteI have to do two other things earlier in the day so can I suggest 3.00 or thereafter. I don't intend to stay for more than a minute or two.
ReplyDeleteI'll sign off now. I have a couple of things to do before bed. Speak with you again tomorrow?
ReplyDeleteGood night.
Q
Did you see my timetable in the reply above? 3pm is usually my break. After 3.30pm better I'm usually round and about shelving things, and then invariably on counter (sometimes alone!) at 5pm while the people on lates get a meal break.
ReplyDeleteOr Telegraph at 6pm
ReplyDeleteThe Telegraph pub at 6.00?
ReplyDeleteWould you like me to come to the library first or do you want the fun of picking me out of the crowd?
Oh, I don't know. It adds a certain frisson at work when at any moment an innocent-looking Borrower could declare themselves! I could as easily have the fun of picking you from a crowd of borrowers. But stopping by for 'a minute or two' as you suggested earlier doesn't leave space for much in the way of questions - or answers.
ReplyDeleteCouldn't stay very long though.
written before reading reply.
ReplyDeleteLet me know tomorrow about Telegraph. I have to go.
Q
OK, time for another guess... and I'm going back to your comment about something I said here. Does your first name begin with J and was what I said something to do with 100 Words?
ReplyDeleteAnd now I'm getting text messages from the person I first thought it was but had ruled out after your 'same age' comment. Are you SURE that isn't you? Can you just double check please?... my head's messed up enough as it is.
ReplyDeleteNo it isn't me texting you.
ReplyDeleteI'm not clear. Are you saying I couldn't stay long at the library because it would interfere with your work or you couldn't stay long at the Telegraph because you have plans for your birthday?
I don't mind answering questions about me, but I was wondering whether you wanted to keep the mystery. I could remain Q, at least for a while longer - unless you realise that you know my real name.
Sorry about the head messing thing. Only a few days to go. Would I be right if I predicted excited but a little bit scared? Me too. I'm hoping we can register somewhere on the Bat-Giddy-o-meter.
Q
You can stay as long as you want to in the library! It's a public service ;-)
DeleteI meant the pub. I don't have plans for my birthday yet (how sad is that?) but I don't want to rule out the possibility of plans forming. Actually, previous to all of this, my Plan B if none had formed was to stay for the library quiz that night, but I had forgotten it in the excitement.
Bat-Giddy-o-meter. I like that! Although it gave me a glimpse of a future where I'll be a... giddy old bat!! 8-)
Bearing in mind my previous message, do you want me to respond to your J/100 words question? I am more than happy to.
ReplyDeleteQ
Hmmm. Interesting.
DeleteI can't help noticing that you have been swift in your denials after my earlier guesses... but not this time! Am I getting warm?
I think it's only fair to tell me if I guess correctly, don't you? It's up to you. I can stand a few more days if you want to keep me dangling.
Oops, inadvertent bondage allusion... that's what a pint of Titanic on an empty stomach does to you!
DeleteAfter I had prevaricated I realised that I hadn't done it before. Curses! If it hadn't been for those meddling kids!
ReplyDeleteDoes this J person have another initial? J is quite common in names.
Q (for the time being)
Dear Mr. Rumplestiltskin,
ReplyDeleteI am seeking advice about how you felt when your name was discovered when you thought it never would be, dammit!
Is there an anonymous anonymous society that I might join? I'm asking because I'm hanging on here (more bondage) waiting for my fate to be sealed, or not.
Yours urgently,
Q
Apologies for the delayed response and any inconvenience it may have caused. I was early for a pub-based meeting in Hoylake, inadvertently got a bit inebriated before it, and walking home from Hoylake was distracted by a magnificent sunset over Hilbre so took the scenic route.
ReplyDeleteHours later...
So.... John... Don't quite get the Rumpelstiltskin (not well up on my classical references I'm afraid) comment, but never mind. I think I get the cigar now, don't I?
Hi there,
ReplyDeleteDid you say that this J person had another initial? And what was the 100 word thingy? Was it insightful and witty yet also poignant?
I need answers to these questions (well, at least the first one) before I can concede that you've won your cigar back.
