TI'S THE SEASON TO BE MERRY

.Angels from the realms of glory

Hi everyone.. greetings.
   This year we spent Christmas we spent with two very dear friends, and yes we enjoyed a full traditional Christmas lunch, they enjoyed themselves so much they want to spend New years eve and day with us, {must be gluttons for punishment} but now I am getting ahead of myself.
On Monday we decided to go to Riga to find a shop that we had been recomended by a friend where we might find some pepermint essence and red food colouring,{needed for pink coconut ice} no problem finding the shop it as it was on our side of the city,it was an Aladin's cave of all things cooking and catering. From spices to foil dishes, dessicated coconut to coffee machine's, a cash and carry open to the public,did they have the one thing we most wanted ! not a drop!!, peppermint essance is just something Latvians don't do. But all the same a very useful place to go
Tuesday 20th we joined with 30 or so folk for a trip to the theatre in Riga  to see a Christmas show, the theme was a christmas visit to all of the EU countries with a song or carol from each one, and it was very entertaining and the dozen or so performers did Great Britian proud with a rendition of 'Deck the hall with boughs of holly, fa la la la,la la la la, and others. The theatre holds about 1500 people and would you believe it the man in front of Valerie and me was an English man

Ten or so days ago when I wrote my last offering I said we would be off to the forest to collect our Christmas tree, so last Wednesday  we set off with the dog to the forest, and it was a little like choosing wallpaper, the conversation went a little like this 'here's a nice one'    'perhaps over here there's a better one'  ' that ones a bit lop sided' ' how about this one?' 'no maybe if we go on a bit there may be a better one' If anyone was watching  it was just like choosing anything where there is a large choice In the end I did the only thing a wise man would do in any situation like this. 'Valerie I said you choose and I will cut it down' so that's what we did,so armed with what we thought was the right shape, size and overall correctness we headed back to the car. ' While we are out lets drive on a bit and give the dog a nice run' I said and we duly headed deeper into the forest, now the road we were on was a little used onewhich is usually no problem but all was well. The loggers had been about and there was only one place where the Mazda slipped a bit so all was well. Lilya loved the run through the woods and then we headed back to the car and home. 'Lilya's had a good run, be nice to get back in the warm and have a cup of tea and a slice of cake,' was the comment I made as we set off, my line of travel was just a tad off, as we reached the dodgy bit of road and as we got to the middle of this patch, the wheels started to spin and we ground to a halt while the wheels continued to spin, Ground to a halt is the correct term in our situation as the car settled down comfortably on its belly, AND WE WERE GOING NO FURTHER!!!!!!
     The words of Corporal Jones from Dads Army came to mind 'Don't panic Capt Mannering'  No worries Valerie all we need is something to give us a bit of grip and we be through it and away for that cuppa, not a dogs chance!! all I could find was some Scots fir branches which still had a few needles on them, would they help! not a bit!! they just went in the front and were spit out the back, I just couldn't find anything that would work and in a forest the size of a small county in England, how frustrating is that!!!!! whats plan B? I know phone a friend first one didn't answer, second one said it's not possible, I'm in Riga and there wasn't a third we could try. { I don't mean we only have two friends, we have many, but not close enough to help out in this situation} so we did the Latvian thing, we gave the problem some thought.
 Whilst this process was going on a young man in a 4X4 came along, 'Is there a problem here ?' he asked I felt like saying no not at all I always park my car up to it's axles in mud in the middle of the road!!!!!!! but he was so nice I didn't have the heart too.{and they just don't understand our English humour} Anyway the next question was more practical ' do you have a rope?  and maybe I can pull you out Great, two broken ropes later I had moved some 12----15 inches  but had gained an audience as a man in a white van had arrived on the scene, with hands on hips he and my would be rescuer discussed the situation as if I didn't exist.{ part of their conversation probably went something like ' see this stupid English man can't drive for toffee,should get himself a four wheel drive, what is he thinking about coming down here in a thing like that.!!!} { donations for a new 4x4 will be most welcome} But now my best buddy turned to me and said 5 minutes and he {the white van man will be back} and sure enough a Latvian 5mins {read 15} he returned with a stronger rope and another man,'well if all else fails perhaps they can push me out' By now I was just an observer watching the experts. First thing was to put the new improved stronger rope round my tow hitch, then around the bar in the 4X4 which the older man did, or thought he had, as when the towing vehicle moved off he found he wasn't connected at all!!. After a few comments by the two other Latvians all was joined correctly and the problem was sorted. 'and we were free. can I give you something for your trouble?, a drink?' I asked only to be told  'This is not necessary, it's what we do.and as the all drove off leaving Valerie and myself still in the middle of the forest but mobile once again. We decided to return via another direction which was about 15k further but much safer all round. And if you think I'm going to put a picture of me stuck in the mud well you've got a another think coming!!
Whilst all this was happening I was reminded of Jesus parable of 'The good Samaritan' So who is my neighbour?? in my case on that day it was three complete strangers who I probably will never see again. And next time I see someone who needs help I hope I might be a neighbour to them. Somewhere in there is a lesson for us all.
By the way the cup of tea and slice of cake we planned tasted all the better after our adventure in the forest, even if it was an hour and a half late.
A stand was made for the tree which Valerie decorated and it looked very festive along with tinsel, Christmas cards, baubles bells and other decorations our sitting room looked very cosy.

