A very warm sunny day here in the Wilds of Wiltshire. We've been to the local coffee morning and I then went for quite a long ramble round the village and its environs while Mr Nen headed out in the car on a key-cutting errand (one of the oddities of the house is that we have about 8 keys for one of the doors, two for another and only one for another ) .
We are off for a couple of days this afternoon, something that was in the diary long before we knew we'd be moving when we did. It's not great timing as there's so much to do here but it will be a break from the mess and the boxes and also means No Cooking for Nen which is always a Good Thing.
My neighbour kindly mows my front lawn, but the back has not yet had its first cut. This morning it was too wet, though we have not had any rain since the weekend. I’d better see if I can do it now it has had the sun on it for a few hours.
So did I and had a momentary vision of myself as a beery Pawn in Through the Looking Glass scaring off Queens and Knights with an oozy hunk of Stinking Bishop.
One of the reasons David and I bought our house in Belfast was that it didn't have any grass. My reasons for buying a flat after he died were partly fiscal (I couldn't afford anything bigger) and partly horticultural (no mowing).
Another nice day here, with odd outbreaks of Sunshine. Supper was fishcakes with veggies.
A busy work day for me, but with a bit of luck by Monday or Tuesday I should have gotten all my team's annual reviews completed and signed off. Trying to sum up someone who shows up and just gets on with their work without any fuss is surprisingly hard! (I like them as a person, I appreciate their work, it's just difficult to write more than a short sentence, and I need a paragraph...).
In other news, @Sandemaniac took the shears to our lawn this afternoon as the grass was too long for the mower. He's planning to run the mower over it tomorrow afternoon when it's had a chance to dry off. I think that will just be the bits that don't have cowslips flowering... We're just back from ringing practice, and I'm feeling rather chuffed at having managed to get through a plain course of Stedman without any mistakes
My usual lipreading and bookshop shift have been accomplished today as has enquiring at the library about booking a room for an event and popping into his shop to talk to a local councillor about a couple of things. I ended up buy a vase which is always a danger when I go there. It's an art shop with some very nice pictures, pottery, jewellery and cards.
This evening I headed to the first part of my writers group social evening as I wanted to discuss what we're doing for our local book festival. That decided, I headed home as four nights of meetings is just too much. At least nothing is planned for tomorrow night and my husband will be out so I can catch up with The Other Bennet Sister.
I’m just back from my third night out this week. I went to see a play performed by the local am. dram group. It was unusual in that there was a lot of religious stuff in it: a clergyman discussing his thoughts for next Sunday’s sermon featured a few times, and there were many churchy / parish references. I would have thought most people would feel a bit out of their comfort zone or worse. It was all about relationships of course.
Having completed five weeks worth of marking, I now have a relaxing day at the masters in history day school, which I am attending online. I have listened to a plenary lecture on sixteenth century Italian men’s consultations with a doctor about their sexual problems, a short presentation on seventeenth century women’s mental health and spiritual interpretations, and delivered my own talk on the professionalisation of mad-doctors in the eighteenth century. This afternoon I get to hear talks on witchcraft, and highway women. I’m having a lovely day, despite having the possible start of a cold which Mr Heavenly has shared.
The talk on witchcraft was interesting, it links accusations of witchcraft with environmental disasters, ie storms.
Lunch was hot cross bun and cheese, I think it was Puzzler who reminded me of the combo in her post a few days ago.
Just had cheese at my French group, but that won’t stop me grating some over my meal tonight ( hake, potatoes, cabbage, broccoli.) There’s not enough milk left to make a cheese sauce.
I spent a happy hour litter picking his morning, something I actually enjoy. The friend I was working with bumped into another friend, who is organising another litter pick for tomorrow and I've agreed to do an hour there too. One of the roads they are doing is mine so I felt I'd better show willing. This afternoon we did a bit of gardening, its great everything is coming back to life.
Spent much of the day arguing with LBlet#3 who needs to get her room in a state where we can decorate it over the weekend. Usual teenage bollocks.
Hostage to fortune - put in three technical change requests last thing. I'm off all next week because Birthday so if when I go back Monday week I'll either have lots to do or feck all to do except argue about the things I wanted to do.
