Royal Edition

This morning early I posted the link to Morning Prayer in place of Ruth who's unwell. She was going to be away this week when I offered, but she and her husband caught covid instead and had to stay home. I went to the Eucharist at St Catherine's. There were seven of us for the service.  It was good to have our sacristan Clive administering the chalice for the first time.

After coffee, I went and collected this week's veggie bag then returned for lunch and a siesta before a walk around Llandaff and Pontcanna Fields. As a result of recent days of rain the water level in the Taff as risen enough to flow over the entire width of the weir for the first time since February according to my record in photographs.

There was a hard choice of viewing on telly this evening 'Autumnwatch' was on at the same time as 'The Repair Shop' - Royal Edition! Prince Charles, as he was at the time, visited the team workshop with a vase and a carriage clock to restore. Not only that, the team went on location to Dumfries House in Scotland, where Prince Charles has established a training centre for all kinds of craftsmen and restorers of historic objects. Hundreds of young people have learned specialist skills that have made them employable, and for some a lifelong vocation as an artisan.

They were shown around and introduced to students and apprentice masters by the Prince himself. It was a wonderful showcase programme for all the things that presenter Jay Blades and King Charles care about and promote. The warm mutual regard they demonstrated was a delight to witness. A relaxed and informal view of the man soon to become King when the programme was recorded. An inspirational hour, and providential timing in terms of the public's impression of our new sovereign.

It was followed by a fascinating documentary which surveyed the entire history of children's television programmes, pointing out their innovatory and sometimes radical controversial character, contributing in quite a subversive way to nurturing social change. Many of the early programmes visited I remember from growing up, but those from the period when our children grew up, I knew very little about, which only goes to show how seldom I sat down and watched telly with the kids when they were growing into their teens. Too busy 'vicaring' as they'd observe, no doubt.

Partygate reported

I went to the Eucharist at St Catherine's this morning. There were nine of us present. Mother Frances told us about the life of St Bede and his importance to people in the North East of England. She showed us pictures of pages in the Lindisfarne Gospels, which date from Bede's time, and over coffee afterwards revealed that her PhD study had been on these Gospel books.

When I got back I prepared the text for next week's Morning Prayer, ready for recording, and then cooked lunch. After eating I wrote a reflection on the Gerasene demoniac, remembering as I wrote, the trip Clare and I made to Jerash with Frank Dall back in 1998. 

Then I went and collected this week's grocery order from Beanfreaks, and made a separate trip to buy our weekly food bank donation and leave it at St John's. Jobs done, I went for a walk in the park listening to the five o'clock news on my phone. Finally the Sue Gray report investigating goings on in the offices at 10 Downing Street has been released today, strongly criticising the behaviour of politicians and government staff for ignoring lockdown rules. 

Boris Johnson ate humble pie before Parliament again, but shows no sign of resigning. It remains to be seen if the Tory party decide whether or not to believe that he misled Parliament and remove him. A cross party standards committee is also considering the same issue, and if it decided against him and the Tories didn't, that could further damage their prospects of re-election.

This evening, I watched 'The Repair Shop' again, and then there was a lovely documentary on BBC Four about a hermit who lives beside Loch Treig in highland Scotland. Perhaps he's the last of his kind in Britain. He's lived completely off grid for nearly forty years, foraging, fishing and catching rabbits for food. He makes a day's walk into Fort William for other supplies as there's no road to the lake for anything to be delivered. He keeps a detailed journal of every aspect of his life, having got into the habit of writing as a child, and corresponds with people he's met throughout his life and earlier travels. He also takes beautiful landscape and nature photos using a vintage Zenith SLR. 

He was persuaded to have a satellite linked alarm for emergencies, and when he had a stroke he had to be helicoptered to hospital. Since recovering he returned to his log cabin and now checks in weekly, but wonder if he will be able to live out the rest of his days in the wilderness he loves. He's even been visited by a priest whom he requested to come and bless the piece of ground where he wants to be laid to rest. From what he said about his early life, I reckon he's the same age as us.  An amazing story.

