Saturday 21st August 2010

[jane jackson]

Where has summer gone? It is still very warm, didn't go below 18c last night and we had 70% humidity during the day. We seem to have lost the sunshine and it keeps raining which my petunias don't like at all ~ makes them go all soggy. I spent ages yesterday in a gap in the rain dead heading but this morning the remaining ones are all hanging their heads and have gone limp.

I had a look at the Minack webcam at 7pm yesterday and everyone was taking their places for the performance but it looked very murky out to sea.

This morning we took the girls to Sennen beach. Kath you wouldn't have been happy as you couldn't see the sea until we actually drove into the car park, the fog was so dense. Luckily it was dry while we were there and warm and Rosie and Jessie enjoyed it with lots of gulls to chase after. There were 2 surfers in the sea with one managing to stand up for a short while a few times. More were arriving as we left at 8am and with low water around 10am they'll have most of the day with the tide coming in so perhaps the waves will improve in size.

There're still a lot of rocks on the first section of the beach where the sand washed away in the last part of the winter, not so convenient for holidaymakers wanting to set up near the facilities as you have to tread carefully to negotiate them to reach the sea. Quite a bit of wet seaweed on them too so they're slippery.

The forecast is for improvement from tomorrow but we may still have some rain. We're going to The Minack on wednesday afternoon to see "Lark Rise to Candleford" so do hope it stays dry. I really want to see that performance so as long as it goes on I'll be there ~ hopefully Bryan will too!! He's not so keen at sitting in the rain.

[Kath Mulligan]

How horrible not to be able to see my favourite view of Sennen Cove from the top of the hill, but I'm not surprised because I've just been looking at the webcams and you can't see St Michael's Mount at all from the Mount Haven webcam at Marazion, and the Minack theatre looks pretty grim too. Didn't look very nice at Sennen yesterday either.

We seem to be north of the rain line today because so far it is sunny and warm here and I have got all the washing out on the line blowing in a nice breeze. Elizabeth is very frustrated because she is having to work all weekend when she would much rather be out and about with her camera. Still at least next weekend is the Bank Holiday so she will get a break then - although knowing what Bank holidays are usually like up here, it will probably be wet! We are hoping that it will be fine at least one of the days because it is the well dressings festival and carnival at Eyam, the plague village in the Peak District and we really want to go to that.

Petunias really don't like wet weather, do they? I've generally had lots of them in hanging baskets and window boxes but I never got around to planting them up this summer. Need to get out into the garden later and do some serious weeding as my onions are rapidly disappearing under the ever growing aquilegia seedlings that are springing up everywhere despite my best efforts to keep hoeing them out! Also need to dig up the last of my first early spuds and the carrots, and harvest the remaining sugar snap peas. Does anyone know if you can freeze sugar snaps successfully? There are too many to be eaten straight away. At long last my French beans seem to have got the idea of what they are supposed to do! They are now flowering profusely so hopefully there should be some ready to harvest before I go away next month.

Hope it stays fine for you for Lark Rise to Candleford next Wednesday, Jane, will try to remember to log onto the webcam to see if can spot you.

Kath

[jane jackson]

We usually get to the Minack around 1.15 to 1.30 and normally sit in the front row middle to left side (facing the stage)

Our runner beans haven't done too well this year, quite a few of the plants have died off, maybe to do with the earlier very dry weather. I have no experience with freezing sugar snap peas but it's worth trying anyway. I don't like frozen runner beans as they seem to go soggy.

Next weekend Bank Holiday Monday is Newlyn Fish Festival so we hope it'll be a sunny time too. There is a Design Fair at Trereife House just up the road from us this weekend and their Country Fair next weekend ~ the parking should be interesting as it's on sloping grass which may be mud by next weekend. We went once when it was wet and parked the car but everyone was sliding around so much we took the car home just in case someone went into it and walked back up.

[adesmith]

My Runner Beans havent done too well this year either. There are only three or four plants but we usually get more beans than we have had so far. There are a few French Beans making an appearance but I dont think that they are going to do a lot either. Tomatoes are a bit of a better story and they are slowly ripening. Again we only have four plants and so it is a bit of a novelty really but it is nice to eat a few home grown tomatoes. As far as Petunias and the like are concerned, I am just about to go out and do some dead heading. I think some of the plants will be going in the compost because they are starting to look a bit past it. I have some nice Marigolds and the Fuschias will probably keep going for a while yet. The Begonias big and small are suddenly looking very healthy so I dont know if they like this weather - I think I read somewhere that they like the shade (in fact thats why I bought some) so may be they like the gloomy weather!

