Rufus Wainright showboating at Hammersmith Odeon - a performance of great variety including a moving rendition of John McCormick's Macushla (apologies to any gaelic speakers for my spelling) [= heart-throb]
Visiting Emily Allchurch's exhibition with Malcolm Garrett, Buzzcocks designer
Walking across height-of-autumn St James's Park in the low afternoon light
Hearing the story behind 'Into the Wild' from Sean Penn and his young lead Emile Hirsch at a viewing at the Vue, Leicester Square - plenty of food for thought in that one on the simple pleasures front
The prospect of a weekend en famille in Paris - swopping practical arrangement emails with Marco Truong
Walking through St James's Park after dark - the lit-up London Eye at the end of the lake
Written in the margin of a book which lay open by the body of Chris McCandliss in the Magic Bus, parked up in the wilds of Alaska
Whilst I broadly agree, I can think of moments which are exceptions - like swimming outdoors in the light rain overlooking the snow-capped Rockies in Banff this summer (shi-it, now I've shared it with you...)
This is a tough one but a good yardstick for those of us who have gone through the one most significant transformation in life: from being a Child to being a Parent...
"A great secret of success is to go through life as a man who never gets
used up."
Albert Schweitzer (1875-1965)
We need to be careful not to exhaust ourselves or let ourselves be exhausted. We need to take care of ourselves, recharge our batteries, stay inspired...
Under the trees on Maria's allotment drinking her perfect Greek coffee with Katherine, visiting from Aspen
Watching the England-South Africa World Cup rugby final with Ja on the tv in Bar Italia in the room below where TV was first demonstrated by Logie Baird (my favourite blue plaque)
Carleen Anderson doing Night in Tunisia in Ronnie Scott's - family outting for Mo's birthday
Having a conversation with Patti Smith about Rimbaud in London (whose birthday it is tommorow) - after her performance with Philip Glass and Lenny Kaye at St Lukes, Old Street in honour of Allen Ginsberg
Having a quick chat with Paul Morley about Joy Division and Control in said church
Lunch with Will Gompertz at the Tate Britain restaurant with a quick tour of the Millais exhibition for dessert
Too late Tonight To drag the past out into the light We're one, but we're not the same We get to Carry each other Carry each other One... Have you come here for forgiveness? Have you come to raise the dead? Have you come here to play Jesus To the lepers in your head?
Unveiling of the Big 4 public artwork - decorated in the first instance by Nick Knight - created a real buzz of energy around Channel 4's HQ in Horseferry Road
Finding out by chance about a second BIMA nomination - Breaking the News for Education & Training category - forgot we'd even entered it
The corner of Soho around Marshall Street - former home of Solus Enterprises and Buzzy Films
The elation of the England rugby world cup victory over France - extraordinaire! Watched it downstairs at the Lord Palmerstone on Dartmouth Park Hill when I was supposed to be upstairs otherwise engaged - so naughty but nice factor too.
Getting D's compass fixed at the Italian clock-makers in Crouch End
Kicking the rugby ball with N and Gonzalo at Kenwood
A talk by gifted and original photographer/artist Emily Allchurch at Channel4, followed by a lovely chance encounter with her later at Frost & Reed gallery in St James's where her current exhibition Urban Chiaroscuro is hanging. She's clearly a great lover of London.
An autumnal afternoon walk through St James's Park with artist Laura Williams, creator of Aluna, the lunar clock - a hugely ambitious public artwork destined to appear on the north bank of the Thames opposite the Millennium Dome at the site of the East India docks. Another lover of London.
Watching the Marx Bros in Duck Soup with the Enfants Terribles - D schticking himself - especially the mirror scene
Bonus pleasures: Finding out, out of the blue, that Big Art Mob has been shortlisted for a BIMA Award in the Art & Culture category
A splurge at Hatchards bookshop in Piccadilly including Peter Ackroyd's new book about the Thames, Robert Harris' new thriller, the first Biggles book for N, Michael Ondaatje's new novel for U, and a John Updike for book group
Dazed & Confused by Led Zeppelin as performed by Letz Zep - guitar solo by the one&only Chris Cawte
Been dazed and confused for so long it's not true Wanted a woman, never bargained for you Lots of people talk and few of them know Soul of a woman was created below
Witnessing Chris Cawte (as Jimmy Page) play an amazing guitar solo, using a cello bow to create weird&wonderful sounds, in Led Zeppelin's Dazed & Confused. Letz Zep played the Underworld in Camden Town - the best Led Zep tribute band in the whole wide world.
Reading Revolutionary Road after resting it for four years
Being filmed by the BBC for a factual tv conference in New York - thank God for post-production, hopefully bits of it made some sense...
Walking round in a T-shirt at this time of the year - today's T: my Gil Scott-Heron one from that great Jazz Caff gig (Gil, hope you're peaceful wherever the fuck they've put you)
Watching the Big 4 start to come together under an autumn sun
Meeting Peter Hook of Joy Division - he signed my copy of Atmosphere. Atmosphere is used in Anton Corbijn's film Control to mark the discovery of Ian Curtis' death and his ascent into the atmosphere
Watching the offline of the first episode of Picture This featuring Martin Parr and my dealer Alex Proud - on the train to Aardman Animation in Bristol
Reading with D in the garden, in the fading light of an autumn evening
Isolation by Joy Division as featured in the film Control - about two minutes ago I met Peter Hook at the Phoenix Cinema in East Finchley : the last time I saw him was nearly 30 years ago at the Lyceum in Lodon supporting the Buzzcocks - tonight I remember Ian Curtis and my friend Steve Simmons, may they rest in peace
But if you could just see the beauty These things I could never describe These pleasures a wayward distraction This is my one lucky prize
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