Ethel’s relatives

Ethel kept these portraits in a separate album. We have only identified a few of the people. Hopefully, in the future we will be able to discover which ones belonged to other branches of the family besides Morris and Lockyer. Surnames we have come across so far include Vernon, Coxhead, Wickingdon, Spooner and Nicholls, with [...]

Farewell to Dubya

A few weeks ago, British historian Simon Schama wrote an interesting article in The Guardian on the Bush legacy.
“The last eight years have been so rich in epic imperial hubris that it would take a reborn Gibbon to do justice to the fall.”
In case you missed it, the article can be found here.

Mum’s rattle

One of the things that Mum has kept for years is this rattle. Thanks to the Internet, I discovered that it was made in Birmingham in 1921 by the firm of Crisford and Norris. The handle is mother of pearl and the figure is made of sterling silver (it has a hallmark). A teething ring [...]

JFK in Costa Rica

A Costa Rican newspaper published an article yesterday about old photographs related to the country taken by contributors to Life magazine, a famous (now extinct) American publication that focused on photojournalism. I used to enjoy reading it in the 60s. The photos of Costa Rica have been placed on line and this one caught my [...]

Floods in Boquete

For nearly a week, the Caribbean coast of Costa Rica and Panama has been taking a pounding from the weather. Thousands of people have lost their homes and had to be evacuated. The road from David to the Caribbean is impassable and will be for weeks.
Up in the mountains, Boquete took a major hit last [...]

Panamanian trajes típicos

This month Panama is celebrating its independence. There are three independence days, all public holidays (it’s a long story).  There are lots of parades and other activities. Many women and girls don the traditional dress, which is a real work of art. My wife went to an activity the other day where many of the [...]

Arthur’s latest creation

My friend Arthur (he of the fantastic LOTR tattoo) has been busy in his workshop of late. The photo is of one of his most recent creations (in oak). It isn’t finished yet but already looks a work of art.
I wonder if Arthur is thinking of forming his own band of Rohirrim?

Dengue Fever

No, I don’t have it (although it’s not uncommon during the rainy season).
Recently I saw an edition of Later with Jools Holland on which the group Dengue Fever appeared. I find the program interesting, as it often features artists I’m not familiar with. Wiki describes Dengue Fever as “a six-member band from Los Angeles who [...]

A whole lotta shakin’ goin’ on

We were awakened by an earthquake just after 1 a.m. this morning. It registered as 6.1. That’s quite strong, the strongest I’ve felt in three years in Panama. The map – from the US government earthquake site – shows the epicenter was just off the Pacific Coast, south of the border between Costa Rica and [...]

Pearly Kings

Pearly King Jim wrote a comment under the Old photo of the York post. He claims to be the King of Bermondsey – not sure about that, though, I’d need to know more about his lineage! He sings as part of the The Barrow Boys duo and figures on various websites here, here and here. [...]