and on

Considering I didn't fall asleep until gone 3am, I am surprised I woke at the 'early' time of-just after 9am - probably due to the bright and cheerful winter sunshine. A long and spiritually restorative walk this afternoon in the direction of, but not as far as, the canal  did much to lift my spirits, as did learning on the lunchtime news of a father and three young children being found alive after a whole week buried in the rubble. There are now, it is estimated, 35,000+ who are lost and questions about how much longer survivors can be found asking when does 'rescue' change to 'recovery'?   For many, recovery will take the rest of their lives.  

Meanwhile, my perfectly pleasant day in Essex continued when, at his place, Gareth provided tea for both JJ and me as the three of us watched the animated version of A Christmas Carol with voice overs from Jim Carey, Colin Firth and Gary Oldman. The motivation for this out of season entertainment being revision for JJ's English GCSE before he and I work through a past paper question tomorrow.