The End

Hi there everyone

I'm giving up writing this blog - increasingly I've been finding it harder to post here, and I have other interests on the web on which I now concentrate. Thanks to everyone who has read the blog, especially the regular readers. I will leave the blog up as it is, I won't delete it, as it's good to have a record of these past 4 years or so. Since I started the blog as a happy-go-lucky 34 year old, I've had 3 miscarriages and a divorce, but I deliberately haven't referred to these things as there's seldom any point in depressing other people. Instead I've tried to emphasise the fun and entertaining things of life, such as my romance and second marriage with Patrick, truly wonderful.

But before I go, here is a list of my favourite gigs of 2008, in no particular order:

Oysterband at Pontardawe

Demon Barbers at South Petherton

Show of Hands at Saul Canal Festival

At First Light (bloody good Irish band, with some Lunasa members) at Bath Folk Club

Flossie Malavialle at Whittlesey Straw Bear

Love to you all

Valerie

Weekend in Kent and Sussex

A weekend of joy and sadness. On the way down to my birthday weekend in Greatstone, Kent my sister told me that my cat, Holly, had died. Holly had been a good friend to me through illnesses, miscarriages, divorce...she was a beautiful Autumn-coloured cat with white paws and bib, bossy but very affectionate and liked nothing more than to snuggle up in bed next to me at the end of the day. She was unique and I will always miss her.
Greatstone was a nice place, a strange mixture of desolation and seventies bungalows. The weather on Saturday wasn't good so we visited the museums in Hastings (lunch at the excellent FILO brewpub) and Battle (1066 Museum somewhat disappointing). The bonfire parade and fireworks were very enjoyable once more, although less bonfire societies were there this year, due to Rye not being last of the season this year. I bought a flashing pink wand to carry along the streets - tasteful!
On Sunday we did a car tour through Felixstowe and Dover to Ripple, the village near Deal which our narrowboat is named after. There was a windmill, a little church and a lovely pub (where I had a good pint of Harvey's Sussex) and a pink thatched cottage called Raspberry Cottage (get it?). Patrick took lots of pictures, he's hoping to put a few on the boat.
Then it was into Deal for lunch at the Bohemian (a cracking seafront pub) and a walk along the odd looking pier and a look at the fishing boats hauled up on the shingle.
Bit of a long drive to stay the night with Simon and Jane and visits to the Good Intent and the Sandrock, then up at 6am for the drive back to work in Midsomer Norton!

Happy Birthday To Me!

I had lots of presents this morning - a bottle of Maderia, 2 books, some smellies for the bath and 2 boxes of chocolate - all from Patrick!
Bought cakes for my colleagues from Muffins in Midsomer Norton, very nice they were too. Yes I did try one myself!
Off to a Laphroaig Masterclass Whisky Tasting this evening, at the Ashton Manor Hotel in Bristol, courtesy of Simon. What a great present!
It's going to be a really good birthday. I'm looking forward to the next one as there will be lots of special stuff going on...but not looking forward to being 40!!!

Weekend on the Narrowboat

A couple of weeks ago we had nothing particular on, and were both a bit fed up of working on the garden and spare room, so I suggested a weekend aboard Ripple. Patrick, of course, readily agreed!
This also gave me the chance to try some motorway driving on the way to Saul Junction. I didn't like merging, especially as there was an annoying Skoda right behind me trying to nick my gap on the inside lane, but one I was there I was fine - even overtaking a cement mixer, a caravan and a horse box!
Ripple was fine when we got there, but Patrick had to remove a quantity of oily water from the engine compartment before we moved, so that the automatic bilge pump wouldn't start up in the marina.
We decided to head towards Slimbridge so that we could visit the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, as well as the Tudor Inn! The cruising was pleasant despite the odd shower. We moored up just past the bridge and headed for Sir Peter Scott's bird sanctuary, where we were persuaded to become members of the Wildfowl and Wetland Trust, which meant we could come and go for free. We also heard some stories of the oil tanker disaster from first hand experience, and other stories of life working on the barges, from one of the volunteers there - which made Patrick's day!
Evening meal at the Tudor was a bit disappointing, and there was only one beer that we liked. The Bell at Frampton serves better food, beer and cider, but sometimes some of the young lads get a bit rowdy.
Next day it was hammering with rain so we treated ourselves to all-day breakfast at the Black Shed, which was 'nicely' decorated for a halloween party later! Back to the bird sanctuary for a longer wander and a cuppa at the kiosk near the canoes. We decided not to canal-bash all the way down to Sharpness, but cruised westward for an hour or so before turning back towards Saul.
A lovely, relaxing weekend - back to reality now!

Folk Awards Nominations 2009

Yes it's that time again!

My nominations:

Folk Singer of the Year: Flossie Malavialle

Best Duo: Show of Hands

Best Group: Oysterband

Best Album: The Kansas Sessions (Kirsty McGee)

Best Original Song: Dust Devil by Kirsty McGee

Traditional Track of the Year: Alan Tyne of Harrow by Kerr/Fagan

Horizon Award (Best Newcomer): Flossie Malavialle

Musician of the Year: Cormac Byrne (again!)

Best Live Act: The Demon Barber Roadshow

A mixed weekend

Went to Banbury Folk Festival this weekend - I'd intended to drive there, but the traffic was very heavy and there were lots of a***holes about so I chickened out by the time I'd got to Chippenham!
After some trouble finding the hotel and the Mill Theatre, we settled down to watch the festival's patron, Isla St Clair. A bit different to the normal Folk Festival fayre, she sang North-West Scottish songs, some Burns and of course Speed Bonny Boat. The song "Save Our Glens" went down particularly well with Patrick! I think she was a bit nervous at being in front of the Festival crowd, probably being more used to TV audiences, but she went down a storm!
Uiscedwr were as excellent as ever. Anna was looking happy and healthy, which is good! Cormac Byrne as amazing as ever, and he seems to be sharing the singing and anecdotes now as well. Shame James wasn't with them, I liked his guitar playing and songs.
In the morning, which was beautifully sunny and warm, we went on a blissful trip along the Oxford Canal aboard the "Dancing Duck" dayboat from Tooleys Boatyard. Rob McKinnon was on board, and sung us some wonderful songs which we could join in and sing.
Went to a dance workshop with Herbaceous Border at Saturday lunchtime, but there disaster struck. In a hurry as our food took longer than expected, I dumped my handbag down with the Morris dancer's bags and noticed a small, thin woman with short grey hair standing by them. She offered to look after it for me, which in retrospect should have raised alarm bells, but I took her for the wife of one of the dancers and was in too much of a hurry - as there were a bit crowd of people around I didn't think anyone would dare steal it. However when I finished dancing both the handbag and the woman were gone.
She was probably just after my cash but a lot of other things were in my bag - car key, house keys, mobile phone, bank cards, cheque book, passport, council tax bill, wedding certificate (the last three because of all the name change stuff I'm having to do at the moment). Patrick was concerned about our house being burgled so he drove back to Bath and then we had over an hour's wait for the "emergency" locksmith to turn up (we had been told 6pm but he arrived at 7.10pm).
Then it was drive all the way back to catch Flossie Malaiville and Keith Donnelly at the Town Hall - an unusual combination, possibly a smart career move for Flossie to ink up with someone with lots of contacts in the business, but their music and humour are quite different. We thought Flossie would do better with fellow Brel admirer Robb Johnson. Move to the South Flossie, s'il vous plait!
Biddenden's Cider at the Pegg Inn was delicious but I just wasn't in a drinking mood (unusually, you might say).
Next came Patrick's favourite of the festival, Vin Garbutt. He was on good form despite pharyngitis, cracking some good jokes and singing some thought-provoking songs. I especially liked the song about the New Zealand children - I just hope Gary Glitter never tours there!!
We had a pint or two in the Woolpack, which had a beer festival on (Ossett Porter and Purity Gold very good), then popped back to the Town Hall for Tom Leary and Kevin Dempsey, followed by Waterson:Carthy who ended the festival.
A good little festival - just watch out for Fagin's missus!

