Sabbath! And a mad idea

We had a pleasant change from the usual end-of-term short courses this week. We have become accustomed to being shut in a room with 70 other people, allowing Powerpoint to wallow over us and lull us into a catatonic state for a day or so in the week between teaching finishing and term actually ending. However this term was different. With nothing on the calendar I was looking forward to a solid 3 day run at getting my Life and Service essay written. And then, 3 weeks ago we found out that this would not be the case. We were going to have 'compulsory fun' instead, being encouraged to take out at least a half-day in the first half of the week as a 'Sabbath' - a complete break, where we were to spend time recharging our batteries doing something we don't normally get a chance to do.

A Day Off.

There were mixed feelings about this. More than one person was heard to comment that they don't normally get a chance to write an essay so that would be a pleasant change. I wouldn't mind if what was being modelled to us was good long-term planning, but as I've already said, my long-term plan was to use the time to do some work before a deadline, which was the Thursday of the week that we were being told to take time off in!!

As I usually don't do major college work at the weekend, I ended up not working Saturday and Sunday, working like fury on Monday and into early Tuesday morning so that I could take Tuesday off as my Sabbath. I then got my head down on Wednesday, wrote the essay and handed it in on Thursday, when we broke up for Easter. And I've now got a month off..... Brilliant plan!


Having said that, we had a lovely Day Off. We headed over to Ely Cathedral, where we wandered around, had a free guided tour, went in their stained glass museum, took lots of photos and had lunch in the Almondry restuarant nearby before pootling round shops for a while (that bit wasn't my idea!). It was really refreshing to do something completely unrelated to college, and I made a point of doing no work when we got home, even though I could feel the pressure of the unfinished essay.

It was a good exercise to do though. It set a good precedent for when I start Real Work this summer and I start Living At The Office, where boundaries between work and leisure can become very blurred if you let them.

In the spirit of constructive feedback, I've suggested that in future we try to take such breaks in the middle of term, maybe in half-term week - even though the college doesn't do half-term we generally have half or whole days free of timetabled activities each and every week that we could use as Official Down-Time.

And finally, I had a Mad Idea. I've recently become fascinated by cathedrals, how and why they are built, how they serve their communities, how they have evolved. So I've decided that I want to visit all the English cathedrals. There are 'only' 44 of them (or 42 if you exclude the Isle of Man and Gibraltar). If I were Dave Gorman i would now do something irrational, such as committing to do this before my ordination. but I'm not Dave, so I'll just settle for visiting them all at some point in the future. Even 4 per year seems adventurous. Do the math(s)

Should keep me out of trouble.

I've got a Prezi for you!

We had fun in chapel tonight. My fellow student Chris told me about a new piece of audio-visual software called Prezi, which is a great alternative to the ubiquitous Powerpoint, and a bit more flexible. It has some limitation, but it's free and very easy to use.

Here's the result, with what we used tonight:

The main sequence

Psalm 63

Get it at www.prezi.com

Luke, I am your father....

Last year I went along as a spectator, and spent about 20 minutes hanging around. This year I spend nearly 3 hours being measured and trying on clerical garb at what is known as the Tat Fair.

My fashion consultant accompanied me, to ensure that I didn't make any expensive mistakes or choose unwise colours - this is easily the most expensive clothing I've ever bought. But most of what I've ordered today will last me for the rest of my life, unless my shape changes drastically. I've ordered a cassock, a surplice, a preaching scarf, a clerical hoodie and a dual purpose cloak / Jedi costume - which unfortunately doesn't have an internal lightsaber pocket.

It's amazing how casually you can spend hundreds of pounds when you know somebody else is paying for it - we all get a grant to cover the cost of equipping ourselves with the right clothing for the job, and I went with what felt and looked right, rather than looking too closely at the price tag. Some of my colleagues have spent the bare minimum, but that tends to reflect the fact that they will wear the formal robes very little in their weekly duties. Where I'm going I'll be wearing robes Sunday by Sunday, conducting funerals in blustery country churchyards, and hunting down Darth Vader in my spare time.

Look away now if you don't want a preview of the future.

I've yet to order any shirts or stoles (seasonal coloured scarves) as the huge range on display left our heads spinning. Apparently the choices available have considerably widened since women were ordained. And that's a good thing - there is a core set of traditional vicar's shirt colours which I don't particularly like, and it's nice that I can pretty much nominate a colour and find that there will be a shirt available in it. So there's a lot to thank the girls for!!

I did try a couple of shirts on. It's a scary moment when you put that stiff piece of plastic in your collar. Keep this photo to yourself. Don't tell the rest of the internet about it. I think it's an offence to impersonate a clergyman!

Next I just need to find some nice jackets, comfy shoes, some important looking service books, office equipment.....

Forgiven. By Sally Traffic

Further to my earlier article about St Edmund I've now made my confession to a wider audience on Radio 2's 'Confessions' today. (follow the link, it starts at about 37 mins 20 secs into this, but is only there for the next 7 days!)

The good news is that I've been absolved by Father Simon, Brother Matt, Mother Sally and Sister Foxy. So everything is clear for July.

Now, must remember not to mislead parishioners in a similar manner.....