Typical, haven´t written for yonks.

I never think about writing unless I´m away. I´m in Zamora, ready to sing the Meder St Mathew Passion at the festival on Saturday night. Lovely to be eating good Spanish ham, and wearing sunglasses at last after this freezing winter. I´ve just started the Kite Runner, which is very absorbing, and have read the Tove Jansson ´Summer Book´which I found enchanting and poetic and beautiful. In fact, I´ve just started to read the Moomin books to Effie, which is so marvellous as I remember being captivated by the tales of the hobgoblin´s hat, and the snork maiden and so on when I read as a child.
I wonder what it is like to read them in the original language.
Last week, singing Elijah (!!!) at Bristol I paid a visit to my old friend Judith from university days and in discussion about a matter of translating, she commented that she believes translating is not really subjective, but that there is a ´right´translation. I had always assumed that it was entirely subjective, and have found that a strangely gripping concept!
Winks are very well and I miss them. Work and Life are not in the proper balance, so we´ll need to look at that.
I´ve just withdrawn from a long opera project to my great sadness. Reasons are beyond anyone´s control, but in this economic climate, suffice to say that I would have to be single and without dependents to take certain financial risks. Had better say no more.
Miss the winks.
can´t wait for Wales.
N