Ashleylister

LATEST ARTICLES ( 2270 )

• The Matrix - Blackhouses Village

  

  ‘Matrix – the cultural, social or political environment in which something develops.’ My first glimpse of Gearrannan Blackhouse Village on the Isle of Lewis... Read more

  Posted on 02 February 2022 BOOKS, CREATIVITY, CULTURE, SELF EXPRESSION

• Winging It!

  

  It's the RSPB's Big Garden Birdwatch week-end again, and I'm winging it, at one remove from my Blackpool garden as I've been down in London today to cheer on th... Read more

  Posted on 30 January 2022 BOOKS, CREATIVITY, CULTURE, SELF EXPRESSION

• Winging It

  

  . An interesting term conjuring ideas of air, theatre and life. Good and bad experiences come to mind, perhaps it gets easier with age but I think some people... Read more

  Posted on 28 January 2022 BOOKS, CREATIVITY, CULTURE, SELF EXPRESSION

• Winging It

  

  I have been a performer since I was seven, dancing in ballroom dancing competitions all over the UK and overseas. Often during a round of a contest, another... Read more

  Posted on 27 January 2022 BOOKS, CREATIVITY, CULTURE, SELF EXPRESSION

• Gentleman's Delight

  

  I retired in 2010. Retired- such an awful word. My daughters, big Dr Who fans said, “Daddy you haven’t retired- you have regenerated”. I’ve always gone for that... Read more

  Posted on 24 January 2022 BOOKS, CREATIVITY, CULTURE, SELF EXPRESSION

• Simple Pleasures

  

  How nice it is to please myself what I do and when I do it. Retirement is wonderful, apart from the lack of freedom we’ve had due to Covid restrictions. To be... Read more

  Posted on 19 January 2022 BOOKS, CREATIVITY, CULTURE, SELF EXPRESSION

• 10.30 Coffee Time, A Very Simple Pleasure

  

  When my dad reached his three score years and ten he must have decided that he might not have many years left, and wrote an essay on the things that gave him... Read more

  Posted on 19 January 2022 BOOKS, CREATIVITY, CULTURE, SELF EXPRESSION

• Misty

  

  Just to be different this week, let's start with a quiz. You can all join in. Ten pithy clues - some more cryptic than others - to people, places or things... Read more

  Posted on 16 January 2022 BOOKS, CREATIVITY, CULTURE, SELF EXPRESSION

• Misty - Play Misty for Me

  

  There’s something mesmerising about watching Ailsa Craig emerging from the mist. The island isn’t moving at all, but the constantly changing cloud gives the... Read more

  Posted on 11 January 2022 BOOKS, CREATIVITY, CULTURE, SELF EXPRESSION

• Witch Hazel

  

  The plant we call witch hazel (hamamelis is its official Latin designation) has nothing to do with witches, for its name derives from the Middle English word... Read more

  Posted on 10 January 2022 BOOKS, CREATIVITY, CULTURE, SELF EXPRESSION

• On The Witch

  

  The last two ‘covid years’ have afforded me plenty of time to attend to some rituals. One of these is a daily walk through a sliver of woodland known as Witch... Read more

  Posted on 07 January 2022 BOOKS, CREATIVITY, CULTURE, SELF EXPRESSION

• The Cotswold Witches

  

  I worked at an hotel in Stow on the Wold for a short time in the 1980s. One day I came across a booklet in a gift shop that told of The Cotswold Witches. Read more

  Posted on 06 January 2022 BOOKS, CREATIVITY, CULTURE, SELF EXPRESSION

• Challenging Conventions

  

  The recent screening of the BBC's big three-part betwixtmas drama A Very British Scandal , concerning the Duke and Duchess of Argyll, their turbulent marriage... Read more

  Posted on 03 January 2022 BOOKS, CREATIVITY, CULTURE, SELF EXPRESSION

• Challenge

  

  As it’s almost New Year and a time to make that resolution which next year will be a huge success, I thought I’d start off by having a quick look at where this... Read more

  Posted on 29 December 2021 BOOKS, CREATIVITY, CULTURE, SELF EXPRESSION

• Challenge - Defensive Driving

  

  For almost two years now, everyday life has brought challenges. As Covid 19 and all variants took over and made us re-think how we do things and consider... Read more

  Posted on 28 December 2021 BOOKS, CREATIVITY, CULTURE, SELF EXPRESSION

• Mementos

  

  I'm up with the Christmas robin and Ho! Ho! Ho! This is the first time in my seven years at the Saturday blog face that I've been required to post something on... Read more

  Posted on 25 December 2021 BOOKS, CREATIVITY, CULTURE, SELF EXPRESSION

• Mementos

  

  Funny thing, when I started to think about what to write on the subject of mementos, my thoughts ewre immediately drawn to a small black writing case, secreted... Read more

  Posted on 23 December 2021 BOOKS, CREATIVITY, CULTURE, SELF EXPRESSION

• This Rare Earth

  

  "Scientia potentia est" is a Latin aphorism (exact provenance unknown) most commonly translated as "With knowledge comes power". Read more

  Posted on 20 December 2021 BOOKS, CREATIVITY, CULTURE, SELF EXPRESSION

• Rare Earth

  

  "No man ever steps into the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man." HeraclitusWhat can I say on the subject of Rare Earth? Read more

  Posted on 17 December 2021 BOOKS, CREATIVITY, CULTURE, SELF EXPRESSION

• Rare Earth - Learn These Elements

  

  Every day is a school day and this morning I’ve buried myself in the equivalent of Double Science – not a favourite subject unless we’re doing biology and... Read more

  Posted on 14 December 2021 BOOKS, CREATIVITY, CULTURE, SELF EXPRESSION