L'incontro....hello baby....

Clipart Leo Blanchette:
 http://clipartof.com/13196

Anyone who knows me knows I LOVE LOVE Andrea Bocelli. I can't go see him without ending up with a tear in my eye. There are two songs that I love for their sentiment/ words rather than
necessarily being my actual favourites musically.
This is certainly one I never imagined I would ever sense myself....and yet now I am 39 weeks and 3 days pregnant I find it very meaningful :)
He sings it in Italian (my other fave he sings all in Italian) but this one starts with a poem, read by Bono of U2 and it goes:

L'incontro
While like a giant, proud and happy,
I take my baby in my arms, fragile, innocent, and alive
And like a little bird he's pushing against my chest
Abandoned, quiet and safe, for an instant, almost sweetly
My destiny appears to me like a dream

And I see myself, old and surrendered,
Seated there near the coalfire,
Waiting for the evening with the anxiety of a child,
Just to see him coming back home
With the gift of his smile, of his words and kindness
It's like a promise that can solve the enormous joy
Of one of his caresses

Then I wake up and I have already forgotten
But inside of me the kid's trapped soul advises me
That his new born child is already more important to me
than that of my own life....

Guided by Compassion? Get the Naturewatch guide to animal friendly shopping :)

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Also very interesting to find out who actually owns the high street brands you know and the truth behind them as it's not quite what you might think at times...or be led to believe....

We are in it! :)

Lark Lane Spring Healing & Holistic Day - In memory of Jim

This is my favourite poster so far for the healing days. I have been doing these for quite a few years now, its every 3 months and in Lark Lane Community Centre aka' The Old Police Station' in liverpool, L17 - just off Sefton Park.

Holistic Therapies, Veggie & Vegan food, music, chatting, stalls and general meandering :)

The next one is March 16th. It's dedicated this particular one to Jim O'Neil, who was my next door stallholder pretty much every time. He died just before christmas two days after retiring from Wirral Environmental network, he was always helping out with eco stuff, he ran the Community repaint scheme, had written (and published) some local history books, and was well just a general all round good hearted character.

I will miss being next to him in March and eating cake and teas whilst nattering and minding each others stalls whilst we had indian head massages or reiki. A bloody good egg, here's to Jim wherever he is.

Meet little Twiggy

She's our new unexpected addition to the satsuma gang. I went into a well known petshop and whilst I don't like these places AT ALL I was desperate for pair of rabbit nail clippers for Miss Lolly. The aisle they were on happened to be by the adoption centre, cue squealing and a little face at the window with a wonky head. The guy explained she'd had brain damage from meningitis and it the wonky head meant noone wanted her.
Needless to say she's now living with us in Wales in a luxury piggy palace! She purrs and falls asleep on you! Who knew! Me and alistair are currently battling it out for who's her favourite human :)

Hendrix

Saw this and loved it.

Chikih & P Satsuma - The Kalaweit Sanctuary & Chanee

First off my fellow satsumas, if you tweet..highly recommend you follow @kalaweit. 

They saved a baby orang yesterday off a palm oil plantation.

Chanee who started Kalaweit is one of my major heroes and I nearly fell over when I bumped into him at the Hope4Apes event in 2010 I was volunteering at. When he was on stage with Sir David Attenborough he got a standing ovation for his talk. 

I first heard of him when I saw 'Natural World: Radio Gibbon' on BBC2, I think narrated by Sir Attenborough.

Cheeky Chikih :)

There is Chikih, a siamang, 12 yrs old, who was very ill when we first adopted her. She came from Jakarta in 2004 to the sanctuary. She was skinny and dehydrated when Kalaweit first took her in; having been kept in a small cage in Jakarta after hunters killed her parents. She had diaorrhea when she arrived and was very stressed out. And wowee the difference in her photos from even back in 2009 to now - she is happy, alebit her forest is gone, and she has a wild pig who comes to see her every day! :) 

We adopt her fully for €250 a year with some of the proceeds from sales on littlesatsuma.com.

This is the link to info on Chikih on Kalaweit's site: Chikih's Info



Peter Satsuma

Then there is Peter Satsuma, named after Little Satsuma, he's a gibbon, 5 years old. Chanee said I could name the next gibbon they rescued when I had contacted him and Nadege who was from Kalaweit too. Peter Satsuma was the first gibbon rescued into the new centre in 2010. Chanee said he was unusual as he was a white faced gibbon. The little fella has a knee fracture from some point in his young life.

