leonardcohen

Listen To The Hummingbird*

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I don’t sleep well last night which is a side effect of the cancer drugs. Watch the birds in the garden: my magpie; my wood pigeons; my robin and my great tits. They are not pictured as I don’t want to disturb them but you can see my bird feeder.

Have a sleep and then do some weights in bed. Have a chat with my brother in Abroad.

Now I have an important appointment with my television. Am watching The Man In The High Castle after I post this. It’s brilliant and complicated: not the sort of thing that one can watch whilst knitting; doing Tarot or indeed doing anything. Have to stop the television if I need a wee or any food as we move about a lot in space, location and time.

Am listening to Thanks For The Dance again. Have listened to it on repeat since it arrived: it’s so amazing to hear darling Leonard again from the other side.

Happy Saturday everyone!

*2019. Song by Leonard Cohen from the album Thanks For The Dance.

Andy Murray: Resurfacing*

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Arrive home in the middle of the night to rain. Finally make it home from the airport. Dad had set the heating to come on at seven o’clock so parental home Not Freezing.

Collapse into bed.

Wake up at seven o’clock this morning and walk Gandalf at nine:

Make it to Pilates:

Catch the train 🚞 and bus 🚌 into town to try on the Hayley Menzies dress at the pop-up shop before it closes tomorrow. It’s perfect:

Pop into the office first and my colleague gives me back my scarf 🧣 which I knitted for boss who died. Happy to have it back but was very sad to return to the office.

Here are Minnie and Mouse 🐅 🐅 in the shop:

Have lunch with my friend on Portobello Road.

Catch bus 🚌 home.

When I arrive at flat, my new Leonard Cohen album is here. Listen to it a bit then have a sleep.

Now am watching the brilliant documentary about Andy Murray’s recovery from his hip operations – Resurfacing – which has just been released on Amazon Prime. Urge you to watch it.

Happy Friday everyone!

*2019. Directed by Olivia Cappuchini. Documentary charting Andy Murray’s recovery from injuries and hip-resurfacing.

So Long, Marianne*

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Work hard at training where we do upper body: see my incline chest press above. Do four sets of all my weights and trainer is pleased with me.

Have lunch, meditate and sleep. Rush to my favourite cinema – the Everyman in Belsize Park – to see Marianne And Leonard: Words Of Love. There’s a lot to unpack in it. Have a cry at the beginning and the end. Think it’s brilliant. Am not going to say any more as I want you to go and see it whilst it’s still on. Ignore the bad reviews.

Wear my macaw dress for the first time this summer:

Finally the weather is warm and sunny but not too hot. Let’s hope it stays like this for a bit.

Am lying on my bed. The panther lies next to me, resting his heavy head on my back. Need to change out of my dress and make some supper: it’s 8.21pm.

Happy Monday everyone!

*1967. Song by Leonard Cohen from the album Songs Of Leonard Cohen.

Tonight Will Be Fine*

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Am up last night till 11.18pm finishing Fay Weldon’s Habits Of The House: Book One in the Love And Inheritance trilogy. It’s gripping: wonderful writing – and I’m desperate to find out What Happens. Meditate then sleep.

Wake up at eight o’clock this morning and watch last night’s Victoria. Last night’s episode of The Durrells is brilliant. Watching it is being enveloped in a warm hug for an hour: lost in Corfu in the early 1940s. Gerry is training a beautiful barn owl called Ulysses.

Work hard at training and trainer is pleased with me. Here’s my Lat Pulldown:

Book tickets to a Leonard Cohen tribute event on the South Bank on 24th June. Am going with a friend. It looks great. Yesterday was the Fiftieth Anniversary of the release of Songs From A Room so listen to that whilst packing this morning.

Am watching last night’s Silent Witness. Nikki has been kidnapped in Mexico by a cartel and is buried underground in a wooden box. It’s thrilling.

Suitcase is now stuffed: need to remove some clothes. Will do that once Silent Witness is finished. Also need to put a wash on and finish taking the dry clothes off the airer and put them away.

