Hello Northumberland! This is Central Ohio calling. Calling a little slow this morning.
I'm glad to see You're feeling well, and firing on all eight cylinders, Michelle. Wonderful round-up of articles.
I'm very provincial, I hafta admit. So was glad to learn about the Doubly Thankful villages. And triply thankful Upper Slaughter. (What a name!)
I donno what the kerfluffle is about what Suella Braverman said. The Spiked op ed explained all. Politics. Sheesh on all-a them.
All I can say about Dame Alison Rose is that she's a real piece of work. And that Iran and Hamas are what they are.
I'm exceedingly glad to hear the revisions are going well. And laughed that Paddy thinks his "listening ears" are "an optional extra." Ah well...
Me? I was delayed reading Yasha Mounk's "The Identity Trap." This on account I found I'd never read his "The Great Experiment: Why Diverse Democracies Fall Apart and How They Can Endure" which I'd already bought and paid for. I should finish it today. Also, I forgot to say Thank You for telling me about JKR/Robert Galbraith's "The Running Grave." I read it last week and it was great. All I'll say about it is that it kept me on the edge of my seat, and I fell off a couple times.
So pleased you find the Mounk book interesting. I must read his The Great Experiment.
And JKR/RG is just page turning stuff.
Once I realised about the way Hamas target relatives, some of the non-denunciation made sense. Yousaf's bil and family have chosen to remain in North Gaza. Therefore, one has to take what the First Minister for Scotland (not the Gaza Strip) declares with a massive pinch of salt.
There is Upper and Lower Slaughter -- collectively known as the Slaughters. Supposed to be a mispronunciation of the Old English word slothre which means the muddy place -- much less glamourous than some ancient massacre. They are both v pretty from what I can recall.
Right before I first moved over here I read a book called Life in Lower Slaughter about an American living in England in the 1970s. Anyway, I learned about Armed Forces Radio and the ability to listen to American sports live. My husband and I used to listen to the American football that way for many years with the radio crackling in and out as it was beamed from Germany. If it was Monday Night Football, it was the middle of the night here, and my goodness there were no other stations trying to cut over the top.
I never heard of the Doubly Thankful Villages. The WWII loss of life was significant to Americans, but we can’t imagine the loss the UK suffered, especially from the First World War. At Althorp (family home of Princess Diana) they carved the names of their WWI dead into a wall, and relatives of those men today journey to the wall to honor them.
I’ve read stories about towns in France where nearly all the men were killed who fought in WWI. JRR Tolkien lost every one of his friends in the Great War. I’m hoping Remembrance Day isn’t ruined by the current protests.
Paddy is adorable! A stray cat gave birth to three kittens in my parent’s backyard and now I’m tasked with finding homes for them. And I want to keep them all!
It is hard to imagine until you are in the UK. Every single village except for the Doubly Thankful ones has a war memorial with the names of the dead. Most schools have a memorial wall with the names of the dead. If you climb Great Gable in the Lakes, there is a monument to the keen climbers who perished. Balmoral has one to all the men they lost -- it has fylfots inscribed and there is a sign to point out that they are ancient symbols of peace, not swastikas. The main hall of Birmingham University is one of the largest man made war memorials.
A lady from my village is v involved with preserving Tyne Cot and has done extensive research on the soldiers who are named there as well as the ones on Haydon Bridge's own war memorial in effort to bring these people alive. Something like 6% of the population died in WWI and it was mainly those aged 18 -25.
Sometimes because it is so personal and localized people can forget about the thousands of other people from around the globe who answered the call and perished. But if you visit a commonwealth gravesite, the graves from Muslims, Sikhs, Jews and Christian are all there -- well tended and well marked. I always find them moving. bn
Julia is lovely and someone I am v proud to call a friend. I encouraged her to stand last year but she had not been a member for long enough (she didn't feel it was proper for her to join while she worked as an editor) so she stood this year. She is a retired editor, most recently with M&B/Harlequin but also worked for Scholastic and helped to edit the Babysitter Club books. She is a published novelist -- women's fiction. She had a really hard time during the elections as someone decided to call her all sorts of names. I hope she can help to redirect the SoA back to being a proper trade union for all its members. I have a lot of time for Julia.
Joanne Harris's term of office as the chair ends in January. No idea who will be the next chair (it has to be someone who has been on the Man Comm for at least 3 years) and they are currently searching for a new CEO as the current one is 'retiring' in April.
Hello Northumberland! This is Central Ohio calling. Calling a little slow this morning.
I'm glad to see You're feeling well, and firing on all eight cylinders, Michelle. Wonderful round-up of articles.
I'm very provincial, I hafta admit. So was glad to learn about the Doubly Thankful villages. And triply thankful Upper Slaughter. (What a name!)
I donno what the kerfluffle is about what Suella Braverman said. The Spiked op ed explained all. Politics. Sheesh on all-a them.
All I can say about Dame Alison Rose is that she's a real piece of work. And that Iran and Hamas are what they are.