Yours clutching at straws,
Q
Sorry - second name eludes me. S maybe?
DeleteRe the 'thingy'. It was all of the above. I suspect I said as much at the time... which is where we came in.
Okay.
ReplyDeleteI COULD raise some technical questions, but I'll let them pass.
Would you like to give me the rundown on how you found me?
J
Remember that weight? It's gone again.
ReplyDeleteJ
I now imagine you now re-enacting your library giddy picture.
ReplyDeleteJ
Nope. I'm in bed.... exhausted!
DeleteI was going to ask if you felt the weight come off again!
ReplyDeleteNo sleuthing involved this time. I haven't looked at your borrower card because I'm not at work. OK, maybe some part of my subconscious pays more attention to who I talk to and what about, but I think it was when you said I'd said something nice unexpectedly I remembered making a comment about your entry and you seeming surprised and pleased at the time. Also, I know you write and you read crime etc. You more or less fit the minimal description given (although I don't think of you as 'dark' but like I say, I'm not that observant), your writing style has a formal/classical feel to it and you strike me as literate, if that's the right word. And maybe I got a sense that you liked me? I don't know. On the other hand you seem quite shy and un-ostentatious which didn't necessarily equate with overt Valentine shenangins.
So I took a punt... Not bad, eh - in 4 guesses?
But I've been through a lot of Borrowers in my head. Hard work!
It occurs to me that you may be thinking of someone else with the same name. I wouldn't like you to have an embarrassing meeting with someone else. I envisage a poor fellow being shaken by his lapels, dragged across the 'books in' counter because he denies all knowledge of a Springsteen CD.
ReplyDeleteJ
This is entirely likely.
DeleteSo are we going to have to leave with me just thinking I know, while my subconscious ferrets around in the background for other Johns? (and you book was a bigger clue than I thought, after all!)
I've just put my hands on the 100 Words booklet. John Stratford, Runner Up? Is that you.
Nope.
ReplyDeleteDon't you love a story that finishes and you think the whole tale is tied up and then one final fleeting scene tells you it isn't. As you are exhausted I'll sign off - unless you want to add anything. If nothing appears in the next five minutes I'll assume you are asleep.
Good night.
J(not S)
Doh!
ReplyDeleteI meant I'm exhausted from trying to guess.
You do realise that I'll never look at any of these people quite the same again?
It is John though? But John WHOOOOOOOOO?????
Five more sleeps to D Day.
ReplyDeleteJ
Night J!
Delete(Cue Waltons flashback)
Night Sherlock. X-)
ReplyDeleteOK, OK. I knew that wasn't right. Stratford is north the name of the John I was thinking of. And it wasn't a story, it was a poem, and it wasn't runner up it was highly commended. As I must have been close because you thought you'd been sussed.
DeleteSo... John M... 'who's final page halts midline ...'
This is the quality of auto-suggest on the iPad, for 'north' read 'not' and for 'As' read 'And'
Deletetsk!
Well done. The cigar is yours. Congratulations.
ReplyDeleteDo you have just a name or a visual too?
I have been to HMV in Birkenhead - and they have been shut down.
Next stop was HMV in Liverpool - but they had a lamentable selection of Springsteen, so I haven't bought what I intended. But on a positive note, I have bought a Springsteen CD and a second present - which, as should be the case, will remain a mystery for now. You can guess if you want to, but I will flat out lie if you get anywhere close.
Incidentally, you may like to know, John Alder were my maternal grandfather's two Christian names.
Speak to you later?
JM
I already had the visual yesterday, it was the name I buggered up! I looked in the 100words book and stopped at the first John I came to, but it didn't feel like I'd got the right name. This morning I went back to it and when I got to the end and saw your name it came back to me!
DeleteDon't worry, I'm not doing any more guessing now. Phew!
p.s. I'm meeting my Missionary Uncle (who sounds even more than your Auntie from Adelaide) who is home from the Congo for tea* and then it's Roger McGough tonight. Will log in later.
Delete*He's not come from the Congo just for tea, you understand.
