What should we talk about today?
The world according to Kirkey
MADNESS – Windsor Racecourse, UK: Friday 26th August 2023. According to the Oxford English dictionary, madness is defined as “crazy or stupid behaviour that could be dangerous,” and for those of you looking in on the United Kingdom at the moment, our once stable country has become the very essence of this statement. Our zombie … Read more
If I am brutally honest, I find most people irritating. For the whole of my adult life I have worked with, lived with, and been around people. I am beginning to believe that a period of solitude on a remote island or being totally lost in a crowded place where English isn’t the native language … Read more
From time to time I have been known to indulge in creative writing, but even I am a tad impressed with this piece ─ connecting speedway, a future king and the nineteenth century composer Richard Wagner! Stay with me for the full four laps and I will tell all … I had not seen my … Read more
Having ordered my pot of tea I waited for the optimum moment to maximise my purchasing power. The pouring of the milk, followed by the inevitable smile was my cue, “And a pot of boiling water please!” Years of experience synthesised in a second to seduce the situation to my advantage – I could squeeze … Read more
An affair should be, I assume, a combination of lurid lust, scintillating sex, frenzied fantasy, and riotous risk. The pulsing of the typically in and out experience, with secrecy secured by perhaps a preference for a backdoor entry, requires an energy that needs a ready supply of ─ literally and metaphorically ─ fucking fuel. So, … Read more
On track we see the swashbuckling, adrenalin charged champions of speed! Risk takers and racers! But after removing the helmet and boots, and securing the motorcycle, is life more akin to Hollywood or Borehamwood? And what is it actually like living with a speedway rider? Moody and sulky, or steady and compassionate? And do they … Read more
On cue the WhatsApp message pinged confirming that my mate would be late for our planned drinking session. A legitimate delay, but nevertheless characteristic. Since I had cadged a lift to our rendezvous point, I thought it only fit and proper that I take refuge in the pub and await his arrival. Hopping out of … Read more
If my own experiences are anything to go by funerals are usually pretty sombre occasions. I suspect the only exceptions to this general rule are when genocidal maniacs such as Hitler, Genghis Khan, and Pol Pot kick the bucket. Culture shapes what rituals are followed and how mourners should behave, with religion very often presiding … Read more
One Christmas Eve, aged around ten, I heard some odd shuffling noises coming from the landing. Tucked up in bed I decided to investigate, but I had to be cunning since my parents had given me a clear directive, “If you don’t go to sleep Father Christmas won’t come!” Lifting myself gingerly onto the chest … Read more
I often daydream. Indeed, as I have matured this pastime has become more regular, extended, and bizarre – culminating in forgetting to do stuff I had promised to do; for example, turning the oven on for dinner, putting the bins out or making that call. Laying on the beach without the same domestic pressures bearing … Read more