There won't be much chance for writing or research while it's the summer holidays, because with the kids both at home all day I don't have much free time to get on with it. Usually with Tom at school full time and Rosie going to nursery in the mornings, I use my free time while the both of them are out of the house for doing my own thing - often that involves writing. But now there are small children to entertain, and while I can occasionally grab a minute or two for a blog post and whatnot, actual deep thoughts require a bit more concentration to get stuck into things.
As it is then, I've managed to finish my next essay, on the Good Folk - Na Daoine Sìth. A couple of the books I've read recently have had some useful stuff in them, so while they're fresh in my memory I've also taken the opprtunity to add a few bits and pieces to the article on Gods of Landscape and Lore. The main additions are for Donn, Finnbheara, Clíodhna, and Úna, with some further minor tweaks here and there. Likewise, I've added Donn's association as the ancestor of the Maguires to the Gods as Ancestors article, too.
Until I have a bit more free time, or get used to my new routine and don't feel so braindead by the time they've gone to bed, that's probably about it for now. Once I do manage to get stuck back into things again, I'm not sure what I'll be concentrating on as yet. Any thoughts or requests are welcome, though!
PS: According to my stats wotsit, recent searches that have led to people stumbling across the blog here include "cow print dressing gown", "gaelic irish lewd wakes" and "the dangers of becoming a werewolf". For some reason, such diversity amuses me...
Thursday, 14 July 2011
Friday, 8 July 2011
Sunsets and blue skies
Blue sky is always a novelty here in Scotland - especially on the west coast, that is - but we've been having some glorious blue skies and sunny days recently. I even have a slight sunburn (never a good idea to put sunblock on your own back before going out to mow the lawn...obviously I missed bits). It's sad but true - mild sunburn round these parts actually seems like an achievement.
My husband bought a new lens for his camera recently - a big one, that makes you look like you're a scary stalker or paparazzi (same thing, really). And so of course, with a lens that's perfect for taking wide angle shots of luscious landscapes, the weather turned to interminable grey and dull, with extra midgies for good measure. Typical.
Our planned camping trip has been put on hold for the next few weeks or so - we're probably going to head right up to the far north of Scotland - when hopefully we'll get a window of good weather to accompany us, but with the new lens we're hoping to get some good shots. I've mentioned how I want to go to Tigh nam Bodach (before the developers inevitably move in...) and my dear husband doesn't seem averse to the idea; it's a bit of a trek, but I'm hoping that we'll be able to stop on our way up north.
For now, though, you'll just have to be content with atmospheric shots of round these parts. In amongst the rain and cloud, we've at least had some nice sunsets (you can click them for larger pictures, if you want):
I think this one is my favourite shot, our local beach as above, where I did my Midsummer devotions:
My husband bought a new lens for his camera recently - a big one, that makes you look like you're a scary stalker or paparazzi (same thing, really). And so of course, with a lens that's perfect for taking wide angle shots of luscious landscapes, the weather turned to interminable grey and dull, with extra midgies for good measure. Typical.
Our planned camping trip has been put on hold for the next few weeks or so - we're probably going to head right up to the far north of Scotland - when hopefully we'll get a window of good weather to accompany us, but with the new lens we're hoping to get some good shots. I've mentioned how I want to go to Tigh nam Bodach (before the developers inevitably move in...) and my dear husband doesn't seem averse to the idea; it's a bit of a trek, but I'm hoping that we'll be able to stop on our way up north.
For now, though, you'll just have to be content with atmospheric shots of round these parts. In amongst the rain and cloud, we've at least had some nice sunsets (you can click them for larger pictures, if you want):
I think this one is my favourite shot, our local beach as above, where I did my Midsummer devotions:
And of course, we can't not have a lighthouse in here at some point...This one's a well-known landmark in the area, the Cloch lighthouse:
A view of the Clyde at low(ish) tide, with the Holy Loch just off in the distance...You can tell how much rain we've been having by the luscious green grass:
And the last one, Inverkip's war memorial, with Argyll behind it:
Tuesday, 5 July 2011
Tynwald Day - Laa Tinvaal
Today is Tynwald Day on the Isle of Man, a national holiday that sees an open air parliament convene onTynwald Hill, next to St John's Chapel. The tradition is associated with the Midsummer celebrations, and possibly Manannán mac Lir, and goes back at least a thousand years, and is said to be the oldest parliament in continuous existence in the world. The Beeb are live-streaming the events of the day:
Here!