I'm exceedingly glad to hear the revisions are going well. And laughed that Paddy thinks his "listening ears" are "an optional extra." Ah well...
Me? I was delayed reading Yasha Mounk's "The Identity Trap." This on account I found I'd never read his "The Great Experiment: Why Diverse Democracies Fall Apart and How They Can Endure" which I'd already bought and paid for. I should finish it today. Also, I forgot to say Thank You for telling me about JKR/Robert Galbraith's "The Running Grave." I read it last week and it was great. All I'll say about it is that it kept me on the edge of my seat, and I fell off a couple times.
TY for all You do, Michelle.
So pleased you find the Mounk book interesting. I must read his The Great Experiment.
And JKR/RG is just page turning stuff.
Once I realised about the way Hamas target relatives, some of the non-denunciation made sense. Yousaf's bil and family have chosen to remain in North Gaza. Therefore, one has to take what the First Minister for Scotland (not the Gaza Strip) declares with a massive pinch of salt.
There is Upper and Lower Slaughter -- collectively known as the Slaughters. Supposed to be a mispronunciation of the Old English word slothre which means the muddy place -- much less glamourous than some ancient massacre. They are both v pretty from what I can recall.
Right before I first moved over here I read a book called Life in Lower Slaughter about an American living in England in the 1970s. Anyway, I learned about Armed Forces Radio and the ability to listen to American sports live. My husband and I used to listen to the American football that way for many years with the radio crackling in and out as it was beamed from Germany. If it was Monday Night Football, it was the middle of the night here, and my goodness there were no other stations trying to cut over the top.
Ah. TY for reply. Have a good 'n, Michelle!
And because I just saw this -- a school in Wales has sent a letter home to baffled parents telling them that they will not be providing litter trays, nor should any child bring their own from home... The letter is apparently genuine. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12734121/School-tells-parents-NOT-providing-litter-trays-pupils-identify-cats.html
Forgot to say TY. Reminds me of the saying, "Will wonders never cease."
Sorry, just now saw this.
And I gotta say: I donno *what* to say.
I never heard of the Doubly Thankful Villages. The WWII loss of life was significant to Americans, but we can’t imagine the loss the UK suffered, especially from the First World War. At Althorp (family home of Princess Diana) they carved the names of their WWI dead into a wall, and relatives of those men today journey to the wall to honor them.
I’ve read stories about towns in France where nearly all the men were killed who fought in WWI. JRR Tolkien lost every one of his friends in the Great War. I’m hoping Remembrance Day isn’t ruined by the current protests.
Paddy is adorable! A stray cat gave birth to three kittens in my parent’s backyard and now I’m tasked with finding homes for them. And I want to keep them all!
Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!
It is hard to imagine until you are in the UK. Every single village except for the Doubly Thankful ones has a war memorial with the names of the dead. Most schools have a memorial wall with the names of the dead. If you climb Great Gable in the Lakes, there is a monument to the keen climbers who perished. Balmoral has one to all the men they lost -- it has fylfots inscribed and there is a sign to point out that they are ancient symbols of peace, not swastikas. The main hall of Birmingham University is one of the largest man made war memorials.
A lady from my village is v involved with preserving Tyne Cot and has done extensive research on the soldiers who are named there as well as the ones on Haydon Bridge's own war memorial in effort to bring these people alive. Something like 6% of the population died in WWI and it was mainly those aged 18 -25.
Sometimes because it is so personal and localized people can forget about the thousands of other people from around the globe who answered the call and perished. But if you visit a commonwealth gravesite, the graves from Muslims, Sikhs, Jews and Christian are all there -- well tended and well marked. I always find them moving. bn
I really hope it comes off without a hitch. People will not be impressed. The police have taken a huge gamble. One of the real problems may be with the sit ins at the railway stations -- the Jewish Chronicle are reporting that various groups are planning to sit in at the 3 largest. https://www.thejc.com/news/news/inside-the-anti-israel-plot-to-bring-london-to-standstill-1JBkh2jdCqojTnzAZLYA9U
Kittens are great. Fingers crossed for good homes.
Have a wonderful weekend!
I also wanted to ask about the change in management in the SoA re: Julia Williams. Seems positive.
Julia is lovely and someone I am v proud to call a friend. I encouraged her to stand last year but she had not been a member for long enough (she didn't feel it was proper for her to join while she worked as an editor) so she stood this year. She is a retired editor, most recently with M&B/Harlequin but also worked for Scholastic and helped to edit the Babysitter Club books. She is a published novelist -- women's fiction. She had a really hard time during the elections as someone decided to call her all sorts of names. I hope she can help to redirect the SoA back to being a proper trade union for all its members. I have a lot of time for Julia.
Joanne Harris's term of office as the chair ends in January. No idea who will be the next chair (it has to be someone who has been on the Man Comm for at least 3 years) and they are currently searching for a new CEO as the current one is 'retiring' in April.