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It’s been a busy old couple of months! I think of the past two months, we’ve had one weekend where we weren’t out on the Saturday doing something. This Saturday was the last ‘big’ date we had in the diary: we travelled up to Northampton for a family birthday party (Phil’s family). Anyway, it was a nice day, I feel like I’m gradually beginning to get to know Phil’s family after seeing them a few times now! And our journey to and from the party was pretty good.

Anyway, apart from that, not much else to say. Went to St Andrews on Greenstead on Sunday morning and I now have a few dates booked in to go and observe (did I mention my observation placement last time? No? Well, I might have to do a separate blog post about that at some point). In the afternoon we went to a leaving picnic for Laura and James, the apprentices at church. They will be very much missed at church, not just because of what they do (which is a lot) but because they’ve been such good friends to many of us.

Anyway, in the evening we went to Sunday@6, and then afterwards wandered round to see Sarah and watch “Sherlock”. Sherlock was amazing – very clever, very funny, and somehow managed to update the Sherlock Holmes story while at the same time staying true to the original characters. (Not that I’ve read or watched any Sherlock Holmes stories in a while, but from what I remember they seemed to do pretty well).

And the story seemed very Conan Doyle like as well, at least the last half-hour or so. All in all, I’m really looking forward to next week’s episode! ;)

This month has turned out to be a pretty busy one for various reasons! We were quite grateful to have a bit of a break on Friday night actually – there was 21, but instead of having our usual meeting some of us were watching the England football match. I didn’t see the previous England match, but I have to say this match was probably one of the worst performances I’ve seen by England – ever. Absolutely pathetic really! Still, that’s England for you I suppose! It wouldn’t be the world cup if we weren’t all disappointed.

Anyway, on Saturday we did a bit of shopping during the day. Then in the afternoon we headed round to Anne-Marie and Sarah’s to watch some I, Claudius and Doctor Who. This week was the penultimate Doctor Who of the season, and I really enjoyed it! I think it was left in a pretty hopeless place (in terms of bleak, not that the episode wasn’t good) but I’m really looking forward to seeing the last episode to see how it’s all resolved. After Doctor Who, however, we had to head off pretty quickly to Fordham: the Savilles are unfortunately leaving us in a few weeks, so we were having a leaving party for them. It was a really nice evening as well, a fitting send off for them I think!

On Sunday we went to church in the morning, and then afterwards we were round at the Savilles for lunch. We felt quite privileged to be asked actually – as mentioned they are leaving soon, so we thought they might have more important people to see or things to do than have us round for lunch! Anyway, we had a really nice afternoon there.

Afterwards we popped round to see Anne-Marie and Sarah briefly, to discuss Doctor Who and Life on Mars and various other things. Then, we came back home and… watched some Life on Mars. So that’s pretty much our weekend!

As I said at the beginning – this June has turned out to be pretty busy. This weekend wasn’t bad, but next weekend we have the 21 weekend away. That will involve camping and I’m not entirely sure I’m looking forward to it! That said, I’ve taken the Monday off work so I’ll have a bit of chance to recover. I bought a new sleeping bag a couple of months ago which is apparently rated down to -9 degrees, which should keep me nice and warm at least! – despite the month it does get quite cold in a tent overnight.

Unfortunately that does mean we will miss both the IT Crowd AND Doctor Who, but I think we’re just going to have to suck it up and catch up when we get back on Sunday. Speaking of which, I don’t think we can actually record channel 4 so I guess we’ll have to put up with the crapness of 4 on demand. Aaaanyway, I’m a bit tired, I think it’s time for bed!

This reminds me of an old Dilbert cartoon. The usual gang discover that the boss has died sometime on Thursday afternoon. Wally’s reaction? “Three day weekend!”

Well, this time the three day weekend was due to a bank holiday. No-one has died (no-one who I know, anyway). It was a nice one, too!

