Music and memories

One of my passions is music, it is just so amazing and emotive, hearing a song from early Childhood brings back so many memories. Hearing a song I heard on a holiday reminds of those times, a worship song I first heard on Radio in America whilst driving brings back happy memories of that drive, the Bagpipe version of Amazing Grace reminds me of my Granddad, he loved the Bagpipes. There are also songs that remind me of times I would rather forget but we do need these as well. This morning as I turned on my Mac and ITunes to listen to music, I always play Party Shuffle it's like ITunes Roulette and chooses songs out of your music folder I have over 4900 songs in there, the first song today was Lemon Jelly - His Majesty King Raam, not a well known tune by all accounts but one that reminded me of my friend Matt. Matt would send me songs and I would send him songs, some Matt sent me were not to my taste, but most were, Matt like myself had a passion for music and would listen to anything I sent him and comment on it, sometimes he didn’t like the song but usually he did.

After coming back from Malta last year, one of the small jobs Mrs FLN asked me to do was sort out the music for after the Thanksgiving service, she wanted to play Matt’s ITunes Party list, it was what he played at his 30^th Birthday, it was a mixture of music from the year he was born and his favourite music. I also backed up his ITunes music folder to my Firewire drive in case of any problems, the last thing any of us wanted was a problem the evening before the service. A few weeks later going through this folder of eclectic music I found most of the songs I had sent him, it made me smile, I also found music I had never heard of, I listened to some, some I couldn’t as it was locked by ITunes I also copied a few of Matt’s albums to my ITunes including his two Lemon Jelly albums each time they play I think of my office partner.

An Afternoon locked up

Yesterday I went Birmingham Gaol, HMP Winson Green, I went with a friend from Church to see the last session of a programme he is part of called, The Sycamore Tree Project. This is an amazing project and I was genuinely moved by what this project has done and is doing in prisons.
On the way to the chapel one of the Chaplains took us through a wing, this really is a scary place and I was shaking as I walked through, it was very oppressive and I had a feeling of depression and loss of will. We set up the Chapel for this afternoon meeting and waited for the man to brought to us. My friend who was leading the programme explained what would happen. the group of men would be split into 4 groups, I would be with one group. They would look at some work they had previously done (our group were to look at the story of Zac the tax collector) and then explain it from a criminals point of view another group from the victims point of view, and so on. This was done really well. Then there was a time of sharing, if anyone wanted to share what the course had meant to them or what they had got out of it. I was genuinely moved by this time, it was a real privilege to hear this, we had a tea break, then the guys had to fill in their work books, and off back to their cells. It doesn’t sound much written down here, but it was an afternoon I will never forget.

God is working in there with Sycamore Tree, and I thank God for that and for the people who are being obedient and serving him there.

Well that was a great weekend, Friday night we went to the NIA with Amy and saw Bill Bailey, he was brilliant and very funny, Mrs EB and I bought the CD of the gig!!! and I now have a special Jazz version of the Imperial March as a ring tone!!!! For when Mrs EB or my Dad call.

We spent Saturday evening on the boat and came home Sunday afternoon, it was so nice a cosy on board Saturday night, it was raining a quite cold outside but very snugly onboard. We found another slight problem last night...the front door has expanded in the damp and needs some shaving off it..nothing major. I have installed the remote for the new 3kw charger inverter so all OK on The Robber Button.

Weekend update

I have a slight problem...listening to Radio 4 this morning, they were saying that ID theft is growing due to Facebook and blogs!!!!! I don't want to remove my blog as it is a good record of how I have been dealing with some major things over the past 14 months. But I am also aware of that I need to be a bit more careful about what I put up.

Anyhoo what's been happening? Not much, I have been at Church a few times, I have been setting up the PC's in the new offices which has been great. I have been in touch with someone from my interview panel and still no definitive answer...but that's Ok I guess. I popped to the boat with Mrs EB to set the heating to come on a few times a day at the moment, the last thing we want is a burst pipe.

We are going to see Bill Bailey tonight with Amy, I just love his dry humour. Tomorrow we are going to the boat to go and relax and have some peace and quiet. That's about it really nothing much else is happening, I would still value your prayers about the Job, that things would be sorted soon.

That was the Weekend that Was

We had a nice weekend, I spent Friday night alone on "The Robber Button" it was a really peaceful and quiet evening and I was able to have a really nice warm shower thanks to John and John. It did get cold in the night but putting the heating on soon warmed it up.

Saturday Teapot and Timelord visited us for a half day, we had a great time just tootling up to Tixell Wide and having Sausage and Bacon Sandwiches then back to the Marina.


