Ballin Temple Notes

Walk in The Woods - today 2pm at BallinTemple

2010-12-29T02:22:19Z

A quick reminder, for those brave enough to emerge from their christmas burrow ...
Our Walk in the Woods is today 29 December, at 2pm in front of the house. (Wellies essential.) Refreshments afterwards. Looking forward to seeing you all!
Tom

BT Notes - it's all about food

2010-09-28T06:46:00Z

It's all about food.

Summer was busy because of all the work put in to the garden by our children in spring. And though it is not a commercially viable business in Ireland, growing fruit and vegetables on a small scale as we do is enriching. It beings me closer to Earth and nature. I'm in the garden nearly everyday so I notice changes in colour, growth patterns, bugs and so on. Though nature is resilient it certainly has to deal with some tough challenges from weather volatility, to invasive species and human manipulation.An organic grower tries to work within nature, using naturally produced fertiliser, weed and pest control and encouraging nature to produce food. At an industrial scale it is viable. And if you are a beef or chicken producer you can make good money in the organic sector. But small scale horticulture might produce enough food, but it isn't going to buy you that holiday in the Med. Just now in the garden, the tomatoes, my favorite, are in full production. This is Monday's harvest. We'll get a couple of good pumpkin before the frost sets in. The grape vine that Robin and Carole gave us is producing well and we still have some beets and potatoes to come out. We've got a freezer full of french beans and pots of jam. If you would like to see the mess that is our garden there are some snaps here from a couple of walkabouts in early August and late August.

While I gave up my organic certification this year, because the Department of Agriculture forced certifiers to raise costs again which I can not afford, I still aim to be organic - we still make our own compost and put in a lot of hard work and we don't use roundup etc. But I was very upset to get a call from the Department of Agriculture saying that we can not claim to "grow organically but are not certified". I could not believe that after 10 years of paying hundreds of euro annually for a 15 minute inspection and 15 minutes of paperwork and never hearing from them, they could now afford to drive down our lane to bully me. But what made it worse was to see "organic" fertiliser on the shelves of the garden centre (which makes a lot of money) manufactured by companies that make a lot of money, but which is not organically certified. The EU will happily subsidise unsustainable agriculture, and allow market disinformation by agro-chemical giants, while penalising local producers, even people who want to have a few hens in their back yard for fresh eggs.

It isn't only in the garden that my attention has been draw to the challenges of producing food and the core role it plays in our lives from the basics of sustenance and survival to the culture of a place to leisure to the industrial landscape. I watched a couple of docu-dramas - King Corn and Supersize Me. King Corn tells the story of a couple of lads who grow an acre of corn in the Iowa to see and document the impact of perhaps the biggest influence on western civilisations diet and lifestyle. It is similar in some respects to Food Inc and enjoyable to watch. Some interesting facts stood out: The first thing they did was to apply and recieve a subsidy - maize production is subsidised. Then they sprayed anhydrous amonia on the field which increase the yield per acre by 4x over what land produced 3 generations ago. The seed is engineered to be very different from its original genetics - for one thing it is able to grow at a density which far excedes natural maize density. The harvested corn is barely edible - it tastes like sawdust. It is then processed to be turned in to animal feed (though cattle will die after 180 days on a diet of corn only because their guts will rot) and food ingredients like high fructise corn syrup (sulphuric acid is one of the ingredients!). The meat that is butchered from corn fed cattle has 4x the saturated fat of grass fed beef - and we like fattier meat because it tastes good. Fortunately Ireland and even Europe does not produce maize or beef so intensively so we do not have the high corn diet that Americans enjoy, unless you eat a lot of McDs etc.

Supersize Me is the story of a young man who eats McDs for 30 days. Some of the stats were surprising - his weight goes from 186 lbs to 210 lbs, the doctors monitoring his health tell him to stop because his liver is showing signs of toxicity similar to alcohol poisoning and it takes him 9 months to drop to his former body weight. It's not an entirely one sided story but it shows in an hour and a half how we can destroy ourselves with a lazy diet. It drew my attention to the two luxuries of the modern diet: fat and sugar. Both are carbohydrates but unlike bread, potatoes, pasta which is metabolised moderately, fat is a slow carb which goes straight to our middles and sugar is fast and can be easily converted for storage. In terms of calories fat is very dense and so a little goes a long way, and a lot seems to go on for ever. After the movie I read a couple of food labels and found that the RDA for fat is about 80g or a slab of butter about 2cm (or an inch) thick - about the amount I like to put on four slices of toast mmmmmmmmmm! A bag of tortilla chips is about a quarter fat - its hard to believe. As I get older its harder to sty fit and supple and my love of sugar and butter doesn't help, but understanding what I'm doing to myself helps me say "no".

My dad lent me a book given to him as a birthday present - An Edible History of Humanity by Tom Standage. If you're interested in food, culture, history or sustainability it's very interesting. The story starts with cultural impact on humanity of the transition from hunter/gatherer to farmer, highlights the role of food as power, food as a weapon and the last part of the book reflects some of the commentary from King Corn and raises the issues of GMO and biofuels. It was sad to read how European adventurers changed the culture of the international food trade from one of cooperation that had persisted in the east, to one of belligerence - it seems that dichotomy is playing out again today in geopolitics as the western competitiveness and eastern cooperation meld. It takes a bigger picture perspective of the Malthusian scare - that we will not be able to feed the human population. That topic has also been in the news alot recently. Many would say we'll be OK, we've done it before. But I am cynical about our prospects - I know what it takes to grow food - a lot of energy. And I'm cautious about genetic engineering as a solution - I just believe nature has a better track record than humanity. Although it would be interesting to see inventive entrepreneurs marketing a potato crossed with poppy which combines their properties! (Please consider cautioning the EU about embracing GMO - its about money not health or safety - see GM petition here.)

I think the central role of food in society and culture has been forgotten by most of us. We don't appreciate the variety and enjoyment possible, let alone that food sustains us. The chocolate bar that was once a luxury is now produced with corn syrup, colouring and flavourings and is so cheap that we'll grab one of them instead of a banana or apple or peach. The further away from nature that we get, the less we will appreciate the realities of the real world and I think that makes our souls emptier. If you would like to join us for an evening of movies, like King Corn, please let me know and well do it soon. The tent we put up for Dad's birthday is still up andmake a great place for a get together. We'll even barbecue some real beef from the best butcher in Ireland - Michael McAssey in Ballon. Thanks to Michael and Tony for all the great food that we barbecued this summer - people were asking not for meat, but McAsseys meat!