It is very overcast and grey here and there have been some heavy down pours. This morning we went with some friends to see some WWII Auxilary Bunkers. The Auxilaries were the men that were hand picked to form a resistance group that would make things difficult for the Germans in the event of an invasion. It was all very secretive and really its history has only come to light in recent years. I read on the Internet about the local group - a lady has put together a website because her Grandfather was an Auxilary. I emailed her a few months back to ask for directions to find their base/bunker and she said she would take us. They are absolutely amazing! They are deep in Wentwood Forest and it was very atospheric with the mist (its high up). We were walking along and suddenly there was a metal grill with a brick lined shaft. The first she showed us was an ammunition bunker and you cant get in - they are planning to clear it out. The next was the actual base and the second room has collapsed. However you can climb down and get in. I did with my friends son. It is just a room with a corrugated iron roof (like an Anderson Shelter but much bigger). During the war they would have had bunks, shelving and a stove. They would also have had provisions for 10 days and they wouldnt have needed any more than that because they werent expected to live any longer. Their job was to disrupt the German advance by blowing up transport links (the Severn Tunnel was one target), military sites and supplies. They also had a list of collaborators to deal with! There was another bunker further down, in much better condition. This was a secret radio station. I climbed down into this one as well and it is incredible. The bunkers are scheduled monuments now but they wont be conserved and the main one is not expected to last longer than two years! Sorry - I have waffled on but I was so excited by them. It was an exciting morning. I would like to visit them again and we will try but they are so carefully hidden, even the lady loses them!

[jane jackson]

That was really interesting Adrian. All these things we never knew about. We just don't think nowadays how things might have turned out if the Germans had occupied Britain and the precautions that were in place.

[gloria townsin]

Adrian if you haven't already been you should visit Vimy Ridge.........amazing ...... also the Canadian War Memorial is something to see and experience. I have some photos but once again they are stored away or I would post them. The memorial is huge and has a wonderful statue of a woman weeping.......Canada weeping for her dead.......made me really choke back tears when I stood there. We also marched through Ypres from the church where we had attended a service to the Menin Gate for the closing service - visited Hopstore War Cemetry at Vlamertinge near Popperinge (the first TocH was set up here), my grandfather is buried in Hopstore. It was the first time any of his family had visited since he was killed on the 20th of October 1915 his son's (my Dad) second birthday. I was so surprised to see how close the front lines were, no wonder the opposing armies could call out to each other. Terrible war......in fact there are no good ones.

[Janet Swan]

Adrian - in case you didn't see Gardeners' World last night, Toby was advising us to remove all tomato leaves which were shading the tomatoes. This would help them ripen, he said.

And, Jane, I saw a production of Larkrise to Candleford last year, performed by our local amateur youth theatre. It really was lovely and I wish I could come to see it with you at The Minnack Theatre!!!

Janet

[margaret]

It sounds as though you are a war buff like my husband John we are off to do the Normandy beaches in September . Just thought I would let you know that there are others out there like yourself..

[tricia2ws]

Adrian, it sounds like you had a fabulous day, I'm sure I saw these bunkers once on Most Haunted, they were in the forest with nothing else about, bet they were really interesting, will have to dig out my dvd's and have a look to see if it was. x tricia

[Kath Mulligan]

Sounds as though you had a fascinating day, Adrian. There are war bunkers in a series of underground caves right in the centre of Stockport that are occasionally open for public tours. I keep meaning to go on one of the tours but I usually only find out about them after they have taken place! I've never visited the war graves in France but Elizabeth and I have been to the cemetries in Belgium around Ypres, and to the very moving evening ceremony at the Menin Gate. I did actually film that on my old cine camera but would have no idea if it was possible to put that onto FB or youtube. Elizabeth was around 19 years old at the time and she was very moved to see so many of the graves were of young men who were the same age, or younger than her. There was even one of a 15 year old boy who had obviously lied about his age to get into the Army. We were on a Shearings tour at the time and I can tell you that the coach was very quiet and subdued on our journey back to our hotel in Ostend.

Kath

[gloria townsin]

The cemetry's are awe inspiring in their vastness........all that loss of life. When you see it on TV you just don't get the full, shocking picture. We went with the British Legion so they sounded the last post at many of the graves visited. My grandfather was 34, younger than Matthew our youngest son.......makes you think hard about complaining, as I am oft to do to my shame.

[gloria townsin]

The cemetrys are sadly amazing in their vastness..........so much loss of life. We went with the British Legion who sounded the last post at many gravesides. We spent a few hours in Ypres over two days it was very strange to think my grandfather would have walked down the main street. The Menin Gate ceremony is wonderful to witness, at one time they said they were going to stop it but happily they haven't. My grandfather was 34 when he died, two years younger than his great grandson.......puts me to shame when I think how I complain about so little.

[gloria townsin]

sorry about the double message I didn't think the first one had registered........whoops.

[adesmith]

Yes, the bunkers were fascinating. I still cant quite believe how incredible it is that they are just there! I really wish that CADW would do something about conserving them, apparently they are some of the best preserved in the country. It would be such a shame if they were lost. The lady is very passionate about them and its wonderful for her because she has the family connection with her grandfather being one of the men involved. The individual groups (and they were spread all over the country - there were 8 or 10 in Monmouthsire alone) worked in isolation and didnt have any contact between them. The ladies grandfather told her that they had a false alarm and they believed that the invasion had started. She said that they waited up there for 2 days and then came out to find the Germans, only to find out they werent there! It really must have been terrifying.

