Monthly Archives: January 2007

29 January 2007

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This is the promised picture of David’s new car – an Astra. Actually the first car he’s ever bought.

Dot is still not very well. She spent all day in bed yesterday with her sinus infection, and I would have liked her to stay there today, but she insisted on coming with me to North Walsham to put flowers on her mother’s grave. It’s her mother’s birthday today. Now she’s gone to have herself weighed, but that shouldn’t take long. Not that I think it’s a good idea.

I’m playing chess later and could do with a win, as I’m having a very mediocre season. But I’m not tremendously optimistic.

Yesterday I was doing most things at church. I was the only musician (using the word loosely); I also did the sermon and the prayers. In the evening I went to Ambient Wonder, which consisted of a labyrinth (there will be a write-up on it eventually on www.ambientwonder.org).

I have discovered that the name Lenton is very old, going back at least to the Domesday Book in 1086. It probably meant originally two or three pallisaded houses in a forest clearing – from two old English words which gave us “lea” and “town”.

There are two English places called Lenton – one in Lincolnshire, probably Leofa’s tun, but spelt Lenton since 1202. It is south-east of Grantham, near Ingoldsby. The other is a suburb of Nottingham, on the river Leen, which is a corruption of a Celtic word for a river or other waterway. My wild guess is that the Lincolnshire village was founded by someone who came from Lenton in Nottinghamshire. It’s not far away. Just follow the A52.

27 January 2007

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The last of the snow on the hill above our house yesterday. Today it’s still pretty cold, but the sky is blue, and Dot has recovered sufficiently to go to the shops. We were going to see Aunti Ethel, but didn’t want her to get what was left of the cold.

Dot also managed to get to a performance last night of Brecht’s The Caucasian Chalk Circle (Der kaukasische Kreidekreis) by the National Theatre at the Playhouse. I dropped her outside and parked behind the Green’s. The place was packed, largely with teenagers who must be doing the play for A-level, so lots of chattering in the foyer. We were in the balcony – bit squashed, but an excellent view.

The performance was on the mind-blowing side of mellow and included the most intriguing array of technical effects I have ever seen on stage. Not least impressive was the way a doll was used as a baby, but manipulated very realistically and with one of the cast producing convincing baby noises through a microphone. The singer was a very powerful presence, backed by drums and odd electronic instruments, effectively tying the action together. This was useful, as the action is often chaotic and spans time and space.

The actors were tremendously energetic but had a huge range of styles. All had several roles, including technical ones. Many a tour de force, especially the two leading roles and the judge in the second half. A memorable evening.

After that we even survived watching the cricket, in which England were humiliated even further by Australia, scoring only 110 and then failing to take a single Australian wicket, except one run-out. When will someone notice that Flintoff often plays badly when he’s captain and Strauss plays badly when he isn’t? The solution is not rocket science. You get the definite impression that the team has more or less given up, and FF can’t do anything about it. Pity: he’s a great guy.

David and Vicky bought a new car yesterday: an Astra less than one year old, from a garage in Harpenden. He sent us pictures over the net and I’ll use one soon. Looks impressive. Oliver is very keen.

26 January 2007

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Call me biased, but I think this is a pretty good drawing of a shark for a four-year-old. Admittedly Oliver has a plastic shark for use in the bath, but he was doing it from memory. What a star!

Dot was still very rough yesterday. It had snowed again overnight, and I had to drive to Halesworth to see a trainee at 11.30am. Most of the snow had melted by then, and there was practically none south of Alburgh, but the usual stretch of a mile and a bit near Hardwick was still packed, icy snow when I reached it – and lethal if you didn’t take it very slowly indeed. The stretch includes two nasty corners, and someone had clearly gone into the hedge earlier – though the absence of a vehicle clearly meant he had extricated himself. Or it had melted.

I’ve written a bit in next week’s page about this curious phenomenon. Many times when Dot drove to school the roads were clear until she reached that stretch, when she was faced with ice or snow. Must be a gateway into another dimension, possibly Narnia.

The visit to induct the trainee went well, and I enjoyed the drive back: by then most of the snow had gone, but that stretch was still slippery. It was actually quite a pleasant day, with bright sunshine.

Later I walked into the city to buy an international money order from the bank. I sent it off this morning. Most of the snow has vanished, despite a fresh overnight sprinkling, but it’s now overcast.

24 January 2007

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Amy in a top she was given for Christmas, which sums up her feelings nicely. Unless Dad happens to be doing it, in which case she would feel that her mum could do anything. Fortunately both of these things are more or less true.

