Pianos, Jewels, and Inns of Court - Monday

Maurene and I saw a handful of things on Monday that didn't easily fit into Breakfast Rambles or Sacred Spaces, the previous two posts devoted to our day of sightseeing on July 13, 2009. This post, then, completes the Monday trilogy.

Several times throughout the day we saw oddly painted pianos sitting on the sidewalk or in public atriums. This one, in Liverpool Street Station, was the only one we saw being played.


Later I learned that these pianos were part of an urban art project entitled Play Me, I'm Yours. This project by Luke Jerram placed 30 pianos in heavily populated public places. The intention was to create personal amusement or perhaps spontaneous street theater as people sat down to play the pianos. The exhibit lasted three weeks, then the pianos were given to schools and community groups.

After lunch at Ye Olde Mitre Tavern (see my Sacred Spaces post) Maurene and I did a bit of window shopping in the Hatten Garden jewelry district, an area bounded by Holborn, Gray's Inn Road, Clerkenwell Road, and Farringdon Road. Click here for a map. The jewelry was dazzling, shop after shop. Best to leave quickly and avoid temptation!

Next we looked at the half-timbered Tudor buildings on High Holborn. Very pretty buildings, and very old -- they date back to 1586.




The half-timbered buildings form the northern side of the Staple Inn. Behind them, lovely red brick buildings surround a peaceful landscaped interior garden.




Staple Inn is the last surviving Inn of Chancery. The Inns of Chancery, dating back to 1344, originally served as offices for clerks of chancery (a type of law). Later, the inns provided not only office space but also living quarters for the chancery lawyers who were called solicitors. Until 1642 the Inns of Chancery also provided initial training for barristers. It's interesting to note that solicitors practiced a different type of law than barristers, but today's lawyers in Britain are qualified to practice in both areas of law.

The Inns of Chancery were initially attached to the early Inns of Court. Inns of Court were voluntary associations originating in the Middle Ages. According to Encyclopedia Britannica they were formed to study English law as opposed to Roman law that was taught in the universities. There were four Inns of Court: Inner Temple, Middle Temple, Gray's Inn, and Lincoln's Inn.

I found the term "inn" puzzling. Of course, I hadn't yet read all the explanatory material above, so my frame of reference was that of temporary lodging for travelers. Maurene explained that the inns we had seen were law offices, and sometimes lawyers even maintained a small apartment there. Still, the architecture and grounds of these inns were as elaborate as cathedrals and seemed a bit much, even for a high profession like the law. A fuller explanation was to be found -- where else? -- in Wikipedia. Quoting from the article on the Inns of Court. "Each inn is a substantial complex with a great hall, chapel, libraries, sets of chambers for many hundreds of barristers, and gardens, and covers several acres. The layout is similar to that of an "Oxbridge" college. The "chambers" were originally used as residences as well as business premises by many of the barristers, but today, with a small number of exceptions, they serve as offices only."

This explanation was well illustrated by Lincoln's Inn, a much bigger property than the Staple Inn. Built in the mid-1800's, the buildings had a grander scale but the same austere air of seriousness. I was amused to learn that the building I thought was a chapel is actually the library. Makes sense, right? The law library is after all the most sacred of the buildings in a legal complex.

Law library is the chapel-like building extending out to the right.

The building with the tower, on the left, is the other side of the library.

The shot below illustrates a bit better than my photos just how much this building resembles a cathedral.

(This photo is not subject to any copyright restrictions.)

In between the Staple Inn and the Lincoln's Inn we visited The London Silver Vaults. Originally opened in 1876 as Chancery Lane Safe Deposit, these vaults were available for rental by wealthy Londoners who wanted to protect their valuables. Upon showing ID and checking our bags, Maurene and I went downstairs where we passed through a huge fortified safe door with a very imposing lock. Inside, we wandered the many hallways lined with rooms. Each room, a vault within a vault, was the shop of an antique silver dealer. The Silver Vaults contain silver from a variety of different cultures and historical periods -- cutlery & table service, tea sets (of course), jewelry & watches, lamps, and decorative pieces of all sorts including animals & birds, large and small. I thought I might buy a small turtle, and we did actually find one but it wasn't small enough to be affordable.

Back at Maurene's flat we needed tea and a nap to regain enough strength to go to dinner. We still can't believe how much ground we covered. It's a wonder we made it to dinner at all, really, but hunger drove us out the door. We ended up at a restaurant called Il Bordello, where very good Italian food was served in huge portions. And so, tired and stuffed with pasta, Maurene and I concluded what will probably be a "personal best" for both of us in the category of jam-packed London sightseeing days!

© 2009, Linda Mason Hood
Truffles, Turtles & Tunes Copyright Statement

Sacred Spaces - Monday

After breakfast at the Barbican (see Breakfast Rambles - Monday), Maurene and I set off on foot to see some sacred spaces.

Our first stop was St. Helen's, an Anglican church in the Bishopsgate area. Actually, St. Helen's wasn't on Maurene's itinerary. We stumbled upon it rather by accident, and I insisted we take a quick look. We were glad we did, for the building has an interesting construction which reflects its long history.

St. Helen's worship space was originally two separate chapels. Apparently there was a parish church that predated the chapel built in 1210 for an order of Benedictine nuns. The nuns' chapel was a little wider and longer than the parish church, giving the present sanctuary an odd shape.

St. Helen's has many claims to fame: It is the only surviving monastic building inside the city walls. It survived the Great Fire, the World War II Blitz, and two IRA bombings in the 1990s. It was the parish church of William Shakespeare in 1590. It may have the longest name of any single church. It's full and proper name, which includes the names of all 5 parishes consolidated from the 16th century to the present, is: "St Helen Bishopsgate with St Andrew Undershaft & St Ethelburga Bishopsgate & St Martin Outwich & St Mary Axe".



