Chilly drizzle? A drizzle chill? The temperature was not unreasonable this morning, but the air was just past the saturation point with ultra-light drizzle. That brought the perceived temperature down considerably, especially once one had run a bit more than half of one’s two mil … | Continue reading
I’m reading some Paul de Man these days for a particular project, and however culpable his Nazi collaboration and his self-reinvention are, he certainly hits some important marks. ‘Literature, instead of being taught only as a historical and humanistic subject, should be taught a … | Continue reading
Margaret needed to take an early bus this morning, so I walked with her to the High Street stop and started my run from there this morning — meaning that I ran the opposite direction from my usual. It was a startling reminder of how great a difference that perspective makes. Up t … | Continue reading
Somebody asked in an email, ‘What makes you feel alive?’ I’ve been writing an essay on drop-dead deadline, but the pressure hasnb’t felt as vivid as has the excitement of putting thoughts together, and ;looking into what other people have thought on related topics. That makes me … | Continue reading
Ran my morning two miles (more than a mile before a couple of my relevant muscles, whose names I don’t know cos I’m not that kind of runner, loosened up), coffee and fruit, Morning Prayer, quick stop for groceries, second cup and then throwing myself headlong into writing. I pled … | Continue reading
Ran my morning two miles with heavy legs, but not at a lugubrious pace. Coffee and fruit, I’ll go to Morning Prayer in a few minutes, and the rest of the day I’ll try to devote to marking, editing, and writing. | Continue reading
I ran my short route this morning cos it was raining (lightly but steadily); then coffee and Morning Prayer, fruit breakfast I’m changing my hot breakfast regiemn to Sunday and Wednesday, today was a transitional day), morning Mass for Passion Sunday, then the Annual District Com … | Continue reading
Very leisurely two miles this morning, running and walking and even stopping for half a mo, giving my muscles and joints a chance to relax. Then coffee and Morning Prayer in my study, hot breakfast, a morning catching up on this and that, and a little bit of work. I have a vague … | Continue reading
Ran both of the last two mornings: Last morning, very heavy legs and a slow run, and this morning a good pace and limber legs. Coffee and fruit breakfast, shower, and Morning Prayer. Yesterday I came home and leaned into some academic business, t(hen a meeting about fund-raising … | Continue reading
No rain, so I ran my two miles (musing about how I imagined, once upon a time, that it would get easier and easier), coffee and fruit, Morning Prayer, then will stay at church for midweek Eucharist, then home for the afternoon, probably. | Continue reading
Yesterday I dismounted the X3 at St Aldate’s and hastened toward Oriel, where in a half hour I would meet a guest for lunch. As I turned the corner into Blue Boar, I heard someone shouting after me: ‘Bro, Bro, Bro, I need…’ to which I half-turned and waved and called, ‘Sorry, I’m … | Continue reading
When I write about spirituality, I will have to stress that I’m talking about one way, not the only way, and not to the exclusion of other ways. I may have criticisms of other ways, but I will try not to deprecate ways that benefit other people. My point, at every turn, will be t … | Continue reading
No run this morning — steady rain. | Continue reading
One, I really must do something about FB and Twitter, and even BlueSky. My current plan involves taking an interval (initially a day or two, building to longer times) off, peering in, and taking another interval off as soon as practicable. Maybe one medium at a time, not lukewarm … | Continue reading
Following on from yesterday’s post, today my legs felt a bit stronger — not strong exactly, nor limber, but neither did they feel as heavy as yesterday) — and I ran to a plausible, if not particularly exciting pace. Coffee and grapes, Morning Prayer, then to a café for working al … | Continue reading
Having been running daily for years now, I always marvel at how unpredictable the experience will be. Yesterday I made the run at what is for me a decent pace, despite my legs feeling as heavy, leaden, as they ever have; today they were a bit livelier, but my pace was a bit slowe … | Continue reading
Ran my two miles, despite 3° temps and complaining muscles. Coffee and fruit, cleaned up, off to Morning Prayer and a collegial meeting with Prof. Barton before I traipse up to Ox for the last New Testament Seminar of term. Last of term, ah! | Continue reading
