Day Off Week 29

Nice day off Tuesday. There was some cofee, a little walking and some TV but the main thing was reading this excellent book by Dan Peters on distinct communion with the different persons of the Trinity.

Day Off Week 25 2026

Yesterday I started back on my walk along the Thames Path. I went down to Wapping overground station to get near the start of my next section and had a coffee in the Urban Baristas coffee shop there. I then walked over old ground and onto new as far as Canary Wharf where I managed to find a Jubilee station thanks to the help of two young ladies bent onthe same quest. One was a Nigerian Brit student and the other an Iraqi German visiting her. Nice chat. During the day I sarted reading The Voices of Pompeii on kindle and in the evening watched lots of TV. Lovely weather.

Day Off Week 20 2026

There were a few thigs to be done first thing but once they were sorted I could focus on reading. There was time too for a coffee out and a bt of TV but it was mostly reading.

Day Off Week 9 2026

On my day off last Tuesday I headed down to Westminster and walked another two sections of the Thames path. It was all very interesting and included New Scotand Yard, the Savoy, Cleoatra's needle, Tyndale, Raikes, etc. I ended near the Savoy and walked upfrom there to the STrand where I hada coffee in Caffe Nero, reading this new biography of Pascal that I have agreed to introduce at the enxt Theological Study Group at the Pastors Academy. In the evening we watched a recording of last week's The Apprentice.

Day Off Week 7 2026

The main feature of this week's day off was a trip with my wife to  lovely restaurant. It was a birthday/Christmas gift from very king friend of ours. The location was the Vincent Rooms Brasserie near Victoria. The set up is connected with the Westmineter College and is staffed by students. We had a very nice three course meal and just enjoyed being out together. I also managed to complete the William Hague biography of Wilberforce that I have been reading and started a biography of Jimi Hendrix. In the evening, it was TV wall to wall as we watched the Apprentice with Owain, which we had missed last week, Silent WItness (just us) and then the news before bed.

Day Off Week 4 2026

It was a typical reading day yesterday. I carried on reading Nick Wallis's book on the Post Office scandal on my kindle and, over coffee, completed Ian Shaw's excellent on book on Christians and slavery which is highly recommended (more on that later). (I did have a day off the Tuesday before too when I finished Caleb Morrell's A light on the hill - more about that anon). In the evening we went to the cinema to see Hamnet. The film is about Shakespeare's family life. The first part of the film, set almost exclusively in Stratford, is okay but nothing special. (It also includes an unhelpful and unnecessary scene be warned). It is in the latter part of the film when the focus switches to London and the famous play that things take off and we are presented with a very moving and interesting sidelight on things. While taking the bare facts Maggie O'Farrell has used a her imagination to well to present a compelling drama. Ended the day with a bit of TV including the News.

Day Off Week 48 2025

Nearly a week gone by since my day off but I do want to record it. I won't really be having one this week. Four things - 1. Reading. I read a large chunk of Dianarama, a new book about the infamous interview and the facts surrounding it. Finished that now. 2/3. Watching. First, the new Frankenstein on Netflix, which I enjoyed. Director Guillermo Del Toro takes the Mary Shelley idea and does his own take. It's a great film (apart from some of the cgi) but misses a few tricks that a Christian worldview might provide help in. Great pre-Christmas film with all that snow. (I now recall that I have also seen his Shape of Water but not his Pinocchio, which I met get on to). Second, a couple of episodes of Prisoner 951 (there are four altogether). It is interesting becasue the family whose story is related lives nearby (I have met her) and we have a lot of Iranians in the church. 4. Eleri came home with a coat for me, from Costco. She's so kind.

Day Off Week 46 2025

Various things on Tuesday. Quite early on I headed down to central London and to the National Gallery where there was an exhibition of paintings by Joseph Smith, the distinctive Derby artist. All the famous choriascuro works are there plus some interesting 3d exhibits and lots of helpful explanation about the background to the paintings. In the evening, we watched the BBC's Mr Burton. Monday marked the hunredth anniversary of the birth of that flawed Welshman, Richard Burton (born Jenkins). I presume the biopic was accurate enough. The bilingual situation is fascinating, especially in such an industrialised part of Wales and so relatively recently. There was a brief zoom meeting in the afternoon but most of the rest of the time went on reading the first 50 pages of the first volume of Densil Morgan's Theologica Cambrensia which I've been wanting to read for some time.

Day Off Week 45 2025

Days off are a little different these days as my wife Eleri is not on work on Tuesdays. We headed over to Brent Cross before lunch to do a little shopping. Eleri was busy much of the rest of the day and so I did my usual thing and read. I read most of the signed history book by Julia Jones that I picked up at the GBM meetings. It is arattlung read and I have now finished it. More anon. In the evening we watched some episodes from the ITV drama Coldwater. Also spent some time dabbling wioth AI music to no great purpose.

Day Off Week 44 2025

Managed to fit in a day off this week, mostly reading but I alos watched some Alan Partridge, which is funny enough but for me, only ever mildly so.

Day Off Week 41 2025

A little bit different this time as we have a week of prayer this week and there was a prayer meeting in the morning. Seven of us there so that was encouraging. We also headed off to Heathrow in the afternoon to meet our son Owain back from Las Vegas. I bought the newspaper while we waited and read the obituaries (Jilly Cooper, Soo Cat Woman from the punk era and a man who was an official translator of Russian). I also did the crossword and one or two other puzzles later. There was time for reading too and in the evening I watched the first two episodes of The Hack about the News of the World scandal.

