21 August 2010
After the quiet of last week this week has been full of excitement and surprises.
It started when my friend, Sharon, sent me a link to Meatloaf’s page on Facebook. We’re both big fans so I had to have a look. I listened to the music, read loads of stuff, then clicked on the Like button, because I did like it. A few days later I got a message from the man himself. Meatloaf had posted a message on my wall!
For a good minute and a half I couldn’t even read it, I was too gobsmacked, which was putting it mildly. Eventually I focused on the message which was nice and friendly and sent via Meatloaf’s personal Blackberry. How exciting is that. Then, at the weekend he sent me a really lovely picture of himself. I could hardly breath I was so stunned by Meatloaf appearing on my Facebook page and sending stuff to me. The fantasy would have been complete had I not known that exactly the same thing was appearing on several thousand of other Facebook pages, including Sharon’s!
My brush with the music biz didn’t end there either. I told you the week had been full of surprises.
For the past couple of weeks my son, Paul, has been on Facebook raving about his friend, Stephen Jones’ radio programme on Rhondda Radio. It’s called ‘The Old Grey Beard Show’ and is broadcast on Tuesday night between 8 and 10pm. So I tuned in to see what all the fuss was about. Next morning I sent Stephen a message on Facebook to tell him how much I enjoyed the show and would be tuning in again next week. I also happened to mention that if he did requests ‘Two Out of Three Ain’ Bad’ by Meatloaf would be nice.
Imagine my surprise when, an hour later, I got a reply from Stephen. He said if he’d known I was listening he’d have given me a mention and he was working on playing my request next week! Can’t wait for Tuesday now to hear my request and see if I get a mention!
Rhondda Radio is, of course, a local radio station which you probably won’t pick up unless you live in the Rhondda. You can, however, hear it on your PC. The web site address is: www.rhonddaradio.com. 87.8fm. If you like Rock, you’ll love The Old Grey Beard Show.
A quick aside -
Oh yes, one other thing... Whilst all this excitement was happening I gave up smoking on Monday...
14th August 2010
It’s been a quiet week, which was nice. On the rare nice days we’ve had I started
pruning my forsythia bush -
Eventually I borrowed Charmain’s little tree saw and Tom sawed the biggest branches off. I looked at it, made an executive decision, and a few minutes later it was cut down practically to the roots. There you go. I’ve been assured by people who know that it’ll grow again. I’m not a gardener, and at this rate never will be.
Onto other things. Do you have problems with websites which refuse to accept your password? I wanted to make an appointment at my doctor’s as we can now do that online. Happy in the knowledge this would only take a few minutes and I could go to bed after I logged on. Incorrect user name or password, indicating it was the password which wasn’t acceptable. No, I told it firmly. You accepted it a fortnight ago when I ordered my repeat prescription, so you can accept it now. Several attempts later the computer won and I went to bed.
Next day I rang the surgery and was told this did happen and a new one was generated for me. I made the appointment when I was on the phone!
This has happened to me a few times now. Why? I keep asking, but I never get an answer. I thought computers were good at remembering things. We’re told to remember our passwords and not write them down, well if we can remember them why can’t the computer.
Until next time...
4th August 2010
This month has been really busy. What with dreaming up new ideas for Love Zone,
sorting out new stories, and generally living life, I’ve hardly had time for a good
read. Only the other day a neighbour, Martin, gave me two bags full of books -
I don’t know how many of you are rock fans, but I definitely am. Last week my eldest grandson’s mother, Christine, alerted me to Kidz’N’Rock. It’s a school of rock in Battersea, London, and they mentor children and adults, record songs, song write, film videos and play awesome live gigs.
Chris went to the ‘end of term’ gig in July and took absolutely masses of photos. My son, Paul, started playing guitar at 8, and by 13 was being offered gigs by local musicians. Unfortunately he was a bit too young at the time, mind you he’s made up for it since! So when I heard of Kidz’N’Rock I had to find out more.
