The highs and lows of water

I am not talking about the tides here, but the emotions caused by water. The first photo is some sinister looking mould growing at the base of the pulpit in St Michael's church. It was discovered on Friday and looks like it is coming from the depths of the earth. It is moving fast and looks bad. It is probably caused by the huge amounts of water used to put the fire out 3 years ago. The combination of damp floors and heat have probably created an ideal environment for yucky mould production. The worry is that it could have spread a long way. Other bits are popping up at the edge of the new flooring in the choir. The annoying thing is the time and energy it will take to deal with it. Having it looked at, investigated, decisions about it, arguments about treatment and if we need to take the floor up. Then all the stuff about paying for it. None of this was on the training agenda at theological collage! On the bright side, look at the fun Grace and I had on Thursday playing in the water and sand. That is a much better use of H2O.

Steel bars and tubigrip bandage

That's all you need to keep the 100 year old tower in place. Get a steel bar and put a sock bandage over it. Insert a plastic tube and tape up the end. The whole thing is inserted into a drilled hole going right through the tower, concrete stuff is pumped into the tube, filling the sock and holding the bar in place. Fasten all the bars together and the tower will stand for another 100 years, or at least until after tomorrows wedding!! We shall see. The church is looking good and I am about to show some city guides around ready for the summer visiting sessions. I know it all looks very basic but I am assured it is state of the art structural engineering. I think the inventor must have been a boy scout.

When Jesus said, go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, I am sure he knew massive restorations were part of the deal.

Another fire

I have been working in Lincoln for a few days with a group of men from the TFM (Through Faith Missions) organisation. The men walked from the Humber bridge to Lincoln Cathedral taking the gospel message in various ways to local communities as they were invited by the churches on route. I joined the group once most of the walking had been done, which was a good move on my part. I came across a church on the St Giles estate which had been destroyed by fire about two years ago. I could not resist taking the before and after photograph. You can see the transition is fantastic. The people in the church still talk about their horror when they saw their church on fire. We could start a group for people who have been traumatised by losing their church in fire. Back home now and pleased to be here. I have a meeting this morning with the alarm company, so hopefully that will be one part of our restoration completed.

The group - Left to Right. Me, Peter, Rick, Kevin, David & John

Come and play the chopping game

I have been lucky enough to have some logs delivered to the vicarage following some tree felling the the churchyard. It's good because come the cold autumn and winter nights it will provide free fuel and smell good as it burns. The bad news is that it requires splitting into burnable size bits and it's hard work. I have been setting it up as a bit of a game among the family. The boys are keen to show who can split the logs with the least number of blows, but even my wife and daughter are getting in on the act. The trouble is they have cottoned on to the fact that I am using them to chop the wood and so I now need more volunteers to come and join the fun. Let me know when you would like to try your arm! Daughter Roz showing a natural ability to split a log in one go.

Wife Gill, showing a natural ability not to split a log in one go!!

This is a tattoo Roz is sporting on the small of her back. I think it looks very good, if somewhat resembling a dapper French gentleman!

This is one of the dinosaurs Grace and me saw at the new Handcock last week. Gggrrrrr!

Dinosaur Bones

The eight chickens who share our life at the vicarage are a real friendly bunch. They love it when Grace lets them roam free in the garden. They have never come face to face with Archie, the bull terrier, which gives them a very relaxed and laid back outlook on life. They are happy to be stroked and chased by Grace and will readily eat from her hand. They lay eggs on a regular basis and all in all have a good life.

Gill feeds them and gives them clean water every morning before she leaves for school just after 7.30am. I am thinking of taking on this duty as her school is due to be inspected next week and she is working even more than usual. (Which is a lot!) On Friday me and John took ourselves off to Grasemere and spent a few days walking in the lakes which was very relaxing, if somewhat exhausting with the heat and heavy rucksacks. I have decided that carrying big packs and walking long distances or climbing steep hills should not be done simultaneously, so lets see how long I manage to stick to my new resolution.
I think I need to spend more time with Gill and Grace and the chickens once OFSTEAD is over and I have returned from working in Lincoln (on mission) which I am doing a few days next week.

Today Gill has heard she has finished paying back her student loan! which is good news, if a bit disturbing as she has been teaching for over 10 years! I think we are planning to go out and celebrate but we can't discuss it until after the inspection. Tomorrow I am planning to take Grace to the new Hancock museum, as she tells me she wants to see dinosaur bones! I hope they have got some.

Newcastle didn't win as I predicted, so I hope I have better luck with my plan to spend a little less time working and a little more with the family. I have certainly managed it this week.

Howay the lads!

I sometimes wonder if we will ever see St Michael's restoration finished following the fire which happened over 3 years ago. We are in the process of arranging for further works to be carried out on the tower as the main arch is spreading at what has been described as an alarming rate. We are in the process of seeking what we are calling our final faculty for all the work needed to finish the restoration including additional strengthening. I will welcome the day when I am told, "it's all done". This process has dominated my thoughts over the past three years as everywhere I go I am asked about the building and how it is going. Looking at the photographs is a good reminder of how far we have come since March 2006, something I need to do on a regular basis, just to retain some sanity. I suppose I am writing this because I have been going through the faculty application process with St Michael's wardens, so it has reignited my thoughts. On a strange note, I dreamt last night that Newcastle beat Aston Villa by 7-o in their fight to remain in the championship. Let's hope I am as good on dreams as I am with perseverance. Today is the day - howay the lads!

Spotted on Tuesday

For those who are interested in rare sightings here's one for the scrapbook. These people are waiting for a bus, as you can see they are all laughing nervously and that is because they have never been on a bus before. They are the people of Ponteland, where everyone has at least 3 cars and one private jet. The leader at the front, identifiable by his blue and white plumage, is usually carried everywhere by his adoring fans. We were in Benwell for the licensing of the new vicar, who had been their curate. The people of Benwell put on a fine spread, including quail's eggs, that made the Ponteland people feel at home!

This is my Granddaughter yesterday, playing with our hens and the other ones are self explanatory.