My Love Is Like A Red, Red Rose

Sky over Somerset Levels; Jane Coleman

Cumbrian Beck: Eleanor Culliford

Old Tidal Mill; Gillian Cole

Dear esteemed readers, apologies for yet another vanishing act. I’ve been super-busy; as you can see Alara products have all been repackaged, and I’ve added 3 new products: Rose Geranium*Myrrh facial oil, Lavender*Sandalwood facial oil, and Palmarosa*Frankincense facial oil. I’ve also been wrapping up at work to prepare for taking time off; I just returned from New York, more of which anon. The website is also being updated. Apart from that, I’ve been doing nothing in particular 🙂 I was absolutely exhausted by the time I travelled, hence the lack of posts. This post should have gone up just after the bank holiday. My lovely niece and I had a blast in Somerset that weekend. First up was a visit to an exhibition of work produced by the Combe Florey Art Circle in Bishops Lydeard. The quality of the work was a pleasant surprise although I had a feeling that it would be good – Jane Coleman (or the cloud guru as I like to call her) is a friend whose work I like very much. Examples of their work will be featured in this and upcoming posts. If you wish to invest in some good artwork, get in touch with them at Combe Florey Village Hall, Combe Florey, Taunton, TA4 3JD. Tel: 01823-432442. There are some excellent pieces that can be purchased for the same price as a mediocre print in London. They also had some luscious-looking cakes, but that is by-the-by; my critical integrity has not been compromised, we didn’t have time to stop for cakes.

Thorn tree; Chalice Well, Glastonbury

Menu@Macho Berry Cafe, Glastonbury

Citrine earrings, Silver Scene, Glastonbury

Next stop was Glastonbury. This was my third visit, and no, the all-too-elusive Excalibur was nowhere to be found. Drat, double drat, and triple drat. I still expect to be crowned as the once-and-future king, gender be damned. It’s only a matter of time. Slight digression; my niece instinctively called a female Arthur, Arthurina, just as I had. Nature or nurture? Whichever, genetics is a wonderful thing.

I nearly killed myself staggering up the Tor, and I went the so-called ‘easy’ way this time. I am ridiculously unfit. It was hilarious watching the little children skipping up the hillside, well, like kids, really 🙂 while their red-faced parents gasped for breath like fish out of water. Some were even struggling to breathe coming down the hill, which was a bit much! The view was worth it, as usual. The whole of Glasto is amazing. I wish I could have seen it when the levels were covered with water- Ynys Wydryn, the Glass Isle. That would have been a sight worth seeing. We also went to Chalice Well which was as peaceful as always, and yes, I did drink the water. If the Holy Grail is buried there, then obvs, I will partake of the water from that spring. I also walked in the offrun of the Vesica Piscis for about 30 seconds before I had to get out; I’ve never been in such cold water my entire born life and I’ve paddled in the North Sea, fool that I am. This was despite the ambient temperature being in the upper 20s. Forget Excalibur. If you can bathe in that water for 2 minutes, you should be crowned king or queen. Yikes.

We also looked at the Christmas Thorn tree which flowers biannually at Christmas and Easter, apparently unlike other such trees which only flower once a year. I love this legendary stuff. But is it just a legend?………. We’d been to buy plants earlier for my rejuvenated garden so we were high on the smell of sap and pollen. More prosaically, thank God for antihistamines! We wrapped up by wandering around the town. My niece got very excited at ‘Burns the Bread’. Yep, weirdo Londoners. She bought what felt like 40 kilos of bread, and a Glastonbury pasty. She wanted to know what made it a Glstonbury pasty. I told her that it was a pasty made in Glastonbury. When she asked the lady at the counter, she was told exactly the same thing, but with a bit of Glasto magic added 🙂 It was delicious BTW. I was more enamoured of the beautifully-made Citrine earrings in the window at the silver shop. We wrapped up with an amazing waffle & coltted cream ice cream combo at Mocha Berry cafe. I loved the ‘Executive’ dish on the menu. Glastonbury? Well worth a visit. Don’t forget to look at the Combe Florey Art Circle paintings. Toodle pip.