Just a note to say that if you do want to guess, the mystery object cost less than a tenner - to give you a ballpark idea.
ReplyDeleteI didn't want to experience:
Oooh ooh, is it a diamond tiara?
Oooh, is it a gold necklace?
Ooh, is it a Lamborghini?
No, it's an A4 refill pad. Hope you like it...
Oh.
JM
I'm embarrassed that you've bought me stuff. You didn't have to do that. *blushes*
DeleteAn aside here for those historians who have stumbled across this page and didn't have the sensibility to stop reading at 'discombobulated'. This is 2013. Before the global crash of 2016. Ten pounds was a LOT OF MONEY in those days!!
ReplyDeleteJM
And an A4 pad was something made out of dead trees that you wrote on with a tube filled with ink or a piece of soft metal in a wooden overcoat (the soft metal, not you... although with all this Climate Change)
DeleteOkay, enough guessing. After all, it's easy from my point of view, you're the one who has to do all the work. But you did say you liked not knowing.
ReplyDeleteHope you've had a nice day. Was the poetry evening successful?
J
P.S. I'm getting suspicious that you are feeding me straight lines like 'my Missionary uncle' and 'I'm the only librarian who doesn't own a cat' on purpose, just to see if I will rise to the bait. I can only be controversial so many times in a week. It's my super power's only weakness.
I can't help it. But I genuinely do have a missionary uncle... I've blogged about him before. And I don't have a cat and did write a story about the only librarian without one yesterday.
DeleteIncidentally, my uncle had never heard of McGough (he's been in the Congo 30 years) but he loved it. The dreadful pun gene is clearly a family trait.
Time for bed.
ReplyDeleteSpeak with you tomorrow, perhaps.
J
Sorry I missed you.
DeleteOf course, future historians won't be able to read this on account of the fact that we will have run out of energy in 2015. Or five past eleven in my case.
ReplyDeleteThis wine should perk me up.
I think I'll be running out of energy prematurely this evening. I went to the gym for the first time in over a month (the flu effect has lingered somewhat) I ran 4k but almost killed myself doing it. What was most distressing, though, was while driving home, my knob came off the gear lever. It's a bit confusing, wanting to change up to fourth but first needing to make sure the thing is the right way up and then giving it a good thump or two to jam it back into place. If you are thinking of buying a Vectra, I recommend you check out the gear changing system. I've owned two now and they both had the same problem. Everything else has worked fine (apart from the battery). This has been a true story brought to you by the MURS (Missionary Uncle Retaliation Service)
ReplyDeleteHope your day went better.
J
I'm no expert on cars and have a predilection for Fiestas (this must be my fourth) but I understand that, although it's important to keep a firm hold on your knob, you should resist exerting such a pressure as to disconnect it from the body. Perhaps a nut had come loose? Had it been oiled recently? I don't know about these things... I'm a girl.
ReplyDeleteI was at a far duller poetry thing today - will blog later. Just doing Festival of Firsts newsletter (it's the April one so I need to get it out quick before it's May!
I'll go for a walk and talk to you later?
ReplyDeleteBye for now.
J
Hi, I'm back!
ReplyDeleteAs you've had a dull poetry session, I'll send you one of mine. It is my favourite of my own poems, but it is quite long (12 stanzas) so I'll send it three at a time. There is some violence in the poem, so not sure if it will be to your taste. I did think it might work as a voice over for an animated work.
Here's the beginning.
A short scene setter.
An old sailor sits on a huge boulder on a rocky beach. Beside him is a young boy. They are talking and gazing out over the ocean. The pair melt into the distance as our mind’s eye floats out to sea and is there submerged deeper and deeper under the water…
The Stygian.
Beneath the waves, in darkness' domain,
Where ancient currents carved their channels chilled,
Canyons deep in the great abyss remain,
And from their ghosts a fearsome form is filled.
Fleeting is the cold, grey phantom's presence,
Flirting with depth, but by the depths denied.
Floating, faceless dots of luminescence
Flashdance in harmony; they pulse, they glide.