.Not sure if attractive is quite the right word.

The Friday before Christmas was the school party/ concert,{ yes the children and teachers were there right up to the 23rd} with the children putting on a show of singing,dancing poetry and a short play followed by none other than Father Christmas complete with his very attractive fairy helper

             

.A happy sing along

.Everyone loves Santa

.I think someone has eaten to much dinner             

 Everyone has to greet Santa with some small song, poem or performance we were joined by the children we teach in a wonderful rendition of 'Head and shoulders knees and toes' Santa loved it and we were duly rewarded with two bags of mini Dime bars,


Then all to soon the party was over and one last day of school before holiday time, yes children and teachers had to be in school right up to Christmas eve. and the teachers were back on the 26th getting ready for the new year.
Talking of which is as I type this only 4 hours away, and we will see the New year in with our friends Sandra and Egil deep in the forest, but that's a story for the first blog of 2012.

It just remains for me to wish you all where ever you are a peaceful and God Blessed New Year.

WILL IT OR WON'T IT ? {that is th question}

Just a reminder of what snow is like.

Yesterday we were told it might snow for Christmas, but then who knows about these things? this is a typical Latvian comment, the other very popular saying is-- and this is accompanied by the shrug of the shoulders ' I don't know' try getting a straight answer from the kids, and you are rewarded with 'maybe' it gets a little frustrating when all you want is a straight answer to a straight question eg Would you like a cup of tea,, a sweet,, a cold drink,,a biscuit or a million other things. Reminds me of customers from Melksham they couldn't make up their minds either but that's another story. But back to the subject of snow, you know that white stuff we were moaning about eight months ago. Apart from some cold and frosty mornings we so far have been very lucky { some friends to the east have had a light sprinkling}we've not seen any snow so far {sod's law will determine tomorrow when we wake up the place will be covered in it}

Just a card roll and a bit of crepe paper simple!!

       Well anyway theres not a lot we can do about the weather,so, swiftly moving on. this week we were in full production mode making the sweeties for the pensioners party,and as with most things we seem to do theres always something extra so it was mince pies for everyone and a candle for the table, each holding a mandarin orange.
One of the nicest things about life here is the fact that however small a thing might be people do not look down there noses but are happy with the simplest of things. At this time of the year one can get so caught up with the commercial side of things that we loose sight of the simpler things that bring so much enjoyment. Yes here in Latvia we see the start of the season turning into a knees up for the shop keepers, but it doesn't start until halfway through November unlike the UK when Christmas things start to appear in what? August!!! Even today I read on Facebook someone has seen 'mini eggs' on sale still the great god Tesco or ASDA must be fed otherwise their wrath will fall and food supplies will cease. Heaven forbid!!!!