Whenever Carlo sends news of them by email it seems Peter Satsuma has always been singing his head off. Which is apt as his first name is after a singer/ musician I used to save from various late night tangles and who I was madly in love with for a time and am still friends with.

We adopt him fully for €250 a year with some of the proceeds from sales on littlesatsuma.com.

This is the link to info on P Satsuma on Kalaweit's site: Peter Satsuma's Info 

Deffo take a look at their website: www.kalaweit.org and the amazing work they do. They also have an online shop...and you can also sponsor one of the rescued gibbons or siamangs online. They have sunbears too.

Chanee is truly someone who everyone will know of one day, his approach to conservation, saving animals and enviromental issuse is pioneering with the medium of radio out to the youngsters having a real impact.

'The Song of Wandering Aengus'....W.B Yeats

WENT out to the hazel wood,

Because a fire was in my head,

And cut and peeled a hazel wand,

And hooked a berry to a thread;

 

And when white moths were on the wing,

And moth-like stars were flickering out,

I dropped the berry in a stream

And caught a little silver trout.

 

When I had laid it on the floor

I went to blow the fire a-flame,

But something rustled on the floor,

And some one called me by my name:

It had become a glimmering girl

With apple blossom in her hair

Who called me by my name and ran

And faded through the brightening air.

 

Though I am old with wandering

Through hollow lands and hilly lands,

I will find out where she has gone,

And kiss her lips and take her hands;

And walk among long dappled grass,

And pluck till time and times are done

The silver apples of the moon,

The golden apples of the sun.

The man who walked the long walk to freedom

I was thinking about Nelson Mandela today, I've not a clue why today particularly, but thinking how amazing it is to ponder what one human being can go through and do in their life. That it only takes one person like him to bring great change. And what made him different than someone else. One day he is a prisoner of Apartheid, the next he is ruling a Nation. How one human can sacrifice their life for standing up to the injustice served upon their fellow countrymen makes me wonder about the human capacity for selflessness...in a world that is currently rather commercial and rather greedy. Aung San Suu Kyi is another.

I found some words of wisdom from Nelson Mandela, and I'm jotting them down as much so I can read them again at my own leisure as I am for anyone else! I know,from the stats, that some people do read this blog and the number is growing...so clearly someone finds my waffle of interest (or some interest):

“There is no passion to be found playing small - in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living.”

"I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear."

"We must use time wisely and forever realize that the time is always ripe to do right".

Bourbon Street beginnings....

There are about ooh 3 or 4 people who know that the story of Little Satsuma begins in the French Quarter of New Orleans in 2001....I have no photos from being there as they are somewhere stuffed in a box in a house in Essex, assuming the owner of them is still alive.

A strange sequence of events that began on a trip there were the catalyst for a number of things that subsequently happened that led me along a very interesting path and led me eventually to a small village in Wales where I now live.

What it has showed me is that life is there in front of you, like a big fat pile of putty. There is no manual on what you are supposed to be making, you just have a try and see what you can make of it. If it's good keep it that way and the amazing thing is that if you get it wrong or what you shape it as turns a bit rubbish, you can always remould it  - keep the bits you want and dont be afraid to look at what bit were crap and change.

I wonder if we all sat down and had to write on a bit of paper the 3 pivotal points that shaped our life what they would be? Would we have still arrived where we are without them? If not what would have been different?

the wondrous, wondrous twists and turns of the path we tread on this mortal coil.


“Fools live to regret their words, wise men to regret their silence”

A (very) short ode to my new home :)

There is a village, it's hidden in the hills
There is a village where the madding crowd stills
There is a village where the cottage chimneys smoke
A place of magic and handmade folk

Crystal Deodorants

We are still sorting out a big delivery of Crystal Deos into UK. As some people have noticed we have run out of stock of the large ones.

It's for two reasons: they are becoming ever more popular so have gone down faster than last stocks did , and some of the contacts I have to contact to get them from are not great at replying and I've been sorting this since early September.

Should have them in again v shortly, we still have mini sticks (though levels dropping v quickly), roll ons and sprays.

And we will factor this in in future. It would be faster for me to go to the source and chisel them myself I think!

thanks for your patience xxx

Winter Arts Market, Dec 8th & 9th, St George's Hall Liverpool

Erm..hello..grab your christmas jumpers out of that old vintage suitcase, get your novlety antlers on and enough money to buy: mince pies, mulled wine and LOTS OF AMAZING PRESSIES and save the dates; 8TH & 9TH December.

