Picking up a book

The book in question is Madeleine Bunting's The Plot, a description of an acre of land her father bought, and to which they all as children went.  Not quite narrowed it into the landscape but Sutton Bank was not far away. She writes so well, about the history of this part of Yorkshire, that my mind is turned to the Victorian 'barrow bashers' of their time

Today, once more it is raining, shall we go back to the time when the Vale of Pickering was a lake, Star Carr is not too far away it should be noted, and then there is the fascinating river Derwent which runs 'backwards', probably due to a geological fault, but if you are fanciful it could have been  that which gave this small vale a 'ritual significance' in prehistoric times.  So much to discover, the Howardian Hills, and the Tabular Hills. 

“The whole drainage of the country south of the Esk, except a strip a mile or two broad north of Scarborough, enter the Vale of Pickering, and instead of taking the simple and direct course to the sea at Filey, is all diverted, against the slope of the rocks and the grain of the country, and passes out into the Vale of York by the gorge at Kirkham Abbey.” (Kendall, 1902, p. 499)

“When I went to school I learned that the Vale in which we lived had once been a lake, but long ago the sea had eaten through the hills in the east and so released the fresh waters, leaving a fertile plain. But such an idea would have seemed strange to my innocent mind… I seemed to live, therefore, in a basin wide and shallow like the milkpans in the dairy; but the even bed of it was checkered with pastures and cornfields, and the rims were the soft blues and purples of the moorlands” (Read, 1933, The Innocent Eye)

Taken from Vale of Pickering - Statement of Significance

Grave Robbers; Thomas Kendall of Pickering was one in the 19th century, he gathered the biggest collection of prehistoric remains ever made in North Yorkshire. "He assembled 135 pottery vessels, 27 urns, 26 axe hammers and at least 26 stone and flint axes from mounds in the county".

There are of course no provenance notes to go with this collection and this caused some concern, and eventually there was a backlash against these souvenir hunters; diggers were accused of  "desecrating these time hallowed monuments for no better purpose than the indulgence of a craving acquisitiveness and the adornment of glass cases with ill-understood relics to be paraded for the empty admiration of those who may descend to flatter the equally vain and ignorant collector"

Mmm, that takes some thinking about but true, just don't expect me to stand up for these Victorian gentleman from the past.  There were two other rascals as well,  Canon William Greenwell (again scanty notes of provenance,).  Then there was Canon Atkinson, who boasted of excavating four barrows a day, and was responsible for 'excavating' - I use the term lightly - because both these men excavated from the top of the burial down, and were very careless in either tidying up after themselves, which got the landowners mad, or excavation techniques.

to be continued....

Melodramatic madams and watery worlds

Sainsbury's car park.  The store is up on a hill, but the main roads into Whitby are all flooded one way or the other.

Lucy was ill yesterday, I think from eating fish pie which had some chopped onion in.  She made a terrible fuss, turning round and round, trying to get into corners, whining.  Had she eaten something poisonous we did not know, so took her to the vet and she had a couple of injections to calm her and pain relief.  This morning it looks like she is on the mend, toyed with her biscuits and has been drinking.  What a kerfuffle!  And expense!

And watery worlds, well it is, news that Whitby was cut off by flash floods, and was only approachable from Ruswarp by four wheeled drive, something I read this morning.  It reminded me of a radio play I had listened to long ago about the rising waters around a small farm, lapping ever nearer to the farmhouse, till the day arrived when they had to take off on a raft they had constructed and leave the farm and its animals to their fate.

That everyone is sick of continual rain is in no doubt, we jump on those few days when the sun comes out with blessed relief.  The weather is so warm as well, one day of frost does not a winter make. 

Our road has been 'up' almost continuously, the mains pipe must have burst from one of the farms, and even now there is a lorry with a crane across the road inspecting, presumably some water works gone astray.

Whitby Cut off by unprecedented flash floods

Sunday

Siri;  Siri is an automated voice on your mobile phone, both my young granddaughters demonstrated this function over the weekend.  Ask a question and it comes back with a whole host of information. It is unnerving to watch them talking to this virtual creature but this is the way the world is going. Less contact with physical realities more contact with virtual 'intelligences'. slightly scary, LS asked the question 'what is the sound of one hand clapping' Siri answered 'silence' got that one right then!

