Analyze That

I was up early this morning and drove into Salisbury to meet with Lee and pick up the tickets for the Army v Navy rugby game at Twickenham tomorrow. We met in Cafe Nero over a couple of coffees. After doing some banking I went shopping in Waitrose and bought a cheap England rugby shirt for tomorrow at the sports store next door. A nice neutral shirt - I am going as a guest of the Army but will be supporting the Navy! I dropped off Rod's tickets at his home off the Downton Road. He was not at home and I was fearful of putting the tickets through his letter box as a rather large and noisy canine creature seemed to be on the other side. I decided to leave the tickets in an envelope propped up against the front door. Rod later phoned me to thank me for my prudence because had I put the tickets through the letterbox the dog would have chewed them up and he wouldn't be going to Twickers tomorrow! I met up with Sara, Richard and Linda for lunch at the Lord Nelson's Arms (the plural of these limbs seems to be an oxymoron) where Sara was acting as waitress and barmaid. There was a large crowd of pensioners in again today. I sat with Richard and Linda as we had a light lunch of baguettes (mine was tuna mayonnaise) and drank a new beer Roger had just put on - not bad either - a bit of a bitter bitter. After lunch I set about the research for my lecture on Ezra and Nehemiah which I am giving at a masonic meeting in Brighton on Tuesday and Sara spent most of the afternoon working on our Food for Thought service on the 9th May. I really enjoyed the theological and historical research surrounding the building of the temples at Jerusalem and the Babylonian exile. I used my study bible and its concordance, biblical commentaries and Google to assist me in my research. This evening I set about putting those researches into an interesting lecture and managed to write up the first three pages setting the scene. Still much more to do but it will be done by Tuesday morning. Tonight Sara and I watched Analyze That - a film starring Robert De Niro and Billy Crystal. In it a Mafia boss (De Niro) dupes a psychiatrist (Crystal) into thinking De Niro has a severe mental problem and is consequently released from prison into his care at Crystal's own home. The consequences are humorous with some great one-liners e.g. in trying to be rehabilitated De Niro gets a job as a car salesman and points out to a young couple who are thinking of buying a car "Look, the boot is even big enough to put three bodies in it!". Early night now as I need to be up early to catch the train from Grateley to Twickenham via Reading with Klynn and Richard. Hope Richard remembers to bring the sausage butties he's promised!

Forgiveness

I am really beginning to feel less like being retired and more like I am on a career change. I feel more certain that having put aside my life at my former company, my energies are now directed towards my own business and church as well as a fuller involvement in running the home and being a father. However, with Sara being back, I let her get the kids ready for school today. She went off this morning to Braishfield Garden Centre to learn about how not to kill clematis (they need gallons of water apparently) and the advantages of pruning. She met up with Lucy as arranged but also met Rosemary from our House Group. Rosemary is a very keen horticulturist. Whilst she was out, I set to in tidying up and dusting the dining room. polishing the door windows, and I also piled logs into the fire grate to give the room a focal point. We are expecting a decent number at House Group this evening. Sara returned in time for a late lunch of fresh carrot and coriander soup followed by chicken salad which I prepared. I am enjoying salads again now that the good weather seems to have returned. This afternoon I researched and reviwed the material for House Group - a continuation of the book "The Shack" but with the topic of forgiveness at the forefront. Tom was playing football this evening - a vital match against Sarum Juniors at Pembroke School in Salisbury. If Clarendon U13s win their remaining four games (and a win against Sarum was essential) then they could win the league championship and get promoted to a much bigger league. Unfortunately, because I had to get back to lead the group I couldn't stay. Tom was brought back by the mother of another team player with the wonderful news that they won 2-1. This means they are still in the running for promotion. Nail-biting, just as it is for Grimsby Town following Barnet's loss this week. As mentioned earlier, tonight we discussed "forgiveness" and the essential fact that it is all about "letting go" and "freeing oneself" rather than feeling weak or condoning the acts of another. Not "forgive and forget" but rather "forgive and move on". Pain and suffering cannot nor should not, necessarily be forgotten - they are reminders to learn from the experience build on it for the future. Nurturing a grudge, however, destroys the person with it, not the person to whom it is directed. We had some good personal testimonies and, I think, a better understanding of the subject. Two members of the group, in particular, are grappling with the concept in ongoing tough situations right now. Afterwards, Klynn stayed for his customary whisky. He finishes his existing job tomorrow and starts with a new company on Tuesday. I really hope it works out as he has been struggling with his current role for some time and needs the change. People like Richard and I can take up some of his ministry roles here with FFT until he gets settled in.

God's Creation at its Best - Bluebells in Bentley Wood

Got up really early this morning - I thought it was 7 a.m. in my mind but in reality it was only 6 a.m.! Still, the sun was shining and I had another busy day ahead. I made tea for myself and cooked Tom's breakfast of a bacon butty. Molly arrived at 7.30 a.m. on the dot and I cooked pancakes for her and Mary with fresh sliced oranges and lemon juice. By 9.00 am all was peace again and I put the last of the washing in the tumble drier - yes I know I should really have hung it out but that takes so much longer. I had a quick shower to the accompaniment of Jeremy Kyle in the background berating some Norfolk lesbian and her girlfriend who want to "marry" against the wishes of one of their mothers. Too complicated to explain but it does seem that everybody who puts themselves on that programme has an IQ of about 6. I guess that is why it has become compulsive viewing for many. I cycled down to St. John's at just before 10 a.m. to join nine others in the Mid-Week Eucharist conducted by Elizabeth and assisted by Jane. Cynthia and Nils were also there so that made four clergy and six laity in total. I invited Maxime back for coffee and she followed me in her four wheel drive whilst I cycled back. Sara phoned whilst she was with me to say she was leaving Forest Mere and would be back at lunchtime. I was watching an interesting programme about diving on the wreck of the Admiral Graf Spee when Sara turned up - I think she must have thought that I had been spending all my time watching TV. Hopefully all the cut lawns and washing etc. will have dispelled that thought. We lunched together before I went off into Salisbury on a couple of errands. This afternoon Mary and I went on a six-mile cycle ride through Bentley Wood and we were treated to the most wonderful spectacle of bluebells in amongst the trees. God's creation at its best. I couldn't resist taking several photographs - a couple of which are shown above.

