The morning after

These days getting to bed any later than 11pm feels like a late night...and that is just so weird for someone who used to work in nightclubs, I can tell you. I can't believe I am the same person who sometimes used to leave the house for work/a night out at 11pm (and not come back for days...). How times have changed! Last night I got home at about half past midnight and now I'm very, very tired (and very, very hungry). It's pathetic really.

Still, a great night it was. Our bit went well (sorry, Hope, nothing recorded this time...Mark took little 'un to the pictures) and we sang our songs unaccompanied and without mistakes. I think we even enjoyed it. Verona sang a little song of her own called 'Treading Water' and that one is lovely so I will try and get a recording of that on here some time soon. I got good reactions to and comments about poems which is always SO appreciated (you don't want to expect it but it's lovely when it happens!). I sold some books too and even got a lovely email this morning from a charming (and satisfied) customer/reader. That's the kind of email a person likes to receive! I'd been unsure about reading my poem about Michael Marra (as he is a bit of a somewhat reluctant local hero in Dundee and I'm anything but local...) but it went really well and I could feel the love (for Marra) just flooding the room! That was a relief. A huge relief.

I'm not going to write about every part of last night's Out of the Woods show (some I may come back and write about another time) but one of the highlights of the night was definitely Dundee's own Pauline Hynd (or Pauline M as she used to be known...and her myspace doesn't really give you an idea of her range or, of course, how she comes over live). Pauline was better than ever and if she keeps on getting better like this she'll just explode with marvellousness one day! She really is a one-off kind of talent, so unpredictable and kind of casual with it. She did a whole range of songs from wandering and thoughtful, to catchy and huge-quirky-hit-potential, to very, very funny. The latter song was called 'Open the door, Rachel' (nothing to do with me!) and contained a lot of Dundee dialect...real class and beautifully played and judged. She uses language in such interesting ways, makes great observations, times things to perfection – if there is an X Factor for writing and performing...that woman's got it for sure!

I also enjoyed seeing the Dundee Rep Women's singing group Loadsaweeminsingin for the first time. A huge choir of women, the group were a joy to experience – so joyful, so obviously all having a great time and singing from their hearts and boots (or stilletos). Their set contained a lovely choice of songs too – covering all the moods. That's very much something I try to do in performance...get to the highest highs, the lowest lows...and everything in between.

Anyway...I think I need to go and lie down in a dark room but I'll be back in a wee while to write about some poets I'm reading just now. That sounds a bit Scottish, eh?

x