One day we will all have a little bug inside our heads, we will not even have to hold our phones or tablets.  Tablets have already ousted the computers in my daughter's family, being 'wired' up to an outside influence is a tad scary.....  I note that I can talk to Google on my computer asking questions but have never got that far, I would rather internalise my thoughts and just type a question.

It was great to see my eldest grandson, three years away at university has not changed him, he is doing an internship (paid) in PR in a big company, having decided that working for the police was not for him, you have to do five years as a policeman before you can diversify into another job.

Everyone settled down to their sleeping places, just read about a 'cheap' option for spare beds, sew four pillowcases together, then fill with pillows.  Three of them slept on the sofa and armchairs which all flip out, Teddy the dog had his basket, and Lucy slept up in my workroom on the chair and was quiet all night!

Enjoy life while you can James Lovelock.....


The Pickering flood scheme which worked..

New Year

Happy New Year everyone.  Whatever the future holds in store, may it at least bring flowers in their right season.  Wild and bright in the fields, cultivated in the garden with taming grace, may the year in it's Turning bring beauty and peace of mind.

and a poem from my other blog;

Gary Snyder;  Raven's Beak River At the End, in this poem he captures for a moment the old celtic enmeshing of nature, animals and the cosmic reality we sometimes forget.  For the owl I heard this morning, gently calling as he went about his world.

Raven-sitting high spot

eyes on the snowpeaks,
nose of morning
raindrops in the sunshine

Skin of sunlight

skin of chilly gravel

Mind in the mountain, mind of tumbling water,

mind running rivers

Mind of sifting

flowers in the gravels

At the end of the ice age

we are the bears, we are the ravens,

We are the salmon

in the gravel

At the end of the ice age.

Local rivers

This is my walk along the river, monitoring, for me anyway, the river's progress. from the chart below there is a large spike and then the river returns to normal, though of course you can see the sides of the banks have been scarred by mud.

Starting from the bridge

This is the bank to protect the fields from flooding

saturation point, many field going towards Salton are small lakes.

You can see where the river has risen to almost flooding levels, the flow gauge counter to be found here recorded on the 26th December over 3 metres of water, chart taken from the Environmental Agency.  Old Malton was flooded by the River Derwent;

River Seven flow gauge at Normanby

Rivers; Derwent at Malton;
             Seven at Normanby
             Dove at Kirkbymoorside
             Rye at Salton
             Riccal at Nunnington
             Pickering Beck at Pickering

Interesting observations by Monbiot on Yorkshire Grouse Moors and their role in the floods

artists.....

There is a new exhibition of Gertrude Hermes 1901 to 1983 work at the Hepworth Wakefield Gallery, mostly sculpture it looks like, but on checking her work, the drawings of Stonehenge are masterly, rather than beautiful, and perhaps reflect her need to carve.

I had seen her Stonehenge drawings years ago, so finding them on the web was an opportunity to highlight them, also her plant drawing are rather beautiful and precise.

Spanish iris

Keeping abreast of things

Meals to feed 200 people, this is what the above family did, driving from Bradford to Todmorden. Single acts of kindness.  LS said put that on your blog, and what you see is just probably the tip of how volunteers are helping.  Cameron is to visit the 'Northern towns' today, the people are organising themselves better though.  Do we really need government, when local people pull together so efficiently. The latest from Todmorden Town Hall is a need for cleaning materials, disinfectants etc.  The floods have not been so bad in Todmorden,  Hebden Bridge seems to have fared worse. 

I must admit though many criticise Facebook but when action is needed it is the place to go, roads that are flooded are posted, help centres spring up.
I could fill the page with Monbiot's articles, who blames many farming practices but I will not, after all this is a bit like shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted.  Government legislation of course does not help, as of course 'conveniently' forgetting climate change.  But I predict one thing the people in this country do a lot better than a government's rhetoric of 'how they will help'

Water

Well it is beautiful and sunny today, we await the next batch of rain though on tuesday with some trepidation.  The family are cleaning up their basement, and those terrible pictures of flood fill the television news.  Rivers flow so fast that it is truly frightening, caravans are smashed against bridges, people's homes are awash.  We lost our internet for a few hours today, but the waters have receded from the roads through the village.  