Washing and Mowing Day

Up early again as I needed to get the kids off to school. This entailed cooking breakfast (bacon butties and waffles), ensuring they had everything they needed for the day's lessons, giving Tom £2 for his school lunch and packing up Mary's lunch - fruit, cucumber, roll, Wotsits, cheese string and pepperoni and apple juice. Hopefully reasonably well balanced! Having seen them off I set about taking clothes out of the tumble dryer and sorting it into piles for each person, putting another load into the washing machine and so on and so on all day! I enjoyed sorting the piles on our bed whilst watching the unbelievable people on the Jeremy Kyle Show (I've never properly watched it before - and I can now see why!) A whole host of adulterous, violent, lying partners slagging off each other and being verbally abused by Jeremy himself. So this is morning entertainment is it! I took the mower out of the garage to cut the front lawn and one of the wheels collapsed - metal fatigue. Not being worth repairing I drove to Homebase and B&Q to see what deals there might be for a new one. At B&Q I managed to buy a brand new motor mower and motor strimmer for half the price I had paid for my old mower. It is slightly smaller but lighter and as it is power driven it can shift more quickly - indeed, when I got home I put it together, put oil and petrol in it and managed to mow all three lawns in less than an hour - and without straining my back. A good buy I think. I picked up Mary and Lucy C from Norman Court Brownies tonight. Sara phoned me to describe her second day at Forest Mere. She has had thalassotherapy today as I recommended and is halfway through Matthew. I need to look up Matthew 17 tonight as there is a passage about the Transfiguration she wants my opinion about. I told here that my day had been more secular than hers but I have been having good wholesome food too - prawn salad with my special Dorf Salad (that's Waldorf Salad without the walnuts!), beetroot, egg and growing lettuce. I didn't tell her about the custard slice though. After I have finished writing this blog I am going to sit down with a cup of coffee and watch an hour's TV before bed. Must right up my Ezra and Nehemiah lecture tomorrow.

Farewell to Boyd

I set the alarm for 6 a.m. today as I needed to up and away to drive to Southwick near Shoreham-by-Sea to attend the funeral of an old masonic colleague of mine, Boyd Neal. Sara needed to be up early too as she is off today to spend the next three days (two nights) at Champney's at Forest Mere (avid and observant readers of this blog will remember that I went there in January and bought a voucher for Sara to go before the end of April). I left home at around 8.30 a.m. and was having a coffee at Holmbush Shopping Centre at Shoreham by 10.30 a.m. I had decided to avoid the main coast road and took the lovely A272 from Stockbridge to Petworth and the A283 down through Pulborough and Storrington to Shoreham. A wise choice. I arrived at the beautiful church (St. Michael's) at Southwick about 20 minutes before the funeral procession arrived. Boyd's coffin was draped in a Union Flag as he was proud of his army service and country. Boyd was my Third Principal when I was First Principal of Preston Park Chapter and we had recently sat next to each other at the last Chapter Meeting. His stroke and sudden death were a shock to us all. He was aged 74. He had been a mechanic and had worked on many films during a career in Hollywood including helping to build and look after Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang and various cars of James Bond. Afterwards I joined three colleagues from my Craft Lodge for lunch at the Hove Tandoori in Church Road. We had an excellent and filling meal. I drove back again along the A272 stopping off at Midhurst to visit Middleton Press and pick up a copy of their latest book in the trolleybus series - Manchester and Ashton Trolleybuses. I met Vic Mitchell who started this enormous publishing enterprise many years ago by self-publishing his own railway book about Branch Lines to Midhurst. He was a very jovial and pleasant chap who wanted to show me the whole enterprise. This would have been fascinating but I needed to get on as I had to take Mary to her drama class this evening. I therefore politely made my goodbyes and left saying that perhaps I could visit on another occasion. He let me have the book at discount too! I got back home at 5.50 p.m. and Mary had her tea at Molly's. Richard came round at 8.15 p.m. to discuss the outcome of our meeting on Friday and put together some action plans - which we did. We also managed to drink a bottle of Californian White Zinfandel too! Sara phoned me and told me how her day had gone. She is relaxing well, had eaten venison for the first time tonight and was now going to start to read all the Gospels, one by one, together with the notes from her study bible. I ended the day by watching a fascinating programme on how the Oresund Link between Denmark and Sweden was constructed.

Vocational Washing

Woke early this morning (around 6 a.m.). Only Tom and I went to church today. It is a pity that it was not well attended as Linda did another one of her marvellous praise services with several songs from Spring Harvest. The theme of the service was "Vocation" and we were each given a brightly coloured button to represent our ordinary life and were asked to look upon it and think how our ordinary lives can be turned into a vocation for God. It was very touching and thought-provoking. I have kept my button which I will use as a prayer aid. Back home I dug out the barbecue from the depths of the shed and had to give it a thorough clean - it clearly having been put away last year without one. If I recall, the weather was so bad last year that it hardly came out without it raining and me having to shove it back into the shed quickly. Having cleaned it I threw some sausages, chicken drumsticks and home made burgers on it for lunch. It was lovely to sit outside in the sunshine and eat our lunch. Hopefully the weather will be better this year and we can use it more frequently. I do like the idea of getting a chiminea after experiencing Klynn's last night. We had have late night feasts in the garden and keep warm at the same time. This afternoon, Food for Thought (FFT) cleaned about 20 cars at the Village Hall raising over £100 for the Project Uganda charity. The children enjoyed cleaning the wheels and having sponge fights with each other. I took a series of photographs for the FFT blog site and other village publications (one is represented above showing Richard and others cleaning my car!). Tea and cake were provided for the drivers - not bad for £5 - car washed and driver fed! Spoke to Mum briefly on the phone this evening. She seemed in good spirits and had had her missing slates replaced for the amazing cost of £30. Early night tonight as I have to go to Sussex tomorrow for the funeral of one of my masonic colleagues who died suddenly of a stroke a week or so ago. A group of us are going to Hove Tandoori afterwards.

