Norfolk: There be Vikings! (The miraculous seventeenth post)

Norfolk get's a lot of bad press sometimes. People think it is a little behind the times. I suppose in a way it is a bit behind the rest of Britain, but that is what makes it special. It is still unsullied by what much of the modern world thinks to be commodities; in reality we would be better without such "commodities". The landscape is beautiful, but not in a soft, gentle, and inviting fashion. No, instead it is beautiful in a rugged, visceral, and quite primal way. The openness and vastness of the landscape blows you away by day, and in the evening the expanses can be unsettling and quite ominous. It is no surprise that there is no shortage of local ghost stories. It is also no wonder that so many writers, artists, and poets travel to Norfolk to gain inspiration. As Norfolk is quite exposed to Scandinavia many of the Viking landings were made on the beaches of North Norfolk. It doesn't take a stretch of the imagination to picture Vikings landing on those vast stretches of unclaimed shore under the ominous shadow of Norfolk dusk.
I spent from last week Friday to this week Tuesday in North Norfolk with my good friend and old Literature, Psychology, and Drama teacher Stephen Graham. I had the opportunity to meet the people he worked with in the village inn and to sample the local ale. Much of the visit consisted of very good in depth conversation about life, the universe, and everything. One of my favourite things about visiting Stephen is the conversation. On the Sunday we went to the morning service at the West Runton Anglican church. It was a beautiful service. It was a very high Anglican service. I was reminded of the way that God is in the ritual and the liturgy in the same way that he is there when we worship with a guitar and microphones. We often forget that just because a service is ordered doesn't mean that God's spirit is not present and worship is not happening. It is almost naive, and really rather arrogant to think that God prefers one type of church service. I also attended the evening service at the Anglican church in Cromer. While also an Anglican church, the service was completely different. This is what would be described as low Anglican. There was very little formal liturgy, and the worship was led by a band that included guitar and drums. There were microphones for the singers, and a PA system at the back. Rather than hymn books the words were projected onto a screen. It was exciting to see the juxtaposition of contemporary worship and an old (and huge) stone church.  Also, it was so clear that God was also present in the second service as well. So often we as the church allow our differences to create division and weaken the church. However, our differences, even huge differences within a single denomination, can lead to a dynamic church within which the Spirit is free to work in people's hearts in ways which are right for them as individuals and as a community.
Church was a highlight of the trip. Monday night there was a much more eerie occurrence.  We were in Cromer having dropped Stephen's friends off at their hotel, having discussed some of the local ghost stories, and we saw a dark figure wearing a black cape, mask and top hat. It was one of those moments where we both had to ask whether we had both really seen what we had seen. I will leave you with the worrying suggestion that due to the fact that it was Norfolk, the masked figure was not in fancy dress.

Snow! 2 (The miraculous sixteenth post)

Snow lay thick on the ground when I woke up this morning. It was beautiful. Nothing beats a good snow. To actually get to church this morning we had to take a broom and desnow (new word) the car. After a rather treacherous drive and quite a bit of sliding we made it to church. The service itself was rather good. Our worship leader could sense that the spirit was going to move before the service even began. After the service a snowball fight ensued in the church car park (another one of those funtimes there). Grandma managed to assert her dominance on the field of snowball battle and so we packed up and went home. Half an hour later my second cousins family arrived with their six year old. So, the logical conclusion was to make a snowman (It is a true and irrefutable  fact that having a six year old with you significantly improves snowman construction quality). The snow was perfect for making snowmen. So, not only did we make a snowman, we also made a snow boulder. At some point today I will get photos with the boulder and post them up here as well.

Snow! (The miraculous fifteenth post)

 It is snowing! Right now! It has settled as well! I got so excited that I wrapped up and went outside in my boots. In a fit of spontaneity I decided that I had to make a snow angel! After shaking all the snow off of various items of clothing I returned inside, made some hot chocolate, and sat down at my computer to write this post. There are mixed opinions when it comes to snow. Many people love it because it is thoroughly beautiful. On the other hand many people hate snow because it's cold and causes inconveniences. My friend Dominic falls into the latter category. This afternoon he had to ride his bike into work in the snow. This involved a large amount of complaining on his part while I just stared in wonder at the sky and snow. I like the snow quite a bit. Also, as this was the first proper snow I'd seen in four and a half years I was even more excited. So, whatever your view is on the snow, take the chance to just stop and appreciate it. Yeah it may be cold, and it may cause inconveniences but it's damn beautiful.

Daniel J. Chang (The miraculous fourteenth post)

Why hello everybody. I thought you might all be interested in seeing a video my friend made. He is most excellent at a sport known as Ultimate Frisbee, and I would like to share with you a video he made with a collection of very clever trick shots. He pushes the boundaries of what can be done with a frisbee on a regular basis; this is merely a fraction of his abilities on display in this video. Enjoy!

