Back for the Vinterjazz festival - always fun and entertaining. This time it'll make a welcome break from the round of difficult phone calls and inevitable appointments that have filled the last few days.
A welcome break in total solitude wasn't quite what I had in mind though...
Some welcome relaxation from a very trying past few days with a tour around Oakfield Manor at Chester Zoo yesterday afternoon - home of the Mottershead family who started the zoo off. With the high tea afterwards it more than compensated for the cold, grey and dreary weather.
There's an old record player in the Manor.
...and in one of the top floor rooms...you'll find this!
...are signs that even the most grey and damp of winter days are numbered and that Spring is only around the corner.
The Snowdrop Walk at Rode Hall, close to where I live, isn't quite as striking as it was at this time last year. But it will be very soon.
So as the days continue to lengthen, and the afternoon sun grows warmer, the memories of the misery of the cold wet winter gloom will fade. The flowers will bloom again and the fields and woods and gardens will be filled with colour.
There comes a time in life when the struggle against the odds becomes so exhausting, so disheartening, so overwhelming, that even the bravest and most determined take time to draw breath and consider their options.
They do that privately and they reshape their thoughts and emotions in a way that accepts the new reality. They may not discuss it, but they know what they're doing...and they know you know too.
These formidable and brave souls don't give up, but they acknowledge in their own way and in their own time, with due consideration and regard for their loved ones, that it's time for a rethink. Their approach to life and their tone changes. They become conciliatory and accepting. They give a hat-tip to the inevitable.
My dear old mum, Billie, was one such brave soul. Yesterday she died.
Robyn, Mark and I will miss her character, her humour and her sheer presence in our lives more than I can say in words. So I shall not try.
Cheers to you, my wonderful Billie Skerratt. Rest well and call that drinks trolley over whenever you feel like it. You've earned a glass or two over the years keeping an eye on your errant son, so you just get them to send me the tab.
I'll take it from here.
..and time to make time for a long walk in one of my favourite spots at this time of year. As long as it's clear and bright, it's a lovely place to be when the sun goes down.
I'm lucky, knowing there's somewhere warm to retreat to when the chill becomes a penetrating cold as the sun dips below the horizon, and having a fair expectation that I'll be around to enjoy the warmth that tomorrow might bring.
So, I just marvel at the raw beauty as the daylight fades and aim the camera in a halfhearted attempt to capture the magic of it all.
...I'm glad that my commute is only from my bathroom to today's office in the dining room, via the Nespresso machine in the kitchen.
It's time to fire up the pixels and start the Workday - Lounge Spotify playlist.
...is onstage this evening. A cold winter's evening without, and a world class musician within.
The man himself, in action:
I don't often make the effort to cook. When I do, I enjoy it. Unless I'm pressed for time. I enjoy it especially when I know it's likely to turn out well...but there's no guarantee. This also needs to apply for anyone who might be eating it alongside me.
I can drink the wine, stir frantically, make a mess, sing loudly and, in true anal scientist mode, wash dishes and chopping boards as I work through the experiment/recipe.
This promises to be epic. Ad hoc, but epic nonetheless.
In keeping with tradition - although a bit later than in previous years - here's the note that went out for Xmas 2014 from Skerratt Inc.
It's been another busy year - I'm sure we had a pretty good summer because I don't remember getting wet too often, but it only seems 5min. ago that I was writing last year's letter. I'm lucky; work has been interesting and I have the luxury of being able to be productive anywhere there's a half-decent internet connection. This means I get to ‘work’ in some unusual locations - London Zoo, the British Museum, Stoke station and Edinburgh Sewage Works have all featured at one time or another. Life can never be dull when sewage is involved. Especially Scottish sewage!
As for music, this year has the been the usual eclectic mix - Paul Carrack, The Big Chris Barber Band, The Pierces [twice…once for each of them], Eric Clapton, Gregory Porter [twice], Burt Bacharach, Art Garfunkel, First Aid Kit, The Gaslight Anthem and Jackson Browne. As I write this, Jools Holland should already be setting up for the pre-Christmas event in Birmingham that I always try to get to, and there a number of tickets booked for 2015 gigs that I’m already looking forward to.
Other people seen and listened to, or laughed with, this year include all the folks involved with The Festival of the Spoken Nerd, Steve Punt and Hugh Dennis, Jimmy Carr and Jim Naughtie. Robin Ince and Brian Cox are having another Christmas Compendium at the end of this week at the Hammersmith Apollo, so I’m looking forward to that too.
Once again, the astrophysics lectures at Jodrell Bank that I went to were a fascinating blend of pulsars and black holes and event horizons. We don’t get too many of these in Kidsgrove - well, not the first and last in the list anyway. This year also saw return visits to Chatsworth and Haddon Halls; I’d forgotten how beautiful Haddon really is. Oh, there was also the Natural History Museum [for the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition] and first visits to the wonderful Kew Gardens, to London Zoo and to Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre.
As for travel, there have again been several research trips to Italy during the year (mainly researching wine, cheese, olive oil and balsamic vinegar!) along with visits to Copenhagen for the jazz festivals there in February and June. Yes, I researched jazz too. In addition I managed to spend some time in Amsterdam and Helsinki, and there were a few working trips to Brussels. I also managed a weekend in Liverpool - I’ve never wandered around the city before, and what a splendid place it is!
The long weekend in Amsterdam was wonderful with visits to the Rijksmuseum, the Van Gogh Museum, Anne Frank’s house, the Jewish Historical Museum and the Heineken Experience. The latter was surprisingly well done, but make sure that you go by bus or tram – don’t attempt to walk back and certainly don’t go anywhere near a car…or a bike for that matter!. Dutch people on bikes are just bonkers. Fact.
I can also report that the Amsterdam Museum of Medieval Torture Instruments is both naff and a rip off in equal measure – not recommended. Even if torture is your thing. Actually, especially if torture is your thing.
On that unusual note, I really do hope that your year has also been eventful, interesting and fulfilling...and I hope you have a wonderful 2015.
Here's a shot of the man in action last week:
Another memorable concert from a wonderful musician.
Checking the mobile app - assuming this appears in all its glory I can count myself mobile enabled :)
A new design for the site and a new blog to start the New Year...welcome to my revamped home.