Monthnotes: July 2026

After a lovely June, July felt like pissing into the wind and I’m glad it’s done. The wheels fell off at the start of the month from a combination of stress, bad food and sickness – and never really got running again. Work commitments also meant cancelling some plans made back in September. There were some lovely high points, but overall it was a drag. The month started with a trip to the Lytham Festival to see Skunk Anansie and Alanis Morisette. I’ve not been to a lot of gigs since the pandemic, and I was surprised how much I enjoyed it. There was also a fun zine session at In a Land with Caitlin, a hike with some work friends, the office summer gathering, Gina and Lou’s wedding, an engineering summit, and Cleria and Mark’s visit. Hiking has been all-too-rare this year Work has, however, squatted toad-like over everything, with a delayed release causing a lot of stress. I’d also failed to book the holiday to EMF Camp that I’d planned since September. This was a stupid mistake, one…