(For each slideshow in this post, you can make the pictures larger by double click the first one. Then, on the Picasa Web site, click on Slideshow.)

Additional info on St. Helen's:
1) St. Helen's Bishopsgate - historical timeline on the church's website
2) St. Helen's Bishopsgate, Tour UK website - more historical details
3) St. Helen's Bishopsgate, Wikipedia - most representative pictures and good references in the footnotes.



On our way to the next place of worship, Maurene and I walked through the Leadenhall Market. The narrow street leading into the covered market reminded me that I was in a very old part of the city. The market itself was established in the fourteenth century, but it stands on a site which dates back to AD 47 when the Roman city of Londinium was built.

More recently, the market was used to depict Diagon Alley in the movie Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. Harry Potter fans, do you recognize this ornate ironwork?



Additional info on the Leadenhall Market:
1) Leadenhall Market - historical timeline
2) Leadenhall Market, Wikipedia - short synopsis, wonderful picture



After a few wrong turns which resulted in crisscrossing the Leadenhall Market, we finally arrived at the Bevis Marks Synagogue. Its website explained why we had trouble finding it: The synagogue was actually built in a back alley because in 1699 Jews weren't allowed to put their buildings on the main roadways. Bevis Marks, completed in 1701, is the oldest synagogue in continuous use in London. The website link above is really interesting and quite well done. I highly recommend it to you for all the background details that I'm about to skip. I will just touch upon the aspects of the synagogue that I particularly enjoyed.

Upon entering the building, I immediately noticed a similarity to Quaker (Nonconformist) meetinghouses: balconies that circle above the main meeting space on three sides, and large windows with many panes of clear glass to let in the light. Later I learned that the builder of the synagogue was a Quaker named. No wonder there was a similarity! This Quaker, Joseph Avis, built the synagogue at cost because he felt it unethical to make a profit from the construction of a house of worship.

Perhaps the lavish decoration of the synagogue reflects the tastes of the original congregation, which was comprised of Sephardic Jews from Spain and Portugal. I particularly liked the brass chandeliers which filled the room, seven of them representing the seven days of the week. The chandeliers still had candles in them, which looked well used. There were also large brass candlesticks by the pulpit and the cabinet containing the Ark of the Covenant. While there were some electric lights in the balcony and on the tops of the pillars supporting the balcony, it seemed like the main source of light in the evening would probably come from candles. It was a very elegant and beautifully maintained sanctuary.

Here are a few pictures - they aren't great, so be sure you look at the the ones on the main Bevis Marks website as well.



Additional info on Bevis Marks:
1) Bevis Marks, Jewish Communities & Records (JCR) UK website - congregation data, other information which includes detailed Congregation History, good bibliography.
2) Bevis Marks, Wikipedia, good description, nice links.
3) Bevis Marks, Sacred Destinations website, concise summary and a map showing exact location



Our next stop was St. Ethelreda's, a Roman Catholic church in Ely Place. St. Ethelreda's was built between 1250 and 1290. Over time, the chapel and the crypt below served different purposes. In the mid-1500, the crypt was used as a tavern. From 1620 to 1622 the chapel served as Spanish ambassador's private chapel (and thus it was considered on "Spanish soil"). In 1642 during the English Civil War it was used as a prison and hospital. It was closed for a while, then reopened as an Episcopalian church before it was put up for auction in 1873 and bought by a Catholic priest who restored both the chapel and the crypt to their 13th century design. The crypt was used as a tavern in the 16th century. All said, this building indeed has a long and interesting history.

Despite the fact that it was not very well lit, Maurene and I especially enjoyed the crypt. It was obviously very old and gave us the sense of stepping back in time.

In the upper church, Maurene and I strolled the side aisles looking at the statues of martyrs from various historical periods, people from the area who probably attended this church. We took a moment to rest in the pews and commune with the spirit of St. Ethelreda. And she was actually there. I don't know if we realized it at the time, but on the right of the altar is a jeweled box said to contain a piece of St. Ethelreda's hand.



Additional info on St. Ethelreda's Church
1) St. Ethelreda's Church, Wikipedia, good summary and nice pictures
2) St. Ethelreda's History, part of St. Ethelreda's website - most complete historical information.
3) St. Ethelreda's Gallery, part of St. Ethelreda's website - pictures of all stained glass windows in the church and the crypt.
4) The Hand of St. Ethelreda by Dwight Longenecker, Fr. Dwight Longenecker's website - essay which suggests the hand of St. Ethelreda is symbolic of the Catholic Church in England

The final sacred space of this post is Ye Olde Mitre Tavern. In 1546 when it was built, the Mitre was a pub for the palace servants of the Bishops of Ely - the same Bishops who worshiped at St. Ethelreda's Church. Like the church, the Mitre went through a restoration about 200 years ago. In addition to being named for a bishop's cap, I'm classifying Ye Olde Mitre as a sacred space because it has has always been a place where people could meet together to escape from their mundane lives for a little while and return revived and refreshed. Think of it as a non-denominational, non-theological church of the common man -- or woman, as the case may be.

By the time Maurene and I arrived at the Mitre, we were certainly ready to rest our weary feet and have lunch. We ordered a grilled cheese sandwich and a glass of hard cider. Then we took a look around. All the rooms are small, but there are two sitting rooms downstairs separated by the bar in between them. Both rooms are lined in dark paneling and with their low ceilings impart the feel of a much earlier time. Up a narrow, winding staircase is the Bishop's Room, now just another room for patrons to socialize, as well as the ladies room and the office.



Interestingly, the bit of land on which the Mitre stands is still under the governance of Cambridgeshire, not London. This dates back to the 13th century and its connection to the Ely Palace. For some reason, this bit of land was never incorporated into the City of London. According to TimeOut London, if robbers from the nearby jewelry district run down the alley that leads to the Mitre, the only thing London police can do is seal off the exits and call their counterparts from Cambridgeshire to come make the arrest!

