The local nightly paper - again!

I have to say I am getting more & more impressed. I read the 'Letters' page last night and two items came to my attention.

Firstly, (ref my Blog of 1st Dec) about Christmas. A lady had written in and made many of the points I had been making plus a few more. Her letter was headed 'True meaning of Christmas is lost'. She was describing how disappointed she was with the switching on of the Christmas lights event in the city centre and how she had expected it to have some Christian elements such as carols and so on. This apparently was not the case; she felt that the occasion was used by the foot fall of people in the shops rather than people making an effort to go and support the occasion. One carol was heard all evening she says, which was just as well as they would have been deafened by as much noise as possible coming from the stage! She made the point that this season is not party time but Christmas i.e CHRIST-mas. Well done to the person who was bold enough to write to the paper.

Secondly, (ref my Blog of 18th Nov) regarding Caldicot Castle. A guy had written in to say that now Monmouthshire Tory County Council has refused to carry out the repairs on Caldicot Castle that, in his opinion, as they are presently the owners they have a duty to keep the castle in a good state of repair. He goes on to say that apart from St. Mary's Church, the castle is the only remaining visible history of Caldicot. He ended his letter by saying 'I can only assume Monmouthshire County Council would rather raise it to the ground for future redevelopment' Hmm ...food for thought. With my 25 year interest in property development vis-a-vis housing, I shall be watching this issue!

Blaenavon, Blaenau Gwent

Big Pit, Blaenavon

Until this summer I knew very little about Blaenavon. I had taken various grandchildren to Big Pit (pictured) over the years and I knew about the wonderful BBC2 Wales series called 'The Coal House' a TV reality experience, filmed in Stack Square, Blaenavon, but that was all. The series has just made a welcome return to BBC 2 Wales this time set in war time during the 1940's. The same super formula of the community is being used again and is of great interest to me as I was born in the late 1940's.

That all changed this summer when I met a new friend who lives in Blaenavon. I borrowed a digital camera and to show me how to use it I was taken to Blaenavon to take some pictures. I learned so much about the place, perhaps not of such basic historical interest as Tredegar, more of a tourist industry with historical back ground, but perhaps I am being biased!

I learned about The Blaenavon Cheddar Company, Torfaen who produce 8 distinctive Cheddar's, one matured in the Big Pit mineshaft!; also four varieties of goat's cheeses. What a good idea for a Christmas gift with a bottle of wine. They have a web site: www.chunkofcheese.co.uk

I was taken to Keepers Pond on the lovely moors of Bleanavon and learned about the newly opened Heritage Centre, a ride on the small steam railway, and finally a visit to a few of the new nature reserves for nearby Torfean, homes to an abundance of wildlife ....Oh and attended a small local music festival for a picnic in the grounds at the Goose & Cuckoo inn at Upper Llanover which was situated at the top of a very steep hill with spectacular views of the surrounding countryside. It could not be accessed by car , lovely as the views were I could barely appreciate them as I was nearly dead when I got to the top!

I have Blogged so much about Tredegar over the months, but there are many things of interest in the Welsh valleys, being away for so long I had forgotten what was there and some new interests also, this is why I have written about Blaenavon this afternoon ..... take a look sometime.

Nine Arches Viaduct, Tredegar, Blaneau Gwent.

Having visited the dentist recently, I thought it might be a good idea to Blog about the Nine Arches in Tredegar, mainly because that where I lost my front tooth aged 13 years! I was devastated - my father even more so, with me being a girl in her very early teens. This was years before the advent of tooth capping and there was no alternative at the time but to take the remainder of the tooth out and replacing it with a false one!


How did I do it ? I had gone on a picnic with my mother and my younger sister along with Mum's friend and small son, so while the adults were spreading the picnic out on the green, close to the Arches, (see above picture) I went with the two younger children to explore. The younger children were playing in a very shallow stream (yes, those things happened then) and I saw a water weir. Bored with the other two, I decided to climb it, well it seemed like a good idea at the time, so up I went. I hasten to add it had been a dry summer and there was no water around, thus the shallow stream at the bottom. Half way up I stepped on some VERY slippery moss and slipped all the way down on my tum hitting my face on each step as I fell. Well can you imagine the commotion at the bottom?