Thursday of Eighth, so there are two days left of full term. I have two tutes today, some marking and reports to write, and I have some make-up tutes to arrange, but beginning Friday I will not be receiving any more essays to mark, and everything I do will move me forward to an a … | Continue reading
Ran my two miles in 2° (did I report yesterday’s run? Same deal), coffee and fruit, Morning Prayer, off to the bus stop to just barely miss the X3, eventually got to Oxford to lead tutorials with my four lovely first-years, back to Abingdon, afternoon appointment, and various ema … | Continue reading
The mornings have been lighter and lighter, thank heaven, though the zero and subzero temperatures have been disappointing. Two more miles this morning, anyway. David Weinberger reports his extended interaction with ChatGPT which pivots on the topic of cultural situatedness. He e … | Continue reading
It wasn’t raining this morning, so — why not run my two miles even though it was -1° out on 2 March? I made adequate time. I had spent yesterday working on two sermons (two different congregations, two different sorts of ethos). I was knocked out, then; and it knocked me out agai … | Continue reading
Steady rain this morning, so I doubt that I’ll go for my morning run. At any other point in my life, I would just roll my eyes and marvel at the rainiest spell in memory; now that I live in a low-lying house between two rising rivers, my feelings about a protracted rainy spell ru … | Continue reading
Ran my morning two miles on stiff, resistant legs, but came in at a reasonable pace. Coffee and fruit, clean up, Morning Prayer, and will spend the morning marking essays till I head in to Oxford for a tute. | Continue reading
Ran my usual two miles this morning, and although my legs were attempting passive resistance tactics, I kept to a pretty good pace. Fruit breakfast and coffee, cleaned up, Morning Prayer, a morning meeting with the Team Vicar (one of my two line managers), Staff Meeting, and in t … | Continue reading
I slept almost nine hours last night, after napping on and off through the afternoon and evening — I expect that I’ll have some sleep-transition jetlag issues, but at least I’m off to a good start at returning to my home sleep-cycle pattern. I ran my short route this morning to g … | Continue reading
In all the spy and superagent and honest-cop and determined scientist-rescuer films, the travel from one exotic location to another goes largely unremarked, even though it takes up more real-world time than the dramatic confrontations, clandestine revelations, fight sequences, mi … | Continue reading
So, beginning yesterday morning: it was raining, so I didn’t run. Then I waited for the dog minder, who got stuck in traffic; he arrived a half hour late, just after the Archdeacon arrived for our scheduled appointment. We had a very good talk, and I proceeded to the parish centr … | Continue reading
Waiting for Hilary Term to end, that is. It’s my intense teaching term at Oriel, and my parish responsibilities have been steady — and I’m flying to my mother-in-law’s funeral in the States for the weekend. So I’ll be ready when term-time ends. I ran my miles this morning, then c … | Continue reading
I didn’t run this morning cos it was raining steadily when I woke up. That was convenient, since I needed time before the 8:00 Mass to go over my sermon one more time and then print it. The weather’’s changed since then — mostly clear skies this afternoon — but I don’t think I’ll … | Continue reading
I could be referring to my sleepy feet on our early=morning run, or doing the washing-up, or writing a sermon for the nth week in a row. In any case, I have to extrude a sermon from my imagination, but apart from that I will be taking things easy today. (For the journal, I did… | Continue reading
I ran my morning route both of the last two days (in unseasonably, unreasonably warm weather), had my fruit breakfast and coffee, cared for the Margaret-bereft canines, made a foray in Oxford yesterday and will do today as well, picked up a grocery or two, and have been thinking … | Continue reading
I did not run this morning, as I was out late at Oriel’s Theology Dinner. I woke up in time to begin bashing out a homily for our Ash Wednesday morning service; at this evening’s service, I’m mostly just decorative. The wee duggies were anxious about my leaving for a few hours so … | Continue reading
