Povey Prattle

  Faithful husband. Still grieving father. Practicing christian. Experienced political leader.  President-elect.  An utterly decent human being. So much work to do.  So much damage to repair. So many wounds to heal. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- We might have dreamed of this, but did we ever think it possible? A woman in the second highest office in the land.  A brilliant, skilled and wise woman;  who has smashed what we might have thought to be  an impenetrable glass ceiling.  All that, and a woman of colour with a south Asian heritage.  This is deeply significant as a new America emerges  (and will be resisted by many). --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Of course he was not perfect.  Of course he made mistakes. But he will for ever be the noblest and most decent President I've known since I arrived in the U.S.A. (1976). Joe Biden's elec...

  A steamed Scottish kipper, with Poached eggs, and very good French style bread  (baked in a German bakery). A feast fit for................ ME! I get the Kippers from a Scottish Gourmet import business in North Carolina ( but they are so expensive that they are a "once in a great while treat"). Before cooking Plated and ready to eat.

    Interdenominational  Theological Center,  Atlanta,GA I came across this 1991 College I.D. when I was rutting through a journal I kept that year.   I found the I.D. pasted in that journal. I.T.C. is an Atlanta based consortium Seminary of some of the historic Black Denominations. I took three courses at there   (see below) .    I rented an efficiency apartment here    This too was pasted in my journal I seem to remember  that the Darlington was almost across the street from the Piedmont Hospital.   The joke back then was that everyone who moved to Atlanta started by renting an efficiency apartment at the Darlington. My sabbatical leave had two "majors".     1 .   I hung my hat at St. Luke's Episcopal Church on Peachtree St., Atlanta, and helped out a bit,  'cause their Rector, one Charles Bennison, had been "asked to leave".   Even though he was no longe...

  (Note the comments of the then Bishop of London) Who knew that for almost a century the London Necropolis Railway transported corpses out of the city on funeral trains to Brookwood Cemetery. The photo is of The original London Necropolis Railway station at Waterloo Bridge By the 1800s, London was running out of room for the dead. Overcrowded churchyard cemeteries were causing groundwater contamination and disease, motivating Parliament to pass a bill in 1832 to establish private cemeteries outside of the city. Seven new cemeteries, dubbed “The Magnificent Seven” sprang up between 1832 and 1841. Then, in 1852, the Burial Act gave the Secretary of State the power to regulate and close churchyards to new interments. Another act the same year paved the way for the London Necropolis and National Mausoleum Company to handle the crisis of graveyards closing within the city. The company acquired a massive swath of land and created Brookwood Cemetery. It was intended to be large enough to...

Connections Bishop Provenzano  + Obismo (Bishop) Gomez Lawrence ( Larry) Provenzano and I were colleagues in the Episcopal Diocese of Western Massachusetts. Larry is now the (Episcopal) Bishop of Long Island.  I met Francisco Duque Gomez when he was Bishop of Central Ecuador. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Chris and Trish Morck were parishioners at St. James's Church, Cambridge, MA when I was the Rector there. I had a bit of a hand in Chris's journey towards ordination as a Priest. For good and blessed reasons he was ordained in Quito, Ecuador in Oct 2010 by Obispo (Bishop) Francisco Duque Gomez I was there as one of Chris's  "presenters", (as well as spending an interesting week in Ecuador  - attempted National Police Coup  d ' etat  anyone! ), and having a joyful time with the Morcks (Chris, Trish, Isabella and Clare);  with a bit of sight-seeing, and much good food  thrown in. Today a photo' of Bishop Provenzano with Obismo ...

  Breakfast today  (1st November 2020). Soft boiled eggs with toast "soldiers".   So good.    Bringing back so many memories for me, and I'll bet for you.  Left:  Soft boiled egg "top chopper" from my friends Donna and Ashley. Right:  egg cup from my (English) niece Leah. So very good, even though I slightly under cooked the eggs  (here seen in a Donna/Ashley egg cup). Oh the memories of sight, smell and taste, to be savoured yet again.     Tres Bien! 'Tis a gift to be simple.

Parsnips are good.   Roasted until they are caramelised,  or mashed with a wee bit of butter and a shaking of pepper, or in a soup ( see below), or in a hearty winter stew. Parsnips are bad. I have an allergic reaction of my hands when I peel them.  Hence the use of kitchen gloves. Needed urgently during my cooking spree. Prep Chef, and Dishwasher. Salary?  My unbounded affection and gratitude. Not enough?  Ah well I'll do my own prep, and taken care of my own dirty pots and pans. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- On the menu today. Cauliflower Cheese.    The secret ingredients are   hidden pieces of cooked bacon and bratwurst. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Leek and parsnip soup ; with a wee bit of potato to add body. The secret ingredient is heavy cream. To be served hot or cold, with a garnish of chives. Yes indeed, COVID 19 boredom is driving me in...