Digital Champion

Having spent a lot of my working life helping students to access and use electronic information, I was aware through the press and social media that many adults in our community lack basic digital skills. So I volunteered as a Digital Champion in Dorset.

There are indeed a lot of people who need help in our increasingly digital world. In Dorset alone there are 150,000 adults with no digital skills, this number includes 70,000 adults of working age,  and 41% of over 60s are offline.

The people I’ve seen so far are people who have been given a device such as a tablet or phone and have no idea how to use them. For some people the partner that has always done the online banking etc has passed away and left them dealing not only with the pain of bereavement but also a feeling of helplessness as they struggle with digital resources.

Many people are, rightly, wary of being scammed and this fear inhibits their use of the internet. So helping people use resources safely is another element of the role.

Online shopping, managing resources, Universal Credit, keeping in touch with friends and family, selling a lawnmower, the list of questions Digital Champions are asked are varied and challenging. I wonder what I’ll be asked when I go to one of the public access PCs in Verwood Library for my next Digital Champion session?

 

 

China Through the Lens of John Thomson

The Russell Cotes Museum in Bournemouth is currently hosting an exhibition of photographs taken by the Scottish born photographer John Thomson between 1868 and 1872. The photographs in the exhibition are a moving and evocative record of his travels in China, a country that was scarcely known to Europeans in the 19th century. He travelled through extremely challenging countryside and conditions, carrying with him the heavy and unwieldy equipment, as well as the chemicals, needed to take photographs at the time. It is amazing that the glass negatives survived not only travelling around China, the long journey back to the UK and then the extensive lectures and talks Thomson gave on his return. They are now in the care of the Wellcome Institute.

His pictures of the people are simply stunning. He persuaded an Amoy woman to allow him to photograph her bound foot, unwrapped to allow him to contrast it with the foot of an Amoy woman whose feet had not been bound. There is a portrait of a Manchu bride, maybe 14 or 15 years old, elaborately dressed and decorated. But underneath the white paste make-up, and allowing for some distortion in the glass negative, it looks as if her face is bruised. There is a picture of a recently married couple. They are clearly uncomfortable, not wanting to look at each other or the photographer. The caption explains that it was culturally inappropriate for the couple to face one another.  Thomson admits that he had to pay ‘handsomely’ for these images.

In contrast, there are photos of wealthy merchants, proudly surrounded by servants, sitting outside substantial houses. There is a man proudly holding a fine camel and an old Mongol woman with her mule.

As well as portraits there are images of places. I was fascinated by the 14th century Buddhist arch at Juyon Guan, the interior is sculpted with inscriptions in six languages and on the inner arches are the four heavenly kings. The arch outside is framed  with a Garuda bird; the outside and inside is covered with inscriptions and symbols. I liked the photograph of stone animals guarding the approaches to the Ming Tombs, approached through an avenue of pairs of animals carved from limestone.  There are two pairs of each animal, while one pair stands the other pair squat and they are supposed to change over at midnight. Sadly Thomson did not record the changeover.

Alongside the photos are objects collected by Merton and Annie Russell Cotes during their travels in China during the 1880s. These objects include tiny shoes for bound feet, delicate porcelain, and intricate jade carvings.

As a writer I found these photographs and associated objects inspiring, a glimpse into a world that has either disappeared or been sanitised for the 21st century. The exhibition is on until June 2019, I expect I’ll go again. But meanwhile I’ve got the book!

 

 

 

Coincidences and Virgins’ Crowns

It seems to me that a lot of my writing is about coincidences, collisions and near-misses. A recent visit to a small church in Hampshire made me think about this and the many different ways that give me some sort of connection to this church. Some of these connections are tenuous to say the least

The church in question is St Mary the Virgin at Abbotts Ann, a pretty village just outside of Andover. My parents-in-law (I don’t think I’ve ever referred to them in that way before!) lived there.

Although they were not church goers, they loved the church and its beautiful setting; their names are recorded on a memorial stone in the peaceful churchyard.

Some forty years ago I went to St Mary’s for the wedding of my sister-in-law on a bitingly cold March day. A couple of years later I was working for a small company in Bath and one of my colleagues was the son of the Rector who had conducted the ceremony. Going further back in time, I had an uncle who played the organ in St Mary’s, I believe in the 1920s. The poor man had a heart attack and died while playing the organ at the church in Goodworth Clatford, just a few miles away. Recently I was talking to a friend in Verwood who told me that her cousin is (probably was) a churchwarden at St Mary’s. When she told me his name I recognised it as someone my in-laws knew.

