ABC - X IS FOR XENODOCHIAL IN THE XTREME

Are you Xenodochial on New Year's Eve?

X

X is for Xenodochial In the Xtreme.

The image is a favourite from Ramsey Day, the fun day we have in Ramsey when The TT Road Races are here. Look at the pennant on the left and you will see the word Xtreme, and an X on the riders shirt for Xtreme, the people behind the stunt bikes. What of the other X though?

For those of you who know my blog you know I first found this word for my 1OOTH post. What of it though. According to varied sources it's an archaic, bookish, obsolete word rarely used word for Southern Hospitality. Think Gone With The Wind. Xenon is from the Greek for stranger as in xenophobia fear of strangers and therefore the opposite is xenodochial. Strange isn't it that the obsolete word is the friendly one and the uglier word is in still in every day usuage. I'll let you ponder that little irony, but what a fabulous word to describe this year of blogging, the cdp and y'all out there in the bloggoshere you have be so kin to lil' ole Scarlett, I mean Babooshka. You're welcome to folks.

Xenodochial New Year's Eve To Y'all.

Hop on over Mrs N. To play Abc.

SNAEFELL MOUNTAIN- MY WORLD

Snaefell  from Ramsey

MONOCHROME ODDSHOTS - 4 HEADLESS SWANS!

Duck Babooshka's here with her camera again!

Sounds like the macabre version of the 12 days of Christmas doesn't it? Four Headless Swans and one hunted Wren from yesterday's St Stephen's Day Post here Not at all just the way the photos fall. A walk along Ramsey Harbour, here) with camera is always a sheer delight for the photographer. I do mean real photographer, not snapper too but that's a matter for another day. At least acknowledge me you amateur!(you know who you are)

An image that begged to be shown as a black and white and the odd part well, all swans just swan diving at precisely the same time is a gift. Serendipity the photographers greatest friend lending a helping hand again.  You ignore serendipity at your peril. As you can see another natural image with all the debris that flows in and around the harbour left in the frame.  Why clone out something from an image that is perfectly natural just because it is slightly ugly and not perfect? Another time for that discussion on perhaps another blog.

Bad news again. Gary's laptop has died too. Now we are back to sharing one laptop that is borrowed until next week only.  You can appreciate a photographer and artist need a laptop each so blogging will take a back seat for a while. I will post as best I can, but it is difficult presently, work I'm afraid comes first, especially when people are still trying to clone my very being. 

Want to join the weird world of Odd Shots Monday? Then see KATNEY

Want to join the beautiful and creative world of MononchoromeMonday? Then see Aileni at LOOSE ENDS

ST STEPHEN'S DAY,HUNT THE WREN- CRITTERS SUNDAY

I'm a baby Blackbird not a Wren, Babooshka

Yesterday was Boxing Day, St Stephen's Day and also Wren Day/Hunt The Wren Day. I had never heard of Wren day until I moved to the Isle of Man. Unfortuntately I have no Wren images so I chose my smallest bird image a baby blackbird.

What is Hunting The Wren ?

Hunting the Wren was quite a bloodthirsty ritual as gangs of youths, boys would scour the countryside looking for a defenceless wren to trap and kill. Now a more humane option is to use an artificial bird you will be glad to hear.

The wren then became the centrepiece for a "bush" - two wooden hoops set at right angles and placed on top of a pole and covered with ribbons and evergreens.

 'The "bush" would then be carried from house to house while the group sang the Hunt the Wren song and hoped to collect some money or treats for their troubles. 

'The song charts the progress of the wren from being hunted, caught, cooked and then eaten. There are many suggestions as to why the poor wren should be singled out for such treatment, such as it being a commemoration of the martyrdom of St Stephen and revenge on the wren because it is the reincarnation of an enchantress who lured men to their death in droves. 

'The feathers of the wren are distributed amongst the wren boys as a good luck charm, being particularly potent against witchcraft and to prevent a shipwreck.' 

