Au Suivant

Its Sunday night, the day has been the sunniest of this year. Hampstead heath was heaving. Down from the men’s pond, overlooking one of the open ponds, people stripped off and acted like it was 80 degrees.

A posh girl, only yards away, evacuated her personal life into a mobile phone. She had evidently been abroad; spent the night with a guy who was just about ok. Somehow her clothes got wet, or were un-wearable (I forget).

So she wore his surfer shorts and surfer tee shirt on the bus. And it was full of people going to work, and there she was dressed in inappropriate clothing. She interspersed her story with “Its very private,” and then proceeded to let anyone in earshot know inner workings of her sex-life.

People close by had another glass of wine. Another group were talking about buying English lessons, either as a Christmas or Birthday present. I fell asleep for fifteen minutes or so, and dreamed about nothing in particular.

The heat retracted, and we left; walking through the privileged environs of Highgate and then down through the brutal concrete of Archway.

The lady in the flat below has an accordion, and when I pass her door today Jacques Brel springs to mind. I imagine her playing Amsterdam, because it suits an accordion. But for continuities sake, I will have her play Au Suivant or Next as it’s known in English.

Alex Harvey

Back in the 70s Alex Harvey , and his band The Sensational Alex Harvey Band recorded a version of Next . The Jacques Brel song previously recorded by Scott Walker and others.

In a weird twist of fate Harvey suffered a fatal heart attack in Zeebrugge Belgium ; the country where Brel was born.

On Maunday Thursday, I got a call about my Belgium job; apparently its on again. And there is a possibility of some work happening very soon.

The Belgium job has been on and off since November 2009. I’ve had three interviews over the telephone. Had a Christmas meal with my agent to celebrate the contract. And was given a start date in January. January came and went, and the work was scaled down to a couple of days. Then the days were rolled back, until the job dissapeared all together.

I’m supposed to hear next week when they want me to start.

So to tempt fate myself, I’ll post the Alex Harvey's version of Brel’s song Next. Maybe it will bring me luck, and I’ll stop having those redundancy nightmares. Next, your next.