Last night saw the concert in Homersfield church of The Longslade Consort, and 49 people enjoyed a recital of early music on authentic instruments. Our organist coveted the spinet, and despite the heavy rain in the afternoon, the nackers had not gone limp. The evening raised a net profit of some £250 for the church redevelopment fund.
Just a brief glimpse of the sort of thing we heard ....
Friday 31 July 2009
Wednesday 29 July 2009
The scene of my exertions
More perspiration yesterday, and I'll be back there (DV) on Friday evening.
Monday 27 July 2009
A wet one
I've just had my windows cleaned ... in the rain ... and my gardener is due this afternoon ....
Clearly one of those days ...
Clearly one of those days ...
That was a heavy one.
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On Friday afternoon, this lot swept in from the west. Rapid lightning, loud thunder, heavy hail and tropical rain. Great stuff!
Thursday 23 July 2009
A wonderful sight
The restored Vulcan bomber has just flown overhead on its way to the Lowestoft Airshow. Beautiful aeroplane. One advantage of living here is that we quite often get our own private fly-past for this Show and also the big London events.
This will please some people!
The Bishop's letter of advice has now come though. In amongst the general hints that communion should be administered "in one kind only", and that a chalice should still be consecrated but "consumed by the celebrant only" (wasn'r this pre-Vatican II practice?), is this little paragraph:
"You will have noted that infection is caused by both droplets and physical contact. In the light of this it is also acceptable for clergy to review the arrangements for the exchange of the peace which can be done verbally and without physical contact."
I can hear the cheers from some in my rural parishes already!
I think I will also suggest that infected people wear little bells around their necks, and paint a large red cross on their doors in sheep's blood!
"You will have noted that infection is caused by both droplets and physical contact. In the light of this it is also acceptable for clergy to review the arrangements for the exchange of the peace which can be done verbally and without physical contact."
I can hear the cheers from some in my rural parishes already!
I think I will also suggest that infected people wear little bells around their necks, and paint a large red cross on their doors in sheep's blood!
It's almost here! Aaaachoo! (oink!)
Well, Swine Flu has reached Bungay, just 3 miles away. Only a matter of time now ...
Have just received an e-mail from the Diocese telling the clergy that advice about "suspension of the chalice" during this pandemic will be issued by the Bishop later today. No big deal really. Quite simple to intinct the wafers with the wine as I usually do for house communions. Best done in advance at a previous celebration, and then communicate from the Reserved Sacrament (depending on your theology!) I warned our parishes about 6 weeks ago that this was likely to happen. I also circulated in our Deanery the website address for the "Faith Communities & Pandemic Flu" advice document about Avian Flu, most of which is relevant to Swine Flu. I sent it to the Diocesan Office with the suggestion they might like to circulate it to all clergy in the Diocese. They ignored me and have never passed the address on.
So, for anyone who is interested, the pdf document can still be downloaded from here.
Have just received an e-mail from the Diocese telling the clergy that advice about "suspension of the chalice" during this pandemic will be issued by the Bishop later today. No big deal really. Quite simple to intinct the wafers with the wine as I usually do for house communions. Best done in advance at a previous celebration, and then communicate from the Reserved Sacrament (depending on your theology!) I warned our parishes about 6 weeks ago that this was likely to happen. I also circulated in our Deanery the website address for the "Faith Communities & Pandemic Flu" advice document about Avian Flu, most of which is relevant to Swine Flu. I sent it to the Diocesan Office with the suggestion they might like to circulate it to all clergy in the Diocese. They ignored me and have never passed the address on.
So, for anyone who is interested, the pdf document can still be downloaded from here.
Tuesday 21 July 2009
Monday 20 July 2009
So, it's going to be one of those months ...
It didn't start off well, but we'll let that one go for the moment.
Then last week there was the flat tyre as I was taking the car in for its service ... a pair of new tyres needed.
