My mate Munchy and I both listen to music and jam together for fun as well as messing around and doing whatever activity. One of the many musical genre's that we like are blues music. When I was in Derby ages ago I went into a shop and saw a 7 DVD set of films directed by well known film directors and organised by Martin Scorsesse. I thought that I would buy it, watch them all and give them as a Christmas present to Munchy. I got as far as the first two films and then gave it to Munchy but between starting to watch the films and finishing watching the films I was introduced to a new blues artist called J.B Lenoir (pronounced Len-or). The first thing that made me like him was because he acted in this manner on an old recording...
After watching this film the first thing I thought was,
"What a pleasant sounding fellah. Hey J.B, do you want to be my mate?"
He wrote a lot of songs, one of them protesting the Vietnam War and wore funky clothes while he was performing. He was lurking around but I found him and his music decades after he died.
Here is the song 'I Feel So Good.'
Pretty good to be honest. Just his voice and his guitar was all he needed.
It's always nice when you are searching around for those little gems in the mass of culture out there and you actually find someone of this quality in the data banks of technology and memory.
Happy near- to- Christmas anyone who read this post.
Over and Out.
ED.
Saturday, December 17, 2011
Thursday, November 24, 2011
My Memorising Ambitions.
I have wanted to learn an Edgar Allan Poe poem for a long time and for some reason one Sunday afternoon I sat down with his collected works with Leadbelly in the background and began learning. As of the writing of this post I can recite three of the stanza's.
Oh don't I sound right cultured.
I WILL be the next Vincent Price.
Have you ever had the realisation that you have memorised speeches without even knowing that you have? That has happened to me. Here are the speeches that I know through just through listening to things a few times,
Oh don't I sound right cultured.
I WILL be the next Vincent Price.
Have you ever had the realisation that you have memorised speeches without even knowing that you have? That has happened to me. Here are the speeches that I know through just through listening to things a few times,
- Two Agent Smith speeches... and a bit of another one.
- The Russell Edginton speech in True Blood in front of the news cameras.
- The Al Pacino Speech from The Devils Advocate.
You just wake up one day and realise you can say the whole dialogue for some reason.
Anyway the day will come that I will be reciting the Raven to an audience... perhaps dressed in 19th century clothes like old Pricey or Chris Lee.
Over and Out.
ED.
Sunday, October 30, 2011
The Laura Marling Gig (with pictures).
While sitting down watching the television while browsing on the laptop my sister and I happened to go on the website of Laura Marling to check up on the gigs and if there was one nearby. Most people are unlucky when trying to get Laura Marling tickets because she is frustratingly sold out most of the time. But that night we were lucky. Tickets were on sale for a matinee performance at Birmingham Cathedral. After we saw this exciting piece of information on the site this was the conversation that went between my sister and I,
"Can we afford it?"
"Yeah, just about."
"Do you reckon we should go for it then?"
"YES. ABSOLUTELY!"
"Yeah yeah yeah... but do you think we should do it for definite?"
"Yeah, book it."
"So we are going to do it then?"
"Yeeeeeaaaahhhhhhh."
A month or so later which is today 29th October we drove down to Birmingham to the cathedral. As we sat down waiting for her to come on we talked about why Laura Marling was amazing and what songs we wanted her to do,
1. Salinas.
2. Rambling Man.
3. Night Terrors.
4. Goodbye England.
5. Alas I Cannot Swim.
... and she played all these songs. Between songs she admitted that she should be more organised because she had not written a set list... yet she knew exactly the songs we wanted to hear.
When she came on everyone was transfixed. She acted humbly, talking quietly. While she was singing she was in her own world. As my sister put it, she looked like an angel, just her guitar and her voice. The songs felt very real. I could hear a lot of deep breathing in in the crowd, closed mouth smiles, as if everyone was hypnotised.
What I learnt that she is a month younger than me... and she has all that talent... some people have all the luck.
I love live music, especially music of this quality. If no one has ever known about Laura Marling LISTEN to her. Unlike a lot of artists when people listen to Laura Marling they 'really' do listen.
Absolutely fanstastic.
One more musician I can tick off the list. I hope to see her live again as soon as possible.
The experience is something I can look back on a smile about. Salt of the earth.
Oh yeah and on the way back I saw a fire juggler.
Over and Out.
ED.
"Can we afford it?"
"Yeah, just about."
"Do you reckon we should go for it then?"
"YES. ABSOLUTELY!"
"Yeah yeah yeah... but do you think we should do it for definite?"
"Yeah, book it."
"So we are going to do it then?"
"Yeeeeeaaaahhhhhhh."
A month or so later which is today 29th October we drove down to Birmingham to the cathedral. As we sat down waiting for her to come on we talked about why Laura Marling was amazing and what songs we wanted her to do,
1. Salinas.
2. Rambling Man.
3. Night Terrors.
4. Goodbye England.
5. Alas I Cannot Swim.
... and she played all these songs. Between songs she admitted that she should be more organised because she had not written a set list... yet she knew exactly the songs we wanted to hear.
When she came on everyone was transfixed. She acted humbly, talking quietly. While she was singing she was in her own world. As my sister put it, she looked like an angel, just her guitar and her voice. The songs felt very real. I could hear a lot of deep breathing in in the crowd, closed mouth smiles, as if everyone was hypnotised.
What I learnt that she is a month younger than me... and she has all that talent... some people have all the luck.
I love live music, especially music of this quality. If no one has ever known about Laura Marling LISTEN to her. Unlike a lot of artists when people listen to Laura Marling they 'really' do listen.
Absolutely fanstastic.
One more musician I can tick off the list. I hope to see her live again as soon as possible.
The experience is something I can look back on a smile about. Salt of the earth.
Oh yeah and on the way back I saw a fire juggler.
Over and Out.
ED.
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
The Difference Between Nationalism and Patriotism plus rambling.
In a discussion stuff was said between myself and a friend (in the mode of 'let's talk about the serious sounding stuff'). The subject came up about nationalism and patriotism and this is what the difference might be as we saw it.
- Nationalism is about love of your country coupled with the belief that all other countries are inferior. The only love you have is for your country and not for any other.
- Patriotism is about the love of your country coupled with the belief that all other countries are of worth and your country is not totally superior to others.
I am a patriot. Britain and England and the UK blah blah blah is my home. I love the culture, the lifestyle, the freedom, the democracy. But so many other countries are just as wonderful and have affected the world to a great extent. In this modern world we can't have an 'us against them' attitude, an our country against all others attitude. The music and literature I read and listen to comes from Britain, America, Germany, Scandinavian countries, even Turkey, Africa and Hungary. I love all of these countries and all of the produce, be it art or food affects us. No country can be really independent.
