Vespers and Liturgy: quiet (17 including choir and altar) but with an actual deacon! The choir seemed to be afflicted with Plague of Frog in Throat, but it was mild and transient. Afterwards a man came to test the fire alarms— when I went to sign his papers (having been specially appointed by Fr T to do that) he said he’d been about to come earlier but then it looked as if there was a service going on. Well, yes.

While my other half was doing the non-weird shopping I did the usual weird Holy Week shopping: flower-arranging foam because the stuff that was in the base for the cross was worn to fragments after three years and the usual flower-arranging woman isn’t there; house slippers (a size too large, it turns out, because they have a different supplier that does get the size right— I was used to buying the next size up); some battery-powered bike lights because they were ridiculously cheap and we never seem to have enough; a black-pattern-on-white headscarf for Holy Saturday.

We sent Very Tall Altar Boy to the supermarket for more eggs to dye red because I’d underestimated the number we needed. The already-dyed eggs now all have crosses and the letters XB for Christos Voskrese. Rather good for Thursday; there have been years that I was finishing the eggs in the community room after Liturgy on Saturday.

After last night’s service —Matins and First Hour of Holy Thursday— I realised it would be pointless to keep a complete record of the services as I did last year. After all, most of the statistics will be the same (last night’s service was actually a few minutes shorter than the same one in 2008, though we made an effort not to read too fast). I do want to keep some kind of record, though, for myself and anyone else who is interested.

This morning when I went downstairs at 7:00 to make prosphora I thought “the crazy days have started”. Now I’m typing this, however, it occurs to me that it’s perhaps the sanest part of the year: we’re never so close to God as in these few days. The only craziness is in daily life. There’s always something unexpected— usually not to do with Holy Week at all: yesterday it was my other half having to go to the optician because his glasses had broken in his hand. (The optician and his apprentice spent about an hour trying to fix the frame, gave up, and put the glasses in a sports frame so he can at least see something). I could manage to dye eggs and make pascha, but there was no time left for laundry or kitchen floor (or indeed to sit down long enough to rest my feet enough not to hurt in church; I think this afternoon I’ll try to get a pair of inlay soles designed for people who stand a lot). Also, the church freezer turned out to be broken— it’s probably been broken for days if not weeks. Having fresh prosphora every Sunday keeps one from noticing, but I was baking ahead for three Liturgies in four days, two of them usually very well-attended. We rescued all but one bag of prosphora, and I think all the kulich (but we didn’t dare open those bags) and put them in Choirmistress’ freezer with the altar prosphora.

There’s already one house guest out of three (briefly four) expected: Very Tall Altar Boy, who is now studying his Greek from Secunda’s book. It’s a first-and-second-year book and he’s in Chapter 4 while she’s in Chapter 11. Secunda herself is doing Dutch, because she’s excused from class today but obviously not from the test on Tuesday.

Now for service 2 of 9, Vespers and Liturgy of Holy Thursday. I’m wearing my newly tie-dyed purple T-shirt that turns out to match my favourite purple top (floppy half-open shirt that needs something under it) perfectly.