What I noticed is that there is a certain amount of traffic that seems to be 'tourist inspired', or as Nigel over the road said them 'idiots' who like splashing through the water, to do this you need a 4x4, jeep, land rover or maybe a tractor.  Small cars  though get  water into their engines and come to a halt, there are a few still round the village, waiting redemption by their owners!

Our river went up to, probably, 13 to 14 feet, but it runs through a fairly deep cut and has banks, or is it 'bunds' on either side.  The larger bank is the village side, so that the water will run over the large flat fields.  One of the problems is saturation of the earth, it literally cannot take anymore water, and drainage is slow.

The other end of the village, drains forcing up water....

Top ribbon of water river running high and the green road below filling up

Water, water everywhere but not a drop to drink, my daughter's message this morning.......

Morning survived the night. Just been down to cellar it's carnage!! However no water! Electrics are partly working and hoping that boiler ok. Don't think we'll be down your way just yet. Just about to go to town hall to see what help there is. Hope your flooding subsided a little bit. Love Karen xx

Bealtiane Cottage - Climate Change

Boxing Day - raining, raining and more rain

Christmas was quiet, peaceful and utterly Christmassy.  The fire blazed, we had lunch with all the trimmings and watched television all afternoon.  Outside of course it rained and rained, and this morning before it is even light I can see the glimmer of water on the road, I presume another pond has appeared.  Lucy will not go out for a pee in the rain, when she does we both stand there like idiots getting wet.  I forgot, we also went into the pub next door for a pre-lunch drink, which was on the house. courtesy of Harriet, which was very sweet.  Talked to a couple about the house they were building in the next village, they lived in a couple of statics for the time being on three acres with their two dogs, three horses and some sheep.

The family come today, unless the roads are too bad, the 'flood warning' was sounded yesterday evening in Todmorden, they should escape its worst effects, though their basement could be flooded.(the basement is flooding)  It is sooooooo dark, no sign of the 'Xmas moon', I can hear a cock in the distance, who obviously believes 6.30 is the time to welcome the day.  How are all those poor immigrants in their canvas tents surviving in Calais, and those still trekking to more friendlier countries across Europe in this terrible relentless rain, or perhaps the rain has not reached them......

It is rather a gloomy top photo, the lights were on for crib service Xmas Eve, well I was going to add a cheerful photo, but on going out to take some photos, the flooded road outside the house!

For posterity and my diary ;)

Wednesday - a dip into Druidism

Even the stones at Castle Rigg are experiencing flooding

Celtic Devotional by Caitlin Matthews

You have been called from the place of your dwelling,

May blessed soul-friends guide you,

May helping spirits lead you,

May the Gatherer of Souls call you,

May the homeward path rise up under your feet

And lead you gladly home.

Pat (Weaver of Grass) asked if I was a Druid, no said I but I am fascinated by them and have written quite a lot.  My mentor would be Professor Ronald Hutton in this, his extraordinary book Blood and Mistletoe (The History of the Druids in Britain) covers the progress of the Druidical faith through our history.  

Now I am a convent educated person, brought up in the Catholic faith, though sadly never believing in any god/gods, so the Druids were hardly likely to make me 'believe'.  Belief, and here I will give a Wiki understanding is...

Belief is the state of mind in which a person thinks something to be the case, with or without there being empirical evidence to prove that something is the case with factual certainty. In other words, belief is when someone thinks something is reality, true, when they have no absolute verified foundation for their certainty of the truth or realness of something. Another way of defining belief is, it is a mental representation of an attitude positively orientated towards the likelihood of something being true.

But I also believe that we should at least respect others when they choose to think one way or the other.  If I have any belief than it is in the natural world around us, the living force and vitality of every species on this earth, their absolute right of existence, and that one species should not dominate, though of course we humans do. 