Other notes on food:

Check out these photos of what a hail storm can do to a vegetable grower in Montana http://www.phfarms.com/August 2009.htm

John Kehely, a Cork farmer, has set up an online market place for home producers . See www.rustictiger.com which is laid out in the form of classified ads, in locations and categories and it's free to place an ad.

Klaus Laitenberger, worked as the Head Gardener at the Organic Centre in Leitrim and in Lissadell House and has just published a book on vegetable growing in Ireland: Vegetables for the Irish Garden. You can see more about it here.

Brazilian Agriculture, a report by The Economist, tells the story of transformation of the industry over 30 years so that today it is productive, competitive and sustainable.

Yoga classes are back on! Starting today is a group class at 8pm in Teach Bride, Tullow. There is also one at Carlow IT at 6pm. Pam is giving a few private classes too. The schedule is here. Contact her at yoga AT astraea DOT net. She did a yoga session in the tent last weekend which went Ok so we will try that again. And we are setting up a yoga retreat in the Mediterranean for next summer It'll be a week long and available from May till August. Please let me know as soon as possible if you are interested - it'll be great.

We are looking at sending Tym out to volunteer at a PestalozziWorld village in Asia or Africa this year, her transition year. If you would like to volunteer please let me know. It is a great experience, especially for school leavers or people changing career, and is low cost once you're there because you stay in the village with the scholars.

Summer has passed, the equinox was a week ago, we are well in to autumn. Its time to get out the saw and start logging! Enjoy the changing colours and the harvest season.

Tom

BT Notes - midsummer night's dream

2010-06-25T04:32:02Z

It's a midsummer nights dream. We dare not mention that we want change because we love the sun. The lack of rain is great for weeding. May is a good month to weed because most plants have not yet seeded. June isn't bad either and many plants were delayed this year. It's certainly been a pleasure to work in the garden because progress is possible, weeds can be controlled, slugs must hide away. Generally we've caught up in most respects, not least because of everyone in the family lending a hand. The results of the harsh wiinter are not as bad as I had feared. The fig trees seem to be resprouting - thanks to Sarah for suggesting we give them a bit of time. The strawberry tree might push up a sucker even thouth the main trunk seems to be gone. The chocolate trees are also having a go at regrwoth. The banana trees are all pushng up suckers. We did lose a couple of avocado, citrus, curry, palm and others, but we'll still wait another month or two before taking the axe to the dead wood, just in case. And we'll suffer a dry well, especially since we can supplement irrigation needs from the stream. And even though the river is very low we brave a dip in the shimmering pools by her banks on a hot day. It is nice when visitors proclaim that it is paradise, and guests from abroad talk about how lovely summer in Ireland is.

The summer solstice was wonderful - at 10 o'clock in the evening as the sun set, the sky was still light but you could see stars like small diamonds in the sky, I forced myself to stay up till after midnight when twilight slipping over the horizon was still sufficient to light a path; and a couple of hours later the ornage gibbous moon sank below the horizon in a haze of mist. These days those indoor chores are pushed to the bottom of the list, the office is not a refuge but a cell and we are lucky to have so much to do outside that we don't feel guilty about letting that paperwork slide another day ...

Our birds have been very productive this year - loads of eggs (goose, duck and chicken) most of which we've found - though the new roosters never really learnt any manners. Their persistent raping of the hens meant I had to do something which is very difficult for someone who does not like killing. I even research how to pluck a hen - a dirty, bloody and sweaty business. In the end I gave five roosters away at the Ballykeenan small animal sales. It was a great morning for us and I highly recommend it for families. Three of the children helped me take the roosters to the sale (which takes place on the last Sunday of every month eg net Sunday) and while we offered them to visitors, the children took turns to walk around and look at all the creatures on sale from chickens to turkey ot pigs to goats, as well as craft work and garden supplies. By lunch time we had bought four small ducklings which amused them for a couple of weeks and are now being integrated to the flock.

We gave up our organic certification this year - I just couldn't justify � 500 for someone to spend 20 minutes walking around the garden and telling me that I was being organic. Costs have probablyincreased because the Dept of "agriculture" has created another wave of paperwork. But it is ironic that we still subsidise unsustainable practices and penalise sustainable ones. I guess we all vote for that in the supermarket - a litre of pop is cheaper than a brocolli or even a litre of petrol!

The summer yoga group courses are over though Pam has been giving some private lessons. We've also been attempting to DIY a yoga nkasa so that she can do some special courses here. We'll let you know when (if) it gets off the ground. Thanks to Mossie for some really cool translucent roofing felt which will make a little window in the roof (if Tom's design stands up).

My godmother died a few weeks ago just after her 97 birthday. She was very cool and we miss her. Here is a prayer she kept and which was read at her memorial. even an atheist like me appreciates it:

Lord thou knowest better than I know myself that I am growing older and will some day be old. Keep me from that fatal habit of thinking I must say something on every subject and on every ocassion. Release me from craving to straighten out everybody's affairs. Make me thoughtful but not mmoddy, helpful but not bossy. With my vast store of wisdom, it seems a pty not to use it all, but thou knowest Lord that I want a few friends at the end.

Keep my mind free from recital of endless details; give me wings to get to the point. Seal my lips on aches and pains. They are increasing, and love of rehearsing them is is beocming sweeter as the years go by. I dare not ask for grace enogh to enjoy the tales of others' pains, but help me to endure them with patience.

I dare not ask for improved memory, but for a growing humility and a lessening cocksureness when my memory seems to clash with the memory of others. Teach me the glorious lesson that occassionally I may be mistaken.

Keep me reasonably sweet; I do not want to be a saint - some of them are so hard to live with - but a sour old person is one of the crowning works of the devil. Give me the ability to see good things in unexpected places, and talents in unexpected people. And give me O Lord the grace to tell them so. Amen.

