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I Get Around.


Today’s been a day of mass-sociability. 

I met my mum for coffee this morning, which was nice, as I haven’t seen her much lately. ‎We went through a phase of going out for lunch every week, which waned due to our lessening availability (an elaborate way of saying we had less time). While we were only together for an hour today, we still managed to fit in good catch up. Even if we hadn't, I'd say we did, as she often reads this. 

My mum then gave me a lift to Letchworth, to meet my friend Sarah at her new studio (she's an artist). I hadn't seen it until today. It's tucked away in a massive industrial estate (sounds like an insult: "You massive industrial estate"), so the search for her unit made me feel a bit like Anneka Rice. It didn’t help that my mobile’s Sat Nav had a deep-seated issue with her address and wouldn’t come to my aid. I couldn’t tell if it was directing to her studio, or just to “Letchworth” (which is no help when you’re already in it).  I refused to let my navigational skills be beaten, despite my mum’s repeated suggestion to ring Sarah for directions. In the end, she dropped me off at Lidl – and somehow, with just my instincts as my guide, I managed to find it, though I was twenty minutes late.

It was great to see Sarah, and to have a tour of her new space. It’s lovely, with much more room than her previous place; it makes Doggett & Ephgrave's office look like a cupboard (but then so does a cupboard). Her latest painting's bloody excellent and possibly my favourite. I’d buy it if I weren't a pauper.

A few hours later, we walked into town, where I waved Sarah goodbye, only to turn around and bump into an actor / musician friend of mine, Mike, who I haven’t seen for years. This led to an impromptu coffee and my third social outing of the day. I now know what Paris Hilton feels like (but that’s a different story).
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