Come 4.30pm the video will start recapping highlights of the day, apparently, and I think you should be able to view the video wherever you are.
There's a brief description of the Tynwald Court from the 17th century here, and a nineteenth century description here. These versions might swallow up a lot of your computer if you don't have a very good internet connection, though, so be warned! Alternative options can be found here and here (pages 29-30 and 10-11 respectively).
Here!
Come 4.30pm the video will start recapping highlights of the day, apparently, and I think you should be able to view the video wherever you are.
There's a brief description of the Tynwald Court from the 17th century here, and a nineteenth century description here. These versions might swallow up a lot of your computer if you don't have a very good internet connection, though, so be warned! Alternative options can be found here and here (pages 29-30 and 10-11 respectively).
Friday, 1 July 2011
Midsummer
I'm a little late posting about my Midsummer, which I celebrated last week, but I'll do a rundown just now anyway. Mainly because I took pictures, and it's a shame to waste them...
It's not a time of year I usually make much fuss about, but I do tend make a trip down to the beach to make my own devotions to Manannán - my version of paying the rents, as it were. Usually I make the most of the longer days at this time of year and take myself off to the beach after the kids are in bed, and I can watch the sun start to set. This year, though, considering the weather has pretty much consistently sucked all summer up until the last week or so, I made the most of some dry weather and went during the day, taking Rosie and the dogs with me before having to pick Tom up from school.
Along with the dogs and Rosie, we took some supplies for a wee picnic, and offerings, and we set off to make an afternoon of it. Somebody had left a wee red spade on the beach (continuing a theme from the red jacket I found at Bealltainn, perhaps?), and Rosie set to searching for 'treasure''. This necessitated speaking in Pirate for most of the time we were there, while the dogs 'walked the plank' and rescued sticks from the sea.
I took in the dramatic scenery:
And managed to find Rosie some treasure:
A heart-shaped(ish) rock, which kind of reminds me of the fossil rock I found on my first Midsummer here. I didn't realise she'd kept it until the next day, when she took it to nursery to show her teachers, but she just had to keep it, she said. It's got pink flecks in it.
We built a wee cairn (Rosie insisted on making it a tower, so it's more like a sort-of-cairn):
And beside that we left some food offerings after we'd had our picnic. Then we moved off and picked our way over the rocks, to a vantage point where I could throw some silver pennies into the sea and have a quiet meditation; I took an old shilling with me, and found another silver penny in my pocket so figured that should go in too.
On our way home I took Rosie through the arboretum that runs through the middle of the village (the good thing about the summer having sucked, weatherwise, is that at least the midgies have been kept at bay for longer than they normally do. They're only just starting to bite and normally I wouldn't bother going to the woods in the afternoon on a sunny day - we escaped unscathed this time); we hadn't been for a while and somebody had set up a rope swing from one of the trees along the path:
This was a great discovery for Rosie, and we spent some time playing on it before having to hurry for Tom. I suspect we'll be coming back here a few times at least, now that the summer holidays have started.
Seeing as Midsummer coincided with the wrapping up of the school year, we've had lots of school work being sent home. I haven't got round to doing any seasonal murals with the kids so far this year, so instead I put up some of the artwork that got sent home, and which seemed apt. This is my favourite piece, by Tom - pretty good for a five-year-old:
And also, to round it all off and celebrate the end of the school year and the arrival of summer - finally! I decided to make a cake (and cheese scones). At school this term Tom's teacher had some caterpillars, which the class looked after while they watched them grow, and then seal themslves off into their crysallis', and then come out as beauuuuutiful butterflies. Tom was fascinated by the whole thing, and couldn't stop rabbiting on about them, day after day. He was sad that he missed the butterflies being let out into the wild when he was off sick with a cold (although I'm glad they were let go). So it was decided that the cake should be butterfly shaped, and the kids helped decorate it with sprinkles and edible glitter:
Not the best photo - the flourescent lighting makes for sucky pictures. There's a butterfly farm near my hometown, so the next time we go for a visit I might take the kids along.
