At this time of year, the sight of heavy farm combined harvester equipment rumbling across the fields, with a plume of dust behind is etched on my memory, I say memory because for the most part it has been three years since we have enjoyed a BBQ Summer, [Predicted by the Met Office, see my earlier post]. As I type its raining again and my plans to do dinner on the BBQ have been suspended [Friday 17:30pm].
Archive for August, 2009
Harvest Twentyfirst Century
Friday, August 28th, 2009Change of Type Style
Friday, August 28th, 2009If you enjoy reading articles on the web, you may feel that the typefaces used leave much to be desired. So much creativity is lost due to restrictions in the use of copyright protected type. Reading on computers has never been as easy as on traditional paper, much effort went into the early Macintosh Operating System (Mac OS) to create a font which would look good for the interface elements, such as the menu items. A new typeface (font) was developed based on the Linotype classic Helvetica, it was called Geneva. Whilst it was an excellent font to provide clear menu titles it was never going to be a winner from a stylists point of view. In my early days with the Macintosh operating system, I joined in 1991 with the OS at version 7.0; a new PowerBook 140, purchased whilst working in Hong Kong. I bought a copy of TypeStyler and was able to impress all and sundry with dramatic headline banners!
Digitizing Old LP’s
Wednesday, August 26th, 2009I have been sorting out my old collection of vinyl records, ready for digitization and came across one which I believe is quite rare. The album was produced in 1971 by Traditional Sound Recordings of Macclesfield, titled, “The Parting Glass” by Jon Rennard a Leeds based folk artist of some talent, who was killed that year. The album, his last, being a salute to Jon’s life, so tragically shortened by a car crash. The record came to me via my ex-wife who was a great fan of him, in fact I did wonder if there was a bit more to it than that, but as she, sadly died of cancer, earlier this year I shall never know; it was an area we did not visit, it being before I met her. I recall folk evenings being very popular in the late sixties early seventies, and the album was taken from live recordings at Bate Hall Folk Club, Macclesfield in November 1970.
Local Archaeologist Gets Involved
Monday, August 24th, 2009
I was recently introduced to a local archaeologist who lives in Aberford and we have since discussed some of my findings at Parlington, on Sunday this last weekend I showed her some pieces of the fragments of hand painted lime plaster discovered in the demolition rubble. They ares quite possibly seventeenth or early eighteenth century. I had already shown the fragments to the curator at Lotherton Hall and there is an article on the Parlington history site here. However she was so impressed that we got stuck in and dug out some more, luckily the weather was excellent throughout most of the day, so we were able to find not only quite a number of additional pieces, but also some large chunks of plaster coving the same pattern as found in that location earlier and detailed here on the history site.
Parlington BBQ Sauce
Friday, August 21st, 2009During the summer months the opportunity to have a BBQ is rarely missed, even if there is no-one else to enjoy it, or when the weather is less than favourable, I just love cooking on my Weber kettle barbecue, the Rolls Royce of barbecue equipment. So following a recent do, I was asked by one of the guests if they could have my recipe for BBQ sauce, so I said I would send it to them, at this point a couple of other friends chimed in that they also would like to know the recipe so here it is now everyone can get the benefit.
York Railway Museum
Thursday, August 20th, 2009Last weekend, Sunday 16th of August, my wife and I took some time out shopping in York, I also managed to persuade her that we could re-visit the Railway Museum! Not that I am a latent train spotter, or anything like that, but I like to keep abreast of any new additions or discover things I had previously overlooked. Of course now that the government has made such visits free the attendance figures are I’m sure much greater, so we braved the crowds swelling the various halls. However I think a fee would not be amiss, it might jolt them back into the real world, where you have to pay for your amusement. Yes I accept that there is always a case for allowing disadvantaged people to partake of such attractions at a discount, but really everything needs to have a value or they become abused. Just a token charge would go some way to making the place a commercial activity. Anyhow I digress this post was not a moan about the government, although that would be easy, but many others are setting it out chapter and verse on this appalling administration, this time next year we will be moaning about the other lot! You know the so-called, “Conservatives”. Will they do any better, not a chance!
Re-Discovering Your Roots
Sunday, August 16th, 2009A couple of months back (June 2009) I was contacted by a reader of the Parlington History site explaining that he had lived in the old hall when he was a child in the early fifties. He pointed out that he had been born at Hazelwood Castle (Used as a maternity Hospital in the post war period) and had come to Parlington after he and his mother left the hospital. His father working as a forestry tractor driver on the estate was resident along with his wife and an elder brother in what was then termed Parlington Hall Cottages, namely the West Wing, was divided into two cottages.
Historian visits the Triumphal Arch
Saturday, August 15th, 2009An american authoress, Prof. Stephanie Barczewski, a specialist in modern British history at Clemson University in South Carolina, USA, visited Parlington last weekend to learn about the Triumphal Arch for a new book she is undertaking. We met and discussed what I know of the history of the monument and the reasons for it being built. Details of the structure are on the main site here.
Parlington, day to day observations on topical issues.
Friday, August 14th, 2009Every day I meet people who are, to be frank, less than impressed by the state that the country is in. They readily blame our politicians and suggest that in previous times things were better! I don’t think we can make objective global comparisons between how things are today compared to how they might have been in say, “1908″, things are what they are; but we can look at some of the differences and contrast them. Clearly if you compared the availability of a bath or shower to a householder at the turn of the twentieth century versus the householder of the early twentyfirst century, it is pretty obvious that with the change in technology we are far better served by such things today!
If you could afford it then bathing was fun! A picture of the bath at Lotherton Hall.
So I think it worthwhile to change the focus of this site to look at how things were, compared to how things are! The subjects I hope will provide a forum for discussing our changing world!
The Met Office and another Poor Summer
Friday, August 14th, 2009
This video on youTube expresses my sentiments about the hysteria surrounding anthropogenic climate change!
I would add that although I have some reservations about anthropogenic climate change, (climate always changes), it does not follow that I am in favour of the rampant destruction of the earth’s resources. I am extremely concerned about the loss of rain forest for example, having witnessed first hand the deforestation in Malaysia in the early nineties, when I worked in Singapore and Kuala Lumpur. A trip across the causeway over the Jahore Straits into mainland Malaysia, provided ample evidence of the destruction of the forests, there is now no prime jungle in the peninsular.