A horrible event

We heard some really awful news this week.

An acquaintance of ours from the golf club had been playing golf on Sunday. When he got home he couldn't find his wife in the house, so strolled out to the barn to see if she was doing something in there. To his horror, he found her hanging from a beam, with the two dogs sitting beneath her feet.

I asked whether she had suffered from depression, but apparently not. At least, not that anyone knew. She had been at a party the previous night, along with a number of other golf club people, and had chatted and laughed quite normally, so they thought.

What's almost worse (could anything be worse?) is that she didn't leave a note, so there's no indication of her state of mind or why she did it.

As you can imagine, it has upset everyone. The men's match was cancelled on Tuesday, and tomorrow's BBQ has been cancelled too.

I don't know if there are any answers to this sort of thing, but boy, I feel for her husband and sons and all her friends.

Going back

Ed and I ventured back to the old patch yesterday. Not quite to my old parishes, but to the big church in the town nearby. My friendship with the rural dean has continued, and we meet every six weeks or so for lunch together. He invited me back to his church to talk about my novel and sign some books, then to preach at Evensong afterwards.

"Not a sermon," he said. "Just tell us about what it feels like to be a retired priest." So I did.

I met again lots of lovely people I knew before I left, and enjoyed catching up on all the news. Then at Evensong, a stranger came and sat next to me - well, it was the only seat left. Since he came in late we shared a hymn book, but imagine my surprise when the rural dean introduced him after the service as my successor in my old parishes.

He seemed very nice, and we had a good chat. He's really enjoying the area - how could he fail to? it's lovely - and the people, so that was good to hear. I thought it was so nice of him to come and meet me.

So all in all, a good day. Nothing like meeting old friends again and making new ones, is there?

Thank God for rain!

At last we've had some rain. A couple of short but sharp showers yesterday, which meant that Ed didn't have to water the garden for once. It also reduced the very high humidity we've been suffering lately, and I was actually able to sleep last night - first time for weeks.

Ed and I drove to the hospital during the sweltering heat for a routine appointment, only to find that the car parks were completely packed and we were all redirected to the staff car park. We eventually found a slot, but it was a quarter of a mile walk to the hospital. Okay for us, but we passed this really elderly couple staggering along on sticks and wondered how on earth they were going to make it. Still, they were gone when we came out, so must have managed somehow.

The golf was much better today and I no longer want to sling my clubs into the nearest river. It was cool enough to wear a sweater - bliss - and Ed and I had a buggy, which made it even better.

The schools break up today, so I guess summer is actually now starting, although as the end of my first year of retirement, it feels like the summer is nearly over, especially as we've had such hot weather for the last few weeks.

Isn't it strange how a change in circumstances changes your whole perception of life?

Are you an even keel?

Are you an even keel sort of person, or are you someone who is prone to incredible highs but devastating lows?

I've always regarded myself as pretty even. I do get fed up from time to time, but it's never much more than that and it rarely lasts longer than a few hours. I do enjoy the highs, but perhaps I don't experience quite as much high as those people who get high highs and low lows, if you see what I mean.

But the last couple of days haven't been good. I don't know why - and that in itself is intensely irritating. If I knew why I felt miserable perhaps I could do something about it. But I don't. I just am.

Mind you, I have just played the worse game of golf ever, so that may be a contributing factor. No, not maybe. Is!

Of course, by the time you read this I'll be my usual cheerful self again - and now here's something amazing. Just writing it down has helped!

Clearly, blogging is working some sort of miracle (and I promise not to depress you next time!)

It amused me...

You may already have heard this, since it's one of those jokes which circulate the Internet, but it made me laugh so I'm passing it on to you.

A cabbie picks up a nun.

She gets into the cab, and notices that the VERY handsome cab driver won't stop staring at her.

She asks him why he is staring.

He replies: 'I have a question to ask you but I don't want to offend you.'

She answers, 'My son, you cannot offend me. When you're as old as I am and have been a nun as long as I have, you get a chance to see and hear just about everything. I'm sure that there's nothing you could say or ask that I would find offensive.'

'Well, I've always had a fantasy to have a nun kiss me.'

She responds, 'Well, let's see what we can do about that:

#1, you have to be single and

#2, you must be Catholic.'

The cab driver is very excited and says, 'Yes, I'm single and Catholic!'

'OK' the nun says. 'Pull into the next alley.'

The nun fulfils his fantasy, with a kiss that would make a hooker blush. But when they get back on the road, the cab driver starts crying.

'My dear child,' says the nun, 'why are you crying?'

'Forgive me but I've sinned. I lied and I must confess, I'm married and I'm Jewish.'

The nun says, 'That's OK. My name is Kevin and I'm going to a fancy dress party.'

An outing on the Broads

Yesterday was so good.

In the morning I took two services for a priest colleague who is away. One service had just three elderly ladies, plus Ed and me. One lady played the organ, one acted as churchwarden, and one supported them both!

The other service was better attended, with around sixty people including a group of young Germans who were on a houseboat on the Broads for ten days.

Then it was back to our own church for a BBQ.

In the evening, we had an outing on the Broads (the Norfolk Broads are small lakes and inlets connected by rivers, and an area of outstanding natural beauty) on a boat chartered by our neighbours. To mark Malcolm's retirement (for the fourth time, but that's another story) he and his wife invited 80 guests to join them on the Queen of the Broads for a party. (We live very close to the Broads, so it was only a ten minute car journey to reach the landing stage.)

We chugged slowly down the river through three or four Broads, listening to music, waving to anyone we passed, watching the wild life (loads of herons and sea birds), admiring the property (for the wealthy) dancing a bit, chatting to friends, and then enjoying a buffet supper, washed down with wine.

Altogether it was four hour trip, and great fun. Nothing like good neighbours, is there?

A lovely day

Ed and I have had such a lovely day. We drove over to Fi and Stu's, where four-year-old granddaughter was splashing about naked in their inflatable "swimming pool". She was having a wonderful time, and since the temperature today has been 30 degrees, it was probably the best place to be.

Fi wanted to take us into Bury St Edmunds, where a whole new shopping complex has been opened. Our granddaughter suggested a picnic in the Abbey gardens, which was a great idea.

Off we went, found a shady spot under a spreading chestnut tree (or something), strangely enough overlooking the children's play area. Granddaughter soon made lots of friends and had a whale of a time.

After lunch we ambled around the new shops. Fi bought a pair of shoes (with four inch stilettos) and I bought a bolero and a pair of shoes (without four inch stilettos).

Then it was a frappé in an air-conditioned café before driving home.

It's been a really great day.

Happy holidays

I hope everyone who celebrates it, had a really good fourth of July. It was a hot day here again (which means it was in the 70s) and I'd burned across my shoulders the day before, so spent yesterday indoors.

It's this new dress, see. Ed and I have ruby wedding coming up next month, which we're celebrating with over sixty friends and family, so I bought a new dress for the occasion. Yes, it's red. No, I don't usually wear dresses - happier in jeans.

So I tried the dress on again, just to make sure I could still squeeze into it, and discovered I resembled a Neapolitan ice-cream - mahogany arms, face and tiny V of neck from playing golf in a polo shirt, then a layer of coffee on my upper arms (shorter sleeves in some shirts than others) and pasty white on top of upper arms and around rest of neck. Not nice. I had to do something.

I sat in the garden for a couple of hours on Saturday morning, until the laptop battery died, then maybe another hour later until it was too hot to breathe, but discovered in the evening that perhaps it was a smidgeon too long.

I'm now mahogany, coffee and scarlet.

Still not nice.