The Eve, the Day and the Box

Catch up time indeed.....
Final wrapping, entertainment organizing, activity co ordinating and then ready for the festivities.....
So Eve.....friends over for drinks and a chat.

Norman and Amelia! As you can tell just by looking at her, Amelia was a Marymount girl.  So of course we went to Midnight mass at St Barts around the corner.

This was the whole banana of a service; trumpets, choir and enough incense to get us all high on the love....  Those who remember the last of the weddings of four would recognize the church.

And then Xmas day!

We then had our Christmas meal in the great hall.  The second best bit was the paper airplane competition.  The best bit was the company!
The Master and his family were in attendance with the newest addition; Theodore who is a few months.

There's my Sis Helen about to be seated at our table.






And the Ladies of the Kitchen having a whale of a time!

Boxing day was quiet after a visit to Brother Peter who is in hospital until the Weekend.

Although Peter hates being in hospital, as many do, at least he is in one of London's newest facilities.  The New London Hospital is the largest in Europe and is certainly the business!  Thank you last government.  You wouldn't have this started under the current lot.

Hope you've all had a great Xmas and that you are looking forward to NYE!

Coal in the stocking.....

....for me!
I am so bad!  I haven't added to my tales for days!
Well, let's see.....
On the 18th I had my last business meeting with the team that's putting the web site together and then we went to the Hand and Shears for drinks.
In the evening we had the Charterhouse Carol Concert which was very enjoyable, as was the mulled wine after.
Last Thursday we had our Xmas party lunch!

I was in charge of the entertainment.  The Brothers and staff did us proud; the girls of the kitchen sang a carol, poems were read, the Master lead Jingle Bells, those of us who could sing in Spanish sang Feliz Navidad!
In the evening was the last Crazy Coqs before Xmas and the standard of singing was so high!

There's me as Pal Joey with Rita and Kim.
On Friday we had 3 prospective Brothers for lunch.  Nice chaps all....
In the evening I was invited to go with some of the Charterhouse girls to to Wembley Arena and the Hillsong Carols!

Gotta be impressed with that Arena filled with mostly young people standing and singing at the top of their lungs in celebration of their faith.  Eat your hearts out far too many empty churches.
Left at the interval to get to a BD party with some exotic artist friends!

One night in and last night my last singing last night until Xmas day at The Bridge with Julez and company.

Today was last day of shopping, last day of present making, arrangements making and a visit to Brother Peter in hospital.  Great news; he is back with us tomorrow!

Get a lawyer...

So sue me, sue me; what can you do me.....I didn't write yesterday.
But what happened yesterday was.... loads of prep for our parties.
In the evening we had a most engaging lecture on Somerset Maugham by the author of a latest autobiography, Selina Hastings.

Then off to watch my favorite Bags having Fun....the Fun Bags!

Today was really rushed getting scripts, music, props ready for Thursday's party and tomorrow's last business meeting before the break.
But have a look at this:

John Lewis, Harvey Nics? No, the new look Argos.  That is my idea of a well done and a brave re branding!

Do I deserve....

...such a wonderful existence?
Answers on a postcard.
Blissful day at the Maida Vale studios in a workshop with the BBC Singers doing best bits from the Messiah.

Haven't worked so hard in a long time.  The physical and mental activity of working properly at singing such a magnificent piece was a challenge.
Don't know how to say this without sounding too big headed, but I think I held my own with two Basses from the BBC.
It was great and I am signing up for the next time.

Then wonderful friends for an evening do.
My Salsa buddies get together and have an Xmas party and I asked Claire from Charterhouse to come.

The company was fantastic and the food was heavenly!

Somewhere in my wicked childhood......

Decking the Chamber

The Great Chamber to be precise.
Our Clerk came to me in a panic yesterday and asked if I could do something with the tree in the Great Chamber.

 Before

After


















In its' position at our Elizabethan fireplace.

Other Xmas preparations and then a lovely chat with a lovely friend.
We went to a very festively decorated Zetter Townhouse.

It's beginning to....

...look a lot like Christmas...

Feel a lot like I really belong.  An end of year review meeting of the Development Committee was attended. If the Philanthropy exhibition is anything to go by....we are looking forward to a bright future of plans to strive and prosper in our special community.
I had a request to rescue a situation and decorate a tree in the Great Chamber.  Nice to be considered an artistic Bro.
Just back from Open Mic,

all lovely and festive.
My mood continued and I got everyone  on the 55 bus to singing Jingle Bells....now that's dashing through the streets.

Wanting that role!

