I fought the lead, and the lead won

A new colleague at NGO X is also a blogger. She is a Labour councillor and blogs mostly about politics local and global. People are amazed that she is so comfortable with her life being 'out there' for all to see. Mmm yes, I mutter, how extraordinary.

I don't publicise joella at work, you see, though it would hardly take VI Warshawski to uncover her existence. I worry about it sometimes. But joella is really an alter ego. She's more articulate than I am, her anger is more focused and she definitely drinks more Rioja. My heart is not quite on my sleeve, for then I would have to be completely anonymous, and that would be less fun. I like walking this line.

But what it does mean, when you have even a little bit of your life 'out there', is that when (as Mike Skinner would say) shit goes pear-shaped you don't really want to write about it. Well, if shit went really pear-shaped there might be something worth writing about, but if it's just that you develop a mean stinking cold, possibly picked up in the foetid stairwell of the council house from hell, and spend several days lying under a blanket on the sofa necking Benylin, feeling misanthropic and loathing of self (automisanthropic?) and generally losing your mojo in industrial quantities of snot, there's just not much to say.

Some of those days were in Devon, involving a party and a place called Ho! I ate a mini pork pie when I was pissed (I blame the Benylin/champagne combo) and played with stones with stripes in them. I was glad to be there, but could not claim to have been great company. I came home to lie on the sofa some more.

This morning I dragged myself into college to do some leadwork, as I missed last week's lesson in order to attend aforementioned party. My eyes hurt, my throat hurt, my head hurt, and I stood for three hours hitting heavy metal with sticks. It's like breaking rocks. I bloody hate it.

More sofa, more blankets, more Benylin.

Right, I'm going to shut up again till I'm better. This is no fun for anyone.

joella