hot in the city…
Apologies for another slightly tardy missive, but in my defence I have only just returned from another busy and very enjoyable London trip and considering that an unfortunate mix up on arrival at my usually exemplary accommodation resulted in my spending four days entertaining in the garden in little more than a furnished shoe box rather than reclining in my usual gracious upper-floor digs, I am feeling decidedly relaxed and laissez-faire (although in all fairness, my little box did have a kettle, toaster and thankfully a refrigerator). It is truly to the credit of my wonderful regular London gentlemen that they each remained stoic and uncomplaining throughout, even though the lack of space and more vitally, the lack of any air conditioning on what must have been the hottest, muggiest week of the year so far made for some serious exertion just undressing, and their courtesy and lack of criticism is testimony to them all.
I, however, am rarely afraid to express a view although this time it was to no avail, and after a desperate plea eventually obtained a small desk fan for aiming at the bed in an attempt to take the edge off. Unfortunately, the stultifying and oppressive heat rendered the conditions similar to sleeping beneath a pile of fat, panting Labradors after a lively game of ball, and I had to settle for the odd restless hour at a time until, typically, Wednesday rolled around and my final night cooled off a touch. My return in August will now be played out at a nearby but alternative venue; rest assured that everybody’s comfort will be top priority, mine included.
Minor irritants aside, I have been happy to welcome both regular visitors as well as a few new friends, and have enjoyed lots of treats including wonderful Vietnamese food, the hotel’s delightful health club (the irony of sitting in the sauna after my swim prior to spending the night in its counterpart was not lost on me) as well as trips out to the pictures (as ever, but the Curzon Mayfair – bottom right pic – was particularly fabulous), inadvertently running into a film premiere (‘The Killers’ – top left picture – no, me neither) and a visit to the Tate Modern on the special boat, an activity that on its own had me beside myself with childish excitement having not been on any sort of boat for a considerable amount of time. The last would probably have been in the Maldives some two years ago now, although the Thames and the Indian Ocean do not share many similarities other than basic chemical composition, and even then there is probably some room for debate. I can highly and unreservedly recommend the current Exposed exhibition at the TM, which filled three hours of my afternoon pondering the topic of ‘voyeurism, surveillance and the camera’ and contains many moving, some shocking and all fascinating images, many surreptitiously taken and spanning from the earliest days of photography to the present. Some, I might add, were even a bit rude (although considerably less so than bits of the Pop Life exhibition earlier in the year which I loved, despite it leaving me with a low-grade migraine, backache and a short-lived but no less irresistable desire to shag Jeff Koons).
My usual luck on the art side was to run out on Thursday when upon arriving an hour later than intended for the Summer Exhibition Buyer’s Preview at the Royal Academy (an event some will know that I look forward to every year, and have always aimlessly wondered how many other Working Ladies get invited to given that I never fail to spot a couple), I found to my bitter disappointment that each of three pieces I was interested in buying was spoken for by the time I fought my way to the sales desk, and I left somewhat forlornly until I realised that by making no purchase I was technically over £2000 better off, and immediately made haste to the Oxford Circus Topshop. The story does not end there, on returning home I sent a hopeful and speculative email to the creator behind my favourite of the three (a textile artist and hobby entomologist; very much my kind of lady) enquiring about a possible commission, and lo and behold, another ‘Moth Balls‘ is available and will provisionally be mine once it finishes it’s stint at another exhibition running concurrently. Thank God I couldn’t find anything I wanted in Topshop.
Anyway, back to the week in hand. As some of you will know I intend watching a great deal of football in the ensuing days and as a result will not be taking any short notice appointments – the four people who have already tried today (including the gentleman who rang asking for an incall at ‘twelve or one-ish’ at er, quarter past twelve) have been courteously turned away and invited to try another time after reading the website. The Adultwork phone, predictably, is gainfully occupied with receiving abusive text messages from a particularly cowardly and ignorant individual who thought I was the bees knees until I politely requested that he follow my profile instructions for making contact and use the on-site form, whereupon dummies were spat and as ever, my superlative screening system for the site known variously as Adultwank, the Other Site, and Timewaster’s Paradise came into its own.
Availability wise; I am provisionally available on Friday, and possibly for a short while on Wednesday afternoon – that’s it. This does not include evenings, when I do not normally work but I can offer a few limited appointments over the next few weeks given that large portions of my usual entertaining-time are occupied with the World Cup. Bandwagon-jumping is not my thing, and I will not be donning a cheap, tight white T-shirt with a red cross on it and pretending to understand what’s happening on the pitch whilst talking all the way through it and blocking other people’s view in the pub – my 50″ television and well stocked fridge will be more than ample and I am looking forward to the tournament very much.
As ever, email for bookings, blah blah, no same day, blah blah, you know the rest by now. Have a great week everybody – I’m pretty sure that I will. Oh, and hope you like the new photos! More to follow soon…
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