Provincial weekend

 Thursday jigsaw and set off for Chatham in good time. Lovely day. Hotel is very near M2 - noise in the night from the road. We both woke at 4. Spa treatment very invigorating scrub then shower and massage. Nearly fell asleep! Swim and sauna. LsiUk zoom went very well at 7. Big discussion about encounter next year some of it hardly helpful eg North Wales or a monastery an hour away from Salford by car! Dinner was Ok and met 2 Catenian couples. 

Friday swim and good breakfast saw our new friends again. To Chatham Dockyard and visited 2 ships. Di d not attempt the steep stairs or the sub. Call the midwife tour was very good - a lot of walking and standing but the room with the sets excellent. Spent a lot in the rope shop - the ropery not working. RNLI museum very well done. Back in time for 4.30 full body massage very relaxing. Swim and sauna. The dinner was god if the service was slow. Chris Woodward from Wimbledon got me a hearing aid as I had forgotten to bring spares and the one I had was faulty. Nice chats. 

Saturday SM Richard at Julian's chapel Norwich then swim and short sauna. Breakfast very busy because of a wedding. Set off for Rochester and could not use blue badge - have to book in advance! Found haberdashers and got new cord for my crosses. Huguenot museum a fine dolls house from Uppark. Eastgate House disappointing - not original furniture. Tudor room, Victorian school room, models of Dickens and photos of old Rochester. Bought Tudor Ted bear. Swiss chalet in garden needs restoring. It came flatpacked as a gift for Dickens and has been moved four times. Coffee and cake at Lenny's. Fort Amhurst car park closed so back to the hotel. Liz went for massage and I swam. Black tie dinner went well. The acoustics in the room very poor but enjoyed meeting Marianne Marriott. Service a bit slow. 

Sunday quick swim and breakfast. Packed up and to St Michael the Archangel Chatham. To Mass Medway area Priest very welcoming but he did not know we were Catenians! Latin plainchant sung slowly with minimal organ support. Children need to be taught how to breathe. Two words and a breath. Our God reigns had a two beat gap between each phrase. Awful. Lots of servers behind the sanctuary looking at the congregation and not at the altar. Why were they not sitting at the sides ? Why did they have nothing to do? Acolytes did not come to the ambo. Communion given out by two priests. No special ministers? Could not hear the reader! It seems next Sat evening Mass is for All Souls not for the Sunday! What? Liz spoke to pp abdout the Guild. Bean cafe stop for coffee and biscuits. Aylesford lovely autumn day - shop shut. To Chislehurst village which we had never visited. The Chestnut cafe is a real find - huge portions and very reasonable. Had a quick look at church of the Annunciation where solemn evensong and benediction was in progress for dedication day. Home after the match finished. Unpacked. BT Cloud deleted stuff as it is closing. Bruce came overnight. Leeds piano competition won by Canadian.

Monday Liz served at funeral of Fr Jake at St George's cathedral. I watched it on You tube. Swim and aerobics. To Duo Dance and size 9 left shoe Cuban heel on order for organ. Fell asleep in Only connect, University challenge and Mastermind. Brian Cox on Pluto. Watched Cheltenham discussion about flying and The sound of holiness from Radio 4.

Tuesday swim and Liz to Guys. To Dulwich gallery for art session based on aboriginal art. Henry and Dennis enjoyed it. We had tea and cake and went into the gallery. I sketched the hound again and Henry has a go, He did well. Bought two calendars. Henry did painting at home and I went to FTIC meeting. Suggestions about council Christmas event which seemed to be secular! Also remembrance event - pouring water into a bowl as at FTIL. Illuminating the building for Grief awareness week and useful chat about dementia. Fell asleep in Bake off. Jigsaw progress.

Wednesday swim and to dentist. Saw Angelina the principal and now have new crown. She is very nice. Caught up on emails. Sion centre Nick King. Cooked and finished the Amazon jigsaw - tricky right to the end and 13 pieces which got wet left over!! Call my bluff Face the music. Checked the Walton score against trumpet part.