Pastry for pie had gone manky (well before its best before) so had to improvise for the chicken pie which resulted in a cheesy crumble topping.
Now starting Friday TTRPG, which is currently Traveller.
46 people fed this afternoon at my shift at the Foodbank. We were flat out for one and three quarters hours. Knackered now but pleased we could help a little.
You all knock my Quite Busy Day at the Office into a cocked hat!
Having said that, I did spend an hour or so after work wrestling with hymn choices: Rev'd Rosie has asked for some porcine input into the hymns.
I'm discovering how difficult it is to match hymns with seasons (especially as we're coming into that rather fuzzy season that the Civilised World calls Trinity, and the Orange Book calls "Ordinary Time" - whatever the hell that means).
At about half past six I gave up and went over the road to get the obligatory f&c for supper.
Several churches refer to 'Ordinary Time', but I, too, prefer the Seasons system. Our Place keeps the Sundays 'after Trinity', rather than 'after Pentecost', and this chimes in with the pre-printed readings/collects sheet we have each week.
I was intending to serve a Nice Meal for his return. Having found mixed beef and pork mince not long ago, I wanted to make a proper ragu sauce cooked for four hours. After taking Captain Pyjamas to his therapy appointment this morning, I returned via the market (and bottle shop, for the appropriate Italian wine), and started fine chopping vegetables. At which point I realised I'd forgotten to take the meat out of the freezer. Swearing ensued and then I scarpered off to the market before it closed and made a snap decision to buy some small Saint Pierre (or John Dory if you prefer) which were eventually served en papillote with fennel and lime. The ragu will have to be made tomorrow.
Now he's home I shall sleep better. It's a funny thing, I spent the first mumble mumble years of my life sleeping alone, but now I don't feel quite safe. It may be hot, but I can only get to sleep with a very heavy blanket on top of me. The human comfort blanket is back so the other one can be put away again now.
Our dentist having recently stopped seeing NHS patients, we have been fortunate enough to find another who does, albeit a good deal further away. However, the bonus is that it is in a small town/large village with several sq miles of uplands on the doorstep. Having had our check-ups, we were able to pick up some lunch from an excellent deli then enjoy five stiffish miles in beautiful March weather. Larks singing, wild ponies grazing. I can see it becoming a regular combination.
<snip>that rather fuzzy season that the Civilised World calls Trinity, and the Orange Book calls "Ordinary Time" - whatever the hell that means).
<snip>
In fairness, not just the OrangeBook. (For RSCM members ‘Sunday by Sunday’ is a useful resource for choosing hymns, available in print and online.)
Mr Heavenly left for a flight to the US earlier this morning so I have every sympathy with you, lver. I used to get really anxious about his trips abroad, both for myself and him, but now I am older it is much easier especially since the boys left home as I am now used to being alone all day.
The week ahead will be long and quiet for me as my workload is lighter than usual and I won’t be able to go to church or the weekly bible study group as I don’t drive. So I plan to get some writing done and have a few indulgent treats.
Lovely and sunny today, I have had a long walk and plan to potter in the garden this afternoon. Lunch will be a crab baguette.
Enjoy a restful week @Heavenlyannie. This week has been bonkers and today was no exception. Out before nine to do some litter picking near my local supermarket. I spent 30 minutes in one spot picking up fast food cartons. Then this afternoon I walked a couple of miles to a school to give out prizes at a drama competition. Then tonight we’re going to a performance of Mozart’s Requiem at the local Methodist church. In between all that I’ve been sorting out various bits and pieces of admin.
At least next week looks a lot quieter,
I went on the bus into the city this afternoon to listen to a concert ( It makes a change not to be singing). It is in an area I would not dream of going to in the evening, which must be why this choir has its concerts mainly on Saturdays at 3pm.
It is so long since I have been into the city centre. So different from where I live. Crowded, noisy. Nothing amiss in the afternoon, but so many people drinking, mainly adults 25-45. Nice to come home to my own bottle of wine and a stir fry.
@Firenze - how's Mr F doing?
Quite a useful choir practice this morning, at which a couple of members suggested we try singing some sort of motet at Communion on special occasions; I'm going to have to think about what we might be capable of! 😲
The rest of the day was lazy: I got my fingernails done (a rather fetching red), and then had a proper pedicure, complete with a massaging chair - wish I had one of those in the office!
