Span has gone to uni, Jexi was dancing all day, and Jelly Bean is at college for the day, so it was just me and Ben. We decided to take a bike trip, before the winter steps in too far and makes bike travel uncomfortable. I did a bit of random pin-pushing into google maps, and came up with Buxton as a destination.

A bit more Google-age, and we decided to visit Pooles Cavern, which is just on the edge of Buxton. The weather was a bit overcast, but not wet, so we saddled up and headed off. It took about an hour and a quarter to get there, and we went cross country rather than take the main roads. Holmfirth was busy because of a food and drink festival, otherwise the roads were not bad at all.

When we got to the Cavern, the boy was ravenous, so we had a sandwich and drink, and then joined a tour into the caves. They have been used since before Roman times, and have an interesting history, as well as having some lovely chambers and rock formations. The caves is probably about 2 miles in length, but only the first several hundred metres are accessible. Most of the rest has not been explored.

We had a knowledgeable young guide, who herded a group of about 15 of us through the caves. The cave had been turned into a visitor attraction by the Victorians, who, in their typical combination of appreciating beauty while at the same time being extraordinarily heavy-handed, bricked up the entrance as it was up a muddy slope, and instead dynamited a new entrance to make it more accessible. They also dynamited through to a previously inaccessible chamber, revealing a beautiful, crystal-covered rock the size of a small car.

There are various legends and histories tying local folk, Mary Queen of Scots and others to the caves, and after hearing about these and walking through them, we emerged blinking again into the pale sunlight. The caves are always at a constant 7 degrees C, no matter what the time of year, and so even though it was not a warm day, it felt quite warm when we surfaced.

The ride home was pretty and uneventful, and now Ben is doing everything but his homework, before I take him to a friends for the night.

Hi All

not been very quick to post about camp this year. We came back, and I had to get back into the swing of things pretty quickly, so the reporting went out of the window.

Once again, DCN was fabulous. We camped with our friends, had good weather most of the time, and had lots of fun and laughs. The kids were all there and also had a great time. I taught 2 sessions of taiko drumming, which was really good – I had managed to source some industrial plastic barrels, and they made for very good drums. I miscounted the number of sticks I needed, but a trip to the nearby builders merchants soon rectified that, and we were in business.

I also ended up playing a huge amount of guitar, supporting various workshops. Aside from the scratch band, which played each night for an hour, I also played in various bands for about 10 other workshops – Circle Dance, Dances of Universal Peace, Samba, Live Wave and more. It was really good, but I felt sometimes like I was doing a bit much.

The camp was at a great time for the family, too – both girls got great school results, and big has got a university place that has made her very happy. They are both leaving home soon, and going out into the wide world to study – exciting times, a bit sad, but fantastic for them.

Link to pics from camp here

Hi boys and girls and the rest of you indeterminate species
Been catching up with various friends this week and weekend, having a fab time. Also was in London on Thursday night, and spent several lovely hours with cousins Ian, Michal and Netta. Really great to establish contact. Had some friends round last night, and between us we consumed more alcohol than the English Cricket team on tour. Lena is now spending the morning between the bed and the bathroom, but I have been a good boy, cleaned up, washed up all the mess from a great meal, and now having a cuppa.

Football season started yesterday – come on you Red men. Result was a draw, but want to watch the match this eve anyway to see some of the new boys, and how the team will shape itself.

Just spent a few minutes having some Facebook fun, ranting indignantly at ignorance, but in a gentle and loving way. What a renaissance man I am.

Anyway, camp starts this week- didn’t go to hippy camp last year cos I was working in Oz, so am really looking forward to it. Aside from the fun of hanging out with my homies, playing my guitar round the fire and teasing the vegetarians and spiritually aware souls, I am also teaching a few drumming sessions. Can’t wait.

Be good, y’all

Jexi has been at a theatre and dance school intensive course for a week, in Blackpool. Today was the finish and final show, so we were up early. Lena was out last night with her work colleagues, so while she was up early, she was far from bright and shiny. She really didnt look well, but I dragged her along.
We went to the hotel where Jexi had been boarding to pick up her bags, then drove across the front to where the theater school was. We parked the car in a multi story, and walked to the school. We bought a lovely cuppa, and Lena had a breakfast roll as well.
The studios are not that big, so they did three shows, about 45 minute in length, so all the parents could get to see their darlings perform. They only had a few days to prepare for this, and it was very good. There was a lot of talent on show, but also a fair amount of, shall we say, kids who tried their best. Jexi was fantastic though. I was so proud of her, and when I first saw her, I shed a little tear of dad-ness. She is very polished and professional compared to a lot of the others, and really stands out. Lena took some videos of her, which I will try and put online.
We were on the middle of the three, so after it finished, we went for a walk for an hour. Blackpool represents everything that is bad about Britain. I was so appalled. We were recently in Nice, another seaside city, and the differences could not be more marked. The weather didn’t help, and that is not anyone’s fault, but the rest was just embarrassing. Everybody was either pasty and pale, or sun-booth orange. I saw families of three generations, where the gran was in her very early thirties, mum was about 15, pushing little Leona or Kinesha or Wayne about in a designer pram. They were all three dressed in shell suits that were three sizes too small for them, wearing more makeup than a single branch of Selfridges, and all three were smoking.
The shops were all full of sweets, souvenirs, or both-and selling junk. The rest were fast food joints and pubs- and the pubs were full at ten in the morning. I wanted a snack, and looked for a piece of fruit. It took me twenty minutes to find an apple, but I could have had countless bags of chips, sticks of rock, huge lollies or a kings ransom in chocolate coins. No wonder I didn’t see one person who was not overweight. I despair.
We stopped at a tanning salon, of which there are plenty. This one also had a couple of tanks with fish I that eat the dead bits of skin from your feet. It didn’t take much to persuade Lena to have a go, so she sat with her feet in a fish tank, and them nibbling away at her tootsies. She said it tickled, but was quite enjoyable. We had bit more of a walk, then met Jexi after her final show.
A quick bite to eat, then we took Jex back to the fish shop to have her toes nibbled. Now we are back home, with a mountain of washing to do, awaiting the arrival of big sister tonight back from a couple of weeks in Wales at a festival, which will no doubt double the size of the washing mountain. It has been a long time since we were all home together, so it will be nice.