Two Days Off Week 26 2025

It's rare but I went for the two days off the beginning of this week and I think that was wise. I did have my regular meeting with my assistant and an hour with one of my deacons and looked over my sermons for next Sunday but it was mostly just reading. I finished the nice Wind in the Willows I had for my birthday and the book on encyclopedias I had for Father's Day plus one of my art books on Arcimboldo ) a re=read) and a little bit of another Hugh Martin book. We had a visitor here on Monday night and I watched some cricket with him (something I almost never do) on Tuesday night Eleri and I watched a bit of TV. I went out for a coffee at some point but didn't do the walking I should have.

Day Off Week 25 2025

Back to something more regular yesterday. It was very sunny. I did a bit of walking first and had a coffee. I am still reading Hugh Martin's The abdubg presence icked up at the conference and finding it brilliant. I also read a good chunk of the Simon Garfield book which I bought with my Waterstone's token up on Finchley Road. Also bought some cheese to mention on my cheese blog (brunost, which I'd never heard of- also bought some cambozola, which I like). Watched some tv in the eveening.

Day Off Week 14 2025

It's a week ago now but I did have a nice day off on April 1 not caught out by any pranks. I've now reached page 745 of David Copperfield so the end is in sight. Also had a nice walk and a coffee and watched Univeristy Challenge from the day before which I had missed because of a meeting with the architect. We also watched the last of the interesting drama based on the story of Ruth Ellis. Also a bit of research for apaper I have to give next month.

Day Off Week 11 2025

I began my walk but once again deviated after havinga  coffee and found it hard to do all my steps but got there eventually. till very slowly reading David Copperfield. I am enjoying it but it is so long. I also started watchinga  Swedish TV drama. In the evening my niece Charlie was with us. She is doing the Flourish course at the seminary. I ended up serving the evening meal as Eleri was late home. We have had someone else staying here but justin and out. God day.

Day Off Week 9 2025

We travelled last week to South Wales but this week it was back to a more traditional day off. I did my walk in the rain, although I again deviated from the indtended path. I ready a large chunk of David Copperfield - still a long way to go. I caught up on the Univeristy Challenge from the day before and in the evening we watched the final two episodes of the latest Unforgotten. There was also work on a project for next week.

Day Off Week 7 2025

My day off last Tuesday was similar to recent ones except that when I went on my walk on the Heath I went off my usual track and ended up in the Caffe Nero in Highgate, which I've not been in for a while. While in Highgate, I popped into the Oxfam shop and spotted a nice Paul Gallico illustrated book. I read some of The small miracle and started on the papers for the Affinity conference at the beginning of next month but my main reading was again David Copperfield. I also watched the University Challenge I'd missed and, in the evening, a bit of Miss Austen.

Day Off Week 4 2025

As last week, this was a slightly truncated day off. This time I had to be at a zppm meeting wth regard to a trust I serve. I managed to get some walking done later. I also went shopping - for cheese (see my cheese blog), reading glasses and a copy of David Copperfield, bought with some Christmas money. I have now started to read the Dickens and am enjoying. I also did some drawing in a 642 London book (also a Christmas present) and later watched an episode of an ITV drama.

Day Off Week 3 2025

More of a traditional day off this week after holidays and Carey in the first two weeks. It was unsual in that I have agreed to lead a discussion at the Pastors Academy on January 27 so I needed to finish the book and draw uo a set of questions which took up my morning. The book is by Leonardo de Chirico and is an introduction to Thomas Aquinas for evangelicals. This meant I had to postpone my walk on the Heath until the afternoon but I managed to get it done by sundown. Bumped into George Platt pastor of neighbouring Highgate Road Chapel with his new baby, Teddy. In the evening we watched the first two Silent Witnesses of the new season. It's an odd programme, quite pro-life in its own way.

Day Off Week 46 2024

It was a more conventional day off last Tuesday after a little lay off. I found it hard to get up and going at first but once I had my jeans and my oldest rainers on and was out in the sunshine all was fine. Unsually, I had a coffee near the beginning of my walk rather than near the end as it was quite late by the time I got out. I also had lunch out and through the rest of the day I read most of the slave story (see quotes below) I became aware of through the Magnus Magnusson book and worked on the latest issue of In Writing. In the evening we watched two episodes of Show Trial on BBC iplayer.

Quotations

A judge says to a woman

Margaret Douglass, stand up. You are guilty of one of the vilest crimes that ever disgraced society; and the jury have found you so. You have taught a slave girl to read in the Bible. No enlightened society can exist where such offences go unpunished. (Craft, William; Craft, Ellen. Running a Thousand Miles for Freedom: African American Slave History (Annotated) p 28. Kindle Edition.)

This was the first act of great and disinterested kindness we had ever received from a white person. (Craft, William; Craft, Ellen. Running a Thousand Miles for Freedom: African American Slave History (Annotated) p 61. Kindle Edition.)

It is very sad to see Gardiner Spring quoted as declaring from the pulpit that, "if by one prayer he could liberate every slave in the world he would not dare to offer it." (Craft, William; Craft, Ellen. Running a Thousand Miles for Freedom: African American Slave History (Annotated) p 68. Kindle Edition.)

Craft seems on safer ground when he quotes the Old Testament thus

In the 23rd chapter of Deuteronomy, 15th and 16th verses, it is thus written:—"Thou shalt not deliver unto his master the servant which is es- caped from his master unto thee. He shall dwell with thee, even among you, in that place which he shall choose in one of thy gates, where it liketh him best: thou shalt not oppress him."

"Hide the outcast. Bewray not him that wandereth. Let mine outcasts dwell with thee. Be thou a covert to them from the face of the spoiler." (Isa. xvi. 3, 4.)

(Craft, William; Craft, Ellen. Running a Thousand Miles for Freedom: African American Slave History (Annotated) p. 71. Kindle Edition.