What wiki has to say click here 

Do you know any other Wren Day connections?

or more cute and crazies see MISTY DAWN and her own beauties and others more cute and crazies see MISTY DAWN and her own beauties and others

SANTA PAUSE!

Still no snow!

Season's Greetings

No Santa Claus was not on Ramsey Beach, Mooragh Beach having a rest, it was I who was AWOL leave from by blog, internet, outside world. I had intended to post for skywatch but Christmas, drinkies and food rendered me incapable of posting, using a camera or just about anything. No instead Gary and I lazed around as much as possible with the screen projector on and a selection of Chritsmas veiwing. Life for one day was postponed just to pause and relax. I'm sure many of you did the same. 

So did you all have a good Christmas? Did you have any nice pressies, boring pressies, or perhaps something really unusual. Me what did I have? Well I will not divulge all but the oddest has to be a slinky. What do you mean it's a kids toy. Have you no sense of fun? Do you remember them? Needless to say I have had an enormous amount of fun with it. Who needs stress balls get a slinky. The slinky has been needed to relieve the stress of the Isle Of Man postal service failing to deliver Christmas post to some our friends and relatives in the UK and elsewhere. So the job of tracking the items starts next week. Remember how those cards Gary designed had been opened and soaked in water too. Isle of Man postal service shame on you. Now where's my slinky...

As you can see by the image of Ramsey beach, still no snow. Not so much as a flake. Kept it simple today no fancy arty shots just a very wide angled crop of the beach, and no it isn't Skywatch just a normal day's image.  Gary and have been watching the web cam on Nice Beach France. No snow there either, but I wouldn't want there to be, but I would want Gary and I to be there. See Angela's Nice blog here for why.

(Dear Santa Claus thank you for my slinky, but can Barker and Babooshka find work in the South of France now please?)

Thank you

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE

Merry Christmas everyone from Babooshka and Barker,  who designed the card

Early post just to say Merry Christmas to everyone who is celebrating and to those who aren't have a good day whatever you are doing. I'm sure like most people blogging is the last thing on our minds. Actually a glass of red that I'm drinking and mince pie are on mine. I'm raising a glass to you all as  I type.

This image is the card that Gary designed and printed. Like the Royal family, The Prime Minister, and the President we have an official card too that goes out to all.  The image for those of you not from the UK is Prime Minister Gordon Brown. I'll let your read the rest.  Good news today Gary will be doing another cartoon for the Daily Star again in Jan 4th, so watch out for that BBC Politics Show work now and then. For those of you that also don't know Gary's job at the BBC credit crunched last month, yes just before Christmas so anyone needing an illustrator see here. Did you know I am Gary's unofficial agent too.

Have a great time all. If anyone wants me to email them the card Gary said that's fine just this one time only. Let me know. As for the ones in the post, I hope you receive sometime. I.O.M post, terrible service.

Thanks to anyone who has clicked Google alerts too, an unexpected little bonus.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

W - IS FOR WORKING BOATS

 Ramsey Harbour

Working boats 

As you can see we have very different weather here to most bloggers. It's either been rain, fog or an unnaturally still aura about the place. The one thing we haven't had is snow. Just as well really for the boats above moored by the harbour side wall I'm referring too, that's a real life working boat. There is also another behind out of view.  I don't usually see the boats here in the day they are usually out at sea. 

Not being a fisherman myself (or woman) by either trade or hobby I couldn't tell you what type of fish they would be fishing for, quantity, quality etc. All I know is the boats go out and then they return laden or not with goodies,  Manx kippers of course and scallops. Well for now anyway. The Scallop Industry on the island is going through a credit crunch which you can read about here that may scupper scallop fishing in the future. So those boats may be at rest a lot longer than the short time I had to take their image. 

In case you are wandering what Manx kippers and Queenie scallops taste like well to be honest 

I couldn't tell you. I'm a veggie but Gary's not. Well he is from Fleetwood and they used to have even more fisherman than the island. What occupation is suffering due to the credit crunch in your area.

More abc's see Mrs Nesbitt, the hostes with the mostest

The Barker christmas card will be posted tomorrow.