Unboxing

definition:  the activity of taking new products out of their packaging, especially on videos on the internet.

I watched an 'unboxing video' with Rosie last year. Someone  opening a box with a £6 LOL doll in it. Making the sort of enthusiastic noises I might make if I was sent a box with a £6000 Bernina sewing machine. Except this woman was in her thirties, which made it very weird. I could cope with Ro or Jess ooh-ing and aah-ing over a doll but not someone old enough to be their mother doing it. And as for setting up a video camera to record the whole experience for the general public to share...

But, dear friends, I would like you to share my unboxing of the latest CoverStory package received from Kirsten yesterday. Please supply your own sound effects as indicated. Rustling of tissue paper

Firstly the inner box. The Graze ones we started with years ago are wearing out. Here is a new, very pretty box from Bloom and Wild, [oooh!] and inside the Travelling Notebook with all the annotations of what we have stitched and why [hmmm! helpful]

Then the postcard - always full of personal details, some sadness  😥🙏 and some joy [Hallelujah!]

Don't you just love Shepard's Winnie-the-Pooh and Christopher Robin illustration? [sweet...] so much more English than the Disney bear. The flat gift...

A pack of wildflower seeds [so charming]

Bladder Campion [wheee!]

Birdsfoot Trefoil

Self-Heal [sounds good]

Lady's Bedstraw - used to colour Double Gloucester Cheese[yum]

Sneeze-wort [atishoo!]

Red Clover

Betony - it's good for back pain, said Culpeper's Herbal[👍]

Hedge Bedstraw

drumroll Finally this month's stitching [wow!!]

A gloriously dense piece of coton perlé work. Lush green grasses, interspersed with bright pink tulips in detached chain stitch, colourful French Knot crocuses, and bright daffodils stitched from Karen Turner's video tutorial . A celebration of spring flowers.
That's lovely said Bob

It's gorgeous said I  

[applause and cheering] 👏👏👏

Thank you Kirsten for this delightful piece. I don't foresee a new career for me in making "Unboxing Videos" though [sighs of relief from everybody]

Would You Believe It?

 Were you caught out?

Cadbury's Creme Eggs in sachets, Heinz Dubai Baked Beans with pistachio flavouring, 

Birds Eye Waff-holes [using the potato pieces leftover from the waffles] 

Dole pineapple flavoured eggs, and Terry's mint chocolate toothpaste were all advertised yesterday.

Krisy Kreme announced the withdrawal of their original glazed donut, while Waitrose said they would only sell Easter eggs to adults, not children.

Subway were offering their best rolls liquidised into protein rich drinks...

Oh and Hyundai have autonomous Mobilet portable toilets which will appear when you need them. At your own convenience presumably. I think they should have called them Deliverloo

All very classy work by the marketing guys. I wonder how many people were fooled. Apparently there were fewer pranks in the media this year - it seems people are getting more wary of fake news.

I learned two new words yesterday [genuine, not AF pranks] Thank you Catriona and Sue, for Huntigowk [Scottish term for April Fool's Day] and Pittakionophobia [fear of sticky labels]

Turning Turtle

Following on from yesterday's post, more about Kemp's Ridley. In the Gulf of Mexico is a pretty little island, Isla Porfol.

The turtles swim in the clear blue waters and are cherished by the locals. 

On this day every year, they celebrate El Dia de la Tortuga . [The Day Of The Turtle] with a massive carnival. Dancing, singing and feasting.

But remember, if they were not Mexican but French, the people of Isla Porfol might call today the Day of the Fish...