Additional info:
Secret London: Ye Olde Mitre Tavern, Timeout London. Good historical details.

© 2009, Linda Mason Hood
Truffles, Turtles & Tunes Copyright Statement

Breakfast Rambles - Monday

Today was my first full day in London after a week in Ireland at the Willie Clancy Festival in Miltown Malbay. (All of those posts are accessible by clicking the Topic Label "Willie Week 2009" in the blue box on the left.) My friend Maurene had an ambitious sightseeing itinerary planned. Much of what we were to see on my 3-day visit fell under the category of "old." For example, yesterday we went to The Oriental Club and Rules, both dating back to the early 1800s. The first items on today's agenda, however, were more recent additions to the historic city of London.

After a cup of tea and a shower, Maurene and I were out and about by 9 AM. Our first stop was an office/apartment complex called Cutler Gardens at 3-11 Devonshire Square. Despite its picturesque name, the original buildings that comprised Cutler Gardens were warehouses belonging to the East India Company, later used by the St. Katherine's Dock Company and the Port of London Authority. From 1978-1982 the warehouses were remodeled for use by the Standard Life Assurance Company. In 1990, a sculpture by Denys Mitchell was installed in the courtyard. The Cnihtengild, a bronze and glass sculpture of a knight on horseback, has a modern style which nevertheless succeeds in invoking all the drama and force of the days of King Arthur. The plaque below the sculpture reads as follows:

“King Edgar (959–75) granted this derelict land to thirteen knights, on condition that they each perform three duels, one on land, one below ground, one on the water. These feats having been achieved, the King gave the knights, or Cnihtengild, certain rights over a piece of land ‘from Aldgate to the place where the bars are now, toward the east, on both sides of the lane, and extended it toward the gate now known as Bishopsgate in the north, to the house of William the Priest… and to the south to the Thames as far as a horseman riding into the river at low tide can throw a lance.’

“This sculpture by Denys Mitchell, commissioned by the Standard Life Assurance Company, commemorates the Cnihtengild and was unveiled by the Right Honourable the Lord Mayor, Sir Alexander Graham G.B.E. D.C.L. on 21st November 1990.”

And here's a fact about The Cnihtengild that so far has escaped mention on the internet: the statue MOVES. The position of the horse's head, the rider's head, and the rider's lance change on the hour.

(To make the pictures larger, double click the first one.
Then, on the Picasa Web site, click on Slideshow.)

Moving on, our next stop was the entrance to the Liverpool Street Station of the London Underground to see another sculpture, the Kindertransport Memorial, by Frank Meisler, completed in 2006. The sculpture depicts Jewish refugee children rescued from the Nazis. The UK admitted about 10,000 children between December 1938 and August 1939. Sent unaccompanied and placed in foster homes, most of these children never saw their families again. The Liverpool Street Station was chosen as the site for the sculpture because it is where the children disembarked from the Harwich boat train.

A quote at the base of the statue says:
"Whosoever rescues a single soul is credited as though they had saved the whole world." (Talmud, Baba Batra 11a.)

Our breakfast destination was The Barbican Estate where Maurene's friend Val lives. Before the Barbican was built, hardly anyone lived in that part of the city because it had been destroyed by heavy bombing in World War II. The Barbican, which opened in 1969, brought 4000 residents and many other people who come to attend events in the Barbican Centre, the largest performing arts center in Europe.

The Barbican complex is architecturally significant. Built by Chamberlin, Powell and Bon, one of the most important modernist architectural firms in Britain, The Barbican is an example of the Brutalist style. The entire complex is elevated from street level, and the landscaped grounds are quiet and beautiful. Once inside, you lose the bustle of London and enter a quieter world of nature and art. There are three large towers and 13 terraced 7-story buildings. Val's living room offers a lovely view of the large reflecting pool called "the lake" in which grow water lilies and other types of vegetation.

(To make the pictures larger, double click the first one.
Then, on the Picasa Web site, click on Slideshow.)

Val served us a breakfast of freshly baked croissants and berries with coffee, tea, and juice. She was a gracious hostess, and it would have been easy to linger for hours chatting and taking pictures. However, our sightseeing agenda beckoned, so before too long Maurene and I bid a fond farewell to the Val and the Barbican.

Maurene and Val

© 2009, Linda Mason Hood
Truffles, Turtles & Tunes Copyright Statement

From Miltown Malbay to London - Sunday

Like clockwork, my cab arrived at 6 AM to take me to Ennis where I would catch the 7:05 bus to the Shannon Airport. I was very thankful to be able to split the 45 Euro cab ride with a young Hungarian woman also needing to arrive early at the bus station. We arrived in Ennis with time to spare. The bus station was closed, so we chatted on the porch to keep out of the cold wind and rain. At 7:05 AM there was no bus in sight. Around 7:08, a bus pulled into one of the empty loading lanes. I squinted to read the destination, having difficulty because of the rain. Before I could make out the words, I saw the bus back up and pull out of the loading lane and drive away! The bus stopped only long enough for that driver to shift into reverse gear. I was furious, but no amount of indignation was going to bring the bus back.