Our table.

Better get of my soap box now, and back to the party. It is so nice to join with our pensioner friends and we know that a seat will be saved for us should we be a little late.We seem to have fallen in with our own special group and always share the same table. A table I hasten to add that is always laden with home made apple cake, pies and savouries,which this year included mince pies and quiche,and as always the odd bottle of home made moonshine,'hic'and this years sample was a very fine brew { not that I'm an expert in any way shape or form, I just tried it 'for medicinal purposes only you understand} the first impression was 'by golly this would make a very fine paint stripper' but it did warm the cockles of your heart. With a warm glow all around, or perhaps just in my head, we settled down for the entertainment. To start there was a dance performed by the small children from school. They were a joy to watch and the expressions on each face made it all the more enjoyable.

The girls were able to show off their pinafores a new addition to their outfit, these were paid for out of a gift given by the choir 'Con Brio' and I am sure you will agree they look very pretty in them. The afternoon continued with musical items poetry and even a 'belly dancer' life is full of surprises. I'm told she was very good but again what do I know about these things??? Valerie said my eyes were popping out like organ stops, but you can't believe everything she says can you? After the subdued lighting was removed the, adult dancers had there opportunity to show off a couple of new dances

This was followed by what could only be called a Latvian version of a pantomime, most enjoyable to watch but difficult to explain, it involved an old couple who it seemed adopted a porcipine{or hedgehog }who played with the pigs,but was just waiting for the beautiful princess to find him and restore him to the handsom prince he once was. Well I think that was the gist of it there was a king and two sisters? and a court jester in there somewhere. The porcupine/hedgehog was played by the school's principal, oh what a gem she is!!!!!,she also played the part of santa's fairy helper, and really kept him in his place,, especially when the belly dancer was performing!!!!.

Just you behave yourself or I'll tell your wife!!!!!

    But like all good things it had to come to an end, we finished with Santa giving small gifts to each pensioner {remember the box's from last week, containing coconut ice and peppermint creams} and a time of comunity singing accompanied by a young man playing a piano accordian, and the we drifted of into the sunset in a warm rosy glow, {in our dreams} it was cold ,wet and dreary, but with a snifter of home made brew we were at least warm inside 'hic hic' I think it could be summed up by saying, 'A good time was had by all'
 Whats on the agenda for this week, well !!!!!!   we have a leak in the front of the house and which was  down the sitting room wall, so that MUST,  be fixed,also logs to bring over from the barn or we will go cold, and bits still to do in the garden, we have another film night for the teenagers {with pizza}and this week we will go and choose our christmas tree from the forest. oh !! so many to choose from,,,,,,,,every home in Stelpe is allowed a tree  from the Stelpe forest..
Will it snow???,,,,,, 'I don't know,  mmmmmm,,,,,,maybe' !!!!!we shall just have to wait and see won't we?


.

LIFE CAN BE VERY SWEET

First things first. How many nuts does a mouse store for winter??? I'm sure that you all want to know who won the competition !!!! No???-------- Because of the lack of entry's the competition was declared null and void. Sorry to disappoint you all, but for the two of you who did respond the answer is 548, yep I counted every one that little cache held that many hazelnuts.
                                                                                                                    
Tis finished !!!  the showers done ,,,looks good and  thanks to our local motor mechanic  [ he really is]   who made our custom built shower curtain rail,,now all tried and tested   and I can report ,it all works very well,    ,we are now thinking of selling tickets and having conducted tours,      Our friend Barbara sent us some bluebell bulbs{12 for which we are very grateful } the other day and we are carefully planing where to put them,, would they be good in the orchard ? or better under the Hazel nut trees ?and then again maybe under the apple trees in the front lawn decisions decisions, oh dear, my head  hurts better have a lie down.