It’s owned by Chris Van Hayden, and deep respect to him and the work he does with
those young musicians. I’m also very proud because my grandson, James, is involved
and occasionally teaches at the school. James also plays guitar for ChaoSgenesis
-
Keep music live is a mantra from way back when, and it’s still relevant today. I know quite a few kids locally who play instruments and have plenty of talent. Thanks to Chris Van Hayden there are young people in London who have the chance to develop their talent and, who knows, could be the Rockstars of the future.
If you’d like to see the Kidz in action, have a look at their Facebook page. I can guarantee you’ll be hearing more about them from me in the future.
Thanks to all of you who’ve contacted me to say how much you liked the Summer Special stories. It’s nice to get feedback, and it means there are people out there actually reading my website.
All for now folks, more soon...
4th July 2010
I can’t believe it’s three months since I wrote on this page! Mind you there is
a good reason. Since Easter my whole house has been decorated and new flooring put
down. It’s been a long, weary ordeal, but now it looks absolutely fantastic. I’m
thrilled to bits. And that’s my holiday money spent! I’ll be staying in Skeffling
this year -
Having revamped the house, I got to thinking about Love Zone. Now that’s in the process of being updated, changed, and added to. The Summer Special Stories have now made an appearance, and I’m very proud to welcome my first Guest Writer.
Paul Swann was my T’ai Chi Instructor for almost 4 years. He was a wonderful, very
inspirational teacher who had his own brand of real quirky teaching methods! Every
class was a lot of laughs and we were all amazed how much, and how quickly, we learned
T’ai Chi. It was a testament to how well Paul taught -
He died of cancer on 6th August 2009. He was 38 years old. It was a heartbreaking time for all of us who knew him, we missed him, his crazy sense of humour, and his total disrespect for anything pc!
This year, on the 10th June and at his request, Paul’s ashes were scattered in a field in Skeffling. And thereby hangs a very spooky tale!
Paul always professed to love coming to Skeffling, but could never actually say why. He said it was the T’ai Chi class, and the community spirit, and the people, and lots of things, but even he was perplexed by his strength of feeling for the village.
About 2 weeks after Paul’s funeral his mother, Barbara, rang me to say she’d just
found out something which freaked her out a bit. Her brother-
This means Paul’s family lived in Skeffling almost 300 years ago. Was this the ‘link’ Paul felt so strongly? Weird, or what! Now Paul’s ashes are scattered in the field right next to St. Helen’s Church. Paul was totally unaware of his ancestors coming from Skeffling, this salient fact emerged after his death.
I couldn’t help feeling this final act on Paul’s behalf completed the circle.
As a tribute to Paul our T’ai Chi Group decided to have a ‘Contemplation Bench’ made in his memory. We didn’t want the normal type of bench, we wanted something which reflected Paul’s personality and beliefs. He wasn’t religious, but he did have beliefs. So we put the problem to one of Paul’s old students, James. He agonised over the problem for months and finally came up with a fabulous idea. The outcome of all James’ brainstorming is below.
The bench itself was washed up on the beach at Skeffling, rescued by James and has
been sitting in his barn for about 6 years. The stones lay under the earth in Skeffling
for who knows how long, and the symbols represent everything about Paul. The double
spiral depicts birth to death and beyond, the moonboot print is man’s first step
on the moon -
Paul Swann was unique and so’s his Contemplation Bench.
See you next time.
28 March 2010
Congratulations Hailey and Dan, Dancing on Ice Champions! Aren’t they amazing. I started to go ice skating when I was 12, but my Mum couldn’t afford dance lessons, so I just had to skate round and round like everyone else at Wembley Ice Rink. It’s a really good way to exercise, and when you’re a teenager an ice rink is a great way to meet boys!
The celebs who take part in Dancing on Ice are so incredible. Most of them can’t skate when they start, and by the end they’re virtually professional skaters. In so short a time, too. They must work so hard and be so dedicated.