I am not sure to this day whether my mother was more concerned about my broken tooth or having to tell my father what had happened! I do remember there was a lot of shouting and then silence over the next few days!


Some weeks later when I had my new false tooth in place, I was a real celebrity in school as no one had seen a false tooth in anyone so young before. For the price of half a Mars bar I would show them my tooth by slipping it down with my tongue from the back! I still have the false tooth (well not the same one of course), but the others are still all my own!


I have never been back to the Nine Arches Viaduct, just seen it from a distance but I read recently that there was an abseil challenge from the top, 80 foot to the bottom for charity. People were abseiling from Tredegars oldest and most famous landmark for the Hospice of the Valleys Charity who provide high class care for Cancer sufferers in Blaneau Gwent. Well done to all who took part. I would have supported had I known it was happening

.
Maybe I ought to go back and photograph the Nine Arches, my new camera hasn't had an outing for a while!

The Story of Christmas

I am not a great fan of the modern day Christmas. I feel quite aggrieved that the true meaning of Christmas is largely forgotten and had been replaced by gaudy tinsel and loud music in supermarkets, usually with Noddy Holder singing 'Here it is Merry Christmas' and television adverts, once every ten minutes, advertising supermarket products, especially the one that starts 'Doesn't it seem a lot like Christmas' sung by a Bing Crosby type person, that one drives me mad!!! So I thought I would Blog, in my own words, a brief reminder of what Christmas is really about and tell the story of Christmas. I hope I can tell it accurately and most importantly simply, so that people will read it.

At a previously appointed time, after God had made a promise to the people on earth, he sent an Angel - Gabriel - who was sent to Nazareth in Galilee to Mary a humble Jewish maiden. Mary was about to be married to Joseph the local carpenter. Although Joseph was a carpenter, the Great King David was his ancestor. Gabriel told Mary that she was to be the mother of the Holy one, the son of God.

Just before the baby's birth, the Roman Emperor ordered all his Jewish subjects to travel to the place where they belonged, so that his officers could count the number of people. There were many people travelling about because of the census of the people. When Joseph and Mary got to Bethlehem they were told the local Inn was full. They then had to shelter in the stable, and it was here that the son of God was born. His mother laid him to sleep in a manger.

Men did not know who had come to live among them, but angels appeared to some shepherds and gave them the news. The shepherds thought they would go and see the new baby for themselves and so they walked to Bethlehem.

Eight days after his birth the baby boy was given his designated name JESUS which means 'for He shall save His people from their sins'.

Many months later a star appeared to three splendidly dressed wise men (or Magi) and they followed the star to Bethlehem where they placed Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh before the baby.

Mary and Joseph and their son Jesus stayed in Egypt as long as King Herod lived and then they returned to Nazareth where they settled. THIS is why we celebrate Christmas - for the birth of Christ.

In 2008 I have been hard pushed to find Christmas cards depicting the story, even in the Christian book shop in Newport, and this is what makes me so mad and so fed up with all the razzmatazz surrounding this season.

Of course there is a lot more to this story, but I wanted to outline the basics, very simply to encourage children to read it and understand it, and know why we celebrate the day, for I doubt in these days of multi cultural faith, where many school have stopped producing the nativity plays, that the younger generation know much about this story.

I am sure there will be a lot more said on this Blog about what makes me annoyed about the way we prepare and celebrate Christmas before the day itself arrives, so be prepared for more moans!

Return to Blogging!

Every now and again if I don't Blog for a few days, I decide not to continue and then friends and family encourage me to do so and I try again. I didn't know so many of my family followed this Blog, I knew some friends did but that's all.

Nothing much has been going on here, but that is going to change at the end of the week when I go to Hereford for the day with a friend. We are going to an Advent Fair and I am quite looking forward to it. I have just has an email from her expressing her concern at the Parking at this time of year and she has said we may have to use the Park & Ride system. I am no stranger to this, so it won't be a problem to me.

