Best Quote Of The Year (So Far...)

An interesting response regarding my recent change of hair colour:

"Well, I suppose if one can't have a church with Gothic architecture, the next best thing is to have Goth parishioners..."

"If I was Goth, my hair would be black!"

"Oh no... haven't you heard? Grey is the new, sophisticated Goth..."

Seeing Out 2010 In Style...

This is definitely my preferred method of bidding goodbye to the old year - especially as there is a Plenary Indulgence attached (and remember, one doesn't need to restrict the springing of Holy Souls from Purgatory just to the month of November!)

We started off with Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, and the recitation of the Rosary...

Then we had some time for silent prayer, Fr. Tim reminding us that our prayer should consist of adoration of Our Lord, contrition for our sins during the past year, thanksgiving for all the many blessings we have received during the past year and supplication for the graces we will need during the coming year. I don't know about anyone else, but I really found that little reminder (more a reflection, actually) really helpful in keeping focussed!

We then sang the Te Deum - a little rapidly, I thought, but Fr. Tim maintained that the Te Deum should be chanted at a manly pace, akin to marching. I would have preferred it a tad slower - my Latin isn't quite up to speed!

Benediction proceeded along familiar lines - the Tantum ergo, the incensing of the Blessed Sacrament and the actual Benediction...

Rather beautifully, the camera recorded the time of the photo of Benediction here as exactly midnight! Outside we could hear fireworks exploding and cheers coming from the Parish Club...

We then recited the Divine Praises in reparation for blasphemies, the Blessed Sacrament was reposed to the strains of Adoremus in aeternum, and we finished up with the Marian anthem of the season, the Alma, redemptoris mater...

Finally, Fr. Tim invited all present into the small hall for a glass of wine and some chocolates, to celebrate the New Year... I managed to avoid the Cadbury's Heroes and stuck to the rather more interesting Guylian chocolates which were also on offer.

Sadly, I had to decline the wine, as I needed to drive home. I am, however, having a small glass of celebratory fizz (a rather good Christmas present) - I convinced myself that it was imperative to get the photos up on the blog as soon as possible, and so might as well have something to keep me going...

Having finished both the glass of fizz, and the blog post, I shall call it a night. There's another Plenary Indulgence available later on...

Happy New Year !

At the time this post goes up (assuming all is well with Blogger and the world in general) I shall be receiving Our Lord's Benediction at Our Lady of the Rosary, Blackfen, having sung the Te Deum to see out 2010. I hope to take photos, but they might be delayed a little.

I would just like to wish all of my readers a happy New Year, with prayers and best wishes for 2011.

Sad News...

I received an email informing me that Southwell Books is closing down. This is a real shame, as they provided an excellent source of Catholic books, and everything they sold was in complete accord with the teachings of the Church.

They are in the process of selling off the remaining stock - most titles are sold out, but there are some books still remaining, with some splendid end of season sale offers on selected items. I suggest you pop over to the website and have a browse...

New Blog For A New Year...

I am delighted to announce that a great friend of mine, using the name Cazienza Puellae, has commenced (or rather, strictly speaking, recommenced) blogging.

The blog is called Vox in Rama audita est, and I have to say that the first post suggested a very interesting reason for St. Joseph taking Our Lady and Our Lord into Egypt. The thought of Our Lady facing off against Herod's slaughtering soldiers is something to ponder!! They say that hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, but I suspect whoever coined that phrase hadn't ever encountered a mother protecting her child...

Anyway, do go over and have a look. There's only the first post at the moment, but a few more visitors might persuade Cazienza to Puellae her finger out... (sorry about that pun, couldn't resist...*hangs head in shame*)

Quick Update From Stonyhurst...

Fr. Chris Findlay-Wilson emailed a brief report of the goings-on at the Faith Winter Conference. It felt really odd not being in the thick of things, but that's the way things go. I shall, however, pass on Fr. Chris' thoughts... (because I have a blog, and he doesn't, and it would be a shame for such a nice email to go to waste... )

He wrote:

Another extraordinary three days of great grace.

There were around 206 people not including all the day visitors: 31 priests, 2 deacons and 13 seminarians. But this year we ALSO had two bishops who celebrated Mass for us: newly ordained Bishop Mark Davies of Shrewsbury and also Bishop Philip Tartaglia of Paisley diocese!

The excellent talks were all on prayer, building from our faith vision of God's plan for us as spiritual creatures, through the meaning of the Mass and the methods of prayer to Our Lady's role.

The conference ran extremely smoothly thanks to the efficiency and generosity of the organising team.

Finally, this morning we were able to congratulate Dan Cooper on his 70th birthday...

I would like to add my own congratulations to Sir Dan of the Nesbitry... ad multos annos! I find it hard to believe that he has reached his three score years and ten, and I can only pray that he gets allocated a few more years! Faith conferences just wouldn't be the same without Sir Dan to bully everyone into buying pamphlets, books DVDs and magazines... all of which are available through the website... The photo, by the way, was from the Towards Advent event at Westminster Cathedral Hall this November (Sir Dan is the one on the right...)

