Low Altar

Norwich Cathedral

Global Concern

Norwich Cathedral

Art Glass

 

 

Among the first things to catch my eye at Norwich Cathedral were these windows. Interesting contrast in styles and subjects, don't you think?

 

"The medieval stained glass windows in the cathedral, which was largely destroyed during the English Reformation, sustained further damage during the English Civil War. The glass in the west window [shown below] was designed by George Hedgeland, and was installed in 1854." -- Wikipedia

Norwich Cathedral

Back now in the States after my choir tour of England. First singing engagement was evensong at Norwich Cathedral. Found the map above to be helpful in navigating my way around the place. I first entered the complex through that gate shown at the bottom and in the center just left of the tower.

Local Art

Flying out of Dulles two weeks ago, 

I spotted this display of art works created by local high school students. 

Quite striking, I thought.

Sixth Sunday after the Epiphany

And our last service before leaving for Great Britain Tuesday. Last minute instructions, too. 

Be sure to pack your music and vestments in your carry on luggage. 

Make sure you've got ALL your music. 

Make sure you've got your passport.

Chartered bus leaves for Dulles International promptly at 12:45 p.m. Be there!

Practice

Yeah, posting rather late, I know. But I've either been practicing on my own today or rehearsing with the choir this afternoon, all afternoon. By the way, I just learned that they'll be live-streaming the choral evensong at Norwich Cathedral late Thursday afternoon (GMT) and that the service will still be available to download for several days afterward, in case anyone is interested. We'll also be singing for services in Ripon, Ely and Cambridge.

Wonky

Yeah, so things are beginning to get a little wonky here as I prepare to take off (literally) early next week for Great Britain. Just got a bucketload of new music from the king's land, including the addition of an unexpected evensong engagement at Norwich Cathedral. So, if my posts seem a tad irregular lately, it's because I'm cramming to learn the new music, including the Anglican chant below. I basically have to memorize the latter before I leave. By the way, Psalm 102 has 28 verses! And all of it is in British English, some of which sounds p-r-e-t-t-y funny to our American ears. :-)

One Penny

I suppose that in the great scheme of things, it really doesn't make much sense (cents?) to create a coin that costs more to make than it's worth. On the other hand, think of the mileage we've gotten out of it. "A penny for your thoughts," my mother used to say. Or two expressions I've used a lot, "worth every penny" and "I bet that cost a pretty penny." Think of all that we've gained culturally from the penny. So would it be being just a bit (!) penny wise and pound foolish to get rid of it? :-)

50p

I like these heptagonal coins. Much more interesting than our round ones here in the U. S., although I think I understand how rounds coins can be cheaper to produce and maybe more practical.

The Royal Mint, though,m provides the following rationale for the 50p: 

"The new coin would be the largest denomination in circulation. As such, it required a design that would enable people to easily tell it apart from other coins in their change. However, anything too bulky would weigh down pockets and purses so any prospective design had to be practical as well as distinctive."

One Pound

Definitely can still use this coin.

Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany

If music is indeed food for the soul, then I was well fed yesterday. Sang for two morning services and choral evensong. Almost everything the choirs sang was music that we will be taking with us to England, including a couple of pieces composed especially for us. Busy week ahead as I prepare to be away for a while. Rehearsals, haircut, and a quick trip to the dentist.

Oh, and did you read about Trump ordering the Treasury Department to stop producing pennies?! So will everything now be rounded up or down to the nearest nickel? My bet is that we'll be rounding up. Inflationary? And what will I do now with all the pennies I've got stashed away in various places around the house?

Half Penny

Going through some of my pocket change left over from my last trip to Great Britain, I came across this half penny from 1935. Very cool, I think. It was one of my favorites. No! It was my absolute favorite coin as a boy growing up in East Anglia, especially after I discovered one buried in my parent's front yard. Treasure!

I'm not sure how I came to have this one. It may be somewhat like the Canadian pennies you occasionally come across here in the United States. Not legal tender. But, hey! What are you going to buy for a penny, much less a half penny, anyway? :-)

40% Off

So I was told that I will need a pair of dark slacks for a formal dinner at King's College later this month only to discover that the pair I had -- uhm -- were, shall I say, not quite ready for prime time. What to do? 

Fortunately, there was a 40% off sale going on down at Bryant's. But could I have them in time for my departure next week???

