Rushes – Wayne 49

[For a quick guide go here: Quick guide.

For back story go here: Story so far at 30 Nov 2020 and more recent Wayne episodes especially this one.]

[Other back story through in-links.]

This is just a piece of rubbish to some people but honestly it’s way important to me. It’s the first plastic toy I got from a take-away. Take-aways. That was the start of it. Partly it was just the hunger of it and the immediacy of being able to get food, eat it, feel better, carry on. When you’re growing up you don’t tend to think about the health side of anything, you just want it fast. Get it with your mates, pay with it with whatever – was never any kind of street urchin taking an apple and tipping the wink – we got money from wherever, yeah, didn’t always ask questions, because let’s face it you just want to eat and that’s all you can think of.

White trainers, trackie bottoms in grey, black trackie jacket. Shirt doesn’t matter – can’t be seen – and the trademark baseball hat. Trying to match the people he saw around him, particularly the older ones he felt he needed to impress, the young Wayne Dempsey looked a bit uncomfortable in his attire, despite it being styled out for comfort. And the problem was that in trying to fit in he just demonstrated just how much he didn’t.

“Some of this stuff was borrowed,” says Wayne, talking direct to camera. “There were a couple of other kids my size and I think they took pity on me. There was no one for me to get hand-me-downs from you know, so I found my own supplier as it were.”

“This state of affairs couldn’t last long,” put in MacCabe, but unable to go further with his observation he added. “We’ll find a proper link later – let’s not sweat the small stuff.”

Some kind of line about how Wayne’s haphazard cobbled together style led to him being cut out of some of the action that was going down. This left him even more of an outcast.

“Was bad at the time,” says Wayne, “but actually that could have all done me a favour. I mean there was stuff happening around me, dodgy stuff I knew about, and because I didn’t fit in I had more space to find out what I wanted to do. Hey presto – music and tunes.”

Warbled question off camera. “Nah mate,” says Wayne. “Had to be Grime. No other options available or possible.”

The black box is somewhat battered now. Several hundred mono quarter inch jack plugs slammed into the back and pulled out unceremoniously. The box itself thrown around – sometimes while it was still plugged and playing. But it produced drum sounds like nothing else. A compete powerhouse that could be stuffed into a duffle bag and wired in anywhere. Just that and a mic and honestly you can do anything. Sure later on you’ll add layer on layer of texture or whatever, but sometimes you just want the stripped down impact you can only get with something like that. It’s not even old school, it’s the first thing anyone made when the technology meant it could be made.

A pair of running shoes. Well worn, not on brand. Slight appearance of blood stain to top of left shoe. They’ll know why.

“This place was where I went to school. When I went to school. Can’t say I learned much there, but then again maybe I did. Maybe it got into my system without me noticing. Writing stuff. Maths – cos you gotta have maths to programme anything or even to understand how to structure stuff. You might not realise it but it’s there. Like some kind of code just holding everything together. Holding the world together. There’s a logic to it all because otherwise you have no idea when to stop your versing and then slam into the chorus. Anyway - see the bike sheds? Yeah, you see the bike sheds. We learned stuff here, didn’t we hey?”

Heat oven to 160C/gas 4. Butter and line a Swiss roll tin. Whisk yolks and sugar together with filling option until thick. Whisk the whites into stiff peaks. Fold this into the other mixture. Pour in the greased tin and cook for 40 mins.

Whip the cream and add caster sugar and vanilla extract. Continue to whip. 

Put roulade on to greaseproof paper. Spread cream over the roulade and roll up tightly from the long side, using greaseproof paper to help (don't worry if the sponge cracks).

MacCabe flicked off his computer monitor, sighed and scratched his head. It was a life alright, but God only knew what he was going to do with it.