I must go down to the sea again�

It has been an experimental-farm day. It was also an experimental-farm evening yesterday, and it promises to be another tonight. I used to say that it was an East Angus day, but we rarely smell the stench of the pulpmill anymore. The pig shit from the government-run experimental farm overpowers everything. During our rehearsal for the UpIands concert last night the air was fine inside the concert hall, but the moment I stepped out into the lobby for a drink of water the stench hit me. It pervaded everything. Today has been no different. I have laundry hanging on the line at the moment, and I fear that the reek will have invaded the very fabric.

We read through the G&S choruses we�re doing in the concert last night. They�re from Ye0man of the Guard and they are typical G&S. I can�t believe there was a time I liked that kind of thing. I think it dates back to our having staged The Mikad0 when I was in high school. That was my first experience with the genre and I loved it. What changed? Anyway, it�s pretty insipid stuff. Vlad is always telling the sopranos not to be too loud, and of course that�s aimed at me, since the other soprano is your ideal choir singer and not a soloist. Vlad herself has no control, but she won�t admit to it. Anyway, I do have some fun fooling around with my neighbours and I rather enjoy sightreading, although Vlad does take our initial eyeballing at a rather rapid clip.

Anyway, I must admit that I haven�t attempted running again yet, citing the need for proper footwear, and I even missed out on my four-mile walk today, although there was really no reason since the weather was fine. I did, however, spend way too much time on the internet trying to find a cheap flight to London. There doesn�t seem to be such a thing. I�m planning a trip mid-August for a week (I have to return before my wedding anniversary on the 22nd) wherein I will meet Little Princess who will be returning from two weeks in Germany, and we will proceed to a very small island in the middle of the Irish Sea to visit a fellow Diarylander, the geography of which has tantalized me for about two years now.

I have to add here that I chatted online with essaywriter today, surprising the heck out of her when I saw her name on my IM list and I contacted her. She certainly wasn�t expecting it. It was a brief conversation, but I�m looking forward to longer ones in the future.

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