2002-08-06 - 8:25 p.m.

Work is long and excruciating. I�m not cut out for analysing the finer points of textual style with layout people. I feel like I�m in some particularly sadistic reality TV show: �Day two at the office, and Pablo is drawn into a lengthy discussion as to whether to italicise a foreign term that has been submerged into the language. The sub editor realises a plateau has been reached as Pablo demonstrates his growing boredom by emptying the contents of the staple gun into his gaping mouth.�

The term was Feng Shui. I went with non-italics because that�s the kind of maverick I am.

Sadly I�m having to share my desk with a marketing droog. The big thing about him as far as I can tell is that he says the word �focus� more than can be healthy and has a personalised number plate �E Z T1GER�, which makes me want to save up, buy a car, drive up behind him on the motorway and take us both out it a massive automobile-strewn fireball.

Apart from that, Im having a whale of a time, and hoping for some heady capitalisation issues tomorrow, or maybe a prissy contretemps over a misplaced hyphen. That would be, like, tubular.