PestalozziWorld had a redesign of its website to coincide with the publication of the English language version of Head, Heart and Hand. Education in the Spirit of Pestalozzi by Arthur Bruhlmeier, which offers insight in to how schools can be more child-oriented and produce better-educated school-leavers. It is recommended to be of great benefit to those in the field of education, as well as to parents. Amazon.com Amazon.co.uk or download the pdf (862KB) (donations welcome). Pam ran the Flora Mini Marathon in her best time so far - congratulations and well done! Many thanks to all of you who sponsored her.

Astraea.net also got a bit of a makeover, but there's more to be done there as well as ballintemple.com. We did however put social networking links on after Pam, Paula and others pushed me to do it ;-) .

The last quarter saw some attention to the boring administration of business - accounts :-(. Fortunately ours are pretty simple and my meeting with the accountants was a 10 minute affair. But we continued chatting for an hour about the Irish economy. I always find James' observations stimulating and recommend his firm (Harney Nolan). But my conclusions from our chat were depressing - the bullet points: falsification of data to misrepresent the state of the economy, continuing bail out of foreign investors at the expense of Irish taxpayers, failure to reliquify the economy despite huge cash injections to the banking systems, increase bureaucracy at the expense of small business, failure to reprice assets (a further 50% decline is required); the bottom line - 5 years to turnaround. Its a good thing we've all got a sense of humour.

The last couple of months have seen a few noteworthy developments in the wider world. People have become aware of the amazing power of data retention, analysis and manipulation by big internet businesses like Google and Facebook. Some still say its going to happen anyway or it's too much information to handle. I more cycnical simply because I know there are other ways of doing thing, you don't have to be big to be happy, and if we can fly to Mars and take pictures of the dawn f time we can certainly manipulate a bit of data. Anyway those excuses have been proved wrong before. So its nice to know that people are beginning to care about the consequences of choices. Open information and open technology is becoming more attractove among a wider population.

The coalition government in the UK seems to be following a trend in other developed countries, like Ireland, where voters are choosing cooperation rather than confrontation. It is a hopeful sign that politics will grow-up (but don't hold your breath).

The blockade of Gaza has drawn attention to the atrocious violence in the middle east and the ironic hypocrisy of a young nation which justifies its violence of others on the violence meted out to its forebears. It would be a welcome sign if they could all grow up. The recent report and apology on Bloody Sunday is an example of how a sincere apology can heal emotioanl scars. Though in the middle east there has to be a great deal more humility and empathy by all. It is very sad but perhaps a turning point will be catalysed by the removal of economic and emotional support of Israel alone by the US.

The other global event is the oil slick in the gulf of Mexico. As people and politicians lay blame, everyone forgets that the reality that accidents like these happen, that no one person s responsible, that the destruction of environment and livelihoods is a real cost of the addiction to oil and that it is a really good thing that it is not an accident at a nuclear reactor. It distracted attention from the humanitarian disaster in Haiti where people are still destitute from another kind of accident. Unfortunately it is unlikely that this disaster will promote a culture of precaution over permissiveness or ameliorate our gross addiction to oil.

So while the big picture outside is pretty embarrassing for humanity, the midsummer dream continues in the paradise of Ballin Temple.

Enjoy nature. Be happy. Love life.

Tom

BT Notes - Spring!

2010-03-23T05:24:18Z

Nearly every day reflections about things to say in this newsletter occur to me. But I find myself busy and so procrastinate another day. As the days grow longer important changes take place in home and garden - the heating bill goes down, the time children spend outside goes up. A few days ago we passed the Spring equinox in the northern hemisphere so that was the signal to stop procrastinating and write the journal.

It has been an unusual year so far. There was the amazing white New Year which kept us out of school for an extra week - hooray! It was fun to see the land painted white, to slide down the hill on our backs or plastic bags and trays, to throw snow balls. And then there were the other new experiences that were a little less benign. The skidding on the road and hoping no one is coming the other way. The frozen or burst pipes.

That was a good training period for me - it seemed as though I was plumbing for three weeks solid. First there was the frozen pipes, so we had no water. That lasted two weeks. We are very lucky to have a stream a hundred metres from the back door so we were able to get a few buckets of water a day for flushing, dish washing, cat-washing and cooking. It was a good time to clean the pressure switch and re-plumb the main feeder tap at the pump; many thanks to Ivan Stanley who helped me reprime the pump and become the most popular person in the family for the weekend that the water came back on! And then half way through the no-water drama, a pipe on the "skirting-radiator" in the living room exploded, soaking the floor and furniture. Luckily we had wood to feed the stove for the next week or so as I fixed the piping. It was a useful training programme in plumbing and a good chance to clean out pipes which harboured 30 years of sludge. But by the time I'd finished that project I just wanted to put the plumbing tools away and did not want to continue cleaning the rest of the system - maybe this summer ... ha ha. And then the next week I was back up at the cottage where another pipe had burst flooding the downstairs. Luckily Michael noticed the flood and we stopped it after a couple of days. It took me anther couple of days to re-plumb the system and we still have some cleaning and painting to do, but at least the drama is over.

The garden was severely punished by winter. A number of unusual trees suffered severe frost damage and might not recover. We're still waiting to see if the Strawberry tree will rejuvenate - it would be sad if it doesn't leaving a huge space in the border. Our store room did not withstand the frost and see potatoes were mostly ruined. On the positive side, the start to the season has been delayed so we are almost on top of chores. Seeding of tomatoes, broad beans and allium is well underway. Even Richard and Jaspar are getting in to the game having staked out their own plots, diligently dug them and started planting. The fruit cage was crushed by snow and I've just mended that - I was hoping to rebuild but find myself short of time so have to put off a rebuild till next year. The outdoor chicken koop was blown down and I'm reconstructing that - a messy job with dead wood and wire all over the place at the moment, but I think when I get it done it will be a better home for the birds.

The birds! They've douubled in number as the chicks have grown to young adults. Nealry half are roosters so with Spring time hormones they are all over each other. It has a strange similarity to men outside the pub. A couple of young roosters have even tried it on the ducks - boys! Egg production is good though. A great treat has been the goose eggs that have been coming out - they are huge and rich, mostly yolk and tasty, a meal in themself and great for baking. One weighs about the same as three or four chicken eggs (~150g!).