Enough of all this! Of much more interest in this Grade 1 listed building is the continuation of the medieval tradition of Virgins’ Crowns or Maidens’ Garlands. I’m going to quote from the informative leaflet that I picked up in the church on my recent visit.

‘The Virgins’ Crowns were made of black and white paper rosettes on a framework of hazel wood with the collar, gloves or handkerchief of someone recently deceased. Relatives could request a garland if the dead maiden had been born, baptized and lived in the parish and dies unmarried. Males qualified if they met the criteria.’

Many of the males were boys, but not all. I wonder whether it was disease or accident that caused the deaths of Robert and James Perrett.  Maybe brothers or cousins, they were aged 30 and 33 respectively when they died in 1842.

The last funeral with garlands took place in 1973. I wonder if there will be any more. Changing social mores, and vastly increased mobility have probably spelt the end of this tradition. Meanwhile the crowns hang in varying states of decrepitude, custom does not allow any that fall to be replaced. In this picture you can see the crown of Lily Annetts, whose funeral was in 1973.

There is more information about this custom on the church’s excellent website.https://www.abbottsann.com/amenitiesservices/church/

So to get back to where this blog post started, how important are coincidences in my writing? There are times when they are just too remote to be plausible and run the risk of undermining what could be a good plot. Conversely a chance meeting, an overheard conversation, the discovery of a lost acquaintance or relation, even an unusual surname or forename that links people and places can inspire me. Not sure if I can use any of my fragile connections to this church, but it was a great place to visit.

 

Crab Apples

The last few days have been a little bit warmer, and we have seen some sun. I noticed that our crab apple tree is at last producing some buds, and this reminded me of some words I wrote a few years ago about this tree, and the wonderful fruit it produces.

Springtime buds erupt into flowers, pink and white dancers in a chilly wind. In summer green leaves shade the growing fruits from sun. Shortening days trigger the transition, bright red apples shine through yellow and orange leaves. Making crab apple jelly is not difficult but it takes time and care to ensure it is clear and set. On cold winter days it melts; jewel-coloured, fragrant and redolent of last year’s bounty, into freshly made toast.

To remind myself that warmer days are not far away, and the buds on the tree are a promise of fruits to come, I found a picture of some of our crab apples taken last summer.

 

Zog post: Queen Geraldine of Albania

 

Geraldine Apponyi on her wedding day to King Zog of Albania in April 1938.

Geraldine was Queen of Albania for just a year before her husband King Zog was deposed in 1939. In many ways she was a footnote to the history of the shake-up of Europe, briefly Queen of the final bastion of the Ottoman Empire.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        During  the last couple of weeks, aided by the snow I was able to read a bit more than I usually do and I got through two fascinating books. In both of them there were short references to Geraldine. I was intrigued.

I’ll start with The Accursed Mountains by Robert Carver. I really enjoyed this book and found it quite unputdownable. Published in 1998, it recounts a journey through Albania made by Carver in 1996, at the end of the brief hiatus between the collapse of communism and the civil war of 1997. There are brief, but interesting, references to Geraldine. Hitler sent a duplicate of his own car, a scarlet super-charged open Mercedes Benz, as a wedding present. A year later when they went into exile following the Italian invasion, they made in Carver’s words ‘a royal refugee’s progress through eastern Europe’ in this car with its white leather seats. At one point they were dive-bombed by German planes but Zog refused to leave the car believing that the pilots would not dare to fire on the Führer’s car. What Geraldine and her new born son, Crown Prince Leka, did while this was happening isn’t mentioned.

Eventually the King and his family arrived in London. They had escaped from Tirana with the Bulgari and Cartier jewels that had been Zog’s wedding present to Geraldine. He had also given her a miniaturised gold plated pistol. They also took strong boxes containing gold napoleon coins. Initially the royal family stayed at the Ritz but their money ran out and after the war they moved to Egypt before making their way eventually to South Africa, leaving a trail of bad debts.

To my surprise Geraldine made a another brief appearance in A Constant Heart, the War Diaries of Maud Russell 1938-1945. I bought this at Maud Russell’s home at Mottisfont, now a National Trust Property, where I went a few weeks ago to see an exhibition of Heath Robinson paintings. Though nothing to do with Queen Geraldine, this exhibition is well worth a visit.