This Saturday: Family Bonding (The miraculous thirteenth post)

This Saturday I had a lot of fun. I went to Center Parcs with my Grandma and her brother's family (this is one of the funtimes mentioned in my blog's title). I was woken up at 7:40am and told I had twenty minutes to be ready before we left the house to go. So naturally I focused, and showered and packed in bullet time [yes that is an old matrix reference (only the first matrix film was good)]. After a decent drive we arrived at Center Parcs, and then had to park the car. Parking at Center Parcs is not easy! Getting back to your car once you have parked and been in the park all day is even harder. We spent at least half an hour trying to find our car in the dark. It didn't help that there seems to be no logic to the organization of the car park. Why does it go AE, AG, AH, and then AF?
The first thing we did when we arrived at my great uncle's chalet (and they are chalets not villas despite what Center Parcs say) was to head straight out to the pool. Shortly after chilling at the pool for a while my "sort of cousin" (it's too hard to explain how we are actually related, I'm not going to try in one blog post) and her family arrived. After hanging out with them for a while at the pool, and having general fun I headed back to the chalet. After a little bit more relaxing with family I walked to the country club with my "sort of cousin"  and her family and I was treated to a fine hot chocolate and some rather entertaining conversation. One hot chocolate and a snapped umbrella later we were in fits of giggles and again headed out towards the sports centre to meet more friends. At the sports hall I was given a choice of looking round shops with the girls, or watching football with the guys. People who know me will know I'm not a huge football fan. So, I opted to go shopping with the girls. After some more hilarious conversation I returned to the chalet; there I had dinner with my Grandma and her brother and sister in-law. It was a lovely meal of beef bourguignon pie, accompanied by a nice glass of rosé. All in all it was a lovely day filled with swimming, family bonding, laughter, fun, and any other clichés you can think of in connection with spending time at a holiday park with family.

Musics 1: Birdy (The miraculous twelfth post)

This is a music review as promised. I would like to draw everyone's attention to a musician called Birdy, who has her first album out at the moment, which is also called Birdy. She has come out of no where on to the "music scene" as they say. Considering how young she is (less than 16 when she brought her album out) she is incredibly talented. Her album consists of covers of other's songs. I'm not usually a huge fan of covers, however she has managed to make the songs her own and to put an original spin on them; this is always a good rule for a successful cover. I know putting an original spin on something is often an over used cliché, often used about artists like Mariah Carey who wouldn't know original if it.... (couldn't think of anything to finish this with that wasn't a cliché in itself). However, the fact remains her music is original. She covers the songs well and sincerely. Her musicianship is impressive, also. She manages to build atmosphere and depth merely with piano and vocals. Sometimes other instruments feature on the album versions of her songs. However, they are not particularly prominent. Something that very much impressed me was she is sincere, not only within her music, but also in the way she presents herself. She doesn't drown herself in make-up, and she dresses modestly. She presents herself as a much more mature person, and a much higher quality musician than the vast majority of pop musicians twice her age. Here is a link to my favourite one of her songs:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNzCDt2eidg&ob=av2e . If you get the chance, also listen to the original version by Bon Iver, which is brilliant.

Parties, Cocktails, and Bendy Bob (The miraculous eleventh post)

This Christmas season has drawn to a close and it has been a lovely one. There have been plenty of parties, good food, and ample opportunity to spend time with friends and family. For example two days after Christmas both my Uncle Steven and my Uncle David and their families shared Christmas dinner with us. As you can imagine it did feel a little crowded. However, everyone was in good humour and it was good to spend time with family. It was also good to spend time with my Uncle Steven's Play Station 3.
Another party of note was my friend Beth's Christmas party. After managing to secure a lift to Appleby, thanks to some great friends at church I arrived at her house and was immediately mugged by her dog. This was lovely, as I had missed being mugged by my own dogs after moving over to England. The party itself was quite a bit of fun, and mainly consisted of me being told to dance, and then people regretting telling me to dance. It was great spending time with friends, and building closer ties to friends I had not had the opportunity to spend as much time with.
On to party number two: the Green's Christmas party. While a different style of party all together from Beth's party this was also rather enjoyable. After walking in the door I was handed a cocktail and told to eat lot's of food. I did eat lots of food, and then played some dice games (I didn't do very well) and talked video-games. About half way through the party a game of trivial pursuit was began. Only half way through the game did I realize that I was playing with quite a few students from either Oxford or Cambridge University.

Bendy Bob

Finally, party three the church New Year party. I very much enjoyed this party also. One highlight was winning "The Best of British Quiz". Very rarely do I win quizzes, so being on the winning team for this quiz was rather enjoyable. Another highlight was Bendy Bob ) a very important aspect of "The Big Taboo". I clung on to Bendy Bob for most of the game, and was very loathed to hand him over to other people. My fears were well founded when someone took Bendy Bob, beat him and threw him to the ground. You know who you are! However, no permanent harm was done, and a good night was had by all.