After a slow start in december, logging has been going well. The cold weather was a great motivator. For a couple of weeks the wood buring stove was our only source of heat as the plumbing collapsed from frost. The blossoming of spring was also severly delayed. We usually see camelia out in January, but this year they've only just started blooming. And everyone has noticed the absence of daffodils from St Patrick's Day. The're finally beginning to blossom but it seems a month late. Farmers in particular are feeling the long winter because grass has only started to grow in the past couple of weeks so they have had to provide much more winter feed for livestock. The shortages are not a harbinger, but certainly an illustration, of the difficulties of not having enough food and the magnitude that an ecological crisis would cause in comparison to an economic crisis.

The opening of the fishing season passed without event. There will be little fishing on the river again this year. Good for the riparian habitat, sad for anglers and unfortunately still a long way to go until the river is rejuvenated. One benefit of the recession has been a slow down in the rate at which we flush toxins in to the water system. Unfortunately modern lfestyles are so far removed from nature that it is a change in systems - in farming and in personal consumption - that is needed to save nature. Check out the documentary film Food for a stimulating and realistc look at the modern food chain - it'ss help you understand why a can of coke is cheaper than a head of lettuce! (Shall we have a screening? Let me know if you're interested.)

Pam was invited to give a special day's training to teachers in training at a yoga centre in Wicklow. It was very well received and it is great to see the word spreading about what an ecellent teacher she is. :-) no, I'm not biaised ... Pam's yoga classes are on schedule. We're coming to the end of the spring term and will break for easter and then resume for another term of seven weeks from 13 April to 25 May. Contact Pam 086 0891141 to get more info.

Our children have been enjoying the spring too. Tym has been on a drama camp, which gave a break from forced studying for her junior certs, helping our neighbour with his beatiful horses - her real passion, as well as studying hard for mock exams. Antonia performed in the Ballet Barn spring show and also got a bit-part in a performance by an international ballet company. The boys have been enjoying football more and more and the hurling season has started.

Outside BT I've been busy particularly with business turnarounds. That's what I love though it can be frustrating in a bankrupt economy. On the other hand it is very rewarding to see positive change and helping people resurrect their businesses. The boom got in the way of good business practices and sound decision making - so those skills were redundant, whereas today they are simply in short supply.

For those interested in computers or using them for work, I upgraded to Opensuse 11.2 and changed desktop from KDE3.5 to 4.3. I like the new imporvements and you can see my spiel (including a video download of the spinning desktop) on-line here.

This year will be the 15th anniversary of the starting of PestalozziWorld - a great milestone for an enterprise that really does make a difference to hundreds of people. The big event this year was the opening of the Pestalozzi Education Centre in Lusaka, Zambia. PEC is a secondary school providing a rounded, affordable education to local fee-paying children and providing scholarships for PestalozziWorld scholars. It is an inspired project which we hope will become a model for secondary schools in Zambia and even elsewhere. Here in Ireland we don't have any big plans yet, though we will be helping to raise money to educate poor children. Pam has already signed up for the Flora mini-marathon to sponsor PW. If a little motivation helps to get fit, think about joining her for a fun day out or spend a day out with a daughter/mother/sister/friend. It's a wonderful route around Dublin that starts in Fitzwilliam Square and finishes in St. Stephen's Green. If you can't make it on the day, please consider sponsoring a runner anyhow - any amount is welcome! Donate on-line here or send a cheque to PestalozziWorld, Ballin Temple, Ardattin, Co. Carlow. Cheques payable to �PestalozziWorld,� thank you. Registration deadline for the Flora mini-marathon deadline is April 27th, and you must be registered to participate. It's easy to do on www.womensminimarathon.ie, but if you would like us to register for you, email events @ pestalozziworld.com or call 059 9155037. Your registration pack includes goodies from the mini-marathon's sponsors as well as your all-important race number.

And finally, for a bit of a laugh, and an education, check out the Uncyclopaedia here.

Enjoy Spring, the blossoming of Ireland and all the good fortunes that we have ...

Tom

Walk in the Woods, Ballin Temple

2009-12-20T12:32:44Z

Our post-Christmas pre-New Year recovery walk in the woods will take place at 2.30pm on Sunday, 27th December. Please come along. Six year old Jaspar enjoyed testing it yesterday, so it is passable for most people. Wear outdoor clothes and waterproof boots or wellies.

We hope you can make it. Bring family and friends. It is always useful to know how many people are coming so that we can plan for refreshments, so let us know if you can. We will all gather in the car park at 2.15pm.

Here are some snaps from last year.

Hope you have a great Christmas. See you soon!

Pam and Tom

BT Notes - good times ...

2009-11-30T06:20:33Z

Since our last newsletter we have had some good times. There was the visit of Ed and Mary-Lou from Canada which we enjoyed so much. It was wonderful to share a few weeks with them and we are so grateful for their time here. They pitched in with everything, as usual, and gave us a bit of a holiday from the usual routine.

As their time in Ireland came to an end, I left for a week or so in India where I visited the Pestalozzi Asian Village in Dehradun. It is more than a decade since I was in India and this was my first visit to Dehradun. When I visited in the mid-90s the population of the country was 850 million; today it is 1.2 billion. In a decade they've added the population of the US to a country with a quarter of the land area! It is a country of great contrasts - those making a living in garbage to those living in princely splendour. It is amazing how well the country works. There is great tolerance and adaptation. The best part of the trip was meeting the children and people who make the Asian Village work so well. It was a pleasure to see children who appreciated an education and engaged with life in so many ways. Eventually I'll get the photos of the others who participated and put them online in the gallery which shows a different world to the one we know here.

In the meantime a video telling the stories of three Pestalozzi scholars was completed by filmaker Dick Roberts. You can see it online here. Thanks to Colm McElwee for doing an amazing job of converting the video from NTSC to PAL and producing a number of copies of both. (Colm did an amazing job and I hope he'll help make the next video. I highly recommend him for any video work from parties and weddings to conversion of tape to disk etc - his website is carlowdigital.com.)