When I lived in Cambridgeshire Park & Ride was an essential if you wanted to go into the City itself. With all the colleges, halls of residence, student accommodation, offices and retail workers there was little chance of parking anywhere! Most of the students went around on bikes and some of the 'oldies' as well, but that didn't appeal to me as this was not one or two bikes but a huge Exodus in and out and being the coward I am I felt safer on the bus!

In Newport where I live now, if there is Park & Ride I am not familiar with it. There never seems to be a huge problem parking, more of a nuisance that you have to look for it!

I first came to live here in 1966, when it was a charming market town, with a high street full of Ironmongers, Mac fisheries, and small select stores where you could go to purchase a 'best dress'. Since then, all that gentility has gone and the outskirts of Newport have grown so much with all the out-of-town shopping, that me, and I suspect hundreds like me, can have all your needs catered for without going into the City Centre. (Yes, it has it's City status now .... but it will always be a town to me).

So I shall look forward to the Park & Ride on the weekend and I am sure that it will bring back lots of fond memories for me of when I lived in lovely Cambridgeshire.

Well back to bed, I tried earlier but lying down is worse for my newly developed cough. Well I can't stay up Blogging all night so I will have to try again!

Lots, yet nothing going on!

Well this has been a funny week. Each day has brought something good, something bad and something indifferent. The good has made me happy, the bad has made me desperately sad and the indifference is just that!

My heating went 'down' again this evening, but fortunately I had a lovely friend here who bled the radiator in the kitchen and eventually we got it all going again. This means I don't have to bother the landlord, who doesn't have to bother the heating engineer, and means I don't have to stay in for hours on end waiting for some one to turn up to see to it! This has to be a good thing!

I went out for lunch today and was taken for a lovely drive afterwards which meant I didn't get back until late afternoon. I had intended to start a new slimming club this evening, but with all that was going on I forgot! Hmmm, I have to come to grips with this again after my spectacular failure with Weight Watchers!

This morning I was offered a bungalow with Newport City Council .....alas it was one bed roomed (single) and very small. Not anything I could seriously consider, but a good position location wise. Well at least I know I am on their radar!

So, lots going on, yet nothing in particular. I haven't bought the 'nightly' for two nights .... I wonder what I am missing? I will make a special effort to get it tomorrow!

Caldicot Castle

The local 'nightly' has brought something to my attention again tonight. Caldicot Castle. A place and area close to my heart, as when my former husband and I first got together, we bought a house 'Peach Tree House' just a few miles down the road from the castle and the small modern town of Caldicot.

I read tonight that the future of Caldicot castle is in doubt. It is being discussed by Monmouthshire County Council this week whether or not approval will be given to go ahead with the restoration work that is badly needed, costing hundreds of thousands of pounds. It seems that the structure of the castle is deteriorating and major works are required for repairs.

This castle is one of Wales' best kept secrets, a pleasant find in the Welsh countryside, it has previously been restored to much of it's original condition and it is a lovely place to spend a day. When my granddaughter, now 20 years old, was a little girl, we spent hours in the grounds at weekends.

The castle is now owned and operated by the local authority and is open to the public for a fee. The Great Gate house has been home to medieval banquets since the early 1980's, and as yet I have never been taken to one, despite dropping many hints when I was married!

The castle is also used for wedding venues and things like Classic Car weekends. It has stood at the gateway to Wales for over 400 years. What a huge mistake it would be to refuse funding for these urgent repairs to keep this piece of history in tact for the local economy and for future generations to enjoy.

Easter just around the corner !

This is official! Easter cards are on sale in Newport. On November 18th there is a whole rack of them, Bona fide, first-rate cards now on sale!!! I thought they were last years left overs being put out at reduced prices, but no, they are all new stock!

I don't know why I am surprised, it's only five or six months ahead of the season. We don't bat an eyelid at Christmas cards in July these days, same time difference.

