I received a phone call last week from Ed Youth who came by my studio this afternoon and we mastered a 3 track EP.

 

An effective but simple song "Librium". 

 

It's been a weird day today and we've only got 7 minutes left.

 

My laptop was in limbo today - I really depend on it to do my job - I had started to install Windows Vista yesterday afternoon. The laptop has a hardware problem and although I've known about the problem since I was given the machine about 6 or 7 weeks ago I've not had a 'window' where I could leave it with helpdesk to dismantle.  The "problem" made the installation of a new operating system a true test of my patience.

 

All is good and I'm finding the latest Windows to be useful, funky and ready to be moulded to my requirements. Well done.

 

Tomorrow Alison is having her birthday party. It's a "make up and movie" party with her friends. Oh boy... what happened ? Our little baby is going to have her friends over and they'll be doing all sorts of pre-teen stuff. What happened to the last 12 years.

 

A local girl died this evening after a horrific incident last week. She is in the 3rd year in Castleknock Community College. Alison will be going there next year. We almost lost our Ali once. I can't imagine what her parents are going through. This is very close to home. Too close.

 

On Sunday we're going to meet my dad for lunch. It's been a while. A long while. I have had to travel a long way in the last 5 years before I was able to pick up the phone and speak to him this week. Sometimes you need to have people at arms length. For your own sake.

 

Right. That's it. Off to bed.

I've spent the past week in Seattle. Here for work again.

 

Usually I dont' get out while I'm here on bizziness. Jet lag flying west kills me and I find it difficult to stay awake past 6 or 7 o'clock.

 

So Monday I arrived and made it to my hotel by 7:30pm. The 'Cucina Cucina' restaurant that has been my first port of call for the past 12 years has gone ! It was situated just beside the Hyatt in Bellevue (and another just across from the Marriott in Redmond). The flatbread and cambozola cheese was a reward for several hours tied up in a tin can attached to jet engines.

 

Replaced with "Joeys" I can say that the food is just the same (corporate).

 

Tuesday & Wednesday was a blur of meetings, rain, jet lag, shopping to stay awake and being surprised that I didn't feel too bad so long as I wasn't tired.

 

Thursday I got to hang out with my dear (I had to say that) friend Anita and her partner-in-crime Moshe.  How nice to spend time in the company of two fun people. Hi-Fidelity my ass. Moshe loves his music. For all the right reasons. Leaving the Pig & Whistle in a taxi back to my hotel I knew that Friday would be a lot easier for having spent time with these two <cough> fine upstanding citizens.

I took a photo or two but I don't think Anita wants me to share it with the world. And who am I to argue with her ? A coward.

 

Friday night I hooked up with my friends Cassi, Adam, Gigi White, Alan White, Genele Boyce, Steve Boyce and two new friends Trevor Rabin and Shelley Rabin.

We went to see The Outline at a club in Seattle. Trevor and Shelley's son Ryan is the drummer in the band. I really thought they were exciting in a Bloc Party, Razorlight, British-indie-pop-rock-BBC 6Music kind of way.  We hung out after the show and went to an unusual club that basically had a bar and a bunch of pool tables so people could hang out and pass the time. What a blast.

 

It was great to meet Cassi & Adam again after their brief stay at our place a few weeks ago. Isn't it a small world ?

 

Alan & Gigi kindly dropped me back to the hotel and I slept like a baby.

Saturday was spent doing a little shopping - including getting something nice from "Something Silver" for Val's Christmas gift. Nothing like planning ahead. I found a few fun things for the kids and I'm sure they'll like them. Me ? I just want to go home now

 

Steve & Genele met me with their darling girls Haddyn and Hadley. A fine lunch in Bellevue set me up for the next few hours hanging out in the airport (where I'm typing this blog over a beer or three).  I have a little bit of video which I'll share with the blog when I get back to Dublin.

Right now I still have an hour and a half to kill because my flight is delayed....

 

then it's onward to Copenhagen and home to Dublin by 6:00 tomorrow evening.

 

Here come the photos...

 

 

 

 

I had written a witty blog entry yesterday but when I tried to add a photo the Spaces site installed an activeX control. This basically zapped my unsaved entry.

 

I cannot be arsed to re-write it.

 

Maybe tonight when I'm bored