Through this veil, this surging, swirling wonder,
The Stygian, across the ocean floor,
Crawls, then strides, then sweeps, then strikes asunder
Ancient outcrops, a rude prelude to war.
Ascending through howling streams of pressure,
Its armoured lines with alien light aglow,
Lighter, for the monster, without measure,
Than for the dismal denizens below,
The Stygian reaches for the surface.
Plates, like pistons, pump over living plate,
Bloodless overblades from its carapace
Turn tirelessly, its twin tails oscillate
With relentless metronomic rhythm.
Striations stripe the former silhouette
As towards the outer realm it's driven.
Strange changes cease, its ordered course is set.
What chords haunt the deeps where this devil dwelled?
What evil beats behind its brutish brow?
By what strain is the Stygian impelled?
What symphony of hate? What silent vow?
In which god's fantasy did it feature?
What monstrous union gave this monster birth?
Which lost epoch's last surviving creature
Would soon command the oceans of the Earth?
Innocent of answers, a racing moon
slips across a brisk and crystal cut night.
A surge, heave, shell shock, a blister balloon
Shatters like ice in the orb's pristine light.
Piercing shrieks emerge from deep and the beast
ReplyDeleteErupts and stands proud of the wind-whipped spume.
And on the horizon, far to the east,
Ploughs the prow of the Thai trawler 'Monsoon'.
Slow and slight its power swells, and whiskers,
Fine night-borne strands, escape their chaste cocoon.
'Gainst the bow a wash of warm, wet whispers
Play gaily round a boatswain's ballad's tune.
Aft's the catch of sidewinder and twister.
Hard hands haul in the hopeless, captured crop
Before grinding guts and gears register
Unexpected, instantaneous stop!
The creature's sleeker than the slickest shark.
Like a skewering spear it strikes the ship.
As nemesis it inhabits the dark.
It reaches deep to slash and slice and strip.
Where stern and sturdy cold steel rivets cracked,
And gargoyles, gouged and grey, gape side by side,
Their skulls and bones with mocking efforts snapped,
Snagged sinew snakes a red dye on the tide.
The trawler turns obscenely in its course.
The brittle bowline, breached, a sucking wound.
Its nets are rent with mighty calls to force,
The 'Monsoon' slips below, a vessel doomed.
Full to crescent passes the moon's changed phase
As seven vessels seek the monster's wake.
Five frigates and two trawlers travel days
With all of sea supremacy at stake.
Sonar calls, and the Stygian replies.
Creased features from its lowly, floating lair
Survey the brine. Below, ships' nets untied.
Within a stroke, The Stygian is snared.
But who is the captor? Who is the prey?
As shouts of startled seamen shred the scene,
Two struggling trawlers, their nets torn away,
Are hurled to the depths, deathbound submarines.
The Stygian pulls on the massive mesh.
ReplyDeleteA badge of honour borne, it trails abaft
The monster as it turns towards its fresh
Foes now - the fleet of frigates, battle craft.
Great engines grip the moment, grasp and pull.
The pulse of two attack ships called to charge.
Deck ordnance, primed, aimed at the monster's skull,
Send calibrated rounds to rip the large,
Black, armoured beast apart. They fire and fail.
The Stygian between them swiftly sweeps.
Small arms fire flashes out, to no avail.
Imperious, it drags them to the deeps.
Two frigates lost, the fleet renews its quest.
The Stygian returns to meet their fire.
A hail of mortars cracks the creature's chest.
Such swollen agony brings one desire,
To smash the ship and crush it like a toy,
To send it reeling deep to meet its kin.
But while the monster's mind's set to destroy,
A roar of cannons joins the battle's din.
Where senses sang, they now with needles scream,
A hurricane of hatred shot to hell.
A wrecked and wretched creature, once supreme,
Kaleidoscopes of scattered, shattered shell.
Blizzard for vision, a traitor is touch,
The Stygian, with venom, thrashes out.
Screams is its hearing, insanity such
That hardly does it register the rout.
The last of the metal clads are swallowed.
The failure of naval intervention.
Familiar routes to the sea bed followed
As madness emerges from redemption.
Valediction. A last departing shot.
