First, there was a diary. Yes, I'm serious. I kept a diary for years. I was still intermittently writing in it well into my twenties.
Then, in an attempt to join the 21st century, there were a series of blogs. This very blog that you are presently reading is the latest and most successful. It was a natural progression from a hand-written, and now very much destroyed, diary. Anyone who wants to add "of a wimpy kid" to the end of the previous sentence won't be far wrong.
Now, in a totally unforeseen, unplanned and somewhat unbelievable development, there is a stage play. Yes, you read that right. InsomniacMedic is coming to the stage. Not me personally, for that would be nothing short of foolish, frightening and entirely forgettable, but this blog has become the basis for a play that is to appear for two weeks at this year's Camden Fringe festival.
That's Camden, London, UK. Not Camden, New Jersey; or Camden, New South Wales. Sorry to disappoint any of you who may be inconvenienced by the distances involved.
Written by fellow insomniac and long-term friend Rachel Creeger of Time2Shine Productions, "An Insomniac's Guide to Ambulances" was borne out of many late night Facebook chats about our past experiences, mine as a paramedic and hers working with vulnerable families. InsomniacMedic was the starting point for this immersive piece which blends fiction and fact from both our real working lives, much like the blog itself.
As an added bonus, certainly for me, anyway, despite being several thousands of miles away from London these days, I plan on attending a few of the nights, including one where a Q&A session will follow the play. For all the details, head to the Camden Fringe website, and search for one of two theatres where the play will be showing: Upstairs at the Gatehouse from the 5th-8th of August, or at the LJCC from the 11th-15th of August. The Q&A is on the 12th.
I, for one, am honoured that this is even happening. I'd be even more so if you came and showed your support. At the very least, I could thank you in person for being a reader of this blog, and by that mere fact alone, making this entire project remotely feasible.
See you there, but no breaking any legs please. I'm supposed to be on holiday!
