Christmas concerts; staying in and staying warm

William-Adolphe Bouguereau "Song of the Angels" (1881)

It's that time of year again... Christmas concerts are coming up...

This week was a relaxed one after the final Mozart Requiem.  Maggie is always happy when I am singing concerts because there are always plenty of flowers in the house.

Post-Mozart flowers

You may notice that there is a script on the dining table, and also a fez.  Andrew Gardner, the minister of St. Andrew's Church of Scotland, will be moving back to Scotland with his wife Julia at the end of the year, and so as he is a huge Doctor Who fan, the Sunday school has written a nativity play script with a Doctor Who theme.  There will be at least two incarnations of the Doctor, and Duncan will play one of them, so we've been running lines.  Please keep it a secret though as Andrew doesn't know that it's a Doctor Who theme..

As well Duncan has been doing some weightlifting...

exercising

eggs-cellent

Egg production continues very nicely.  The chickens don't seem to be too upset at staying behind the little improvised fence at the back of the garden.

first frost

It has been nice to be close to the fire...

Late night reading by the fireside with Messiah, The Princess Bride, and the sleepy menagerie

It has been nice to make stews and soups during the cold weather.  Maggie brought home this strange Romansesco broccolo, which I call a "fibonacci vegetable" because of it's interesting geometric structure.  It was quite yummy!

The "Fibonacci" vegetable - looks like an alien pod

Yesterday I had a lot of rehearsing to do so got up early and went into Brussels on the bus.  First I went to St. Andrew's to rehearse the Messiah excerpts with Heather Charlton.  I will sing those in the Nine Lessons and Carols service on Sunday at 18h30.  Then I took the tram and then walked to get to Julius's house, where we had a much longer rehearsal for the Bach concert, also on Sunday, but just before the other one; this concert has a rehearsal at 15:30 and then the concert at 17h.  So Sunday will be a rather full day of singing for me.

The weather was lovely and crisp as I went through the forest to Julius's house, past an old chateau that has been converted into a secondary school...

frosty morning by the old chateau

part of Julius's 'cello collection

As always it is great to get some advance work with Julius; he's been playing or conducting at least two cantatas a month since 1981, and I've learned a tremendous amount from my collaborations with him and the ensemble since I first sang for them back in November of 2010.

After my rehearsal I had some time to kill before the bus left to come to Wavre, so I stopped at the ADEPS athletic centre for a half an hour.  They have Tripel Karmeliet on draft at the restaurant there, so after a quick beer and some reading, I hopped the bus; I have discovered that the flemish bus line goes from Auderghem straight to Wavre station.  It's about a 40 minute trip, and only costs 1,60!  A happy discovery as the other transit methods are considerably more expensive.

While walking home from the station, I stopped by the Oxfam thrift store, and spotted this tuxedo in the window.  It's obviously bespoke and has rarely been worn, and fits really well.  The cut is more modern than my old one, so I grabbed it.  Pretty good for 15 EUR!  Plus I found three bow ties and a pair of cufflinks in the pocket, so that is a serious win.

Today it's sunny but cold so I am bundling up and heading out the door for a run with doggles... he has been patiently waiting all day...