Last night there was a 40's evening at our Village Hall, and it was great. The singer was Cherie Lawrence, a local lady, with an incredible voice. She began the evening with all the old Vera Lynn 40's songs, and had been booked to do 3 x 30 minute sets. The last of which was modern stuff and due to finish at 11pm. She was still singing her heart out at 12 and said she didn’t want any extra money because she was having such a good time!
The small dance area was crowded with everyone boogying away and singing along. It was a strange sight seeing all those who’d dressed in 40's style giving it some on the dance floor! Including the Dad dancers!
Next week I’ll be doing a write-
One of the nice things about our local ‘do’s’ is that there’s never any trouble! Being a small place it’s all local people who buy tickets, and there are no fights, no drunks, just people enjoying themselves. I think you’ve realised by now how much I love living where I do.
April is going to be a full month for me. Any day now the Government will announce the General Election, and we’ve got our local elections on the 6th May, which means a lot of work for me as Parish Clerk. I’ve also got the Annual Audit for the Parish Council to do, and I hate doing sums! On top of that there’s Skeffling News to get out, and I’ve got to go to the dentist!
I’ve also just found a very emotional story set at Easter, which I’m frantically trying to get on the website before the weekend. Oh, and on Good Friday a very dear friend, Mario, is starting to paint my bungalow. Looks like April’s going to be busy...
12th March 2010
The sun’s shining today and I’ve been looking through my old holiday photos. I’ve decided not to have a holiday this year, you see, instead I’m going to save hard and go to San Francisco next year.
So out came the photos of the dream holiday I had in America three years ago.
Then I found a huge bag of mementoes. A poster of the Las Vegas strip at night, which I still have to get framed. Hotel room cards from every hotel we stayed at, and loads of other bits of stuff everyone collects.
My favourite memento is a fridge magnet I bought at the Zen Shop in Universal Studios. I thought it was wonderful, and still do. It says: Do not go where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail...
How prophetic is that?
I love all those Zen thought provoking sayings. They make you delve deep inside yourself and it’s surprising what you sometimes come up with.
For some reason life has become very quiet during the past couple of weeks. Maybe everyone’s staying home and waiting for the long summer nights. Skeffling is great in the summer. There are lots of places to take leisurely walks in the evenings, and people to visit. It’s nice when people drop in unannounced clutching a bottle of wine. More than one spontaneous party has started that way!
At the end of March our Village Hall is staging a 40s Night. The food, music, and dress will be in 40s mode and it sounds a lot of fun. When our Village Hall Committee put on a social evening it’s well worth buying a ticket for. I’m looking forward to this one. It’s a bit different, and I’ve spent ages on the Internet this morning looking at 1940 dresses and hairstyle. Maybe I’ll just wear my jeans and Moon Boots after all!
17th February 2010
Yeah, I know. The story’s late again. But I’ve had a really busy two weeks. The high spot was on Thursday, 11th February. You know I’m Parish Clerk at Skeffling and during the past few years the Parish Council has gone all out to do our bit for Global warming.
The most ambitious scheme was, with the aid of grants, to erect a wind turbine outside
the village hall to make the building totally self-
What’s this got to do with the 11th February? That’s the best bit. We heard, a few weeks before, that we’d been short listed for a Microregeneration Award! Two representatives from the Council were invited to the Award ceremony at the York Hotel, York, complete with dinner and the presentations.
Now Yorkshire folk don’t get over-
So one of our councillors, James Robinson, and I went to the ceremony, and mingled with about 140 people who were all hoping to win their particular category.
Paul Hudson, the weatherman for Look North, was presenting the awards and it was
quite an elaborate do. After the meal, the presentations began and when they announced
our category I was surprised to see we were up against The National Trust and Doncaster
City Council. Big hitters in the global warming stakes. So you can imagine our
excitement when they said: “And the winner is -
Our little village won! It was like being at the Oscars, only we weren’t in Hollywood! Since then James and I have had our photos taken for the local paper, and I’ve got a lovely story to go into next months Skeffling News.