The buses from my village don’t go near my church (which is not in the city centre) and I go to the evening service so wouldn’t fancy the long late night walk through one of the dodgier bits of Cambridge to catch the hourly bus back from the city to my village. Actually, being Sunday I might not even be able to get a bus back by then.
My bipolar disorder means I also don’t like doing things outside my normal routine and I get anxious in unfamiliar situations, especially alone in the dark.
My bible study is in a village about 6 miles in the opposite direction, in the evening and no bus.
@Piglet, the programme was
Handel : Zadok the priest,
Foundling Hospital Anthem, which ends with the Hallelujah Chorus, did you know? Written for the dedication of the hospital chapel in 1749.
J S Bach: Cantata BWV21: Ich hatte viel Bekümmernis (I have much affliction)
Not enough choir, too much from the soloists, for my taste.
Ah, Zadok, a family favourite 😀 (my eldest is called Zadok).
I’ve heard about the foundling hospital’s links with Handel before, he was a benefactor. I must have a listen to the anthem sometime.
The concert this evening was excellent. We have a 9 o'clock rule for drinking alcohol so as the concert finished at about 8.30 we dived into a local pub to have a drink on the way home.
Thank goodness tomorrow should be a 'normal' day, church in the morning and probably a trip to the garden centre in the afternoon.
I've managed to have three mini 'meetings' with people I've bumped into while out and about today and various things are now a bit further forward. That's one of the things I love about our town is how easy it is to get to know people. There were quite a few we knew at the concert tonight, including quite a contingent of Quakers sitting behind us.
Heavenlyannie, your bus service sounds even worse than ours!
I'll check in as another fan of Zadok the priest - great fun to sing! I have fond memories of sitting with David in our local pub in Kirkwall, trying to think up excuses to put it on the music list!
In other news, Linlithgow has been named as the best town in Scotland to live. I'll go along with that; while a big chunk of my heart will always be in Orkney, I've grown very fond of "Lithgae".
We have a bus into Cambridge every 10 minutes in the day time until 7-8 in the evening, it’s just later in the evening it is more challenging and I suspect even more so on Sundays. I doubt many villages anywhere have more than an hourly evening bus service, especially on a Sunday!
But the other issue is that I live on the south route into Cambridge and my church is on the East route, so there is no direct bus there anyway. (Before anyone says why don’t I attend a more local church, we did but left during The Great Church Split That Made The National News). I could watch church online but I spend enough time online during the week so I won’t.
Linlithgow sounds lovely, I like the idea of having a loch nearby.
I absolutely love where we live. The only down side is lack of buses. There is one bus every 2 hours and that only goes between Weston and Wells, stopping at all villages in between.
So, when I want to get the bus to Bristol, I get dropped off at the next village where there is a direct bus.
But going anywhere without using the car at all is extremely difficult.
If we find ourselves carless we are lucky that we have everything we need here. Post office, co-op, doctor's surgery, hairdressers, and of course - an excellent pub!
I am well placed for buses to the city every ten minutes in the daytime, fewer in the evening, but my small town has everything I need, as above. I only use my car to go to choirs, and church in the next village, none of which would be possible without it, which is a worry.
This morning after the service we had a lengthy discussion, first amongst ourselves as a choir, then with a key member of the PCC about the future viability of the choir. I have started a thread in Ecclesiantics.
No plans for the rest of today nor most of the next week in the day time, though I have four evening commitments. I might make inroads into my To Do list.
There is a lot to be said for towns such as Linlithgow and Newark where I live. Big enough to have most of the things you need close to hand but small enough that there is a sense of community. Buses here are a bit hit and miss but we do have two train stations so I can be in London in 75 minutes or various local towns in about twenty. I tend to walk everywhere I need to go in town.
I've been to church this morning and am now waiting for my husband to return from Meeting. He wants to go to a local transport museum this afternoon so he'll have to get home soon otherwise we won't have time to get there.
We have a bus into Cambridge every 10 minutes in the day time until 7-8 in the evening, it’s just later in the evening it is more challenging and I suspect even more so on Sundays. I doubt many villages anywhere have more than an hourly evening bus service, especially on a Sunday!