Suzy is coming to pick me up at four o’clock and take me to the Zoo – where we have a new Giant Salamander to meet – and then out to dinner in Camden. She’s on holiday for Easter now but has gone in to school today to crack on with her work.

Happy Monday everyone!

*1969. By Leonard Cohen. Song that appears on the album Songs From A Room which was released on 7th April 1969.

Waiting For The Miracle*

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Wake up and watch a Silent Witness. Then listen to The Future album by Leonard Cohen. Spend some time staring out of the window to see if puppy is being walked in the garden. He is. He’s so soft and have a cuddle with him:

Then go to gym and lift weights:

Then walk Dolly:

Dolly’s owner is really pleased with her scarf so am happy that she likes it.

Have lunch with Mum at Black Truffle:

http://www.blacktruffledeli.com

Then come home and have a sleep.

Finish The Energy Systems module for my Pilates Instructor Course and pass the worksheet with nine out of ten so that’s good. It’s meant to snow tonight but it sounds like rain from bedroom.

Winterwatch starts tonight but will probably record it and watch a murder instead.

Happy Tuesday everyone!

*1992. Song by Leonard Cohen from the album The Future.

Winter Lady*

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Achievements Of The Day:

  1. Wake up and listen to Songs Of Leonard Cohen whilst having my porridge and coffee.
  2. See a pied wagtail on my walk to the gym.
  3. Work hard at training and trainer is pleased with me. Show you my leg press:
  4. Watch an episode of Silent Witness whilst having lunch.
  5. Knit. Have almost finished a scarf for Dave’s little boy.
  6. Have a rest but don’t sleep.
  7. Put out a bag of rubbish and two bags of recycling.
  8. Put the washing away.
  9. Do two and a half hours work on the Energy Systems module for my Pilates Instructor Course.

Now am going to watch more Silent Witness and knit whilst waiting for Suzy to pop in. It’s her fortieth birthday today.

Happy Monday everyone!

*1967. By Leonard Cohen. Appears on the album Songs Of Leonard Cohen.

Who By Fire*

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It’s 6.37pm. We’ve just arrived home from the funeral. It was lovely and the vicar was very attractive.

Here are the floral tributes:

Here is my outfit. Dress is Joseph Ribkoff from Myla Clare:

http://www.mylaclare.co.uk

Go to synagogue this morning as it’s Yom Kippur, the Day Of Atonement. Don’t spend very long there, obviously, as have to get to the funeral by two o’clock.

We arrive at about one o’clock and I pop in to Sub Couture to see if there are any dresses I need – used to go there regularly when I worked in the area. Can’t find anything.

It’s sad circumstances in which to return to my old stomping ground. I remember happier times in Notting Hill with my boss, colleagues and Seb.

My skin has gone so bad because of the chemotherapy and put some makeup on for the first time in ages. Show you:

Makeup makes such a difference. Am going to make an effort to use it more often.

Look who is sleeping on the piano stool:

It’s the world’s best and fluffiest monster. Wish he would wake up so we could have a chat.

See lots of old friends and colleagues today, which is good. Unfortunately have missed my sleep and am so tired that feel have been run over by a truck. Am going to remove my makeup and get into my sleepwear. Hopefully Mum will be home from synagogue soon.

Happy Wednesday everyone!

*1974. Song by Leonard Cohen from the album New Skin For The Old Ceremony. The words are derived from a Yom Kippur prayer – Unetaneh Tokef.

Stories Of The Street*

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Spend an hour at the gym lifting weights this morning. You can see the chest press in the above photo. Also do triceps lifts; low pull; lat pulldown; arm extension; pectoral and abs tree. Manage four sets of everything. It feels good to be back to the gym, although there’s some way to go before I’m back to full fitness.

Walk to and from the gym. On the way home am also carrying milk, sparkling water and instant coffee.

