Lest We Forget....

A war memorial to the women who worked in my town's hospital during the Great War. I haven't seen many dedicated to the women who worked for the war effort on home soil. This is quietly tucked around the side of a house in the town centre and only came to my attention earlier this year.

The poppies that surround our war memorial to those who so tragically lost their lives in both wars so that we might live in peace. Recently further names have been added as more information has come to light.

On a personal note I've only discovered in the last three years from my Uncle that my Great Grandfather Bill Redman fought in the trenches. He was one of the "lucky" ones who survived but did not escape unscathed. He was gassed and suffered stomach problems for the rest of his life. There's a big age between my Mum and her brother [my Uncle] so she wasn't aware either until I told her. I hope to carry out some more research and find out more.

Arilx

Fungi Foray.

The Sussex Wildlife Trust offers a fabulous programme of free monthly walks around different parts of Sussex. When they're in my neck of the woods and if I'm available I try to attend. I did one back in April http://gnatbottomedtowers.blogspot.co.uk/2014/04/wandering-in-woods-part-one.html and went along again with my chum H yesterday. Everyone is very enthusiastic and generous in sharing their knowledge. I absorb new facts about our beautiful nature like a sponge and with twenty individuals all keeping a lookout many things are spotted. Although not billed as a fungi walk we clapped eyes on some wonderful examples yesterday. Where possible I've put the names against them if others identified them yesterday or if I've seen them either online or in my guide today.

Funnel Caps

Amethyst Deceiver

Penny Bun

Purple disc fungus [maybe]

Artist's Palette Bracket Fungus

Candle Snuff

Yellow jelly fungus

Ivory coral.

At the present time I don't know what the following ones are called. If other people identify them then I shall edit the post to update it!

Arilx

Thinking Outside The Spice Box.

Now you know me. I like to make my wonga stretch as far as possible without reaching for the old hair shirt. It's all about having a good quality of life with treats but done on a shoe string. Saint I ain't! Over the years I've enjoyed working out different ways of meeting challenges and finely honing my lateral thinking skills for it's taken me down all sorts of unexpected avenues and a fair few blind alleys if I am being honest. This is the latest little experiment.

Mr GBT has being doing the 5:2 diet of late and Monday and Thursday are his fasting days. In reality he does eat but much, much less and I try to support him by producing a tasty vegetarian meal that still comes within my GBT grocery budget. The following recipe came to me via a friend but I'll just put the link up http://www.healthy-diet-recipes.co.uk/2011/04/moroccan-rice-and-chickpeas/ My version only differs in that it says use 2tsp of ras el hanout rub. Never having heard of it I rummaged around for in the supermarket aisle. Eventually I found it only to discover that a tiny box was priced at £2.40 and that was on offer! Scrub that I thought....my supermarket site here I come. A quick check proved that it was that expensive elsewhere so by now I could only conclude that it must have pure gold dust in it.

Out of curiousity I googled to find out just what was in this fabled Moroccan spice mix and happened across this
http://www.wikihow.com/Make-Ras-El-Hanout-Spice-Blend Now I buy my herbs and spices for low prices at a couple of discount places in town never from the supermarket and I have a reasonable range. As you will see there's nothing particularly racy in there and a quick check proved that I already had everything in stock. It took me a matter of moments to dry fry the seeds and bash them up in my pestle and mortar. I now have my very own little pot of ras el hanout and yes, I used it in the recipe for supper tonight.

Shall be trying that little wheeze again I think!

Arilx

Harrumphrey Times.