But the other issue is that I live on the south route into Cambridge and my church is on the East route, so there is no direct bus there anyway. (Before anyone says why don’t I attend a more local church, we did but left during The Great Church Split That Made The National News). I could watch church online but I spend enough time online during the week so I won’t.
Linlithgow sounds lovely, I like the idea of having a loch nearby.
Buses to the village which lieth nigh unto Arkland are hourly during the day, though not in the evenings now AFAIK. The service is worked by one vehicle, which shuttles to and from the main bus station in Our Town.
Until 1930, Trams ran from the top of the hill above Arkland, into the centre of Our Town, and beyond, every 15 minutes. The replacement bus service was just as good (and rather more comfortable - the trams were well past their prime), but has been progressively reduced. They have, however, recently re-introduced an hourly Sunday run, mornings and afternoons.
I live just outside Hull, where I work. I can walk in less than 10 mins to the station, and take a train to Hull, York, Sheffield or direct to London. I can get a subsidised bus into work from just down the road, or I can cycle to Hull in about half an hour. I can walk in 10 mins to the (large) village which has shops which sell most things I need, Anglican, Catholic and Methodist churches and a banking hub. We really do like it here!
Talking of buses (and I speak from experience), an infrequent but reliable service can be preferable to the opposite! Twice recently I've waited for around an hour for a thrice-hourly bus. Which is why I cycle if the weather even vaguely cooperates. I'd take the train, but the bus is always threatening to turn up shortly!
I can’t ride a bike, I wasn’t taught as a child and couldn’t learn as an adult due to my anxiety. My husband bought me a tricycle but I am too anxious to ride it on roads.
I think people sometimes underestimate the extent of my mental health challenges, possibly due to my ability to perform a full time academic job. But the reason I am an associate lecturer and not a central academic is my inability to cope with any kind of stress. Likewise, I became a specialist eye nurse so I did not have to cope with managing a department or emergencies. My anxiety is also the reason I did not learn to drive*. I may mask it well but my mental health is fragile on a daily basis and I have to live a sheltered, managed life to maintain stability. I am very much a bird in a gilded cage.
*I can’t swim either! But that doesn’t usually impact on my ability to get to church.
I used to cycle but since my cervical spine operation I've been too afraid of falling off. The metal work in my neck would come loose if I fell and hit my head.
Mr Boogs is a very keen cyclist but will not cycle in England. It's not safe. He's off on a big bike tour in Germany soon.
Cambridge is a very good place to cycle in, it’s flat with plenty of dedicated cycle paths and lanes. Mr Heavenly cycles to work and town.
I've noticed the density of bikes in Cambridge, from the viewpoint of a nervous pedestrian.
We're in a tract of small suburban streets, but nevertheless 5 minutes north will take me to a bus which runs directly to the Western General Hospital - very useful, given the yo-yo-ing I've been doing over the past weeks. 10 minutes east is a main route into the city centre, so that's the Southside, Old Town and Princes St.
Because we live a few minutes walk away from the coastal road between Eastbourne &Brighton we have a very good bus service. Various buses take minor route deviations from a straight run between the two big resorts, but between them they come past us at roughly 10 minute intervals in the tourist seasons, and a slightly longer gap in quieter times.
Of course, in the summer the buses quickly get filled with groups of young people heading to or from the Seven Sisters Country Park, but their presence is responsible for the frequent service so we can't grumble!
I think I have posted before about the bus journey from Cambridge to Stansted Mountfitchet, which involves a change of bus in Saffron Walden. The last bus to Stansted used to leave SW at about 6pm, and the Cambridge bus used to get there just in time for the connection most Saturdays - until there was a change to the timetable and it was not scheduled until 5 past 6. That put paid to my Saturday matinees at the ADC.
The bus service here was a big plus when we were house-hunting.
The bus service here was a big plus when we were house-hunting.
Here too. We have a bus at the end of the road which we can use to get to church or into town. Not as frequent as it used to be, but still theoretically 9 buses/hour for most of the day. The morning peak service is being improved after Easter.
Nearest train station is about 10 minutes drive away (no bus), trains to Cardiff Central now every 10 minutes (used it yesterday).
Comments
We are off for a couple of days this afternoon, something that was in the diary long before we knew we'd be moving when we did. It's not great timing as there's so much to do here but it will be a break from the mess and the boxes and also means No Cooking for Nen which is always a Good Thing.
