What's he on about now?

In case the articles, essays and opinions throughtout this site just weren't enough for you, here's my online diary (a.k.a. 'blog'). It's as close as you'll come to the inside of my head, so don't say I didn't warn you
(and remember, you can always e-mail me if you love or loathe anything you're about to read)...


   Monday, July 22, 2002

STORMY WEATHER

A prescription for rainy day blues:

1. A comfortable sofa or really big chair.
2. A thick book -- either an absorbing novel or, in this particular case, Andrew Solomon's fascinating 'atlas of depression', "The Noonday Demon."
3. A large window with a view of the rain and lightning.
4. A pot of tea, kept warm on the stove (hot chocolate is great, too; not sure about coffee).
5. "Queen of Soul," the 4-CD set of Aretha Franklin's Atlantic recordings.

Now, you could go with the majestic Billie Holliday (a day like this needs her version of "Stormy Weather"), but I felt the combo of rain, Billie and a big book on depression might be too big a downer. Conversely, Ella Fitzgerald seemed too upbeat (she's essential for any summer dinner or patio party). Aretha's voice matches this kind of weather -- rich melancholy punctuated by fiery outbursts. The woman is a damn legend!

Hope the rain stops before I have to go to work tonight but, thanks to my five-point plan, I don't mind being stuck indoors till then.