Author: pilgrim

Resolution Update #6

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Yesterday I mentioned that I’m starting to think about my New Years Resolutions for 2013. However, 2012 isn’t over yet! Time for an update…

1. Read through the New Testament Twice
I am actually on the verge of pulling this one back from the jaws of failure! After doing very poorly on this resolution all year, in November I managed to work my way all the way through the New Testament. I’m now on my second round through. I’ve just finished the Gospels and should be done with the epistles by the end of this month. Boom!

2. More dancing
Not too bad. Not amazing, but not bad. I’m got in some more West Coast Swing, a little bit of Salsa and even the occasional bit of Country 😉

3. Be more gentle with people
I’ve had to have a few tough conversations in the last couple of months and I’m pretty pleased with the way I approached them. Learning 🙂

4. No sodas/fizzy drinks
Still going strong. Apart from the occasional desire to grab a coke, I don’t really miss them.

5. Get into the best shape of my life
I am pretty much on track fitness-wise – I’m just trying to drop the last 5lbs. I just have to stick with the nutrition plan for the rest of this month!

6. Complete reading list
In getting back on track with Resolution #1, I’ve fallen a bit behind here. I’m currently reading Pope Benedict’s Jesus of Nazareth and a book on the Second Vatican Council. I don’t think I’m going to be able to finish the remaining books by the end of the month 🙁

7. Keep proper track of finances
So-so. Meh.

8. Tick something off my TODO list
It’s more informal now, but still going well.

10. Fast on Wednesday and Friday
Still good.

11. Give up Facebook for 40 days
I gave up Facebook for Lent.

12. Make an effort to dress well for Mass
Still good, and I even wrote a blog entry about it.

Resolution

Maybe

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Just a quick micro-rant today concerning one of my pet hates…

You may think that “Maybe” is a fairly innocent word…

…but it’s not, not at all.

When someone sends you a Facebook invite, please don’t choose “Maybe”.

Check your calendar.

Make a decision.

Be decisive.

Thank you, that is all.

You may now begin playing your Advent music

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Although you wouldn’t guess it from looking around, it’s not yet Christmas.

In fact, although we’ve been bombarded with Christmas stuff since the day after Thanksgiving, the Christmas season doesn’t begin for quite some time. However, since today we enter Advent, it’s now time to bring out the Advent (not Christmas!) music! Here’s my favourite Advent hymn, “O Come, O Come Emmanuel”:

So, what’s your favourite Advent song?

Things that make me happy

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The other day I was thinking about things which make me happy. It’s actually quite a difficult exercise – if you don’t believe me, give it a go. What are the things which make you really, truly happy? Where are the places you can always find joy?

After sitting down and writing the list I’ve concluded that I’m actually quite easy to please. Although in many ways I’m extremely demanding of myself and others, it doesn’t actually take a whole lot to make me happy:

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Best of British: Part 6

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In my last post I moved on to talking about some of the newer British comedy shows I love. However, soon after posting, I realized that I had missed a few more of the classic shows which are dear to my heart. So, today I’m going to remedy this by talking a little bit more about some older shows, before returning to contemporary British comedy next time…

Drop The Dead Donkey

Before there was The Daily Show, there was Drop The Dead Donkey, a sit-com set in the fictitious GlobeLink News newsroom. What was wonderful about this show was that, since it was recorded close to transmission, it commented upon contemporary issues in society and politics.

It had some really great characters such as the two news anchors, Henry Davenport and Sally Smedley, who shared a passionate mutual disdain for one another. However, my favourite character was without a doubt the field reporter, the sometimes overzealous Damien Day…

Some Mothers Do ‘Ave ‘Em

Many know Michael Crawford from the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical “The Phantom of the Opera”. However, not so many people know him from the show Some Mothers Do ‘Ave ‘Em where he played the hapless and accident-prone Frank Spencer. Here some great physical comedy:

Waiting For God

Then there was Waiting For God, a comedy set in the rather surprising location of a retirement home. The two main characters are simply terrific – Diana is cynical and mean, while Tom is jovial and a little loopy. They strike up an unlikely friendship while “waiting for God”…

Only Fools and Horses

Finally, no discussion of my childhood comedy shows could possibly be complete without mentioning Only Fools and Horses, a show which has won a huge number of comedy awards over the years. I think it was very much inspired by another classic comedy, Steptoe and Son. Anyway, the show followed the shenanigans of Del and Rodney Trotter. These brothers make up Trotter’s Independent Traders (TIT), a company which buys and sells all kinds of merchandise, some of which include smoke-damaged fire alarms and raincoats marked “Dry clean only”.

In the clip below the brothers try their hand at chandelier repair…

Next time we’ll be back at looking at newer British comedy…

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