I do not hold my country be be higher and superior to any other country but I am dedicated to helping it and I will work for it's upkeep, doing my bit for humanity as a whole, taking care of some land that humanity uses... for humanity, not merely just for Britain. We are no longer tribes of tight units trying to survive anymore. The world is developing and in order for it to develop further we must work together, country between country for the good of our world that continues to grow smaller and smaller.
I think that fair capitalism is fine. If people or countries are richer than another one that is fine and conforms with nature I suppose. But the rich cannot put themselves in a bubble in my opinion or only care about themselves. The rich have a social responsibility to help tackle problems. They can improve the country and the welfare of its people.
I think that fair capitalism is fine. If people or countries are richer than another one that is fine and conforms with nature I suppose. But the rich cannot put themselves in a bubble in my opinion or only care about themselves. The rich have a social responsibility to help tackle problems. They can improve the country and the welfare of its people.
This whole post is just two or so minutes worth of notes for a conversation. Some of the stuff may be obvious (or you may hate everything that is said here which is fine I suppose) somewhat but it's my blog...soooooooo...ya know.
Just a set of ideas that pop into the brain don't cha know.
Just a set of ideas that pop into the brain don't cha know.
Over and Out.
ED.
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Redwall and My Nostalgia Binge.
I picked up a book called 'Mattimeo', one in a series of books written by Brian Jacques. I began flicking through my old collection of these series of books known as the Redwall series and relived the moments of magic that I had when I read the books as a child.
For those who you who don't know about the books, the Redwall books are stories about anthropomorphic creatures in a medieval type setting. All of the books surround, in some way, an Abbey in a land named Mossflower Woods. These books were brilliant beyond words. The first book written by Brian Jacques was called Redwall...unsurprisingly. It was about a young mouse that lived in Redwall Abbey, that rose as a warrior and defeated a band of sea rats lead by a one eyed villain known as Cluny the Scourge. These were all pretty amazing.
The stories go through generation upon generation of inhabitants in Redwall Abbey and the surrounding area. There is only one small niggle about the books. Why are quite a lot of rats depicted as the 'bad ones'? Surely you can't be instantly bad because you are a certain species? Brian Jacques has never been know to be a Nazi or a secret racist anyway and the kids that read these books won't give a hoot about these details... I didn't anyway when I was young.
So I am starting to read all of the old stories I read during my childhood.
...and I am writing. Here is an extract to the first bit of a story I have been writing.
"He swung himself into the car and slammed the door. He was going to the home where Fathers Incarnation Remnant was... in the city of Leicester."
It is just a first draft and you can't tell if the story is good or not from the extract (neither do I and I've read the first draft) but I'm going to develop on it and make it a work on peronius chintiquity...can you tell which two words are made up in this blog post.
For those who you who don't know about the books, the Redwall books are stories about anthropomorphic creatures in a medieval type setting. All of the books surround, in some way, an Abbey in a land named Mossflower Woods. These books were brilliant beyond words. The first book written by Brian Jacques was called Redwall...unsurprisingly. It was about a young mouse that lived in Redwall Abbey, that rose as a warrior and defeated a band of sea rats lead by a one eyed villain known as Cluny the Scourge. These were all pretty amazing.
The stories go through generation upon generation of inhabitants in Redwall Abbey and the surrounding area. There is only one small niggle about the books. Why are quite a lot of rats depicted as the 'bad ones'? Surely you can't be instantly bad because you are a certain species? Brian Jacques has never been know to be a Nazi or a secret racist anyway and the kids that read these books won't give a hoot about these details... I didn't anyway when I was young.
...and I am writing. Here is an extract to the first bit of a story I have been writing.
"He swung himself into the car and slammed the door. He was going to the home where Fathers Incarnation Remnant was... in the city of Leicester."
It is just a first draft and you can't tell if the story is good or not from the extract (neither do I and I've read the first draft) but I'm going to develop on it and make it a work on peronius chintiquity...can you tell which two words are made up in this blog post.
Friday, September 2, 2011
The Progression of my Taste in Horror, My Natural Morbid Fascination and Webseries.
While eating some food today I began thinking about the horror genre, one of my many loves in my life. I began to track in my mind how my taste had changed throughout my years of existence and I came up with this material to all who wish to read. I have changed to the extreme from the childhood to now.
My earliest memory 'scary' stuff is being a very young child and my siblings and I sat down to watch Beauty and the Beast. I know Beauty and the Beast is not horror because as we all know Disney is the tamest thing that you can get but at that young age I thought that the beast was the most terrifying thing ever and I found it hard sitting down to watch the film.
Later on when I was not much older my family used to watch Buffy the Vampire Slayer. While everyone was watching the program I went out of the room because I was scared of the vampires and ghouls and everything vaguely monstrous. In other words I was the most freaked out about scary things compared to the rest of my family. It made my stomach churn at that age.
Although I remembered being horrified at all the scary stuff out there I still had a strange fascination. I remember when we first got a family computer. There was a program that allowed you to create bookmarks. I forgot what my brothers and sisters got but I chose to put Frankenstein, the Wolfman and Dracula cartoons on my bookmark. They scared me at the time so I can't truly remember why I put them on a bookmark.
As I went to primary school my fear turned to intrigue. I perhaps was curious as to why I was scared by all of the dark things. It was at this point that I started to read the Goosebumps children's books by R.L Stine. I was introduced to evil living dolls, piano instructors that held terrible secrets, mummies that came to life and lizard type creatures that pretended to be human. I was absorbed by everything and gained a massive collection.
I remember the first novel I wrote. It was in a scrappy two hundred page Note Pad with about eleven chapters, each chapter being hand written and being about three or four pages long for each chapter. The story was about a group of people in a fantasy world who were trying to stop a vampire who is sucking the blood of people around them. They go on an adventure to kill the vampire as it flees from being hunted. I think my aim at the time was to mix traditional gothic monsters with an adventuring tale that Brian Jacques of the Redwall series might be proud of. I don't think I thought too much on my influences at the time but it was fun writing down your imagination. I was highly influenced by Brian Jacques at the time, reading just about every Redwall book there was. Redwall wasn't a horror series at all and all of the characters were animals... all of the moles were Cornish.