End of The Dream (for this Season)

A normal Saturday for Tom and me today. We left home at around 12.30 p.m. to travel into Southampton for the match against Carlisle. Having parked in our usual car park we walked into the city centre for me to cash in my Betfred betting slip for £26 following my successful prediction of the 4-1 win against the same Carlisle at Wembley four weeks ago. We then walked across the park to St. Mary's for our usual pre-match lunch at the chippie. I decided to put on another small bet on the outcome of this match and placed a £1 stake for Saints to beat Carlisle 3-2 at 28/1. Southampton needed to win today and Huddersfield needed to either draw and lose if Saints would still have a chance of reaching the play-offs. At half time, the score was 1-1 with Huddersfield beating Stockport 0-2. Saints scored twice very swiftly in the second half to bring the scoreline to 3-1 but Huddersfield extended their lead to a final score at Stockport of 0-6! Southampton had now lost all hope of being in the playoffs. With extra time, Southampton were still winning 3-1 when a goal by Carlisle just seconds before the final whistle finished the game off at 3-2! I was suddenly another £28 richer! We collected my winnings and decided to treat ourselves to a lovely all-American meal at TGI Fridays. Grimsby Town also recorded a 0-2 win at Darlington keeping their very slim chances of staying in league football alive. They need to win both of their remaining matches and hope that Barnet lose all of theirs. Southampton was graced with two enormous cruise liners today, Celebration Eclipse and Grand Princess. On returning home, Sara, Mary and I went to the Lion's Head to meet Klynn and his friend Andrew, for whom I've just completed some consultancy work. After the pub we back to Klynn's for a glass of wine and a chat outside around the chiminea talking about American baseball and wood! Andrew was clearly enjoying feeding the chiminea with the last remains of Klynn's stockpile of wood.

Retired? Really?

Up very early this morning to attend the Ambassadors' Business Breakfast at the Grasmere House Hotel in Harnham. I gave a lift to Ed Thomas who is one of the committee members and lives close to us - his son also works with Sara in the Lord Nelson Arms as a chef. Tom was not well today so stayed at home. We had an interesting talk about lifestyle and health from a personal trainer and a chiropractor. I was reminded to get my press release in for the next meeting where I shall be doing a presentation entitled "Tribunals and Tribulations" - some practical tips for employers facing a tribunal claim. I called in on PC World and Staples on the way home to get some materials for the computer/printer and also some bread and pate for lunch. Sara was out this morning having lunch with Lucy over in Whiteparish. This afternoon I attended to some urgent mail and wrote the press release to send to the Ambassadors' public relations officer. This seemed to be in order. This evening I chaired a meeting at St. John's Church for the Spring Harvesters to discuss what they thought about the event, things learned, how we will put into practice what we learned and how we will use these things to help the church in Winterslow grow - both in size and faith. We also spent some time deciding what we were going to do with the £10s we received to help Hope/HIV. The final decison was that we would do two events - a curry and quiz night and also a film festival where we would use one on the churches in the village to show films of different genres over a weekend. We would also use the licence we needed to form a film club - principally for children on Saturday mornings. I came away very enthusiastic. Now Richard and I need to get our heads together to bring these things together and get people doing them. We intend to meet on Monday evening to draw something up. I really seem to have an incredible busy schedule ahead - preparing for two talks during the first week in May; calling a meeting of the Mission Giving Group; co-ordinating the fund raising for Hope/HIV; preparing for the Food for Thought service on the 9th May (Sara and I are presenting again); co-ordinating the establishment of more Home Groups and, with Richard, arranging a series of meetings for the congregation to see the Jeff Lucas series of talks at Spring Harvest. I really do wonder where I had the time to go to work in the past!

St. George's Dinner in Boscombe

Today was quite a busy one with many things to do and places to go. I received a phone call from of the members of the congregation at Malcolm's church in Liverpool (Christ Church) who would like me to do some work for her in getting together some employment contracts and policies for her fashion designer business. After breakfast I spent a little time in clearing away some more items and then drove into Salisbury to visit the dentist for my adapted top denture to be fitted. We discussed cosmetic dentistry work to try and straighten up my teeth and I have booked another appointment to see her when she returns from holiday in May. This afternoon I picked up Mary from school and we went to Carol H's in Firsdown for a bring and buy/cake and tea afternoon at her house. This was another fundraising event for the Alabare Romsey House project. The event made in excess of £200 to add to the £1,000 or so we have already raised in the church. I left early to get home and get changed to go down to Bournemouth to attend the Boscombe Lodge Sarum/St. George's Night celebrations. I picked up John H in Harnham on the way down to the south coast. At the meting this evening I acted as candidate for a demonstration of an initiation ceremony and enjoyed doing a bit of method acting and acting like a real candidate including deliberate mistakes to add to the authenticity. This seemed to go down well. Rod and Bryant are both to receive good honours at the Provincial Grand Lodge meeting in October - Rod as Active Rank Standard Bearer and Bryant as Past Provincial Grand Registrar. Tonight we dined on a selection of smoked fish, braised beef, apple crumble with clotted cream, cheese and biscuits and coffee. After dropping off John H back home in Harnham I arrived back at Winterslow a little after 11 a.m.

Eighteen Holes

Another full day today. Spent the morning cleaning the windows and went through a box of stuff I'd brought back home from the office deciding what to keep and what to throw away. Gave Mum a call as I had not managed to ring her since we went away to Spring Harvest. She seemed in good spirits and had a nice chat with Sara. The weather being glorious today, Richard and I decided to play eighteen holes at Wilton this afternoon. This is the first time that either of us have played eighteen since last October. We both started off rather poorly but seemed to improve as we took on the second nine. I achieved two pars and Richard three. I was pleased with some excellent shots onto the green using my 5-wood - a club I seldom use. It will get some more outings from my bag in future. I must admit to feeling rather stiff - eighteen holes is about 2 miles of golf at Wilton - probably more if you don't hit the balls straight! Mary wasn't in a very good mood when I got home this evening. She was complaining of a sore throat which wasn't being helped by her loud vocalisation of the problem! Our neighbour, Karen, brought 5-year old Maxwell round this evening to look at the Moon through my eight-inch reflecting telescope. Unfortunately, as his bedtime is 7.30 p.m. and the Sun doesn't set until 8 p.m. or thereabouts, we were having to look at it in the daylight and his untrained eye couldn't pick out the lunar landscape features - much to his frustration. He will have to wait six months or so - he will be a little older and the sun will set well before his bedtime. I finished off the day down at the Lion's Head where Richard and I celebrated the nineteenth hole. We discussed his daughter's eduction and and other things - particularly the joys of early retirement. An early night tonight for me - 10.30 p.m.

