Congratulations Colin and Sun-Hwa

Last week was Colin and Sun-Hwa's wedding. (I think they look nice in their Korean outfits) Yes, that maniac who was prancing about the North Antrim coastline in a dress (and holding my hand!) just a few weeks ago, is now happily married. (And Colin can be quite lively sometimes too, just kidding!)

-

It was a lovely day filled with genuine sentiment I felt. I'm starting to get used to the Irish way of having an open floor after the speeches for those family members and friends who have a few words to say. I thought about what I might have said but I wasn't going to say anything unless forced.

-

I thought it would be very difficult to say the right thing actually. There are so many stories I could tell about Colin jumping from tree to tree like Tarzan, shouting 'Jackie Chan' as he goes, or diving all over the place when playing table-tennis. Like most people at the reception I knew Colin better than Sun-Hwa and I didn't want to get up and just talk about Colin without giving credit to Sun-Hwa on her big day.

-

It seems that Sun-Hwa is a much needed calming influence for Colin. Someone to keep his feet on the ground, to stop him doing anything too foolhardy, like jumping out of a tree with a chainsaw in his hands or trying to climb without a rope; the 'ying' to his 'yang'. Sun-Hwa also told me something about Colin which I found quite perceptive recently. I'd seen it but I hadn't managed to put it into words, that is, he pretends to be stupid (her words not mine) because he knows that we find it amusing, he's a deceptively shrewd fellow.

-

C & S, if you're reading, I wish you both a long and happy marriage and I want you to know that I'm jealous of you both, possibly for different reasons.

-

Just while I'm here, it was heartwarming to see a family as close and communicative as the Jenkins clan. Now I'm reaching for a bucket.

Assistance Dogs Welcome

It's embarrassing for me to admit this but since I've been working where I am, I've frequented McDonalds in Royal Avenue (Belfast) a number of times. A few weeks ago I noticed a sign on the door which I find slightly troubling.

It reads, 'Assistance Dogs Welcome' and has a little line diagram to demonstrate.

(I was going to take a picture of it this afternoon but there were too many people about, some of them standing in the way, and I would find it embarrassing to try to explain why I would want a photo of that little sign)

Presumably, one might think, it means Guide-dogs. The diagram certainly suggests that. But then, most people who need guide-dogs aren't really going to see the sign especially when it's about waist height. (Seems like a cruel trick) Is it meant to be at the dogs' eye-level? I've never seen a guide-dog that big! And can they be trained to recognise the sign? Maybe they lace it with aniseed, but then I'd espect to see McDonalds crammed with disorientated blind people, which I haven't noticed as yet.

The ambiguous language made me wonder whether I could take my dog (Pictured, his name is Muttley) and say he's been helping me round-up sheep all morning.

Maybe I could say 'I need my dog to assist me to eat this crap!' (Which I quite enjoy eating) If I say that, I might need him for legal assistance.

My conclusion is that the sign is about guide-dogs but it is intended to be seen by neither the blind nor their dogs. Its location is perfect for hyperactive (because of the additives in their Happy Meal?) eight-year-olds. The wee scamps see the sign and then toddle off around the city centre looking for blind people to whom they can pass on the message that their dogs are welcome at McDonalds.

Coincidence?

I've just added a picture to my profile, I'm sure you've already noticed that. It's Dorothy Sayers, one of my more unexpected dopplegangers. That wouldn't be worth mentioning except that when I was searching for the picture I found the following description.

Dorothy Sayers (1893-1957) was an Anglo-Irish novelist, playwright, critic and theological commentator. As well as achieving popularity with novels, detective stories and plays she was widely respected for her translations of Tristan, The Divine Comedy and The Song of Roland. Throughout her life she took a close interest in ecclesiastical and theological developments and was a sharp and perceptive critic of many contemporary follies.

Things are getting sorted out, slowly

Greetings once more. (presuming you've been here before, and you're here now)

You may notice some things have changed a little; things are looking a little rough around the edges. I was frustrated by the comparative narrowness of the active area of the page on the screen. So, I played around with a few of the numbers in the code and widened it, I just haven't figured out how to move the round corners yet. I switched the components from left to right, and vice versa, just to prove that I can - I'm not sure which I prefer.

Anyway, that's not what I wanted to write about.

Some of you know that I applied for an MA in Theology at Birmingham in February. After a slight problem with the arrival of my references, I got an email on the 2nd of June from someone I'd never heard of claiming to be from the Theology Dept. saying that he'd recommended that I should be accepted for the course. That sounded good but it wasn't official.

Last week I visited the university for a bit of a look around and met the bloke who sent the email, which seemed to validate his claim, and he told me I should hear officially soon. Nothing has come yet so I rang them today and spoke to someone in admissions. She said they sent me a conditional offer to my previous address on the 21st of June. (The people at my old address claim no knowledge of any post) They're going to send it again to my new address, the condition they attach is that they want to see a copy of my Certificate from Queen's, not the original just a copy. (And I was trained as a printer!)

So, anyway, I can start making concrete plans now and give my notice at work etc...

Who's that lady?

Isn't she a beauty!! I'm the one on the right.

I think I should point out that I'm not in the habit of dating transvestites, neither would I be particularly interested in trying it, we just posed for the camera. The lady in question is Colin, one of my favourite people. He has more boundless energy and enthusiasm than anyone I know. What's more, I can beat him at table-tennis (sometimes).

I should also point out that Colin isn't - as far as I know - in the habit of cross-dressing . It was his stag day and his brother had replaced his normal clothes with the ensemble you see before you.

The really strange thing is that at my grand old age of thirty, this was my first experience of a stag party. My older brother-in-law had one but thought it wouldn't really be my sort of thing (I think he was right) and didn't really invite me. My other brother-in-law is tee-total and probably didn't have one, although I'm not sure because I was out of the country. I don't think any of my non-Christian friends are married and my Christian friends have either not had stag celebrations or I've not been able to go.

Anyway, Colin's stag day was really good clean fun with no booze or strippers or any of those other things one associates with such occasions. Colin really got into the swing of things in his wig and dress, scaring little old ladies by flirting with their husbands and waving at little kids as we walked around the North Antrim coast.

If I were someone else with a blog not too far from here I'd probably pull out some sort of profound thought from all this. Unfortunately (or possibly more accurately, fortunately) I was too shallow on that particular day to think of anything even vaguely meaningful. I leave you to marvel at his/her radiance.

First of many?

It seems like everyone's doing it these days so I thought I'd join-in.

Here's my first post in my brand-new blog. I think I'll try to use it mainly to share photos over the web, I can add my own captions to them too. Maybe I'll include stuff I did years ago as well because it's difficult to think of new and interesting things all the time. And people who don't know me that well can catch up with some of the headlines from the last few years.

I haven't got a clue how these things work but I'll try to organise my blog thematically: Spiritual/theological reflections in one place, stupid made-up stories in another, and pictures of frogs on bikes somewhere else.

So, erm... welcome, may this place be erm... nice