Aardvark Ceilidh Band at Subscription Hall, Stroud

It's the first time I've been to a non-folk festival ceilidh in aages - and I really enjoyed it. Adrian, our friend from the Somersetshire Coal Canal Society, kindly gave us a lift and tried to teach me some ceilidh moves - with varied success!Aardvark Ceilidh Band were pretty good - sort of folk/prog rock fusion music, with guitar riffs from Pink Floyd or Led Zep creeping in at times. Trouble was, the caller sounded muffled and so I couldn't hear the instructions - luckily the dances were mostly well-known ones like Roger de Coverley and the Shetland Strip the Willow so the regulars were able to show us what to do - or shout at us when we went wrong! Everyone seemed good natured, nobody was (outwardly!) impatient with us when we made mistakes or weren't quick enough - despite some very good dancers being there (we were in Cotwold Morris territory, of course).
There was only one real ale on at the bar - but since it was Champion Beer of the Cotswolds, Stroud Brewery's "Budding", I wasn't complaining! The dance floor was rather bouncy, even for a sprung floor - apparently they've had problems with it in the past - but it was a huge hall, similar to my old haunt Godalming Borough Hall, with plently of room for dancing.
Very good - will definitely be back when the wonderful Climax Ceilidh Band are on in February, if not before!

PASSED!

Finally passed my driving test yesterday after the 4th attempt. I am so pleased! Now I can drive to work, drive to folk concerts, drive to any Morris dancing or choirs that I fancy...freedom!!
Patrick is pleased because now I can drive him to the pub ;)
The only thing is, now I have to negotiate the double mini roundabouts in Radstock on a daily basis. Poo.

Honeymoon on the Isle of Wight

The weather was brilliant all week, which was amazing given the afwul weather which preceeded the wedding! Our cottage in Whippingham was lovely, there was a nice outdoor pool (which we didn't in the end make use of, as we were out every day) and red squirrels in the garden (very camera shy ones).
The nearest pub, the Folly Inn on the River Medina, is quite a famous pub amongst yachties, and it does excellent food - so we made good use of it in the evenings. Other favourite pubs included the Bargeman's Rest (huge meals and good beer - we missed out on the live music this time, but usually that's very good too) and the best beer on the island, "Long Willie" at Fat Cat Bar round the back of the Sandpiper Hotel in Freshwater (rumours of it's closure were thankfully unfounded!).
The Isle of Wight Cycling Festival was on, so we hired a couple of bikes and joined in on one of the rides (the Around Chale Pub Crawl, of course!) as well as our own rides around Yarmouth and the river Medina.
Patrick couldn't believe his luck as, cycling down the disused railway from Newport to Cowes, he learnt about a shipment of wind turbine blades about to be shipped from the River Medina to Marchwood - he completed our cycle ride to West Cowes then rode back like the wind to photograph the barge ("Bladerunner 2") with his posh camera! I was quite happy, I just went shopping in Old Cowes for a while and met him later :)
Walking was good too - a walk from Freshwater Bay to the Needles in perfect weather was completed by a visit to the Needles Old Battery and their little tea room.
My treat of the holiday was a trip to the Alum Bay Sweet Factory, where I purchased my favourite Rhubarb and Custards as well as Blackberry and Apples. Yum yum! I also made a sand frog at the sand souvenir place, well it had to be done. A good childhood nostalgia experience!
Returned relaxed and happy to home - bit tired though ;)

The Wedding of the Millennium

Despite my worries, the Wedding went almost perfectly and the day was extremely enjoyable! It was good to see so many of our friends and family there to support us and share in our celebration.
The hair appointment wasn't a disaster, as I'd feared because it was with an unknown hairdresser - Amy did a good, professional job. However I didn't trust the makeup artist and ended up doing the makeup myself!! These are the kinds of problems you get trying to sort these things out in a new city.
The cake was ready at Marks and Spencer in the morning so Jane and I went down to get it - it was packaged securely so it was fine in the boot of her car till it got to the Swan Hotel in Bradford on Avon, which was where our Wedding Breakfast was. Jane and Shirley tied, zipped and buttoned me into my wonderful dark burgundy wedding dress, and I'd finished my makeup and nails just in time before the Rolls Royce (1965 from Ace Wedding Cars) arrived.
It was an exciting journey from Bath to Bradford on Avon in the Rolls, and we passed near both town centres so there were lots of people to wave at! The Rolls was very luxurious inside, with lots of leather and wood panels - the driver was nice as well, obviously enjoying his chauffeuring.
As soon as we drew up at the West Barn, I was collared by both the Registrar and the photographers! I was a little late by the time they had finished with me, but recognised Show of Hand's "You're Mine" at last which was my cue to walk down the aisle to meet Patrick.
Well, thankfully I managed to get through our vows and ring words (which we had chosen ourselves) without crying! A lot of people did get rather emotional, naming no names. The Registrars were great and it was such a beautiful ceremony. There was a slight cock up with signing the register as I forgot my Dad's middle name, but it was all sorted and after more photos I went back down the aisle to Eliza Carthy's version of "The Little Gypsy" and everyone started clapping along!!
The meal at the Swan Hotel was excellent and the boat trip in the evening aboard the Barbara McLellan couldn't have been more appropriate! As Patrick had steered trip boats before, he was allowed a little while at the tiller. It was a good opportunity for people to mingle and chat to each other without loud music blaring, and with beautiful views along the Kennet and Avon canal. Plus all the money went to the Kennet and Avon Canal Trust, a worthy cause.
No official photos as yet but some friends and relations have taken snaps - they will appear on Facebook, Myspace and Valerie's Gallery soon!

Hen Weekend Part 2 - The Detox

Next morning the Hens and I roused ourselves - some earlier than others - and had breakfast. Claire, Kathy and Sancha departed and so Julie, Jane and I headed for town to do some Sunday shopping. Julie bought loads, in particular at Pink Lemon, Bijoux Beads and the Roman Baths Shop, so that we worried that she would be unable to take it all back on the train! My sister, Shirl, arrived a little late and the four of us had a really good lunch at the Cafe du Globe before Julie parted.
The remaining three of us headed for the Thermae Spa for two hours in the large complex. We chilled out in the rooftop pool with beautiful views of the Regency buildings of Bath and the Somerset hills, detoxed in the aromatherapy steam rooms, and went round and round in the 'lazy river' of the Minerva pool. My skin always feels great after a visit to the spa, and I always feel very relaxed too. It might have been somewhat over budget but I think it's a great asset to the town.
After the spa it was goodbye to Shirl as she left to catch her train home, and Jane and I went to meet Patrick and Simon in the Moorfields pub where they too were looking very relaxed and happy after Patrick's stag weekend aboard Ripple.
Hey not long to wait now - only 3 more days till the big event!!

Hen Weekend in Bath, Saturday Crawl

I had a great time on my hen night! Several of my friends were staying over, so some met me at the house before getting the taxi into town. The first port of call was the Coeur de Lion, a superb little pub - a country pub in the middle of the shopping centre of Bath. Slater's 'Top Totty' was the obligatory pint here! The retired men at the bar looked somewhat confused at a hen night arriving in their local but took it all in good spirit.
Next was the Green Tree, another small cosy pub with a long back room. The regulars gave us a few 'oh no, not a hen party' looks but the bar staff were really friendly. Sancha had some very wierd looking cider - bright blue, apparently flavoured with blueberries!
Then it was off to the Garrick's Head for a meal. Most of us thought the food was great - I certainly enjoyed my lamb cutlets, and Jane enjoyed her beef skirt! Claire and Kathy found their chips a bit underdone which was disappointing for a gastropub with such a good reputation. I was taken aback by the service charge - at a pub restaurant?? The service was vey good though. Beer was great as well.
Next port of call was the Salamander, one of Patrick's regular haunts. The Bath Ales 'Wild Hare' was magnificent but the pub was very overcrowded. We could have sat in the dining room bit but it was closed - why?
Lastly we staggered to the Raven, not far away. They had been a bit more enterprising and opened their upstairs room and bar. We met up with some kindred spirits - a group dressed as pirates, celebrating someone's birthday. Julie has a photo of me with 'Captain Jack'!
After the Raven I vaguely remember getting a taxi outside the Abbey and, upon arriving home, crashing out on the sofa still in my dress.

