A slightly blurry photo of yesterday's Bramble Jelly.
The 1st of August today, and the wheel is turning. Lughnasadh marks the beginning of the harvest season. It is one of the four Gaelic celebrations which divide the year. It was also known as Lammas and we have a Lammas Street in Carmarthen where a Horse Fair was held until quite recent times.
I have to say, there is a slight feeling of Autumn approaching. In digging out the freezer yesterday, I liberated the last of the 2016 Damsons, blackberries, elderberries (some still left to make syrup with later on for winter colds and coughs) and I used a few small fallen apples off the trees here, along with some boughten cookers, and have made the first stages of Hedgepick Jam. Normally it would have crab apples and a few sloes in it too, but we are too early for those. I will include photos and the recipe later on. So far I have just cooked down the apples to a pulp, and cooked the damsons, blackberries and elderberries until soft and juicy and put them through a sieve so we have all the flavour and none of the pips from the brambles. I love the rhythm of a country year, where each season has its routines - planting in spring, harvesting in summer, the laying down of preserves for the winter months, the autumn clear up in the garden, the delights of preparing for the Christmas feast.
Yesterday I had to go into town to replace one of my inhalers - I now think its slow failure was what was at the root of my breathing problems last week - or at least part of it as I know I do react to moulds in the atmosphere. The inhaler normally "snaps" when you press the top to release the asthma spray, and as I use what is known as a "spacer" which you release the medication into, it is hard to tell how much has been released. This spring had stopped snapping and it was a slow release without any umph. Finally yesterday it stopped releasing anything. I had one day's steroids left to take but won't take them as I now think it was mostly the inhaler not working so I was on 2/3 of the dose I should have been taking. Hopefully I will sleep properly tonight, as several nights of just 4 hours sleep have me on my knees this morning, although I did "lie in" until 4.45 a.m. today.
We are busy replacing lighting down in mum's flat and also have some new lights to go in our sitting room (which I am going to start redecorating soon - a similar colour to the pale terracotta we have in there, only a slightly warmer shade). I found some lovely used curtains in a deep terracotta with a paler pattern on Ebay and snapped them up for £14.99 including postage. They will arrive this week. The old ones are rather faded at the edges and were ones I made myself. I may revamp them by removing the faded edge - there is plenty of width in them. Then I have some to put up when the others are being laundered.
These copper spotlights are a great improvement on the VERY old-fashioned and dated lights that had been down there for years. My darling husband is slightly resistant to change but even he could finally see the old ones had had their day . . .
I finished the 3rd of the Peter May Lewis trilogy yesterday and was just lucky enough to find a new book of his released yesterday and on offer in Tesco for just £3. Who am I to resist?!
Not yet Lughnasadh, unless you are using an Irish calendar which does not title the month as August.
ReplyDeleteThe celebration of Lughnasadh is dated as 6/8th of the month when sun lights up the back walls of the stone cairns, same as what occurs at Winter Solstice at Newgrange, Co.Meath.
Clever were those who built them 5,000 years ago for the benefit of themselves and future generations.
Thank you Heron's View. The general accepted date here seems to be 1st August. I am interested to hear that it is actually celebrated in a week or so's time, and would love detail of "when sun lights up the back walls of the stone cairns" - all, or specific ones? This is detail which was missed out in my Archaeology degree!
ReplyDeleteI have been to Newgrange - Arch. Field Trip - what think you of how they "arranged" the quartz façade? I still remember standing right at the very back (to one side) when they turned all the lights out and then the pencil beam of sunlight lit the back of the chamber. There might have been 28 of us in there, but I felt alone and there was quite an atmosphere.
Clever indeed, those that built them and could read the heavens sso well as to be so specific with the exact alignment and orientation of the light boxes in this and other sites.
I think the the quartz facade is a false notion, on the other hand it is pretty rather than functional ;-)
DeleteThe thoughts here are is that the ordinary calendars still use the dates of the old petty sessions
because they know no better.
However interested archeo folk have visited various cairns in Ireland and have found that in every one the sun fell on the back wall on a particular important date thus Cairn T at Lough Crew is Spring & Autumn Equinox, Tara 's Mound of the Hostages Samhain and Imbolg
To your question and in the manner of the old celtic tutors who when asked a question said "Not hard: at sunrise of course "
You can calculate the exact date because the quarter festivals are exactly between an equinox and a solstice or as in this case Lughnasadh is between a solstice and an equinox, this year it is August 7th
but check for yourself see http://www.archaeoastronomy.com/2017.html
Fascinating is it not ?
Thanks HV - time to blow the dust off some Irish archaeology books methinks. We visited Tara but it is 20 years back now, and I no longer have my notes.
DeleteIt is all very fascinating the prehistoric cairns and their relationship to the movement of sun and moon. The annual pilgrimage to Stonehenge has resulted in a 'party atmosphere', the interpretation of solstices and equinox a point of debate. I always thought lammas recently had more to do with the general dates of bringing the harvest in. The christian church though finalises dates in accordance with its own festivals.
ReplyDeleteI think the more recent take on Lammas was in line with the harvest but as you say the Christian church is responsible for all sorts of shenanigans with its festivals and the ancient ones.
DeleteI remember Lammas Sunday being celebrated on the Sunday following 1st August, when the first loaf made from the harvest was blessed during the service. There won't be any harvesting around here for a while as we've had constant rain for weeks; we really need a few dry days so that the machinery won't get bogged down in the fields.
ReplyDeleteI knew of the bread connection Rambler. Makes sense with it being associated with the harvest. No corn grown in these parts - it's sheep and cattle round here.
DeleteBlackberry picking seems to come around earlier every year. Need to get out there myself.
ReplyDeleteWe are always later here Simon, though there are a couple of early brambles - but these are the sort with very few fruit "drops" on the head and a bit tasteless. It's irking when we are on a motorway to somewhere and see ripe berries the size of thumbs, but then, who wants fruit covered in diesel and petrol fumes?!
DeleteMrs H she to whom I obey (sometimes) has informed me that 'Lammas' is an Anglo-Saxon word meaning a half loaf. So you can use various conjectures as to why the Christians adopted it as a harvest celebration.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely.
DeleteJust been catching up on your posts - you have been so busy lately :) It is starting to feel autumnal here too and lovely to read of your preserve making. Good to see the books and magazines you have bought recently - I haven't tried any Peter May so will be investigating his books :) Do hope the asthma and sleeping improves.
ReplyDeleteI can't WAIT to get to bed tonight RR. Shattered isn't in it! I really didn't want to get up today but as we were in the shop we had no option. I am sure you will enjoy Peter May - I'm over half way through the one I bought yesterday.
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