Hot Cross buns and mince pies are a permanent supermarket feature all years around now and it won't be long before cards will follow. What ever happened to the joy of the different seasons. Gone forever I suspect!

The price of coal.

Scene at Senghenydd after the second explosion broke out at the 'University' mine.

I went to Morrisons late this afternoon, picked up what I wanted and on my way out I noticed a display with many old black & white pictures and well presented literature. At first I thought it was something to do with the 90 year Remembrance week, but upon closer inspection I saw that was not the case it was all about the Senghenydd Pit Disasters 1901 & 1913.

The friend I was with was in a hurry so I could not study this as closely as I would have liked, but the display was advertising the upgrade of Senghenydd Heritage Room and showing a road map of how to get there. Now Blaenavon do this very well, but then to my knowledge there were no major disasters at Bleanavon. I was unsure as to how I felt about this. Being brought up in a mining community, Senghenydd was spoken of in hushed tones out of respect for the dead when I was growing up, so to see it advertised openly in a Supermarket as a Lottery Funded tourist attraction was a bit of am enigma for me.

Senghenydd Pit disasters are the worse in Britain's history with huge loss of life. In October 1913 an explosion at the pit resulted in the loss of 439 men. It is said in local parts that the explosion was so intense that it was heard 11 miles away in Cardiff. Tragically this was the second disaster at Senghenydd in twelve years, the first one being in May 1901 with a loss of 78 men. Nothing could have prepared that community for the horror of those disasters.

Upon reflection I suppose the Heritage Room is a good thing, as there must be a generation out there to whom these disasters mean nothing. To be able to visit a Heritage room and artefacts will be a good thing, bring it home to this comfortable generation what life was like at the turn of the 20th Century. We must never forget the memory of the loss and the suffering of the community where these disasters left their mark.

Pause for Thought!

Palace Theatre Pantomime, Ebbw Vale 1952

As the season of pantomime approaches I thought back to my own childhood when every year we were taken to a pantomime. When my father moved from Sirhowy brickwork's in Tredegar to work at Richard Thomas & Baldwins (RTB's) in Ebbw Vale all the children of the staff & workers could go to the Pantomime as guests of RTB's.

What a thrill! A bus came and picked us up in Tredegar and took us the four miles or so over to Ebbw Vale to the Pantomime. We watched enthralled as the story was played out before us. The costumes, the lights and the principal boy (who was really a girl) it was all so exciting.

Seeing the posters go up in the city for the forthcoming productions in various theatres always make me think of those magical days ...going to the Ebbw Vale Panto!

I wonder is there the same thrill and anticipation in the children of today when they are taken to a Pantomime ....in this age when treats are all year around things and the 'ask and you shall get'
culture is rife. It makes me glad I grew up when I did. It gave me the values that I still hold and live to, right to this day.

Lazy Sunday Afternoon

This Sunday I returned to the same area where I was last weekend, when my friend and I were whisked off in a Police Van. (see previous blog - 8th Nov. 2008) Today was fine, no hallmarked silver littering the lanes, no Police van waiting to take us to 'the spot' where we found it .....all calm and perfectly normal. We returned to the area to do the things she wanted to do when everything went pear shaped last week.

We had a good look around as my friend is applying for a job there, it is such a pleasant village with a lovely Church (see picture above). We walked to one of the three castles in the area, all ruins now, but nevertheless enormously interesting buildings.

We drove out of the village for lunch this week. The place we choose was very different to your usual eatery. It not only provided lunches, but did Bed & Breakfast, there were separate Tea rooms, Oriental gift ware, fabulous gardens which are open to the public in the summer and a huge Belgian chocolate counter in the entrance! It is run by an Oriental chap with a Welsh accent! For lunch we choose a vegetarian option for a change, Beans Provencal which consisted of mixed beans & chickpeas with peppers, tomatoes & olives, served with Garlic herb & sesame bread with a salad garnish. It was excellent .... and reasonably priced.

