Morris and Mortality

It has been an odd week.

Last weekend we were planning to go to Chippenham Folk Festival. Well, the plan was that I would be there for the whole weekend with the morris, camping for two nights, and <3 and the Youngling would be there for Saturday and Monday, and would do somethig different on the Sunday. Plans changed when the Youngling threw up in her bed on Friday night and we decided that a not-entirely-necessary trip out the following day would probably be less than ideal, so we stayed closer to home for the next couple of days -- at least we got some gardening done! On Monday we took the trip to Chippenham and had a great day dancing in the streets and on the arena stage.

Back at work after the bank holiday things were less happy as the word arrived that my office mate, Steve, had lost his 2 year battle with cancer. I didn't know Steve as well as I would have liked, largely as over the year or so we had shared an office, he had spent a lot of time away for treatment. He was a top bloke though, a pleasure to talk with, and a fighter who kept going far longer than expected and who has helped others like him get the treatment he was originally denied. Steve's death was not unexpected, but the sense of shock and grief in the department this week has been palpable. He really made a mark and will be greatly missed.

After that news, the week has had a slightly weird feel to it. We had a great dance out in Grove on Wednesday, and I now have some pretty decent homebrew beer (which should get better with a bit more conditioning) to drink, but all that doesn't seem to be worth writing about at the moment. I'll have a drink to Steve over the weekend and wish his family well. The funeral is next week and I expect there will be quite a few of us from work in attendance.