Choirfest 2008

Last weekend we headed East for Choirfest, a series of singing workshops at Mellow Farm, Dockenfield with optional camping, ceilidh and singing around the campfire! This is run by my old choir leader, Anna Tabbush with her family and friends. It was a great opportunity to meet up with my old friends from Guildford Vox and learn some excellent new songs. While I was singing, Patrick explored the area, walking to Frensham Ponds which isn't far away from the peaceful little campsite.
This year Paul Sartin (fiddle player with Bellowhead, amongst other bands) had to drop out as a tutor, but instead we had Lucky Mayo, a Zulu singer from Zimbabwe. He just stole the show, I'm afraid, with his exciting performances of 'Mbonu Baba' and 'Inkululeko' complete with Zulu drum and dancing (we had to pretend to hold shields and spears!). But I'm sure the Tabbushes and Sarah Morgan didn't mind. Other songs that I really enjoyed learning were Mike Harding's 'King Cotton' taught by Carolyn Robson, and the traditional 'Old Sir Simon the King' taught by Freya Tabbush. I don't think I could sing it (all two verses and three choruses) in one minute though!
There was tons of food at the barbie, as usual, and the ceilidh in the beautiful medieval barn was excellent fun. Weather was great on the Saturday, but it was stormy from the early hours of Sunday so I didn't get a lot of sleep! Luckily there was a sunny spell at lunchtime, so the tent dried out a bit before Patrick packed it away.
Good to see everyone again and I hope to be back next year and make it a regular thing!

REM at the Rose Bowl, Southampton

Yes, REM, dear readers! A band you will have heard of ;-)
We were very excited to get tickets for REM as they don't tour the UK that often and there are very few venues that can accommodate them. We did have to pay somewhat over the odds on Seatwave to get them but REM were amazing and it was well worth the money to see them.
The Rose Bowl, Hampshire's cricket ground which is actually in Hedge End, was an ideal venue but with a few transport problems. The car parks all seemed to be reserved when we got there, so we parked in a housing estate maybe half a mile away and walked back to the ground. There were plenty of food stalls, bars and loos in the brand new stadium, and we found seats quite easily as most people were standing on the plastic mats which protected the pitch.
The support acts were The Guillemots whom we missed, then The Editors, who have been reasonably successful though I'd never heard of them. Quite similar in style to REM but their songs got a bit samey towards the end.
When REM came on we stood, though could still only see Michael Stipe as a speck in the distance. There were huge displays either side of the stage and behind it so we could still see images of the band performing. The atmosphere was electrolytic! They played a well pitched set, including a few songs from their latest album which is quite punk-rocky, like their earlier stuff. Patrick was pleased that they opened with Bad Day, it's one of his favourites. And of course they played Orange Crush, Losing My Religion, Electrolyte, The One I Love, Imitation of Life, What's the Frequency Kenneth, The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonight, Nightswimming, Animal before finishing with Man on the Moon.
Can't wait till they come back to the UK again - and will definitely get their new album asap!

Good news and bad news

The good news - I have been taken on permanently as a lab technician by Sun Chemical. This saves a lot of worry with mortgages, furniture buying, wedding expenses etc etc.
The bad news - I've failed my driving practical test again. But only just. Next time I will hopefully be less nervous - I know I CAN pass it, as long as I know how to get out of trouble. Unfortunately the Trowbridge Test Cenre is shutting at the end of the month, so I'll have to drive all the way out to Chippenham and back each lesson next time - unless I can get a cancellation. Had another driving lesson in the Micra on Sunday - best thing is to get straight back into it and not give in - even if it takes 7 or 77 attempts!
PS I've now got Broadband (or widebeam as Patrick calls it!) so I've managed to update my gallery for the first time in ages. Have a peek!

Trowbridge Village Pump 2008

I was expecting maybe a village festival in sleepy Farleigh Hungerfod? No way! "The Pump" is a huge festival - not quite as big as Shrewsbury but getting there.
The festival kicked off with "Brits Night" - one act from Wales (Allan Yn Y Fan) one from Eire (Cara Dillon), one from Scotland (Battlefield Band)and one from England (Oysterband). In practise of course, each band had a mixture of Brits in it, and some of the Irish artists none too happy about being "Brits" for the night!! We arrived half way through Cara Dillon who gave her usual faultless performance. Was disappointed with the Battlefield Band who had changed their line up and didn't seem to rock as much as when I'd seen them before at South Hill Park. Oysterband were fab as usual, but seemed to suffer from poor sound quality. Trouble was, we had to leave half-an-hour into their act, as we both had to work the next day. Disappointment was to follow on Friday as two acts I really wanted to see (Ben Paley's and Michael McGoldrick's) were on in the afternoon. A bit more consideration for us working people next time Trowbridge!!
Arrived in time for festival food and '6 Day Riot' who were OK but not my kind of music, and the lead singer's voice somehow got on my nerves (too harsh?).
Show of Hands gave the performance of the festival, with the main tent overspilling with (I'd guess) over 2000 people all of whom that were able were standing up and clapping at the end!! 'Roots' is without a doubt the most popular protest song that Steve Knightley has written, and seems to strike a chord with country folk wherever he goes. Phil introduced Little Feat with breathless enthusiasm, but they were SO disappointing! Maybe sound was a problem again, but in my opinion, only the lead guitarist was noteworthy in any way. Sadly we couldn't stay for Peatbog Faeries, both being knackered from staying up late for the Oysterband.
Saturday had some great acts on, including Richard Digance, Devon Sproule, Richard Thompson (Patrick wasn't impressed but I think he's brilliant), Vin Garbutt (relatively sober), Jackie Leven, the Demon Barber Roadshow (excellent new songs, and great clog/rapper/Cotswold morris dancing).
Sunday was somewhat uninspiring, so we spent most of the day doing things around the house.However we did pop across to Farleigh Hungerford to see Hard Travelers and Hotel Palindrone from Austria. Hard Travelers were somewhat uncoordinated, it being only their fourth gig together (why then were they given the main stage?) but have the makings of a good band - Woody Guthrie goes rock!!
The funloving guys from Hotel Palindrone noticed some French dancing experts in the audience (the same ladies who had taught us a few dances at Cyser's gig in Bath), so they endeavoured to play mazurkas, schottisches or tunes suitable for other French dances. Albin even jumped off the stage to teach us an Austrian dance! However there wasn't a huge audience as most people had gone to see Don McLean in the main tent. Wouldn't it have been funny if Steve Knightley had been invited on stage to join in with "American Pie" - he'd never live it down, given the opening verse of 'Roots'!
A good end to a superb festival, can't believe I've never been tempted to go before!

3 Daft Monkeys/Show of Hands in Cardiff

As part of the Welsh Proms some enlightened individual had decided to book three West Country acts (although most were fellow Celts, being from Cornwall). The 3 Daft Monkeys seemed somewhat overwhelmed at being in St David's Hall, which is a grand venue and where I was presented with my degree fifteen years ago(!!) They started off with a song based on the traditional Cornish tune 'Ryb An Afon' which went down really well with the audience. The superb acoustics meant Athene's violin skills and Tim's lyrics could be much more appreciated than any other 3DM gig I've been to. The audience also dutifully swayed along to 'Social Vertigo'!
After 3DM came Fisherman's Friends, the Port Isaac male choir who were exactly what I expected - a small choir from a Cornish village singing sea shanties. Good but stage banter but somewhat risque for Cardiff!
Show of Hands were next up, and soon got the audience singing along to 'Cousin Jack' (for which Fisherman's Friends and Paul Downes joined them), 'Haul Away Joe' and even 'Roots'! They got a standing ovation at the end which has become almost expected now. 3 Daft Monkeys joined everyone on stage for the encore, which was a close-harmony rendition of 'Haul Away The Anchor' - possibly the first time Tim had sung a sea shanty?
Well worth the drive out to Cardiff once more.

