Hope for Sutton Project Launch

I’m some six months (and a bit) late in writing this, but it’s been a busy time.

The Hope for Sutton project, which encompasses a range of activities and initiatives supporting the local community in and around Mere Green launched last October. As part of the celebrations I was delighted to present an original piece of composition recorded and performed by students from three local primary schools. In return for their hard work I decided to keep the recording online for free, so they would have easy access to hear themselves in what is technically a world premiere.

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Carols and Cheer

Walsall Council run a market in the town every weekday except Thursday. On Thursday 21st December, however, the market is on and I’ve been invited to help spread some Christmas cheer with carolling at lunchtime.

WAUG survey. Important Opportunity to get involved.

Regular readers (if there are any!) will know I have been going to Parkrun at Walsall Arboretum for a few years. In fact, it’s coming up to my third anniversary. I haven’t been a consistent attendee, so am still some way off my century, but the point is that I’ve recently made more of an effort to get out in the freezing cold bracing outdoors and throw myself round three miles of green and pleasant land.

Slowly around Shenstone

This Sunday, following last week’s hard slog around Aldridge 10K, I’d already lined up further torture in the shape of Shenstone Fun Run.

Christmas. Carols. Beer. Excellent.

It’s been in my diary for a little while now, but I’d like to take this opportunity to plug Ales Beers and Carols 2013 again. What a fantastic opportunity to drink beer and sing carols. For a concept, this one scores highly for simplicity and ease of execution.

A great political lie, and I fell for it.

I’m not successful. Certainly not by the standards of modern politicians. I’m working for a living wage (and a bit more, if I’m honest) and providing for my family. My wife works and brings money in too, and we have a reasonably comfortable existence.

I’ve never used a food bank. I’ve never used a payday lender. I’m unbelievably relieved that it hasn’t gone that way. On the face of it, what David Cameron tells me matches my existence. I’m working hard, and I’m managing to get by. I’m a worker, not a shirker.

What are you doing Wednesday?

Wednesday night is the next Walsall Social Media Surgery. Please consider coming along, or if you can’t come but know someone who should, share the link, or this post, or just download and print off the poster linked below and stick it to their forehead.

We’ll be in The White Lion, and everybody’s welcome.

Walsall SMS June 2013 poster

Knowing when to Quit

Surprisingly, this isn’t a post about jobs or even employment in the wider sense. It’s about volunteering and managing events.

Give me that old time religion… it’s good enough for me.

Church on Sunday was great. There was a fantastic sermon and some good old time hymns mixed in with the modern songs. I’m not saying church is all about the music, but given I was playing the piano, it was a key factor in my thinking.