Of Viagra, Heartbreak And Current Affairs

Out there in the Gulf Of Mexico* there are many turtles- Kemp's Ridley Sea Turtles to be precise. These little creatures were first identified by a guy called Richard Kemp in Florida and sent off to Harvard to be properly classified. 
Nobody is sure about the Ridley bit of the name - before that these poor things were known as "the bastard turtles". From 1946-1986 there was a huge decline in their numbers. Then their breeding ground was discovered, a beach along the Mexico Coastline . Sadly the locals were stealing the eggs in vast numbers. People paid well for them - because "A turtle egg with a shot of tequila" was believe to combat impotence in Mexican males. In a brilliant co-operative project, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Service got together with local conservationists to collect eggs and set up a new breeding ground along the Padre Island Seashore.

This began in 1986, and when Viagra came along, a social awareness advert was produced in Mexico suggesting that the little blue pill was a better alternative than the eggs. The strapline was "My man does not need turtle eggs" It was surprisingly successful! Numbers of the breed really improved. But it remains a critically endangered species, and TPWS continue their work. The video below lasts 7 minutes but is really informative [and full of cute baby turtles]

But unfortunately, global warming has affected the temperature of the waters, and some turtles are getting a little bit lost, confused by warmer currents. In November 2021, after Storm Arwen, one was washed up on a beach in Flintshire. It was taken to Anglesey Sea Zoo, nicknamed Tally, and after months of intensive care, was nursed back to health, then flown home to the US in September 2023.  A few months later, another turtle was washed up, nicknamed Rhossi. ASZ started working with the Americans in their Turtle Conservation Programme.

All good stuff - for the Kemp's Ridley, Bastard, or 'Heartbreak Turtle' as it has been variously named. Apparently sailors witnessed the creatures having 'turned turtle' [flipped on their backs] and dying. The sailors maintained the turtles' hearts were broken, hence the nickname.

But here's the latest heartbreak - Rhossi was due to be flown home in March, but is stuck in Anglesey. By order of Donald Trump. On his first day in office, that man signed an executive order requiring a freeze on all foreign development assistance. Which meant the US Fish and Wildlife Service stopped funding various projects, including the Marine Turtle Conservation Fund. In February, 400 USFWS workers lost their jobs as part of Trump's cutbacks. So there is currently no way of flying Rhossi home to the Gulf of Mexico. Frankie Hobro, director of ASZ continues to look after him.
Martha Williams, former director of USFWS said the impact on conservation projects was "heartbreaking". "I didn't expect this administration to necessarily be friendly towards conservation. I have been surprised at the speed and the degree to which they have undermined decades of goodwill and work in the conservation sphere…International work involved so little money, you know in the big scheme of things, small grants with enormous impact - enormous impact to communities." Williams described the cuts to promised funding for projects such as marine turtle conservation as "cruel". Ms Williams said the message was "don't give up. Speak out - tell the stories, explain why this work is so important, and that it does impact people in a positive way,"

So here I am, speaking out, telling the story, trying to make a positive impact. These are precious, beautiful creatures. They are part of God's Creation, and as a Christian, I believe I am called to be a good steward of the earth.
God bless the turtles, Frankie and co at ASZ, and what remains of the conservation services in the USA. There is a link here if you want to find out how you can help ASZ with their sea turtle recovery programme.

* As far as I am concerned it is still the Gulf of Mexico

Lent 4: Relationships

I regard today as Mothering Sunday, NOT Mothers' Day. It started in 16th Century Tudor England. On the fourth Sunday of Lent, people would go back to their 'mother churches'. And those who had left home for work [many of them still children] were allowed the day off for this, so they could go home to their family and worship together.

That was important - the opportunity to thank God for their roots, their families, and the faith tradition in which they had grown up. Mothers' Day was started in the USA by Anna Jarvis in 1907, when she held a memorial service for her own mother.  The idea took off in many states, and in 1914 the President declared the 2nd Sunday in May as a National Holiday. By 1920 Anna was campaigning for it to be stopped, as she was so disgusted by the commercialism surrounding it, and companies seeking to make money by selling gifts and cards! 

Today is not so much about mothers as about mothering. I am blessed in that I have three people for whom I have a special 'mothering' responsibility - Liz, Steph and Julian. And of course I care for their families too.