Finally moved house!

Yes, we're finally in! All there is to do is return to clean the flat, then post the keys back to the landlord.
It took several Micra carloads to get all of our stuff into the new house, and at the moment the lounge is piled up with cardboard boxes. We are still a little short on furniture, as we moved from a furnished flat. When book shelves arrive on Friday we should be able to put most of our huge collection of books away!
It is a lovely little house, with not much that needs doing - the back garden will be the big thing, as it's just gravelled over at the moment. Patrick is looking enthusiatically at sheds!
In breaks we managed to visit the Royal Oak Folk Music and Beer Festival (our new local). Sadly we missed Mike Scott, though we bought one of his CDs that were on offer at the bar. We also missed Kerr/Fagan/Harbron/Burton but I expect we wouldn't have got into the pub! We did manage to see Hilary Pavey and Dave Totterdell, Amy and Fiddler's John and Stanton Delaplane who were all very good.
On Saturday we met up with some of Cardiff Branch of CAMRA who were doing a pub crawl of Bath, was very good to see some of the old crowd again. Beer of the festival was definitely the superbly hoppy 'Cruel Summer' by Mallinsons, which we sampled on Sunday as we celebrated moving in!

Priddy Good Day

Went to Priddy Folk Festival on Sunday - I really wanted to see Martha Tilston and the Woods, as I hadn't seen them for ages. We just about got there on time for Martha, who was excellent. The crowd was quite small due to a clash with a guided walk, but she brought the house down with 'All the Angels' and 'Artificial'. Martha told us she was carrying a little person - let's hope the baby inherits the Tilston folk gene too.
Sieze The Day were the discovery of the festival - hard-hitting folk-protest with a bit of pagan mysticism thrown in for good measure. They have obviously been touring for a long while - surprised I hadn't come across them before. Patrick bought the live album which is great - my favourite track is 'Designer Baby' but you might want to cover a little-one's ears as it gets quite graphic!!
Nancy Kerr and James Fagan were very good, the sound was far better than last time we saw them. They had a very different set and some new songs for us - which were very enjoyable. Mike Scott, whom we'd seen before at the Bath Folk Club as a floor spot act, was very popular and proved that you can have a folk song about how good in bed you are!! Everyone sang along to 'Old Ones Still Doing It' too. Dubious...
All in all it's a good little festival, at the heart of the little village, with a variety of things for people to do as well as listen to music. Hope to be back for the whole weekend next year!

Seth Lakeman at the Cheese and Grain, Frome

As it was pouring with rain after work, Patrick and I decided to explore a couple of pubs in Frome before the gig. The Globe was all right, and we had a cold pint of Butcombe Bitter before heading off in search of food and more beer. Heading up the hill, I spotted a Blindman's Brewery pub, the Lamb Inn, with a notice in the window displaying meal times. The Beer Nose said YES and indeed there were 8 handpumps with mostly beer from Blindman's, a couple of guests from other micros and Rich's Farmhouse Cider. We noticed the unusual pies and sausages on the specials boards - I had a prawn and spring onion pie and Patrick had a Chicken Jalfrezi pie - both surprisingly delicious. Apparently they had their pie machine specially brought down from Bolton - I bet that pleases Patrick! We also bought a 2 pint takeout of the cider to drink later but it leaked out of it's carton - we will bring the proper carrykeg next time!
We had to queue up outside the Cheese and Grain till 8pm as the rain fell harder, but the reward was a standing space almost at the front. We didn't like the support act - not that she was a bad singer or guitarist, but she played Janis Joplin style blues-rock which was totally different to Seth's style of music and not really our thing. Seth came on at about 9.30 but we had to leave at about 10.45 as I was getting very tired. I did insist on staying for 'Kitty Jay' though! I wonder how many fiddle bows Seth gets through in a tour - the bow started to resemble two pony tails on a stick by the time he'd finished! I also liked the new song 'Haunt You' cowritten by Steve Knightley - but it reminded me of a certain person's strange behaviour that I've been hearing about...obviously not that happy with her new partner if she needs to pester her ex!! I need to buy the album. It's great that it's No. 8 in the charts but we folkies need to get it to No. 1, I think.
A great evening and Seth and his band were on top form. He needs to get on the stage earlier next time though ;-)

Saul Folk and Boat Festival

The weather was not kind to Saul, but kinder than last year when the Festival had to be cancelled due to the site being flooded! During the downpours, everyone crammed in to the excellent beer tent, the Drum and Monkey, and listened to whoever was playing in there (usually a blues guitarist or a skiffle band).
Oysterband and Show of Hands were headlining - two of our favorite bands! The Oysterband have apparently been playing for 30 years now - how they still find that amazing creative energy in their performance and music I don't know! The sound was excellent at their gig and we did some pretty wild dancing up in the mosh pit. Our friends Ian and Janet, who were staying with us on the narrowboat (now in it's new moorings just opposite the festival site) also enjoyed the Oysterband, despite not being folkies.
Sadly they could not stay for Show of Hands - a lot of people decided to head off on Sunday because of the weather, but the main tent was still absolutely packed when Show of Hands appeared on stage. They must have brought a lot of their fans from the West Country with them! Steve and Phil were somewhat cheeky to do a medley of about 5 songs when they'd been told they could do one more - but the stage manager was out of order to shout at them during an instrumental. The crowd were going wild and we soon drowned him out with our singing!! I hope Steve and Phil were not too offended and come back again next year.
It was also a pleasure to see Mawkin again but not too sure about Mr Causley. He had a nice voice but seemed to have a bit of a huge ego - and made quite a few mistakes. Maybe we just caught him on an off day. Ruth Notman was on very good form, she has matured as an artist a great deal since I last saw her. Poor sound spoiled Kerr Fagan Harbron's performance which was a shame (we were sat at the back which didn't help) - I know how good they can be when the sound's good! Patrick enjoyed Kevin Brown, a chap from Lancashire who plays blues guitar and composes his own songs - the luxurious location of the Cromwell paddle-steamer's lounge seemed just the right place to listen to him somehow.
Very good festival and the rain didn't spoil it at all for us!

More news

Have just passed my Driving Theory Test and picked up the keys for our new house in Oldfield Park, Bath from the estate agents. And it's a year since Patrick and I became boyfriend and girlfriend (although we'd been friends for 17 years beforehand - well you can't rush these things!!)
A momentous day indeed ;)

Middlewich 2008

Back again, this time with Narrowboat! It was great staying on Ripple and going to the Folk and Boat Festival. Simon and Jane found a superb mooring not far from Patrick's first home in Booth Lane.
The music was good this year, though I think Big Session had creamed off some of the top folk acts. Middlewich still managed to bag the Churchfitters, an Anglo-Celtic band from France, whose bassist makes his own instruments out of saucepans, hacksaw blades etc. Brilliant, as I knew they would be!
Uiscedwr were the highlight of Saturday, with Cormac Byrne's stunning bodhran playing winning him my vote as top folk musician in the world once more. And the band have a great sense of fun too. Good to see Anna, their lead singer, looking so well after her bone marrow transplant. No more blood transfusions - she must be so pleased! Patrick liked Devon Sproule, but she was far to pretty and talented for my liking ;) He also liked the unexpected Aussie, Rory Ellis, with his hardbitten blues and protest songs.
Lau were superb and got a standing ovation at the end of their set. They play with such passion and skill that they win over even the most picky of folkies. And who better to finish of the festival than the Peatbog Faeries with their dancy trancey Scottish tunes?
Booze and food were good too with delicious homemade pizzas being cooked at the festival site, good meals at the Narrowboat pub, and real ale scrumpy cider available in the beer tent (I sampled large amounts of Timothy Taylor Landlord and Ty Gwyn Cider - mmm!)
Numbers seemed a bit down on last year, maybe due to the economic downturn, but still great fun and very good for Middlewich.

