Learning is something we do (or should do) throughout our lives. Though when I happen to look at my dissertation on occasion, I always think, was I really clever enough to research and write that?! I have certainly let things slip on the academic learning front, but a chance comment on an old (2014) post of mine about Gwyddno Garanhir and Cantre'r Gwaelod has led me down a rabbit hole where Taliesin and the Welsh Mabinogi have Irish roots. Although Irish Medieval history is a mystery to me (as is much of Welsh Medieval history, since prehistory was my chosen subject at Uni when I read Archaeology), it is always good to learn and to stretch ones thinking processes again. I have just spent an hour reading and trying to digest a very interesting paper about the religious - and other - influences on what the Welsh have always considered to be their cultural heritage. It will take several more readings to get a better understanding, as I familiarize myself with the Irish landscape and placenames, as well as patronomics and the ecclesiastical history of Ireland. It rankles a little to think that Cantrae'r Gwaelod may not/probably didn't exist and that Gwyddno Garanhir was Irish though! Yet at Uni the first thing we were taught was not to bring our own beliefs/baggage to the table or to start with the conclusion of an essay and then make everything else fit. We had to keep an open mind - I guess having spent half my life living in Wales, it is hard to step back from what I have learned thus far. Gosh, it is so well researched and written and clearly by a more educated mind than mine!
I am about to get ready to go to a talk/discussion about Bute Energy and what they propose to do to our beautiful landscape, by way of gigantic wind turbines and pylons marching across Builth fields, within sight of us all. I know - beware of bringing baggage to the table but I am NOT open minded on this and like many others, we do NOT support it.
My other learning today was how to take out an old bulky pocket in a pair of velvet trousers (Tam's) and to replace it with more suitable fabric. Let's hope my efforts look ok when worn . . . It was a job I'd never done before.
Finally, the front of the house now all blue where it should be. I need to crack on with it again tomorrow.
House is looking good - very French. I also say boo (or worse) to huge pylons destroying our beautiful countryside. Xx
ReplyDeleteIt does look good. Everyone says how cheerful it looks now.
DeleteThe blue is so beautiful. A hint of Mediterranean villa now. As for academics, I admire your recent studies. Thoughts about what we ''knew'' as students is so true--I remember taking , in high school, subjects like advance placement [university level sort of?] classes in goofy things like advanced / abstract? calculus, physics, economics. No clue what they were about. I know I took the classes bec an A+ grade gave you an opt out of required uni courses with also a 4.0 or A+ so I liked that idea, since I was a design and arts student w no interest in academic subjects. Looking back I'd have liked to study domestic/ social history, the stories and workings of people in the past--not kings and wars. That was never offered.
ReplyDeleteHere, sometimes the supesrtition and tradition is I think, that blue windows and door surrounds protect the household from evil spirits, so you will have a happy home.
Ah, you have a mind that works differently to mine. I am - is it right hand side, when you are happy with words, but figures leave me cold. I am not a logical or analytical thinker! Your subjects would have terrified me! I love history but we were taught it poorly at school - how much more interesting it would have been if we had learned about people rather than dates.
DeleteSeems I chose the right colour for the house then.
Hahaha, I just did those classes for the A. I'm a creative shy artistic introvert who loves to read, draw, sew. Write. My school was just very academic. When I applied to design college at the university, the big drawback was I had no portfolio, my school didn't teach art. And as you say, taught history only badly or again, not at all. No botany, no geology, or geography either. No creative writing. My childhood dream was t be an ocean archeologist.
DeleteLove the blue, reminds me of island hopping in Greece many. many years ago. I've been putting my brain to work in my attempts to learn Welsh. It would be good to be able to converse in Welsh with someone other than Pete but my main goal is to keep the brain cells working and I've even started Greek on Duo Lingo as well.
ReplyDeleteIt does have a look of Santorini doesn't it? On my bucket list . . . I am not good with languages but it does me good to learn more about history or archaeology or churches or botany.
DeleteI do like the blue! It adds a lovely pop of color to you house.
ReplyDeleteThank you. It has just a touch of lavender in it to stop it being more turquoise.
DeleteThe house looks wonderful. I studied Microbiology, Biochemistry and English at Uni and I often wonder how on earth I managed to get through the various courses I needed. I think as I have aged my mind has turned to mush.
ReplyDeleteGod bless.
English - nearly read Engl. Lit. but was persuaded not to as I had young children and there was so much reading. You have a more medical mindset than me.
DeleteYour house is looking wonderful! I love the colour!
ReplyDeleteI agree re learning! And especially learning about the area in which one lives. When I was a student I did a study on the education in my area, from 1870. That was fascinating! I visited so many schools and trawled through so many old school log books!