I've been interested in things like graveyards and abandoned churches. I wouldn't say that going through church yards was a hobby but I've always had a morbid fascination with these things. Here is a link to two posts about two experiences I had going into church yards and exploring. The first link tells the story about the time I walked to a nearby village called Wanlip and learnt about a slave called Rasselas Morjan that was buried in the church yard and a knight and his wife buried under the altar. The second describes my ramblings around my local village, walking through the local churchyard. There are pictures in both links.
http://edastill.blogspot.com/2011/06/local-history-sir-lady-and-rasselas.html
http://edastill.blogspot.com/2011/05/glory-of-birstall.html
At age ten or eleven I read Dracula for the first time which began an obsession with delving into the Gothic literature tradition including Melmoth the Wanderer, The Castle of Otranto, Frankenstein, The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, Edgar Allan Poe and H.P Lovecraft as well as other endlessly fascinating authors and stories. It is from here that I looked into films, TV, anything creepy that would satisfy my fascination which I read through in my teenage years.
It then looked behind the stories themselves, reading books about the authors, the European folklore of these fantastic creatures and the people that inspired the characters of my favourite books. I began to be interested in the human psyche, the unspeakable parts of humans that are presented so well in the symbols of Gothic and horror literature.
I looked into different artistic mediums for horror; music, comics, films, anything.
At this point in my life I am still the fan boy that I always was except now I have a few stories under my belt that were born because of the sparking of my creative cogs that came from these horror stories. I have always loved other genres but Gothic and horror have been a constant from my childhood, from the days that I was scared of everything to nowadays where I am more thrilled that scared.
At my age the only things that scare me and fill me with dread are Big Brother, X Factor, Crazy Religious People, Bad Music and Crazy People/ Crazy Religious People in Power among a few other things. Horror literature is far less scary than some things in the world.
In other news I wish to make an advertisement. I am a great fan of horror films, especially Hammer Horror and the original Universal black and whites. Recently I became aware of a webseries called Blood and Bone China. It is a twelve episode series that very much hails back to the Hammer Horror days of not so long ago. The story revolves around a young doctor who brother disappears mysteriously. He travels to Stoke on Trent (yes, Stoke on Trent I said. It's in the Midlands so I'm REPRESENTING the midlands) in order to find out what happened to him. His investigations with the help of his vampire hunting relative and an inquisitive journalistic woman he goes out to face ferocious vampires. It's an independent film project and was filmed all around Stoke on Trent. If all of this sounds vaguely interesting to you then here is the website.
http://www.bloodandbonechina.com/index.html
If you watch your way through the episodes you will find out why bone china is is so important in the series. The series is good fun if nothing else.
Over and Out.
ED
My earliest memory 'scary' stuff is being a very young child and my siblings and I sat down to watch Beauty and the Beast. I know Beauty and the Beast is not horror because as we all know Disney is the tamest thing that you can get but at that young age I thought that the beast was the most terrifying thing ever and I found it hard sitting down to watch the film.
Later on when I was not much older my family used to watch Buffy the Vampire Slayer. While everyone was watching the program I went out of the room because I was scared of the vampires and ghouls and everything vaguely monstrous. In other words I was the most freaked out about scary things compared to the rest of my family. It made my stomach churn at that age.
Although I remembered being horrified at all the scary stuff out there I still had a strange fascination. I remember when we first got a family computer. There was a program that allowed you to create bookmarks. I forgot what my brothers and sisters got but I chose to put Frankenstein, the Wolfman and Dracula cartoons on my bookmark. They scared me at the time so I can't truly remember why I put them on a bookmark.
As I went to primary school my fear turned to intrigue. I perhaps was curious as to why I was scared by all of the dark things. It was at this point that I started to read the Goosebumps children's books by R.L Stine. I was introduced to evil living dolls, piano instructors that held terrible secrets, mummies that came to life and lizard type creatures that pretended to be human. I was absorbed by everything and gained a massive collection.
I remember the first novel I wrote. It was in a scrappy two hundred page Note Pad with about eleven chapters, each chapter being hand written and being about three or four pages long for each chapter. The story was about a group of people in a fantasy world who were trying to stop a vampire who is sucking the blood of people around them. They go on an adventure to kill the vampire as it flees from being hunted. I think my aim at the time was to mix traditional gothic monsters with an adventuring tale that Brian Jacques of the Redwall series might be proud of. I don't think I thought too much on my influences at the time but it was fun writing down your imagination. I was highly influenced by Brian Jacques at the time, reading just about every Redwall book there was. Redwall wasn't a horror series at all and all of the characters were animals... all of the moles were Cornish.
I've been interested in things like graveyards and abandoned churches. I wouldn't say that going through church yards was a hobby but I've always had a morbid fascination with these things. Here is a link to two posts about two experiences I had going into church yards and exploring. The first link tells the story about the time I walked to a nearby village called Wanlip and learnt about a slave called Rasselas Morjan that was buried in the church yard and a knight and his wife buried under the altar. The second describes my ramblings around my local village, walking through the local churchyard. There are pictures in both links.
http://edastill.blogspot.com/2011/06/local-history-sir-lady-and-rasselas.html
http://edastill.blogspot.com/2011/05/glory-of-birstall.html
At age ten or eleven I read Dracula for the first time which began an obsession with delving into the Gothic literature tradition including Melmoth the Wanderer, The Castle of Otranto, Frankenstein, The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, Edgar Allan Poe and H.P Lovecraft as well as other endlessly fascinating authors and stories. It is from here that I looked into films, TV, anything creepy that would satisfy my fascination which I read through in my teenage years.
It then looked behind the stories themselves, reading books about the authors, the European folklore of these fantastic creatures and the people that inspired the characters of my favourite books. I began to be interested in the human psyche, the unspeakable parts of humans that are presented so well in the symbols of Gothic and horror literature.
I looked into different artistic mediums for horror; music, comics, films, anything.
At this point in my life I am still the fan boy that I always was except now I have a few stories under my belt that were born because of the sparking of my creative cogs that came from these horror stories. I have always loved other genres but Gothic and horror have been a constant from my childhood, from the days that I was scared of everything to nowadays where I am more thrilled that scared.
At my age the only things that scare me and fill me with dread are Big Brother, X Factor, Crazy Religious People, Bad Music and Crazy People/ Crazy Religious People in Power among a few other things. Horror literature is far less scary than some things in the world.
In other news I wish to make an advertisement. I am a great fan of horror films, especially Hammer Horror and the original Universal black and whites. Recently I became aware of a webseries called Blood and Bone China. It is a twelve episode series that very much hails back to the Hammer Horror days of not so long ago. The story revolves around a young doctor who brother disappears mysteriously. He travels to Stoke on Trent (yes, Stoke on Trent I said. It's in the Midlands so I'm REPRESENTING the midlands) in order to find out what happened to him. His investigations with the help of his vampire hunting relative and an inquisitive journalistic woman he goes out to face ferocious vampires. It's an independent film project and was filmed all around Stoke on Trent. If all of this sounds vaguely interesting to you then here is the website.
http://www.bloodandbonechina.com/index.html
If you watch your way through the episodes you will find out why bone china is is so important in the series. The series is good fun if nothing else.