We also had a visit from a couple of new friends - Juliana and Richard Fenn, who visited us on a brief trip through Ireland and then came back for a week or so to pursue a "writers' retreat" here. They are both authors - Richard being a prolific author of academic books on spirituality and religion in society. They gave me encouragement to write a story about changing course from suit to soil. That has turned out to be more difficult than I ever imagined, but fun. Thanks for the encouragement Richard and Juliana.

On the subject of books, (my hero) Pratchett's latest is out. Unseen Academicals about football! Enjoy.

It must be winter now. It's still dark when we feed the cats and birds in the morning. The frost has brought down most of the remaining leaves, though beech trees somehow hang on to theirs. I'm spending more time logging. And the "office" has moved next to the stove because the study (ex-garage) is ?!@£$%& freezing.

The logging can be quite fun - in the woods, clearing ground, cutting up a fallen tree and bringing it back to the log shed. We got a couple of loads done over the weekend and would have got more if the equipment was a bit more reliable - an engine valve ring comes off every now and then and the last time it was just after sundown in the woods so I fixed it by torch light - a first. If you are interested in logging with me, give me a call to arrange it (9155037).

The garden looks a bit more under control, mostly because the cold has stopped growth. The last few tomatoes are coming out of the green house and a few beets and chard are still harvesting. The chickens did quite well this summer. Three hens produced about 15 chicks all now big enough to survive winter, provided fantastic mr fox doesn't call on us. The maintenance list is long and it is not too soon to prepare for next season. Some planting can even start now - allium (and flowering bulbs if you cultivate flowers) can go in, and green house plants can be ordered for seeding in a month so.

Though sometimes it seems that planning becomes redundant because of the weather - we had a surprisingly wet summer and November has been one of the wettest on record, though also warm enough to promote some spring blooms in the garden! This kind of fluctuation gives credence to the idea of climate change, but that observation seems to have passed our leaders by, as have the lessons of the recession. We are paying for those mistakes of economic mismanagement, so I wonder how soon the ecological mismanagement is going to punish us. Some would say it's happening now - as they wade about their kitchen or watch their livestock float across the fields. The Copenhagen Summit in December is billed as a last chance to change human consumption patterns. But its outcome will be similar to that of Johannesburg and Kyoto - too little too late. Until everyone, especially those in developed economies like us, changes behaviour the problems of society, economy and ecology will continue. But Christmas is coming so we must accumulate large amounts of plastic, get more stuff and travel to the melting Alps.

Or if you have your feet in the ground, make something for your family and friends instead. One of our readers, Joe, sent his recipe for Sweet Tomato Relish (see below) which he says is ideal to lift a boring sandwich or great with cheese. Thanks Joe!

You can look forward to the last few weeks of Pam's winter yoga classes. Or maybe give a spring course of lessons to a friend as a special Christmas present (call Pam on 9155037 for a voucher).

As we head towards the longest night (in the northern hemisphere), about 21 December, it is the season to think about new beginnings. Let's wish for peace and love and getting through difficult times

:-)

Tom

Joe's Sweet Tomato Relish

Ingredients:

2kg Tomatoes
500g Onions - chopped
2 Red & 2 Green Bell Peppers - chopped
2 Apples � peeled, cored and chopped
2 stalk Celery � chopped
Dried chillies (a few)
750ml Apple Cider Vinegar
2 dessertspoons Tomato Puree
500g Sugar
2 tablespoons Salt
1 dessertspoon Mustard Powder or Seeds
1 dessertspoon Mild Curry Powder
Garlic crushed or small amount of Ground Garlic Powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon cloves � grounded
1 teaspoon of Allspice
!/2 teaspoon Cayenne
1 teaspoon of coarse Black Pepper
Extra cup of vinegar and 1 tablespoon Corn flour

Peel Tomatoes (blanch). Chop into small pieces, add chopped celery onion and peppers, mix together add the salt and leave to soak overnight in fridge, drain thoroughly next day.

Transfer to large cooking pot. Add all including sugar spices and vinegar. Make sure sugar is dissolved. Bring to the boil, boil rapidly for 5 minutes and then simmer for 1 hour (remove scum) keep stirring frequently. To thicken relish mix corn flour with your extra cup of vinegar and make into a smooth paste add little at a time until it thickens.

Bottle into hot sterilised jars and seal when cold

All ingredients are approx and may need adjusting to your taste.

Make approx 10 medium sized jars.

BT Notes - what a summer!

2009-08-31T13:52:59Z

What a summer! It's passed so quickly it almost seems as if it hasn't yet happened. But in fact so much was going on, time just flew by.

Having the children at home all the time changes the schedule. Having the whole family at home is lovely though it can pose some scheduling challenges. They did some special projects and camps - hurling, soccer, riding and ballet were the main ones. It means that there is more driving around than I expected but it can usually be worked in with other chores. All our children helped in the garden too. Tym did the most, putting in a dozen hours a week for a month and a half, but everyone else did a bit here and there from mowing to sowing to harvesting.

The garden has been pretty busy. We had to harvest potatoes a little earlier than hoped because of warm wet weather in July, but we got a pretty good harvest (over 200kg) and they should store OK. Onion and garlic also came out. Lots of berries have been turned to yummy jam by Pam-ka-jam. We're now harvesting beans, chard, courgette and tomatoes. A couple of hens produced chicks, some of which have survived. And we've started building the Halloween bonfire which will grow rapidly as we get in to autumn.

We had friends visit us from another lifetime - Hong Kong. Since then they have also married and had four children of similar ages to our, so both tribes got on well with each other. As a souvenir we now have a white wall covered in chalk drawings created by eight young artists.

There was also a family wedding in the UK, which gave us a good excuse to do a touring roadtrip over a long weekend. We saw some family and friends on the way too. During the trip we saw some wonderful gardens which put our efforts to shame. I had to take solace from the rationale that we don't use chemical help and do it ourselves. It was a treat to enjoy well managed pleasure gardens.

Our children also participated in the community games which resulted in a couple of trips to Athlone where Richard did gymnastics and Antonia did the 800m. Their achievements gave me some motivation to try to run again. I tried to help Antonia train for the 800m but I collapsed half way through the first lap so probably provided more amusement than motivation! It was painful and a lesson in ageing and diet! After the games in Athlone, Pam took the gang for a camping trip in Galway including the Arran Isles so that the children, especially Jaspar, could enjoy a vacation as well as a staycation. They had a great time including a dip in the Atlantic.

