Oak Apple Day

Oak Apple Day is a holiday to commemorate the restoration of the monarchy in Britain and Ireland, in May 1660. The day is also known as Shick-Shack Day or Arbour Day.

In 1660, Parliament declared 29th May a public holiday: "Parliament had ordered the 29 of May, the King's birthday, to be for ever kept as a day of thanksgiving for our redemption from tyranny and the King's return to his Government, he entering London that day."

Traditional celebrations to commemorate the event often entailed the wearing of oak apples or sprigs of oak leaves, in reference to the occasion after the Battle of Worcester in September 1651, when the future Charles II of England escaped the Roundhead army by hiding in an oak tree near Boscobel House. It is widely believed that these ceremonies, which have now largely died out, (and was formally abolished in 1859) are continuations of pre-Christian nature worship. The wearing of a sprig of oak on the anniversary of Charles' crowning showed that a person was loyal to the restored king. Those who refused to wear an oak-sprig were often set upon, and children would challenge others to show their sprig or have their bottoms pinched. Consequently, this day became known as Pinch-Bum-Day. In parts of England where oak-apples are known as shick-shacks, the day is also known as Shick-Shack Day. These days it is traditional to decorate the house with oak branches on 29th May. In All Saints Church in Northampton, a garland of oak-apples is laid at Charles II's statue. It is also traditional to drink beer and eat plum pudding - especially at the Royal Hospital in Chelsea, which was founded by Charles II on this day.

Trent & Mersey Canal

The late May Bank Holiday weekend saw the Wolfers & Odesses off on a narrowboat adventure on the Trent & Mersey Canal in Shropshire. Ok, right off the top I have to say that it was NOT the relaxing boating holiday we were led to believe it was going to be! Don’t kid yourself it was damn hard work! We started out aboard the Meadow Pipit from the Alvechurch Boat Center (Anderton Marina) late on Friday afternoon.

The accommodations were tight but we expected that. The key distinguishing feature of a narrowboat is its width: it must be no more than 7 feet wide to navigate the British narrow canals. After a very very short lesson on canalboat etiquette and steering we were underway on our own. Jeff & David looked rather spiffy in their captain’s hats! There was little traffic on the canal as we passed through the industrial section of mainly abandoned salt & chemical works. We laughed a lot as we made our way to our first goal : The Old Broken Cross Pub where we had a fine fish and chips dinner. We moored the first night at the Billinge Green Flashes in the Dane Valley. The flashes are areas that were once filled with the submerged wrecks of abandoned narrowboats (described as the inland equivalent of the Scapa Flow!). Jeff woke us all up at 5:30am to see the sunrise and a gentle mist rising off the canal. Very lovely but I like sleep better! After breakfast and a hilarious attempt to shower we cast off for our first (and only full day!) of cruising. The weather was cold and rainy and it did not make for a great day outside. Holly & I each had a turn steering and found it very difficult. I don’t think I ever kept a straight line and steered the boat all over the place. David & Jeff were naturals!

We headed with some trepidation to our first lock. The Big Lock in Middlewich is only a rise of 5ft and can accommodate two boats at the same time. We were lucky to go through with an experienced captain and learned the ropes (not to mention the paddles and gates!) with him. It was an adventure that gave us confidence that we could handle the locks ahead. The canals are very friendly places, we would say hello to people on passing boats, trade quick comments and get news of the traffic ahead. I learned a new word on this trip - Gongoozlers! Gongoozlers is the canal workers’ slang for an observer standing idle on the towpath and are people who enjoy watching activity on the canals. Amazingly Again – there is an article in Wikidpedia about it and these people have a website! The word gongoozler is from the Lincolnshire dialect: gawn and gooze, both meaning to stare or gape. Canal locks often attract spectators because the operation of manual canal locks is a complex job, with a number of opportunities for mistakes to be made. Some observers have been known to heckle the boat crews, while others carry "lock keys" and want to help boat crews with their passage. I just heard a lot of laughing as we did the locks! The whole lock operation usually takes about 20 minutes. We were always pleased to meet another boat coming towards us, because this meant that the boat had just exited the lock on our level and therefore set the lock in our favour — saving us time and work. This was particularly appreciated late on in the day when we had enough of the lock experience and were headed back to Middlewich. But back to the adventure....