Two bishops has got to be a record. I really look forward to hearing the talks when they're published as MP3 files...

Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow...

Those of my readers who have been following my blog for a while will know that I have a tendency to do silly things with my hair. Usually those silly things are pretty predictable, and happen when I lack the time, money or opportunity to go to my regular hairdresser.

I never seem to learn from these mistakes. I have had some pretty spectacular disasters over the years, the most impressive of which was when I went aubergine. Fortunately that episode predated blogs and phone cameras, and so no evidence exists, other than my scarred psyche.

An aversion to being photographed has distinct advantages.

However, yesterday I restrained my natural inclination to mess about with my hair, and went to the hairdresser. It was decided that, as it was in quite a bit of a mess colour-wise, it might be wise to bleach out everything and start from scratch. The hair equivalent of a tabula rasa, no less...

I've never done that before, and visions of perfectly ash blonde hair glittered enticingly through my mind. I agreed that it was worth a go, and I wasn't in any particular hurry, so I could waste a few hours drinking cups of tea, chatting to the assistants about hair, nails, makeup and whatnot. Girly stuff.

I can hear the cry of "Photos, or it didn't happen...!" resounding across the blogosphere. Now, I really do hate my own photos, so I have edited these to remove my features, though there is enough left for you to get the general idea.

First of all, there is the state I was in to begin with...

Lots of honey tones in the hair, which really do not suit my colouring at all, as well as making it look as if I need a wash, even when I just have!

The first stage of the process involved bleach - lots of it. This was to strip out the reddish tones, as well as to remove any previous hair dyes.

This basically looked (and felt) like straw.

Next, came the application of the light ash blonde colour. I expressed reservations almost immediately as I noticed how light it was getting. The hairdresser dried my fringe off first so I could judge just how light it was, and whether remedial action would be required...

It was a beautiful shade, but more baby blonde than ash, and far too light for my complexion. The hairdresser liked it a lot, but we agreed that it just wasn't "me." I explained that I wanted to go more silvery, with a bit of grey thrown in... so, after perusal of shade cards, more hair dye was employed...

The final result was rather more grey than I had anticipated, and, to be honest, it was a bit of a shock. However, I am getting used to it, and I think it will tone down a bit after a few washes... I rather like it, though I don't think anyone else does...

I was quite thankful that I was able to wear my mantilla at Mass this morning! I suspect the real test will be in the Parish club after Rosary and Benediction this evening... I shall let you know if I'm greeted with stunned silence or hysterical laughter... Watch this space!!

Faith Winter Conference At Stonyhurst...

As I write this, the Faith Winter Conference is well under way.

I expect that reports will be posted via various sources, along with photographic evidence... Given the weather, I sincerely hope that there isn't a dawn fire alarm (as there has been a few times in the past... I remember one year standing ankle-deep in snow, in my nightdress and coat, waiting for the all clear... it was jolly cold!)

I can't wait for the talks to be made available - they should be up on the Faith website reasonably quickly. The talks from the Summer Session are available for free download in the meantime.

Time For A Blonde Joke...

I have been posting so much about cats of late that I have neglected the other thing for which my blog is famous... namely, blonde jokes.

A blonde and a redhead went to the bar after work for a drink, and sat on stools watching the 6 o'clock news. A man was shown threatening to jump from the Brooklyn Bridge, and the blonde turned to the redhead and said, "He's just seeking attention. I bet you $50 that he won't jump."

The redhead looked at the blonde, grinned, and agreed

As they continued to watch, the man jumped, so the blonde gave the redhead $50. The redhead, after a moment's hesitation, gave back the money, saying, "I can't take this, you're my friend."

But the blonde insisted, "No. A bet's a bet. You won fair and square. Take the money."

Then the redhead said, "Listen, I have to tell you that I knew he'd jump. I saw this on the 5 o'clock news, so I can't take your money."

To which the blonde replied, "Well, I saw it too, but I didn't think he would jump again!"

Tomorrow...

...if it doesn't snow, I intend to get Monsignor Miaowrini blessed. She doesn't know it yet...

Well, I want to disabuse the two kittens of the idea that the kitty-carrier is associated with the vet...

Interesting New Blog...

Ok, not new... new to my blogroll. I can heartily recommend Wheat & Weeds. Pop on over and check it out!

Liturgical Orientation...

Even in the Ordinary Form of the Mass, having the priest praying in the same direction as the rest of the congregation, IMHO, adds so much.

It struck me yesterday, as Fr. Finigan turned towards the congregation with the Host, saying "Behold the Lamb of God..." and it was as if Our Lord had been hidden from sight (apart from the Elevations) until that moment. You just don't get that same sense when the priest is versus populum for the Canon...

Just thought I'd share...