Extremely wintry today, with quite a lot of snow overnight. However, the sun melted most of it by this afternoon. I drove to the supermarket about lunchtime and it was a pleasant day. Dot had her hair cut but is not at all well. She has a bad cold and has retired to bed as I write (5.30pm). I’ve been writing my page for next Monday – one of the less easy ones. Sometimes it will all be done in an hour – at other times it’s a struggle.

England managed to lose at cricket again yesterday. However little their opponents get, they seem determined to show they can get less. I don’t think Freddie Flintoff is a good captain really: he seems to laugh it all off. I can’t imagine Ponting doing that.

23 January 2007

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Extremely wintry today, with light snow showers and temperatures not very much above freezing. Dot isn’t too well, and we’ve cancelled tonight’s meal. She has a sore throat and painful sinuses, but has managed to write her inspection report on Hilgay School. I ventured out to get some photographs processed and to take up some renewed prescriptions, as well as post a letter and fill the car up with petrol.

Yesterday my chess game was cancelled, and so I didnt go out at all, but Dot went to Necton School for one of her consultant visits.

The weekend was busy: we left at lunchtime on Friday for Caddington and arrived in time for me to meet Oliver out of school. He seemed pleased to see me! He and Amy were on good form, and on Saturday we looked after them while David and Vicky went to look at some used cars. In the end they bought a different one – an Astra – which we saw when we all went into Harpenden in the afternoon. We also bought some new shoes for Amy and had some tea and cake in the Lily Lounge – very nice.

More tea and cake on Sunday when we went to Aunt Jessie’s at North Walsham for her 74th birthday dinner. We were there by midday after quite a good journey. Also Roger and Phil, Janet and Ray, as well as Frank, of course. Pleasant lunch and afternoon conversation.

Before travelling to Caddington I had been to the hospital and was told to carry on taking the pills, as they seemed to be doing me some good. No worse, certainly, and probably rather better. I’m optimistic.

The picture is of my brother Andrew in typical pose at Winterton in a very cold wind between Christmas and New Year.

18 January 2007

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Very strong winds today – and heavy rain. The Wensum is extremely high. The picture is of a spot near the Bure at Coltishall, taken when we were staying at the Norfolk Mead Hotel in November, in much calmer weather.

January has been exceptionally unsettled, though reasonably mild. On Tuesday I went with Dot to her church school inspection at Hilgay, near Downham Market. I had originally intended to walk in the Fens, but there was a lot of rain on the way, and although it stopped around lunchtime, the mud remained – and the forecast led me to believe that more rain was coming (though it wasn’t). So I contented myself with parking at Denver Sluice – a remarkable spot where several rivers or cuts meet, and eating my sandwich before venturing out to take a few photographs.

I then drove down to Ten Mile Bank and continued down the narrow road to the west of the river as far as Littleport. The Fens give the impression of being sparsely inhabited, but this is an illusion. Almost everywhere the road widened or there was a place to park, there was also a house of some kind – often quite impressive and usually with its row of protective trees. Sometimes the road was on the top of the bank and you could look down on to the Ouse; sometimes it was below the bank and probably below the surface level of the river. Some new houses were being built along there – not the place I would want to live, with the constant risk of flooding.

I drove back along the A10 and stopped in a layby to read, then back to the Little Chef near Downham Market, where I intended to use the facilities – only to find it was shut. So I drove back to a turning to West Dereham and went for a short walk, then parked a layby just outside Hilgay, with a view of the River Wissey and its line of forlorn-looking boats.

There is something seductive about the Fens – I think it’s the openness and maybe the feeling that you’re just outside civilisation.

On the way home we drove through Necton and down to Watton so that Dot would know the route when she travelled from one school to another next Monday. Since then, however, one school has cancelled. Still, it was a route I hadn’t travelled before – so worth doing.

Today we picked up the MX5, which had been scratched and dented by someone when it was parked outside our house. We also find that one of our guests has broken a tap in the bathroom and left the water running, which is a little annoying. I’ve stopped the water running, but not sure I can fix the tap.

Because Dot had my car yesterday I walked to the chiropractor and back into the city to do various chores – a total of just over four miles. Nothing exceptional in that, except that I was carrying a box of suspension files for the last mile and a bit. Pretty tired when I got home. Dot is now writing her report, and then we shall go to Park Farm for lunch.

Oh, and I should mention that England have won a cricket match – not against Australia, of course, but New Zealand. Only just, and after a valiant attempt to lose, but nevertheless a win.