Even though my breathing capacity is still limited by the end of my chest infection I was glad to have the opportunity to audition for a Tosca.  Why?  Cause I want to sing here again:

The amazing Minack Theatre in Cornwall.  I think I did well, but you can never tell.  Fingers crossed.
Rushed back to town to go to a very special Xmas fair at Alfie's emporium.
My lovely friend Elizabeth joined me.

An added bonus was listening to the unforgetable Haywood Sisters.  It was one year ago at the same event that we met and I am happy to say I am their biggest fan!

It turned out to be a terrific shopping event because Zena found herself a wedding dress.
Now all that's needed is the bridegroom!

Really.......

...good day!
Absolutely great meeting on my project....excited!
And for the evening; only one thing to say: BREAKFAST!

That's Alp Haydar to you.

Just a bit....

....but that bit is great!
Been trying to put this on since last week:

The Charterhouse School Choir singing from the minstrel gallery at our Founder's Day Diner.
Oh and the wonderful Claire, our garden designer at the end....

Feeling festive!

So what beautiful day!

Chilly, sunny and bright.

Brill Sunday lunch joking with the Master after I had spent the morn arranging for some prime retailers to participate on my new site.

Only one photo today....this year's new tree decoration.

Thought it would be perfect after the Yule tide when the tree transmogrifies into a Valentine's tree.

Lazy Dog

That's the only excuse I have for not having written Wednesday or Thursday.
But to make up for it....a few pics.
Wednesday was our Founder's Day Dinner.
Preparations ensued....

I don't know how I ended up at the center of this very special, very traditional, British establishment event.  Hey hoe.... The event started with a service in the chapel.  There was an address given by the Headmaster of Charterhouse that was impressive in its acumen and interest.  It seems that it is a big deal to give this address and looking at the list of those who have done so over the recent past, it includes the past three Archbishops of Canterbury.

The meal was four courses with sorbet between and four types of wine.  The video includes some of our entertainment provided by the Charterhouse Choir singing from the minstrel gallery.
Many notables had attended over the years including just to name one you'd recognized, the Duke of Wellington.

After our do I have a Xmas party to attend; the Cheek of It Burlesque School as I'm an unofficial Cheekette.

Thursday included attending the 5th Anniversary Xmas performance of my pal Kai and her Kool Kats at Ronnie Scott's.

Today we all know that one of the greatest inspirational leaders of all time has passed "to the Ages".
My small contribution was to lower our standard as a sign of respect.

Yesterday was as today.......

Nothing extraordinary......just my daily routine:

Tomorrow things hot up!
Important new business meeting and the most special supper of the year:
The Founder's Day Commemoration with the Old Cartusians......

One item to note; saw some talented young students entertaining each other and a pub audience with some choice MT selections.

My precious....

Just a short comment and one photo.
Spent a wonderful hour this afternoon on a tour of the National Gallery led by my friend Jon.
His love of art shines through with every well researched observation.
It is no accident that a Chinese TV station/producers are interested in capturing his guides.
Can't wait for the resultant fame so that Jon might invite me on a research trip to Bella Italia....
The photo:

Is it any wonder that at one point, Lapis Lazuli was a more precious material than gold?
Ground down into powder, it was used as such a treasured pigment that if you really wanted to show off...you painted onto it.

WSS RULES!

This blog is late.....
Last night I had the great pleasure...almost the honor of attending a staged production of West Side Story and it didn't seem right to comment right away.
It's the pro UK company that is touring at the mo....the production that is designed to recreate the original.  

Here's where I go on about.....the Greatest Musical Ever Written.....absolutely hands down.
What an amazing creative team.....the music, the songs, the story, the vision and THE MOVEMENT!
Can anyone suggest a more iconic vision of movement and music from the musical canon?
Image after image of a dynamic grace that has earned the description....timeless.
I wonder at what it must have been like to sit in the audience 60 years ago; the audience last night was blown away....what must Broadway have thought?

I had the great pleasure of sharing the experience with a young friend who will one day dazzle some stage with her performance as Maria.   It was her first time seeing WSS staged in live performance.....jealous of that experience.

I have had the great good fortune of being involved in performing this piece 5 times.
It has marked me inside and out.....I have a scar on my forehead from diving into the shallow end of a pool at the last night party of my first WSS outing in high school.

One last image....whether Shakespeare or Laurents or all the other expressions of which we as intelligent? beings need to be reminded.....if only we could bridge the gaps of our social, ethnic differences and look with new eyes and fall in love.....
Somehow.... somewhere.....