Nah, I'll PM you my address to send it to.
FWIW I cannot imagine anything I'd love more than a massive cheeseboard at a real ale pub.
So did I and had a momentary vision of myself as a beery Pawn in Through the Looking Glass scaring off Queens and Knights with an oozy hunk of Stinking Bishop.
Another nice day here, with odd outbreaks of Sunshine. Supper was fishcakes with veggies.
In other news, @Sandemaniac took the shears to our lawn this afternoon as the grass was too long for the mower. He's planning to run the mower over it tomorrow afternoon when it's had a chance to dry off. I think that will just be the bits that don't have cowslips flowering... We're just back from ringing practice, and I'm feeling rather chuffed at having managed to get through a plain course of Stedman without any mistakes
This evening I headed to the first part of my writers group social evening as I wanted to discuss what we're doing for our local book festival. That decided, I headed home as four nights of meetings is just too much. At least nothing is planned for tomorrow night and my husband will be out so I can catch up with The Other Bennet Sister.
Lunch was hot cross bun and cheese, I think it was Puzzler who reminded me of the combo in her post a few days ago.
Hostage to fortune - put in three technical change requests last thing. I'm off all next week because Birthday so if when I go back Monday week I'll either have lots to do or feck all to do except argue about the things I wanted to do.
Pastry for pie had gone manky (well before its best before) so had to improvise for the chicken pie which resulted in a cheesy crumble topping.
Now starting Friday TTRPG, which is currently Traveller.
Having said that, I did spend an hour or so after work wrestling with hymn choices: Rev'd Rosie has asked for some porcine input into the hymns.
I'm discovering how difficult it is to match hymns with seasons (especially as we're coming into that rather fuzzy season that the Civilised World calls Trinity, and the Orange Book calls "Ordinary Time" - whatever the hell that means).
At about half past six I gave up and went over the road to get the obligatory f&c for supper.
I was intending to serve a Nice Meal for his return. Having found mixed beef and pork mince not long ago, I wanted to make a proper ragu sauce cooked for four hours. After taking Captain Pyjamas to his therapy appointment this morning, I returned via the market (and bottle shop, for the appropriate Italian wine), and started fine chopping vegetables. At which point I realised I'd forgotten to take the meat out of the freezer.
Now he's home I shall sleep better. It's a funny thing, I spent the first mumble mumble years of my life sleeping alone, but now I don't feel quite safe. It may be hot, but I can only get to sleep with a very heavy blanket on top of me. The human comfort blanket is back so the other one can be put away again now.
With a name like yours it's a must!
Dogs walked. I'm off to a book and cake sale at our local Arts Centre. What's not to like? 🙂
The week ahead will be long and quiet for me as my workload is lighter than usual and I won’t be able to go to church or the weekly bible study group as I don’t drive. So I plan to get some writing done and have a few indulgent treats.
Lovely and sunny today, I have had a long walk and plan to potter in the garden this afternoon. Lunch will be a crab baguette.
At least next week looks a lot quieter,
It is so long since I have been into the city centre. So different from where I live. Crowded, noisy. Nothing amiss in the afternoon, but so many people drinking, mainly adults 25-45. Nice to come home to my own bottle of wine and a stir fry.
@Puzzler - what was the concert programme?
@Firenze - how's Mr F doing?
Quite a useful choir practice this morning, at which a couple of members suggested we try singing some sort of motet at Communion on special occasions; I'm going to have to think about what we might be capable of! 😲
The rest of the day was lazy: I got my fingernails done (a rather fetching red), and then had a proper pedicure, complete with a massaging chair - wish I had one of those in the office!
Supper was steak, potatoes and veggies.
My bipolar disorder means I also don’t like doing things outside my normal routine and I get anxious in unfamiliar situations, especially alone in the dark.
My bible study is in a village about 6 miles in the opposite direction, in the evening and no bus.
Handel : Zadok the priest,
Foundling Hospital Anthem, which ends with the Hallelujah Chorus, did you know? Written for the dedication of the hospital chapel in 1749.
J S Bach: Cantata BWV21: Ich hatte viel Bekümmernis (I have much affliction)
Not enough choir, too much from the soloists, for my taste.
