‘I just met a vampire,’ I said. Really?’ said Matt. ‘Where?’ ‘Outside. I was putting out the bins, and there he or she was. Just by the church.’ ‘What did you say?’ asked Matt. ‘I said hello. And the vampire said “Hello” back, in rather a scared voice. I went to wheel out another bin, [...]
Matt and I are spending the morning in court. He did not drive to the hearing. He has been rehearsing what it might be like not to drive. ‘Where is the magistrates court?’ we ask a young woman. ‘It’s on the other side of town. Take the ring road past the docks. You can’t miss [...]
Today I drew up more templates for the New York job. Extracting dimensions from the architect is like getting blood from a stone. I’ve asked ten or eleven times. Sometimes he generously sends me AutoCAD drawings, but I don’t have the ACAD programme, so I can’t read them. My assistant Monica worked in an architect’s [...]
‘So when the bombers fly overhead, they use your house as target practice for a virtual bombing raid’ my neighbour said to me yesterday. ‘What? No! Never!’ I said, as I know when my leg is being pulled. ‘Yeah, really. I’m not kidding! Both the Americans and the Brits use the church as a target [...]
It is cold. We are expecting snow. I am on my way to London, to set out some work with Sandra, my assistant. I must decide how we will lay the next stage of our mosaic panels. The car windows are rimed with ice. We drive to the station. The air is clear and crisp. [...]
Matt and I were on our way to the shops when we saw what we thought was a plastic barn owl sitting on the village sign. We stared at it and smiled. Amusement turned to amazement as the bird blinked, turned its head, and stared back. ‘Did you see that?’ Matt said. ‘Yes. Wow!’ We [...]
When we first moved in to our huge and beautiful studio in the Holloway Road, we had five thousand square feet of echoing empty space. It was a big contrast to life before the studio, and it took a while to feel comfortable there. I’d had so many people and so much mosaic squeezed into [...]
‘You ought not to live on headache tablets’ one of my friends advises Matt. ‘They are really bad for you. It’s well known.’ She changes tack. ‘You’ve been in London all week then?’ she asks. ‘Yes, I’ve been in the edit. Em’s been in Norfolk on her own.’ ‘So what’s it like living in the [...]
‘Did you sleep OK?’ ‘Yes. How about you?’ ‘More than five hours. It’s the most I’ve had for weeks.’ ‘Me too.’ ‘Do you think the bells are about to start ringing?’ ‘Half past six? It might be a bit early. Apparently they always ring them on a Sunday though.’ ‘It was funny when Fiona became [...]
‘Would you like a cup of tea Loric?’ ‘His name’s Goris’ said Toby. ‘Goric?’ ‘No. Goris.’ ‘Oh, I’m so sorry’ I said. ‘Don’t worry’ said Goris ‘Ive been called all sorts of things – Lawrie, Boris ….’ Goris, like Boris, I thought, I’ll remember that. ‘Well Goris, would you like a cup of tea?’ ‘That’d [...]