Excitingly we are once again lucky enough to have got a speck on both Saturday and Sunday, 200 applications for 110 stalls I think it was.

The quality, creativity and sheer diversity of handmade stuff to buy from local makers literally makes my head spin, heart flutter and debit card creaaaaaak and croaaaaak.

I tend to spend the first two hours on Saturday buying up lots of stuff, spending all the profit I have yet to make. Best presents EVER IN THE WORLD EVER.

More details here chaps: Click me..I'm a link to your Liverpool winter wonderland

See you there. 10% off at the Little Satsuma stand if you are wearing a Christmas jumper, antlers or bring a snowman friend with you.

...as one of the manifestations of the mystery that is life...

“In the past we have tried to make a distinction between animals which we acknowledge have some value and others which, having none, can be liquidated when we wish. This standard must be abandoned. Everything that lives has value simply as a living thing, as one of the manifestations of the mystery that is life.”


― Albert Schweitzer

Of Monsters and Men....

short point...are these the best band ever? addicted to listening to 'Sloom' by Of Monsters and Men.

makes me want to skip around the lounge (if it was bit bigger)

A race to the end....

I have become rather good sort of pen pal friends with one of my very first customers, we often email each other on various animal issues, campaigns and chew the fat on life in general at times. We still haven't managed to meet up at the various stalls and meet & greets she does, but hopefully will soon.

She helped with some ideas when I was wondering how to build my plinth dress from chicken wire and recycled stuff.

She fosters greyhounds for www.erinhounds.co.uk, we did a collection at work of dog goodies, materials and stuff for raffle prizes for them, and the work they do is fantastic.

Her foster dog, Dee, (pictured above) is finally off to her new home next week which is such good news as she had been with her a fair while and is a beautiful dog who deserves a loving home.

She sends me links and posters sometimes, which I always email on to my animal loving bods, but I thought ooh I can ftp them up to my web and link to them. So I am testing doing it....if you click this pdf link below...it's an example of some of the doggies they have saved.

Click here: Erin Dogs Poster: Please give me a nice home :)

They make great pets as they only need two twenty minute walks a day, many can live with cats, are hypoallergenic for asthma sufferers and are clean , quiet and calm and live 12- 15 years.


Many greyhounds bred for racing never even make it to the track and are 'disposed of' at less than 2 yrs old. If they do race and manage to make it to 'retirement' when they aren't wanted they end up at markets being sold on, or if they don't sell they get killed or in fact other things I can't write because it makes me too sad. Sadly in man's own race for money and man's greed these poor furry chaps get a very raw deal.

Erin Hounds also help Irish lurchers who face neglect and disposal, having been used for " field sports" and breeding.


So in the spirit of "Don't breed or buy whilst animals die" we thought we'd blog about the great work Erin Hounds do and do some tweets too to let people know there are some great ex-racers there looking for a home :) xxx 

The lie-in, the witch (that's me) and the welsh wardrobe

Well, what a bizarre day. a beautiful day in which, without boarding  a plane I have travelled around Canada and Scottish Lochs.

I had called Dave yesterday who runs the boathouse at the lake, said I'd ring about 10.30am today to check they were there (I called late..that's the lie in bit!). I set off (forgetting an all important towel to dry off...this aspect of oubliation was not discovered until I had jumped in the lake at the end of my canoe trip, out the back of the boathouse), I got lost and I swear I somehow drove through a secret wardrobe and into Canada or a far northerly scottish loch.

My and my little ford KA ended up on a very narrow road up a VERY steep hill/ mountain and then found a little sign post for the lake, that then sent us down a track through some moorland, the track/ road was basically just about wide enough for my (old) bat mobile and which had lots of sheep pottering about on it.

As the lake came into view I actually said out loud 'What an absoloutely amazing place', because I couldn't believe I had never been before.....just stunning autumn sun drenched roads with over hanging trees and birds singing and waterfalls at the side of the road.

I was expecting Aslan to appear out of the bushes or Dorothy & the tin man to saunter past - it is like driving into a fairytale/ a film set/ a place dreams are made of.

The canoeing was immense, at one with mother nature, watching birds soar and swoop and bubbles from fish pop up on the surface. I saved a few of these biggish winged insects from death by drowning (but slightly freaked when I realised they would be onboard my mini insect noah's ark for the rest of the trip!) and we sailed back to shore with a wasp I'd plucked from the lake who was drowning, perched on the front like a mascot - I safely lifted him to shore onto a dry leaf and he seemed ok. I waived his foot passenger fee too as he had no spare change.