I know it’s bragging, but we have done a lot of ‘green’ stuff in the village. We persuaded the Council Council to give us glass and paper recycling bins, and the money we made from that created a children’s playground outside the village hall. As much of the materials as possible are recyclable stuff, but we had to buy the swings. Then the village hall committee got a good deal on compost bins from the County Council, only a fiver each, and I think every house now has at least one!
Just goes to show you don’t have to big and rich to do your bit, and I’m very proud to be part of a village that isn’t ashamed to show it cares about the future of our planet.
Must get the local Gazette tomorrow to see our write up!
I thought that was enough excitement for one week, but there was more to come. Right out of the blue I got an email from a girl I went to school with and lost touch with far too many years ago. Hearing from Pat again brought back so many memories, I’m really looking forward to our future email exchanges.
We were really good friends at school and for a long time after. In fact, it was Pat I spent most of my school life in detention with! I can’t tell you how many French verbs we conjugated. Why was it always our French teacher who took our detention? I’m just glad it wasn’t Maths!
And what did we do to get all those detentions? Getting up to no good, is what! When we were at school there was no such thing as your parents getting a letter to say you’d be doing detention on a certain day. You committed the crime, got caught, and did the detention that night after school. Sometimes the crime was worth 5 days detention, and once a crowd of us got two whole weeks during which we had to clean up the art room. Believe you me, that wasn’t much fun, and it was very messy. We couldn’t lie to our parents either, they knew why we were late home from school, they didn’t need a letter to tell them.
Those were the days...
29th January 2010
If you’ve read the LOVE ZONE page you’ll know my New Year resolutions didn’t last
past the 2nd January. My main resolution was to give you a new story every week.
Well, I really did try, but my computer refused to co-
Then came two weeks of setting it up and getting a few small glitches out. All that technical stuff I left to my friend Tom. His expertise is invaluable and this website wouldn’t exist without it.
So what have I been doing during January. To be honest, not a lot. While Tom was working hard getting the computer up and running, and fighting for the Internet connection, I was busy reading stories and choosing new ones for you.
Then of course, there was the battle with snow! How did you all fare on that one. We’ve certainly had a cold, dark winter this year. Let’s hope it’s the prelude to a wonderful, sunny summer. I think we could all do with feeling the warmth of the sun, it makes you feel so much happier, don’t you think?
Okay, down to the nitty gritty. There’s no excuses this time. I promise to give you a new story every week. (My fingers were crossed when I wrote that.) But I really will do my best.
Now I have to finish all my Parish Clerk work for our meeting next Tuesday. Then I’ve got to get my monthly Skeffling News written. If you want to know more about the lovely village I live in you can find all the information on Tom’s website which is Skeffling Community Website. It’s packed full of information and contains all the newsletters I’ve written. It’s well worth a look.
See you next week -
1st January 2010
Happy New Year to everyone. I hoped you all enjoyed the festive season and have made lots of resolutions for 2010. Mind you, if you’re like me, you’ll have broken most of them in a fortnight!
Christmas in Skeffling was a pretty quiet affair, although this year we were covered in snow. The village looked absolutely beautiful and everyone seemed to be smiling.
Two of my friends spent Christmas with their daughter and her family in Kentucky. Lucky people. So I went round to their house every day to feed Sooty and MacKenzie, the cats. It gave me a legitimate reason for making the most of the snow and throwing a few snowballs when no one was looking.
So what have you got lined up for 2010. It’s a new decade as well as a new year, and the perfect time to make a list of things you want to do. Don’t just make a list for the year though, spread your wings!
Five years ago I made a list of things I wanted to do while I still had the energy
to do them. On top was to go to Las Vegas. I’d always wanted to see if it was really
as brash, garish and in-
Since then I’ve done quite a few other things on my list. Grown my hair long -
A long time ago someone said to me: “If you have a dream, no matter how outlandish or far away it might seem, if you only get half way there, you’ll have done more than you ever have.”
How true that was. So don’t just dream your dreams, start to live them. And let me know what your dreams are, and how you’re going to start making them come true. Why not make 2010 the year you change your life for the better. Think about it. Look forward to hearing from you...