Finally, last week we focussed a bit on family because it was the triennial Rally of the Butler Society with which we are involved. The society has a genealogical and historical interest focussed on the family name. The highlight is the Society Dinner which was held in the Great Hall of Kilkenny Castle - a very unusual place to dine! The members, who have an amateur interest in genealogy, come from all over the world and from many different backgrounds which makes conversation interesting and diverse. This year the Hubert Butler Memorial Lecture was given by Martin Manser, who covered a wide range of subjects from Irish culture and genealogical history to historical buildings and Hubert Butler. He noted in his prologue that we are all related to each other sooner or later - by going back only 400 years we have over 500 grandparents! This observation of interrelatedness was reiterated by DNA discussion later on when various people were presented with charts showing how they are related to celebrities like Barrack Obama and Winston Churchill. These were colourful reminders that we are all cousins.

Now, the nights are beginning to draw in and it's back to school - a painful experience for us all.

Pam's yoga lessons will start in a couple of weeks so let her know if you want to join in.

Hope you have a gentle autumn.

Tom

BT Notes - solstice, father's day, community games.

2009-06-21T04:49:48Z

Solstice, father's day and community games. Whew!

The great thing about the summer solstice (4.20am this morning) is that it marks the longest day of the year. Sunrise is 4.57 and sunset 21.57, with an extra 60 to 90 minutes of light at dawn and dusk as light spills over the horizon, daylight lasts for 19 hours or so. Energy levels are raised by these long days. We've had some of my favourite blooms over the past couple of months, like lilac and wisteria. You can hear it in nature as bird song is more than in winter. And you can see it in the hedgerows and lawns as growth is now beyond control. And temperatures are still rising as they tend to lag day length by a month or so. Enjoy your Midsummer celebrations.

In the garden calendar we're nearing the end of the normal planting season and entering the harvest season. In our patch we've planted most vegetables out and now hope that this summer is kinder than last. This year things are already looking a bit better, but mostly because Tymandra is working in the garden for a few hours on weekdays. She is a great help and even seems to enjoy it once she gets going. I certainly appreciate having her help in maintaining the patch.

Today is Carlow community games finals in Ardattin. Even though the day is off to a grey start it will be enjoyed by families from all over the county. Children come to compete but everyone comes from the atmosphere - colour, exhibits, chips and ice-cream and of course friends. It's a great example of community spirit in today's harsh world. And maybe a great place to spend father's day.

The last couple of months has been hectic for us, largely because of work for PestalozziWorld. The concert by Virginia Kerr at Castletown House was a more successful than we hoped. As you can imagine it was a daunting task to encourage people to attend in these difficult economic times. But, then on the night, we had a full house and even received donations from people that could not attend. While opera is not my thing, I really enjoyed the evening - Virginia treated us to a superb repertoire which even impressed people that know what they are listening to. The setting in Castletown House was unique - it was a bit like being in a movie or a dream - I don't expect to get an opportunity like that ever again. You can see some photos of the concert and reception here. What we hadn't really factored in was the after concert work - just simple records, bills and admin - which we are just now finishing.

There were so many people whose efforts and contribution made the evening a success. Of course Virginia, who sang so sweetly and arranged the venue, is top of the list. Thank you Virginia. And thank you to the Equus Ensemble for supporting Virginia. Thanks also the sponsors and others who supported the evening so that all ticket sales can go to support the education of poor children in Africa and Asia: Dr Ken Whitaker, our honorary patron, Jonathan Irwin, our MC, Doug Poole, Lightning Print and Design, James Nolan, Harney Nolan, Ally Bunbury, Derek O'Brien, Coco Zen, Paula Sheridan Candle Designs, Larry Kinsella, Moth to a Flame, William and Emily Bunbury, Bunbury Boards, Urs Tobler, Vendemia Organic Wines, Oddbins, Willem and Anneke Savelkouls, Frank and Jane Hancock, John Feehan, Six Nations Rugby, Anna Kerr, Mary O'Connor, Curragh Racecourse, Amanda Webb, Feel Good Organic Hampers, Jojo Fennell, Anna Kerr, Leopardstown Racecourse, Mary-Ann O'Brien, Lily O'Briens Chocolates and Turtle Bunbury. Thank you to Castletown House and Clare Hanley Catering for working with us to organise the evening. And many thanks to all our guests who joined us on the evening and to donors who could not attend.

At the end of May I went to Zambia for the PestalozziWorld Africa Alumni Reunion and a preselection trip. I feel a bit spoiled travelling all that way and enjoying the hospitality of the local team, though they are very welcoming and encourage us to stay on. This was my second trustees visit to the African base, the first being in Jan/Feb, and it provided another range of insight into the operations there. The building of the scholarship village in Lusaka has moved on quickly completing phase 1 and well on the way to completing phase 2, so that plans for the international school are now being fleshed out. The alumni reunion was great fun - I got to play football with the alumni :-). And the preselection trip to Mayukwayukwa was a valuable perspective in to the communities from which children come - they are 2 to 4 years behind the education curriculum. The trip to the refugee camp was easier this time round because it was dry, the end of the harvest season meant people had food, and the power was working. I also was invited to play football with some locals - thanks Moses, I enjoyed that kick-about too! The best way to get an insight is to browse some photos of the trip and work there - see the gallery here. While I was in Africa for 10 days Pam was kept busy at home. Fortunately, my Mum helped out. Normally she would have been at the Reunion but she gave up her space so that I could get up the learning curve. Everyone there from the village, to the UNHCR to the camp asked after her! I'm not sure I'll get away with a trip like that again!

Since returning, I feel a bit culture shocked. Perhaps it's the weather here - it was 25oC by midday in their winter. Maybe it's a 10 year itch. Whatever it is it will pass soon. And anyway next week the return of children from school for the summer holidays will distract me.

A couple of news items picked up might be of interest. There is some useful info on Ireland here, which is a useful resource for friends visiting from abroad or children doing local research. There is a change happening to EU fisheries law which is likely to reduce the waste of fish that are caught over quota and dumped back in the sea. There is also pressure to change Irish tax law - as if we're not deep enough in it. And, my favourite, that the non-pandemic pandemic of swine flu meant that the prophecy came true.