Have been sleeping. Now it’s 5.45pm and I’m sitting up in bed writing this, sipping my coffee. Have just eaten an apple. Am listening to a Leonard Cohen playlist on my phone.

Have knitted this much of new scarf which is going to be a fortieth birthday present for Hannah:

An unrealistic plot development happened in Bodyguard which has put me off it a bit. On the plus side, see parentals’ chums’ house playing a safe house. There are several minutes of footage set there, so that is exciting.

Am going to post this and then watch an animal programme whilst knitting before supper and an episode of Midsomer Murders which have recorded after supper.

Tomorrow am walking Dolly and Suzy is coming with me so am looking forward to that.

Happy Tuesday everyone!

*1967. By Leonard Cohen. Song from the 1967 album Songs Of Leonard Cohen.

The Land Of Plenty*

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Suzy drops me at the gym for the first time since I think 7th May. That was my last Personal Training session before I went to see the oncologist about my breathing and all the lung treatment started.

It turns out that can still lift weights! Lift 15kg chest bar; 10kg triceps; 20kg pulley; 7.5kg High Pull; 20kg lat pulldown; 20kg shoulder press; 35kg arm pulldown. Manage four sets of everything. It feels great to be lifting weights again. Also is just good to be back at the gym – am reclaiming as much as possible of old life.

Walk home from the gym and make self a toasted halloumi and avocado sandwich. Chat to MadFatRunner. Listen to Leonard Cohen’s I’m Your Man album. Have a small sleep.

Wake up and listen to Leonard Cohen’s The Future album whilst knitting. This is how knitting looks now:

Am pleased with it. Clean contact lenses. Now am listening to Leonard Cohen’s Ten New Songs.

Hannah is picking me up at 7.30pm and we are going out for dinner. Haven’t been out for dinner with a chum for ages. This is meant to be an event with the crew. Dave and/ or Suzy may join us later but the others can’t make it.

A friend who is a fashion stylist is running a workshop to Find Your Authentic Personal Style. Write “My authentic personal style is Escapee From Dodgy Seventies Cult.” She responds “Brilliant 😂”. So will be wearing my massive new black flares with a black vest top and old striped cardigan this afternoon. Show you:

Happy Tuesday everyone!

*2001. By Leonard Cohen. Song that appears on the 2001 album Ten New Songs.

Taste In Men*

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Work hard at Spin although have no graph to show you as my heart rate monitor device ran out of battery. You can see me with The Master in the attached photo.

Then spend an hour attempting to get Placebo tickets for Robert Smith’s Meltdown. Arrive at the front of the queue and they’ve all gone. So that’s annoying.

See my gorgeous twenty two year old physiotherapist and he gives me new exercises: gliders, squats, more walking and one-leg-at-a-time bridges. And planks. He says I’ve lost strength in core and back since injuring back and need to build strength up again.

Sort of don’t want to recover so can keep seeing him Forever. My next book can be an account of my troubling attraction to much younger men, called The Paedo Files. Ah well, at least I make myself laugh and that’s the important thing.

This person has been inside a lot today:

He has also done some lying down outside under the swinging seat, but not much in the way of exercise. He’s in for the day now.

In my quest to become elderly as soon as possible, have decided to take Bridge lessons. Want to go to the club in West Hampstead where my Grandpa used to play. Unfortunately the lessons are Tuesday at eleven o’clock in the morning, so can’t go unless am allowed to move Dolly to Wednesday. Will ask her owner next week about this.

Achieve a lovely long sleep from three o’clock till almost half past five. I love sleeping,

Have cut up an orange to eat and have a coffee and lemon squash. We’re having vegetable curry tonight: have seen it waiting in the kitchen.

Had better post this and have a bath.

Show you my Leonard Cohen painting which is now finished:

Isn’t it wonderful. Am so happy with it. It’s by the brilliant @jakeandrewart. If you want a painting of your favourite song, just get in touch with him on Instagram.

Happy Thursday everyone!

*2000. Song by Placebo. From the 2000 album Black Market Music.