Sorry for the dearth of posts lately. I have been reading and writing other things and as you all know there are only so many hours in the day!
About three weeks ago I called in at my local Barnes and Noble to collect my monthly fix of Country Living Magazine so that here in unseasonably hot Texas I could torture myself with images of an English Spring. Sadly B&N had no Country Livings to sell me so in high dudgeon I was just stalking towards the door of the shop through the "New in Paperback" aisle when an all-too familiar image caught my eye. There, nestled between some un-noteworthy tomes was the Mathematical Bridge of Queen's College, Cambridge, a site/sight I cycled past at least twice a day for 5 years during my time at Cambridge.
Interest piqued I halted my stalking pace and backed up to the book. It was called "The Devlin Diaries" and had one of those covers that just sucked you right in, made you want to plop down on the floor right there and just start reading. Well, with dinner to put on the table and homework to oversee, laundry to do etc I didn't plop down on the floor but I did buy the book and spent the next three days reading it until it was done. Boy! That was a great book and it made me want to read more books so before I knew where I was I had spent the next week's grocery bill on used books from Amazon.com! Sorry husband! Does that explain the rice and beans in our diet lately?
Historical Mysteries have been the breath of life to me these last three weeks. Restoration Period London, Who-dunnits featuring Elizabeth I as investigator and even a forensic pathologist from Twelth Century Sicily transplanted to my beloved Cambridge. Wow! It has been like taking a little vacation from everyday life. Even the rejection of the first few pages of my children's novel by a literary agent didn't phase me as much as I had thought it might. I could justify my lack of sorrow over that by telling myself I was doing research into how a good book does get picked up by an agent!
So, I have resurfaced from my reading binge and tell myself it is time to return briefly to the real world! Obviously I will order some more books from Amazon and this time discipline myself not to read them until the summer vacation which now looms on the horizon (brief pause for shouts of joy!), but more pressingly it seems like time to start Royal watching as the wedding is THIS WEEK! When all that is on your TV is basketball or Disney Channel, the most important news tends to creep by you. Off to Google Royal Wedding and figure out how I am going to get up early enough to watch it!
Cambridge was indeed in America on Thursday evening as the choir of St. John's College, Cambridge University performed at St. Austin's Catholic Church under the conductorship (is there such a word?) of Andrew Nethsingha. Their music did much to restore the soul and everyone seemed to enjoy it hugely, but we in the Long Family - that is to say self plus daughters 1 and 2 enjoyed the 90 minute performance for reasons that were only tangental to the music.
We sat in the front row because the novelty of not having naughty child #3 with us meant that we could revel in front row ambience rather than cowering in the back row ready to beat a hasty retreat. Therefore we had a really good view of all of the singers' facial expressions, elbowing of eachother, yawns and unashamed staring of the ten year old treble boys at daughter #1!
I am not a music buff so will not pretend to speak with authority about the splendor of Bach's Lobet Gott in seinen Reichen (Bless you!) but I do know that the soaring notes of clear voices in harmony with eachother made me very nostalgic for England and not a little tearful. I absolutely loved it!
The program was very worthy with lots of pieces by composers I had vaguely heard of but I suspect everyone's favorite piece was when the tenors and basses sang "Surfing USA", Barber Shop style. The senior lads (probably second year undergraduates at a guess) were just witty and droll in their version of the song and when Mr. Nethsingha made the Hook 'em Horns gesture, the crowd went wild - well, as wild as such an august and undisputeably senior crowd such as it was could go wild!
My special thanks go to George, Basil and Tom, 3 of the choristers who took the time to meet and greet with my daughters after the perfomance, still splendidly attired in their Harry Potter-esque gowns and bow ties. They were very kind in a non-patronising way to my small ones and I think have struck a chord in a couple of small hearts to be on the look out in about 30 years' time or so (Ha!) for a nice young Englishman. A mother can dream right?
Good times! Perhaps I might even go as far as to give generously next time the alumni phone call comes around!
Last night husband and I took the rare opportunity to go out to dinner together on our own with no children. After the initial sense of being at a loss for words due to the unusual chance to speak to eachother without constant interruption we had a lovely meal. After our meal we made a quick trip to my favorite ATM.
How can you have a favorite ATM you may ask? Well, my ATM not only dispenses money with ease and efficiency but when it speaks to me, you know, phrases such as "Please enter your pin number now", it does so in a lovely, soothing Scottish accent! I have no idea why a bank in Burnet, Texas would have a Scottish female voiceover but it does and everyone in my family loves it! There is always an expectant hush in the car as we breathlessly wait to hear Jeannie (or whatever Scottish name you care to substitute) give us the next instruction. As this 'north of the borders' voice calmly tells us what to do, everyone in my car choruses back the words in their best pseudo-Scottish voice.
Thank you First Scottish Bank of Burnet! It is worth paying an extra $2 for using a bank not my own just for this moment of pure entertainment. I can't wait for the day when my kiddoes meet a real Scot. They'll expect him or her to hand over wads of cash!