It was so nice to spend a bit of time with them. We were very blessed with the weather... when we set off it was a little overcast and it just started to rain a little by the time we had got to Tixell Wide, so I closed the doors and lit a fire, by the time the sandwiches were cooked the sun had come back out and stayed out until it it set.


We have a few peole who would like to spend some time on the boat and that is fantasic we will welcome guests as we know how relaxing and peaceful it is, Mrs EB has a diary with dates we are free so she is really the person to speak too, I have a rough idea but I have to check with her anyway. I am putting people off who I think would enjoy it a little more when the weather turns again in the spring, it just means a little longer cruising and a bit of a longer day, we only really have 5 hours of cruising time at the moment as it gets dark early and it is not easy going in the dark. It is also cold on that tiller even for a seasoned Captain like myself........LOL

Photo's Viv Sellers

End of week update

I now own a Z8:-not this amazing and beautiful BMW car,which I would love if any of my wonderful readers are thinking of what to get me for Christmas... No I own the Motorola Z8 a great phone with a HDVideo built in!!! and comes with The Bourne Identity on a card to watch with a pair of Bluetooth headphones. Its a cheeky little phone and it will take a little while to get used to it but I like it. Mrs EB's new phone a O2 XDA Orbit with SATNAV is very cool. She hasn't set up the satnav yet, she needs a memory card but I did see her setting up the contacts and diary and reading the massive book that came with her phone.

I am off to the boat this afternoon and spending the night there as the nice guys at the marina have now fixed my shower and I need to pay them. Mrs EB is off out tonight in brum and will come back home so I will be on the boat all on my own.... me the ducks and swans.

Timelord, Teapot and Mrs FLN are joining us on the boat Saturday for a little trip and a spot of lunch, I will feel sorry for Timelord, he is used to travel in the TARDIS at lightspeed and we travel at a max speed of 3mph!!!! LOL. It should be a great day out I am really looking forward to it.

I am still waiting to hear back from the interview, I have heard somethings, though I am still waiting to hear if I have got the job or not. I am still praying about it and waiting on the panel and God.

That's about, will blog again next week

Is it a calling or is it me?

I am in one of those places where I am testing my heart with a calling and seeing if it is me or God calling me in to a new job, I honestly do not think it is me, but it might be. I have fears and doing the job will certainly be facing one of them head on and being a coward I tend turn the other way when a fear shows itself to me. So applying for this job is stepping towards my fear head on. I think I am being obedient to a calling from God, as in my heart I knew I should apply for this job even though I don’t have all that is needed to do the job, but if God wants me there he will make the job happen and equip me with the help needed and the teaching to do this job.....so for the past few weeks

Team Leader has been preaching about Joshua and being a servant to God and being obedient and doing as God asks. This is a lesson for each of us, but more so myself. The other Sunday (the 5th November) Team Leader showed a great video (veggietales) of Joshua and the story of being obedient to God and doing what God asks him to do and praying for 7 days and marching around the walls of Jericho and the walls then came tumbling down.
Team Leader then gave out Prayer cards marked for 7 day and said if we have a wall we should pray for 7 days about it and see if those walls would come tumbling down. Well I wasn't faithful to this last week, but this week I am trying to be. I am also being obedient and really stepping out of my comfort zone with the job, let’s see if these walls come tumbling down and my being obedient and stepping out in faith all come together in one thing.

Tuesday - weekend update

This has been an interesting and a little upsetting weekend.

Mrs EB’s brother had entrusted me to collect one of his most amazing pieces of work, an anatomically near perfect replica of a TRex made out of glass. I was tiding up the living room in the morning after I collected it when our cats came in the room at 1000mph and jumped up on the table and broke it. I was and still am devastated. I spent most of the day here in shock and tears. I phoned Mrs EB’s brother in Malta and he was amazingly gracious about the whole thing, saying it was Ok and he was sure he could repair it.

We didn't visit the boat this weekend as we were very busy doing things.

Saturday evening was spent at Church doing the sound for Youth Team leaders leaving party, what a fantastic evening it was a great band and some great dancing from Team Leader!!!!

Sunday I was on sound covering for Mike who had to be on call for work, the evening was lead by Mrs EB and she did a fantastic job, Team Leader preached and as always was just wonderful.

Monday I phoned and left a message with one of the people who interviewed me, so I could find out if I had a chance with the job, LOL the reply was is a little ambiguous but is very encouraging, more later on this when I know a little more.