By this time a few cabs had arrived. Since there were no more airport buses until afternoon, I had no choice but to hire a second cab. I managed to get the fare down to about 30 Euros, I think. It turned out to be a really expensive morning, despite sharing the first cab. All together I spent about 55 Euros getting to the Shannon Airport. (For US readers, 1 Euro = about 1.40 US Dollars)

At the Shannon Airport I had my first Ryanair experience. Ryanair is an airline that makes short hops all over Europe, popular for business and weekend travel. They keep the fares low by charging extra fees for a long list of things. Their weight limit for checked baggage is 15 kilograms; 10 kilograms for the one carry-on bag you are allowed (your purse must be stuffed inside your one carry-on). Well, if you recall, I had purchased a heavy hardback flute reference book. I was also packing a jar of orange marmalade, a gift for my husband. My checked bag was about 6 kilograms overweight. At 15 Euros per kilogram, the overweight luggage fee would be the equivalent of another expensive cab ride. Not good! I stepped to the side and repacked, shoving as much in my carry-on as possible. During the frantic repacking, I got the bright idea to store things in the many pockets of my rain jacket. Brilliant, as nobody was going to weigh my coat. I was able to keep my carry-on bag under the limit (just barely) and reduce the weight of my checked bag to 16 kilograms. I paid the much reduced overweight fee, and with a self-satisfied chuckle I was on my way. It wasn't until I went through security that I realized that the marmalade was one of the items in my rain jacket. Airport security wouldn't let me keep it, so with regret I watched them pitch my Irish Whiskey Orange Marmalade into the trash bin.

My friend Maurene met me at Stansted Airport in London with her friend Tom and his cab. Tom drove us back to Maurene's apartment where we took a little nap before dinner.

Maurene and Tom

Refreshed, we were off to meet another of Maurene's many friends, Alec, at the club where he stays when he comes into London for a visit. The Oriental Club is in fact a very old and historic institution. Quoting the website, it is "... a Private Gentlemen's Club founded in 1824 by and for the benefit of members of or retired from the East India Company." Though its present quarters have been modernized, the aura is definitely stately and aristocratic with majestic decor, lovely antiques, and a variety of relics that recall the bygone days of Britain's Indian empire. Alec gave us a tour before we moved on to dinner.

Next stop: Rules, the oldest restaurant in London -- 200 years in operation. Rules specializes in traditional English food such as "classic game cookery, oysters, pies, and puddings." The dishes which feature game are said to be especially good, since the animals come from an estate owned by the family who owns the restaurant. Rules had rich mahogany interiors and lots of stained glass, but what impressed me most (aside from the food) was the waitstaff. In the cocktail lounge as well as in the dining room, they were pleasant and welcoming, knowledgeable about the food, and they knew how to appear only when we actually needed something rather than constantly interrupting us to ask if everything was ok. The food and drinks were delicious. Our conversation was interesting and entertaining. All in all, it was a delightful evening. Dinner at Rules provided a marvelous beginning for my London adventure.

Alec, Maurene and I with our Pimm's

© 2009, Linda Mason Hood
Truffles, Turtles & Tunes Copyright Statement

Ashley Davis at Joe's Pub

On Thursday, January 17th, my friend and singing teacher, Ashley Davis, performed at Joe’s Pub, a classy little night spot at the Public Theater in Manhattan. I thoroughly enjoyed the show, and for days afterward I found myself thinking about it. In an attempt to organize my reflections, I decided it might be interesting to write a review. While I realize what I'm about to say is not entirely impartial, I've tried to base my comments on my own credentials as a musician (briefly noted in my profile) as well as a lifetime of informed listening to music of many genres. My friendship with Ashley, however, allows me to identify with the pride she takes in her work and with her aspirations.

Ashley is a songwriter as well as a singer. Although grounded in traditional Irish convention, Ashley's melodies often tend to be more contemporary in nature. While it’s possible to identify her influences - the lilting Irish phrasing, the distinctive Scottish snap, the haunting Manx tunes, the Eastern modal scales, even the heartbreak of Nashville ballads - Ashley has thoroughly digested all these elements and incorporates them in various ways and to varying degrees, resulting in a style that’s all her own.

With an MA in Traditional Irish Singing from the University of Limerick in Ireland, Ashley studied sean-nos singing and mastered the art of melodic ornamentation. She has the vocal facility to ornament “til the cows come home” (as they might say in her native state of Kansas). However, she uses ornamentation sparingly, where it will be most effective. In fact, she loves to sustain long tones - and her pitch never wavers - while her musicians provide an underpinning of interesting rhythms and countermelodies. In the realm of Irish song, that's more contemporary than traditional, to be sure.

I'm hard pressed to know how best to describe Ashley’s voice. To say that it’s lovely is an understatement. The velvet-like quality she achieves in all registers is pleasing, never cloying. The listener has no idea when she’s near the top or the bottom of her range because she seems at ease wherever the melody leads her. Ashley's delivery is expressive in the understated traditional way, without pretention or affectation.

Ashley made good programming choices. To open, she walked onstage and without a word of explanation or translation sang Pill A Run O, a slow, pensive Irish song she learned from Moya Brennan. Despite the language barrier, her sensitive treatment of this beautiful song touched the audience and established an immediate rapport. As the evening's music selections progressed, differences in tempo and instrumental texture were nicely paced, as was the logical sequence from song to song.

I wouldn't be the first reviewer to praise Ashley's flair for narrative. Entirely comfortable on stage, Ashley makes everyone in the audience feel like they are longtime friends. The introductions that precede each song guide her listeners on a smooth musical journey from beginning to end.

Supporting Ashley were these instrumentalists. (Not all players were required on every song.)

• Dan Lowery - flute
• John Walsh - guitar
• Sean Spada - keyboard and piano
• Ben Yonas - keyboard and piano
• Matt Kilmer - drums
• Joe Burcaw - bass

While the sound system was excellent and volume levels didn't overpower the audience, my musical taste differed slightly from the person running the sound board. For me, Ashley's intimate style is at odds with the use of reverberation. Regarding balance, every now and then the rhythm guitar or the acoustic piano seemed on the verge of overpowering the vocal line. And throughout the evening, I wished for more flute sound in the mix. Overall, though, these things didn't prevent me - or anyone else - from thoroughly enjoying the show and appreciating the fine work of the band.

For details on Ashley's background, you can download her electronic press kit or listen to the audio interview on the Joe's Pub website. I particularly enjoyed an article entitled From Country to Celtic celebrating the debut of her first CD, Closer to You.