Vertical Gardening

Patrick and I are members of the Somersetshire Coal Canal Society, and we help keep the old canal looking beautiful by turning up to work parties and removing any plant growth that might be covering the locks or hiding them from view, get a bit of water flowing through some of them, etc. Hence 'vertical gardening'. Bob is in charge of the work parties and Richard is the chief tree-feller, whilst Adrian is chief fire-starter and tea maker!
This Sunday we were clearing away trees around the bottom lock at Combe Hay so that there could be a nice view from the footpath up the flight towards the Bull's Nose. The work was quite hard, involving dragging felled branches across the newly-filled bottom pound, but was worth it for the final result - a stunning view, of which Adrian and Patrick took quite a few photographs. A few of us were resting on our laurels (no pun intended!) after a hard afternoon's work when we noticed that a tree overhanging the footpath was rustling and inching downwards. We carried on talking as the tree inched downwards a little more, then Richard advised us to get out of the way as the tree was about to fall! The tree fell across the public footpath, and Richard set about chopping it up for firewood. Bob went to inform the landowners, who were only too pleased to have the problem dealt with and receive some firewood for their stove.
Later, as we chatted about our near miss, we noticed a tiny baby fieldmouse by the gate. He seemed totally unfazed by the huge humans standing around making cooing noises - perhaps we were just far too big for him to comprehend. Eventually he disappeared back into the undergrowth. Aww!
Quite eventful for a vertical gardening session!

Singers night at Bath Folk Club

As I'd never been to a singer's night before I thought I'd pop along to Widcombe Social Club and see what it was all about. I was somewhat taken aback to find Nancy Kerr on the ticket desk but she was very welcoming and assured me that if I sang people wouldn't mind if I wasn't a professional, as it was just a bit of fun and a singalong. However a lot of the singers were professional, not a bad singer amongst them, unlike the usual folk club fayre! GOOD you might say, but I got the impression that the stereotypical toothless old boy in the corner of pub wouldn't have been welcome - maybe by Nancy but not by Louise! To my mind, the old boy in the pub, who knows more folk songs than I've had hot dinners, and perhaps comes from a long line of local singers, is what English folk music is all about.
I felt that it was really Louise's talent spotting night for the Bath folk club and, despite the best efforts of Nancy as compere, wasn't that inclusive.
Oh the song I sang - 'Country Boy' after the singing of Eliza Carthy (and Anna Tabbush)! It seemed to go down well although my voice began to shake and get fainter in the second verse due to nerves. I'm glad I chose one that most people know. The lovely lady from Cloudstreet, Nicole Murray, even joined in with a harmony!! I just had to buy Cloudstreet's live album, 'Clouds on the Road' after hearing Nicole close the evening with a fantastic song 'Time is a Tempest'.
A good evening - but I don't think I'll be going to Singers' Night in Widcombe again.

New Job!

Good news - I've finally found gainful employment after 2 months as a 'kept woman'. The new job is with Sun Chemicals in Radstock, making up samples of specialist ink. I'm enjoying working in a lab again, and I'm with a nice friendly team.
Trouble is, I'm now at work while the heat wave continues!!

Su Hart and Friends at the Bell, Bath

And now for something completely different!
Su Hart, my new choir leader, told us she'd be launching her first solo album at the Bell this Monday. Having heard her with the group Baka Beyond I knew I'd be in for a treat. The Bell is a superb venue as well, although perhaps not for an album launch night - most of the punters are just after free background music and a few beers (superb range of real ales by the way - I had RCH Pitchfork which I hadn't had in a long time - delicious!). The sound quality was very good, and as the band started more and more people started to pile in. Inevitably most of the choir turned up to see Su but a lot of other locals also arrived - perhaps notified by mobile phone from their mates already in the pub "There's this fantastic band on tonight, get yourself down here ASAP!" With the exception of Robb Johnson they were probably in an entirely different league to the usual bands at the Bell.
The exuberant mixture of Celtic, African and Carribean influenced songs soon got people dancing - including myself and Patrick. A crowd of people collected in front of the stage, and as the Bell is quite small things soon became rather cramped. A man in a turban type thingy was doing some very enthusiastic dancing, he seemed to know all the words and later joined the band on stage for one number.
We did buy the album as well, of course. It's called "Worth It After All". Patrick's favourite track is Zombie Jamboree (a bit different to the Spinners' version) - he can't stop singing it. I like The Great Valerio - but then I would!! You can buy it online at www.baka.co.uk
I'd also recommend seeing Baka Beyond or Su Hart and Friends live - you're guaranteed a good time!

Roy Bailey and John Kirkpatrick at Bridgewater

Roy Bailey is not doing bad, seeing as he's the same age as my Dad and is enjoying his 50th year on the folk music scene. As Patrick said, it's a shame you can't put preservation orders on people! His compassion and practical socialism always sweeps me away when I hear his songs and stories - even his children's songs are touching in the way that he can relate to children as another marginalised section of the community. And he makes everyone sing along - even the large tatooed man in the same row as us was singing 'You Need Skin' - in a very macho way :D
Was pleased when Roy sang a song about a coal barge - which sprang a leak to the crew's consternation and finally dropped it's cargo out of it's rotten hull. Not an uncommon occurrence, apparently! He also sang some of my old favourites like I Ain't Afraid and The Poison Train, also liked some of the older songs that I hadn't heard before, like The Road to Dundee.
John Kirkpatrick , the Sultan of Squeeze himself, stunned the audience with his musicianship yet complemented Roy's work well. John sang a few songs on his own such as The Green Willow (traditional) and a song about a rather fierce St George written by John himself.
I had a great time remembering the radical days of my youth (as per David Ferrard's song) - long may John and Roy continue!

Seth Lakeman at Cardiff Student Union

Very strange to be back in my old Student Union. I haven't been there since 1996, when I had my first wedding reception disco in the Staff Dining Club!
Its music venue which I knew as the Hanging Gardens is now Solus. It was all quite dark in there, with black parachute-style curtains hanging from the ceiling. Seth suffered from bad sound at the start - we couldn't hear his introductions for the songs, let alone his singing! The sound improved as the gig went on, but it was still not very good.
Seth played a lot of his early stuff, including the famous Kitty Jay, Setting of the Sun (his take on the Molly Bond ghost song), Fight for Favour, Rifle Men of War and Take No Rogues. Of course his mining disaster song, The Colliers, was best received with the predominantly Welsh audience.
Though I loved Kitty Jay and Freedom Fields, I thought Seth's new material was a bit disappointing. Poor Man's Heaven seemed a bit patronising and the song about the stone circle a bit run-of-the-mill. Perhaps it's inevitable that later albums seem samey - it must be hard to be as innovative with each album.
That said, Seth still has a huge following for a folk artist, and has doubtlessly introduced folk music to a lot of younger people who would otherwise have regarded folk music as naff. More strength to his fiddling elbow!

Show of Hands at Pontardawe

Could be trouble here, I thought, Show of Hands playing in Wales on St Georges Day, in Kim Howells' constituency! Sure enough Steve didn't hold back and sang 'Roots', naming Mr Howells as the minister guilty of making the infamous derogatory remark about Somerset folk singers. Cheers to Steve from me, especially now that I am one, sort of! The locals loved the song though, it received a huge round of applause. 'Country Life' and 'Cutthroats, Crooks and Conmen' but especially 'Cousin Jack' the Cornish miner's song, seemed to strike a chord with the audience.