Next we went to the neighbouring village where the Church there would be the second of four Churches under my friends jurisdiction should she get the job. This Church was very run down, but it had on display there The Skenfrith Cope. A cope is a garment like a cape and is still worn by Bishops and senior clergy in some Churches. This particular cope is dated back to the mid 19th Century and there are many legends surrounding the history of it. What is known about it is that it was found by Father Thomas Abbot, priest-in-charge of the Catholic mission for Monmouth, being used as a cover for the communion table in this Church. The cope was placed in the current glass-fronted case during a refurbishment of this Church in 1910. I doubted the wisdom of it being it that particular Church at all, as the Church is very wet and damp. That can't be good for the fabric even if it is encased in glass. Still ........ what do I know of such things?

We walked around the village and looked at the second of the three castles. By this time the drizzle had become more of a persistent rainfall and the damp was seeping into our clothes and it had grown a lot colder, so we decided to part and head for our respective homes. I was glad I made the effort to accompany my friend, not only to give her support, but it turned out to be an interesting and informative Sunday afternoon. Funny how something you are not looking forward to particularly turns out to be so rewarding.

Newport Castle - Art at a high price?

I feel I have to apologise to our evening paper (that seems to come out in the mornings these days!) I have been calling it a 'rag' and not buying it as it contains no 'real' news and bemoaning the days when it was a broad sheet .....but that seems to have changed, unless I am more mellow!

There are some good factual/historical articles in there about this City and the valleys and I pick up on a lot of local issues via the letters that are sent in.

Last night I was reading about Newport castle. All I know about Newport castle is that it is a 14th century, Grade 2 listed building, originally constructed to guard the river crossing and is now a ruin .....but there is more! In 1796 JMW Turner painted the castle in his very recognisable style, and that painting is currently in the British Museum in London but not actually on display.

Newport East AM John Griffiths has written to the museum asking for the release of the painting on loan to Newport Art Gallery. It seems that the gallery has only a copy of the painting by an unknown artist. Wouldn't it be super to have the original on display in Newport in a gallery not far from the castle itself ? Mr. Griffiths action was picked up in the Letters section by a reader who argued that the additional security and conservation measures required by the British Museum will not come cheap and is suggesting that the Assembly donate some money to defray the cost of display. All this discussion going on and I didn't even know there was a Turner of Newport castle in existence!

It seems that a spokeswoman for the British Museum, who have been in possession of the watercolour since 1910, has said the request is under consideration and that the painting has been out on loan to Wales in the past to Llandudno and Swansea when they have held Turner exhibitions, but never to Newport.

This is obviously a debate that is going to roll on, and one I shall be following. Thank goodness I bought this local paper or I would not have known a thing about all this. I must be more respectful to the 'nightly' in future!

Children in Need

I have been watching Children in Need all evening. It has been super entertainment. The pledges of money that have been made have been phenomenal. School children all over the UK are giving their pocket money, going to school in their pyjamas to raise money and reputable BBC and ITV news readers singing and dancing raunchy dances! The Cast of Eastenders were performing short musicals, what a talented bunch!

This is true British spirit. What better cause than to raise money for disadvantaged children. It made me think of the children in orphanages in other parts of Europe which I have spoken about before, there is no Children in Need night for them. All they can look forward to is squalor and misery for all of their young lives. Sadly,there is always a child in need somewhere in the world, no more so than here in Britain, as in the case of baby P. that has been in the news this week. 17 months old with a broken back and too many injury's to count, all inflicted by his mother and her boyfriend, so badly injured that he eventually died.

Well done to all the performers for their time and talents and to ordinary Joe Public for giving of their hard earned cash for such a vital cause.

Catholicism - Food for Thought

Truly, truly, I say to you,

unless you eat the flesh of the son of man

and drink his blood,

you have no life in you .......

Jn.6: 53

Catholicism, a subject that I know very little about but feel I want to explore it in my mind.

Each time I have been to the Catholic Church, whether it is for a service or social event, I have always come away impressed and thoughtful. There is a definite difference in attitude to that of Anglicans.

I would like someone to explain the Catholic faith to me from a Catholic perspective, clarifying and explaining misconceptions formed by non-Catholic faiths. I don't know why I want to know this; it is all to do with observation of their worship and attitude to God I think.

