Have you been out today?

Some things that have happened that I have failed to mention lately:

Won 25 quid in a game of poker. Had my bike nicked the same night and therefore ended up down on the deal overall.

Christmas, new year, all that gubbins: good. Splendid food and drinkful Christmas at Faz's place. Not the smoothest journey home afterwards though as I was the one person in the country unaware that our rail system remains shut down throughout Boxing Day. New year largely ignored (by choice - never been much of a one for new year's) sat alone in the flat with a lightbox on my lap, picking away at the final episode of The Golden Bone Of Alexandria while watching rerun sitcoms.

Finished drawing The Golden Bone of Alexandria. Then Faz finished colouring it. Then I finished lettering it. Then I sent off the files. Then I spotted a bunch of mistakes, corrected them, spent several days adjusting the colour on a few other pages so slightly that it probably made no difference whatsoever to how they'll look in print, sent off the files again. As such the strip has been "finished" about four times so far. I think that really is it for a while. I'm now vaguely thinking about the next Good Dog, Bad Dog story "research" for which (i.e. reading some Chandler, watching some noir DVDs and stealing the best bits) will begin soon.

Informed by my physiotherapist that my impinged shoulder (had I mentioned I have an impinged shoulder? Oh. I have an impinged shoulder) is no less impinged than it was three months ago when I first saw her. Essentially some soft bit of me inside the shoulder gets caught between some of the hard, bony bits when my arm is in certain positions. This hurts. Also, my shoulder blade is not quite where it ought to be and moves about too much. At least I think that's the gist of it. Had needles stuck into me in acupuncturey fashion and that also had no noticeable effect. I continue with exercises for another month or so and if there's still no progress I get referred on to a specialist who may or may not give me an injection or recommend surgery.

Despite my enforced absence (see above) the Maypole Indoor Cricket team continue to lose heroically, though the Big Game is on Sunday and we live in hope. I will probably attend in the role of scorer which, given my hazy understanding of the rules, may well tip the balance if it's at all close.

Ate noodles ineptly with Woodrow Phoenix and had a glance at his forthcoming tome, Rumble Strip. It looked tip top but clearly needs the kind of proper reading which would be inadvisable in Wagamama at the best of times let alone anywhere near my slurping maw full of chicken ramen. I can confirm that there are falling pianos in it though (in Woodrow's book I mean, not in the chicken ramen - send it back if there are pianos in your chicken ramen, however confident you are of your chopstick skills) and that's always a good thing. Ate chocolate cake and drank tea at a different venue with altogether greater skill and talked the talk of comics folk and cartoonists (um, comics, movies, pens...).

And, um, probably some other things.

Rubbish post, I do apologise. Out of practice.