Over and Out.
ED
Friday, August 26, 2011
Useless Self Indulgent Questionnaire From a Website.
Self explanatory says I to myself says I.
It's a grandad shirt that I found in my drawer one day.
What's currently bothering you?
An itchy foot.
What do you currently hear?
A television.
When was the last time you had your hair cut?
A month and a bit ago.
When were you last outside?
About two hours ago.
Are you wearing shorts?
I haven't worn shorts during the day for ages. I've only worn shorts when going to bed.
Does the thought of marriage scare you?
Just something that I don't think about at the moment but whatever happens happens.
What are you doing today?
I WAS sending out CV's for work experiences.
Look to your left, what is there?
The end of a sofa.
What time did you go to sleep last night?
About two in the morning.
When is your Birthday?
3rd January.
The way to win your heart?
Being free spirited, non- knobbish.
What are you going to do this weekend?
Meeting people. Chillin' like a villain.
Were you happy when you woke up today?
Thoughtful, singing to myself.
Have you ever crawled through a window?
A few times, yes.
Would you ever donate blood?
I'd like to but not any time soon.
Has anyone ever mistaken you for a family member?
No.
Do you have reason to smile right now?
Yes. There is always a reason to smile.
Why is the song you picked for your myspace song up?
I haven't used that for ages but the last song pricked my ears up was What the Water Gave Me by Florence and the Machine.
What do you do when you're stressed out?
Deal with it, listen to music or contemplate in a relaxed manner for a little bit.
Would you honestly say you'd risk your life for someone else?
I think so. I just hope it doesn't come to that.
Could you forgive a boyfriend or friend who physically hurt you?
Depends how hard and if the intention was to cause me pain... I don't think I would be in that situation anyway.
Do you open up to people easily?
Yes, if they are friendly.
Has anyone upset you in the last week?
Nope. I can't remember where I put my wallet... my memory offends me.
What is the last pill you swallowed?
A multi- vitamin thingy.
What was the first thing you thought this morning?
Cup of tea.
Who do you blame for your bad mood today?
I don't have a bad mood.
What was the first thing you did this morning?
Stretched
Do you care of what people think of you?
Not really.
Who was the last person you took a picture with?
My mate Munchy.
What are you looking forward to right now?
Enjoying whatever happens in the future.
Do you miss someone?
I can contact a lot of people thanks to technology.
Overstrand.
Does your crush like you?
Lissie Maurus, the folky singer... we have never met.
Is there a person of the opposite sex that means a lot to you?
There is a few.
If you could go back in time and change something would you?
Nope because then I couldn't think about it and learn from it.
Do you hate smokers?
No. Smoking doesn't affect the person the niceness of people. People can do what they want.
Is it hard for you to get over someone?
It takes as long as any other person.
Ever had a near death experience?
I blew up once...
Something you do a lot?
Listen to music, read, be in my own head.
Last person you cried in front of?
A family member.
Where will you be 18 hours from now?
I don't know. I haven't planned that far.
Have you ever been to a tanning bed?
Hell no boy!
Is it easy for others to make you feel awkward?
I wouldn't think so.
Does anyone hate you for no reason?
I don't know but they have every right to.
Have you ever kissed someone whose name starts with the letter J?
It's possible I had sometime in my life.
What are you stressed out about?
S'all good... but work experience.
Where do you want to go university?
Been.
What's your favourite season?
Early Autumn.
What was your favourite grade?
A*
When is the next time you'll see your best friend(s)?
Any day we feel we wish to see each other.
Do you know anyone who would just drop everything to come see you?
I don't know, vain to assume.
Do you have someone of the opposite sex you can tell everything to?
Yes.
Favourite number?
I actually don't know.
What do you like most sunrise/sunset?
The natural radiant beauty.
When you watch movies at home, do you like the lights on or the lights off?
Lights off.
Are you wearing make-up?
No.
What were you doing at 11:30 last night?
Looking on youtube perhaps/ listening to music.
What's the last thing you said and to who?
I don't know what I said but it was a comment to my sister about something on the television.
Can you whistle?
Yes.
Are you currently wanting any piercings or tattoos?
I wouldn't mind a tattoo.
Do you sleep on your stomach?
On my back.
What do you hear?
The TV.
Are you ticklish?
On my sides if squeezed.
Last time you saw fireworks, with who & where?
At a faire at my local park with my family an my sisters boyfriend.
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Four Days Without Civilisation (Day Four).
The day was restful.There was a really old church not far away from the house so we went there to play an organ that was housed there. The church was hardly ever used and it was a drive, a walk over a bridge and a field till we got there.
It was in a mass of fields without company apart from the cows.
I have no idea about organs whatsoever, I just assumed that it was similar to a piano. What I learnt was that two people were needed to play one, the first person to actually play the thing and the other person was at the back pumping the massive fan thing at the back. We took turns pumping the lever as the organ was being played.
I walked around the church for a bit. Most of the inscriptions and so forth were from the 1700's..... which is nearly as old as my dad.
.....Oh yeah and then we played pooh sticks on the bridge nearby.
Over and Out.
ED.
Over and Out.
ED.
Friday, August 5, 2011
Four Days Without Civilisation (Day 3).
Today we woke up and readied ourselves to walk up the mountain that stretches one thousand feet in the sky behind the house. We walked through the field towards the mountain and then went down to the stream where we would officially begin our journey. It was from the magical tinkling of the stream that we ascended on our way to the top.
The last time that I was up the Twisty mountain was quite a few years ago. The bracken was higher than our heads and it seemed longer than it took this day to go to the top. It was much different going to the top. It took no longer than an hour and a half to go the the top, stay on the top for twenty or so minutes and then go down again. It seemed to take much longer all those years ago.
Eventually we got to the to the end of our journey all the way.
The picture above is my brother and sister standing on the edge of the rocky part. Behind them is quite a massive fall... and it was rather windy. It was lucky we got down the mountain alive...probably.
You may be able to see a flat rock under all the greenery. This is the origin of the spring. All of the water that comes out of the taps is natural spring water that comes from the mountains. Basically every time you shower, wash up or simply drink water here you are using the natural water from the surrounding area.
A great day.
To be continued......
Over and Out.
ED.
A great day.