"Yes," I was told.,"No problem." And, in fact, they did have them ready for me to pick up yesterday. Actually, they even had them ready the next day. I just couldn't go by to pick them up until yesterday. Whew!

But, hey! I wasn't quite prepared to discover how much more men's clothes cost these days. Sheesh! Even at 40% off!

Van der Kiste

Just finished reading Kiste's book: "In this first biography of the two monarchs for over thirty years, John Van der Kiste provides a lively and accessible account of their lives and times." -- Goodreads

Gaza

Yeah, so I'm guessing I wasn't the only one who thought Trump's proposal concerning Gaza an incredibly reckless idea. I mean, it may be one thing to raise something like this in a corporate board meeting where straw man arguments, I presume, are routinely tossed around and out. But it seems to me to be another thing altogether for world leaders to float such arguments, when they can and almost certainly will touch off eternal resentment. 

Light Box

 

 

Experimenting here with a light box.  Lots to learn. Ever used one? Tips?

By the way, what did you think of Trump' proposal for Gaza? Crazy? Unconventional? Dangerous?

 

 

Tariffs

Actually, the news about tariffs was just a good excuse to try out this Pilot Retro Pop ballpoint pen and to photograph it in the morning light streaming through my dining room window. A really smooth writer, with a nice wide .1mm tip. Like it much better than the Jetstream ballpoints. But, back to tariffs, I wonder if even ballpoint pens will cost more now. Sheesh! What a crazy world.

Candlemas

Pentel

Just bought this Pentel mechanical pencil. Crucially, it fits my choir folder. Choir members are forever marking up their music. First test will be later today for for both a performance and rehearsal.

Brake Light

>

A friend was kind enough to point out how one of the brake lights on my car was not working. So I spent part of yesterday afternoon hunting down a replacement bulb and fixing it. All of which made me wonder how long that bulb had lasted. The car itself is some fifteen years old. And I can't remember ever replacing but maybe one bulb on this car since. That's an amazing performance record, don't you think? 

Anyway, I came away from yesterday's fix with an even deeper appreciation for at least some of our technological advances. My hat's off to those engineers who worked on these parts!

Amaryllis

I suppose many of us have enjoyed these lovely flowers. This one was resting on my breakfast table this morning.

What to Call It?

Well, . . . I started out last night with the idea of preparing my go-to black beans and rice. I sliced and diced my onion all the while wondering what I could do to maybe vary the fare a little. That's when I came across a recipe for something called Middle Eastern Rice with Black Beans and Chickpeas. Not surprisingly, therefore, what I came up with then was a mix of both, leaving me with the perplexing problem of what to call it. :-)

William & Mary

Always interested in what people are saying about my town's namesake. Kiste's account was first published in 2003. I probably wouldn't have come across it had my local library not placed it on its recommended reading table. Curious how much influence these two had upon communities so far removed from their homelands.

3rd Sunday after the Epiphany

Sweet Potato & Ground Beef Chili

 

Okay, switching to a completely different subject, I tried cooking up a recipe I found recommended either through the Washington Post (a subscription I may not renew after this past year's row) or the New York Times. In any case, it turned out great! Used red pepper flakes instead of cayenne pepper (I think I must be allergic to the latter), and substituted Legendary Brown Ale for Modelo Negra. 

Citizenship

I was fortunate to have been born in the U.S. Had I been born a month later, I would have been born in the Philippines. Which would have been fine. Maybe then I wouldn't have struggled so hard to learn Spanish. :-) Later, my family moved to England. 

So while I can legitimately claim birthright citizenship in the U. S., the fact remains that I have more often seen myself in much broader terms as a citizen of the world.  Indeed, one of the first hymns I remember learning as a child is "This is My Song, O God of All the Nations" with words by Lloyd Stone and set to a tune composed by Jan Sibelius. 

This is my song, O God of all the nations,

A song of peace for lands afar and mine.

This is my home, the country where my heart is,

Here are my hopes, my dreams, my holy shrine.

But other hearts in other lands are beating,

With hopes and dreams as true and high as mine. 

So when I am asked where I am from, I will most often reply by saying something like, "Well, I was born in California" but then quickly follow that up by explaining to folks how I didn't actually grow up there and that I'm actually "from" many places, so as to maybe forestall any awkward conversations about a place in the states that I actually know very little about.