A Constant Heart is a fascinating read. Maud was in contact with many writers, (she was almost certainly Ian Fleming’s lover), artists (and certainly Boris Anrep’s lover), musicians and politicians. Many influential people stayed at Mottisfont before, during and after WW2.

The Geraldine connection to the Russell family is through Maud’s sister Kitty who was married to a Hungarian, Count Anton Apponyi, who was related to Geraldine. After the royal entourage left the Ritz, the family Zog lived in Buckinghamshire until the end of the war. Maud Russell’s diary tells us that in January 1943 Geraldine and Maud were the chief Godmothers to Kitty Apponyi’s grandson, Anthony Stephen Michael. Maud informs us, ‘It wore the christening robe we had all been christened in and which comes from Mama’s family.’ This wartime christening took place in a ‘little house in Hampton Court Road’. I wasn’t at all sure what Maud, and certainly Geraldine, would have classed as a ‘little house’!

The only other reference to Geraldine is the help given to her by Maud’s sister. Kitty Apponyi worked for the Red Cross, helping people displaced by the war and it would seem from the reference in Maud’s book that the fugitive family of Zog were among those she helped.

This is all a bit sketchy, two books with brief, almost passing, reference to the first and only Queen of Albania. Geraldine died in 2002, in a military hospital in Tirana; she had been allowed back into the country a few months before she died. But I suppose that as a writer it is these odd coincidences, the serendipity, that cajoles and inspires me.

Story on CaféLit

Please have a look at my story Amelie at the window, published yesterday on CafeLit.

It’s in some very good company, there are some great stories on the blog.

Verwood Pottery

My most treasured possession is a Verwood jug, or pitcher. Probably made during the early 20^th century it stands about 36 cm high and has the low slung, bellied shape that is typical of the type. This jug was given to my parents in about 1960 by an elderly neighbour. She in turn had been given it by a friend of hers, who lived in Bournemouth. My parents always referred to the jug by the name of the original owner, Miss Metzgar.

The pottery industry in Verwood has a long history. Clay from the area around what is now Verwood was used in Roman potteries that were scattered around Hampshire. The sandy soil in the Verwood area lies above a layer of clay, and this layer rises to just below the surface as the ground undulates. This makes extraction relatively easy and it is thought that the industry became established in a number of sites across the East Dorset heathland during the 11^th and 12^th centuries.

The pottery produced was simple and practical; earthenware jugs and bowls for everyday use. Some more unusual vessels were made , for example a jug with a handle on both sides of the neck to allow the container to be tied around the waist or slung across the shoulder.  These were known as ‘costrels’ or ‘Dorset owls’, and were used to carry liquids, perhaps cold tea, beer or cider as refreshment in the fields. Posy bowls, flower pots and vases as well as commission pieces were also produced. As can be seen in the picture of my pitcher above, some pieces were partially glazed. Others were fully glazed and a few were decorated. Today the most valuable are the decorated items, and they are the most rare. There are examples of Verwood pottery in many places including Salisbury museum, Poole Museum, the Priests House Museum in Wimborne and also in the Heathland Heritage Centre in Verwood. This is on the site of the last working pottery, Crossroads Pottery, that closed in 1952 and it is opposite our house.

Early in 2017 we visited Lincoln where we found an artisan pottery on Steep Hill. We mentioned that we came from Verwood. The potter said ‘I’ve got a Verwood pot!’ and to our surprise he delved through storage cupboards before emerging triumphantly with a beautiful Verwood bowl. He was intrigued to learn where we lived and our proximity to the last pottery, and also that during redevelopment of the pottery site a few years ago we were able to ‘liberate’ a few shards from the building debris.

The Crossroads Pottery the last of the businesses, but in its heyday there were potteries all over the area. Most of them have vanished completely, while some survive as mentions in Ordnance Survey maps and the records of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society.

Until recently we had friends who lived in what had been a pottery until about 1906. The house and the garden are now ‘Scheduled monuments’ which meant that they were unable to alter the building or even to dig most of the garden. This was to protect a kiln mound, 20 metres in diameter and 3 metres high. They were allowed to mow the grass, so most of the garden including the mound was laid to lawn. There are known pottery sites under developments such as Black Hill in Verwood, and probably the remains of others are hidden under houses, roads and industrial sites across the area.