On Friday evening we helped out at 21. It was busy this week – quite a few of the year sixes have joined us, so there were about 15-20 youngsters – and they were pretty lively! Still, I hope they will settle down over time. Afterwards, Anne-Marie came round to watch Ashes to Ashes with us. It really is compelling viewing – I wasn’t into Ashes to start off with, but it’s really got me hooked! I’m really looking forward to the end of the series… I hope it’s a satisfying conclusion though. We’ve come up with some interesting theories (well, to be honest, I think Anne-Marie has done most of the work in that respect…) so we’ll have to see how right or wrong we are.

On Saturday it was Evie’s first birthday party. Evie is Phil’s god-daughter, her Mum Jo lives just round the corner from us. Anyway, it was a really nice time, I’ve never seen so many babies in one place! But I think all had a nice time, and the sun shone so that was also good!

After that we went round to Anne-Marie and Sarah’s house to watch Doctor Who. I thought this week’s conclusion was really good – probably one of the best of the “Nu Who” episodes. Definitely the best of this series so far. I’ll have to see how it stands to repeat viewing though, as a few people I know didn’t like it so much. After that we watched the final episode of ‘Blackpool’, which was really good. The whole series was very clever – really well put together: the drama, the music and the lighter moments all seemed to blend seamlessly. Probably one of the best things the BBC have done in recent years. (I think it was BBC…) The twist at the end isn’t really a ‘twist’ in the Hitchcock sense, but the way the characters change leaves the series with a much different conclusion to the one you might have expected. Good stuff.

Anyway, on Sunday we went to church in the morning, then didn’t do much in the afternoon, and then went to Sunday@6. After that we came back home and watched the original ‘Pink Panther’ film which I hadn’t seen in ages. I’d forgotten just how funny it was, some classic moments in there!

On Bank Holiday Monday we went round to Anne-Marie and Sarah’s once more. We had lunch at the Horse and Groom (which was very nice, and reasonably priced), and then came back to ours to watch various things including: two episodes of “I, Claudius” (can’t believe Brian Blessed is in it!), and “So I Married an Axe Murderer” (which Sarah hadn’t seen before).

All in all, it was a very nice, relaxing weekend! And a four day week to boot, what more could you want? :)

Well, it’s now official 2010 (and has been for a few days now), so I’d like to take this opportunity to wish all my loyal blog readers a happy new year! (All my unloyal blog readers can take a running jump :p)

It’s been a good new year for us. We came back home on the Tuesday after Christmas, after which I proceeded to get a nasty cold :( Well, it left me in bed for a day or so. But apart from that, New Year’s Eve went well – we had over a whole bunch of people for a mini party. Kirsty, Sarah, Anne-Marie, Alex and Heather all came round and we played some silly games, at lots of food, and generally chatted.

We didn’t get to bed until late that night (or early that morning, I should say) so we didn’t do much on New Year’s Day in the morning! In the evening we headed round to Anne-Marie’s for dinner and Doctor Who. We did enjoy the last episode of DW, although – to be honest – I’m not sad to see the back of Russell T. Davies. The episode was good although I did feel it went on a bit too long at the end, how much can you drag that kind of thing out? Still, seemed a fitting end for what is really the end of an era. All hail Stephen Moffat, though, I see the weeping angels are back for the next series so that’s something to look forward to!

On Saturday we did a bit of shopping for various random things, and then in the evening went to the pub with Alex, Tom and Heather. Then we went on for a curry at the Ashiana, before heading back to ours to watch some random DVDs.

I think that’s pretty much all that happened in terms of new year festivities… in general, it’s nice to get back to work for a bit of a rest ;) But here’s to 2010, hopefully it will bring many good things!

Speaking of which – I’ve just sent off an email to the Diocesan Warden of Ordinands. Basically that’s the first step on the rung of becoming an ordained Church of England minister. Scary stuff! But exciting, too – hopefully I will hear something back about that soon. I will keep you posted.

On Thursday night last week it snowed pretty heavily. This meant that I wasn’t able to get into work on Friday, but I was able to do some work from home.