Prince of Muck

Another warm and sunny Spring day with occasional showers. I went to the Eucharist at St Catherine's this morning with eight of us present. During the day I exchanged emails with chaplaincy representatives in the Costa del Sol, sorting out flight reimbursements and briefing me about Sunday services. There was the veggie bag to collect before making lunch and the Beanfreaks grocery order to collect afterwards with only a short walk around the park late afternoon.

In the evening I watched this weeks edition of 'The Repair Shop' containing a significant item for the team to restore - an ornate Jewish prayer book which had survived. along with its owner, the horrors of the nazi concentration camp at Treblinka. The flyleaf contained the signatures of all who came out alive when it was liberated, such a powerful and cherished family heirloom. The moments of handover of cherished family mementos are often moving occasions, but this one, exceptionally so. Members of the team were equally moved at the response of its owner and the privilege they'd shared in helping conserve a historical document of such significance.

Then a documentary film called 'Prince of Muck' about the Laird of the Hebridean island of Muck, a man in his mid-seventies called Lawrence McEwan, whose great grandfather bought the island which Lawrence inherited over fifty years ago. His life's work has been dedicated to continuing the island's traditional way of life, while accepting technical innovations that improve life for everyone and encourage inhabitants to stay, or if they do go away, to return. 

His son now runs the family farm, but he still has his own small herd of free ranging cattle and looks after them himself. Being a life-long diarist, he read to camera from his journals over the years, and reflected on the changes he's seen in his life while he went on his daily round of chores. He took us to the graveyard where he wishes to be buried alongside other islanders, not in the Laird's exclusive islet Viking burial ground. "There are no walls or fences here." he explained. "My cattle will be able to visit me and walk on my grave."

It was a beautifully made film about a beautiful place and an old man at the end of his days, bearded, bent over, using walking sticks, remembering with love all that mattered most to him. If found that as a contemporary of his, it was easy to identify with him. When the credits ran at the end, it announced that he'd died just before it was shown on BBC Four. I wonder if he saw the finished product and approved of it? 

Pastoral TV

I was surprised how little traffic there was when I drove across town to celebrate Mass at St German's with five others this morning. I left a little later than usual and arrived on time. When I got back a message was waiting for me from the social worker, acknowledging my calls. She's been on leave due to a bereavement in her family. I now about the music planned to be used for Friday's funeral, but still lack information for a tribute. She proposes to contact a nursing assistant in the care home who looked after the deceased in the last stage of his life. 

The kitchen wall painter arrived several hours late, as I was on my way out to the shops. The undercoat was done by the time I returned. The painter didn't hang around until it dried to do the top coat. He returns some time next Monday to finish the job.

It was sunny and cold again, walking in the park this afternoon. Apart from organic waste, this week's waste collection hasn't happened today, so maybe tomorrow instead if covid hasn't decimated the regular work force. Being Twelfth Night, there are redundant Christmas trees littering the pavements as well as recycling bags. When will they be collected I wonder? 

I caught my first glimpse of a redstart in the usual place near the stables where I've seen them in recent winters. I made what I thought would be a perfect shot, but my camera wouldn't focus fast enough, and both pictures were blurred and useless. That's unusual with my HX90. Either light levels were low enough to confuse the camera sensor, or the camera's physical mechanism was too cold to function normally. Thereafter I kept the camera in my trouser pocket to warm it up, and had no trouble taking a couple of photos of another lovely winter sunset half an hour later.

We watched another edition of 'The Repair Shop' after supper. It's a remarkable series that showcases the very varied craft skills and creativity of a team of artisans devoted to repairing and renovating broken old things valued by people for whom they hold treasured memories. Often stories of bereavement are told or of childhood memories, all emotionally touching in various ways. There's a remarkable pastoral sensitivity among the team members. How super to have a reality TV programme filled with utterly decent people doing their best to bring joy and consolation to others. 