To be continued......
Over and Out.
ED.
Four Days Without Civilisation (Day 2).
Today was the birthday of Claude (see previous blog) hence the days events involved looking at presents, eating a feast of sweets and................finding out about a spiritual guardian. A few guests turned up at the house and saw the mass of food on the table. One of these guests told us that he was a psychic, able to read an aura and tap into the 'spiritual realm'. I am of a skeptical nature but I was willing to listen to him and it turned out that what I heard was very interesting.
While he was talking about his experiences he turned to my sister and I and asked whether we were a couple. After telling him that we were twins he then went further and said that we both share a spiritual guardian, going into description about this person. The spiritual guardian had a long, flowing cape that swished around everywhere. He told me that this guardian had symbols that he keeps putting in front of me. I wonder what that could mean?
This was the most interesting part of the visit of the medium to the house. The conservatory had what he might term 'negative energy'. From the explanation that was given by the medium, negative energy was running in a line through the conservatory due to underwater streams that ran under the house. The way that this negative energy can be taken out of the conservatory was to change it's flow through the use of specific stones. I was boggled about what it all meant to be honest but I watched as he took two massive boulders and walked into the field by the conservatory, dug holes and put these stones upright in the field. Here is a picture of this being done...
This was a new experience for me and I didn't fully understand the whole explanation but it was intriguing nonetheless and I am better off knowing about the practice. It was food for thought as they say...
...speaking of food the chocolate cake that was made was thick, rich and amazing, a sixteenth century recipe I believe and each slice was about 700 calories. I'm a thin one so calories meant nothing to me. We tucked into that feast with mirth, even one of the chickens came in and tried to get a bit of the action.
As night fell and the guests had left we settled down for a night of board games. I lay in bed that night and looked out of the window. I remember it was cloudy so I couldn't see the stars that night. I fell asleep and thought about standing on the mountain by the house during the dark hours and what it would be like.
Over and Out.
ED
To be continued... again...
This was the most interesting part of the visit of the medium to the house. The conservatory had what he might term 'negative energy'. From the explanation that was given by the medium, negative energy was running in a line through the conservatory due to underwater streams that ran under the house. The way that this negative energy can be taken out of the conservatory was to change it's flow through the use of specific stones. I was boggled about what it all meant to be honest but I watched as he took two massive boulders and walked into the field by the conservatory, dug holes and put these stones upright in the field. Here is a picture of this being done...
...speaking of food the chocolate cake that was made was thick, rich and amazing, a sixteenth century recipe I believe and each slice was about 700 calories. I'm a thin one so calories meant nothing to me. We tucked into that feast with mirth, even one of the chickens came in and tried to get a bit of the action.
As night fell and the guests had left we settled down for a night of board games. I lay in bed that night and looked out of the window. I remember it was cloudy so I couldn't see the stars that night. I fell asleep and thought about standing on the mountain by the house during the dark hours and what it would be like.
Over and Out.
ED
To be continued... again...
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Four Days Without Civilisation. (Day 1).
About two or so weeks ago I travelled to Wales to visit my uncle, his partner Claude and the surrounding area. This will be my third post talking about this area but it is a very fabulous place and I wish to share the wonder and relaxation this secluded house which has always been known as Twistybach.
We arrived after a boiling three hour car journey and found out that a day before our coming there had been three new arrivals...
Three of these little fellahs had hatched only the day before and they were already up and pouncing about. In the kitchen was a fly gun to shoot fly's with that can then be given to the mother hen who will then take all the credit for the fly catching and give it to the chicks.
As we were sitting down reading or mind wandering in the conservatory we heard a tapping at the window, a strange sound... as if someone was lightly throwing stones onto the surface of the window. We looked up and saw three more new arrivals that had arrived after the last time we had come to Wales...
They were a bit mischievous. They seemingly only went to the toilet just outside the porch area and when they were sometimes allowed in the house they used the conservatory floor as a loo also. Imagine if humans were like that.
Hannah (my sister) and I went on a walk up the pathway and came upon these blighters...
Hannah and I were discussing the sound that sheep make. Many people say that sheep go 'baaahhh' but as we passed the sheep on each side of us the sheep were going 'meeeeeeeehhhhh'. I don't know whether it is merely the accent of the sheep around these parts but we came to the decision that 'meh' was the right way to pronounce that bleating thing that they do.
Here is the haunted house that we always go to...
We ate a hearty meal after the walk and settled down for the night. I slept in the galley room with my brother, a name given to it because of it being similar to a galley. We closed our eyes and awaited for the surprises that would come to us the following day.
To be continued...
Over and Out.
ED
We arrived after a boiling three hour car journey and found out that a day before our coming there had been three new arrivals...
As we were sitting down reading or mind wandering in the conservatory we heard a tapping at the window, a strange sound... as if someone was lightly throwing stones onto the surface of the window. We looked up and saw three more new arrivals that had arrived after the last time we had come to Wales...
Hannah (my sister) and I went on a walk up the pathway and came upon these blighters...
Here is the haunted house that we always go to...
To be continued...
Over and Out.
ED
Monday, July 18, 2011
Seth Lakeman and my lack of knowledge in cars.
Three or so weeks ago I was sat watching late night television with my sister looking up our favourite folk artists or various sites. We happened to go on to the official Seth Lakeman website, a well known folkie and a dab hand at his art, being brought up on folk music from his father since he was young.
As we surveyed the scene on the computer screen we happened to look on the tour dates and found that in mid July he was going to perform at Derby... at 'the Venue' club no less we both knew what this and it was not long before we had ordered tickets and with a short time we were putting on our coats and off to the gig with our mother who enjoyed folk also.
His music was played throughout our entire journey, drowning out the Sat Nav, but I knew Derby like the back of a cheese sandwich so it was alight.
Before you read on watch this you might have a taste for what he is like while performing... amazing I think you will agree.
We arrived at the event and watched the support act whose name was 'David Gibbs and the Pony Club' and I must say that David Gibbs had a good sense of humour, great songs, brilliant.
Seth Lakeman came on with his band, his burly bassist, his enthusiastic guitarist and... well... Seth Lakeman with his multi instrumentalist greatness. My sister Hannah made me promise to stand behind her when he came on because she might faint and I was glad she didn't topple over because then I would have to hold her up all night slumped over.
It... was... one... of... the greatest... gigs... I... have... ever... been...to. It was so atmospheric throughout. My favourite song was Kitty Jay. The violin and the fiddle apart from the guitar are the greatest instruments ever.