15 January 2007

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This is Oliver with has radio-controlled car – a Christmas present from Auntie Ethel. Since then he has had an excellent interview with a nearby school, who as a result wanted him to transfer to them immediately. But he will probably stay where he is until September.

Weather continues windy, but it’s not too bad at the moment. We washed and vacuumed the car this morning and managed to get a lot of the winter grime off. meanwhile the MX5 has gone in to have a scratch and dent on the offside repaired – presumably caused while it was parked outside. This will cost over £400 and take three days to fix.

Yesterday I led the morning service, and we also went to our first fortnightly Ambient Wonder event in the evening. This was the “Lite” verson with a theme of beginnings, and I told the story of Brendan and Columba. There was a certain amount of coracle-making, and we hung around for a while afterwards, chatting to Ed, Anna, Bethany etc.

England did not lose at cricket yesterday – largely because they weren’t playing. So Australia crushed New Zealand instead.

13 January 2007

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Biggest hiatus yet. I blame Christmas, but who doesn’t? Anyway you have to take time out to watch your grandchildren. Grandchildren-watching is a very rewarding way of using time, and so it proved at the turn of the year. The picture is Amy in the midst of it, wondering what it all signifies.

What has happened in the last 24 days? I invented a service for St Augustine’s on Christmas Eve, wherein the sermon consisted largely of poems. About a dozen in the congregation, so well worth while. Afterwards Dot and I headed off to Toton, where we spent a delightful Christmas with the whole family. On the 27th we left, picking up my brother Andrew from Coventry on the way, and returned to Norwich. The next couple of days were quite quiet, but the weather was unpleasant. I took Andrew to Winterton, where the wind was chilling and it soon started to rain. We drove up the coast to Cromer before giving up on hope of a break in the weather and drove home. We also took him to see Happy Feet at the cinema – an animated film about penguins that had received good reviews. Sadly it failed to live up to its early promise, and the last third of it was frankly silly as far as the plot went, carrying no conviction at all. Why should humans prefer tap-dancing penguins to singing penguins? One of the great questions of our time. Andrew went to sleep towards the end of it, and I can’t blame him.

David, Vicky and the children arrived on the Friday night (29th), so Andrew had a chance to meet them the next morning before I returned him to Coventry, meeting Gareth halfway as usual. Julia and Dave arrived on the Sunday for lunch, and in the evening we were joined by Anne and Philip for a turkey meal. Sadly David was not well at all over the New Year and still is not 100 per cent.

Julia and Dave stayed on till the Tuesday, when the four of us went for a walk at Horsey, where we encountered seals on the beach and an extremely unpleasant character in the dunes (see back2sq1.co.uk). Otherwise very pleasant, and we had a good meal at the Nelson Head before rashly tackling the second part of the walk as darkness approached and the mud deepened. All ended well, however.

Since then things have sort of returned to normal. I’ve had a dental check-up and a blood test, and last Saturday Dot and I went to Alburgh Village Hall for a charity event partly organised by a couple of friends. We were on the same table as Louis de Bernieres, who had his picture taken with lady who was raising the money. The picture later appeared in the EDP. I should have inserted a toe into it, or something. LdB was one of the performers, playing a mandolyre and a clarinet (not simultaneously), accompanied by a charming German lady on the piano. She had travelled over from near Oxford. Allan H sang the Hippopotamus Song and If I were a Rich Man, which suddenly became interesting in his hands. Excellent bass voice – accompanied by the lovely Helen D on piano. Two or three other acts: an excellent violinist, a harpist and a woman who sang John Denver songs while accompanying herself on keyboard, which was a lot better than it sounds.

My marathon encounter with Steve M in The DONS chess club knockout ended on Monday, when I succumbed in the second 30-minute game after three draws. Started well, but went astray in the early middle game. Wasn’t really tuned in, possibly because I felt a bit unwell, but possibly not.

Visited Jessie this afternoon. Frank is not at all well, though you wouldn’t know it. He was able to put me right on Hog’s Loke, which is apparently Hag’s Loke. Oh dear. Norwich contrived to lose 1-3 at home to Plymough Argyle, and the England cricket team keep on failing. Now Pietersen has gone home injured. Ho, hum.

Oh, the other big thing that’s happened is that InPrint have moved into studios at Bally, on Hall Road. Much of Rupert’s and Annette’s stuff has already been installed, and we had an inaugural meeting there during the week. Things may actually be progressing: we may be a real group that does things.