Eccentric Amblings and Ramblings From Gnat Bottomed Towers

 [Image from Pixabay] Something in the back of my noggin reminded me that the Eventbrite website is often the source of some good free events both online and in real time. For starters it's the annual Heritage Open Days week from 9-18th September when all sorts of places open up for free or you can nose around others which aren't normally accessible to the public. I've booked us free tickets for a local event for which you'd normally pay £15pp. Maybe it's a cut down version of the usual one, but it's something new for us and I'm not worried. It's good to have something to look forwards to especially if you're having to work to a tight budget. If you think a weekly post about some aspect of thrifty simple living [minus the pity party or the wearing of hair shirts] would be useful please let me know and I'll see what I can come up with. Other posts will remain of the normal random nature you've come to expect from me. Arilx

 The August bank holiday weekend is one I enjoy, but perhaps not in the way most folk do. As lots of people head out of the door in search of entertainment I use it as the perfect time to pull up the drawbridge and spend some time here at GBT. We've been beavering away slinging meals in the haybox [now even more improved since we pressed TYM's old Deliveroo bag into service as the outer casing] and even me, the reluctant cook, has batch cooked so we only need to put the oven on once this week. Energy price rises are forcing my hand and adopt new habits....if it saves us money then I'm willing to do it. Am hanging around thrift forums like a bad smell and learning loads of tips even though I consider myself a fairly old hand at this gnat bottomed business...I now know that if I run out of custard powder I can make my own with cornflour, sugar and a dash of vanilla for one. The more I can do for myself the more empowered I feel...jars of raspberry jam and peanut butter have n

I'm hoping that is a Common Stinkhorn. It's also known as Phallus Impudicus....naturally😉  Have a great weekend. Arilx

 Hastings...Mr GBT's choice for his birthday before the school holidays began. I call it a curate's egg because the new town is rather run down and you could be on any high street anywhere in the country. The old town is quirky and a delight to explore....no prizes for guessing where we spent the day. We visited all the free museums, but I'd much prefer just to give you a small selection and a taster should you ever choose to head that way. Here is my humble offering of the historical, the interesting, the whimsical and the downright peculiar...in answer to the question I don't know what Elvis would do either😆 This is one of the pieces of work by Leigh Dyer. There were several dotted around the square where people were sitting and enjoying the sunshine. This fabulous shop with its original Victorian frontage still intact is a maker of artificial flowers. There is a small museum on site too. It doesn't open on a Monday, but apparently it's quite often closed eve

At exactly the right moment Youtube put the following talk up on my feed...it is very timely and puts into words many of my personal feelings and views about our society. "Freedom from the money culture" talk given by Lynne Twiste. If you think it may be of interest please do take a look. Arilx

 The Winkle Club [titter ye not!] was established in 1900 by a group of fishermen in Hastings who drank at the same pub and wanted to do their bit to raise money and ease the grinding poverty suffered by some of the town's local children. They took as their symbol the winkle which is found all over the beach there and each member had to carry his own shell [now filled with sealing wax]. Upon being told to "winkle up"everyone had to produce their shell with those who couldn't paying a fine which would go towards their fund raising efforts. The same rules apply today  https://winkleclub.org/about-us/ . Some of the early members sounded proper characters. The King Winkle suit adorned in silver painted  shells was made and worn by Walter 'Slogger"' Hoad and then we have Alfred 'Biddy' Stonham who was not only a fisherman, but also a member of the lifeboat crew. However, he was most well known for the acrobatics he performed on his tub near the pier to

I'm offering up a general chit-chat sort of post...one of those which gently meanders from one thing to another. Tuesday morning is usually the one slot I am work free and I often use it to catch up. Last week I needed a much overdue trip into town so with list in hand I gadded about as quickly as possible with my mind on other things. All of a sudden I was aware that I was worrying away and not paying any attention to what was going on around me. I took my phone out and challenged myself to find some thing of colour and something to amuse me on what was a beautiful sunny day with clear blue skies overhead. Five minutes later I had calmed right down..... Yesterday morning was rather a contrast as we got some much needed showers. Humphrey wasn't a happy boy though because he's terrified of thunder and cowers inside. In fact he's not been a happy boy for a few days. TYM commented how grumpy he was...he bit him and it's virtually unheard of as he's usually one big

As we continue to review our life and budget choices we have been looking at many different options and ideas. Some things we instantly disregard, some we price up and again reject because there are no savings to be made or are more expensive than what we're already doing and others just prove to be impractical. However, I'm a person who deals with things by coming up with workable solutions...it's part of who I am and setbacks don't set me back they just set me off in another direction. Ways of saving fuel is very topical right now and I have often wondered about the viability of a wonderbag or having a haybox. The first option would take a relatively long time to pay off for the savings you would make so I soon discarded that, but I mentioned the latter to Mr GBT. He did the maths and said that it would be worth experimenting with a haybox if we could make one for free. Whilst I might not a great keeper of everything that might come in useful one day, I do recognise t

 It's hot so it's just a quick offering from me today🌞 Have a great weekend. Arilx

 Last month we travelled over to Hampshire to have lunch with Mr GBT's sister. On our last visit I'd discovered that we passed a church with some items of note that I quite fancied having a quick look at. Whilst I wouldn't make a special trip across it seems daft not to just drop in as we were over that way anyway...I promised I'd be no more than ten minutes. Corhampton church is one without dedication, but what is definitely known is that it's Saxon in origin. It also has some rather fine medieval paintings, but I'm sparing you those. One Saxon sundial set into the outside wall. It's made of sandstone which differs from the main fabric of the current building so it's known to predate it. Those leaf shaped motifs on the end of the spokes denote eight "tides" rather than the the twelve hours we're more accustomed to in the modern versions and the hole in the middle would have taken a gnomon. This is a Saxon [or possibly medieval] Sanctuary c

 We have many friends who love music festivals, so through them I have become familiar with the names of some despite never having been to one. This year though Mythago, along with other dance sides, was invited to perform during the day at the Wickham Festival. Many of the side have attended in previous years so were keen to attend [some have stayed the whole weekend], but for us it was perfect because it's within easy reach of home for a day. Time to enjoy the sights and sounds of something new.... In terms of festival scale this one is a little 'un but it's won its fair share of awards in the under 15k festival categories. Being one that really not keen on big peopley events this was perfectly manageable for me. Loved the vibe, watching everyone in their finery and the friendliness of all we met. The final photo is the Marching Skaletons,,,the trombonist even has bones down his trousers. Always had a soft spot for Ska since I was a young teen and this lot were sensationa