And finally, while most of the garden is running rampant and being woefully neglected, the slugs have at least left some of the strawberries alone:
OMNOMNOM. At least I can claim one success this year, if not for much else. It's a nice, bright finish to the celebrations, and the splash of cheery colour feels almost symbolic of the fact that - touch wood and probably famous last words - my back seems to be getting a little better. Or at least, not worse. Here's hoping, though.
It's not a time of year I usually make much fuss about, but I do tend make a trip down to the beach to make my own devotions to Manannán - my version of paying the rents, as it were. Usually I make the most of the longer days at this time of year and take myself off to the beach after the kids are in bed, and I can watch the sun start to set. This year, though, considering the weather has pretty much consistently sucked all summer up until the last week or so, I made the most of some dry weather and went during the day, taking Rosie and the dogs with me before having to pick Tom up from school.
Along with the dogs and Rosie, we took some supplies for a wee picnic, and offerings, and we set off to make an afternoon of it. Somebody had left a wee red spade on the beach (continuing a theme from the red jacket I found at Bealltainn, perhaps?), and Rosie set to searching for 'treasure''. This necessitated speaking in Pirate for most of the time we were there, while the dogs 'walked the plank' and rescued sticks from the sea.
I took in the dramatic scenery:
And managed to find Rosie some treasure:
A heart-shaped(ish) rock, which kind of reminds me of the fossil rock I found on my first Midsummer here. I didn't realise she'd kept it until the next day, when she took it to nursery to show her teachers, but she just had to keep it, she said. It's got pink flecks in it.
We built a wee cairn (Rosie insisted on making it a tower, so it's more like a sort-of-cairn):
And beside that we left some food offerings after we'd had our picnic. Then we moved off and picked our way over the rocks, to a vantage point where I could throw some silver pennies into the sea and have a quiet meditation; I took an old shilling with me, and found another silver penny in my pocket so figured that should go in too.
On our way home I took Rosie through the arboretum that runs through the middle of the village (the good thing about the summer having sucked, weatherwise, is that at least the midgies have been kept at bay for longer than they normally do. They're only just starting to bite and normally I wouldn't bother going to the woods in the afternoon on a sunny day - we escaped unscathed this time); we hadn't been for a while and somebody had set up a rope swing from one of the trees along the path:
This was a great discovery for Rosie, and we spent some time playing on it before having to hurry for Tom. I suspect we'll be coming back here a few times at least, now that the summer holidays have started.
Seeing as Midsummer coincided with the wrapping up of the school year, we've had lots of school work being sent home. I haven't got round to doing any seasonal murals with the kids so far this year, so instead I put up some of the artwork that got sent home, and which seemed apt. This is my favourite piece, by Tom - pretty good for a five-year-old:
And also, to round it all off and celebrate the end of the school year and the arrival of summer - finally! I decided to make a cake (and cheese scones). At school this term Tom's teacher had some caterpillars, which the class looked after while they watched them grow, and then seal themslves off into their crysallis', and then come out as beauuuuutiful butterflies. Tom was fascinated by the whole thing, and couldn't stop rabbiting on about them, day after day. He was sad that he missed the butterflies being let out into the wild when he was off sick with a cold (although I'm glad they were let go). So it was decided that the cake should be butterfly shaped, and the kids helped decorate it with sprinkles and edible glitter:
Not the best photo - the flourescent lighting makes for sucky pictures. There's a butterfly farm near my hometown, so the next time we go for a visit I might take the kids along.
And finally, while most of the garden is running rampant and being woefully neglected, the slugs have at least left some of the strawberries alone:
OMNOMNOM. At least I can claim one success this year, if not for much else. It's a nice, bright finish to the celebrations, and the splash of cheery colour feels almost symbolic of the fact that - touch wood and probably famous last words - my back seems to be getting a little better. Or at least, not worse. Here's hoping, though.
Druid divination with SPOONS
A while ago, I had a little bit of internet rage about a BBC program on the Celts - here, about the suggestion that some gold 'spoons' were used for divination (followed by a demonstration based on made-upness). The section with that part of the program in it can be seen on youtube now, it starts about three minutes in: hopefully around 1:43:35 in this video (or see the comments for an alternative).
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