The day started out with a nice morning of singing practice, working my way through a load of songs and reading up the first volume of Shelby Foote's history trilogy of the American Civil War.

Miles was up early this morning and he is busy getting his final assignments done before the end of the month as well as preparing for his finals so he didn't come out for a walk around the Durham Woods and neither did Fiona because she felt pretty wasted. So, it was just Clifford and me which was great because he brings out the quiet in me and it was a very mellow and relaxing walk.

Durham University has built a new Law Department and we have seen the front of it but today we decided to walk around the back which was quite a hoot because it is like a series of horizontal game levels with lots of right angle turns and I did not know whether we could get round the back or whether it would just stop and we would have to turn around. Thankfully it was a walk-through to the University Library. I love town walks because there is an adventure everywhere!

Biscuit break was in Durham Cathedral Cloisters as usual but I heard the massed  warblings of a choir coming from the main cathedral and when we went in there the Durham Cathedral Choir and Orchestra were rehearsing Mendelssohn's Elijah for a performance tonight. It sounded pretty good but I found the solo alto very weak and if she had been a strong warbler I would have gone this evening. Altos need fat bottoms and if they don't have it you just can't hear them when they go into the lower register!

So, the food is on the fry , the bake and the boil is coming up, for the home-made pork balls, well they are cylinders because I use a metal cutter for them, garlic bread, tomato sauce and pasta. I love the time I spend with my family and tonight we will be watching "The Lovely Bones",  a film by Peter Jackson which I've seen twice before and is weird, moving but very disturbing as well.

A productive day and spending a couple of hours walking around Durham with my youngest son Clifford brings it home to me what a lovely lad he is and his character shines out with every step. He is a good grafter as well and that will stand him in good stead when he goes into the education system as a Mathematics Teacher in four years time. God bless him and all those educators past and present without which we would not have civilisation.