Diary Entries
Speaking and being listened to
Being Listened To – The Courage to Speak and the Wisdom to Remain Silent One of the things I value most in human relationships is the experience of being genuinely listened to. I do not spend my...
A 258-Mile Journey – Old Friends, Spiritual Connections and a Few Thoughts About Life
Giving the Volvo a Proper Outing Today I gave my trusty old Volvo 2.5 a proper workout, driving across the country via Cirencester and eventually returning home via the M5, making a journey of 258...
The LIons – a hidden army of community volunteers
From an American idea to a worldwide movement The Lions movement began in Chicago in 1917, when an American businessman named Melvin Jones proposed that business and professional people should use...
Russell Brand – Two-Tier Justice, Double Standards and the Question of Personal Responsibility
I really have difficulty understanding the two-tier system in which people who come into our country uninvited, sometimes with standards of behaviour rather different from our own, appear to be...
The Crime of Thinking – and a Journey into the Unknown
Today the sun is shining, the sky is blue and a distinctly chilly wind is reminding me that November has arrived. It is one of those days when the world looks inviting through the window but becomes...
Stroke – Every Minute Matters
An illuminating evening with Dr Emily Abab, organised by the Friends of Somer Valley Medical Group. There are occasions when a few minutes can make the difference between life and death, or between...
The Nest – An Island of Sanity in a Complicated World
There are occasions when you meet someone and realise, within a few minutes, that you are operating on much the same wavelength. Differences in age, background and experience become almost...
When Good Will is not Enough
Most of this was above my head. I am not a political or bureaucratic person but did my best to understand the goings-on. I have anonymised all aspects of this meeting - location and speakers -...
The Value of Talking Things Through – A Meeting of Minds
I had a private meeting this morning with someone whose identity, together with the substance of our actual conversation, will remain confidential. Suffice it to say that we share certain interests...
Working with Nature – The Green Mantle Story
This early afternoon event took place at the Somer Centre here in Midsomer Norton, organised by the University of the Third Age (u3a). norrad.u3asite.uk My original intention in attending was to...
Letting the Brain Do the Work
I was up until 1.30 this morning, not because I couldn't sleep, but because I experienced one of those sudden bursts of inspiration when ideas arrive in such rapid succession that it seems a pity to...
Remembrance Sunday 2026
This morning I attended a Remembrance Sunday service, an occasion which always gives me cause to reflect not only on the enormous sacrifices made by previous generations, but also on the rather...
From Games to Glowing Embers – A Saturday of Unexpected Discoveries
My goodness, what a day it has turned out to be! One of those days when you start off with no particular expectations and return home having discovered something new, achieved something useful and...
Charles III – Is He Departing from His Mother’s Legacy?
Today I found myself reflecting on King Charles III and wondering how history will judge his reign. Will he be remembered as a thoughtful moderniser, or as a monarch who, despite his good...
Breaking New Ground – Allotments, Bots, Bonfires and the British Reserve
There are days when everything seems to fall into place, and today was one of them. The weather was almost tailor-made for working on our new allotment: neither hot nor cold, no rain, and just...
The Birth of a Website – From Conception to Growing Pains
There is something rather exciting about the birth of a new website. It begins with an idea, develops through a period of gestation, and eventually arrives in the world, hopefully without too many...
Dragonfly Leisure – Much More Than a Place to Keep Fit
Making friends, improving your health and becoming part of the community. When I entered Dragonfly Leisure in Midsomer Norton for the first time, I was immediately struck by something I had not...
A Day of Tidying Up, Inside and Out
Today has been a day of tidying up, both physically and mentally, and of attempting to bring myself into better alignment with the task ahead. With my forthcoming writing project, I am increasingly...
The Great British Bake-Off – Pensioners’ Edition
From Bindweed to Baked Beans – A Day of Cultivation This morning I rose early, donned my working clothes and set off for our new allotment in Radstock Road. We have acquired a plot on more level...
Woman Dies, Met Queen Elizabeth Crying In Hell
My goodness, I have read outlandish things in my time, but this has to be up there with the most extreme. Read and judge if this is genuine. Watch it yourself if you wish. Judge its authenticity....
Developing a business relationship in easy stages
Learning to Choose the Right People — Even in My Eighties Last Saturday, Françoise and I met someone with whom I hope to develop the website for my proposed three-towns community project, together...
A New Understanding of God, Creation and Human Freedom
It often happens that I discover some of the most remarkable, and occasionally life-changing, material during those hours of the night when sleep refuses to come. Last night, Saturday 31 October...
Coleford – The Extraordinary History of an Ordinary Somerset Village
An Unconventional Historian with Plenty to Say Steve Hodges – The Hidden History of Coleford Local historian and author Steve Hodges gave a lively, humorous and occasionally provocative talk on...
From Nuclear Submarines to Serving Jesus
This evening I went to the Frome Christian men's group. The speaker was unusual, to say the least. He was Gordon Lamb Ex Royal Navy and Church Army. An extraordinary journey of faith, adventure and...
Welcome to The World of Brian Snellgrove
2,146,489 words across 2,052 articles
Inspired by Samuel Pepys’ Diary 1633-1703