Well that’s about really on the update front, oh yeah, I have phoned O2 about upgrading my phone, I am using a very old phone at the moment to replace the one I had stolen in Malta, and I have new phone arriving tomorrow a Motorla Z8, I have also got a very good deal for Mrs EB and myself on the tarrif and an amazing phone for Mrs EB with Sat Nav!!!!! I decided against the IPhone as it is first Generation and after reading some reports online, it has a few teething problems, when I upgrade in about a year and a half’s time I am sure it will be 3^rd or 4^th generation and will hopefully be a phone I will think about.

UPDATE

Well my arrived today in less than 24 hours...but it was the wrong phone!!!!! the hassells trying to exchange and get them to send the right phone, they insisted they had sent the right phone. I eventually got them to agree to the phone I originally agreed too.

Nan and Granddad

Life is very strange and hard at times, I am waiting to hear back from an interview I went too on Monday, I am guessing that I didn't get the job and I am quite sad about that, I honestly thought I could do that job and that I could be a blessing to those I would reach. There is nothing I can do about it now, so I must learn to live with that. A very big thank you to those who prayed for me over this.

Over the past few days I have been working on a photo for my Mum, she has a photo of her Mum and Step Father Fred. (It was taken Italy in the 1970's) Fred was a wonderful man, he was really the only Grandfather I knew, my Dad's dad died when I was about 7 or 8 and I don't really remember him. Anyhooo Granddad as I called him was a chap who was old School, he would never say anything rude in front of a lady and even a slightly risky joke was a no-no. He would take you into another room and whisper it.... He would hold a door open for anyone, and carry the bags. He would help anyone and he looked after and doted on my Nan for many years after her strokes. When Nan died, he mourned her so badly that 12 months later he joined her. We all knew he was dying and it was his wish to do so, he refused any treatment. I had some chats with him just before he died, I was in Florida during December 1999 with Mrs EB and I phoned him every other day to say hi, and he would tell me all the news of what was happening at my Mums, where he now lived. I phoned one day and no one was in, I knew something had happened.

My mum arranged the funeral for when we returned, he was buried in the same the grave plot as Nan. I miss them both, but strangely him more so, he was my mate.

Anyhoo I thought spending this time would be a nice thing to do for my Mum, the photo now looks loads better and will make her happy, and that's what sons are suposed to do isn't it, make mums happy.

Something to think about

Rob Bell is an amazing preacher, he set up Marshill Baptist Church on prayer, if you read his books, Velvet Elvis and Sex God he says how it all happened. Rob teaches many many thousands each Sunday and is just an amazing speaker, much like Team Leader. Mission Team Leader got me into his unique way of teaching a few years ago, I could listen to him all day. Anyhoo here is Rob talking about money, it really makes you think.

We had a nice weekend, we spent a lot of it on the boat, we have had a new inverter fitted, it changes the 12volts of the battery to 240 volts it also charges the battery's when connected to the shore line and it works as a UPS (uninterrupted power supply) so that means the moment you connect or disconnect from the shore mains or generator it goes to the battery/Shore line or generator. It was very expensive but a very useful piece of equipment. I also have started to put up the window blinds, well I think they are all up now, so I have finished putting up the blinds. I need to pop to a market and pick up some foam sheets for the porthole windows to make some sort of cover/blind for them.

Gaye, Andy and Amy joined us on Saturday night to watch the fireworks from Shugborough Hall (a big disappointment) and to eat loads (very good food again). It was really enjoyable evening with some good company.

Monday

I had the interview Monday, it was a tough one, and to be honest I don't know how I did, I answered each question as best as I could, I was honest and said what came from my heart I don't think I could have done much better, I did think of a couple of things in bed last night that I could have said, but there is no point going there as I would end up in a real state.

I have been amazed at the people who really care about me and the interview, I have received Texts and phone calls all encouraging me and asking how things have gone, I should hear sometime this week either way.

Home again

We arrived home safely, I am still annoyed at the loss of my mobile phone, I have got my new sim card but I don't own a new phone as yet, I will pop out later to Sutton and buy a cheap thing. I still have this cold!!!

Borrowed an old O2 phone off my Dad, its very basic but it will get me out of trouble until December 8th when this contract runs out.

I had a nice time in Malta I read a couple of books by Gervase Phinn, he was school inspector in Yorkshire and he writes a fantastic romp about his times, they are very funny and sweet. I also did some recharging as I was very tired after all this diabetes and medication, though I still feel tired I do feel rested after 8 days in the sun.

I am now starting to prepare for my interview on Monday I am not sure at all as to what to prepare? I know I need to think seriously about where I have achieved over the 10 years and surmise that for the interview....what else I just don't know?