After they had finished their fast paced set they went off but we stamped, were yelled, we clapped until they came on again and played one more song. It was one of the most fantastic times I have been to, ever... no joke. If you don't know anything about Seth Lakeman then get into his music NOW. You will not be disappointed in the least.
In conclusion I went to a car festival during the weekend and I have no idea about cars but still went because it seemed to be a fun time. Here are some cars that I thought looked nice, taken by my brother. It's funny that I take all these pictures for my blog and I don't even own a camera... I really should to be honest.
Over and Out.
ED.
As we surveyed the scene on the computer screen we happened to look on the tour dates and found that in mid July he was going to perform at Derby... at 'the Venue' club no less we both knew what this and it was not long before we had ordered tickets and with a short time we were putting on our coats and off to the gig with our mother who enjoyed folk also.
His music was played throughout our entire journey, drowning out the Sat Nav, but I knew Derby like the back of a cheese sandwich so it was alight.
Before you read on watch this you might have a taste for what he is like while performing... amazing I think you will agree.
In conclusion I went to a car festival during the weekend and I have no idea about cars but still went because it seemed to be a fun time. Here are some cars that I thought looked nice, taken by my brother. It's funny that I take all these pictures for my blog and I don't even own a camera... I really should to be honest.
ED.
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Digging Holes in Skegness and My New Library.
I feel that I have not written a post for ages. After fulfilling one June goal by visiting Rasselas Morjan (in the previous post) it was time for me to transport all of my beloved books and films from Derby back to Leicester. Due to the need to put all of this stuff somewhere I was compelled to clear out the old bookcase with my old books from childhood and teenage years in order to update my passion for literature don't cha know.
I looked through my old books. There were about thirty goosebumps books that I had (some that I had already given to charity a few years before) that I cleared away. When I was younger I read these books like wildfire. From between the ages of six and thirteen my book obsessions were Goosebumps written by R. L Stine (is it a coincidence that his names sounds like Frankenstein?) and the Redwall series by Brian Jacques. After these book series I started to get into the gothic classics, weird tales and modern dark fantasy/ macabre fiction. I don't know why Harry Potter has never been a series that I have wanted to be picked up, just doesn't excite me as much as other books.
After I had put all of my more recently bought books onto my bookcase I was happy.
I went to Skegness with fellow consciousnesses called Dan, Rob, Jo, Munchy and Bean, staying at a seaside camp for a weekend and a day.
As night fell we had a barbeque on the beach. About three burgers for me please ...yum yum.
Morning came. When I woke up and clambered unkempt from my tent my taste buds were greeted with a taste smash on my tongue from an egg and bacon sandwich. It was after this mighty fine breakfast that we went down to the beach and set up the slip and slide, taking Fairy Liquid to make it slippery.
The above picture is Munchy sliding down to the sea like a man with no will to live. Funnily enough the fairly liquid had little effect because of the sand that caused painful friction on our bellies anyway... but cleverly we wore shirts most of the time sliding down.
That night we lighted a red glowy monster into the sky that one calls a Chinese lantern. We set off a firework to make Neptune happy... out of politeness really.
A nice time all round I would say.
Vaguely entertaining blog over.
I looked through my old books. There were about thirty goosebumps books that I had (some that I had already given to charity a few years before) that I cleared away. When I was younger I read these books like wildfire. From between the ages of six and thirteen my book obsessions were Goosebumps written by R. L Stine (is it a coincidence that his names sounds like Frankenstein?) and the Redwall series by Brian Jacques. After these book series I started to get into the gothic classics, weird tales and modern dark fantasy/ macabre fiction. I don't know why Harry Potter has never been a series that I have wanted to be picked up, just doesn't excite me as much as other books.
After I had put all of my more recently bought books onto my bookcase I was happy.
I went to Skegness with fellow consciousnesses called Dan, Rob, Jo, Munchy and Bean, staying at a seaside camp for a weekend and a day.
As night fell we had a barbeque on the beach. About three burgers for me please ...yum yum.
Morning came. When I woke up and clambered unkempt from my tent my taste buds were greeted with a taste smash on my tongue from an egg and bacon sandwich. It was after this mighty fine breakfast that we went down to the beach and set up the slip and slide, taking Fairy Liquid to make it slippery.
That night we lighted a red glowy monster into the sky that one calls a Chinese lantern. We set off a firework to make Neptune happy... out of politeness really.
A nice time all round I would say.
Vaguely entertaining blog over.
Over and Out.
ED
Friday, June 17, 2011
Local History/ The Sir, the Lady and Rasselas Morjan.
“Sacred to the memory of Rasselas Morjan, who was born at Macadi on the confines of Abyssinia and died at Wanlip Hall August 25th 1839 in the 19th year of his age. Rescued from a state of slavery in this life and enabled by God’s grace to become a member of his Church. He rests here in the hope of a greater deliverance hereafter. This stone is raised in remembrance of his blameless life by one whom he loved.”
The words above come from the gravestone of a slave buried in Our Lady and St Nicholas Church in Wanlip.
In my blog post called 'The Glory of Birstall' I mentioned about a slave that was buried in a church near to where I live. Today I woke up and decided that it was time for me to seek out this grave, walk around and look at the history of the surrounding area for a bit. I was not disappointed in the slightest.
It took me no more than fifteen or so minutes for me to get to Wanlip and only a tiny amount of time until I got to Our Lady and St Nicholas Church. It was a tiny churchyard and a tiny church, a stereotypical country place of Christain worship which I learned was built in 1393.
Wanlip was once an isolated settlement, and its old English name ‘anliepe’ means isolated.
I was lucky to find the rector walking through the church. He asked me who I was looking for when he saw me walking and bending down to read the stones. He guided me to the headstone I wanted and this is what I saw...
As I got talking with the rector we began chatting about history. The slave was an Abyssinian called Rasselas Morjan and was employed by the members of the local Palmer family in the early 1800's. It is not known how he got employment at the hall in Wanlip, but it is known that the Palmers were friends with the Babbingtons of Rothley, (another nearby village) who were greatly involved in the anti-slavery campaign in the 19th century. It is not recorded when Rasselas Morjan was rescued from slavery or whether it was one of the Babbingtons who had helped secure his freedom, but it is thought that this may have occurred around 1835- 6, when Morjan was in his early teens. The Babbingtons may have asked their friends, the Palmers, to provide a home for Morjan. This is what happened, and some years later he was baptized in the church where his grave now was. He died when he was nineteen years old in 1839 of some illness... fascinating.
I was told that the diaries from the family mentioned ol' Rasselas. An extract of the family diary talked about Rasselas being proud of gaining a new button on his uniform because it meant that he had just been promoted.