Saints' Play-off hopes dashed

Another busy day today. After breakfast Sara and I went into Salisbury together using the excellent Park & Ride Service from London Road. We both had dental appointments and so after we had both visited the bank to deal with some essential financial transactions, I left her to visit the dentist first whilst she spent an hour in the library reading some theological books. My appointment was actually with the dental hygienist who did not seem at all impressed on my suggestion that I should replace my somewhat crooked teeth with dentures. She spent some considerable time with me (more than my allotted 20 minutes) whitening my teeth and giving them a good clean to try and dissuade me from having them removed. Whilst they are not cosmetically very attractive they, and my gums, remain healthy. A rethink and a second opinion is called for. When I left her I found Sara in the reception having already had her check up whilst I was still in the chair - despite our appointments being nearly an hour apart! After leaving the dentists' we had a leisurely coffee together in Cafe Zero putting the world to rights and discussing theological issues - yes really! The effects of Spring Harvest and the terrible APCM on Sunday remain in our minds. It is good for us to spend time like this and it helps me remember what a great soul mate Sara is. We can actually be ourselves in these moments and not Tom's and Mary's parents - which seems to be the label we mainly wear. We called in on Max after coffee and were given a cup of tea - no wonder my teeth are not so white with all the coffee and tea I seem to drink in a day. Max has suffered a close bereavement and it was good to spend time with her and to give her our condolences. A quick stop was made at Halford's for a new puncture repair kit and then home to pick up Mary from school - the day simply whizzed by! I fixed Tom's bike with the new kit and afterwards Mary and I went for a short bike ride to the Bentley Wood picnic area and back - my daily exercise and another chance for Mary to stretch her pedals! Tonight Tom and I went to St. Mary's for the Saints v. Oldham Athletic game. Before the game started Andy (Twiggy's husband) related his horror story of having been stranded in Rome because of the Icelandic volcanic eruption which is currently disrupting all flights to and from the UK, with Twiggy and some friends and having to get a train to Genoa; hiring a Ford Ka for four of them and their luggage; travelling 12 and a half hours in it from the French Riviera to Paris; sleeping rough on the streets of Paris for a night; getting a Eurostar to Brussels and then eventually back to London on the Eurostar - all, he quipped, to get to the Saints game. Southampton played their hearts out tonight but some bad refereeing (again!) and a defensive style of play from Athletic (they simply wanted a point to preserve their League 1 status) led to a 0-0 stalemate and really means the end of Saints's play-off promotion hopes. They need to win all their three remaining games and hope Huddersfield lose two of theirs and draw the remaining one. As Huddersfield have Stockport County amongst their three, then three points from that match alone secures their play-off place and keeps Southampton out. Still, Saints have done remarkably well from their pitiful position at the beginning of the season. We can now relax for the remaining two home games - unlike Grimsby Town.

Flight to the USA booked

Mary was back to school today but Tom had an extra day off as the teachers at Test Valley were having one of their training days. I spent the morning booking our flights to the USA to spend time in Myrtle Beach and and was rewarded in managing to get direct flights from London Heathrow to Raleigh instead of having to stop over at either Washington or Orlando. It did take several attempts to book it because I kept being timed out due to constant interruptions on the telephone. I also dealt with a number of pieces of important mail. This afternoon I did some gardening - principally trimming our tree in the front which needed a "haircut". Tom went out on his bike with his friends James and John but came back with a puncture. I found the hole in the inner tube but was unable to make a full repair as the adhesive in the puncture repair kit had almost run out and was very tacky. Tonight Sara went to a Vie at Home branch meeting in Southampton whilst Mary went to her drama group and Tom and I played tennis at the village hall.

Annual Parochial Church Meeting

It was up early for church this morning as we had a Parish Eucharist with Baptism followed by the Annual Parochial Church Meeting at which some thorny issues were likely to be discussed as well as the possibility of elections for the PCC. The service, was expected, very well attended with people wishing to stay for the APCM as well as two families and friends who had come for the baptisms. The service was a stark contrast to our worship sessions in the Big Top in Minehead only a few days ago. The APCM and PCC which followed lasted a total of 2 and a half hours! Much of the discussion surrounded the financial position of the parish and the clergy/worship rotas. Every parish would like its own dedicated member of clergy which is just not possible. Klynn, I and a few others want to see the laity more empowered to conduct worship services. These discussions will go on for some time I'm sure and we will have to see what attitude the new Bishop has when appointed. All those members seeking election to the PCC were successful and I have been re-appointed to the Standing Committee having come off a couple of years ago due to work commitments, As a Deanery Synod rep. I do not have to seek re-appointment to the PCC until next year. This afternoon I spent some time gardening and Mary and I cycled over to Hilary S's in East Winterslow to deliver some money and let her know that Sara and I are prepared to take over the bible reading distribution. Mary enjoyed her 3-mile cycle ride with wonderful views across Porton Down from the top of Pincroft Lane. Tonight, Tom went to Rockface. He is really enjoying this and, on top of Spring Harvest is finding it very helpful in growing his faith. Richard and I met in the Lion's Head for a few pints tonight. Richard, who had acted as secretary during the APCM was feeling in the need of a couple of pints after such a heavy day. We spent about two and a half hours putting the world (or rather the church) to rights. Hopefully, we can get some golf in next week but we both seem to have such heavy schedules at the moment. I really don't know how I ever had time to work!