Show of Hands played one of the best sets I've heard from them from a long time, including most of my favourites. This may well be because they have released a 'Best Of' album - most of which I agree with. Trouble is, Steve has written so many good songs that it must have been very difficult to select a double album's worth! Miranda Sykes joined Steve and Phil later, playing Double Bass and added her beautiful voice in duet with Steve for 'Blue Cockade'. The band seemed in good spirits, telling some jokes which at least Patrick hadn't heard before - glad to see Steve looking happier, although he still must be very worried about his son, Jack, who is still in hospital with Leukaemia. Phil is doing a sponsored slim to raise money for Jack's hospital amongst other causes - sponsorship forms available at gigs.

Once more Steve and Phil raised the roof - they are getting quite a following in Pontardawe!

Narrowboating - a relaxing holiday?

We had our first proper holiday on Ripple last week, with the aim of taking her from Bosley Locks to the Lancaster via the Ribble Link. Things didn't start well as I'd twisted my knee while out walking, and struggled with opening locks, climbing onto the roof etc.

Patrick's parents met us at the top of Bosley Locks, having moved the boat there from its moorings at High Lane, and we had a good time going through the locks and admiring the beautiful scenery around there, including Bosley Cloud. A little creature ran in front of me, perhaps a bank vole, before changing it's mind and disappearing into a hedge. We moored at Congleton, near the excellent Queen's Head, which has a variety of unusual real ales, including Centurion's Ghost and Cottage Whippet (Dark Whippet?). I also had a very good Chicken Jalfrezi curry there. Then it was off to the Beartown Tap for some more good beer including one of my all time favourites, Kodiak Gold.

So far so relaxing but drama was to come. Wind speeds began to pick up and I made a hash of turning the corner at Hardings Wood Junction. As Patrick tried to rectify the mistake, backing towards the bridge, he shouted - and I noticed that the wooden tiller handle had snapped! There was a worring moment for me till I noticed his hand was OK and had only been grazed on one finger against the bridge.

Next stop was Sandbach, a market town with a surprisingly large number of pubs - we stopped for a pint of Robinson's Unicorn at the Market Tavern, with 4 other pubs within sight (as well as the interesting Stone Crosses), and pies at the local bakery. We also discovered an Armenian delicatessen and off-licence which boasted that it stocked every available whisky in the UK! We were given expresso and fruit juice as we pondered the vast range of spirits, beers and ciders before choosing Jura Superstition, Auchtentoshan 10-year old, Wentworth's Rampant Gryphon and Oatmeal Stout and Sheppys organic cider. We also got the world's strongest cider given free by the manager, who could see we appreciated our booze! We also couldn't resist a baclava-type dessert which we devoured back on the boat.

We moored overnight at Middlewich and dined at our favourite romantic spot, the Narrowboat - food as superb as ever. Next morning we bought a swanky Rosewood tiller handle for Ripple and headed off past the Anderton Lift to moor at Preston Brook, and visited the Tunnel Top (no real ale but good food).

The Bridgewater canal was a bit of a different experience, heading through the more genteel Cheshire villages, nice and wide but with less facilities for pleasure boats than the British Waterways canals. Another good stop at Grappenhall Village, very pretty with 2 lovely pubs - the Ram's Head and the Parr Arms. The route through Manchester was uneventful, apart from disturbing a stoat sitting on a discarded sofa (no doubt wishing for beer, telly and a ciggie!).

We met Ian and Toby at the Barton Swing Aqueduct, which duly swung, giving our guests an impressive sight at the start of their trip. Patrick got wery wery dwunk in Wigan - the moral of this story, never try to keep up with Ian drinking!

Ian and Toby's help proved invaluable as the wind speeds continued to pick up - the lock gates on the Rufford Branch were tricky, and the unusual paddles also took time to unlock with the one remaining anti-vandal key (keys detest Patrick and make their way away from him quickly and secretly). As soon at the boat slowed, it would ground itself on the far bank and refuse to budge. At one point it took both Ian and Patrick pulling on the centre rope to pull it off again. Patrick insisted on steering through the locks, as Ripple at 62ft long would only just fit. It was a relief to reach Tarleton, where we were reunited with Patrick's parents and the car.

Next morning we discovered that the previous night's crossings had been cancelled due to the high winds, so there was a long queue at the lock into the River Douglas. Ripple was right at the back, and went through the lock with a red narrowboat that we planned to follow. As soon as we were out of the lock Patrick realised just how strong the tidal pull was (the tide was against us). We made very slow progress down the river,on the right hand side away from the main pull of the tide, however the red boat was still in sight. When we turned into the Ribble, Ripple lurched alarmingly and people started to wonder if they could swim to the bank! However Patrick remained in control at the tiller, and we rounded the Asland Lamp successfully. Progress was painfully slow up the Ribble, with the winds directly against us, the tide turning and at one point hail started to come down. The red narrowboat soon disappeared out of sight. Patrick confessed later that he was quite stressed at this point - we were going at about 1 1/2 miles per hour and if we had started moving backwards we would have had to call for help. British Waterways called us whilst we were perhaps half a mile away to tell us that they were running out of water, and were closing the lock at Savick Brook. They told us to head for Preston Dock. My heart sank at this point, as the weather was getting worse if anything! Further up the Ribble the river noticeably narrowed and progress became slightly easier. The open lock gates at Preston Dock were a welcome sight! The staff at the Marina were very good to us - they let us moor in the lock itself as the marina itself was quite choppy, and gave us a key to the showers. Steam trains ran across the nearby swing bridge, to Patrick's Dad's delight. There was a nice pub nearby called the Waterfront, which had a carvery and a good pint of Taylor Landlord.

Next morning we had to hang about for high tide - then the lock keeper opened the top entrance and the swing bridge so that we could turn round in the basin (the lock was slightly too small at 65ft across). Then it was down the lock again and on to the Ribble, this time the weather was pleasant so that bit was quite easy! Once through the first lock on the Savick Brook we had to wait again for the tide to lower, so that Ripple could get under the bridges - but the brook was very narrow and twisty-turny, so that Ripple kept grounding in the middle as we steered round corners. We had to reverse up the 3 staircase-locks due to Ripple's length, which was again quite scary but Patrick managed well. Then at last we moored on the Lancaster Canal and prepared for Patrick's parents to take over. Poor old Patrick then had to drive all the way back from Preston to Bath, and our troubles were not over yet - Junction 21A was closed on the M6 so we had to do a tour of the Cheshire countryside. We finally arrived home about 11pm.

Glad I'm not working at the moment - I'd need another holiday to recover from that one!!

Bath Folk Club - First Concert

Patrick and I are delighted to now have a Folk Club within walking distance, at the Widcombe Social Club at the foot of Widcombe Hill. As well as the fine music that's on offer they also sell real ale and chippy tea! What more could one ask.
The club has been set up by the VERY enthusiastic Lou and Marek, with a lot of help and support from a certain Nancy Kerr and James Fagan, who are based nearby. Of course they played a few songs before the main act, Crucible, came on - and gave a very powerful performance.
Crucible, a foursome from Sheffield, were also very good - a mixture of acapella singing, English and Celtic dance music and folk-rock numbers. Very good fiddles, bagpipes, guitar and melodeon, which the band also made use of at the jamming session before the performances started. Nancy and James joined the band for the last few numbers, which they'd rehearsed together aboard the Fagans' boat. I got up and danced at the end, along with Lou and friends!
Seems like the Bath Folk Club will be a young and fun venue (and there's not many English folk clubs you can say that about!!) so I'm looking forward to the next concert - a French folk band called Cyser.