Here is a short film made in 1912 showing the potters at work in the Crossroads pottery.

Sunday evening Odyssey

It was one of those wonderful serendipitous and very rare occasions when I was glad I still watch television. Yesterday evening, completely by chance, I watched Akala’s Odyssey on BBC4.

Akala is a rapper, performance poet, writer and activist. He is also a knowledgeable and engaging presenter, talking about the complex person(s) that we know as Homer and the stories that he (or perhaps they) combined into the Odyssey sometime during the 8^th century BCE. Some of these stories are much older, with links back to the Epic of Gilgamesh.

These poems were written to be performed, not read. And they weren’t performed in isolation; they would have been heard as a part of other festivals and rituals and would have been accompanied by music. We know what musical instruments from the time looked like; representations on pottery from the period enable accurate reconstructions of these stringed instruments. Of course we can’t know what music they played, but we can hear the sounds made by these instruments. The poetry and the music were the pop songs of the day, poetry was not elitist and separate from other branches of culture and everyday life, and it was an integral part.

There was so much in this programme, it was about history, archaeology, language, music, poetry and how people engage with culture. I’m going to watch it again.

Getting it down

I suppose I’m lucky. Usually I’m not short of ideas, of things to write about. Of course there are times when my mind goes blank and nothing comes out on the paper or keyboard, but mostly it’s the opposite. By this I mean that my head is full of characters and conversations, plots and outcomes. These all jostle around and only very rarely make the transition to a coherent piece of writing. I guess discipline, or lack of it, is part of the problem and indeed part of the answer. Given the right combination of ideas/characters/plot/time/ I can be very committed to an idea. On these rare occasions I sit down, ignore the phone, domestic demands and the view from my window and write. Phew! I can do it.

Sadly, more often than not the difficulty of sorting out the ideas becomes just too complicated. So I turn to something that is, for me, easier. I tackle a pile of ironing, cook a casserole, knit a sock, you get the picture. Then the ideas for writing that were all vying for attention become dissipated and ultimately lost.

But perhaps not lost for ever. The best ones roll away somewhere quiet and bide their time, waiting to re-emerge and find their place in a story, however that story is told.

 

Bag for Life?

What do you do if you find an injured buzzard by the side of the road?

Roger noticed the bird crouched in a muddy tyre rut gouged out of the side of the narrow road. He reversed and got out of the car, hoping that the bird was mantling, or using its wings to cover prey that it was eating. But it wasn’t. A beautiful buzzard was struggling to take off, its tail and wings caked in mud and clearly injured. There is always a blanket in the boot of our car – a habit born many decades ago when my Dad rolled down a slippery bank at a firework display. Roger threw the blanket over the bird and carefully picked it up, holding its wings against its body. It calmed down in the dark and Roger put the securely wrapped bird into a Morrison’s Bag for Life (also in the boot).

It was surprisingly light for such a large bird. I kept it on my lap to ensure it didn’t escape into the car. Injured though it was, its talons were dangerous and its beak could deliver a mighty bite.

This happened where Dorset, Hampshire and Wiltshire meet, in the attractive village of Rockbourne. If you know the area it was outside the Roman Villa.

Fordingbridge seemed the best place to look for a vet. It was a strange feeling, travelling along familiar roads holding a wild bird in a supermarket bag.  On entering the town we asked a woman leading an assortment of dogs where the vets’ was. It transpired that the road through the town centre was closed, so she had to give us complicated directions to get to the practice. When the car stopped moving the buzzard became restless, wriggling inside its blanket /bag for life.  Gentle rocking whenever the car stopped seemed to keep it calm.

Ruth the receptionist said they hadn’t had a buzzard brought in before, but so far that day they’d had a badger, a crow with a broken wing and a hedgehog to treat before passing them on to the local wildlife rescue centre.

Later Ruth rang us. Sadly our bird had to be put down. After an X-ray the vet found shotgun pellets that had probably brought the bird down to the mud on the side of the road. The incident and location were reported to the police because it had been shot, but realistically the fate of this buzzard will only be another statistic covering the illegal and irresponsible use of shotguns in rural areas.

We didn’t take a photo of it as we wanted to get the blanket over its head as quickly as possible. So here is a link to the RSPB if you’d like to find out more.