Titanic Auction at Devizes

We spent most of today in Devizes attending Aldrich's auction of Titanic and maritime memorabilia. Before going to the auction rooms, we stopped off in the market square for pasties and had a look at the famous indoor market where Sara bought a rather nice glass pendant. We arrived at the Auction Rooms at around 12.45 pm and with the auction starting at 1 p.m. didn't have too much time to look at the exhibits. Our friend Robert was already there and we joined him. His wife Amanda would come along later. The bidding started slowly with quite a number of paintings and prints going for as little as £20. Tom wanted a coal model of Titanic which I managed to get for £15. I also successfully bid for a bottle of single malt whisky from the RMS Queen Elizabeth 2 for £45. I had bought one of these off the ship many years ago as a present for someone and so it was rewarding to have another one. Robert did succeed in any of his bids. A set of keys for the binocular box of Titanic went for £47,000 and and a photograph of Rosa Abbott for £31,000 - a record price for a photograph. After the auction we went for a pub meal by the Kennet and Avon Canal with Robert and Amanda and had fish and chips (I had scampi). It was a pleasant couple of hours with good friends. We are hoping to get together a group of the old Titanic Convention crowd for a weekend in late August - probably in Southampton.

Blind Side

Another lovely day today - I think spring has finally arrived and winter is, at long last, behind us. I took the opportunity to complete my articles for the parish magazine and felt a gr est deal of relief at having done so. Sara was working in the Nelson's Arms this lunchtime and I drove into Salisbury to have lunch with Susan G and Phil D, two former colleagues from my old company. I also met my old legal colleague Belinda who is currently preparing for a tribunal in Southampton which had started before I left. It will be her first full advocacy in an employment tribunal so I wish her every success. Susan, Phil and I lunched in Da Vinci's and I ate a very good feta cheese and prawn salad - another symbol of spring/summer if I am choosing salads again! I also attended to a couple of small errands whilst in Salisbury. This evening, as another birthday treat for Sara, I had arranged for Helen C to child mind so that Sara and I could go to the Odeon in Salisbury to see Blind Side - a film starring one of my favourite actors, Sandra Bullock. It's a great feel good film which tells the story of a black orphan being brought up by a white Christian family in Memphis. His footballing skills need to be matched by his academic skills in order to go to University to play in the major leagues. I confess that it did nothing to increase(?) my knowledge of the incomprehensible game that is American Football! It always seems to me that the ball hardly ever touches the feet and it is perfectly okay to foul anyone else on the field who does not have it. Transferred to English soccer, those rules would see everybody red-carded within the first five minutes of the game with the possible exception of the goalkeepers! Maybe when we go to the States later this year, we can see a game for real and somebody can explain the rules. It's a good film, however, and Sandra is exceptionally good as the inspirational and, at some times, pushy mother. As a true story, I am told the book is infinitely better than the film. If so, I must read it.

Sara's Birthday

We didn't get up very early this morning - I got up at 7.30 a.m. in fact. I made tea for us which I served to Sara in her special "April" cup and for myself in my Cunard tea cup (in memory of those lost in the Titanic Disaster and those saved by the Cunard liner RMS Carpathia. Sara opened her cards and presents - receiving a boxed set of jazz music from the children, an Apollo DVD from me (we have a standing joke about Sara not believing that Man ever went to the Moon but that it was all filmed in an American desert! She also received a parcel full of goodies from her father in North Carolina including earrings, a necklace and some herbs to make dips. Our friend Jan(et) called in to deliver a lovely vase and some flowers as I cooked hot dogs for breakfast using German sausages and home baked rolls. Later in the morning, Sara took her first ride on her new bicycle when she rode up to Bentley Wood with Mary and me. We rode down Witt Road and then did the circular route via the picnic area and up the hill before returning to the Witt Road entrance. Sara found it really heavy going and was quite breathless. I rode her bike up to the village shop and back to check it (Mary coming with me to get an ice lolly after her hot ride). This afternoon I mowed the bank and we drove to Carlo's Tea Rooms for a cream tea and ice creams for the kids. We had a Chinese meal tonight from Porton before the House Group. We started our discussions and study of The Shack by William Paul Young. I showed some clips from some American evangelical churches who were severely criticising it and a TV interview with the author himself. We then started to unpack the novel through a series of pre-written questions in an on-line study guide. I used the laptop plugged into the TV to provide all the material without having to print out large amounts of study material. It seemed to work well. Tonight, Sara is feeling unwell again. Her health, or lack of it, it really worrying me.

Unpalatable!

I had to set the alarm to go off early this morning as I had a dentist's appointment at 8.30 a.m. today - made when I was still working and having no idea, at that time, that I would have early retired by the time I had to attend it. In fact I arrived so early that I had time to scan the appalling magazines in the waiting room, decide none were worth reading - do they really think patients want to read TV magazines from weeks ago? - and fill out a "medical update form" before being called in. Not the best visit I have ever had to the dentists. Whilst there is nothing clinically wrong with my teeth - they've reached the depth of condition - my upper jaw chromium denture has rubbed a hole in my palate which could, if it continued to rub through to the bone, cause difficulties. I have been advised to leave the denture out for the moment and a technician will charge me an expensive fee to remove the offending piece of chrome as a temporary measure until I have secured a mortgage to replace it! Actually, it does need to heal before impressions can be taken. An alternative, which is attractive if not painful, is to have all my remaining teeth removed and nice even toothed dentures put in. It might, in the long run (but not initially) put a smile back on my face. Back home, I spent the morning building Sara's new bike which I tested with Mary by cycling to the shop and back for washing powder. Tonight I wrote my article on Spring Harvest for the parish magazines whilst Sara went to Great Wishford, or some such place in the Wylie Valley, for a VV party.

Spring Harvest - Day 6

A sad day - we are leaving Minehead this afternoon to return to Winterslow. Usually everything seems so flat when we get back. I spent the first part of the morning ferrying our cases and other stuff - including all the books and resources we had accumulated - to the car park - some 400 yards away. This entailed about three round trips! We went into the Big Top for the last time and heard Chick Yuill talk - he is a Scottish Salvationist we is another very amusing though thought-provoking speaker. This was followed by a mass communion where we shared loaves of bread and drank grape juice. The session ended with some fabulous worship music from Vicky Beeching and her group. We left Spring Harvest and Butlins with these wonderful songs ringing around in our heads. Fortunately, we've bought a few CDs with the music on them so we can enjoy them off site. We had lunch at our now usual fish and chip restaurant in Minehead town centre with Klynn, Susan and family and then spent a little time on the beach. We split up into two groups, Klynn, I, Tom, Samuel, Esme and Erin went to play adventure (crazy) golf back in Butlin's and Sara, Susan, Maeve and Mary set about digging a big hole in the sand. We finally left Minehead at about 4 p.m. and drove back to Wiltshire via Bridgwater (Sara's birthplace), Street, Glastonbury, Frome and Warminster. We stopped off at Amesbury for some essential shopping including some curry meals for supper tonight. We have had a great time and I have decided that next year I will not only come with the family but also offer my services helping out during another week - either as a steward or in admin. I have got so much out of spring Harvest over the years and would really like to put something back.