Wedding Plans

I'm very excited today - I've bought a wedding dress! I can tell you I found it at Clifton Brides in Bath, and that it is a very unusual colour, but other than that my lips are sealed!!
I thought I'd discuss the flowers with our local florist today, but she wanted to know the exact colour of the dress, but I haven't got a swatch (that's a bit of the same material, not a kind of watch, for all you males out there). I did request a swatch so that the bridesmaids and pageboys will match (or at least tone well) but I've no idea when it will arrive.
We have already booked the venue (The West Barn, Bradford-on-Avon) and registrars, given our Notice at the Bath Registry Office, booked the Wedding Breakfast at the Swan Hotel in Bradford-on-Avon and the evening boat trip aboard the Barbara McLellen, which is owned by the Kennet and Avon Canal Trust. So the next things to organise will be flowers, photographer and car.
At the moment I'm having a small glass of Malmsey and some Easter egg to celebrate!

Oysterband at Pontardawe

Strange to be back in South Wales again, especially for a folk gig! The staff at Pontardawe Arts Centre were really friendly and welcoming, and we met Jane, a friend from pre-divorce days, who hadn't met Patrick yet. She is from Swindon where the Oysterband were playing the following night, so she was going to two gigs in a row - sign of a true fan!
A pleasant surprise was that Dan Donnelly was playing support - he has stood in for Simon Friend of the Levellers before, and also writes some very good songs. His takeoff of David Gray went down well with the crowd, unlike at the gig in Narberth where David Gray comes from! Apparently David's brother was in the crowd and was ddim hapis, as they say in Wales.
The set was mainly from their latest album, Meet You There, with a few of the fan's favourites such as Native Son and Northern Lights thrown in. Mindyou the songs from the new album are, in my opinion, some of the finest they've written - I especially like The Flood and Bury Me Standing - and agree with the sentiments. The whole band descended into the mosh pit and sang and played acoustic IN the crowd for the encore, Put Out The Lights (on London City). We had a great view as we'd arrived quite early and bagged front spots! Another amazing experience courtesy of the Oysterband.

Egg Shopping

After doing the boring-but-necessary stuff like registering with a doctor and a dentist and searching the net for jobs, I wandered into Bath for easter egg shopping. Now sorted! Looking forward to Easter.
This picture made me laugh - I love Lolcats

Lancashire Hotpots at Telford's Wharf

We've recently been to see the Lancashire Hotpots down at Telford's Wharf in Chester. They sing comedy songs, mostly about technology and modern life in Lancashire, in broad Lancashire accents - Patrick is a big fan as both of his parents are from Lancashire.
We were somewhat frustrated at first, because Patrick thought the Telford's Wharf website had advertised the live music as starting at nine, whereas in fact the band didn't come on till 10.30pm. Still, the real ale at Telford's Wharf is delicious (I reccommend the Cheshire Cat) and the piped music was acceptable. The Lancashire Hotpots were on great form, they were having a really good time and so were we. Because Patrick and I had got there early we had a front row spot, and were happily dancing away and singing along. They played Patrick's favourites including 'Oh No, He's Gone Emo' and 'Chippy Tea', which he can't stop singing now, plus a few new ones such as 'The Chav Song' and 'Tha's Got For Get SatNav'.
We bought their album 'Never Mind the Hotpots' - Patrick can't stop playing it in the car! The only song I'm dubious about is 'Lancashire Town' - a modern take on clone towns in the North West, which ends with the singer moving to Coventry. Surely this will isolate the Hotpots' fan base of loyal Lancastrians? Move back, immediately!!!
All in all, a grand night out, and a good laugh too!

Bath Life

Hi all
Finally I'm back on the internet again! As there's no phone line or wireless system in our rented flat here in Bath, I needed a mobile connection which the knackered old PC from Farnborough couldn't cope with. As it's essential to be online these days for job searching, Patrick bought me a Compaq Presario C500 laptop, which is fab, and only £275 ex-demo from a computer fair in Tottenham Court Road. He also bought a Vodaphone Mobile Connection which has good reception here - it only works at dial-up speed but it will get me by till we buy a house together and can get broadband again.
Before that, Patrick and I had visited the Terracotta Warriors at the British Museum - a fascinating exhibition. The scale of the First Emperor's tomb, the wealth and the insight into the ancient Chinese way of life was awesome. I had thought that the figures were of warriors only - but there were also musicians, birds, acrobats and even civil servants buried with the Emperor. The tomb was based on the Chinese idea of the Universe (as the Emperor considered himself ruler of the whole Universe!) included a river of mercury - scary! I bought a little kneeling archer as a souvenir.
The main reason for going into London was to meet up with Emma and Ting - Emma is my oldest friend that I'm still in contact with. We had a quick snack in a cafe nearby, then headed off to Queensway to try to get into a bowling alley, unsuccessfully! Then it was off to Chinatown for a real Chinese meal. It was great to see Emma and Ting again, swap stories about holidays and reminisce about school days again.

Last Day at Work

Oo, I'm getting all sniffly now! It will be my leaving presentation in a few minutes. Sad to leave as I've been with BRI for nearly 8 years, and made some very good friends. Keep in touch, folks!

Madiera Holiday

I have been on holiday in Madiera - my first holiday with Patrick. We had a very relaxing time, with plenty of room for spontanaety - there were things in the guidebooks we wanted to experience but we didn't plan every minute of every day, and we weren't trying to cram too much in.
The levada walks in Madiera are a must for anyone that enjoys hiking - but be warned, they are not all easy, level water channels! Some drop at quite a gradient so you can get rather out of breath trying to reach the source of a levada.
We found a couple in the mountains, graded 'moderate' by the Sunflower guide. We also did an excellent walk along Maderia's eastern peninsula. Photos will appear in the gallery but it could take quite some time, as I won't have a broadband internet connection for several months now!
We stayed at the San Pedro hotel in Garajau, which had an excellent restaurant, the Touricalo, just opposite, so we ate there most nights. I can recommend the Espetada (marinated beef on a skewer)! For a change we also ate out in Arsenio's in Funchal's old town, where we were serenaded by excellent Fado singers.
As for the Madiera wine - we had a great time at Blandy's Wine Lodge in Funchal! After the tour we were invited to taste 4 different kinds of Madiera, the Bual and Malmsey (medium-sweet and sweet) being our favourites. Of course we've brought a few bottles back with us! Funchal is great for a wet day (they do have them in Madiera, despite what the brochures say), it's a pretty town and there are some superb museums and galleries, as well as plenty of places to eat.
Madiera is a beautiful island with some lovely gardens and challenging walks, but there's not a lot to do for families or teenagers. Which is why it's nice and quiet for the older visitors (we were amongst the youngest at breakfast in the hotel)!

Train Leaving Doo

Well, I'm now firmly ensconced in the student accommodation at work, for a month before I move to Bath, as I need to work my notice. Shortest commute ever, as the Cottage is just 30 seconds walk from the laboratory door. It's good to be out of Rectory Road but not as good as living with Patrick will be!
Made it into work dead on nine, with half a cup of coffee in me this morning. Boy am I hung over.
It was a brilliant night last night at the Home Cottage, I arrived at the pub at about 6pm after having done some shopping in Sainsburys. I had a pint of Youngs Bitter and a beef stir-fry which was on special offer at the pub to celebrate Chinese New Year - was just about to give up at 7 thinking no-one was coming when Andy turned up and bought me the last Double Chocolate Stout, and assured me Richard was also turning up, which he did a little later. The three of us had a really good chinwag (and I had 2 pints of Bombardier which was surprisingly good) till 9 when the pub quiz started and Nigel turned up, then the 4 of us decided to form a quiz team as it was free to enter...someone bought me a double whisky which finished me off! ‘Peter’s Pansies’ came bottom of the quiz teams but was a good laugh.