"Can I jump in?" I asked. to be fair I think they thought I was slightly crackers, but they let me jump in from the boat house back door. The water was chilly but felt amazing.... I like to think it knocks years off my boat race (face for you non-cockneys).

And so I dried off with a towel - not a clue who's it was, had a peek at the RSPB place (one for closer visit/ attention on next trip), peeked at the dam and stopped to look at the Corporation of Liverpool HUGE plaques at the side of the dam - because this dam gives Liverpool all its tap water. The tower in the photo filters out leaves and other stuff...and until a few years ago it literally flowed straight to the taps of Liverpool. So for those of you in Liverpool tonight brushing your teeth before bed - I was swimming in that a few hours ago - but don't worry....I didn't wee :))))) sorry couldnt resist.

I made my way back to Llangollen by luck rather than by navigation skills. Wetsuit & lifejacket drying in the bathroom, tea eaten and now for a film with the bunnies :)

What a to do!



At Carrog by the River, sunny day

 At the start of the year, which in fact I started dressed as Marie Antionette at 4am on arrival home to a police cordon and an Audi crumpled at the house gates, I made a list of what I'd like to do this year. Not really one about acheiving things, more one of places I'd like to visit or things I'd like to do.

 

It started with a few items on, half of which I had done by June....and then it just grew...I think it even grows at night when I am not looking :) And it's huge, but I see/ read about places (mainly these are the ones further down the list as it changed in nature circa March-June) and get told about them by people I meet on my travels, and I really really don't want to forget them....

Judging by the size of it and given I have a project in the day job that is eating night and weekends I'd say my little big list will be seeing in 2013 with me :)

 

Visit Lancaster for day
Bat house @ Chester zoo
Go ape at delamere
Learn to use sewing machine
Borneo orangies
Go up snowdon
Go to denise's friends farm: Fordhall
Zakappane forest Poland
New: Shambala fest Aug n'hampton
New: Visit Bath
New: Visit Eden project
New: Llandudno
New: Shepherds hut @ Llangower campsite
New: Telford ski centre!
New: Alwen Reservoir
New: Brenig Reservoir
New: Cycle Llandgela forest
New: Visit Llandudno & by canoe great orme
New: Nant mill and plas power wood shopping & cable car
New: Stokholm island of Pembrokeshire (puffins and birds)
New: Try and find the ski centre at Lake Vrynwy
New: Find Rhiwargor Waterfall

In Progress: Swim at Carrog Beach (end of steam train) - well I've been there & paddled (see pic)

In Progress: Go to Munich Christmas Markets again - sorting it with my Santa pal, Rebecca
In Progress: Visit Rick's place in Hereford (Hereford Alternative Arts Centre), hopefully Oct/Nov with Laura

In Progress: go to Warsaw - booked to go in November

In Progress: Llangower by Bala - beach for swimming - located it whilst canoeing with my dad.

In Progress: Go to lake Vrynwy - due to go tomorrow and canoe


Done - Go sailing/canoeing somewhere I've not been before
Done - Monkeyforest day
Done - Trentham Gardens barefoot walk without crying in pain
Done - Go to morocco again
Done - Ride a camel (but must be one that is well cared for and loved and looks happy)
Done - Visit an urban farm again  - and yet again a four legged animal bit me :)
Done - Go to krakow - done
Done - Swim in a lake/ more wild swims - done
Done - Buy a canoe
Done - Go up to the Castle ruins in Llangollen

Done - Go on the steam train at Llangollen

Done - Swim the Blue Lagoon at Horsehoe Pass Quarry

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

iPhone notes

I could spend hours reading what's in this very useful little app. It evokes thoughts of where I was when I made the notes & what was going through my busy head.
There are to do lists, poems I've written whilst waiting someplace or other, poems about dates I've been on, my list of dates, places I want to visit ( marking them 'done' when indeed they are), phone numbers & emails related to people I've met in course of travels & some of whom I throw a puzzled glance at before I delete them, hostel addresses in eastern europe, postcodes of places I've been en-route to & some time or other, business ideas and well a whole heap more!
It forms a very interesting little insight into day to day life, the bits we remember & the bits we forget.