Spring Harvest - Day 5

Another full day at Spring Harvest today. More reflections from Jeff Lucas in the bible reading followed by further study and discussions with Russell Rook and Lynda Bywater. All very inspirational and I could go on listening to these wonderful speakers for ever. We are so lucky to be here and the weather has been so wonderful to us too. I think it is Monday but to us here in Minehead it is simply Day 5 of Week 2. Anything could be going on outside in the wider world. Spring Harvest reminds me very much of a six-days transatlantic crossing ion the QE2 (except the accommodation is not so palatial). You are in your own community where you have time to listen to good discussions and presentations and be with your good friends doing what you want to do, Both children are very much involved with their groups and own spirituality - it's wonderful to see. This afternoon, Mary sang in a one-hour concert with Pop Connection (see picture) and had her photograph taken with Bebe Vox. It was delightful to see her singing with such gusto and enthusiasm. Back to the Big Top tonight where we were treated by a talk on Esther from Danielle Strickland - the highlight of the week in some respects. Unfortunately, she only spoke for about 25 minutes which was far too short. She is an enthralling speaker and one I could listen to for much longer - I can't say that of all preachers! We also were given a short talk by Phil Wall about a charity called Hope/HIV which aims to bring hope and assistance to families in Africa devastated by this dreadful illness. We were each asked to open an envelope given to us as we entered the Big Top. Inside was a ten pound note (as there were 3,500 of us this meant an outlay of £35,000!). We were asked to do one of three things with it - 1). Keep it if our needs were greater than those of these poor families in Africa; 2). Give it back or 3). Take it away and try and convert it, by investment/fundraising into £100 for the charity - to be done in the next 3 months. Back to Hamish and Nicola's again tonight for wine and nibbles. I brought a bottle of champagne as it was the last night and Sara's birthday is only a couple of days away. We distributed it communion style so everybody who wanted some had a chance to have a sip at least. Sadness has descended as we realise tomorrow we have to go home. We also discussed what we should do with the £10s we had received (most of our group deciding to try and turn it into £100 for charity). I suggested that we pool the money to fund a large fundraising event. This met with general approval and I will arrange a meeting when we get back to Winterslow to encourage ideas and agree how we put things into practice.

Spring Harvest - Day 4

After yesterday's break it was back to some serious study again today. We didn't attend the Big Start this morning and I was feeling a little jaded after last night's session when quite a lot of wine had flowed at Klynn and Susan's. We made it for the Big Top bible reading with Jeff Lucas and attended the Pragmatist Zone discussions with Russell Rook and his sister, Lyndall Bywater. In the afternoon I listened to Malcolm Duncan as he continued his talk on Ethics as Sara had to take Mary to a Pop Connection rehearsal. After the tea break we both attended a relationship session called "Revisiting Romance" presented by a couple in their thirties (I guess). This evening's Big top Speaker was Ruth Valerio who also took part in a debate I went to, tonight, on the question of Homosexuality and the Church. No answers but a lot of good debate. Back to Richard's tonight for drinks.

Spring Harvest - Day 3 (Off Site)

Actually not a day at Spring Harvest at all today - a day out to Southampton to see the mighty Saints take on Charlton Athletic. Tom decided that he would stay at Minehead with his friend Samuel and not come to the match, so I set off at 10.30 a.m. after having struggled to get Sara's car out of the muddy car parking spot we had so inappropriately chosen when we arrived on Thursday. The car radio gave me my first news for a couple of days and I heard that tragically the Polish President, Lech Kachzynski, his wife and several top Polish military officials had been killed when a plane heading for Russia crashed. A total of 100 fatalities. The traffic through Taunton was appalling again as was the south coast road - "grockles" coming back from a week's holiday in Cornwall for the main part - or so it seemed. I eventually parked my car in the usual car park at around 1.50 p.m. - enough time for fishcake and chips at the St. Mary's Chippie and to get a programme before the match started. Andy, Tom and John gave me a clap as I mounted the steps to congratulate me on remembering the time of the kick-off after my stupidity on Monday. They said, however, that it had not been a good game and that I had missed little. Today Saints managed a 1-0 win against the Addicks closing the gap to 8 points off the play-offs with one game in hand and taking themselves to 9th position. Only two teams between them and a play-off place. Grimsby managed an away win against Hereford but Cheltenham also won. They are still badly adrift with no games in hand. Relegation is now looking a certainty. I left Southampton and 6.00 p.m. and was back in Minehead by 9 a.m. - parking in a less troublesome spot. I was in time to join our church party at Klynn and Susan's for drinks and nibbles before going to bed, once more, exhausted and quite late after a long chat over more than a bottle of wine!