I’ve heard about the foundling hospital’s links with Handel before, he was a benefactor. I must have a listen to the anthem sometime.
Thank goodness tomorrow should be a 'normal' day, church in the morning and probably a trip to the garden centre in the afternoon.
I've managed to have three mini 'meetings' with people I've bumped into while out and about today and various things are now a bit further forward. That's one of the things I love about our town is how easy it is to get to know people. There were quite a few we knew at the concert tonight, including quite a contingent of Quakers sitting behind us.
I'll check in as another fan of Zadok the priest - great fun to sing! I have fond memories of sitting with David in our local pub in Kirkwall, trying to think up excuses to put it on the music list!
In other news, Linlithgow has been named as the best town in Scotland to live. I'll go along with that; while a big chunk of my heart will always be in Orkney, I've grown very fond of "Lithgae".
But the other issue is that I live on the south route into Cambridge and my church is on the East route, so there is no direct bus there anyway. (Before anyone says why don’t I attend a more local church, we did but left during The Great Church Split That Made The National News). I could watch church online but I spend enough time online during the week so I won’t.
Linlithgow sounds lovely, I like the idea of having a loch nearby.
So, when I want to get the bus to Bristol, I get dropped off at the next village where there is a direct bus.
But going anywhere without using the car at all is extremely difficult.
If we find ourselves carless we are lucky that we have everything we need here. Post office, co-op, doctor's surgery, hairdressers, and of course - an excellent pub!
This morning after the service we had a lengthy discussion, first amongst ourselves as a choir, then with a key member of the PCC about the future viability of the choir. I have started a thread in Ecclesiantics.
No plans for the rest of today nor most of the next week in the day time, though I have four evening commitments. I might make inroads into my To Do list.
I've been to church this morning and am now waiting for my husband to return from Meeting. He wants to go to a local transport museum this afternoon so he'll have to get home soon otherwise we won't have time to get there.
Bike?
Until 1930, Trams ran from the top of the hill above Arkland, into the centre of Our Town, and beyond, every 15 minutes. The replacement bus service was just as good (and rather more comfortable - the trams were well past their prime), but has been progressively reduced. They have, however, recently re-introduced an hourly Sunday run, mornings and afternoons.
Every 10 minutes?!?!? Unbridled luxury!
Buses from Linlithgow towards Edinburgh are about every half an hour, on a good day ...
It is, and I can actually see the loch from my flat - it's literally a minute's walk away.
I think people sometimes underestimate the extent of my mental health challenges, possibly due to my ability to perform a full time academic job. But the reason I am an associate lecturer and not a central academic is my inability to cope with any kind of stress. Likewise, I became a specialist eye nurse so I did not have to cope with managing a department or emergencies. My anxiety is also the reason I did not learn to drive*. I may mask it well but my mental health is fragile on a daily basis and I have to live a sheltered, managed life to maintain stability. I am very much a bird in a gilded cage.
*I can’t swim either! But that doesn’t usually impact on my ability to get to church.
Mr Boogs is a very keen cyclist but will not cycle in England. It's not safe. He's off on a big bike tour in Germany soon.
I've noticed the density of bikes in Cambridge, from the viewpoint of a nervous pedestrian.
We're in a tract of small suburban streets, but nevertheless 5 minutes north will take me to a bus which runs directly to the Western General Hospital - very useful, given the yo-yo-ing I've been doing over the past weeks. 10 minutes east is a main route into the city centre, so that's the Southside, Old Town and Princes St.
And of course, all for free.
Of course, in the summer the buses quickly get filled with groups of young people heading to or from the Seven Sisters Country Park, but their presence is responsible for the frequent service so we can't grumble!
I think I have posted before about the bus journey from Cambridge to Stansted Mountfitchet, which involves a change of bus in Saffron Walden. The last bus to Stansted used to leave SW at about 6pm, and the Cambridge bus used to get there just in time for the connection most Saturdays - until there was a change to the timetable and it was not scheduled until 5 past 6. That put paid to my Saturday matinees at the ADC.
The bus service here was a big plus when we were house-hunting.
Nearest train station is about 10 minutes drive away (no bus), trains to Cardiff Central now every 10 minutes (used it yesterday).