I asked if I was allowed to have a look in the church and to my great excitement and happiness he gave me permission. It was a beautiful church inside, plaques on walls and a tiny organ to the right of the altar, wooden seating. I tasted a past age and it was wonderful.
I was guided to the front of the altar where the rector pulled away a sandy coloured carpet, revealing this...
“Here lyes Thomas Walsch knyght lorde of Anlep and dame Kat’ine his wife whiche in yer (their) tyme made the kirke of Anlep and halud the kirkyerd first in wirchip of god and of oure lady and seynt Nicholas that god have yer soules and mercy… 1393.”
The relic is the Wanlip brass, which commemorates the building of the church by Sir Thomas and Lady Katherine Walsh. Following the marriage of Roger Walsh to Maud, daughter of Henry of Wanlip, circa 1230, until the death of Thomas Walsh in 1893, eight generations of the Walsh family lived at Wanlip.
I can't exactly remember the exact words that the rector said but it went something along the lines of the relic being the first brass something- or- other in the country ever.
As I left the church I thanked the rector and was uplifted by the new history that I had discovered. I want to buy a history book of the whole area of Birstall, Wanlip and Rothley. The rector also told me about the Birstall History Society that meets up for talks about local subjects in the local library or the village hall... yeah I'm joining that.
You can go anywhere and find inspiration. It is easy to become obsessed with local landmarks, history and the stories that surround it. I love my place of origin. As I have already said in a previous post, I have been inspired no end through my local area.
Tonight I raise a glass to Rasselas, I hope your life was good and full of happiness. I would have liked to meet you if I lived in an early time. Cheers.
Over and Out.
ED.
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Lovecraft Unbound Short Story Compilation.
I want to review two amazing short stories that I read recently.
In a previous post I know that I mentioned that I was reading 'Rabbit Stew and a Penny or Two' by Maggie Smith- Bendall for the sake of my gypsy interest but I want to review something else in this post.
I am quite the multi- tasker when it comes to reading books, my limit being reading five novels at one time (*brushes shoulder*).
While I am reading 'Rabbit Stew' I have been reading Lovecraft Unbound, a kind of well known short story collection inspired by the the works of H.P Lovecraft. Here is a review of two of the stories in the collection that are my favorites, "The Tenderness of Jackals" by Amanda Downum and "The Din of Celestial Birds" by Brian Evenson.
These stories aren't necessarily written with Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos in mind but each of the stories include themes that are famous in his stories and poems.
I'll start with The Tenderness of Jackals by Amanda Downum. This is brilliant. It is based around the psychological workings of a predator. I suppose the theme that Downum took from Lovecraft is the idea of forces that are outside of our understanding influencing us, unknowable things from outside time and space trying to gain their foothold in our reality.
The story begins in a train station as a man is scanning the people around him as he smokes a cigarette. As the narrative continues we learn that he is hearing things in his head, the barks of Jackals urging him to find some prey. To me the jackals that are put in the story are psychological, being representations of the inner urges of the man's mind. When he is fighting against the jackals that he can both see and hear, what he is really fighting against is himself... so... yeah. It gets into the mind of a man with the urge to do something bad... and when a young man comes into his life he is greatly tempted to act on his urges that that he has been trying to repress... the jackals that he hears and sees urging him onwards to unleash the monster within him. Greatedy Great!
The Din of Celestial Birds is by far my most favourite tale in the collection. It carries on the Lovecraft theme of mystreious, sinister forces in the universe acting on humanity in naughty ways...because the dark forces in our universe just do that.
The story is set in some poor Indian village. A man remembers running down a mountain where he remembers seeing a cage made of bones and feathers around it. As the story is told strange things begins to happen to the man. Holes begin to appear all around his body, he wakes up in a place without any idea how he got there. The local shaman type character keeps saying that the man is cursed and that "he is already dead..."
As things turn more crazy he becomes more alienated to the people around him. During the end scene he collapses and his body breaks apart into many beautiful birds that fly away into the sky.
The Din of Celestial Birds was written in the style of a written account, much like how M.R James might write one of his famous ghost stories.
I have never been attempted to write much fan fiction. I have always felt that I am trespassing onto an authors work. The only fan fiction that I have wanted to do was a tribute to True Blood (I have never read the books and have only seen up to series two of the t.v series...but I am intrigued in a world in which vampires have openly revealed their existence, you can only contemplate the endless tales that you can spin in a universe like that). The good thing about writing fan fiction in the dark world of Lovecraft is that you can go crazy. It is easy to write Lovecraftian fiction and when you write this type of fan fiction you don't feel at all guilty that you are corrupting another persons work in any way. I class Lovecraft Unbound not to be a book of fan fiction but a book of stories from authors who appreciate Lovecraft and his work, not by writing Mythos stories but by writing stories that have been inspired by his work, stories that were created when the creative cogs in the writers brains were set spinning with the help of H.P's weird tales.
You cannot be a fan of horror and the gothic without coming across Lovecraft sometime in your life.
Some of the stories I enjoyed throughly...some were ok...but none of them were bad.
Review over.
The book 'Rabbit Stew and a Penny or Two' to be reviewed after this small announcement from our sponsor...
I'll write about 'Rabbit Stew' some time in the future.
Good old H.P.
Over and Out.
ED
In a previous post I know that I mentioned that I was reading 'Rabbit Stew and a Penny or Two' by Maggie Smith- Bendall for the sake of my gypsy interest but I want to review something else in this post.
I am quite the multi- tasker when it comes to reading books, my limit being reading five novels at one time (*brushes shoulder*).
While I am reading 'Rabbit Stew' I have been reading Lovecraft Unbound, a kind of well known short story collection inspired by the the works of H.P Lovecraft. Here is a review of two of the stories in the collection that are my favorites, "The Tenderness of Jackals" by Amanda Downum and "The Din of Celestial Birds" by Brian Evenson.
These stories aren't necessarily written with Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos in mind but each of the stories include themes that are famous in his stories and poems.
I'll start with The Tenderness of Jackals by Amanda Downum. This is brilliant. It is based around the psychological workings of a predator. I suppose the theme that Downum took from Lovecraft is the idea of forces that are outside of our understanding influencing us, unknowable things from outside time and space trying to gain their foothold in our reality.
The story begins in a train station as a man is scanning the people around him as he smokes a cigarette. As the narrative continues we learn that he is hearing things in his head, the barks of Jackals urging him to find some prey. To me the jackals that are put in the story are psychological, being representations of the inner urges of the man's mind. When he is fighting against the jackals that he can both see and hear, what he is really fighting against is himself... so... yeah. It gets into the mind of a man with the urge to do something bad... and when a young man comes into his life he is greatly tempted to act on his urges that that he has been trying to repress... the jackals that he hears and sees urging him onwards to unleash the monster within him. Greatedy Great!
