March Photo Hunt

Like yourself Kate and everyone else I've read so far who've joined the Scavenger Hunt for this month, I wasn't going to join this month either - my energy has been so low and I'm still trying to work .... but after reading yours I thought ok, let's go for it ... keep the chin up.   While cancelling all gigs and classes I've found it hard to do more than knit, cook ad watch tv.   But things will go back to normal and some sort of routine will come together.  Most of these pics are from archive and it's brought both smiles and tears looking back through the years.  And some have very tenuous links ...

Birthday

2015 - on the road - Paris to Munich

Today, I'm missing not having any journeys to look forward to ... they've all been cancelled ... but on that day I was a bit glum - an 8 hour drive on a Sunday ....on my birthday ....  humph.   

 

Jazzy

I've been getting stuff off the needles these past couple of weeks .... and this was the first to be finished - made from Scraps of Wool - my Scarfy Thingy inspired by Beate at Hedgehog Fibres.... it was such a joy to knit and I've just found another bitsa project to do during self isolation

Flag

This prompt made me chuckle Kate because trying to find a non contentious flag around this part of the world is a bit of a challenge ... so archives to the rescue

Definitely not social distancing!! A walk through the Oktoberfest back in 2015

Three

This photo believe it or not, is in the crypt of a church.   It is in Annahuette in former East Germany and neither of these three gentlemen (who we nicknamed the Three Stooges) spoke English and we had the best night's craic I can (vaguely) remember after a concert.   Sadly only the man on the left is still alive now but they were wonderful the three of them.   How did we communicate?   Schnapps!!!  

We had done a concert upstairs in the church and afterwards there were drinks and refreshments downstairs.   And every time they said Prost! it couldn't do anything but say Prost! back - it would have been rude lol. 

The Three Stooges - Jan 26, 2003

Cushion

OK I admit this is a stretch 

A cushion of moss ?  

My own choice

We've been having the most amazing sunsets this past week - this was last Friday - 20th March.  

Again , thank you so much to Kate for organising this photo hunt every month - we really needed it this week.   

Going now for my virtual trip around the world to have a look at what everyone else has done... Photo Scavenger Hunt Link Up...

Singing calms the nerves

Hi all, 

Just a wee tip - if you're getting anxious in the midst of all this crisis, turn on the radio or a CD and sing at the top of your lungs - don't worry about who hears you.... It will really help calm you down.  

I was in Tesco earlier today and got really freaked at how close people were standing to me... So, into the car and turn on some voice exercises and it really worked.  

If you're interested I'm posting a song a day on my choir Singmarra's Facebook Page to sing along with .... I'll add a link for the lyrics too.

Waiting for the call

We're in the middle of our run of performances of the Emigrant Woman and Border Stories and waiting from day to day to see if they're going to be cancelled while trying not to panic.

Because of Csilla's story of her escaping from behind the Iron Curtain and the extra play we've added in about homelessness which she also wrote, the Q&A after both the shows in Derry and in Rostrevor were very interesting and informative. One of the pieces we do is called Love in Paris - it's a poem of Csilla's that I have turned into a song and it describes her meeting a stranger when she and her boyfriend finally arrived in Paris after a week sleeping rough to get through the green borders from Yugoslavia to Italy and then over the Alps to get from Italy into France (as teenagers they thoguht that now they were in the free west they didn't need a passport!).   Anyway, the stranger in Paris looks after them and helps them find the right address.   But we were all shocked to hear in the Q&A a French friend of mine saying that nowadays to do that in Paris would be an arrestable offence ... for the householder!   Isn't that the most crazy thing ... What is happening to humanity.  

Today's audience are all school children (if the school isn't closed before we get there) - it will be interesting to hear their take on the different stories. 

BBC Radio Ulster and Radio Foyle tomorrow

Csilla and I will be on the Eve Blair Show on Radio Ulster and Radio Foyle on Saturday next at 1pm talking about our Emigrant Woman's Tale shows in Derrry and Armagh the following week.

If you have time have a quick listen in.

After our first show of the revived Emigrant Woman's Tale in Dundalk

February 2020 in photos

It feels like February has been spent entirely on the computer, doing publicity for one show or another and getting stuff ready for the various internet spaces.   

So I really enjoyed taking an hour out today in the unexpected sunshine to take a few pics and think about this month's clues for  Hawthorn's aka Kate's Scavenger Hunt - it really is a great way of slowing the month down for a moment and taking stock.

It has been such a stormy month - each weekend seems to blow harder than the one before - and there's another storm on the way today ... but I am so grateful that we haven't had the same problems as our neighbours over in England .... I just couldn't bear that flooding ... I hope you all are safe and dry enough.

So this month's words ....