After Middlewich we did a further four locks taking turns doing the manual work. Holly & David were the best at moving the paddles & gates (while I was the worst!) and Jeff was terrific at getting the boat into the lock. My favourite was the Wardle Lock (9ft. 9in) where we meet the lovely lock keeper Margret (who was about 80 years old!). She moved the gates like they were matchsticks! Margaret also gave us a flower for our vase hand picked from her own garden! We continued on down the canal traveling by lovely canalside houses, beautiful woods, huge fields and large herds of cows. There were many ducks and swans but it was their babies that captivated me. I had no idea that Swans have about seven babies in a litter. They were charming. By late Saturday afternoon though, it was enough. We were done. We had about as much of the trip as we wanted to have. We turned the 58 foot boat around (which was not an easy thing to do on a canal!) and headed back to Middlewich. We had done ten locks in one day and would do no more. We had a nice dinner at the Big Lock Pub, played Mexican dominoes and went to bed. Everyone slept soundly! When we woke up on Sunday morning the weather was still cold and wet. We had our last breakfast together and called a taxi. Jeff and I headed back to the Anderton Marina to pick up our car. We were sorry to leave Holly & David alone on the boat but Jeff had a 4 o’clock flight to Hong Kong from Heathrow airport to catch. What really made me laugh was we had spent a day and half traveling on the narrowboat and it only took us 15 minutes in the cab to get back to the marina!

What I had really discovered this weekend was a whole new world. Here in England was this whole subculture of people who thought that spending time on a narrowboat was fun and relaxing. I was happy to get back to London and plan my next trip to a four star hotel on dry land!

Eltham Palace

Yesterday, Jeff and I casting about for something to do on a Sunday visited an English Heritage property in Eltham, southeast of London. The place is called Eltham Palace (naturally!). The visit was inspired by a tv show. I have been watching the UKTV History production of Britain’s Best. In case you have missed it, Alan Titchmarsh is presenting to the nation a series about the UK’s best-loved sites. On each show we get to see 5 recommended gardens, historic houses, religious building, castles or palaces. The public then gets to vote on the ones they like the best and recommend others. I love it! I am curious to see what the country has to say about itself and have been keeping an eye on the website (see links). Eltham Palace was featured on a show about historic houses. The reason? The partially Art Deco house is a "masterpiece of modern design"

The original Eltham palace was given to Edward II in 1305 and used as a royal residence from the 14th to the 16th century. Edward IV built a Great Hall in the 1470s. By the 1630s the palace was no longer used by the royal family and the palace never recovered from its neglect during the English Civil War.

In 1933 Sir Stephen and Lady Virginia Courtauld acquired the lease of Eltham and restored the Great Hall while building an Art Deco home. Stephen was the younger brother of industrialist and art collector Samuel Courtauld, founder of the Courtauld Institute of Art. The Courtaulds remained at Eltham until 1944 when they moved to Scotland, giving the palace to the Royal Army Education Corps in 1945 where they remained until 1992. In 1995 English Heritage assumed management of the palace, and in 1999 completed major repairs and restorations of the interiors and gardens. All in all it was a nice thing to do on a Sunday. It has not made it on to my top five list of Britain's Best though.

New Convent Garden Market

Holly and I had an early wake up call this morning to visit the New Convent Garden Market in south west London. The market opened in Nine Elms between Vauxhall and Battersea in 1974 and had previously been located at Convent Garden (hence the name!) in central London. The market's nickname as 'London's Larder' is because of its importance as a wholesale food and flower market. There are over 250 traders located here. Me? I go just for the flowers! The colours and the smells just make me go wild. I always buy too much and struggle when I get home to find enough vases! The market opened at 3:00 a.m. and by the time we got there at 7 a.m. most of the market was already closing down. My purpose this morning was to get a flat of red geraniums for my annual planting of the garden pots. Believe it or not there wasn’t a geranium left in the place for sale! I did buy some lovely dahlias, peonies, iris and tulips instead!

Stoke on Trent

Stoke on Trent! It was time for a trip to pottery heaven. I usually go to Stoke about twice a year to satisfy my addiction to English China! We travel up to this northern city and then back to London in one very long day. It is about three hours driving time in each direction. This trip was the first time in nine years of making the journey that I stayed overnight. I have always wanted to do a longer trip to satisfy my curiosity about some of the potteries that I never get around to exploring on a one day trip. Polli, Holly & Kelle were my shopping companions and you won’t find nicer women to shop with anywhere! They are always so encouraging and supportive of even the dumbest purchases I make!