My telephone line has been playing up for the last fortnight - it sounds as if I'm standing in a empty swimming pool, and the fault appears to be on the internal wiring in the house, not the main telephone line. £115 call out fee for the technician at the end of the month, and then another £55 or so for a new extension line.
Today my scanner stopped working - no sign of life in it when it's plugged into the mains. Have tried it with another transformer, still dead. Need a new one of those then.
That's three things ...
Just as well there was a slight tax bonus on my stipend pay this month. It's all gone, and then some.
Ho hum.
Then last week there was the flat tyre as I was taking the car in for its service ... a pair of new tyres needed.
My telephone line has been playing up for the last fortnight - it sounds as if I'm standing in a empty swimming pool, and the fault appears to be on the internal wiring in the house, not the main telephone line. £115 call out fee for the technician at the end of the month, and then another £55 or so for a new extension line.
Today my scanner stopped working - no sign of life in it when it's plugged into the mains. Have tried it with another transformer, still dead. Need a new one of those then.
That's three things ...
Just as well there was a slight tax bonus on my stipend pay this month. It's all gone, and then some.
Ho hum.
A thought to ponder
The Christian faith does not say, "Here is the answer."
The Christian faith says, "Here you can find the answer."
The Christian faith says, "Here you can find the answer."
Friday 17 July 2009
Fern Britton's best giggling moment
Whilst I'm not an avid "This Morning" watcher, today the presenter Fern Britton left the show after 10 long years, and it will never be the same again. Fern and co-presenter Philip Schofield have had some of the best working ‘chemistry’ on TV, and their on screen giggling fits have become famous!
It seems the smallest thing can start them off - normally some childish sexual innuendo, like the word ‘uranus’ in a TV quiz - and once they start laughing, there’s no stopping them!
Here's another classic, but you need to know the context, which is that earlier in the show Philip had declared that he hated to dunk biscuits in his tea.
It seems the smallest thing can start them off - normally some childish sexual innuendo, like the word ‘uranus’ in a TV quiz - and once they start laughing, there’s no stopping them!
Here's another classic, but you need to know the context, which is that earlier in the show Philip had declared that he hated to dunk biscuits in his tea.
Wednesday 15 July 2009
Feeding the beast
Supper last Saturday ...
... smoked haddock fishcakes, chips, mushrooms and broccoli. Comfort food!
Lunch today ...
... sliced tomato, mozzarella cheese, new potatoes, "little gem" lettuce, celery and sliced beetroot. It was the mayonnaise that made it so healthy!
... smoked haddock fishcakes, chips, mushrooms and broccoli. Comfort food!
Lunch today ...
... sliced tomato, mozzarella cheese, new potatoes, "little gem" lettuce, celery and sliced beetroot. It was the mayonnaise that made it so healthy!
Tuesday 14 July 2009
That should lose a few lbs
An energetic day.
An early morning start to take the car into Norwich for its first service - delayed by the discovery of a flat rear tyre. Emergency wheel put on by someone far younger than I and consequently a more sedate drive than usual to the city. Then walked from the garage down to the gym at Riverside - this took 40 minutes, so I reckoned that I had done my main shift on the treadmill for the day. Then spent 80 minutes or so in the gym before leaving my bag in the locker and walking up into the city centre. Haircut, a visit to HMV to browse the Sale DVDs, and a double espresso and a toasted ham and cheese sandwich in Costa. Then another 40 minute walk back to collect the car, through increasing rain and a thunderstorm for the first half of the journey, then sunshine for the second half, which meant I had almost dried out by the time I got to the garage. Had to purchase pair of new tyres as the punctured one could not be repaired. Then drove the car back to the gym to collect my bag and decided to go for a swim before leaving. Several lengths and than a short session in the sauna, then the drive home.
If I keep this up I might regain a waist!