All of which is to say that I think we sometimes place too much emphasis upon where people are from rather than to recognize how we are all actually citizens of a much wider world and--this is important!--to act accordingly. Perhaps then, maybe, just maybe, we would be in a better position from which to tackle the really great issues affecting all of us, namely climate change, disease, poverty, and so forth.

Hope

"Be Merciful"

Yesterday's event in Washington, D.C. reminded me of this image I captured in front of St. John's Episcopal Church back in 2017. It was at yesterday's service that Rev. Budde reminded Trump of his obligation to "be merciful to the stranger, for we were all once strangers in this land."

Women's March

Eight years ago today, I participated in and photographed what was then considered one of the largest, if not the largest, demonstrations in U. S. history, the Women's March on Washington.

Back to the Future

 

 A photo I took in Washington, D.C. at an anti-Trump demonstration shortly after his first inauguration.

2nd Sunday after the Epiphany

Petitions

Lots of folks turned out this morning to sign petitions for Democratic candidates running for various local and statewide offices this year, including Abigail Spanberger who is running for governor of Virginia. Gaining enough signatures to get your name on the ballot is step number one. 

According to the Legislative Information System:  The minimum number of signatures of qualified voters required for candidate petitions shall be as follows:

1. For a candidate for the United States Senate, Governor, Lieutenant Governor, or Attorney General, 10,000 signatures, including the signatures of at least 400 qualified voters from each congressional district in the Commonwealth;

2. For a candidate for the United States House of Representatives, 1,000 signatures;

3. For a candidate for the Senate of Virginia, 250 signatures;

4. For a candidate for the House of Delegates or for a constitutional office, 125 signatures;

5. For a candidate for membership on the governing body or elected school board of any county or city, 125 signatures; or if from an election district not at large containing 1,000 or fewer registered voters, 50 signatures;

6. For a candidate for membership on the governing body or elected school board of any town that has more than 3,500 registered voters, 125 signatures; or if from a ward or other district not at large, 25 signatures;

7. For a candidate for membership on the governing body or elected school board of any town that has at least 1,500 but not more than 3,500 registered voters, 50 signatures; or if from a ward or other district not at large, 25 signatures;

8. For a candidate for membership on the governing body or elected school board of any town that has fewer than 1,500 registered voters, no petition shall be required;

9. For a candidate for director of a soil and water conservation district created pursuant to Article 3 (§ 10.1-506 et seq.) of Chapter 5 of Title 10.1, 25 signatures; and

10. For any other candidate, 50 signatures.

False Votes

Thomas Jefferson "sketched a scenario to James Madison whereby a future president, having been defeated for reelection, refused to accept the outcome and civil war threatened, 'If once elected, and at a second or third election outvoted by one or two votes, he will pretend false votes, foul play, hold possession of the reins of government, be supported by the states voting for him, especially if they are the central ones lying in a compact body themselves and separating their opponents: and they will be aided by one nation of Europe, while the majority are aided by another.' The solution would be to restrict the president to a single term (a stricture Jefferson would ignore in 1804 when he ran for a second presidential term)." Cogliano, A Revolutionary Friendship, p. 203

Beyond the Wall

Spotted this book on the library shelf yesterday and immediately knew I had to check it out. Having traveled through East Germany (aka GDR) in the 70s, I was curious to read Hoyer's take on those days.

Fountain vs. Gel

Gosh! I'm forever going back and forth on this. Which do I prefer, the the gel or fountain pen? Can't make up my mind. On the one hand, I like how the gel pen doesn't bleed through the page like the fountain pen. On the other hand, I really like how smoothly and easily the fountain pen nib glides across the page. 

So ,once again, I dragged out both pens and put them to the test. Can you guess which of the lines above were written with the gel pen and which were written with the fountain pen? Does it make any difference?

Executive Power

Something to think about. According to Cogliano, the Virginia's 1776 constitution sought to "diffuse and limit executive power." To wit:

"The governor would work with an eight-man Council of State, whose members served at the pleasure of the assembly. The Constitution vested executive power in the council rather than the governor, who could not call out the militia, make appointments, or grant pardons without consulting the council. The governor and council should exercise the military authority through a Board of War appointed by the House of Delegates."