The Stoke on Trent potteries are finding it very hard to compete with the Asian market and are suffering. Two or three of the potteries we wanted to visit are now sadly closed down. My usual itinerary takes me to the factories of Royal Winton, Wedgwood/Waterford, Hartley Green (Leeds Pottery!), Portmerion (at least three of their factory shops!), Spode and Burleigh. Because we added another shopping day, we were able to visit Churchill’s, Emma Bridgewater,

Moorland, Moorcroft, Anysley, Dudson and Staffordshire Enamels. My conclusion about the new shops? We haven’t been missing anything and I won’t be adding any of them to my usual shopping itinerary. I did not discover anything exciting nor did I buy anything in them. We did, however spend alot of time (& money!) in my two favorites places; the Portmerion shops (I think we went to four out of the five shops in Stoke!) and Burleigh!

I do want to say something about the workers (mostly ladies!) in the factory shops in Stoke. To the last, they are always welcoming, knowledgeable and helpful. I don’t think I have ever met an unkind one. I appreciate the extra effort they make to help you locate that one special item you are looking for; searching the backroom or even the factory itself. This is especially true of Burleigh! I hope they all keep their jobs forever.

The really surprising news of the trip was Spode. In the past we would spend a lot of time at Spode having lunch and shopping in the various buildings. The factory is now greatly diminished and a sad shell of its former self. It was hardly worth the stop, prices were very high and the days of 1£ plates are long gone! Spode is moving production to China late this summer and rumor had it that they are planning on building a hotel & other shops on the site. No one was quite sure what it all meant but it certainly wont be the same. I couldnt help thinking that it was a good thing Eileen (the queen of Spode!) wasn’t here to see this! She moved back to the USA last year and it is unlikely that she will be here for the sad day when Spode is completely gone!
For the first time we did go to the Potteries Museum in Stoke with the purpose of seeing a beautiful mosaic installation by Emma Briggs (Mosaic Workshop) that was recently placed in the entrance hall. It is very large and made with bits of pottery factory backstamps interspersed through out the piece. For pottery fanatics it is a homage to all that is ceramic and beautiful!

I am always grateful to get back to London after experiencing the bleakness of this industrial city in the midlands. I imagine what Stoke must have looked like at the height of the industrial revolution. The grayness of the English sky, the pollution caused by smoke pouring out of the furnaces. The cold and the rain. I am glad that I don’t live there but I am always looking forward to a return trip.

“All women become like their mothers.....

“All women become like their mothers. That is their tragedy. No man does. That's his.” - Oscar Wilde. Motherhood is such a powerful and moving force in the universe. Such an incredible experience, so many pictures painted and lines written about it. And yes, I don’t think men get it. How could they? Oscar Wilde’s quote reminds me of my own inner battles not to become like my mother. Time and time again I hear my mother’s words tumbling uncontrollably out of my mouth. Horror! I can’t believe I just said that? Oh my god, I have become just like her! The realization always strikes a note of irony and regret in me. I am sure my lovely daughters have said to themselves many times, when I am a mother; I will never say that to my children! Good Luck with that Carrie & Beth! Though, if they choose to become mothers, I hope they will often quote me on one line to their children. I LOVE YOU! You can’t say that enough and it isn’t too awful!

The Ashes

Kelle, Holly and I attended the SJWWC spring luncheon at Lord’s Cricket Ground on Thursday. We had an interesting tour of the grounds and I learned about the “Ashes”! I like cricket, I really do. I don’t get it but I am interested. I can’t tell you how many times I have heard cricket is like watching paint dry. It is amazing to me that a game can go on for five days and have no winner! I love all the white uniforms, the green grass, sitting in the sun and the crowds rushing to all the bars on SJW High St. They drink as much as possible during the lunch break only to head back to the grounds so they can drink some more. Cricket will never replace baseball in my heart and now that I think about it, I like English Football better than cricket anyhow. OK, so cricket is my second favourite English team sport. (Does Formula1 count?). The Ashes are a big deal here in England even if you don’t follow cricket – the Ashes series is more about national pride and a former penal colony than anything else. England and Australia play each every two years for a six inch cup. I love Australians – I think they are some of the best people on the planet. You just have to admire the way love taking the micky out of the English. Australians are tan, athletic and have a great sense of fun! I think this really annoys the English. Hey, I don’t know I am a foreigner! Anyway back to the point. The term 'Ashes' was first used in cricket after an English loss to Australia – (Heavens!) - for the first time on English soil - at The Oval on 29th August 1882. The Sporting Times carried a mock obituary to English cricket which concluded that: "The body will be cremated and the ashes taken to Australia”. An English team, captained by Ivo Bligh set off to tour Australia, with Bligh vowing to return with "the ashes”. While there, Bligh and the amateur players on his team participated in a social match at the Rupertswood Estate outside Melbourne on Christmas Eve 1882. Lady Janet Clark, mistress of Rupertswood, presented Bligh with a small terracotta urn as a symbol of the ashes that he had traveled to Australia to regain. According to our guide the trophy is actually a perfume bottle from her make-up table with the ashes of a bail inside!