The Din of Celestial Birds is by far my most favourite tale in the collection. It carries on the Lovecraft theme of mystreious, sinister forces in the universe acting on humanity in naughty ways...because the dark forces in our universe just do that.
The story is set in some poor Indian village. A man remembers running down a mountain where he remembers seeing a cage made of bones and feathers around it. As the story is told strange things begins to happen to the man. Holes begin to appear all around his body, he wakes up in a place without any idea how he got there. The local shaman type character keeps saying that the man is cursed and that "he is already dead..."
As things turn more crazy he becomes more alienated to the people around him. During the end scene he collapses and his body breaks apart into many beautiful birds that fly away into the sky.
The Din of Celestial Birds was written in the style of a written account, much like how M.R James might write one of his famous ghost stories.
I have never been attempted to write much fan fiction. I have always felt that I am trespassing onto an authors work. The only fan fiction that I have wanted to do was a tribute to True Blood (I have never read the books and have only seen up to series two of the t.v series...but I am intrigued in a world in which vampires have openly revealed their existence, you can only contemplate the endless tales that you can spin in a universe like that). The good thing about writing fan fiction in the dark world of Lovecraft is that you can go crazy. It is easy to write Lovecraftian fiction and when you write this type of fan fiction you don't feel at all guilty that you are corrupting another persons work in any way. I class Lovecraft Unbound not to be a book of fan fiction but a book of stories from authors who appreciate Lovecraft and his work, not by writing Mythos stories but by writing stories that have been inspired by his work, stories that were created when the creative cogs in the writers brains were set spinning with the help of H.P's weird tales.
You cannot be a fan of horror and the gothic without coming across Lovecraft sometime in your life.
Some of the stories I enjoyed throughly...some were ok...but none of them were bad.
Review over.
The book 'Rabbit Stew and a Penny or Two' to be reviewed after this small announcement from our sponsor...
I'll write about 'Rabbit Stew' some time in the future.
Good old H.P.
Over and Out.
ED
Monday, June 13, 2011
Download Festival Review.
Here I sit...typing on a computer. I am unshaven with two shirts on, soggy trainers and muddy socks and the letter P on my hand. Download festival eh.
The bands that I can remember seeing are,
Quite frankly it was amazing. We arrived at the campsite pretty sharpish and settled down with our tents and our food and drink and prepared ourselves for our birth right, rockers and music fans coming together and jumping about and getting excited about music.
The portable toilets got a bit... built up...after a few days. ( have read through these last two paragraphs that they weren't as funny as I thought they would be...but I make it my business to make what I write on my blog go no further than first draft, apart from the slightest errors.)
I feel that I shall turn my attention to Blues Music for a while and a bit of Folk and Punk, perhaps a squeeze of classical over the next few months.
Pretty amazing time.
Love Life Always.
Over and Out.
ED (Snorlax).
The bands that I can remember seeing are,
- Skunk Anasie.
- Avenged Sevenfold.
- The Darkness.
- Turisas.
- Disturbed.
- Gaslight Anthem.
- Rob Zombie.
- System of a Down.
- Korn.
- (A little bit of) Pendulum.
- The Ed Astill Experience.........what?
The portable toilets got a bit... built up...after a few days. ( have read through these last two paragraphs that they weren't as funny as I thought they would be...but I make it my business to make what I write on my blog go no further than first draft, apart from the slightest errors.)
I feel that I shall turn my attention to Blues Music for a while and a bit of Folk and Punk, perhaps a squeeze of classical over the next few months.
Pretty amazing time.
Love Life Always.
Over and Out.
ED (Snorlax).
Friday, June 3, 2011
The Astill Elderflower Champagne (special brew).
Today was a day that my family do every year. My grandad used to make elderflower champagne and it occured to ma famille that the creation of this elixir of life should carry on down the line in later generations. So it came to pass, that four years ago my family began making elderflower champagne, gathering the elderflower from bushes all around the place, taking advantage of the great bounty of nature and making the special (*wink*) elderflower champagne.
We set out to Syston (my Nan lives in this village) at about 10am to go to Meadow Lane, a long stretch of road where there was an abundant supply of elderflower. We got our scissors and our baskets and began gathering the main ingredient.
The picture below shows us cutting off the elderflower stems after coming back home because if you leave them on then your champagne will be a bit bitter.
Pollen was everywhere... it's a good thing that none of us suffer from any allergies or hay fever or we would be lying on the floor after a few minutes.
Elderflower champagne is an absolute treat. It tastes of wilderness and nature and smells of summer fetes and sounds like.... brilliance.
I'm not going to write down the accurate recipe that we use to make our taste masterpiece but here are the basic ingredients that you are meant to add to the mix,
We set out to Syston (my Nan lives in this village) at about 10am to go to Meadow Lane, a long stretch of road where there was an abundant supply of elderflower. We got our scissors and our baskets and began gathering the main ingredient.
The picture below shows us cutting off the elderflower stems after coming back home because if you leave them on then your champagne will be a bit bitter.
Pollen was everywhere... it's a good thing that none of us suffer from any allergies or hay fever or we would be lying on the floor after a few minutes.
I'm not going to write down the accurate recipe that we use to make our taste masterpiece but here are the basic ingredients that you are meant to add to the mix,
- Elderflowers (Meeeehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh).
- Vinegar.
- Sugar.
- Loads of lemon juice with some zest added in.
- Lots and lots of water, with hot water added to cold to help with the fermentation and the dissolving sugar.
After we had added all the ingredients my brother stirred everything with a spatula while I stood with his camera and took pictures of him. He is wasting his talents... he should have become a famous hand model. Look how skillfully he is posing his hand at the top of this shot.
We then we closed the lids of the fermentation thingy- ma- bobs and signed in contentment and sat down with a caffeine beverage and wrote down a diary entry on a piece of paper of the details of this years batch of awesomeness.
It will take three weeks until we can drink it. Elderflower is said to keep only for three months but over the last few years the elderflower batch that we make lasts us a year.
My Mum, brother and I were also debating what we should call our elderflower champagne. Here are three of the things that we came up with,
- Momma Astill's Elderflower Champagne.
- Elly May's Elderflower Champagne.
- Astill's Elderflower Champagne.
It's amazing the stuff you can get from nature. Thank you nature, much appreciated.
My new favourite smell... lemons.
Over and Out.
ED.
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