Spring Harvest - Day 2

A quick breakfast this morning of toast and jam (the jam courtesy of Jane Dunlop), shower and then off to the Big Top for the Big Start. The theme this year is “Different Eyes” with the slogan “Seeing Differently means Being Different”. Some good worship songs to get us going too. After dropping off Mary at her group and queuing for coffee we joined Klynn and Susan at the Bible Reading Session which was presented by our old favourite, Jeff Lucas who was as witty yet instructive as ever. He had us laughing loudly and brought home the fact that Christians can have a good laugh and we don’t have to be the “frozen chosen”. I could listen to Jeff for hours. Sara and I then joined the ”Activist Group” in a discussion about the whole concept of seeing things differently from a Godly perspective. The speakers were Malcolm Duncan and Carl Beech – both young enthusiastic evangelists (young by our standards – in their late thirties!). After another quick lunch Sara and I went to a talk by Malcolm Duncan on Ethics and the Old Testament which was a quite erudite session talking about reconciling New and Old Testament teachings – I still need to get my head around it. After a cup of tea – which I didn’t have time to drink, Richard and I went to a session entitled “Godly Men” hosted by Carl Beech. Very thought provoking with a number of clips from “Saving Private Ryan” to emphasise points. Some statistics – 75% of men in the UK are non-believers/non-church goers and there are less than 1 million men who attend church in the UK. Men should not be stereo-typed and there is much work that can and should be done to encourage men to come to Christ. This evening’s Big Top Celebration included another talk by Jeff Lucas (twice in one day – what a bonus!). Drinks and nibbles were a the Blue Sky apartment of Nicola and Hamish this evening where Hamish, Klynn and I discussed the seminar on Godly Men and what we should do in our own parish. The day ended with Klynn and I going to see the Christian comedian, Joe Fisher (alias Ben Entwhistle) in Jak’s bar where, amongst other things he put on two “game shows” – Spot the Vicar and Christian Family Fortunes. Most entertaining and quite a few laughs today.

Spring Harvest - Day 1

A busy morning getting ready to go to Minehead for our six day adventure at the Christian Festival called Spring Harvest – our sixth (I believe) visit. Yesterday I had promised Mary that I would take her out for a bike ride but time ran out so had agreed to take her out this morning. At 9.30 a.m. whilst Sara started packing and Tom kept himself to himself in his room, Mary and I cycled to the picnic area in Bentley Wood and back. This only took about half an hour and was about a mile and a half in total. This satisfied her and gave her a good opportunity to stretch her legs on her bike. We left for Minehead at about 1.30 p.m. – about an hour later than we had planned – and after dropping off keys to our cat minders and also returning keys to those we had been cat-minding for, we finally set off. We got no further than Amesbury when we stopped for a KFC lunch. After that, we made good progress and got to Taunton a little after 4 p.m. and feeling confident of arriving at Minehead in good time. However, on the road between that town and Minehead we joined an horrendous traffic jam all the way to the resort and did not finally reach Butlin’s until 5.45 p.m. We then had to shoehorn the car into a parking space which was some considerable distance from our chalet. This year we have one of the older chalets but quite close to the rest of our church family. We did not have time to go to the Big Top for the Celebration this evening so watched some of it on TV before going out for a burger dinner and picking up our study guides from the Spring Harvest stall. Tonight we joined our church family in Maggie’s 6-berth chalet to enjoy wine and nibbles until just before midnight. Being a Christian certainly seems to make the drinking of copious quantities of wine a pre-requisite! We engaged in some interesting and revealing discussions as we demolished four bottles of vino. These evening sessions are as much an important part of the Spring Harvest experience as is the worship sessions, bible readings and study periods. We all should grow immensely through the simple experience of being here, I’m sure. Our newcomers seem to be settling in well although I really didn’t have much opportunity to talk to them tonight as both Jane M and Dawn W went off to hear Jackie Pullinger speak (Jackie is, apparently, a hard hitting missionary doing work in the less salubrious parts of Hong Kong). I am sorry that I missed it and hope that I will have an opportunity to hear her later on in the week. Went to bed exhausted.

Preparations

Didn't wake very early this morning as I had found it hard to get to sleep last night and spent an hour or so watching a programme about the Great Western Railway on the Sky Box. This left me feeling tired this morning. Sara went shopping in Tesco's this morning and Tom and I stayed at home. I dealt with some paperwork and got rid of some more papers out of the study. I also did a few domestic chores such as washing up and putting some more washing on. I also got together some of the resources I want to take with me to Spring Harvest such as my study bible and commentaries which I need to hunt down - found amongst some other papers dunped in the study! I downloaded some useful guides and programme notes off the Spring Harvest website. This evening I picked up Sara's free cycling pack from Argos and attend the Sarum Lodge meeting in Salisbury where I acted as Tyler for the ceremony. The meeting went well and we had an enjoyable dinner afterwards of vegetable soup, roast beef, apple pie and ice cream and cheese and biscuits.

Stonehenge Convocation

The weather was bright and reasonably warm today. I made pancakes for the children's breakfast and Sara left at around 10 a.m. to go to her Ladies Who Latte meeting at Milford Hall in Salisbury. Whilst she was out I mowed the bank and was pleased with the result although it was hot sweaty work - the self-propelling mechanism on the mower no longer works. This afternoon, after a quick lunch of crusty bread and pate, I drove up to Andover and picked up the folding bike for Sara from Argos. Tonight I attended the Installation Convocation of Stonehenge Chapter. This was the first time I've been able to wear my new Sussex Provincial Chapter regalia for a full meeting. We dined afterwards on minestrone soup, poached salmon, profiteroles and cheese and biscuits. Richard led the House Group tonight which Sara said went really well with lots of interesting questions and topics discussed. Sara and I continued some of the discussions over coffee but I really must read the material too.

The first cut

Sara and I didn't rise until 10 a.m. this morning. My back was still hurting after my skating fall and we both reckon that we need a new mattress as we are both feeling quite achy in the morning. Tom spent the day around the village with his friends and Sara, Mary and I went into Salisbury shopping. I bought a new waterproof top for golf and ordered a bicycle for Sara which I'll need to pick up in Andover tomorrow. I had intended to go to the Saints v. Leyton Orient match which I was convinced was this evening - only to find out that it was a 3 p.m. kick-off and so both Tom and I missed it. I was later told that it wasn't a particularly exciting match but Saints did win 2-1 and are now only 8 points short of the play-offs and in 9th position in the table - the highest they have been all season. Grimsby Town managed to win away at Accrington Stanley (2-3) but an away win for Cheltenham Town against Crewe Alexandra means that they remain 7 points away from safety. It's looking ever more likely that they will drop out of the Football League next year. I gave the front and back lawns their first cut of the year and will tackle the bank tomorrow. Tonight, Richard and I spent a pleasant three hours in the Lion's Head talking about church, Spring Harvest and football.