The dictionary defines mothering as 'having the characteristics of a mother, being caring, protective and kind, showing unconditional love'

You can be mothering towards someone without being their biological parent, or even a female.

In Matthew, Jesus says "O Jerusalem - how often I've ached to embrace your children, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings" In Isaiah 49, God declares "As a mother comforts her child, so will I comfort you". Caring, protective, kind, showing unconditional love.
Today let us celebrate the people in our lives who 'mother' us - and seek to do what we can to show that kind of unconditional love to others. 
And let us continue to encourage young mothers for whom it is a 24/7 relentless responsibility. Children don't come with a handbook, and it is very hard sometimes. Last year when Liz and Jon were away and we were looking after Ro and Jess. On the 3rd day, Rosie looked us and said solemnly "You two are getting the hang of this parenting thing now, aren't you?"  I think she forgets we have been learning for over 40 years!
Finally, do not forget those people who find today extremely difficult - those who have lost their Mums, those who have lost their children, and those who longed for children of their own. but never had them. Maybe they need a card or a bunch of flowers too...

Tonight's The Night

 This made me chuckle 

I always intend to go to bed an hour earlier,  but somehow never manage it.

And it is usually a couple of days before all the clocks in the house get adjusted.

Skrattar Fortfarande

That's Swedish, it means "Still Laughing". Because we are - there is no point in getting upset by the tangle of pipework behind the sink, or the electric sockets all at different heights. We are just getting on and getting it sorted.

I never mentioned the brilliant sign Bob produced on the day the flatpack kitchen was delivered. If you shop in IKEA you will know their staff wear sweatshirts which say Hej! The driver was extremely impressed, and asked if he could take a picture to show them back at the depot. I said they should send it to customers to print off.

The boxes are all neatly stacked and awaiting the Great Unboxing. That's a while down the road as yet, Gavin-the-Plumber needs to come and sort all our pipes first.

We are getting a new built in fridge [so visitors will open 3 cupboards before they find the milk for their tea] That is obvious not delivered as a Flatpack.

I am used to seeing arrows pointing to TOP, but the fridge box is also labelled at the front and back.  We were childishly amused by this information about handling, and the fact that our new fridge has a backside!

Our old fridge was purchased less than three years ago, and was in excellent condition. I posted it on Facebook Marketplace.

One person responded "Is this still for sale?" I said it was. "Where are you, when can I collect, please?" Now I am aware that there are scammers out there...

So I checked the profile of the potential buyer. She lived in Newcastle, and all her purchases had been in that area. This is odd- I posted in a Norfolk group. I replied with the name of the village, and said I was confused as her profile indicated she was in the North East. She replied immediately that the fridge was for her gran, and she was here in Norfolk staying with her [in a village just a few miles away]

She was here within half an hour, and extremely pleased with the fridge, and handed me the cash. I apologised for being suspicious but she was really nice about it, and said it was a reasonable question on my part. 

The dust continues to settle on every available surface, as the drilling and plastering for the sockets is sorted. 

My GCSE pupil had a good result in her maths mock, so that was an encouragement. We continue to plough through revision of Romeo and Juliet. Her school are going to show films of the set books after school on Fridays. "So we will see Christmas Carol, Romeo and Juliet In Spectacles and everything" [What??!!??]

I rewound what she had said...it was actually  Christmas Carol, Romeo and Juliet, An Inspector Calls... But we did like the idea of the star crossed lovers of Verona popping into Specsavers

I wonder which version they will watch. I only know the 1954 Alastair Sim classic - but I suspect they will see the 2015 film with David Thewlis, Miranda Richardson, Ken Stott etc. I must try and find it and watch it.

I did struggle with Baz Luhrmann's R&J. Too contemporary, all those guns and big cars...

Has anybody seen the 2015 version? Is it true to J B Priestley's original book?