"You can blow out a candle, but you can't blow out a fire" - Peter Gabriel

It's Sunday night and I am sitting in a relatively tidy lounge listening to an amazing Peter Gabriel gig from Wolfgang's Vault and enjoying a cup of camomile tea. Pretty brilliant start to the week! I love Peter Gabriel. D and I were just chatting and I realised that I always turn to his music when I need a 'pick-me-up'. His tunes are challenging, beautiful, politically-engaged, poetic and uplifting. I adore his mix of Western rock and world music. He is totally mega! It's fascinating to see the way music affects mood. It is such a powerful thing.

We've had a lovely day with a good couple of church folks. The day included some incredible pork crackling (difficult to get right!), a refreshing walk round Skellingthorpe and a conversation about a stroke club (don't ask) that made me laugh until my sides hurt. Unfortunately it also included a super flat tyre which meant our wonderful Pastor's wife came out to collect us. Here's hoping the folk at Kwik fit can do something about that tomorrow.

The puncture was presumably picked up while out on our Warden trip yesterday. We had such a great day. First stop was the lovely town of Oakham. We did a bit of food shopping as there are some great local produce shops and had a wander round the centre. And then it was off for lunch at Chequers. Great meal, wood burning fires and some lovely chat. A perfect Saturday.

And so it's off with the new term tomorrow. I'm not teaching until the afternoon so I'll spend the morning at home doing some prep. I'm really looking forward to seeing all the students again and getting on with the new courses. It's going to be a good term. The projects are coming along nicely and I now have the skeleton version of my Walter Greenwood paper up and running. It's taken a bit of time to hone this one but I'm feeling happier about it now.

Anyways, the Gabriel concert has finished with a rousing rendition of Biko and now we are on to Yes. It's thrills a minute chez Warden. I've finished my tea and am off to bed. It's a busy week ahead, filled to the brim with fun stuff. I need my beauty sleep.

CSW

p.s. I take it back - D has found a very controversial 80's Bowie concert to listen to. I am going to make the wild presumption that he is the only man in the know universe currently listening to - and more importantly enjoying - this gig! D has a knack of enjoying the anomalies in artists' careers, those sell-out moments. It means I get to listen to some weird stuff!