Thursday tried a new pattern so art then aerobics and swim and it worked well. Took pads to Peony Court care home. Liz went to Guys and SJ Halloween Harry Potter night. Posted revised letters to PM and ministers. Noel gave me a lift in his £77000 electric car Wimbledon photographic night . I put in 6. Food good and company good Tommy was in charge!

Praise in nature l Thank you for reporting on the Laudato si’ encounter at Salford. The 24 Laudato si’ animators agreed to write to bishops and diocesan environmental leads to ask if they had visited the Laudato si’ centre and seen the centre’s website but, more importantly, whether they had the vision to set up something similar in every diocese.  The Holy Spirit was very much at work on that day, inspiring us to go on with the task of bringing Pope Francis’ message to all. What better way to do that than to immerse old and young in nature? Perhaps the bishops could take a trip over from Leeds during one of their meetings?  JOHN WOODHOUSE LAUDATO SI’ ANIMATORS UK

In The Tablet today!!

Swim, both went to Unacc. My right hand hearing aid lost yesterday morning. Still no sign of it. Liz served at Mass at St George's cathedral for All Saints and farewell to Bishop Philip. She got home after I did! I went to Duo Dance and tried size 9 and 9 and a half left shoe. The latter was more comfortable so I paid a deposit and they ordered it. This was odd as originally they said the 9 and a half was in the shop and I tried it on. To Farm Street had some time with the Last supper picture. Sung solemn Mass. For all the Saints too fast. Hard to hear homily from pulpit. Baroness Scotland spoke on Peace in a troubled world - did not hear everything! Bishop Nicholas very friendly and sked me where I thought a Laudato Si' centre could go in Westminster! He appeared to be passing the buck to Bishop John Sherrington! Reception Christine Allen from CAFOD. William on drinks. Pam who goes to Sisters of Sion zooms and Flora from the cathedral.

Saturday SM from Birmingham park with Angela. To SJ All Souls day Mass - little organ. Lit candles. Chat to Jim about Norbury choir - why do they need to be tamed? Very odd. Fr John says orange lighting not possible would cost £60,000! Excellent concert by 2 violas and bought their CD. Had a good chat to Peter Mallinson about the Proms - they both play in BBCSO. Loved the world premiere of Pete Walton's One Year. The silences were amazing. Wunderer and Bridge Lament and Caprice. Started on Macchu Picchu jigsaw. Wrote to the remaining bishops. To Mass fireworks at the park caused a lot of traffic. The sound system in church was picking up from the fair - it's a new system so Fr Andrew and David had to speak up! Strictly. Queen mother old pictures.

Thanks to Paul Miller for super trumpet playing for All Saints. Alas the service was not live-streamed. I played Howells Sine Nomine and Peeters on Sine Nomine and O quanta quailia. I sing a song of the saints of God. The setting was Thorne. Because an old leaflet was reused it said choir would sing the setting so Linda Baker and I sang it. I also sang the Alleluia verse. All this hopping between console and keyboard left me exhausted. Played O when the saints on the piano and did not hear the request to sing it again as I only have one hearing aid (right one lost!) and I had shut the hymnbook so had to find it again! I said No I’ve shut the book to Paul! You have to laugh! Beautiful evensong at St John the Evangelist, Upper Norwood Walmisley in D minor, Harris Holy is the true light, Wood O Thou the central orb. The lunch was good too. It’s been a busy weekend with both churches having sound system problems! Had a sleep after lunch. Hugh Grant films, Wolf Hall episode 1, Strictly. Antiques roadshow. Rich house poor house was fascinating. The taste in the rich house was just aweful.

Monday chat to Ann. Phoned audiology and Owens about getting wax cleared. Ikea a nightmare to contact! Swim and aerobics. Emails to bishops and delighted by reply from Canon Christopher. He will ask if bishops can visit Laudato Si' centre next November. Only connect, Univ challenge, Face the music, Call my bluff, Mastermind. Watched Liz at St George's mass holding crozier.