life as I know it

Mari Lwyd Rides in the Vale of Glamorgan

The Mari Lwyd is a traditional folk custom that managed to survive in South Wales, particularly around the area of Glamorgan. It involves a hobby horse, which is a horse’s skull mounted on a pole with glass eyes, being carried by a person hidden under a large sheet of decorated white cloth, and it can freak… Read more Mari Lwyd Rides in the Vale of Glamorgan

Cthulhu Called

Howard Phillips Lovecraft, more widely known as author H. P. Lovecraft, was born on 20 August 1890 in Providence, Rhode Island. Like Edgar Allan Poe, Lovecraft was a master of horror who would die in poverty, obscure and unloved except by a few die-hard fans, but after his death his works became famous. Now, like… Read more Cthulhu Called

Buttercup is 12

My darling middle daughter, my Beltane Baby, turned 12 years old today. Buttercup is a magnificent person, if I do say so myself. She is funny, with a lightening fast wit and the ability to quick-draw a pun that amazes me. She is also smart, interested in everything from the theories of quantum physics to… Read more Buttercup is 12

Sheep on My Trampoline and a Jack Escape

March Madness isn’t just the breeding season for hares and the bringing of college basketball tournaments in America (although Go Big Blue!). No, it is also time to enjoy the glorious spring weather in Wales (it has been raining for 2 weeks) and to deal with encroaching sheep. We currently live in a big cottage… Read more Sheep on My Trampoline and a Jack Escape