Low Sunday

Had a great evening with Jane last night. The exhibition was fine, but how I love talking with her. She's great.

Lie-in today followed by church at 11am. Horror of horrors - a baptism so loads of strange people and children and a baby. My favourite - not! And lots of anxiety while we all rush round trying to make sure there's water in the font, and who the hell has the baptismal jug. It's all done on a wing and a prayer. I'm not sure the baptismal party spotted the join. One hopes. And, to cap it all, it's Geoffrey's last day with us, so we all went to a bring-and-share lunch at the village hall afterwards. I'm really not at my best with large, religious-based gatherings (unless drunk) so was one of the first to escape. Hurrah! On with the interregnum.

At home, had a much-needed nap, and am planning an evening of "Dr Who" video from yesterday, "Invasion" and "Mayo". It'll lull me into a false sense of normality ready to face returning to work post-Easter tomorrow.

Had an email from the author, Andrew Taylor (http://www.andrew-taylor.co.uk), telling us his next novel, "A Stain on the Silence", is now available. Shall order that - I do enjoy his non-1950s novels very much. In my reply I asked if he might like to review "A Dangerous Man" for Flame (http://www.flamebooks.com) as he has enjoyed extracts in the past. I do hope he's able to, in spite of what must be a horrendously busy schedule, but will have to wait and see.

Have just finished Marina Lewycka's "A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian". Didn't much like it - seemed a lot of fuss about nothing, although the last third of the novel was better as it stopped trying to be funny (hey, for something marketed as a comic novel, there's no laughter here, people!) and looked at the more serious historical side. I did skip a fair amount - the tractor sections are dull.

And today's haiku is:

Gothic Exhibition 2006, Tate Britain:
Silent, we drift through
twisted flesh. What pierces me
is Blake's dark flea ghost.

Anne Brooke
http://www.annebrooke.com
http://www.goldenford.co.uk