Settling In

I've been in limbo this week. I wrote a final post on my Write Away blog on Squidoo (  http://www.squidoo.com/workshop/write-away ), saying that I was upping sticks and transferring to Blogger. I felt guilty. Another Squidoo blogger, ZodiacImmortal, had written it in saying that she liked it. And I will miss Squidoo's cuddly cartoon monster popping up telling me that I've earned points for this and that. How about friendly cartoons on Blogger?

But I'm settling in here. I've transferred some of the blogs I'd been following beforehand, plus some others which, horror of horrors, aren't on Blogger. Squidoo wouldn't let you do that- you could only follow Squidoo lenses there. And it's easier to find blogs with similar interests to your own. I've just discovered Tom Nash's forthright blog ( http://blog.thewritetomnash.co.uk/ ) by following the hobbies and interests link. And I gather, from Tom, that we're allowed use swear words in our posts. I never saw any of those on Squidoo.

I've gone back to work, but that's been okay. Last September, my council brutally closed down the building where I was working because they wanted to sell it off. I was transferred to two other buildings, and, actually, that's turned out to be a blessing, for me, anyway (awkward for the public who were using that building). My current workplaces have windows, and drinking water, and chairs. And a better class of nutter wandering in off the streets. So, as much as I love being off work, I don't feel suicidal on Monday mornings.

Spring is in the air. I got through last month with money left over- how did that happen? I've been listening to Astrud Gilberto's greatest hits. Don't tell anyone. God, I've started to enjoy Easy Listening. I came across that album last spring, and it formed a sort of soundtrack to some great days out that me and my wife had. But it's a slippery slope I'm on. I'm 45 this year. Up until now, I've liked pop music, mostly driven by electric guitar. But I stopped following trends when I was 21 or 22. I bought a Public Enemy cassette- I didn't have a CD player then- and couldn't get beyond the third track. And after that, apart from Paul Weller's stuff, I stopped bothering.

I don't think I missed much. Kylie Minogue, the Prodigy, I could live without those. I started listening to reissued stuff, rather than face the current top ten. I missed out on Britpop, which was a shame. When I eventually steeled myself to listen to Blur and Oasis, and found that I liked them, it was all over. Hey-ho. I gather that young people don't really listen to music, either, preferring game boxes. I've heard one gloomy prediction that one day there won't even be fiction or drama as we know it. The Alan Bleasdales or Tony Marchants of the future will have to design games. Dolequeue Warrior, Repossession, Acrimonious Divorce : 2 (Custody of the children).

I've gone in completely the opposite direction. I'm now reading more than I ever used to. The books aren't even illustrated. They're not even of this century. M.R. James, Sheridan Le Fanu. I haven't wanted to watch a DVD for ages. Sometimes I've put one on, but what I most seem to want to do, these days, is open a book or switch on the Kindle. If only kids knew what it was like to be drawn in, completely, by mere words. Having your imagination unlocked so completely.

I'm still casting around for ideas for a short story, so that I can enter Writing Magazine's horror story competition. In truth, I'm reading M.R. James's ghost stories at the moment to see what I can steal. I do that, sometimes. But apart from being awed by his brilliance as a storyteller, I haven't made any progress, and the deadline's in May. I've got to relax, not panic, and have fun. Treating myself like a factory was what caused my serious writers' block. Having fun, reading and then writing for pleasure, was my way out of it. I've got nothing to prove. I've written short stories this year, I've been productive, and I will be again in the future.