I am not considering converting to Catholicism as I am not sure enough about the Catholic faith, but I am honest enough with myself to admit I am curious. This curiosity goes back further than the last few years, when I have become very disillusioned with the Anglican Church, it goes back to the 1980's when my Aunt, whom I loved dearly, converted to Catholicism when in her 80's. What made her do it? Did she understand something I am missing?

This subject is of interest to many I am sure, and there are many negative opinions around, I wish I knew more about it. I would like to examine both sides of the issue of Catholicism v Anglicism, a comparison if you like, without prejudice and with an open heart would be a way forward I am sure.

Why so reflective at this point in time ....I wish I knew the answer.

Catholic Curry!

I went with two friends to a curry evening at the Catholic church in the City centre this evening. The event was in aid of the 'Raise the Roof' appeal which has been going for some time to try and put a new roof on the Church.

It is many years since I have seen such a band of true Christians under one roof. The whole evening was a knock out! The Church hall, adjacent to the Church is a lovely venue, modern, with a welcoming feel to it. When we walked in we were welcomed like old friends although it was only Ms.A that was known to them. There was a youth group playing slightly ethnic music and doing it extremely well, casually dressed, and with smiles that only youth can provide. They made the transition from drum beat to mellow music effortlessly. Everybody was tapping their feet!

There were over eighty people drifting in and out and from all walks of life. The crowd was very cosmopolitan, and some of the ladies were wearing beautiful brightly coloured sari's and children with their hair braided with brightly coloured ribbons. There was a stall of wonderful hand made Christmas cards, a bar (with a permanent licence) and a small area to dance if you so wished.

The authentic Indian food was served after about an hour, made by Indian volunteers who are friends of the Church and it was all wonderful. We queued buffet style for the main course and the Indian dessert was brought to the table when the main course was finished. My friends and I were downing our pints (of lemonade & lime that is) as they had run out of half pint glasses!

As were were sitting next to the hand made card stall we got drawn into conversation with the ladies running it, which was quite interesting to me having done that particular hobby for 11 years. We just felt part of a whole.

There were no speeches, no prayers, no grace before food, the priests were all in 'mufti', you could have been in a pub lounge with an extended family and friends. What an atmosphere! Then the little group (eldest member sixteen) struck up with Abba numbers from the film 'Mama Mia' and we all sang and clapped along with them. Raffle tickets were sold and drawn (didn't win anything) and then all too soon we were planning to leave. What a super evening, an act of Christian fellowship. The evening raised nearly £400.

There are a few Anglican Churches I could think of that would like to have a social evening like that! The camaraderie and Christian love shone through tonight, and somehow, like last Christmas Eve when I went to a Catholic mass, they all seem so happy, friendly and so proud of their faith. It was good to follow Jesus' example and spend some quality time with God.

HMSS Homeric

When I found that tatty folder the other day with just three sheets of paper in it on Family History one of them was about Her Majesty's Steam Ship Homeric, one of the White Star fleet at the time. The reason that I have an interest in this is that my father travelled to New York on her in 1931. He was emigrating to America. This, of course, was years before he met my mother and before my sister and I were thought of.

My father sailed from Southampton, on his own, to face a new life the other side of the world. He was just 23 years old. It must have been a huge thing to do at that time. The reasons behind him going were pretty dire. His girlfriend was pregnant, a huge disgrace in the Welsh valleys in 1931, and her parents had taken her to America to start a new life. My father followed. Family history says his parents made him go to 'do the right thing' by her, but how true that is I do not know. He stayed in Pennsylvania for 10 years until the marriage broke down and he returned to Wales.

As a child I did not know any of this, my mother and nanny Jones made sure my sister and I were kept well away from that part of his past, but as young adults when we did know about it all, I remember him describing that voyage, the length of time it took, almost three weeks and he described the ship, resplendent in White Star livery, and his excitement at travelling.