Decree Absolute

Found my Decree Absolute waiting for me after I returned from Chester/Marple visit last Sunday. It came almost by return of post since I requested it, amazingly quick considering how long every other legal process in the divorce seems to have taken! Patrick pointed out that it was a year to the day since he caught Kevin and Ugly holding hands in the CAMRA minibus, and guessed that their relationship was in danger of wrecking our marriage.
More later about Chester - too busy packing to do much blog updating at the moment! I'm moving out on February 6th :)

I had been to Chester before with Kevin and Keith, and remembered that I really liked it. We arrived by train in order to pick up my new (second-hand) Nissan Micra from Marple on Sunday, and took the taxi to the Telford's Wharf pub. Unfortunately it was music night and they were charging £4 admission. We quickly legged it across town to the excellent Bear and Billet instead, where we had some wonderful Cheshire Cat and Okells IPA, and also had fun with the Pringles dispenser!
The hotel was nice, Express by Holiday Inn was it's rather long-winded name, it was right by the racecourse/old Roman harbour with good views of the track. We had a good night's sleep then Patrick headed off for his freight meeting and I headed off for the sales! There were plenty of bargains in the beautiful two-tiered shops, trouble was I was rather broke, so I confined myself to a 60-litre Karrimor rucksack for £30, a gold coloured watch with my £40 worth of H. Samuel vouchers, and a skirt and top from Monsoon, £10 each.
Then it was back to the much quieter Telford's Wharf to watch the world go by with a nice pint of ale, and wait for Patrick's meeting to finish.
Raced across town to get the train to Frodsham where Patrick's friend Sharon lives, but missed it by one minute! Chester station is very bad for passenger information. Waited an hour for the next train, in an adequate pub nearby. Sharon had cooked us an excellent meal which she'd had to keep warm for us. After very pleasant evening we caught the last connecting train back to Marple - but the train from Oxford Road broke down just outside the station!! Finally got to Marple about 1am, very tired.
Chester was very enjoyable once more - I'm sure we will be back soon, probably by boat!

All Change

Well, the Financial Order for my divorce came through yesterday - Kevin now has 28 days to hand over the dosh, then I can move out of Rectory Road - fantastic! I've instructed my solicitors to apply for the Decree Absolute, will have to orgasinse a Divorce Party when it arrives!
I also handed in my notice at work, leaving on the 29th February. I will be a kept woman for a while till I find a job near to Bath where Patrick lives. Some of my colleagues were more surprised than others!
Also, my train friends said I must have a train leaving doo. So, parties all round soon :)

Whittlesea Straw Bear Festival

First festie of the year at Whittlesey near Peterborough. A man dresses as a bear using 5 stone of the finest straw, then dances through town (3 times - different routes), then the bear is burnt the next day (minus the dancer) to celebrate the New Year. These days the procession is accompanied by all sorts of Morris dancers (over 40 sides this year) and there are folk concerts and ceilidhs in the evenings and at lunchtime, also a couple of baby Straw Bears, I'm guessing inhabited by local schoolboys! There is also a blessing of the plough held at the local church.
We arrived on Friday night to attend the folk concert, which included Flossie Malavialle, whose powerful voice and quirky sense of humour had impressed me at Fareham and Gosport Folk Festival. She sang in both English and French, the French songs including Edith Piaf and Jaques Brel numbers, the English ones including Janis Joplin, as well as her own emotive material. She went dowm a storm with Patrick and the crowd at Whittlesey - the men in particular I'm guessing!
I recognised Pig Dyke Molly and the Ironmen (a Border side) from previous festivals. I took lots of photos of Pig Dyke Molly as their costumes are amazing and their dances are superb - almost like ballet. The Ironmen were very loud and fierce, frightening a small Molly in the audience. Their "My Uncle Billy" song probably didn't endear them to parents of small children either ;-) The Witchmen were another very entertaining Border side, nice spooky music and impressive dances. Ramrugge and Persephone clog teams were also very interesting - both danced with real bobbins presumably from defunct cotton mills.
Some liken Whittlesea Straw Bear to a pagan pub crawl, as all the Morris sides were scheduled to dance in the local pubs as well. Whittlesey is blessed with a large number of pubs - my favourite was the oddly named Letter B in which some teams were brave enough to do Rapper dancing (very fast sword dancing). However the best beer of the festival had to be the Fenland brewery's Straw Bear ale as served in the Ivy Leaf Club - delicious! Must look out for Fenland beers again.
Of course, as we were staying in Peterborough, I ouldn't resist dragging Patrick to the Oakham Brewery Tap (under threat - please support it!) and also Charters, which I thought must surely impress my man, being a very large Dutch barge with a real ale bar on the bottom floor and a Chinese restaurant on the top floor.
All in all a very interesting and relaxing weekend!

New Year's Resolutions

1. They will not simply be last year's resolutions recycled!
2. I will eat more freshly prepared food. I'm trying to move away from ready meals and frozen pizzas.
3. I will get more exercise - walking, swimming and cycling.
4. I will look to the future and not dwell on past failed relationships
5. I will not eat more than one sweetie a day (difficult, as people keep bringing in their Christmas leftovers to work!)
6. I will only buy things that I need in the sales.

Well that will do for now, can't think of anything else for the moment...

Open Mic Night at Farnham Maltings

Was good to be back in the town of my forebears once more, nd in the Maltings where I've had lots of good times thanks to Darren Beech, the organiser of the folking.com events of a Wednesday. Who knows, when the ex and his woman (who attend every folk gig they possibly can) are on holiday I might sneak over again. On Friday the pair were well out of the way in Birmingham so Patrick and I headed for the open mic night and some very nice Triple fff Maltings Ale down in the Cellar Bar
I was very pleased to see Anthea Neads, an ex member of my choir, Guildford Vox. She has a stunning voice and writes lovely songs - we miss her at choir but obviously can't stand in the way of her solo career. Anthea was first on, and gave a really good performance. I especially liked 'Castle Town' a song about Guildford.
Other highlights included Anthea's friend Lesley Spiers a good guitarist. Sean Lewis seemed to be in a different league with his stunning Spanish Guitar playing and soulful songs (annoyingly, he doen't seem to have a website, or I'd put a link in!). Harbour, a folk band from Farnham, were very enjoyable, I'll be looking out for them in the future. Their fiddle player told a rather rude joke though!
All in all a good night out - despite the inevitable Farnham Maltings false fire alarms, which always happen when it's hissing with rain...

First Footer

Happy New Year everyone!
I've had a really good Christmas, very busy, visiting various friends and family members. I spent Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with my parents, travelling up from Patrick's flat in Bath which is not far away from their house in Dorset. My sister was also there, always good to see Shirl. The mantle fell to Patrick to cook the Christmas meal, and he made an excellent job of it - his baked mushroom and stuffing starter is one to be noted for the future! The Waitrose turkey roll was also lovely and succulent.
Had a fantastic walk on Boxing Day with Pam and Chris - Patrick led the walk around Ham Hill Country Park and Montacute village in ideal walking weather, with some glorious views, plenty of historical interest and a good real ale pub, the Prince of Wales, at the end!
Then it was off to Marple for New Year to stay with Patrick's parents, and to do more work on the narrowboat. The new seats for the front had been cut and needed some minor adjustments before being painted and secured. I continued with my job of painting the bathroom. The bad news was, we found that Ripple's 3 batteries fail to hold any charge overnight so they will need replacing. And narrowboat batteries are expensive.
Good whisky and good company on New Year's Eve - as well as Patrick's Mum and Dad, his Auntie Vera and friend Irvin (whose moorings Ripple stays on) stayed up with us till five to midnight, when I got sent out of the house with a slice of bread, a jar of salt, a narrowboat made out of coal and a glass of whisky. I then had to be the 'first footer' back into the house in the New Year, as the darkest person in the house (although female)! It's supposedly a Scottish tradition but it looks like it's found it's way a little further south.
Patrick and I had time to spend one last night together in Dorking before each heading back to work and our (for now) separate abodes. Roll on the day when we can finally live together...