Then there was an edition of 'The Great British Dig' uncovering evidence of an ancient settlement beneath a suburban housing estate in Staffordshire. A section of a primary school playground was excavated next to where the team had their field headquarters, and to their surprise discovered evidence of an Iron Age roundhouse, not far from where children took history lessons. An amazing bonus, generating excitement for staff and pupils alike. I wonder how many children at that school now want to be archaeologists when they grow up?

I had confirmation of yet another funeral in two weeks time. That'll be the fourth so far this month, and all of them elderly men. Ministry Area leader Fr Stewart Lisk has confirmed that the school Mass at St German's will now switch from Wednesdays to Tuesdays when they re-start in two weeks. This avoids diary clashes for him and his clergy team colleagues, and me as an occasional stand-in. It frees me to attend or take the St Catherine's Wednesday service, and that's good news.

Talking with kids about royalty

I had an advance call from Pidgeon's about another funeral in two weeks time, details to follow when the family have visited to make the rest of the arrangements. An early booking either means the family need that amount of time to gather, or that the booking schedule is getting busy, as it often does at this time of year.

I haven't yet risked the journey to St German's through the city centre, now that two way traffic has been restored after a very annoying period of more than a year, knowing how congested Newport Road can be in all conditions. Now that the pressure is taken off diversionary routes around the city centre, the drive can be as quick on a weekday morning as it is on a Sunday. 

When I arrived twenty five minutes early, a class of three dozen children was queuing outside waiting for the doors to open, arriving much earlier than was a planned. We waited  to start the Mass until the handful of regular congregation members turned up on time, but I took advantage of the opportunity to chat to the children about Kings and Queens before we got started with celebrating Christ the King with them, and that worked quite well. 

I didn't stop for coffee and a chat as I had to drive back to keep a blood test appointment at the surgery. It's now receiving patients for appointments inside again, with a one way system using front and side doors, a lot easier for staff to manage, with only a couple of waiting spaces, and times strictly controlled. When I job was done, I collected the weekly veggie bag appointment. then returned home. I cooked lunch for us, then went out to the shops to buy some food-bank items ready to take to St John's tomorrow. Again, I fell asleep in the chair for over an hour, but managed to rouse myself to get out and walk again before sunset.

I worked on next week's Morning Prayer and accompanying reflection and recorded it before supper. Ideas came to me easily again. It must be all the fresh air. We watched The Repair Shop together, then I watched the final episode of 'Shetland', which left you in no doubt there's be another series, ending with a dramatic hiatus, after the crime was solved. It's interesting seeing the Scottish legal system at work, as it's much like the European legal system with an investigating magistrate - the Procurator Fiscal - scrutinising cases and deciding on grounds for prosecution. It has much to commend it.

Coping with complexity

After breakfast I drove to St German's to celebrate Mass with half a dozen regulars, returned home and continued editing together the audio pieces I recorded late last night. The less mistakes I make the easier the editing becomes, though occasionally the sound quality is poorer than usual, and I've yet to work out why, so editing takes longer. I took a break to collect this week's veggie bag and help Clare cook lunch, then continued work after going for an early afternoon walk. By supper time I had completed both weeks' videos and uploaded them ready for posting on the right date. Apart from that small task, my fortnight's holiday is care free!

Clare received a call from the holiday cottage owner to brief her about the facilities and check when we'll arrive. She was expecting to receive a key safe code to access the keys we need, but it seems the owner prefers to welcome visitors personally, hand over the keys and show them around, which is very pleasing.

Sister in law Ann is coming to join us for six days in the middle of our first week. It was meant to have been seven days, but for some inexplicable reason the seventh day return fare was four times the outbound fare, despite cross-checking by the station booking clerk. Perhaps it's due to a surge in ticket demand on the return day, who knows? 

