Insomnia, Brass Band, Cactus

I am knackered today. I haven't slept very well for the past couple of nights for various reasons - another spate of aftershocks, temperature fluctuations (me and the weather), husband playing the bloody electric guitar and the school down the road starting their band practice in the playground at the crack of dawn every morning. As a result, I feel like death warmed up. I have had a couple of naps today, but they have left me feeling dazed and confused rather than refreshed. I hope to get a good night's sleep tonight, but I won't. I know that as soon as the sun comes up, those bloody kids will be out there in the playground again, beating drums and marching up and down to their brass band. Only it doesn't sound like a band - more like a herd of elephants dying slowly of prolonged constipation. They don't seem to have any idea of noise pollution in Japan. Tokyo is the noisiest place I have ever been to. One day, I may just have to go out to that playground in my pajamas and stick the teacher's trumpet up his anus. That might make an impression. Still, at least things have improved from ten years ago. Back the same school would prepare for the annual sports festival for three weeks beforehand and they would play the music from Dragonball over the loud speakers in the playground so loudly that it was maddening. To give you some idea how loud it was, if you stood next to our television and turned the volume up full, you still would not be able to hear the television. They wonder why the kids here are losing all sense of responsibility and respect for others, but it is it any wonder when their teachers behave in so thoughtless a manner? They are just copying the selfishness of their elders. What they need is a good kick in the nuts.

I mentioned I bought a cactus the other day. The good news is that I haven't killed it yet. It has managed to survive a whole week on my balcony so far. I have named it Wilbur and taken a few pictures (of course). Right now, Wilbur has three large and beautiful flowers and is adding a little exotic glamour to the gray concrete drabness of the veranda.

I found a fun site for old TV programmes online, and one thing led to another, and I've been watching a few shows on youTube. The first one was some compilation of the Kenny Everett Video Shows, which was fab, and then I struck pure gold and came across the full series of Dennis Potter's "The Singing Detective", which I never saw the first time round, but which my dad was always raving about. I have watched almost all of the first episode tonight and I'm praying I'll have time to watch the whole series before it gets taken down for copyright infringement.

Anyway, to bed and a decent night's sleep before those little brass band bleeders are up again. I'm going to pray hard for heavy rain to keep them inside until at least midday.