Its fizzing brings the monster to the brink.
Maelstrom beneath the beast. A bomb bursts hot.
Enough to melt its carapace to ink.
Silence supplants the violence of the waves,
ReplyDeleteAnd only the ocean's eternal sway
Laps over the sailors' low, sunken graves.
Drowned ships, doused lives, dominion washed away.
In the whirlwind of The Stygian's mind,
Within its dead and naked, ice-cold soul,
It senses that scavenging human kind
Will poach no more from the great oceans' shoals.
The surface dwellers will no longer cross
These seas to commit further offences,
And if such triumph brings a mortal loss,
Better that than failure's consequences.
Gristle groans. A rasping rumour rises,
Grinding under unrelenting motion.
Its tortured cries, bestial compromises,
Echo over only open ocean.
And dying, The Stygian tears apart
Its vestments, like a holy man ashamed.
A final bellow twists the creatures heart.
It slowly sinks, by its own kind reclaimed.
A slow light ghosts across the broken form.
With deepest blue the body is infused.
As fading pulses end the raging storm,
Demands of flesh are finally refused.
The sailor stares two thousand metres.
His story done, his beard bent, he smiles.
Was it truly one of God's own creatures,
Or was it meant to merely haunt the child?
Just imagination? An old tar's gin?
The mariner's hardened hands fly no more.
The stripling's eyes search for the truth within.
Was it just a tale, just a legend, or...
Beneath the waves, in darkness' domain,
Where ancient currents carved their channels chilled,
Canyons deep in the great abyss remain,
And 'midst their ghosts a fearsome form lies. Stilled.
Did you receive the other three sections of the poem?
ReplyDeleteJ
Yes thanks. I'm still just trying to finish off this eNewsletter and get it out tonight, so will have to read it properly later. Sorry! 8-/
DeleteDo you ever perform your poems? I see what you mean about it being a performance piece - it's crying out to be read aloud!
No, I've never performed them.
ReplyDeleteI'll leave you to your work now.
Speak again tomorrow?
J
I probably shouldn't even send it tonight, now. You make mistakes when you're tired. But nearly done...
DeleteI'm not entirely sure of my movements tomorrow, but will be online at some point, I'm sure.
'Night
OK, I've read it now - an epic feast of rhythm and alliteration! I almost feel splashed by the salty spray! I especially like the fleeting / flirting / floating and the line: '...tears apart / his vestments, like a holy man ashamed'
ReplyDeleteIt's like something out of Palgraves, like 'On the mobs of Westminster Abbey.
This poem needs an 'outing' don't you think?
I, too, have a poem of ancient monsters under the ocean:
ReplyDeleteLike giant vessels sunk at sea
with broken hulls and decks
are the bare bones and galleys
of Tyrannosaurus wrecks.
8-)
'Splashed by the salty spray'?? You ARE doing this on purpose, you little minx.
ReplyDeleteI'm not familiar with Palgraves and 'On Mobs...' so I can't really comment.
The issue with performance poetry, as I see it, is they have to be either funny or quite short, so you either continue to engage the audience or you are finished quite quickly. A long and definitely not humorous poem would struggle.
Are you always up so early? You seem to get by on six hours sleep - sometimes with a break at 3.00 for blogging!.
Bye for now.
J
Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night if there are things on my mind, but no, I like my sleep. I was awake earlier and thought I might as well get that newsletter out (what do you think of it?.
DeleteNot 'mobs' - 'tombs'. I wish half the poets I know even cared about engaging the audience, and I agree a longer one has to work harder to keep the attention - I suspect this one might. You should give it a go sometime.
p.s. I probably am doing it deliberately. I can't resist - gets me into all sorts of trouble!
And I was just answering you earlier question there but I just noticed i may have been at it again in the middle paragraph - but that was totally inadvertent.
DeleteI followed your 'what do you think of it' and it didn't connect me with anything except a notice saying I had reached a black hole. I'm pretty sure that wasn't the newsletter. If it was, it was pretty bleak.
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean about producing a double entendre by mistake. Sometimes it just slips out. I'm beginning to worry that I can see one in every paragraph.
