The Bluestocking - where Spring has sprung and the grass is riz.

[SDTGisAnEvilWolefGenius]

Welcome all. Can the gerbils please ensure that all the Tunnocks products are safely stowed in the capacious larder, and perhaps the quokkas could be responsible for counting everyone onto the bus and back off at the new thread - many thanks!

I remember that tape well and two specific times I played it, once when driving round the midland bogs with my pal V and our friend J on a scientific sampling trip. The were both paleoecologists, J quiet and English and V an ebullient Belfast Methodist. V joined in all the choruses, with great enthusiasm, J showed signs of wanting to die.

The other time was driving across Connemara in a thunderstorm, a great counterpoint to Frank Patterson in full flight.

I can confess, as I am operating under the cloak of anonymity here, that on St Patrick's Day☘ last Monday I actually sang 'Hail Glorious St Patrick', and 'Cúnamh Cughainn Naomh Pádraig', out loud, all by myself

The safety of numbers has been replaced by double-glazing

I had managed to shove 'Cauliflowers fluffy' well down to subterranean areas of my memory, so damn you to whoever ripped off that particular scab.

Isn't 'Big red combine harvester' basically an advert for Massey Ferguson? Most of the combines in this neck of the woods are the bright green John Deere variety, with the occasional lime green Klaas.

@DeanElderberry wrote V an ebullient Belfast Methodist

The Chaplain at the Methodist school I worked at was from Belfast.
He liked Here Am I Lord / I the Lord of Sea and Sky, which is not in the Methodist hymn book. I’m not surprised that Google brings up a primary school’s lyric sheet for it.

My parents had a compilation album with Cat Steven's 'Morning has broken', that I loved. When it was sung in school assembly I was thrilled. What I didn't realise was that the school's version was faster and lacked all of the 'fancy' bits he'd added. I virtually got lapped.

I'd never heard or heard of the fluffy cauliflowers song so I looked it up and very bravely listened to 42 seconds of it on YouTube. That's time I'll never get back.

42 whole seconds!

From my limited but admiring familiarity with English Protestant hymns, I believe the Methodists were particularly good at producing them weren't they? Wesley was a bit of a hit machine I think

Yes. Methodists are a great bunch. Extensive field testing before I knew I was allergic to wheat and when I had a job that involved driving round meeting community groups showed me that apart from their other excellences they make the very best scones.

Wesley wrote some real hit parade stuff.

I can vouch for the contents of both 'Hymns Ancient and Modern' and 'Hymns Old and New'. Some absolute belters in both (as well as a selection of dirges).

As for food, Deano, C of E Victoria sponge is usually pretty good. Our local Methodists were noted for the quality of their jumble sales, back in the days before jumble sales ceased to exist.

I used to go to a Methodist church with my best friend in my early teens (mainly for the youth group afterwards) and they always had great hymns you could really belt out. We always did harmony on the chorus of “Guide me O thou great Jehovah”. At school we often sang “For those in peril on the sea”, being in a fishing port with a lot of families whose dads worked on trawlers. I always liked that one, and on the occasions (end of year) when we had an assembly before leaving I used to like “The day thou gravest, Lord, is ended.”

Those are all great hymns, @Britinme .

Autocorrect changed my attempt at great into gear, and I was suddenly reminded of John Lennon.

Fab!

This talk of church catering makes me think of this thread, Which is the tastiest Protestant traybake?

I liked belting out a rousing hymn; just don’t get round to it now.

The rain was absolutely torrential here through the night. The render man is here redoing the parts that were spoilt by the rain. The part that wasn’t covered was fine; the damage was in the parts that were thoroughly protected.

It’s annoying, but he seems to know what he’s doing.

I went out with DH and DSD for her birthday dinner yesterday. I ordered a lovely chicken dish instead of the sea bass I usually have. I was tempted by lemons and capers. It was burnt. The new potatoes were burnt. It was horrible but I ate most of it because I had deliberately missed lunch so was starving. Drinks took ages. We could see them sat on the bar but the three managers were just wandering around and the waiters were frantic. DH had tiramisu which was partly frozen.Also they didn't do the is everything OK with your meal? thing that irritates me which would have been an opportunity to complain.

However, we were asked when it came to the bill and I said no, it was burnt and overcooked. Gave us 20% of the whole bill without quibbling. So I think they know how terrible they are.

It's DSD's favourite restaurant but we're never going again.

What happened to jumble sales? Was it the rise of Vinted/charity shops/textile recycling? I grew up in jumble sale clothes which is why I like new.

Also my DM is still a practising Catholic so I occasionally go to her church, which is also the church I grew up in. I sing because I love communal singing but I don't recite the prayers or responses. And they've changed the words! I don't know why, but I wonder if it's because the words are copyright and it means the missals have to pay royalties.

The gerbils tried their best, @Swashbuckled .

Thank you @MyrtleLion

He has finished and it looks perfect! I am praying it doesn’t rain… I need to walk the hound now as he is getting restless after being cooped up, as am I.

My thanks to the lovely gerbils; I have made them hot chocolate and a little fire.

That's adorable! Thank you. They don't often have people taking care of them because they're so busy helping out. They send their thanks and flowers. They would hug you but apparently you look a bit fierce and they're not sure if you would like it.

Oh poor you, Myrtle, that sounds like a disaster of a meal😒

The only good point was when they asked you if you enjoyed the meal, you didn't say 'Ah yes it was grand thanks' [or its equivalent in Lionese]. Being a lioness is a good thing in these circs, I'm not surprised they gave you 20% off if you did this to them😄

I grew up with the Congregational Hymnal which contained the belters by Wesley and Watts etc. Very singable tunes with solid rhymes and meters.

I was n a C of E church choir so I grew up with Hymns Ancient and Modern - I love to proper hymns - Guide Me O Thou Great Redeemer, Abide With Me, The Day Thou Gavest, Lord, Is Ended, Onward Christian Soldiers. I know all the alto parts.

@MyrtleLion

Oh, no; please tell them I am not fierce! I’m only fierce to baddies who would wish to invade The Blue Stocking. And I would very much like some gerbils cuddles…. any time they wish to give me some.

Strangely, I don’t think I look fierce in that picture; I’m smiling and have accepted their flowers. On looking more closely, however, they do seem to be at thigh height. And I’m almost scared of those thighs myself 😳. I will trouser up at once!

I know all the alto parts, too, @SDTGisAnEvilWolefGenius, after a couple of decades in Anglican and Methodist Chapel choirs. Even before the days of declaring pronouns I used to sing her or their instead of his, except for God and Jesus. Perhaps we can gather in a corner of The Bluestocking at some time and sing hymns.

Wesleys, great composers, I agree.

Cuddles with gerbils!

I love the insanity of this thread.

We've been out to lunch with friends. That onblierated oblietred o b l i t e r a t e d the entire afternoon.

I need to check out that traybake thread. A friend of mine has a wonderful apple cake one. Looks like nothing on earth, tastes absolutely fabulous.

I am a dedicated hedgehog atheist but i suppose i could snuffle along with a verse or two of Abide with me (which i quite like)

Today i sorted out my new bookcases and ensured my books were filed in size order, and my CD’s are A to Z.

Not keen on the aesthetics of my housekeeping files so off to stationers tomorrow to find some more attractive files.

Sometimes my life is so exciting i can hardly bare it.