Work has been interrupted by two fire alarms this week - both false alarms. The first evacuation we were waiting for about ten or fifteen minutes until the fire brigade arrived; the second time they were there a lot sooner - in fact, before the roll call had been completed. And the police came to close off the road (it's not very wide and was full of fire trucks and occupants of the building). There was a third evacuation late one afternoon too, but I (and the rest of the office) had already gone home by then. Apparently this made the roll call difficult, as there was no one to say that no one was there, if you see what I mean. Methinks one of the fire sensors is not working properly

Sunday evening we went to a charity variety show. Several local song and/or dance acts, mostly young performers. Most of the acts were school children, though a few were a little older. The standard was really high, with some excellent singing and dancing, and a varied programme too. We really enjoyed it.

It's interesting watching these events, as, even with my limited knowledge of entertainment, you can spot the kids that really do have the raw talent. Although it was all good, there were some performers who stood out above the others in their troupe.

Monday evening I was teaching - a small group of mostly 11 and 12 year-olds, which was a fairly scary event! Back in Smalltown in time to catch the last half hour of ringing practice. As I arrived late I ended up ringing in most of the pieces (partly because I was the sixth ringer that made these pieces possible). Someone remarked "Ruby can ring again - he's only just got here so isn't tired yet" I replied "I've been teaching 12-year olds - that's far more stressful"

Tuesday was an audit visit, Wednesday was normal SJA (where somehow I pulled the short straw and ended up teaching both cadet and adult groups).

Had a dental hygienist visit Thursday. The credit card machine at the dentist was broken, so I had to go to the cash machine next door to draw some cash out. And then they didn;t have any change, so I owe them the balance (all £1 of it) for next time.

The dentist has installed a coffee machine - free of charge. This seemed a bit odd; who is going to dirty their nice clean teeth just before going into the dentist? Plus the likelihood of not getting a chance to drink it before being called. I did think of getting myself one on the way out (I was walking) but couldn't be bothered.

We are going to another concert his evening - CGF Sprog 3 is performing. I can't remember whether it is the Schools Orchestra or Ewok.

And Thursday (yes, I know I am messing up the chronological order, but it's so I can finish with a video clip - I don't just throw this together, you know), was one of the regular organ concerts we provide first aid cover for. Rather than the usual village hall, this one was at Andover Theatre. Yes Andover has a small theatre. It has a leisure centre too - complete with swimming pool. I didn't know that until I walked past on the way to the theatre.

As well as the organ, the performer played some piano pieces too - which I thought was better. We were right at the back of the auditorium, and I think maybe the acoustics weren't too good for electronic organ.

The performance included a violinist. The organiser told us afterwards that he had booked her on a bit of a punt, but it turned out to be a really good punt. She was fantastic. My colleague and I thought that she was better than the organist - which possibly isn't the right thing to think as she was the support act! You tend to associate violins with classical pieces, or folk tunes. But marches? So unusual to hear the Dambusters on a solo violin it took me a while to work out what tune it was.

This video is a bit long (and not the best quality) so you may not have time to watch it all now. Just watch the first bit and come back later to see the rest.