Wishing the dads among you a fun family day. Enjoy the summer solstice here and, if you're down under - take heart that spring is around the corner.

Tom

BT Notes - singing for a better world, athletic gardening, community spirit ...

2009-04-30T14:05:07Z

Nature seems to be on schedule this year. It has seemed for the past couple of years that seasons were a bit confused by weather, but this year, so far, blossoms have bloomed when they are expected. Spring arrived on time and temperatures have been generally as expected. Though Ireland, being in such an usual place geographically - far north, but influenced by the gulf stream and at the interface of continental and maritime weather patterns - we can have "interesting" days with wide temperature changes and when it rains, shines and hails all within hours.

Daffodils came and went on time, tulips are still in bloom and bluebells are coming along well. The first rhododendron have blossomed and more will follow in the coming weeks. It could be a good year for growers if the weather stays on schedule. Farmers are well in to the season as livestock is fattened and crops have been sown. Our little vegetable patch is under control with the early crops, like allium, coming along well and most other seeds in the or on the way in to the ground. It's getting busy as growth rates are accelerating. While gardening might appear to be a leisure sport to some, this article notes that gearing up for the summer gardening work needs a similar kind of preparation to that of an elite athlete going into a final! Now I feel a bit better!

The concert for PestalozziWorld is next weekend - Saturday 9 May. It will be a fun evening with a family feeling. Some people are looking forward to the tour of Castletown House which I've heard is impressive. Virginia Kerr's singing is some of the best and she is a great entertainer. There are some great auction prizes and a raffle to launch the after concert reception. Ken Whitaker has agreed to be the patron of the charity and will come with his family - what a wonderful person! If you haven't bought a ticket you can do so online here or call us on (059) 9155037. All proceeds to the educational charity PestalozziWorld.

Earth Day recently passed on 22 April with little fan fare as most of us are more concerned with stagnating economics (like Ireland's credit downgrade and emergency budget), though there are signs of improvement. We are still aggravated by the usual suspects (politicans, banks and a few others ...) but markets seem to be moving again. Property is changing hands, appropriately at much lower levels, and businesses is stabilising. We've seen a number of businesses expanding or starting up so opportunities are appearing. And perhaps we can create a few of our own. Sometimes one's perspective determines whether we feel good or bad. We've been used to measuring success with money, but that can be deceptive. Many of the things from which we get pleasure, enjoyment and value are not counted - friends and family are near the top of the list. For example, it was heartening to read a story praising the dynamism and success of the GAA which is Ireland's largest sporting organisation and is fuelled by community spirit. Enjoy the article Doing sports business the GAA way here. We can also take the example of our Viking forebears. The stereotype of a marauding villain is wrong. In fact vikings integrated in to the local community adapted to the local culture and improved administration and systems. That is why they were successful. One widely known example is William the Conqueror, a third generation viking immigrant to northern France, who organised England in the late 11th century. Read this story for some inspiration.

The other end of the spectrum is Tesco where Every little bit helps ... the shareholders. We've complained about the illusory offering by Tesco for some years now, especially since they invaded our local town of Tullow. And the proof is in their annual results. Despite a recession they have managed to increase profits by 10%. You only need to check the prices against continental supermarkets (eg Aldi, Lidl) to know that they retain huge margins on a wide range of basics. Good for the shareholder, not so good for the shopper.

Yoga classes are back on again in Tullow. Yoga is a good antidote to tough economic times. Give Pam a call to find out more (059) 9155037.

Though the fishing season has started, activity is greatly reduced for conservation reasons. So anglers have put down their rods, but others need to clean up their act too. The two major contributors to riparian habitat destruction are urban development and agricultural run off. And this story sums up the kind of irresponsible trade-offs that we have allowed - building houses without building teh infrastructure to support them. In this case, the new development overburdened the sewerage system and now untreated effluent is flowing into the river.

Tomorrow is May Day which traditionally marks the beginning of summer in teh northern hemisphere. Its origins are in the Irish pagan festival of Beltane, when great bonfires would mark a time of purification and transition, heralding in the summer in the hope of a good harvest later in the year. It is opposite Halloween, or Samhain, in the calendar and shares similar cosmic and pagan significance.

Best wishes to all for a hot summer.

Tom

BT notes - equinox, Zambia, Virgina Kerr

2009-03-22T06:50:13Z

It is the time of the equinox as the sun rise and sunset is almost the same time - technically it occurs on 20 March. Many festivals fall at this time of year. Mothers' Day, St Patrick's and Easter all happen around the vernal equinox and elsewhere interesting holidays include the Persian new year, Nowruz, and Wiccans and Neopagans celebrate the Sabbat of Ostara. Earth Day used to be celebrated at the equinox, but now occurs in April. Instead there is going to be earth Hour next weekend. This is a time to turn-off. An eco-event, but one that can have economic benefits too. People across the world will turn off their lights to recognise the importance of preserving our planet. Earth Hour 2009 is 8:30PM Saturday 28 March 2009. Light some candles and have a party. (Check out the website here.)

Are you feeling green? Not from envy. Not from ecology. Because of Saint Patrick's Day (and maybe a Gland Slam victory in rugby)! Though it used to be blue that was the colour of St Patrick and it is only in recent times that green has become associated with St Paddy's day, partly because of the association with the wearing of the green - shamrock. And although the holiday has its roots in a religious festival, it is now a national holiday, a festival of Ireland and Irish and an excuse to party! In fact the partying aspect is more pagan as the Bachanalian festival associated with Bachuus took place around March 14, 15. Well I suppose that's appropriate since Ireland has always had a fairly tribal, independent culture rooted in its pagan past.

While we all enjoy the wonderful community spirit of parades, dressing up and getting together, we're also enjoying a real spring. It seems to be on time this year, or at least not too early. The daffodils are in full bloom, the camellia is now blooming and the temperature is warm enough that the grass will grow again. It is uplifting to hear birds singing in the trees again as migrants begging to return. I've a feeling that we're going to have a proper summer. I'm making sure my irrigation system is working because it might come in handy in summer. Let's hope the weather is fine so that we can all enjoy holidays at home in these challenging times.