Ran my two miles, coffee and fruit, am reading a student essay, will clean up and go to Morning Prayer, dash back to feed and air the dogs, then to the bus stop to get to Oxford for tutorials by 11:00, then home to Abingdon for an afternoon appointment, then time for more marking … | Continue reading
Two miles, coffee and fruit, Morning Prayer, fruit and coffee, marking, thorough meeting about pastoral care at St Helen’s, back home to wrap up marking, dog care…. | Continue reading
Up for my morning run, coffee, Morning Prayer (at home), a second cup and hot breakfast, give the sermon a once-over, print, shower, hurry to church, preach and assist, talk with church-goers at the door, join a Young Server Recruitment meeting, stumble home, lunch, begin proofre … | Continue reading
Patricia (Pat) Anne Pennington Bamforth died peacefully in her sleep, at Maine General Hospital in Augusta, ME, on February 5th, 2024, after a long and full life of care for family and community. She was born September 17, 1937, in St Louis, MO, graduated from Kirkwood High Schoo … | Continue reading
We woke up execrably early this morning so that Margaret could catch the first flight to Boston out of Heathrow. That means catching the bus out of Abingdon, changing for the Airliner coach in Oxford, and arriving in good time for the international flight; added to the joys of ea … | Continue reading
I will not run my miles through a steady rain in single-digit temps. That’s a firm negatory. Instead I sdat and talked with Margaret about various aspects of her travel plans, what to expect when she gets to Pat’s house, and so on. I marked essays, listened to the Cardboards live … | Continue reading
So, a busy day today. I ran my two (a decent time, actually, for a change), then coffee and fruit and cleaning up, then Morning Prayer, then back to church for a (long) weekly staff meeting. Then home to turn back to home-work. I’m cooking dinner for my sweetheart, then an evenin … | Continue reading
Margaret and I are both orphans, now. Yesterday at 8:00 EST/1:00 GMT, Patricia P Bamforth died in her sleep at her hospital in Augusta, Maine. I’ll post an obit later, but for now suffice it to say that we were neither surprised nor fully prepared. Just Saturday she had agreed to … | Continue reading
Full day at church — after having run my two miles and said Morning Prayer and showered and dressed, all before 7:15, I made my way to church for the 8:00 service. Then I came home to say Good Morning to Margaret, then back to church to walk through the special service for the Th … | Continue reading
Ran (walked part of) my two miles, Morning Prayer, hot breakfast, and now to work up a sermon for tomorrow and a Faith orum on ‘the sacraments’ (‘On the Very Idea of a Sacrament’ for you Davidson aficionados). | Continue reading
I ran all three of the last mornings (short route on Wednesday, as I was short of sleep and a bit achey from so much standing up). I had been putting off blogging, partly because I have had a full plate of things to do and partly because I was hoping to be able to… | Continue reading
I ran my miles, of course, and had a cup of coffeee and fruit. Will take tea upstairs to Margaret, clean up, and head to Morning Prayer, then shop for groceries and return home to pass the day tidying and helping Margaret. And in the evening, will welcome parishioners and friends … | Continue reading
Ran my short route this morning — just felt like it — and came home to coffee, hot breakfast, a leisurely clean-up and change into church clothes, morning Mass, for the last time not-as-staff. This licensing business is beginning to seem like a classic mild, but utterly incongruo … | Continue reading
And it’ll be my last for a while, since — if I read the rota correctly — I’m preaching at St Helen’s every Sunday for the next four weeks. Two more (chillier, 2°) miles in the book, cup of coffee, and about to say Morning Prayer. I expect Margaret and I will do some tidying… | Continue reading
Two miles, fruit breakfast, Morning Prayer, coffee in town (at Throwing Buns — gluten-free scones for Margaret), chemist’s, library for some books about the history of Abingdon, then into Oxford for the New Testament Seminar. It’s a long, long bus ride home at rush hour on Friday … | Continue reading
Big teaching day in the family: Margaret had her two-hour lecture in East Oxford, and I had two tutorials at Oriel. Add in the to-ing and fro-ing of getting to town, and we’re well tired. I did run my miles this morning, and of course said Morning Prayer and finished marking the … | Continue reading