To hear Ashley's music, go to her MySpace site. You can purchase individual songs there as well as from iTunes. Closer to You in its entirety can be ordered from CDBaby. Ashley's next concert will be April 10th and 11th at the Irish Arts Center in Manhattan. Watch her website for news of future gigs and of the release this fall of her second CD.

In her online journal about her residency on the Isle of Man, Ashley coupled a daisy she drew in the sand on a Manx beach with an old Manx saying that the island's government has adopted as its motto. In context, the photo and quote express her hope that Manx music and culture would prevail despite the pressures of the modern world.

Looking at that daisy, I thought about Ashley's talent and my hopes for her future. Putting the picture and quote in the context of this post, let me close by saying: Ashley, regardless of what obstacles you might encounter as your career unfolds, may this old Manx saying become your mantra.

Quocunque jeceris stabit
Whichever way you throw me, I shall stand

Photos courtesy of Ashley Davis
© 2008, Linda Mason Hood
Truffles, Turtles & Tunes Copyright Statement

TAGGED!!!

My friend Sydney (http://accordiongirl.blogspot.com/) tagged me last week. I got a kick out of her 7 random facts and looking at the blogs of people she tagged. I even discovered we have a mutual friend whose blog I was not aware of. As I was surfing around looking for others to tag, I realized this tag thing is something of an epidemic! I guess you could say I’ve contracted the disease, so here goes…


First, the rules: Each blogger tagged must write on his/her own blog 7 random facts about himself/herself. Additionally, the tagged blogger must list the rules of the game along with the names and blogsites of 7 people being tagged. Finally, the tagged person must leave a note in the Comments section of those he/she is tagging to notify them that they’ve been tagged and to invite them to read your blog.



First, my 7 random facts:


1. As a piccolo player in the Ben Davis High School Marching Band, I marched in John F. Kennedy’s inaugural parade in Washington DC as well as the Orange Bowl Parade in Miami FL and the Rose Bowl Parade in Pasadena, CA. I see from the link above that Mighty Marching Giants continue to be an outstanding band - certainly more widely recognized than any group I've performed with since! Who would've thunk it?

2. Growing up in Indianapolis, whose only claim to fame back then was the annual 500-mile race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, I was about 15 years old before I realized that Race Day wasn’t the real name of the holiday on the last Monday in May. Living near the track, I heard the roar of the engines during the whole month of May when time trials were taking place. I knew the names of all the great drivers and followed the race on the radio every year til high school when as a bandmember I was able to attend in person. The band marched around the track as part of the opening ceremony. Gentlemen, start your engines! -vrooooomm

3. When I was 19 years old, I traveled around the world on a Teen Team sponsored by Youth For Christ International. I played flute, piano, and sang in a 5-member group which did cultural exchange programs in schools and evangelism in churches. We spent 3 months in India; we also toured in Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Lebanan and throughout the United States. It was an incredible 6 months, and it didn't cost me a dime!

4. In India I received a week of daily rabies shots. I was allowed to stop the 14-day treatment when the pet monkey that bit me showed no symptoms after 7 days.

5. Out of all the pets I've had, my favorite was a hooded rat named Hobbes (a white rat with a black head).

6. I collect shot glasses, a hobby which began as a way to amuse myself in airports when I traveled frequently for my job. I now have 75 shot glasses. And yes, they do get used!

7. My husband and I will celebrate our 39th wedding anniversary this month. I love being married that long – I hate that bragging about it gives everyone such a big clue about my age!



Now... the moment you've all been waiting for... when I reveal the names of those I'm tagging.



1. Jessica – a writer whose reflections I enjoy and the person who inspired me to blog. I guess this could be seen as payback! Sorry, Jess!
http://thewoolf.blogspot.com/

2. Dan & Cindy, Tabo & Melissa – new Brooklyn home owners. Since yours is a group blog, please feel free to respond collectively. I know you have NO TIME, so consider this a leisure activity. http://ourbrooklynhome.blogspot.com/

3. Lorcan – my Quaker friend (no pun intended) who probably could come up with 700 random facts, so varied has his life been. http://plaininthecity.blogspot.com/

4. Daniel & Amanda – a young couple having many adventures in NYC while serving for a year as Mennonite volunteers in various service organizations.
http://amandaniel.blogspot.com/

5. Craig – a whistle player in Ohio whom I’ve never met, who shares my love of Irish music and strives, as I do, to eek out a bit of practice time despite a full-time job and family responsibilities. http://learningtowhistle.blogspot.com/index.html

6. Monica – an African-American transwoman whose blog I started reading when I discovered earlier this year that she too had posted about the song Lift Every Voice and Sing. Monica has given me much to think about and writes well on many interesting topics. http://transgriot.blogspot.com/index.html

7. Stacey – my cousin in Kentucky whose daughter Sydney is the darling of her blog. Perhaps little Sydney will become an accordion-girl too, who knows? Hey Stacey, tag your boys and see if they reveal anything they wouldn't otherwise tell you!!!
http://watsonx4.blogspot.com/


OK, everyone, it's your turn. Start your engines and get blogging! I look forward to reading your 7 random facts and as well as the new blogs that turn up as a result.


© 2007, Linda Mason Hood
Truffles, Turtles & Tunes Copyright Statement

Phoebastria rexsularum

My friend Anne Leightner Kienlen has helped make history! She found a very old albatross bone fossil which was among the specimens used to name an extinct and heretofore unknown albatross species: Phoebastria rexsularum. She donated the bone to the Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC. They returned to her this plaster cast of her albatross bone. Two views are shown below - one with the foot facing up, the other with the foot facing down.

Photos by Anne Leightner Kienlen, used with permission.

Although the Smithsonian Institution Press announced the new species in 2001 (see footnote below), Anne found out about it just this past week when she received in the mail the article which mentioned her by name. How cool is that?!!