In the 1990s, the Marylebone Cricket Club commissioned an urn-shaped Waterford Crystal trophy recognizing the two teams' desire to compete for an actual trophy. In the 2006-07 Ashes series the Waterford was presented to the Australian side after a 5-0 victory over England. The small six inch original urn is encased in protective case in the Lord’s museum with a rather large ugly sign that says NO PICTURES over it! The MCC is not letting the urn out of England for anything!

Douglas Adams said thus...........

This morning I wrote a blog about the Ashes Cup after a visit to Lord’s Cricket Ground yesterday (which you probably will see tomorrow). While doing the Today in History section, I discovered that Douglas Adams had sadly died on this day in 2001. I thought I would use a Douglas Adams quote on my blog in his honour. What I found was a plethora of wonderful quotes and couldn’t limit myself to one or even two. So here are some selections I found humourous! And here’s to all you fans of 42!

“He attacked everything in life with a mix of extraordinary genius and naive incompetence, and it was often difficult to tell which was which.”

“I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by.”

“I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be.”

“It is no coincidence that in no known language does the phrase 'As pretty as an Airport' appear.

“The last time anybody made a list of the top hundred character attributes of New Yorkers, common sense snuck in at number 79.”

“Human beings, who are almost unique in having the ability to learn from the experience of others, are also remarkable for their apparent disinclination to do so.”

“Nothing travels faster than the speed of light with the possible exception of bad news, which obeys its own special laws.”

“The major difference between a thing that might go wrong and a thing that cannot possibly go wrong is that when a thing that cannot possibly go wrong goes wrong it usually turns out to be impossible to get at or repair.”

Happy Birthday Fred Astaire!

Happy Birthday Fred! Yes, he would have been 108 years old today were he still alive! I have spent a lifetime watching Fred on TV. Beth once told me of a woman she met in a movie theatre who was amazed by her detailed knowledge of Fred Astaire movies! Oops, maybe too much time in front of the TV!
Shall We Dance (1937) is one of my favourite Fred & Ginger movies because in it Fred sings They Can’t Take That Away From Me ( to Ginger on the Staten Island Ferry). I can watch Shall We Dance repeatedly and never tire of it (- Jeff does, so I watch it when he is out of town)! When I hear any recording of this song it just makes we want to dance! This lovely song written by George and Ira Gershwin seems appropriate for those who are missing from my life today! Yes, I am wishing Fred a happy birthday today but more importantly I am remembering my grandfather and Aaron who also shared Fred's birthday. I have memories of them that no one will ever take away from me. They brought a greater joy and light into my life!

They Can’t Take That Away From Me
The way you wear your hat
The way you sip your tea
The memory of all that
No, no, they can't take that away from me
The way you smile just beams
The way you sing off key
The way you haunt my dreams
No, no, they can't take that away from me
We may never, never meet again
On that bumpy road to love
Still I'll always, always
Keep the memory of
The way you hold your knife
The way we dance till three
The way you've changed my life
Oh, no, they can't take that away from me
No, they can't take that away