She also had a frustrating and distressing experience acquiring a new Oppo phone from BT with whom she has a contract. Although it's meant to be an Android phone, it didn't prove possible to transfer all the data from her defunct Nokia to the Oppo, so she sent it back, opted to go SIM free and got a new Samsung phone from Argos instead. Why BT are pushing Chinese phones on to their customers when government is openly concerned about security risks relating to Chinese electronic hardware, heaven only knows. BT sent her a new SIM card to fit in the Android, which took a week to arrive, but instead of taking up to three hours to attach to the network, as she was assured it would, it took twelve.

I wondered why this was the case, until I thought about it. If BT had sold her one of their Samsung phones their network would have immediate access to the hardware database of their batch of phones, so checking the hardware identity would state there and take up to three hours. The hardware identity of a phone from Argos would be on a different database section, and the automated system would have to trawl through the bigger database to find it. Given that such phones are made in their tens if not hundreds of millions, this is going to take that much longer. The systems on which we rely for everyday communication are far vaster and more complex than we tend to think. This much I learned from working with Cardiff Business Safe.

After supper we watched 'The Repair Shop' again in which the stories behind the items skilfully restored were all of historical interest as well as personal value to the contributors. More marvellous craftsmanship to wonder at. A lovely show. Then a tough BBC Wales documentary on the impact of the Foot and Mouth epidemic on Wales 20 years ago. Especially interesting was the presence of Professor Neil Ferguson, who as a young research student was developing innovative statistical modelling tools to monitor outbreaks of contagious disease, recently applied to understanding the covid pandemic spread, bringing his name to public attention again. Mistakes were made in managing the foot and mouth outbreak, perhaps because it spread more rapidly than people realised, so that rapid containment was impossible. Learning comes sometimes, not from due diligence but from bitter experience.

Autumn Fayre at St Catherine's

A Saturday lie-in and pancake breakfast, final editing and printout of tomorrow's sermon, then cooking the lunch, and then it was time to take some jars of home made jam to the Parish Fayre in the grounds of St Catherine's. There was a super turn out of stalls and we came away with jars of chutney, a marrow and half a dozen big green apples which may or many not be cookers. I also found a new looking case for a DSLR camera on the bric a brac stall and bought it, just what I need for my Olympus which has been in a cramped case in which the HX300 usually lives since purchase.

As we walked home laden with stuff, crowds of people, mainly young families it seemed, were heading down King's Road to the church. It's the first outdoor church event of its kind since before lock-down and the attraction of something different yet familiar wasn't being taken for granted. I suspect we'll do well.

I went for an hour's walk in the park, and tried editing a video I'd made with no success, perhaps because I had disposed of some temporary files during a system clean up without realising. Backup of video editing files to One Drive stopped working officially last year. It's now necessary to make a backup on the device, or you won't be able to return to a recent video composition and change it. To effect the change I needed to make, I had to load the already rendered MP4 video into an old version of Movie Maker on my desktop workstation, and then remember how to make a one second cut in the audio and video stream to remove a tiny but noticeable error. It was tricky, but it worked eventually. I started the job before supper and went on with it for an hour afterwards. Then I checked out the substitute laptop I'm taking to my sister when I go to see her tomorrow, and watched another old episode of 'The Repair Shop' with Clare before heading for bed.

Prayers from the Pacific

Getting out of Canton to reach Adamsdown and St German's on a weekday isn't a comfortable experience. The length of traffic queues varies, until I get to Grangetown beyond the main railway line, and then it's not so variable, but I can never rush because of speed limits and speed bumps. I must leave the house early enough to arrive a comfortable ten minutes before Mass. 

It's not always easy as I can lose concentration on my departure time. This morning my timing was a bit tight, and I wasn't pleased with myself. We were five to commemorate William Tyndall, 16th century martyred Bible translator, to whom, Shakespeare and the King James Bible owe a huge linguistic debt. So many English scriptural phrases and imagery which are part of our way of speaking originate with him. A great poetic mind sacrificed on the altar of British reformation politics. 