Back again and alas so soon! Yes I have been here but a measly month and yet I have racked up another trip to the vet So, so unfair....I lay down on the table and twinkled at her purring away and without any justification she stuck a nasty needle in my neck. Then to add insult to injury she then unceremoniously plonked me on the scales and officially declared me on the "brink of being stout". I have also been informed that I need to take more exercise.The injustice of it all...I had been operating on the GBT's policy of waste not, want not.....not a scrap has been wasted but now the staff have put me on diet rations. However, emergency measures have been taken....I have attached myself to the fridge door with a piece of elastic so that I can ping into the kitchen at every given opportunity and maximise my chances of an extra, much needed snack. I ensure that I distract Mr GBT every time he heads for the biscuit barrel by getting under his feet....my hope is that he might fall headlong into the fridge and knock out a tasty morsel whilst he's there. He might as well make himself useful.

Anyway I hope you like my selfie....I think I'm a fine figure of a feline. Please leave all messages of support/fanmail in the comments box.

Humphreyx

Timely Reminder.

This has come to my attention. I am still a bit of a people pleaser and on bad days quite convinced I am the most awful person on the planet. Thankfully the gaps between these days are lengthening and I am at the point when I am at my most positive where I even allow myself to think that maybe I am ok. However, old habits die hard and I still spend a great deal of time inside my head going over events and thinking that I have upset or offended people with the things that I have either said or by my actions. It's funny really because I don't regard other people in that light. Awareness is half the battle though I find and I can at least stop some of the destructive patterns these days. So for anyone having a wobble today this is for you!

Arilx

The Local Press.

Back in the day when Margaret Thatcher was on the throne  I studied Arthur Miller's "Crucible" for my degree. One of the things that struck me, aside from the whole travesty of the affair, [rather akin to the Pendle Witch trial methinks] was the excruciating way Giles Corey was executed. In 1692 he was pressed to death by stones being laid upon his chest. It must have been a prolonged and agonising death.

To be honest, since then, other than a fleeting visit to Salem on my honeymoon in 1993, I haven't given the matter any further thought...until earlier this year when I made the time to make a decent length visit to my town's museum and really explore the displays. In passing I notice a reference to a pressing of this nature and that our town has the dubious record of being the last place in the country to carry it out. Fast forward to last week and a sculpture in the window of a local deli caught my eye. Reading the information about it I found that it related to the same individual.

Known as Peine Forte et Dure [somehow even something so horrific sounds more charming when said in French!] it was a rare form of punishment. John Weekes, along with his three accomplices and a young boy, was charged with the murder of one Elizabeth Symonds and robbery. Yet despite stolen goods being found on the men, he refused to speak at his trial. For this he became known as the "dumb man". According to the Wikipedia entry there is a school of thought that says he may have been a mute but eight witnesses testified in court that he could speak. He was not convicted of murder but found guilty of "standing mute through malice instead" and publically executed in 1735. The practice was outlawed in 1778.

Many thanks to Crates of Horsham http://www.crateslocal.co.uk/ for both allowing me to use their information and photo [mine were completely rubbish] of the fantastic sculpture by Catherine Weekes.

Arilx

Footnote: the sculpture has now taken up residence in Horsham's museum so everyone can see it for themselves.

Rainbows at the Rollrights.

Sunday's adventure with Mythago continued at the Rollrights Stones. We had very kindly been invited by the Cotswold Order of Druids to perform at their Samhain ritual. It seemed apt to perform our story of the King's Men as this is the story of the Rollright stones see here for an explanation http://www.rollrightstones.co.uk/index.php/stones/detail/myths-and-legends/

Before we entered the circle the heavens opened but thankfully the skies cleared in time and the sun reappeared. It made the grass very slippery so we were all very cautious when dancing...particularly me because had I gone apex over bustle I would have ended up tumbling into the bonfire. Charred morris dancer is not a look I was going for. It meant our style was a little more restrained that normal! Thankfully there were no mishaps.

This maze appears in front of the stones. It looks like the one from the Rocky Valley.

Amazingly the quick changing weather conditions gave us not one but two rainbows in the time we were there.

Appropriately enough the second one was over the King's stone and Mr GBT managed to get a group shot of us all with our King  and Witch before the rainbow disappeared. It was a truly magical day.

Arilx