Your T.Wrecks poem and your visit to Liverpool reminds me that there are the bones of a minor dinosaur in the museum by St. George's Hall. Even a minor one was getting on for twice the size of a fully grown lion.
J
Oh. Try this one BETTER LINK
ReplyDeleteIs that one of those really tiny dinosaurs? The The barelysaurus?
I'm going to have to do another post... just been even higher for a better view!!
Scrap that - it takes you to the sign up form. Don't know why the first one didn't work. 8-/
ReplyDeleteIt appears that you've been pretty much everywhere. Have you been to the Natural History Museum in London? I think it is a T. Rex they have in one of their their main rooms. Archeologists found the largest dinosaur ever a few years back. It makes you wonder what else might be underground. I don't know enough about natural history, but an interesting story could centre around what is found at greater depths, beneath the dinosaurs, where there may be even larger monsters from earlier periods - or perhaps a talking chimpanzee doll.
ReplyDeleteJ
'a talking chimpanzee doll' - is that some obscure classical reference or are you talking Planet of the Apes?
ReplyDeleteNevertheless, it's a story waiting to be written. The only other thing I ever wrote involving dinosaurs was about one who was brought back to life and became a fashion icon. It was called 'The Next Big Thing'. It still needs a little work.
'Silly answers to serious questions, a specialty'
ReplyDeleteYes, it was POA, the first and probably best of the series in my opinion.
ReplyDeleteFashion and archeology, an unusual mix. Joss Weadon (Buffy, but I'm sure you knew that anyway) seems to specialise in strange bedfellows. Buffy was brilliant, Serenity was watchable, as was his Avengers film, but I haven't seen cabin in the woods. It appeared to be a bit derivative from Buffy. Have you seen it?
I don't watch much telly. I liked what I saw of Buffy and will catch up one day (a friend has all the series) but I don't know the others, sorry. But I do like speculative stuff!
ReplyDeleteSome of the best ideas come strange bedfellows - or miss-hearing things e.g. one of my poems came from me miss-hearing 'Science Museum' as 'Silence Museum'.
I'm guessing you're out on the tiles this time!?
ReplyDeleteI feel like I've been on the laptop all week, ticked lots of boxes but I'll be glad to get back to the library for some R&R. (Renewing and re-shelving??)
I missed chatting to you last night.
ReplyDeleteOne more sleep now... also known as 'no sleep' if you fret about this sort of thing
If my turning up is the cause of fretting, I don't want you to have an anxious birthday waiting for me to arrive. I'll come in today and you can then have a peaceful day tomorrow. Let me know you have received this so I don't appear out of the blue today.
ReplyDeleteJ
Okay, I'm assuming that you aren't there at the moment. So I'll revert back to visiting the library at 5.00 tomorrow.
ReplyDeletePlease be assured there is nothing to fret about. I really don't bite, unless requested. I will be there for no more than two minutes. The last thing I want to do is spoil your birthday.
Best wishes.
J
Ohew - although I can see your comments as emails on my phone this is the first chance I've had to reply! It's too hard to use the internet on the Blackberry, I can't respond on work computers and the system has been down most of the day on the public ones. I've snuck on my boss's one in the back office.
ReplyDeleteI've got training upstairs until 5pm and will be on a break for half an hour some time between 5pm and 6.30pm but here til 8pm.
It's just a bit trepidatious. I don't even know if that's a word. I also invented another word this week: be'cardiganned.
send me more comments to brighten up my training if you like!! And come in if you want to - I thought you might anyway.
ttfn
C
I will come in at about 7.15. I'll try to be there for just two minutes, you need not say or do anything. I will find a way to leave your presents for you. I'm sorry if I have caused such discomfort.
ReplyDeleteSpeak to you again later?
Oh, and no peeking until tomorrow!
J
I imagine you are either still on your way home or you have just arrived home and you're going to have your dinner. I don't want to upset you digestion, I've probably done enough of that in recent times, so I will just say that it was nice to really speak with you and I'm having a plaque made for that book shelf where we met. I'm going for a walk and I will write again later, probably about 10.00.
