Day 131

Thursday November 16

It’s been a game changing time.

Before we get to that, as far as I’m aware, this is the single longest period I’ve ever gone without writing or putting up any Diary at all. And that’s going right back to the beginning of Mark’s Diaries, which started in the summer of 2014. Damn. Over nine years ago. It may be a little more while before posting, as right now we’re at just under eight weeks since the last entry of September 23. Then, apart from the fantastic Japanese live streams, the last actual live show we played was that momentous open mic in Edinburgh on August 6. Well over three months ago. That night, we were told by an ecstatic audience member that we absolutely could not stop. He said we had created our own genre at the very edge of pop music and that we had to keep getting out and playing as much as we could. However, for one reason or another, and none by our design we totally did stop after that. At least as far as getting out live was concerned.

So, what’s been going on? There are a few spots to hit, but first, Maja went away to Sweden for a visit towards the end of September. Then a week or so later her company announced a huge round of layoffs and she was caught up in that and made redundant. Job she came to London with, gone.

This job had been the sole reason she had been able to secure a visa to be able to live here in the first place as the company had sponsored her on a skilled workers visa. To get another job, she had to find an employer who would take on that sponsorship. That is a very very narrow field, so this really was what the hell next territory. Of course, while that scramble was going on, all Diaries and Diary activity instantly ceased. With Maja’s work being so specialised and at such a high level, this isn’t like someone losing a bar or restaurant job and simply walking into some other place and more or less starting the next day, kind of like I did a few times in London. No. These things are whole processes taking weeks.

As I’m sure you can imagine, all kinds of twists, turns and uncertainties followed. In the middle of it all came a momentous development on the complete opposite end of the emotion scale. 

Maja applied for and was granted an unmarried partner visa. First, this meant that she could now accept any job at all with or without sponsorship. Second, for the first time in London, this now makes The Diaries a very real possibility as a going concern in the UK with us now being able to fully pursue any potential commercial opportunities or ventures as and when they arise. Which means we can now totally target The Diaries as a full time deal for both of us. A huge ask in any circumstances of course, but an absolute impossibility without that particular visa. In the meantime, all is back on the rails again.

Third momentous event, which kind of had to happen really for us to be able to keep doing this, but still. Yes, Maja does indeed now have another job in the same high tech field as the last one, meaning The Diaries are now ready to be go again. And it was the new visa that made that appointment possible.

In among all that, first one of us and then the other got sick. Not massively badly, just annoyingly persistent, and for over two weeks. At the time of writing  – November 16 – Maja’s voice is still nowhere match fit but we’re getting there and will be hitting the hustle trail as soon as we feel up to speed again. At and around the same time, live streams will be up and running again too. Some in Japanese, some in English. We’ll let you know.