Alleluia He is Risen! He is Risen indeed, Alleluia! Easter Sunday today. An appalling fact I learned this morning was that 36 per cent of children in the United Kingdom believe that today marks the birthday of the Easter Bunny! How can the true significance of the Easter Story have escaped so many! For us we went to a packed church for the true celebration of Easter and the Eucharist. Elizabeth gave an excellent talk using balloons to illustrate how Christ's death on the cross took away all our burdens and sins. Very powerful. The service ended with the usual Easter Egg Hunt in the churchyard. Back home we had a quiet afternoon - I managed to get Tom's laptop fixed (I cleaned up some viruses he had caught using Norton 360 and also managed to get him back on line with the Internet - he had somehow switched off the wireless device on the laptop). I did try and get him linked up the the TV to create a larger monitor and although it did work the graphics on the TV screen were converted to monochrome. I think we have the wrong lead and I will call in PC World tomorrow and see what is wrong. I cooked the traditional Easter dinner of roast lamb, mint sauce, roast potatoes, parsnips, cabbage, carrots and runner beans. The lamb from Waitrose was sweet and delicious. We also watched some "Carry-On" films. I was very tired tonight and my back is still hurting from my fall on the ice yesterday. I therefore went to bed early although I did play a couple of rounds of golf on my DS!

"The hare's not running"

Not the best of days sport wise today. I spent quite a bit of time today on my own with Mary which was a delight as I do tend to spend more time with Tom and feel I don't even my time out as I ought. After breakfast, Mary and I went to Basingstoke to try out my new skates at Planet Ice. Arriving there at 11.30 a.m., the rink had only been open for half and hour and so the ice was very smooth. My new skates had much sharper blades than the dull blades usually carried by the hire skates and I found that the friction between ice and skate was much less resulting in me moving much faster and falling over three times - more, I think, than I have fallen over on the last six visits to the rink! The third and last time I fell over I was travelling very fast and landed firmly on my back which still hurts this evening as I write this. I was severely winded but got up and after five minutes or so sitting down was off again. Fortunately, when I fell, my back took much of the force when I hit the ice and my head only grazed the ice - unlike some very unfortunate woman who cracked her head as she went down and had to be attended to by an ambulance. She seemed to have sustained a serious injury and her prone body was coned off whilst first aiders attended to her. This resulted in skaters having to circumnavigate her and in so doing everyone slowed down and caused others to go down too. Mary and I ended the session skating very slowly around the edge - especially as we had both taken tumbles with our new skates. After lunch at KFC where we both recovered somewhat we returned to Winterslow to pick up Sara and we went into Salisbury where I parked in Waitrose's car park. Sara and Mary went shopping whilst I walked into the city centre and met Anthony H for a coffee in Cafe Nero. We spent a pleasant hour or so catching up with news about That Company and our own personal circumstances. The discussions made me feel, once more, how lucky I had been to be retired on the terms I was but also reminded me that I must not drift with my new freedom. Tonight, Mary and I drove through torrential rain (yet again) to go greyhound racing at Poole. Racing normally starts at around 7.30 p.m. but tonight it started an hour earlier. When we arrived there had already been three races (although one was voided) and so our first bets were on Race 4. Mary did a trio prediction for dogs 1-3-5 and the result of the race was that dogs 1-5-3 came in. Had she got the order right she would have won £87.00 for a 50p stake. The next (and 5th) race never happened. The hare stopped running and despite valiant efforts by the staff to get it going again in the pelting rain, it never ran again. The meeting was abandoned just after 9 p.m. After collecting our bets we left with a voucher to return again (with free admission, race card and drink) before 24 April. At least we didn't lose much money tonight - only £1.50 in total. Tom is spending the night in prayer and vigil, sleeping in all Saints Church with other members of Rockface.

Good Friday

Torrential rain marked today. We all went down to the Methodist Hall where the Junior Church members were joined by children from other villages for the traditional Good Friday workshop. It was a really good turnout. Sara prepared the Easter Garden and I helped her with that. We walked down to the Village Hall in the pouring rain following the cross for the Good Friday Family Service. This had been prepared by Linda and the Junior Church and was absolutely fantastic. A foretaste of the wonders of Spring Harvest. It was very emotional as we lit candles either in front of a cross covered with rubbish (to bring and shed our sins on) or one with new plants on (to offer ourselves for new life). I chose the latter. After lunch of a hot cross bun and a yoghurt I attended the Passion Service at All Saints which took on a more familiar and traditional pattern. This evening I cooked tagliatelle and smoked salmon in a creme fraiche sauce with white wine. We all played a game of Football Club Trivia this evening. This was a present Tom got for Christmas which we haven't yet got round to playing. It consisted of looking at a card for ten seconds which had printed on it facts and trivia about one of the 92 clubs in the football league. Tomorrow I am taking Mary to the ice rink at Basingstoke where I can try out my new skates.

Maundy Thursday

Another cold day today although the weather was changeable with some sunny spells and yet more showers. I spent a good deal of the morning dealing with emails and doing some work for a client. I also tidied up the side of the house and and collected together quite a lot of junk to take to the Amesbury tip this afternoon. My new ice skates arrived. They seem to be a little tight around the ankle (size 8) but I would rather have it that way as loose skates are more likely to cause one to keel over on the ice. They will become more supple with wear. They feel like the ones I normally wear when I hire them. I will only be wearing them for an hour at a time anyway as I find an hour on the ice long enough. I did better with my calorie controlled diet today - grilled bacon, mushrooms, beans and poached egg for breakfast; clear chicken noodle soup for lunch; crayfish salad with new potatoes for dinner and a small bit of cheese and crackers tonight as I had some points in hand. Tonight I went to West Dean church for the traditional Maundy Thursday "Upper Room" service with feet washing and giving each other communion to re-enact the Last Supper. I was asked to help drink up the sanctified wine (which was a real red wine) at the end. This is followed by stripping the altar and the vigil (which this year lasted only until 10 p.m.). I stayed for about 20 minutes in silent prayer. On the way back to Winterslow I listened to the last fifteen minutes of Saints game at Brighton. They were losing 2-1 when I switched the radio on but as I entered Winterslow, Lee Barnard had scored an equaliser. The game ended as a 2-2 draw. Not good enough for Saint's playoff attempt but at least a point where one didn't look likely. Tonight I spent some time reconciling my accounts and writing this and yesterday's blog.