The article describes a collection of 10,000+ fossils representing at least 112 different species of birds, only 5 of which were albatrosses. All the bone fossils came from the Pliocene era 5.3 to 1.8 million years ago. These Pliocene fossils were lying about for easy collection rather than buried deep under the earth’s surface because they had been uncovered by the mining operations of the Lee Creek Mine located on the south side of the Pamlico River, near Aurora, North Carolina. The particular bone that Anne picked up was the least-common size of albatross found there.

For any scientists reading this, Anne’s find was a topotypical paratype, the proximal end of right tarsometatarsi. The rest of us need a lot of help with that statement, so let's dissect it bit by bit.

Paratypes are best understood when defined together with holotypes. A holotype is the specimen that’s the ultimate name bearer of the species. Paratypes are next in importance. They constitute all the other specimens upon which the original new species description is based. So Anne’s bone is part of a collection of bones which, taken together, defined the new species, Phoebastria rexsularum.

Topotypical means pertaining to a topotype. According to the Compact Edition of the Oxford English Dictionary, a topotype is “a specimen from the locality where the original specimen was taken.” So Anne’s paratype came from the same area as the the holotype.

Tarsometatarsi is the plural of tarsometatarsus, which is a compound bone between the tibia (in humans, the shinbone) and the toes of a bird's leg. The tarsometatarsus is formed by fusion of the tarsal and metatarsal bones. This picture should help.


Proximal is most easily defined in relation to its opposite, distal. These two terms are most commonly used when referring to the limbs. Distal refers to structures further from the trunk while proximal refers to structures nearer to the trunk. For example, the foot is distal to the knee, while the knee is proximal to the foot. So Anne’s bone, the proximal end of the right tarsometatari, is the tarsometatarsus of the bird's right leg as described in relation to its body.

My friend Anne is not a paleobiologist, or any type of scientist for that matter. She is an avid and educated avocational collector of fossilized sharks teeth. In pursuit of shark's teeth she occasionally came upon other interesting specimens. By donating her more significant finds to the Smithsonian, she has helped define a new species of albatross. Additionally, she has demonstrated that what we do with our leisure time can be just as significant, possibly even more significant, than our paid occupations.

The authors of the article said, "we owe our greatest debt to the many collectors whose sharp eyes spied thousands of small bird bones on the mine spoil piles and whose generosity in donating the specimens to the Smithsonian has permitted this study." Let me offer my congratulations as well, dear Annie. You have helped to discover an extinct albatross, and just as important, you have shown that it is possible to make a significant contribution using the bits of time left to us after attending to the necessities of life. You are an inspiration to us all!

Footnote:
Olson, S.L. and Rasmussen, P.C. 2001. Miocene and Pliocene birds from the Lee Creek Mine, North Carolina, p. 233-365. In Ray, C.E. and Bohaska, D.J. (eds.), Geology and Paleontology of the Lee Creek Mine, North Carolina, III, Smithsonian Contributions to Paleobiology, No. 90.



© 2007, Linda Mason Hood
Truffles, Turtles & Tunes Copyright Statement

Hangin' in there

Photo by Harry Peronius, used with permission.

My friend Harry snapped this little guy at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City.

Last Sunday I attended an exhibition sponsored by the West Side Art Coalition where Harry was showing two sets of pictures - the face and hands of a Finnish farmer and of an Indian peasant woman. You can view Harry's work online at the Silver Pix Gallery.

© 2007, Linda Mason Hood
Truffles, Turtles & Tunes Copyright Statement

Sunday: Itchenor

Before diving into my Itchenor post, let me apologize for how long it has taken me to blog my way through London. A 9-day trip has lasted nearly 11 weeks! I guess you might say I got carried away. You would also be correct in assuming that everyday life distracted me many times. Anyway, this posts concludes my London series. Thanks for your patience with my snail's pace. Researching the posts, I learned as much afterwards as I did when I was there. And now, down to business!

The last full day of my London trip was spent in Itchenor, a coastal town on the Chichester Harbor in West Sussex. The name Itchenor is Saxon in origin: Icca was the name of the Saxon chief who resettled the area after the collapse of Roman Britain around 400 AD. Ora is a Saxon word which means "a bank on the shore." Over the years shipbuilding and sailing activity have played a prominent role in the life of this town. The connection to the sea is evident in the naming of the little Norman church, built in 1175 AD, which was dedicated to St. Nicholas, the patron saint of seamen.

The St. Nicholas Church with its adjoining cemetery was the first place Maurene and I stopped on our Sunday morning walk. The vicar and a woman who tends to the church were setting up for the service. They showed us around and generously gave us some postcards and a pamphlet of historical information about the chapel.


The church is quite small – a rectangular building 50 feet long and 16 feet 6 inches wide with no structural division between the nave (where the congregation sits) and the chancel (where the altar stands). Like most ancient buildings, the chapel has undergone many restorations and elements from many eras are visible. The oldest windows, pictured below, are from the 13th century. (Note the vicar, trying to disappear into the wall on the left there.)


The little chapel was very peaceful, lovely in its simplicity. I wish there had been time to stay for the service, but it was a beautiful day and we needed to keep to our schedule. As the St. Nicholas Church receded into the background, we communed with God and nature as we made our way down the road toward the Chichester Harbor.


Maurene took a shortcut down this walled path…


which opened up onto the majestic harbor view!!


Just up from the marina sits the picturesque pub below, The Ship Inn. According to one internet site I read, it is the only pub in Itchenor.


On our way back to our hostess’s house, we walked through a nature preserve.


Betty, our hostess, had a swimming pool, and after walking all morning Maurene and I were happy to join her for a dip in the pool. The mischievious Sindy did not join us.


Betty served us a nice lunch before we went back to the Chichester train station to catch the London train.

My last night was a nostalgic remembrance of the my first two nights in London. Maurene and I walked around the St. Katherine’s Dock area near the Dickens Inn and looked at the Queen’s swans.