So I have written and thought, and from that top Druidical prayer at the beginning, I have meandered without actually coming to any positive outcome.  A church will silence my thoughts, its gravity held within its stones and altar will make me stop and contemplate, but a flower will also have the same affect in its structure and logical beauty, they are both part of a world that is infinitely educating, opening the mind to explore.

So why return to 'old stones' for Solstice, it is not for their proposed ability to focus on the sun coming up, but it is for their great age, stillness and a sanctity I find hard to explain, the earth uniting with the air and sky, clasped forever, circling forever in the vastness of the Universe.

And a tale from yesterday.  I bought my daughter's Xmas present, which turned out to be Nigella Lawson's Christmas cook book, and there in the opening chapter she confessed to liking the Druidical aspect of Xmas, and had read up through the Pagan Federation on its history.  Now I am not really a fan of Nigella but that did surprise me ;)

Stonehenge on Solstice 2015 crowded as ever

A collection of blogs on the subject...

http://northstoke.blogspot.co.uk/2009/11/druids.html

http://northstoke.blogspot.co.uk/2009/11/druids.html

http://northstoke.blogspot.co.uk/2014/03/earlier-blogs-written-elsewhere.html

http://northstoke.blogspot.co.uk/2013/12/two-bits-of-poetry-for-solstice.html

A Quiet and Happy Solstice

The return of the light, the year has tipped, albeit slowly, into longer daylight and towards spring and summer, for this reason alone we should welcome Solstice.  Thinking about where I would like to be and my mind settled on The Hurlers stone circles, under the great tor devastated sadly by quarrying, with Daniel Gumb's ghost wandering amongst the stones and the great Bronze age burial that harboured the gold Rillaton cup.  A rich prehistoric landscape, with its humps and bumps from the later tin quarrying history.  Will the sun rise on a particular stone? who knows, the wind is rising outside and mocks the thought.

Hurler Stone Circles

Looking across the land from the top of the tor

Or perhaps the quartz laden stones of Duloe stone circle, though one feels that this is a final resting place for another.

Duloe stone circle quartz stone

Sleddale Stone circle

Saturday 19th December

Occasionally we wake up to glorious skies

Saturday morning, the paths gleam with rain once more, but of course it is that fabulous moment in time when the year is on the cusp of changing over to longer daylight.  We had a delicious Chinese meal last night to celebrate LS's birthday.  He had fried squid with noodles/beansprouts and I had the noodles with broccoli/garlic, which may seem strange but I do love my vegetables, plus a side helping of spring rolls.  We had often passed this large pub which had changed into a Chinese restaurant but the overall impression when you actually go in is enormous friendliness.  The owner Mandy is Vietnamese and her husband is English, she called him an inventor and the whole large house is very 'green' with underfloor heating, special lighting and.......... in the loo when you stepped on a granite slab by the wash basin, the water switched on - totally impressed.  

The couple had looked at the house of the people we had had drinks with last weekend, just because it had the river running through the grounds, he had thought to harness the power of the river for one of his green schemes, not sure it would have been allowed though.

My internet Xmas card above needs a bit of work, though to do on  the door as I had managed to make a wreath out of an old heart shaped ornament, notice the two white butterflies, we are even losing all our butterflies as well in this country....

The Art of Making a Tapestry at Gobelins - Paris

Wednesday

This is the weather on an almost daily basis, grey overhanging clouds, rain and a warm west wind.

“All the being and the doing, expansive, glittering, vocal, evaporated; and one shrunk, with a sense of solemnity, to being oneself, a wedge-shaped core of darkness, something invisible to others.” 

― Virginia Woolf, To the Lighthouse

That quote has nothing to do with anything, I just happened to pick it up because I was reading the book... Shirley Hughes for Lily, always loved her 'Alfie' books.

Like many people I have problems with the weather, it constrains one to the house, muddy paws slurp their way across the kitchen, even the chickens are fed up with it, roll on spring!

Go away I'm sleeping

So what to write about before our visitors come for coffee, well before the folder for all the new photos there is the 'apple' folder, where I recorded some of the many apple trees I had planted.  There is also Carew Castle and the Tidal Mill at Carew, so some old photos to cheer the day up.