Heart/s

We've never been into Valentine's Day here - 33 years I'm waiting for a card!!!  But then he hasn't received one either lol - too stingy to pay for a card - plus it's close to our anniversary and if we manage to remember that we sort of combine the two.

I spotted this lovely heart shaped stone on the beach ages ago and thought it might fit the bill for today.  

The beach is a total mess at the minute after all the storms - and the mussel boats along here cut the seaweed as they go which then all lands up in an icky mess ... this is just one part of it ... all of that used to be grass.  Once these storms pass we'll get a crew together for a beach clean up day.

Repair

The Nissan Hut at the bottom of our lane lost even more of its roof during storm Dennis, or was it Ciara?  - it really is on its last legs and the guy who owns it keeps trying to nurse it along rather than abandoning it.   It came from the German POW camp in Rostrevor when it was dismantled after the war - one of the last still surviving.  I've been in for a nosey and unearthed lots of interesting stuff.

Tail

That'll have to be Red the squirrel....
The sun came out for a short burst one day last week in the middle of the pouring rain and who ambled in!  I managed to get out the back door without disturbing him - isn't that tail just fabulous!  He looks like he has a mohican haircut ... and he certainly didn't go hungry this winter!

Key 

Take your pick! 

You know my other half is a percussionist ... at some point in a recording they were looking for a jingly sound and the 'keys' were brought out!  And they've been added to down through the years - even at gigs, people would give us spare keys to add to the chain ... Mostly now it just hangs up in the music room/studio collecting dust 

Knot

The trees are still all bare and showing their beautiful barks with all their knotty details.   I love the shape of trees at this time of year.  

My own choice

Meet Bob the wounded crow - this is a terrible photo - I can't get close enough to him ... he's been hobbling around the garden for the past month or more - looks like he has a broken wing - probably in the storm.  He stands under the feeder waiting for the wee birds to drop something for him and of course he's getting fed scraps.   It's really funny watching him eyeing up the feeder, head cocked, one eye focussed.   But I'd love to be able to help him fly again - usually crows aren't my favourite birds, but he's not annoying the other ones and the squirrel doesn't quite know what to make of him.  We've still been pondering getting another cat, but the wildlife is so good around here we'd miss all the drama if a furry beast was chasing them.  

So I'm off now to have a look around everyone else's photos for this months' words.  Thank you Kate for keeping this going.  

Border Stories

Just a heads up about a show I'm doing locally here at the start of March.

I've written about The Emigrant Woman's Tale which I've co-written with Hungarian poet Csilla Toldy - it tells the story of her escape from behind the Iron Curtain as an 18 year old, juxtaposed with my growing up on the border here before and during the Troubles.   We come from opposite sides of Europe, one from the country, one from the city, and have crafted a very nice show from our music and words.
We recently performed the show in Dundalk and had a lovely review of it ....
"The Emigrant Woman was fantastic. We saw it in Dundalk & we thought it was amazing. A great & true story with amazing music, we highly recommend everyone to go & experience it".
Bernadette & Dixie
 
We will be in Derry on Friday 6th March and in Armagh on Saturday 14th March.

.............

Now we've extended it into Border Stories to include a short dramatic piece about homelessness, entitled Bananas!, also written by Csilla and performed by Belfast actress Vicky Blades.  These shows will be followed by a discussion chaired by award winning journalist William (Billy) K Graham.
Entrance is Free, supported by the European Union's PEACE IV project.  

Sunday 8th March - 6pm - (International Women's Day) - An Cuan, Rostrevor
Thursday 12th March - 4.30 pm - Shimna Integrated School, Newcastle, Co. Down
Friday 13th March - 6pm - Sticky Fingers Arts Space, Edward Street, Newry.

Borders and homelessness are so much in the news at the moment and we are looking for more venues to take particulary The Emigrant out to - so if you've any ideas please get in touch.

Tsunduko

Tsunduko

The practice of buying more books than you're ever going to be able to read ...

That makes me smile ...
Love it

Recents and laying in waiting

I wrote back in October about a challenge I've set myself to read my way around the world.   So I've finally added a page that I will update as I go along to just keep a record of the countries I've visited and, time permitting, I'll add individual posts about the various books as well. So, 26 countries at the moment .... only another 170 or so to go ... According the UN list there are 195 at the moment, not including Taiwan, the Cook Islands - and probably not Scotland, England Wales and NI as individual ones either - but they're countries too ... It'll take me the rest of my life to complete, but that'll be fun. 

I've been struggling with content from a lot of places because many of the highly recommended books are based on stories of war and turmoil and displacement and there's only so much of that I can take at one time.   So I've been detouring when there are writers that intrigue me and looking for lighter options as well before diving back into more war torn areas.

But for now this is a Tsunduko Sunday - my library of books waiting to be read may never get done with .... but what a fun way to go:)