Then we went to an Indian restaurant for dinner. I spent the night with Maurene and her Abyssinian cat named Peri.

The conclusion of my London blog series would not be complete without a special thank-you to Maurene. She waited patiently when I got lost on the tube and was late. She had cash on hand when my British currency ran out. (We settled up at the end of the week.) She gave good directions and suggestions and had boundless energy and enthusiasm. She suggested the weekend in Chichester. She was the perfect traveling companion. She made it possible for me to turn a business trip into a simultaneous vacation. So, thank you, Maurene. I hope someday we can have more travel adventures together – soon!

(P.S. All the photos in this post are mine.)

© 2006, Linda Mason Hood
Truffles, Turtles & Tunes Copyright Statement

Saturday, part II: Chichester Cathedral

The problem with descriptions of cathedrals is that writers assume readers understand not only the terminology designating the areas within the building but also the organizational role of the cathedral within the religious group. Descriptions loaded with special terms and insider jargon leave most of us with no better understanding than we had before we read them. Using myself as an example, I’ve attended Christian churches all my life -- even spent a good 20 years as an Episcopalian. I mention that because Episcopals have cathedrals, whereas Mennonites don’t. I have also visited and toured a fair number of cathedrals in various parts of the world. However, when reading about the Chichester Cathedral I found myself woefully unclear regarding many references and their implications. For this blog post, I made myself look up and clarify all my fuzzy understandings, and I’ve included definitions and explanations for all the terms I found necessary and meaningful to use here. I hope this helps you as much as it has helped me!

To appreciate the early history of the Chichester Cathedral, you need to understand that a cathedral is more than just a great big church. A cathedral is the bishop’s church and, as my son would once have said, the bishop is the boss of all the churches of the region (i.e., diocese) and their respective priests. Note the hierarchy: priests run churches; bishops run cathedrals. The town in which the cathedral is located is called the see, meaning the official seat or center of authority of a bishop. Considering all that, it's easy to see why the cathedral is usually the biggest and grandest church of the diocese. This page on the organization of the Chichester Diocese explains very clearly the main “players” and their roles.

I read that the Chichester Cathedral’s history actually began in the village of Selsey, ten miles south of Chichester, on land given to Saint Wilfred in 681 AD. In 1066 AD the whole area was conquered by the Normans led by William the Conqueror. In 1075 the Normans moved the see to Chichester and began construction on a new cathedral in 1076. Histories of the Chichester Cathedral include references to its predecessor in Selsey because even though the Chichester building itself wasn’t begun until 1076, the functions served by that building remained the same as the functions of the Selsey building dating back to 681. In fact, there have been 101 bishops to rule over this particular diocese which extends throughout what is now defined as East and West Sussex, and only 76 of them have presided from the Chichester Cathedral. The point I’m making here is that this is obviously a very old building, but its history is even older.

Let’s turn our attention now to the building itself and the terms used to describe it. These terms are not words found in most people’s everyday vocabulary. Often a picture is the best explanation, so I scanned the floor plan found in a pamphlet I bought in the Cathedral bookstore, Chichester Cathedral Pitkin Guide. North is at the top, but the front of a cathedral generally faces East. Knowing that, the descriptions will be easier to follow.







The initial period of construction from 1076 through 1123 was responsible for the nave (central portion where people congregate), the transepts (the portion of the building that forms a cross with the nave and provides additional seats which face the center), and the quire (the center section where the choir sits and where the organ is located). The presbytery (area to the east of the quire) contains the altar.

Actually, various parts of the cathedral were completed at different times over the years. The floor plan outlines the original early 12th century section in purple, later 12th and 13th century additions in red and green, and 14th through 16th century additions in pink and orange. My picture of St. Richard’s Walk below, taken from the south side of the Cathedral, captures construction from several of these periods. You can see the 13th century walls which lead to the 12th century building whose spire was rebuilt in the 19th century.




The marvelous arched ceiling inside the Cathedral was truly beautiful. I took this picture standing at the front of the nave looking back toward the main entrance.



Turning around, I faced the quire and the presbytery behind it. You can see the stalls in the quire as well as the altar decorations in the presbytery. In small weekday services both the choir and the congregants sit in the stalls in the quire.



Above the quire stalls are the painted Renatus Harris organ pipes dating back to 1678, reports the Pitkin Guide. They were restored in 1986 after a silence of 13 years. I can tell you with certainty that their sound is as beautiful as their housing. Maurene and I sat beneath them in the quire stalls at the Choral Evensong service on the day of our visit.



And here’s a close-up of the white marble altar by Robert Potter and the tapestry by John Piper (1966) which hangs on the screen behind the altar in the presbytery.



There’s not much ancient stained glass left in the Chichester Cathedral. Most of it comes from the 19th century. This window, located in the south transept, was designed by C. Parrish and made in 1877.



In the south quire aisle are two medieval sculptured stone panels dating back to 1125 AD. (This photograph was borrowed from the Chichester Cathedral website.)



Not far away a section of Roman tiled floor panels from the 2nd century can be seen beneath a plexiglass plate in the floor. These tiles were from the Roman city of Noviomagus, the predecessor of Chichester.



Going around in back of the presbytery and into the retroquire (area behind the presbytery, separated from it by the screen bearing the Piper tapestry above), we entered the Chapel of St. Mary Magdalene with its very modern décor. The striking 1960 painting below by Graham Sutherland entitled “Touch me not” dominates the area.



After looking around this chapel, Maurene and I lit a candle and took a seat to gaze at the painting for a while. An announcement, repeated periodically, reminded us that although the Cathedral housed many significant works of art, its purpose was primarily that of worship. Visitors were encouraged to pause in their explorations of the cathedral and meditate. A timely and appropriate message, since that’s exactly what we were doing!

Also in the Chapel of St. Mary Magdalene is the small but stunning stained glass window designed in 1978 by Marc Chagall.