It was rather poignant for me when my friend and I found the passenger list with his name on. It was as if I could suddenly focus on my father the man, not just an old story.

He always wanted to return to America, and did so, albeit for holidays only after the death of my mother in 1979.

The ship was coming to the end of it's life when Dad travelled on it. It was acquired by White Star line in 1922 and was taken out of service in 1936. I wish I had taken the opportunity to ask him more about his voyage, but like millions of other families all over the world, I left it too late. I know the story, I would have liked to have known more about the young man.

The Grass is Singing - Doris Lessing

From time to time my sister who lectures in literature at Kingston and Reading Universities, suggests I read a book. Now I read all the time, but not what she calls real literature. Sometimes I am receptive to this and sometimes more reluctant as, like most people, I like to choose my own reading material.

It must be nearly a year since 'The Grass is Singing' was suggested to me and I struggled with it at the time. However, a few weeks ago I decided to give it another go. I finished it last night. I cannot say I enjoyed it any more this time around, maybe more a case of understanding it a bit better.

The storey is set in Rhodesia and it tells of a failed white farmer and his wife who is a town girl. Mary hates farming, life in the bush and is unhappily married. Sapped by heat and extreme poverty she becomes frightened of life outside her home and becomes slightly unbalanced. She isolates herself from her neighbours therefore becoming very lonely; she turns to Moses, the black cook, in whom she finds kindness and understanding.

The description of Africa's beauty is a superb backdrop to the life of people whose lives are punctured by the horror of murder. The cruelty of colonialism becomes seductive to that ere and palpable to the reader themselves. A superbly written book, and an excellent storey. However, I often found it hard to read, and not truly understanding the politics that make the book work I found I could not read more than three or four pages at a time. I persevered though, and eventually got through the book. If anyone is into that kind of feminist literature it is a nice book to cut your teeth on.

As for me, I am heading back to my comfort zone. I have just started the new Penny Vincenzi and should my sister deign to read this blog, I make no apology!

Family History

Today was allocated for doing all my paperwork. In the back of my filing cabinet was an old paper folder headed Family History. It contained just three pieces of paper.

About a year ago I started on the Family History root with the aid of a very patient friend who was starting me off in this subject. However, I was fine when working with her, but at home on my own I found it more difficult to access information without her guidance and eventually my interest waned. Chancing upon this folder today it contained information on my fathers family and so I read it all again.

My grandfather (Photograph above) whom I always thought was born in Ebbw Vale was actually born in Montgomeryshire, but the family moved to Ebbw Vale when he was a toddler. He was one of five children and the move to South Wales was work related for his father who was a brick maker. I know, through this tiny amount of research that was done last year, that my fathers family came from a long line of brick makers. I managed to trace them back five generations.

So why the move from Mongomery to Ebbw Vale? This I can only speculate on. I know from my father that due to a rapid growth in the brick industry numerous brick works sprung up in the 19th century. The move could have been for better pay, conditions, promotion ...... there may have even been other family members in the Ebbw Vale area at the time.

What I do know is that my grandfather followed in his fathers footsteps and went into brick making and both his own sons followed him, where my father remained in the industry until the closure of the Sirhowy Brick Works, Tredegar in the early sixties from where he went to work at the Ebbw Vale Steelworks (formally Richard Thomas & Baldwin).

Maybe I ought to give Family History another chance, but it is all that sifting through birth, marriage and death certificates that does for me ..... no patience! However, if I want to know how my paternal family came to be in Ebbw Vale I had better adjust my thinking!

For Remembrance Sunday ...........

In Flanders Field


In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.


We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.



Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye breaks faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.



John McCrea



Remembrance is important. Remembrance Sunday is not just for the years and wars gone by, but is for here and now and all that is still going on. This poem is as applicable today as it was in the first and second world wars.

It's a Win!

Well done to Joe Calzaghe on beating Roy Jones Jr. last night at Madison Square Garden.

As he ends a 15 year career fighting 46 bouts and loosing NONE!

Quit while you are at the top Joe, go out on top not when your career is on the slide, you have a lot to give to your sport in other areas!