Have a good week. 😁
Thank you. I am gradually learning more about this part of Wales. The study you did on the education in yoru area must have been fascinating. Local history here is quite different to Carmarthen with a more military presence here, the Epynt Range having been taken over by the Army for training in 1940 and never handed back - like Tyneham in Dorset.
DeleteI love the blue. It looks really cheerful. I studied English Literature with American Studies and Drama as subsidiary subjects. My dissertation was on the staging of Medieval mystery plays - so more on the Drama front than English Literature, but it was something that really caught my imagination
ReplyDeleteThat sounds an interesting subject. Was that something you went on to work in, Drama?
DeleteYour home looks wonderful, the blue really pops. On the subject of wind turbines, I am not sure if this is correct but I was recently told that "Owners" of wind turbines are paid substantial amounts of money to keep them turned off in certain conditions. Not really "green energy" in my opinion.
ReplyDeletePeople don't realise that the fossil fuel and nuclear generators get even bigger subsidies
DeleteI am strongly against wind turbines. However my understanding is that here at least where we at times have very high winds , gales, storms hurricanes, the turbines must be turned off for mechanical safety reasons.
DeleteJudging by how it blights the landscape, both scenically and with its affect on and in the ground and wildlife suffers, I think there are better ways. Offshore or tidal power.
DeleteNot offshore! We do not want to see them on our ocean. And think how they will deteriorate, mammoth rusty skeletons in a few years. We--our oceans--have wildlife too: here we have whales, dolphins, sharks, turtles, fish, vast numbers of endangered seabirds, a flightpath for migratory birds and insects. All are endangered when their habitat, their homes, are damaged and destroyed. Wind turbines are an abomination, the product of grasping money hungry people who care for nothing.
DeleteThat protest has been banging on for a couple of years now and I can really sympathize over it, it's bad enough around here with all the solar farms we have springing up but seeing huge wind farms across the countryside and pylons like around here should be a big NO. What really bugs me is when I am at Fforest Fields and look towards Radnor I see six wind turbines that do not work. Some idiot let then have money to build them and they are not connected to the grid WHY? oh because they did no have the infrastructure which is what you are going through now. I think some one should just unbolt them and see if the wind blows them over. Blot on the landscape comes to mind
ReplyDeleteOh yes, one of their arguments last night was it was industrialising our landscape, but then the Welsh valleys and North Wales had to suffer in the past. The Radnor windfarm suffered from the National Grid not pulling its finger out . . . Definitely a blot on the landscape - they all are.
DeleteWith the sunken forest that runs from {I believe} near the Llyn Peninsula down through Cardigan Bay, and out beyond St Brides Bay, I absolutely refuse to believe that Cantre'r Gwaelod did not exist in some form. There is evidence popping up all the time of tsunamis in many places, such as the Bristol Channel for example. Much is lost in the mists of time, but something, somewhere, many centuries ago happened and made it's way into Welsh folk lore. I am no expert, but I do believe.
ReplyDeleteI am inclined to agree with you. I shall read the article again until I can see how they could just have "lifted" it from Ireland to Wales. Their date is very late compared with our legend . . .
DeleteMake your voice heard, Bovey!! Oppose, oppose, oppose....banded together with others of like-mind. I wish you luck. Keep us informed how things turn out. Power to the people!!! Love, Andrea xoxo
ReplyDeleteOh we did, people spoke their minds. I was tempted to stand up and say, I bet you don't live locally! but then, they wouldn't be doing this to us if they did . . .
DeleteYour house just looks so cheerful now, and it's probably exactly what you need it to look like. Well done on all the work up to now. xx
ReplyDeleteI will be glad when it's finished. I have the shower room to sort out too but haven't heard back from my plumber yet. Will chase him up again tomorrow.
DeleteWe're not fighting wind farms here, we're fighting DARC ~Deep Space Advance Radar Capability that's the plan to erect 27 mahoosive radar tracking dishes at Brawdy, just above Newgale Beach overlooking St Brides Bay.
ReplyDeleteHell's teefs - not even heard of those.
DeleteI like the way the blue is picked up by those plant pots.
ReplyDeleteHuge pylons and giant solar farms are being opposed here too. Going Green but there'll soon be nowhere to grow food - it's all crazy.
ReplyDeleteYour house looks really lovely - such a happy blue.
It's not about saving the planet, it's all about enhanced pension pots at the end ofthe day.
DeleteArticle ending altered. It took 20 years!
ReplyDeleteGood grief - it's certainly in-depth research. I have had a busy two days but will get back to it again this evening, as it needs me to read it slowly to digest it (being a dunce on Irish Medieval history).
DeleteGwyddno tweaked and finalised.
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DeleteWell done. It's good to see things from a different perspective. However, isn't there a Caer Sidi just off the coast of Anglesey - aka Puffin Island?
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