We are slipping towards spring.
There's been a sudden admixture of sunshine and rain which has been splendid.
I'm also enjoying the light in the evening. I can now drive all the way home without the use of my car lights. It is even light enough to do things before evening meal. Morningtime, I'm usually turning the car lights off about halfway to work on a clear day. There's usually early light in the sky before I leave the house though I suspect that I shall still be getting up and breakfasting in the dark for some time yet.
The garden is telling its own story. It has been a good year for the Winter Jasmine and the witchhazel. However, most plants are not as advanced as they were at this time last year. However, last January was exceptionally mild. Nevertheless, the roses, honeysuckles, clematises and jasmines are all starting to sprout; the first flowers are coming on the hellebores; daffodils, bluebells and assorted bulbs are coming on nicely and snowdrops and crocuses are well out in the front garden.
Last Sunday, Ross and I broke our duck with the Crosby Symphony Orchestra. Ever since I arrived in Crosby, five years ago, I've been saying to myself that I must attend one of their concerts and, to date, there had always reasons as to why not. Well, accompanied by Roland and partner Colin, we made it at last and got to hear...
Handel Suite from The Water Music
Mozart Concerto for Flute and Harp
Beethoven Symphony No 5
Whilst not in the class of a professional symphony orchestra, it was still an enjoyable evening. The Handel was the least successful. It was as though thirty years of historically aware performance had never happened. The Mozart will never be my favourite piece by him but was pleasant enough. The Beethoven was something else. High standards of professional performance have made this music sound easy so it was very educational to hear it played by a band which was at the extremes of its abilities. The work sounded all the more dangerous for this quality.
There's another concert in April which includes works by Britten, Strauss and Sibelius so we'll be thinking about attending that now. We coped well with the cold by donning many layers. Next time we'll be taking cushions for the pews as well.
The week at work passed. It's my module that I'm teaching at the moment so my days in the training room are fuller. However, this doesn't prevent me from being drawn into contributing to the writing of tenders and organising other meetings as well as covering the administrative work of a colleague who has been on holiday.
We've been passing the week at home by watching Dr Who on Ross's Christmas DVDs. I have to say that it just as good second time around, in fact, in some cases it is even better as little felicities become more apparent.
We've also attended our second full moon meditation. This time's guided meditation was a lot easier for me to follow with less of the particular rhetoric and imagery which I found difficulties in relating to last time. Everything was more universal though, when my spirit guide turned out to be a roe deer, she had difficulties lifting the pitchers of water later in the meditation - sometimes poetries and realities clash.
Yesterday I had a very surprising lunch talking with Bill Jones, with whom I worked off and on for nearly ten years in the mid-70s to mid-80s when I left arts administration for the higher waters of Information Technology. I've not seen him really for nearly twenty years now. The midday and most of the afternoon passed very quickly over a good meal with a bottle of wine between us. Now, it's a question of whether I can maintain the impetus to meet up again.