So, the Christmas list is out there, and pretty much top of the list is Ridley Scott’s ‘Final Cut’ of my all time favourite film, Blade Runner.
What’s more, this review sounds pretty good too. I can’t wait!
OS Wars
Oh dear. Looks like Leopard is the new Vista.
Good job I’m not planning moving to either in the near future! What does it take to get an OS right these days!!!
The month of gigs
I’ve been looking forward to this month for quite some time.
On a Sunday evening at the start of the month, Iron and Wine played here in Reading. I couldn’t resist popping along, and although they’re not one of my favourites, the chance of watching a good band in my home town was too much to resist. Reading used to have a good live music venue, but it closed a couple of years ago, and good gigs have been hard to come by ever since. Iron and Wine didn’t disappoint either, which was a good job because I was fit to drop!
Last night was an even brighter highlight due to the arrival of The Arcade Fire at Alexandra Palace. They were awesome! The set list was fantastic, ranging from their earlier tracks right up to recent compositions, and the free-ranging version of Power Out had me and Andy Freeman jumping around all over the place. Awesome. The evening had a more colourful end than either of us would have wished with some rather intriguing Londoners on a bus, but I’ll spare you the gory details 😉
And the month of gigs is not yet finished! Interpol are also playing at Ali Pali on the last Friday of the month. I’m feeling spoiled with aural delight…
Jack Frost
I got up and left the house in a hurry this morning.
For the last couple of days we have had beautiful frosty mornings here in Reading, with the wonderful amber sunlight that only appears in the wintertime. I was determined to get some good camera shots, and my time was well spent, as you can see in the album here.
As well as enjoying the pure artistry of it all, I was trying to get this year’s Christmas Card shot. The problem is, I can’t really decide which one to go for. I’m inclined to go for 814 or or 789, but some of the others are fun too…
What do you think?!
Praying
As I sat in the grounds of Reading Abbey for my usual Friday prayer time this morning, I read the following:
“Help me know that the secret of contentment lies in organising the self in the direction of simplicity.
Unless you have another task for me, keep me vigilant in prayer.”
How I long for more of this in my life!
Upgrade Complete!
Well, that was a pretty painless process – for now at least. Hopefully the beautiful new interface and functionality of my new MT4 blogging software will:
a) be a more pleasurable experience for you, the reader, and
b) result in more entries on the blog from me!
I guess we’ll see over the next month or so…
…the next test wil be how well it deals with comment spam, and how easy it is to upgrade the template to something more ‘curvified’.
Biting the bullet
I’m finally biting the bullet and upgrading to MT4 today.
If you view my site using an RSS reader, you may experience some replication of posts due to my chosen upgrade path, so sorry about that – the two versions of MT I’m using are significantly different, so it makes sense to start from scratch, rather than try to upgrade the existing installation.
If all of that means nothing to you, then just sit back and enjoy the new MT4 experience!
Great Scott!
Having been wowed by the views of Crater Lake the day before, I definitely had the bit between my teeth for climbing the National Park’s highest peak, Mount Scott.
Chipmunks scampered around the picnic area that was the starting point for our hike, looking like they had a lot more energy than I did, but I wasn’t going to let that deter me from my mission!
24-7 Reception Revue
What a great evening! Thanks so much to those of you who prayed for us as 24-7 undertook its first official reception.
Helen Monkton and her team of willing helpers did a fantastic job of looking after everyone, and the evening was an unqualified success.
Our friend Mark Markeiwitz did a fantastic job of hosting the event, and we were soon treated to an impassioned review of the history of Wesley’s ministry from Lord Lesley Griffith. Our location for the evening, the 24-7 City Boiler Room, is on the very spot Wesley based himself for his ministry to the poor in London.
The other half
I’ve got used to jumping off the tube at Green Park over the last couple of years, triggered by the closure of my fine tea supplier in Tewkesbury. Every couple of months I stroll (or join in with the London rush) past the Ritz, to Fortnum and Mason. However this particular week, I wasn’t after a fine Assam, but something more visually appreciable.