And they are challenging! It seems that Ireland has become an economic pariah. It may not be long before we go cap in hand to the IMF. It is a shame that the government decided that we should all contribute � 7 billion to bail out a couple of banks, when private money might have been solicited. I'm not looking forward to the budget in April. But it is an opportunity to turn things around. We have a good incentive to raise our game. If we become more efficient, productive and diligent we can be an example for others to follow. It doesn't have to be the government that leads the way. It is more likely to be individuals and private business that develops new systems, new metrics and improves performance. We have one thing going for us which can help us move on - a sense of humour. We can look at ourselves and see a bright side, be cheerful in the face of challenges and take what comes. That sort of attitude is important so as not to get too negative. So let's keep smiling and turn things around.

And maybe the bad news is slowing down. There are signs that markets are bottoming out and people are beginning to find their feet again. Stock markets had a little bounce, but that was on low volume and shouldn't be taken as a sign of a bull market - the recent track record has been poor. We're seeing a bit more resilience in rental markets which is a sign that prices are adjusting. That is good news. The sooner that we can readjust asset prices, the sooner the market will clear, the sooner the economy will rejuvenate. The reality is that it will take time to get over this hangover from the 10 year binge, but if we take the right medicine it can be a quicker recovery. And although the government has performed appallingly, there are some signs that there is some sensible thinking. Gormley called for everyone to work together - this is exactly what is needed. Of course the careers of most politicians have been built on towing a party line so it is against their nature to work together, but there are those who see the benefit of working together, sharing resources and collaborating. Communities are increasingly important in these difficult times.

I recently visited Zambia to see if I could help in their work. There's a journal of my visit with lots of photos which I think you'll enjoy. You can see it on-line here. It is a healthy contrast to the life we lead here and really puts our difficulties in perspective - at the edge of society there are children looking for work or food because they only eat every other day. The value of giving these children an education is many times greater than the money spent to provide it - their lives are transformed and they return to their communities and help transform them as well by bringing back simple technologies of craft, agriculture, construction and so on.

Virginia Kerr, a world renowned Irish soprano, is singing at Castletown House on May 9th and all proceeds go to educate the children. Please buy a ticket or two - you'll have a special evening and make a real difference in the world. There's more information on the website here.

On the ground here, the growing season is picking up speed as the weather warms up. Though the ground seems to be dry. Much work still to be done and our organic inspection is next Monday.

The fishing season opened but not with the usual activity. The Slaney and other rivers are closed for salmon fishing for conservation reasons. You can see why the river needs to be protected by the pools of scum collection on the banks. Fortunately most people are pulling together to try to bring the vibrancy back to riparian habitats.

The holiday season is also picking up. And it is good to know that people still want to visit Ireland. We've had bookings from north America and across Europe. The more tourists the better - it's one of the country's major export businesses.

Yoga classes continue though will pause in a few weeks for the Easter break.

I'm looking forward to that holiday. A break from the school run and a chance to do some projects with the children.

Best wishes to all as the summer begins.

Tom

BT Notes - Spring

2009-02-28T12:47:30Z

Spring is breaking out and the mood is changing. After some proper winter weather snow drops bloomed, and now the daffodils are beginning. They should be on full display for St Patrick's day.

As people get used to a new kind of economic dynamic and the complaints about bankers and politicians become old news (though still a problem), I have been feeling a bit optimistic. Not that everything is going to return to the way it was - that is out of the question. But I've started to see signs of survival and even success. Some businesses are thriving - like discount stores and repair garages. People are tightening their belts and doing OK. I guess its a bit like getting fit or going on a diet. You probably don't enjoy it at first and it might even be a bit uncomfortable, but after a while the benefits become attractive and you want to keep it up. Of course it's most difficult when the change is very fast, but if we can make changes bit by bit and substitute one luxury, like a holiday abroad, for another, like a holiday locally with family, it's more sustainable. And Lent is a time when people make a special effort to improve themselves. That's another important part of change - it starts with oneself. It may seem a bit selfish, but it doesn't have to be. If you're not fit and well you can't look after others, so sometimes its helpful to focus on self-improvement. I'll 'fess up ... I went for a jog. It was an unfamiliar feeling. Parts of my bodythat I didn't know I had moved ! But I felt good afterwards and it raised my energy levels. I want to do it a bit more regularly ... let's see ...

On the subject of cheap luxuries ... how about a high class evening of wine and song at Castletown House. Virginia Kerr, a world renowned Irish sopranowill be performing at the luxurious Castletown House on 9 May. There will be a cocktail reception, an auction run by the incomparableJonathan Irwin, and Virginia Kerr will entertain you for the evening. Why not take a couple of friends and meet some interesting people at the reception. It would be the perfect compliment to a Confirmation celebration if your child is being confirmed that day. Very favourably priced at only � 75 all proceeds go to PestalozziWorld which educates very poor children in Africa and Asia. You'll have a great evening and benefit a worthy cause. Please get in touch with me or Pam for more information or to book your tickets.

Here, we are still catching up to the seasons in the garden. I fixed my 2-wheel tractor so have been able to make some progress with tilling the vegetable plots, but I'm still lagging. And a lot of trees came down in the heavy winds. Half-term was a wonderful distraction too, when we all got out and about especially on our bikes. Jaspar, only 5, manages to keep up so we can roam a bit.

Yoga classes are in full swing at Teach Bride and Mount Wolseley. Please get in touch with Pam if you want to sign up. (Did you see her profile in the Carlow People? Cool eh?) And I've started teaching a couple of courses at Carlow County Enterprise Board - good fun and really good value for participants, check out their offerings on-line - you won't find better value.

It's nice to see that people are cottoning on to the idea that Tesco is not such a great place to shop - a survey found that their prices are rising fastest.

It's not so nice to see that people are getting very lazy about litter. It's blooming in the hedgerows as fast as the daffodils. I haven't seen such waste since before the plastic bag levy came in. Its a shame that we take such short cuts and will further reduce Ireland's attraction as a tourist destination - one of our main export businesses. Let's hope that stops soon.

Hope you're all enjoying a blooming spring.

Tom