I’m doing a freelance job at the moment, not a huge one but it’s better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick and good to keep the creative juices fresh. I knew this already but doing it has only confirmed to me how much I don’t like working from home. I wouldn’t call myself a people person but it’s nice having some direct contact with other human beings during the day, even if it’s only to bitch with them about what an arsehole the boss is.

I still go through the same morning routine as always — shower, shave, breakfast, get dressed, take the kids to school — but now instead of heading on to the office I turn around and come back home. My empty, empty home.

Download: Lonely Days – Bee Gees (mp3)

And what idiot was it said being unemployed meant more time for blogging? Oh right, that was me. Not quite working out that way so far.

Double posting today, but I thought if I held on to this much longer it wouldn’t be all that new anymore and I was keen to share this beauty from Father John Misty which might be my favorite single of the year so far.

Just so you know, the video is a tad NSFW (which probably means you’ll all watch it now.)

I don’t even like Manchester City but I went berserk with joy when they got the title-winning goal in the last minute of the last game of the season yesterday. Not because of any gentlemanly, neutral appreciation of the drama, but because it snatched the trophy from the grasp of that other team from Manchester, and schadenfreude is rarely more pleasurable than when it involves bad things happening to United.

Hopefully I’ll be going even more ballistic next Saturday.

Download: End of The Season – The Kinks (mp3)

I always thought ABBA were from Sweden but here they look like they’ve just rocketed in from Venus.

Miserable bloody weather here at the moment. This cheered me up a whole lot though.

RIP Maurice Sendak.

If you’re of my generation (which I think most of you are), then Where The Wild Things Are was one of the books you grew up with. It certainly fired up my childhood imagination in a big way and I still remember trying to copy Sendak’s beautiful drawings, especially those fabulous monsters. Even today when I draw a monster for my kids they look like the ones in that book with pointy teeth, shaggy hair, and horns.

Download: Storybook Children – Nancy Sinatra and Lee Hazlewood (mp3)

Splendid single from Chairlift with a very early-80s pop vibe going on. The lead singer’s voice reminds me of someone else too but I can’t think who.

Van the Man has charms to soothe the savage breast.