Water problems again

 Back to the more mundane now.  I was just coming back from the Chiropractor's (more of that anon) and met the Farmer from up the hill - well, one of the 3.  With great delight he told me that the Reservoir was nearly empty and the farmer would have to get a digger in because the water pipes were obviously full of tree roots again, and because he was now on his own bore hole, it was going to cost us a LOT of money to put right. . .  NOT the news I wanted to hear.  Have spoken to new neighbour and asked him to speak to next door about it, and tell him that he will have to share the cost this time.  Since this particular farmer is given to making things sound dire when possibly they are not so bad, it's hard to know quite what the situation is.  We shall see.  Meanwhile, I shall save every drop.  I'm always careful anyway.

I did this drawing last night (a copy of one I used as a border on an essay submission more than 25 years ago.)  It was for a thank you card for G & M, for all the help they have given me.  They fly home tomorrow.

One of the things G and I talked about, alongside Yoga, was getting lazy bits of the brain working effectively - you know, you do what you've always done, always pick the same puzzles to do, never challenge it with "difficult" ones which need more thought.  Even things like crossing your arms - you always do it the same way, with the left arm over the right.  It really makes you think to do it the other way round!  You always shake hands conventionally - imagine my expression when he said, let's shake hands and turned his hand the other way up!  I even got reminded to dance yesterday - an old Beatles number - and it frees the body up, so I shall keep doing that alongside the Yoga and Meditation.

The Chiropractor could not BELIEVE the difference in my shoulder, because of the massage.  He did two little "drops" today to get my top two ribs back into movement again and kept saying how amazed he was that the shoulder muscles had freed up so and I had such a good recovery, and such excellent movement.  He will make another appointment for nearer my holiday but if I feel I'm ok still, I can cancel it.

I unpicked the flowers, and finished sewing the front of the Mrs Cat's dress last night.  Those are balls of wool and knitting needles in the little bag.  I am really enjoying making this.  Her head next.  Needs features and tabby stripes.

Right, now I shall quickly throw together a Chocolate Banana Cake for Tam & co, as I'm going to see them tomorrow.  I have 3 ripe bananas which need using up.

Brinsop and the literary connections

 

I found something relaxing to make last night.  I had intended to work on the Peter Rabbit x-stitch, but all the threads were in my big box upstairs, so I reached for this instead and had fun cutting out and starting to sew Mrs Cat's dress.  I am sure Rosie will love her.

The instructions say to do a chain stitch across the pocket, to make it look woven.  In the afternoon I did a 3 more blocks for the new quilt for my bed.

It requires 40 blocks, and then will make up quickly as these in rows with plain long rows in between.  I think I have enough navy Strawberry Thief for the plain rows.

Now, back to St George's church at Brinsop . . .

There was a nice piscina just inside the door, which was used for booklets about the Wordsworth Connection.

A beautifully sculpted memorial to William Dansey of Brinsop Court.

The wall paintings were indeed rather ghostly.  This is Christ on the cross.

Something else in a window aperture . . .

Amazingly, photos of the people that Kilvert wrote about . . .

I think this bottom photograph was of an illustration of Dorothy Wordsworth.

There were quite a few photographs by way of illustration of the page from Kilvert's Diary.  I just took snaps of a few.

 

St Faith, with the grid on which she was put to death.  There's a cheerful thought . . .

The Virgin Mary.

St Dorothea with her basket of flowers.

Apologies for the lack of clarity in some pages - my phone camera is not the best.  That poor boy, seeing his beloved dog hanging lifeless from the tree . . .  You think they might have shot him instead, and hastened his death.  (The dog that is, not the child!)

In my teens, once I started work, I bought a little paperback diary of Dorothy Wordsworth.  Sadly, it was in the downsizing cull before we moved here.

However, having perused THIS book, on display in the church, I came home and found the cheapest copy online and treated myself . . .

Have a good week all.

St George's Church, Brinsop - AMAZING - and a thousand years of history

 First of all, I survived my ECG - reasonably discretely clad in a hospital gown the wrong way round (e.g. opening at the front).  He was very thorough. 

I left my gardener in the middle of the rhododendron thicket, with instructions to cut it lower.  Gosh, I think he got a bit carried away, but one end is certainly vertically-challenged now.  He had also instructions to cut some branches off the beech tree to as that has grown vastly in all directions.  Unfortunately I need to be here to steady the ladder so he can do the bits that are still hiding my view.

I thought I would go church-bothering, and my instinct said try Brinsop again.  One I really wanted to visit, but it was shut last time I visited.  Oh my GOODNESS, I am so glad it was open this time (Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays).  It is approached along a little lane, and then up a farm track until the church is found inside a bracelet of yew trees and  sitting beside a large pond.  A peaceful spot indeed. The present church dates from 1300-1350, according to Pevsner.

At the time when the Domesday book was written, the manor of Brinsop was held by Alfred of Marlborough, and alongside thirty men and eight ploughs, the church was mentioned.  By 1100 the church paid tithes to Brecon Priory.  

The dedication is to St George and the Dragon - ever popular.  It made me think of Jordan, where we saw it in a 6th C church.

13th Coffin lid.

A plain Norman Font.

Now, wait for it, the Herefordshire Romanesque Tympanum - bunged in the North wall some time later . . .

W.O.W.  This literally made my jaw drop.  I love the way that the horse's back has been lengthened to fit it into the space, and St George too, fits neatly in.  The dragon is in a bad way, with St George's spear piercing its head and his horse trampling it underfoot.  Overhead are the voussoirs, which may not be in their original order.  A pair of affronted lions has some "loosely entwined foliage", and then a Kilpeck-style bird.  Then two figures with baggy trousers which are similar to those at Alveley (one I have yet to get to) and a pair of angels, similarly clad, holding books.  Two Piscean fish come next (as at Kilpeck) and  some more foliage and finally a lion.  The sculptor showed St George using stirrups and spurs, and the right sort of curb bit for the time, so we must assume his quilted? pleated? skirt and flowing cape are also correct.  This Tympanum is compared with one on the tombstone of Sextus Valerius, in the Museum at Cirencester, although Malcolm Thurlby (author of The Herefordshire School of Romanesque Architecture) states that the likely source of inspiration for this Tympanum is likely to be Parthenay-le-Vieux, Vienne.

Over the nearby doorway are the other voussoirs.  Until I got close enough to see it was an angel, I wondered why they had used a Dragonfly as the first motif!  He is similar to that at Shobdon.  Lots more figures (angels and folk in doorways) with baggy trousers, but best of all in the middle, a Green Man!!  Design-wise, the figures have relations at Kilpeck and Alveley.  Thurlby mentions another doorway which I clearly missed as that has more voussoir including another Green Man and a Saggitarius.  I found a photo on line - guess I will have to visit again then!

I did love these little crescent-winged birds though - they also turn up in designs at Kilpeck and Shobdon.

This piece of two strand plaited shaft may have come from an early doorway (as used at Shobdon) or window (Kilpeck).

A lovely rood screen with angels, which can be attributed to Comper, between the wars.  

The Reredos portrays birds plucking at the nails in Christ's hands.

Brass figure of St George and the Dragon.  Comper.  As was much of the stained glass.

Two more (13th C) coffin lids, in a side chapel (photo of that below).

All by Comper.

This will lead to another new post, about the Wordsworth connection to this area and church.  Oh, and Kilvert too!!  I can't believe I didn't take a photo of  the 14th C window OR the one with St George and the Dragon!  I must have got very distracted . . .

This is a very modern take on War.

There will be another post later in the week, which will show the ghostly remains of wall paintings, and focus on the literary connection this church has.