ReplyDeleteBye for now.
J
OK, a few replies to your previous comments above - but I'm putting them all here so you don't miss 'em:
ReplyDelete1. You're not going to 'spoil' my birthday unless you're planning to be completely reprehensible
2. When I said 'fret' I just meant this is on my mind - and doubtless yours. Didn't mean it particularly negatively
3. I'm actually really enjoying this - it adds a certain frisson to the day when you don't know if your secret admirer is going to turn up at any moment. So please don't worry about me being 'anxious'. I've done anxiety and this is a different thing.
4. Two minutes isn't enough for a conversation, is it? But I think we both got shy - especially you! ;-) - somewhere between naval forces and social welfare.
5. You seemed to be unsure about tomorrow? I would like to have a proper conversation but I'm aware it was my idea - is that outside your comfort zone?
6. I haven't peeked.
Hello again.
ReplyDelete1. Please define 'completely'
2. I WAS afraid that 'fret' was negative, and I am aware that up to now this whole experience has been at my instigation, and was concerned you may have felt uncomfortable.
3. I'm glad you are enjoying it. I'm enjoying it too.
4. A first real meeting can be awkward. I think we did really well.
5. The only reason why I was unsure was because the idea of meeting today was to give you a peaceful, carefree day tomorrow. Are we still on for The Telegraph at 6.00?
6. Good, I follow a strictly no peeking policy.
J
1. No
ReplyDelete2. I feel less uncomfortable now I know who you are.
3. Good
4. I was a bit bunny in the headlights - but then I did warn you!
5. That's thoughtful, but it was my idea, and I wouldn't have suggested it if I didn't want to meet. Telegraph not written in stone, though, just nearest. Could try the new Wetherspoons on the prom? Or whatever you think...
6. Good job I didn't peek before I got the Policy Guidelines.
Regarding no.5, I am quite open to suggestions. I haven't been to The Telegraph in ages and not been to Wetherspoons at all. Shall we try the one I assume we both know, The Telegraph?
ReplyDeleteOK.
ReplyDeleteGoing to bed now. 'Night
Night.
ReplyDeleteSleep well.
J
I still haven't peeked... Might leave it til later! Sorry if you felt you had to bring it yesterday because you thought I was 'discomforted'. Where you going to try and sneak it onto the trolley again? That's got to take some bottle! Really, don't worry about me - I'm not exactly a shrinking violet. Although I do like the subterfuge and last night was better for that with fewer and less observant colleagues than today - of course you can always come in and just borrow books!
ReplyDeleteLaters
TRY to sneak it on to the trolley? How can you doubt my powers of legerdemain and skullduggery. I believe I have a 100% success record so far - though to tell the truth I felt that I could have been spotted at the first attempt when one of your colleagues suddenly appeared from the private, 'staff only' part of the library. Fortunately, they couldn't have been really looking in my direction. You can read more about it in my next book, 'Confessions of a sneak gift dropper offer'. I was more careful the second time, but that's another story...
ReplyDeleteSee you at 6.00 inside The Telegraph. Shall we meet in the conservatory, if it is still there?
J
P.S. I'm glad you haven't peeked because I have just remembered something I forgot to say yesterday. I inadvertently left the price sticker on your mystery present. Please make every effort not to look. Did I mention I have a strictly no prices on presents policy?
Hello? You ok? When you're next online I'll redirect you somewhere more private
ReplyDeleteUnless you,re not speaking now? I very much enjoyed meeting you properly and am sorry I made things difficult. Let's move this conversation somewhere else...
ReplyDeleteIn fact... Here's a little memory test for you. If you Google the name of my hidden blog that I mentioned you'll find where i've gone. There are far too many comments here anyway!
I can give you a clue if you don't remember it, but there's another cigar for you if you find your own way!!!
P.s. Thank you again for the gifts.
ReplyDeleteP.p.s. yes, I'm still fretting a bit
ReplyDeleteHello again.
ReplyDeleteOf course I'm still here. I'm just composing my next message, but I thought I would make contact so you know I haven't disappeared.
J