And we had another party on Friday night! Fortunately it didn’t involve driving so we were able to walk across town. We went round to Tom’s place for a Christmas ‘bash’, there were a whole bunch of people there and we had a whole lot of fun. This included drinking lots of mulled wine and eating lots of food (and I do mean, LOTS of food. There was enough to feed an army!)

So that was good. Then on Saturday we did a bit of shopping, present wrapping and the like. In the evening we watched “The Hangover”. I’d heard some good things about it from my colleagues. It was quite clever and well-written, but… I don’t think I really got the joke. I’m not sure whether it’s a difference between British and American humour, there just didn’t really seem to be any jokes in it! Kind of like “Wimbledon” (the film) – kind of amusing but it didn’t really make me laugh out loud.

Anyway. On Sunday we went to church twice – despite the snow! After our carol service in the evening – which was relatively well attended despite the poor weather – we went round to Jo’s for some tea.

Apart from all those things, I’ve been playing a fair amount of Red Alert 3: I ordered it last week, and it arrived on Friday. It’s got pretty poor reviews on Amazon, but I think there was a problem with DRM / Product Activation which made people give it bad reviews. Perhaps I went in with low expectations, but I’ve actually been really enjoying it. Someone said that it wasn’t as fast-paced as RA2, which I don’t quite see at the moment: it appears to be just as fast-paced in terms of the missions.

The graphics are decent, and I like with what they’ve done with the units. The only problem is, it is a bit complicated for my tiny brain. Each unit has an ‘alternate fire’ mode, for example, which I never use. (Although I probably should…) Oh, another minor problem: Apocalypse tanks can no longer defend themselves against air attack. I suppose the ability did make them a bit too powerful in RA2, but nonetheless it is annoying. You now have to remember to include Bullfrogs or MiGs into your attack force – not necessarily a bad thing I guess, just keeps catching me out! I do like, though, that there are more airborne and seabound units, and in fact several units are amphibious. The battle is much more ‘all across the map’, rather than just being fought purely on land like it was before. Even with Kirovs and Black Eagles / Harriers in RA2, air attack was pretty limited – and I don’t think anyone really used to battle on the sea, outside the missions.

Aaaanyway, the above is only my experience after playing through most of the Soviet campaign (there are three campaigns – Soviet, Allied, and Japanese). I’m really enjoying it so far, and look forward to completing the rest!

It’s that time of year again! On Friday night we had the 21 Christmas party. It went down pretty well, think all the kids had a good time. Then on Saturday we did a bit of Christmas shopping (nearly all done now… so close to the end!) In the evening we went round to James and Tash’s house for some Christmas drinks, nibbles and games. We ended up playing “Pass the Bomb”, which was good fun, and just generally chatting.

On Sunday we had church as usual, and then went to Sunday@6 in the evening, where I was leading. So, in general, it was a good weekend. I have a youth leader’s Christmas party tonight, and then it’s not long to go until the day itself!

Quite looking forward to Christmas this year, I need the time off and it will be nice to see family! Going to try and take it slowly. Anyway, it’s absolutely freezing tonight so I’m going to try and get warm next to a radiator! All for now…

It was half-term last week, so we had no 21 to go to! Phil was wedding dress shopping with her sister though, so I was left on my own. Fortunately, Alison had a birthday meal on Friday night so I was able to go to that :) It was a really nice evening – we went to the Lemon Tree, and then the Hospital Arms. The dinner was lovely, and then I discovered at the Hospital Arms that they serve Bitburger (a beer which I first had visiting Andy C in Trier). They also had a Weizen beer which looked interesting but I didn’t get around to having any. Afterwards, as Alex was staying round, we stayed up light chatting about random things (ah, I’ve missed those crazy random chats from uni days!)

On Saturday, most of the morning was spent doing various catch up things (i.e. shopping). In the evening we went round to Phil and Jenny’s for Jenny’s birthday party (“we” being Phil, Alex, Phil P, Esther, and myself). It was a great evening – really good to catch up with a few people I hadn’t seen in a while, including Steve and Karen and Chris and Louise, as well as the aforementioned Phil P and Esther.

