Zante: Part V...

Bloody addictive mobile phone games!

No sooner have I weaned myself off Scrabble and Countdown, then I download Wordbrain... and, by Jimminy Cricket, it is bloody addictive.

It's essentially a wordfinder where the letters forming the identified linked words drop away from a grid once you have found the word. The depleted grid then offers new possibilities. Clear one 4x4 or 5x5 grid, then start another.

I currently have the brain of a whale according to the game's rating system. This is probably not a compliment...

Honky Tonk Samurai...

I am a long-time lover of the work of hardbitten-cum-offbeat thriller writer Joe R Lansdale. I thought The Bottoms and Cold in July were grimly fabulous, and I have also dipped into his short stories.

My favourite novels by him, though, are the Hap and Leonard books, which chronicle the misadventures of East Texas disaster magnets and best pals Hap Collins and Leonard Pine.

Honky Tonk Samurai is the ninth full-length novel featuring the duo, who have also starred in a couple of novellas, and it's a cracking story, littered with all the usual smart and funny dialogue and bizarre plot twists you'd expect.

Reading this book was like catching up with two old friends whose company you always enjoy, and I'm looking forward to our next hook-up when the next novel is out.

I'll also be catching up with online TV series on Amazon, too.

Love these guys.

Zante: Part IV....

'You're a sexy lady,
I'm a sexy man,
I may not have too much money,
But I treat you the best I can...'

I have just got out of the shower after a day on the beach and I am serenading the Missus. I am being romantic. I am all allure. She, however, thinks otherwise.

'I am reading a tragic book about a dying man. You can't sing, your rhyme structure sucks... and put some fucking clothes on!'

This was not the response I was looking for. I may dress as a plumber next time I am doing the romance. That always works in the films I watch.

Zante: Part III...

My cultural highlight of the holiday in Greece so far has been a trip to Olympus, site of the original Olympic Games in Ancient Greece.

It's essentially a museum-cum-ongoing-outdoor-excavation-site, a bit like The Forum in Rome, and it's very impressive.

From the demolished temples, to the workshop of sculptor Pheidias, to the arena where the games were contested, it's a fascinating place.

My favourite place was the Palaistra, an area where the wrestlers, boxers and Pankration fighters trained. I even did some punching and kicking drills to get into the spirit of it.

My favourite non-cultural thing a game I invented called Sneaky Bum Touch. This involves subtely touching the bum of your other half when they are not expecting it. Additional points are gained for Sneaky Cock Touch or Sneaky Fanny Touch. This may be the new Pokemon-go! Or Poke-a-man/ho!

Zante: Part II...

I am reading again and it is an utter joy. Although joy may not be the right word considering I am reading about crime and punishment in London, thanks to Catherine Arnold's excellent history on the subject, and the history of syphilis, thanks to Claude Quetel's book.

The Missus did suggest the latter was not appropriate holiday reading, but it's fascinating.

A lot of the moral and social arguments about sexually transmitted diseases in 16th and 17th century Europe were rooted in religious bigotry. It's disturbing to note that we don't seem to have come very far in the 21st century in that respect either.

Zante: Part I...

Me and the Missus are finally on holiday. I say 'finally' because it's been 20 long months since we last had a two-week break.

Our destination is a boutique hotel in a far-away corner of the Ionian island of Zante. It is beautiful and I can see us returning here.

The first thing I note is how long it takes me to fully unwind. It's at least four days. This is bad and it makes me realise how corporate-damaged I'd become at work, operating under continued and ever-increasing pressure in a toxic environment. I can't alter the environment as it's too entrenched, but the long and unrewarded hours are not continuing when I return.

The second thing I realise is that I have done virtually no playwrighting this year. I've done plenty of freelance writing work for money, but I have done little of my own stuff. This changes when I get back.

Finally, I have read one book this year. That will also change as I begin to read again this holiday.

Funeral Rites: Part I...

The Missus' stepfather died a few weeks ago, so we headed to Aylesbury for the funeral. 

The service was very moving and the church was packed, then we headed to the cemetery for the burial. 

Merrick, the stepfather, was Jamaican and he arrived in the UK in the late 1940s on the second boat after the Windrush. So there was a filling-in at the graveside, which means that friends and family complete the burial after the coffin is lowered into the grave and they shovel the earth into the hole, then decorate the grave. 

I'd never seen this before and it was both alien and very moving. My brother-in-law, who was very close to Merrick, joined in with this process. 

Then it was off to the wake and a joyous night listening to reggae, roots, dancehall and ska because Merrick was not only a DJ but also a major music fan and record-buyer. 

It was a moving day and a fabulous goodbye party. Merrick was a lovely fella and he'll be missed. I'll be listening to Joe Turner this week and thinking of you. Rest in peace.