A shortage of wizards
“Wizard Festivals” proclaimed the letters across the back of the van. With a Bristol telephone number, it seemed to promise the local availability of some magical events. It conjured images of a Lord of the Rings sort of firework display, the sort provided by Gandalf at Bilbo Baggins’ eleventy-first birthday party. Perhaps there would be smoke rings that were transformed into … [continue reading …]
No soul in the North
The advertising agencies obviously believe that the thought of dancing to Northern Soul music will resonate with those of a particular generation. It began with the advertisement for Shredded Wheat, their advertisement featured a man who enjoyed Northern Soul music in the 1970s, but then family responsibilities and financial constraints ended his disco-going days. Forty years later, he was making up … [continue reading …]
Windsor recalled
Where were you ten years ago? Mostly, it would be an impossible question to answer, but from 10th-20th October 2007, the answer is easy – Windsor Castle. Saint George’s House in the precincts of the castle hosted an annual gathering for clergy and for ten days there was an escape from the outside world into the rarefied atmosphere of the … [continue reading …]
TELEGRAPHIC TRANSFER NOTICE ,
This was spammed by Google. It is very amateurish. Zenith Bank (UK) Ltd 39 Cornhill London EC3V 3ND United Kingdom tel: +44 70 8646 8527 Fax:+447043071539 Dear Esteemed Customer, TELEGRAPHIC TRANSFER NOTICE. We are hereby officially notify you concerning your fund Telegraphic Transfer through our bank, Zenith Bank (UK) Ltd United Kingdom, to your bank account, which has been officially … [continue reading …]
Floating on land
To a schoolboy, the pumping stations seemed like battleships in hostile waters, protecting the farms and the villages against the rising floods. They seemed always there; although a second thought about the buildings would have told even someone who knew nothing of architecture or engineering that they were recent arrivals on the scene. A government website says they were built in … [continue reading …]
Sermon for Sunday, 15th October 2017(Trinity 18/Pentecost 19 Ordinary 28)
“For many are called, but few are chosen.” Matthew 22:14 Imagine being invited somewhere and then being ejected because you had not the right clothes. What kind of host would treat you in such a way? What sort of hospitality ends in such public humiliation? “Friend,” asks the king in the story, “how did you get in here without wedding … [continue reading …]
Beware of Google being misled
If Google says it is so, does that mean it is true? The dominant power on the world wide web has been invested with a sort of influence unknown to anyone in the past, even the medieval church would have spoken with only a fraction of the authority that Google commands. There is a tendency now not even to question … [continue reading …]
A superstar’s missus?
The unseasonably warm weather brought out shoppers in summer attire. Without the autumn colours of the trees, it would have been easy to imagine it a day in mid-July. Among the short-sleeves and the tee-shirts, a middle-aged woman walked through the precinct deep in conversation on the mobile phone held firmly against her ear. Across the front of her black … [continue reading …]
The Passenger
Reaching for his phone, he switched off the alarm. It surely could not be seven already. A friend’s birthday the previous day had meant a night out and a late return, maybe it had been after three. Those with Monday to Friday jobs could now sleep until lunchtime; he needed to be in work by half past eight. Going to … [continue reading …]