So, two parties in one weekend, I’m such a party animal ;)

On Sunday we went to church in the morning and then went out for lunch with the Reynolds, with a few other students who had been working on some sort of drama together (long story, don’t ask). And then we went to Sunday@6 in the evening! So… a full weekend. But we didn’t have to cook once, not bad going!

Well, I didn’t just have one day for a birthday this time round – I had a weekend! Well, sort of.

On Saturday afternoon, a whole bunch of people came round for a BBQ. This included, but was not limited to (just in case I forget anybody, which I hope I don’t!), Anne-Marie, Sarah, Kev L, Caroline, Tom, Alex, Dan, Jenny, Tash, and our next-door-neighbours Paul and Mary. I’ve put a few photos up on Facebook, so if you’re a friend of mine there you’ll be able to see them.

Anyway, it went really well – eating lots of food and playing random games up until the late evening! Apart from getting bitten by midges, I think people had a good time and it was really nice to see them all :) Particularly Kev L, who I haven’t seen in ages.

On Sunday morning we went to church in the morning, and then in the evening went to Sunday@6. Apart from everything that could go wrong actually going wrong (technically speaking that is – oh the joys of having a newly installed building!), it was a good service. The music particularly seemed to go well. Perhaps if things go badly you can’t rely on yourselves, which is maybe where God is able to step in. Perhaps a lesson to be learnt there in general, I don’t know!

Anyway. This evening we went round to Mum and Dad’s for another BBQ, which was really nice! It’s unusual for me to actually be at home for my birthday, so it made a pleasant change. Right, I think it’s getting late so I’d better stop there!

On Friday night we headed round to Karen and Steve’s for their leaving party. They are leaving Colchester in a couple of weeks, sadly, so we went round there for a BBQ. It was a good evening – good company, good food, and it didn’t rain! Nice to see Foz again too, as it’s been a while.

On Saturday, I spent the afternoon taking Sarah round to various garages to try and find a car for her (she passed her test a couple of weeks ago). No luck so far – small cars are expensive because a lot of people want them! We saw quite a few big cars which were pretty cheap – including a couple of Saabs! I was quite pleased because we saw a similar one to ours which was more expensive.

Afterwards we headed down to Phil’s parents. In the evening we went round to see Julie and Dave, and then on Sunday afternoon we went to Emma’s christening! It was a really nice service, although the rector was very… quirky. But still, everyone enjoyed it. And then we had a nice reception at a nearby pub!

And we were home in time for Top Gear ;)

So that’s pretty much a quick summary of our weekend. Apologies for the briefness, but we’re watching “Zack and Miri Make a Porno”! Kevin Smith films are both disgusting and sweet in the same measure.

Well, this weekend was a good one :-) All too short, but there you go. As it was half term last week, there was no 21 on Friday night. I used the time to do a bit more work on the talk I’m doing on 5th July, I actually managed to finish the first draft which I’m quite pleased about! Still plenty of work to be done though.

On Saturday morning we did a bit of shopping, and then in the afternoon we went to Colchester Beer Festival. It was a really good afternoon. We saw Tom, Alex, Dan, Alison and a few other people. Because it was such a lovely day we all sat out in the graveyard (Colchester Arts Centre is an old church), which was somehow appropriate. There was a really good atmosphere the whole time.

We left at around 6PM to head over to Wivenhoe for Anne-Marie’s birthday party. We had a really good evening just chatting with people – all the usual suspects were there!

Late on Saturday evening, Phil’s sister (Roz) came round to ours after a wedding in Cambridge. She stayed over and then came to church with us on Sunday morning. It was really nice to see her as we don’t often get the opportunity! We had lunch together in the garden as it was such a beautiful day. Afterwards we headed out to Sunday@6, followed by a mini-party for Suzi and Matt who are getting married in August.

So, it was quite a packed but nice weekend!

Anyway. In general blog news, I realise that I’ve not actually blogged anything other than my usual “the weekend” style posts recently. I’m sorry, and I shall endeavour to do better. But probably fail ;)