I have never been to see the memorials and cemeteries in France and Belgium but I would love to go. I found out a couple of years ago that I had a Great Uncle that was killed in 1918 in the trenches. I would love to see his grave.

Thanks Janet, I just watched Gardeners World (I recorded it). I think most of my tomatoes are open to the sunshine but I am going to go out tomorrow and check. I have been putting banana skins in the greenhouse becuase apparently they ripen things quicker - they give off a chemical. I did that mainly for the chilli peppers though because they arent going red yet.

[gloria townsin]

Where is he buried Adrian. Tyncot is another well known cemetry. Did you know you can find the grave information on the Royal British Legion website.

[adesmith]

Yes, he is buried at Mory Abbey.

http://www.cwgc.org/search/certificate.aspx?casualty=569037

I was very fortunate because I asked the French teacher at school how to pronounce Loos (I founds out that my Great Grandfather probably fought in the Battle of Loos) and he said that was his home town. He asked if there was anything he could help me find out. There wasnt really anything about my Great Grandfather but I said that his brother was buried at Mory Abbey, not far away. He dispatched he Mum and Dad to go and take photographs!

I also found information out about him via 'The Great War' forum. There are loads of experts on there and if you ask them a question they will answer it for you. One of them had records that showed my Great Grandfather joined up soon after the war started in Grantham but was sent home for a few days because too many wanted to join. They were also able to tell me that he probably fought at the Battle of Loos because of where the regiment was at that time. Anyway according to records that some one had on the Great War Forum my Great Great Uncle Ernest was the only person killed in his regiment that day! They concluded that he was probably either shot by a sniper or hit by a stray shell.

[tricia2ws]

Have been to Normandy and visited both the british and American cemetries, they take your breath away, you just can't imagine until you see all those gravestones just how many people died, it's overwhealming, and makes you truely thankful for their braveness. Another place was Jersey, to see all of the bunkers stiill standing, what an eerie thing to see, and the place to give me the biggest chills was the underground hospital, to imagine what went on in there...... I love this period of history, I loved the britain through the blitz exhibition at Flambards, I think it's because it wasn't that long ago, yet it seems a lifetime ago. x tricia

[gloria townsin]

Adrian I am going to try and discover which battle was going on when my grandfather was killed. He actually died in the Hop Store which had been turned into a field hospital. He lived a short while after receiving terrible injuries. I have letters from his commander (not sure if that's the correct name) to my grandmother initially telling her he had been wounded but would be fine.......then the one saying how sorry he was to discover that he had died. There must have been so much going on at the time it's understandable that things couldn't be kept track of. I think anyway by the time she received the first letter from him she had already got the telegram to say he was dead, which I also have. I also have the 'Widows Penny' which used to fascinate me as a child, his medals and spurs from the South African campaign, his small diary of that war and other letters front the first WW written by various uncles of my father. Non of these letters say anything about the conditions they were living and fighting in, only sweet messages to loved ones and telling my aunt to be a good girl and help her mummy and kiss her baby brother. I have read that rarely did these men write anything about the horrors of the war they were fighting. I have typed a lot of this correspondence with explanations of who they were for my sons and my sisters sons. I only remember names of some, others I remember from childhood, now of course all gone. Letters I treasure are those from Robert my grandmothers much younger brother. Sadly it was a letter to Robert that meant my grandfather was fighting on the day he died. He told him not to join up until he was called up......the letter censored......leave cancelled........which put him in the front line. Fate........as my grandmother would say. Robert still joined up at 17 ...... married before he went overseas.......was gassed......brought back to England and died. So he is buried here, but I have yet to visit his grave.

[Sal]

Hi have just been reading your message. My husband Paul and I visited France in the early 90s to look for his great grandad's grave. We visited Vimy Ridge and like you found it very very moving. We visited lots of cemetaries and they are so peaceful. The men were so young. It breaks your heart. We are going to go again and take the girls with us and show them the sacrifice that these young men made for us. "When you go home tell them and say, for your tomorrow we gave our today".

[Linda]

I so agree about these postings...and the saddest part is that schools seem reluctant to teach about 1st and 2nd WW...one teacher actually said to me oh! we cant have someone in a uniform coming in to the school it would frighten the children and give them ideas that war is glamorous!!

Jeff and I watch many of the Discovery and History programmes and we never cease to be amazed at how much more we keep learning. It emphasises how many wars are brought about by politicians and religion.

[gloria townsin]

The day we visited Vimy Ridge was a misty, quiet day.......the group of trees in the near distance looked as though they were floating in the mist.....eerie and I could imagine the soldiers that viewed a similar scene.