Midnight manoeuvres

I'm sat in the hallway in nightie and leg warmers, having had major urge to tidy up, put washing on & get set for tomorrow. The rabbits are awake from daytime slumber and TJ is currently peeking at the screen as I type. I love the sound of their feet as they make their merry way about the house. Family guy is on, one last cuppa and then bed. For a lie in, a a rare old lie in :)) x ooh and found out its Llangollen food festival in 2 weeks do am made up as its walking distance from satsuma cottage...perfect way to spend an autumn day in the welsh hills and valleys :)

in at the deep end....ing up in A&E

Well my oh my! So last year a group of us, including Benji the dog, had great fun wild swimming in the Brecon Beacons at a place called 'The Warren', we even found the embers of a fire on the riverbank to stoke to make it roar (ish) again and dry us off.

So Rhoda and I agreed to meet last Sunday as part of my 'ooh I'm in Wales lets become an adventurer' and Rhoda's love of open swimming. She swims in the Albert Dock in Liverpool regularly.

"It's called the Blue Lagoon" I'd enthused and it's on top of the horse shoe pass, it's a disused slate quarry....so last Sunday we set off with more baggage than you'd take for a 2 week holiday, each, and said to the biker at the Ponderosa cafe on our arrival "Is that there Blue Lagoon over there mr bikerman, thankyou please?" pointing to a big huge mountain of slatey hill!

Now having broken my rucksack I must confess I didn't look overly Bear Grylls with my wetsuit and other post swimming things poking out of an ASDA bag for life! nevertheless after passing several tonnes of slate and several 'DEEP WATER, KEEP OUT' etc signs and after trying several entry routes (most of which were just sheer edges down to the quarry), we located a descent of sorts. I chose to slide it on my ass and my leggings now live in the dustbin.

Looking back at what we had descended, with not a soul around and a sky turning grey we both confessed we were a tad apprehensive and thought maybe a day at the lobotomy clinic might have been a more appropriate day outing.

HOWEVER, having spent the previous week stuck in my lounge in an ebay wetsuit (not the whole week though you understand) that was too small for me and as I had (on finally removing myself from it) had to buy yet another one...no way was I not going in now! 

So we tentatively made our way in and I then freaked out as I saw a tyre underneath me - clearly less lethal than a great white but strangely off-putting nevertheless, though I'm not sure anyone died from ever just seeing a tyre. And then I reminded myself there was a actually a van at the bottom of it anyway which I'd seen on a youtube video of the Llangollen blue lagoon and so I figured I should 'man up'.

So we swam about. feeling like two avid explorers and we gasped at the cold (I was mainly gasping as my wetsuit was choking me but I couldn't admit even the next size up was no match for the amount of cake -homemade and palm oil-free by the way- I had recently been consuming!). The Lagoon is very clear and it's circa 40ft deep I think it is (thats about 12 metres right??).

We'd done it! So we sat on rocks underwater and chatted, we peeked underwater with Rhoda's goggles and then i put my left hand underwater....and pulled it up with a rather grim wound to the side of my wrist! It looked like a little smiling, little chatting mouth with little teeth. Convinced I was going to bleed to death as it was near my artery we scrambled in our wetsuits up the sheer slate climb, me with a sock tied around my wrist to stem the blood, Rhoda carrying my 'bag for life' or death as I feared!

We had to change out of our wetsuits at the top quickly before we could get to the Ponderosa cafe where we had parked; whilst changing and with bleeding wrist, my towel blew away leaving me in the rain, on top of a disused slate quarry on a hill in wales with no clothes on! Hugely amusing. Benny Hill meets Holby City!

The chaps at the Ponderosa cafe patched me up, I didn't pass out, Rhoda played Mum and made me tea with sugar and I got to A&E where I spent a lovely evening eating the contents of the hospital shop and with what looked like the cast of my big fat gypsy wedding who came in after me. I chatted to a few people and reflected that A&E is one of the only places you don't ever want to be first in the queue and should be happy to wait.

So a rather adventurous start in perhaps a less than easy wild swim spot, but I had great fun, my wrist is healing and I've a list of rivers and waterfalls to visit when it's sunny - all this on our little island.

Sometimes we travel so far and yet great little gems and things we are looking for are right in front of our eyes.. often they cost nothing to do and are source of adventure, risk, excitement & laughter.

Next on the list is the Blue Lagoon on the coast of Wales, which is where the sea has breached an old quarry wall, looks great and has conga eels at the bottom...yes they look mean, but I'm just going to envison them all shimmying around the seabed "Lets all do the conga" and my fear will be abated.

Evening all x