Cousin Bruce

OK, talk about memory lane! I got an IM from my cousin Bruce about the band he is currently playing with (see links!) on Long Island. Yes, he is older than me and still playing in a rock and roll band! You just gotta respect that! Bruce and I go way back musically. I can’t remember who turned on who to Iron Butterfly back in the sixties but he played it constantly in his room – must have driven my Aunt Rona nuts! Just thinking about it brings In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida pounding into my head (and I hope it leaves soon!) One of my favourite sixties stories is about going to the Fillmore East in NYC to see Iron Butterfly live. It was just so cool! It is so amazing to me now that they let a 15 year old in in the first place! But hey it was the late sixties and I was blonde at the time! The Fillmore East the eastern twin to the Fillmore West in San Francisco didn’t last long, (it was only open for a 3 years as I discovered on the Fillmore East Preservation Society website!- you just knew there had to be one!). What times my friends and I had there! I think this where the term It rocked started! The music and the bands were unbelievable. Some are still around and others have sadly faded into obscurity (or maybe playing the Holiday Inn circuit in the Midwest!). I won’t bore you with details (and I don’t think I want the kids to know!) of the shows I saw there. What I am trying desperately to remember is if Bruce and I went the Fillmore together to see Iron Butterfly. I remember a lighted Butterfly cape but that is about it……….. but good for him for rockin on………………

World Red Cross Day

Today is World Red Cross Day, a day to remember the efforts of both the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies around the globe. Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies are the world's largest humanitarian network working in more than 170 countries. World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day began after World War I in 1922 when the Red Cross National Society in the Czech Republic proclaimed a three-day truce at Easter to promote peace. The idea behind the truce was to recognize one day every year during which the Red Cross would advocate for the relief of human suffering from disease and the humanity of seeing a world free from suffering due to war. May 8, the anniversary of the birth of Henry Dunant, the founder of the Red Cross, was chosen to be that day and was called World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day.

IFFD

According to Internet sources International Firefighter's Day is today. It was instituted after an email went out across the world on January 4, 1999 due to the deaths of five firefighters in tragic circumstances in a wildfire in Australia. The 4 of May used to be a traditional Firefighters' Day in many European countries, because it's the day of St. Florian, patron saint of firefighters. My mind cant help but think of the courageous firefighters of the Septembers 11th disaster in my beloved NYC. I am glad someone reminded me to take the time to think about them today!

Things You Won't Miss

Ok, I am on vacation (holiday) in Gran Canaria. I am busy reading books and working on my tan. I wrote my last BB column (June newsletter!) for SJWWC the other day on Jeff's laptop in our apartment only because I didnt do it before I left London! So to save time, here it is................

Sadly this is my last Bulletin Board. No, I am not moving back to the USA but it is time for a sabbatical! I have now lived in London for nearly ten years. I went only once to the Moving on Seminar and it turned out to be a false alarm!

What I have learned over the years about moving is that it is so very hard! I just don’t mean the physical packing and going but that the emotional strains are the hardest to bear! There should be a class for those of us who are left behind! Last year a group of life long friends (Woo Hoos!)moved away and this year brings the lost of another good friend who taught me a lot about computers, zisdeco music and that it is ok to snore when you share a room on the Christmas market trip! My advice to those moving away is to make a list of all the things you won’t miss about living in London. The lists of things we miss far outweigh the things we won’t but hey I am trying to help! I polled my family and the Woo Hoo’s who have moved away and this is the list we came up with.

Women who complain that nothing in London is as good as back home! They can’t wait to move back home!

Lack of garbage cans on the streets.

Congestion charge and outrageous parking fines

Crazy aggressive motor cyclists who weave in and out of traffic.

Dark at 3:30 in the afternoon in the winter months!

Getting groceries out of the car in rain.

Finding a parking space blocks from your home!

High prices of just about everything!

Being far from family.

Pay & display

Small parking spaces.

Living in flat instead of a house

Small washer and dryers!

The cost of petrol!

Plumbers.

Street names that are only differentiated by St. Ave. Road, Close, Mews, etc. endings.

Small print A-Z that always have the street you need in the fold!

Repairmen who never bring the part you need with them the first visit!

People who correct you when you are speaking and don’t understand that you speak a dialect called American!

London Gatwick Airport!

The Northern Line

Oxford Street on a Saturday before Christmas!

Having pay at the o2 center to park just to do your grocery shopping!

Crime (cars stolen, homes broken into)

Sky News

Sorry, sorry, sorry, I’m very sorry! (all right, already with the sorrys!)

Underground at rush hour

Underground in the summertime

… and tourists !

So, if you find yourself in the moving state of mind (sorry, Billy Joel!) think about the negative! Let me know if you have something to add! I may need it someday. But for now I am the one who is still here putting up with all this stuff!