An early morning start to take the car into Norwich for its first service - delayed by the discovery of a flat rear tyre. Emergency wheel put on by someone far younger than I and consequently a more sedate drive than usual to the city. Then walked from the garage down to the gym at Riverside - this took 40 minutes, so I reckoned that I had done my main shift on the treadmill for the day. Then spent 80 minutes or so in the gym before leaving my bag in the locker and walking up into the city centre. Haircut, a visit to HMV to browse the Sale DVDs, and a double espresso and a toasted ham and cheese sandwich in Costa. Then another 40 minute walk back to collect the car, through increasing rain and a thunderstorm for the first half of the journey, then sunshine for the second half, which meant I had almost dried out by the time I got to the garage. Had to purchase pair of new tyres as the punctured one could not be repaired. Then drove the car back to the gym to collect my bag and decided to go for a swim before leaving. Several lengths and than a short session in the sauna, then the drive home.
If I keep this up I might regain a waist!
Saturday 11 July 2009
Mistaken identity
I first noticed this error for Year B Proper 10 in the Revised Common Lectionary six years ago, and again three years ago, and I can't believe it hasn't been spotted by anyone else.
Here's a verse from tomorrow's Gospel reading as it appears in the New International Version of the Bible:
Mark 6:22 When the daughter of Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his dinner guests. The king said to the girl, “Ask me for anything you want, and I’ll give it to you.”
And here's the same verse as it appears in the Revised Common Lectionary books (and on the printed reading sheets which we use as distributed by Redemptorist Press):
Mark 6:22 When his daughter Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests; and the king said to the girl,‘Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it.’
Have you spotted the error?
I wonder how many churches tomorrow will read the RCL text and not even notice.
More to the point, why hasn't there been any correction issed by the Liturgical experts of the church or the RCL editors?
Friday 10 July 2009
The Torch is out ...
Well, that's that then. The end of 5 nights of intense drama. Very dark subject matter, which just shows how far this programme has travelled from the early episodes of Weevils running around Cardiff. Great acting from all involved, especially the children who must have all leapt at the chance to be in "Torchwood".
The veneer of civilisation is very thin, and what we take for granted day after day would soon collapse given the right (or wrong) circumstances. Swine flu may do it yet now we have the first death, in Essex, of someone with no underlying health problems.
Lots to think about, and that's exactly what good TV should do. The BBC at its best.
Monday 6 July 2009
And then in the evening ...
The new Torchwood series began on BBC1! And what a cracking first episode! Much darker and more intense, and a great cliff-hanger ending. Part 2 tomorrow!
T'was on a Monday morning ...
A much more pleasant temperature today - humidity has dropped, and although there's cloud cover it's still warm.
A typical Monday morning - washing machine going, items from Sunday services to be cleared from the study desk, contribution for the non-church Community News magazine to be written, new service rotas to be compiled, an inaugural meeting for a new Charitable Trust this afternoon, some images to be scanned into the pc, time to start thinking what I shall do with a few days off-duty in August ...
Kettle boiled, another mug of coffee, and on we go ...
A typical Monday morning - washing machine going, items from Sunday services to be cleared from the study desk, contribution for the non-church Community News magazine to be written, new service rotas to be compiled, an inaugural meeting for a new Charitable Trust this afternoon, some images to be scanned into the pc, time to start thinking what I shall do with a few days off-duty in August ...
Kettle boiled, another mug of coffee, and on we go ...
Thursday 2 July 2009
It's half past 10 on a hot sultry evening ...
... and I'm sweating in the kitchen making gooseberry and elderflower jam .... am I mad?
Tomorrow it's 3-fruit marmalade that will be on the go ...
Tomorrow it's 3-fruit marmalade that will be on the go ...
Wednesday 1 July 2009
I know it's schoolboy humour, but ...
... that's another good one done gone.
MOLLIE SUGDEN
21 July 1922 - 1 July 2009
MOLLIE SUGDEN
21 July 1922 - 1 July 2009
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