Lots to report, of course, it being the Christmas season. On a positive note, my back pain seems to have gone,  and the weather has been milder – though it’s now turning chilly again.

On the evening of the 19th we had our Christmas Cake and Compline, with everyone present, and a good time…etc. The next day Dot and I picked up Howard and Chris Denton and went to see Anne Travis. We did not pick up Phyllis because we couldn’t find her, and Howard was late; so we had to go back for him (having thought he might be at Phyllis’s). The traffic was pretty bad, but I found the optimum route through the city centre for a change, and we were only slightly late at the care home. Anne is more anxious and slightly less mobile, but was quite perky once she realised who we were.

David, Oliver and Amy arrived on Thursday, and we had a meal at Prezzo’s with Angela and Rodney, rescheduled slightly after Prezzo messed up the original booking by putting it on the wrong day. Very pleasant evening.

The next day was hectic, largely because we had been invited to the Hendersons’ for drinks and nibbles. Dot was already going to see Norwich play Brentford (they lost 2-1), and because Jonathan was ill we got two free tickets for Oliver and David. We went to see The Last Jedi in the afternoon (a brilliant film, highly recommended), and this left timings too tight for us all to see the Hendersons, given the near gridlock in the city. So Amy and I dropped in on them at about 8. By then most people had eaten and were sitting down; the two of us spoke to Philip and Heather Butcher, plus Terri and Keith, then gravitated into the other room, where we had a longish chat with Holly, then Paul for a bit, before heading home.

Saturday was hectic too. Dot and I went shopping in the morning to get food for lunch and for our evening At Home, attended by most of the neighbours and Mr and Mrs Robinson: Mairead, Freddie and Phoebe, Luke and Michelle, Mark and Sarah, and Des (Chris was ill), plus Sam, Chris and Ellie after S called in earlier in the day and found out about it. We scheduled it for 7-10 after the very late finish last year, and it worked well, the last people leaving at 11. I spent most of the evening pouring drinks, but Dot, David and Oliver did a lot of circulating. Amy was a little more reserved.

Sunday was our latest ever production of the Alternative Carol Service, and David, Oliver  and Amy all came, plus 16 others (including us). It went pretty well, and Eleanor and Liz Cannon were both particularly appreciative. Afterwards we supplied mulled wine and mince pies. Later in the day Roger and Debbie called in with the latest reports from Jessie, who still seems to be doing very well.

Amy got us off to a good start on Christmas Day  by waking us all just after 8am, and we had opened most of the parcels before breakfast. Had a lovely day altogether , with David and Dot doing most of the lunch between them. Later we watched The Man from Uncle, which was very good. Rang Andrew in the morning, and he seemed surprisingly perky. Phil was well enough to drive to Southampton with Joy, and they are spending a week there.

My walking stats are taking a bit of a hit, but you can’t have everything.

This morning we received a long e-mail from our vicar, giving the news that he will be leaving us, probably next Easter; so a new difficult interregnum is in prospect, especially as we have fewer resources than last time.