St German's nave at the moment is clear of its usual seating and set up with music stands for an orchestral rehearsals as the Royal Welsh College has started using the place on working weekdays. Quite a sight!

I returned home, collected the week's veggie bag, then cooked lunch early. I sat down to listen to the one o'clock news and fell asleep until my phone woke me up with a notification at ten to two for a World Day of Prayer service at St John's.  I got there just after the service started. There were about twenty people there from local churches.

Last year's WDP service was cancelled due to pandemic restrictions, but re-arranged for today. The hosts were women of the Pacific Vanuatu islands, celebrating the beauty of nature, touching on environmental pollution. The biblical parable about building a house on sand or rock was used for meditation, and puzzlingly to my mind made no reference to global warming or the inevitable rise in sea levels which will make many islands uninhabitable as they are no more than a metre above sea level now. Vanuatuans could be among the first generation of climate change refugees. They must fear for their future.

After the service I went for a walk around Pontcanna Fields, and before supper watched the second episode of this week's 'Silent Witness' on BBC iPlayer. After supper we watched this week's 'The Repair Shop', and then I settled down to write for an hour or so before bed.

Relaxation caution needed

So, the Prime Minister has called a halt to the relaxing of covid restrictions for another month because of the rise in India/Delta covid variant infections. A sensible move, while a massive effort is made to get all over 18s vaccinated before the final step of relaxation takes place. It's believed this measure will help limit the rise of new infections, hospital admissions and deaths. Let's hope so. 

After that 11-18 year olds will be targeted for vaccination in England. It's already happening here in Wales. Un-vaccinated younger people may well get a milder dose of covid and in general recover more quickly, but the intention is to curb symptomless transmission of the virus, as it has been discovered that the doubly vaccinated are significantly less likely to pass infection on if they are unfortunate enough to get a dose of the virus. Covid infection has proved to be a moving target this past year. Some politicians are now honest enough to acknowledge that it's not going to be possible to eliminate it, any more than we can eliminate 'flu or the common cold, as these too keep mutating from year to year. Controlling the scale of infection rather than eliminating it entirely is the best that can be hoped for.

Mid-morning, I walked to Pidgeon's for the funeral service in their chapel, with just three mourners. Friends of the couple who had been there for the husband's funeral three years ago are now too frail and vulnerable to attend, or else died since then. The burial took place in bright sunshine in the new section of Thornhill cemetery. I waited with the funeral attendants an extra twenty minutes in bright warm sunshine while the hearse and mourners made a detour past the family home in Rhiwbina. Were any of their neighbourhood contemporaries watching out for the hearse? I wondered. Or have they too passed on or moved away?

We had an early lunch and then I drove Clare over to the Heath Hospital for an eye appointment for the second time in two days. Yesterday's visit was in error. She'd put the wrong date in her diary. On my way home I drove down Whitchurch Road, looking for an outlet of the 'Cartridge World' printer ink supply chain. I couldn't find the shop, checked on my phone and discovered that none of the four shops there used to be in Cardiff are now open. There's just one main store/deport in Bridgend. Most annoyingly if you google it, the store address is 'Bridgend, Cardiff' twenty miles away, fifteen outside the city limit. How misleading!

Now everything is done by mail order. This may suit some users, but I hate it. I simply don't like shopping on-line as it takes much more time to find what you want out of a huge product inventory, pay for it, wait several days for delivery and then have to waste hours waiting for a delivery to arrive.

Clare had choir practice early evening, and that was when I went for my walk of the day, and listened to the Archers on my phone when I was on my way home.

Another marvellous heat of Cardiff Singer of the World this evening, with singers from the USA, Russia, South Korea and Austria with varied song programmes from each singer. It was an outstanding dramatic musical performance by Austrian soprano Cristina Gansch which commended her to the judges. It was followed by an hour of 'The Repair Shop', a delightful celebration of different kinds of craftsmanship and the restorer's art, marvellous to behold.