I still haven't fully taken stock of the Edinburgh period. I'm simply trying to stay afloat and positive. I think it's getting a bit easier. I'd like to spend some time tomorrow relaxing with the cats, though one of them has decided to go for a stroll and not hang out with us. I'm going to assume that he's coming back near the house sometimes - he's probably not gone actually missing.

Anyway, ideas are forming for stuff I might like to do next year, and I think I'm going to try writing things while I'm in the mood to do that. I'll try to do it as it comes to me, rather than force myself through the process. There's plenty of time to create something lovely. Funny, hopefully.

I'm still in an odd mood. I'm not quite balanced. I'm tired from last night's gig, though that was worth the slight loss of sleep it cost me. It was a local gig, so I was home on the same day I left the house. This is not a challenge for a gigging comedian. Being home before 2am is a result, really!

Last night's gig was a lot of fun. I enjoyed it. It was a good post-Edinburgh outing of the comedy skills. The acts all did well and the audience were, ultimately, lovely and giggly. They took a while to warm up, and the opening MC bit wasn't as instantly grabby as it has been. That said, the dynamic in the room was a bit different to normal, and there were a few "incidents" which required handling.

It's nice to be a regular MC at a club that you like performing in. What happens in this situation is that you never feel that unsettled by things that occur. You're there for the long-haul and it's unlikely that any given 5 minutes is going to destroy your relationship with venue, promoter or audience... provided that you've got the right attitude to it. So the hecklers at the top of the show didn't faze me at all. I found them funny. Here's why.

There were two gentlemen at the back of the room talking loudly as I was settling the audience into listening mode. I pointed it out over the mic so as to make them aware that they were being disruptive. The audience focused on their chatter, and yet they didn't stop. I pointed that out. It continued. I pointed out that they weren't self aware. I then had the audience all point to these men. This eventually caught their attention.

I said hello, a little friendly banter, and one of them - very drunk - pointed at me, and with a cheery smile on his drunk face, declared "Wanker!". His friend, a bit more sober, then apologised. This repeated for a bit:

WANKER!!!! .... Sorry!

I laughed. It was funny. You had to be there, but I hope I've captured the contrast in their behaviours. One guy had only one response to me, and the tail end of his response was a very funny politeness of apology from his friend.

Though I made it clear to them that they were welcome in the club, provided that they shut up and enjoyed the show, which made nice with them without turning it into a shouting match, I also mimicked their behaviour for laughs, and was pleased to notice that they disappeared, the staff having removed them for simplicity.

In the rest of the gig, things went easier and I even did three of my songs to the audience, which were nicely received. All was lovely.

Today I have renewed my mail redirection. That's not really as rock and roll, is it!?

Tomorrow I shall have a go at tidying up the garden, hopefully finding any missing cats in the process.