The 12th century chapel on the east side of the north transept contain the Treasury, a small museum of interesting artifacts. I read in the Pitkin Guide that “the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths gave generous financial assistance to enable the cathedral to house and display securely its own treasures as well as plates from churches in the diocese.” Maurene and I enjoyed examining the medieval chalices and plates, bishops’ rings and the heads from bishops’ staffs, as well as some impressive medieval wooden chests.

Chichester Cathedral has a strong musical heritage. Leonard Bernstein composed the Chichester Psalms in 1965 for the Cathedral. Gustav Holst also had connections to the Cathedral and is buried there. His ashes are entombed under the diamond-shaped plate in the floor in the picture below. Since I played quite a lot of Holst's music in high school, I can't believe I somehow forgot to take a picture of his tomb! But here's the one I found on the website I linked to his name.



Completing our tour of the Cathedral itself, Maurene and I purchased some gifts and souvenirs in the Cathedral Gift Shop before adjourning to the Cathedral Snack Bar for a "cream tea.” Maurene explained to me that a cream tea consists of scones served with (specifically) strawberry jam and clotted cream. The scones were not the dry, hard things I’ve had in NYC. They were fresh and moist. The strawberry jam was densely strawberry in flavor. Despite its name, the clotted cream was not disgusting and did not have hard lumps in it like cottage cheese. It was a heavily whipped cream which was not as sweet as we make it in the US – a perfect compliment to the jam. The whole concoction can only be described as “to die for.” I most definitely thought I had gone straight to heaven with the first bite!

After tea we wandered through some of the town's tourist shops. I was sorry to discover that there was nothing as tacky as a shot glass to be found in the classy little village of Chichester. My shot glass collection would just have to make room for a small china thimble bearing a handpainted depiction of the Cathedral. That was as close as I could come.

At around 6:30 pm John, Betty’s driver, took us out to Betty’s house in Itchenor, a village on the Chichester Harbor about 20 minutes drive from the walled city of Chichester. After a walk around Betty’s extensive garden which includes an orchard and a grape arbor as well as flower beds and large fruit and vegetable patches, we enjoyed an informal cold supper with Betty and Sindy, her mischievious shelter rescue dog. Betty theorizes that Sindy’s clever food heists are signs of an earlier life deprived of adequate food. Whatever the reason, Sindy demonstrated her stealth and daring by stealing Betty’s prawns and some crisps (potato chips) when she thought nobody was looking! And here is our Sindy, enjoying a lie-down with a stomach full of prawns. I dare say Maurene and I probably looked just as content when we climbed into our beds that night after good company, good food, and after a jam-packed day (no pun intended) of touring in Chichester.

(P.S. All the pictures in this post are mine, except where otherwise noted.)

© 2006, Linda Mason Hood
Truffles, Turtles & Tunes Copyright Statement

Betty's Birthday

Photo by Linda Mason Hood

Today is the birthday of the lady on the left. She is 90 years YOUNG today!

Happy Birthday, Betty!

© 2006, Linda Mason Hood
Truffles, Turtles & Tunes Copyright Statement

Saturday, part 1: Chichester Walls and Chichester Cross

Saturday, at last! With the work week behind me, I was excited about spending 100% of my time over the next two days vacationing with Maurene in West Sussex. I had never visited any part of the British countryside, so this would be a new adventure. Also, I hoped the weather by shore would be a little cooler than what we'd endured in London during the past week.

Maurene and I were to stay overnight with her 90-year-old friend Betty, who met us at the train station in Chichester. We were driven to the nursing home where Betty’s 95-year-old sister Nancy lives. After a short but very pleasant visit, Maurene and I set off to find lunch and fortify ourselves for a day of sightseeing in Chichester.


Driving into Chichester, our view of the city walls was the first evidence of its long history. The ancient city of Chichester was laid out in Roman times, possibly as early as the end of the second century. In 1204 AD repairs to the Roman wall were undertaken, with additional work performed in 1261 and in the 1370s. The medieval construction used “knapped flint.” Flint is apparently the local stone, and knapping was probably a rather manual process which involved cracking open the flint rock to expose the beautiful coloration inside. Standing in the middle of Canon Lane, which is just off South Street near the entrance to the cathedral close, I took this picture of the old city walls.



Turning around (still on Canon Lane), I saw the Canon Gate House which dates back to the 13th century.


This picture gives a closeup view of the surface of the walls. You can see not only the knapped flint but a spot where recent brick repair has been applied.


Maurene and I didn’t walk the perimeter of the walls (1.5 miles or 2.4 kilometers), but the internet provides a nice virtual walk which I highly recommend.

Chichester’s four main streets – simply named North, South, East, and West streets – all radiate out from a central “cross,” a structure given to the town in 1501 by the Bishop Storey to shelter farmers who sold produce in the city. Here’s my picture of the Chichester Cross.




In Roman times there was no Cross, of course, but these same four streets extended from the center of town in all four directions: North to London, East to Winchester and Silchester, South to the sea, and West to Fishbourne, which was the Roman supply base on Chichester Harbor.

What makes Chichester interesting, however, is not only the landmarks of Roman and medieval times but evidences of all the other eras in between. It has had a vibrant, continuous history with a consistently rich cultural heritage. In addition to being the center of the diocese and providing religious leadership to the region, Chichester has also offered music, theater, art, museums, libraries, societies for intellectual improvement (such as the 19th century Literary and Philosophical Society), and community dances. Personally, I think the Chichester Cross is a symbol of all that. This beautiful landmark, which is neither Roman nor medieval, stands in the center of town and symbolizes how artistic contributions of all the periods have added to the culture and beauty of the little town of Chichester. 

(P.S. All the photos in this post are mine.)

© 2006, Linda Mason Hood
Truffles, Turtles & Tunes Copyright Statement