Bottle-glass windows, linen drying, the stencilled lettering on a wall fading with time as the masons hack at the obdurate stones that will repair the nearby church, it holds life in the moment, and all of it in equal balance, this revelation of Venice backstage.
His saving grace so far, though, has been a obdurate defence that has secured two goalless draws following a 4-0 defeat at Manchester City.
We don't know.' " The most obdurate problem that Bell and Gemmell encountered was that there was no simple way to retrieve what they had stored, making the archive close to formless.
It was precisely because of meddling from the Department for Transport, a ham-fisted approach by management and obdurate unions that the dispute has lasted so long.
But a more profound objection relates to Thornhill's obdurate belief that IQ is a true measure of "crystallised general intelligence" rather than just a measure of ability to perform in IQ tests.
But against a side as disciplined and obdurate as Stoke that was never likely to be straightforward, despite their woeful record at Stamford Bridge.
It was Murtagh, with three for 44, who cleaned up, removing an obdurate Bresnan with one that kept low, and Andy Hodd with another that did the opposite.
Having bowled Australia out for 244, England succumbed for 228 in reply, with Brearley's typically obdurate 64 – an innings that lasted four hours – the only contribution of note, and they eventually lost the game by 138 runs.
The problem is not one of knowledge; the problem is our obdurate, antediluvian minds that cannot grasp what we believe to be true.
An impression grew upon me, as I made my way through these obdurate old texts, that to the ancient Hebrews God was simply a word for what was: a universe often beautiful and gracious but also implacable and unfathomable.
