Saul

Woke to pretty heavy rain but donned my bathers (as my friend R calls a swimming costume…always makes me smile!) and top clothes and nipped round to the Commie pool for acquafit. Third time lucky, the instructor turned up and I enjoyed the session. Always a bit of a pain to get dried and changed afterwards, but got it done and home again in the drizzle for a shower and proper change for the day. Only just in time to then go over to the Outsider for lunch with LL. Good to see her and she surprised me with a list of stuff like she always had…and we gossiped and laughed and discussed as we munched through moules frites and shared a baked plum and frangipani dessert. Good to hear how things are going and catch up again….and looking forward to doing it again before too long.
Over to the book festival for the first of two sessions, a panel of speakers addressing poverty and growing inequality in the UK, sponsored by a new research centre at the uni that I’d helped set up. Lots of passion and frustration expressed, with the few chinks of hope focussed on groundswells of people power. Nice anecdote of seeing collecting bin bags appearing around the city’s current overflowing street bins, with people locally trying to improve the problem in a quiet but effective way.
Reception afterwards…nice not to be having to do the wee speeches any more but just to enjoy chatting, and good catch up with CK. We then headed to the next sponsored Book Festival event, the James Tait Black literary prize giving. Could only stay til the biography prize winner (Amit Chauduri) was announced as it was overrunning, but nice to be there again and as always the discussion of each book makes me want to read them all! The biography winner is all about Indian Raga music which reminded me of the group I was part of many many moons ago!
Dashed to the Usher Hall for an early start to the concert performance of Handel’s Saul. Very long (more than 3 hours!) but just gorgeous. Iestyn Davies the counter tenor sang David and his voice is just astonishing and so powerful…filled the hall completely. Great concert and glad I went.
Home and straight to bed, apart from a brief Italian lesson to maintain my current streak!