Say it with flowers

There are not many things {apart from family} we miss about England but a good tasty Cheddar cheese and bluebell woods would probably come pretty near the top of the list if we had to make one. Another thing in Barbara's parcel was indeed a block of welsh cheddar, and !!! Oh  boy !!!   did it taste good,!!!!     Under the cheese and bluebells was a copy of the Daily Mail, , another thing we don't really miss  ,, all the depressing news in it,,,

Made it to the frontpage of the local paper

If you remember in last weeks blog I mentioned ' The official envelope' well as mentioned we were invited to the Independence Day celebration and it went like this----
We arrived at about ten to seven thinking we would be OK for a seat only to find the hall packed solid with more people arriving by the Minute, it seemed all the seats were taken so it was standing room only, great ,!! but these concerts only last about two hours so we should be fine. The frustrating bit was that as more folk came in it seemed they wanted to get a better view and just stood in front of us,being reserved English gentle folk ,of course ,,,,we did the right thing and took a step backwards only to allow more people to push in front.We were just resigning ourselves to hearing and not seeing it all,,, when the principal of Stelpe school came pushing through the crowd ,,,,grabbed Valerie's hand and said you come with me. No! no! no!, we are OK here,,,,  but she insisted we follow her. Now have you ever had that feeling that everybody is watching you ,,well we did at that moment, she took us right up to near the front of the hall and in her best principals voice said 'you sit here'  {and don't move}

Our award which now sits proudly in our sitting room

yes teacher Dagmara. and so we sat, had a smashing view of the entertainment which started with a choir of youngsters who's age must have ranged from 7 to 16 they sang a couple of songs and then the leader of Vecumnieku novada {district} with his second in command ,presented certificates,and bouquets to various members of the community ,, this was followed by Vecumnieki choir 'Via Stella' who sung a cappella. This was then followed by more awards, the two choirs then joined and sang again, and then left the hall. By this time the temperature in the hall had risen to just a bit above comfortable,, then came a  third set of awards, we now found out why we had been taken from the back of the hall ,to sit near the front, our names were read out,and we had also been given a certificate and a beautiful bouqet,  in the Latvian colours     and  friends from the village came forward and added  more gifts of flowers to our arms which were already filled ,,,,,, it was a most moving experience as there must have been 300 people present. To have been chosen by people in the village, and shown the appreciation of the whole area, is quite a humbling thing. The wording on the certificate goes something like this,----
 Honorary certificate, for patronage and selfless involvement of public life by promoting rural life in the Stelpe parish.

home made gift box's

peppermint creams and coconut ice

The time for Christmas celebrations is almost upon us once again and our calendar is getting quite full, we kick off with the pensioners party on the 3rd and we are preparing small gifts for everyone this year the Stelpe Kitchen is making peppermint creams dipped in dark chocolate and vanilla and chocolate coconut ice tastefully presented in gift box's and all home made. We did make fudge but it was so good we ate it all.

English Liquorice allsorts made in Holland!!!!

One great find we made this week when shopping in Bauska, we now have a shop that sells everything from Q tips to W D 40, bicycle's to toilet rolls, yes and now liquorice allsorts, {made in the Netherlands} Is nothing made in England anymore??????

Not quite Basset's but very acceptable,,, Sunday Club,, well,!!  it  should  at 10.30  but it seem that however hard we try to impress this on the children's minds we make no impression at all, last week at 9.15 there was a knock on the door and when opened  a little girl of seven called Viktoria greeted me with a very wide smile and 'good morning Roger Sunday club'?? perhaps next time she will get the time right.  we have no club this week, due to our second 'Kids church' on friday, 
So we see our days are made up of precious moments which make life sweet , maybe they contain a lot of sugar or maybe they are just as this weeks blog show being appreciated for just doing what we consider ordinary day to day things. Life here in Stelpe continues to be good.

WHO SAID 13 IS UNLUCKY!!!!!!!

 As I sit at the table writing this blog, not only is it remembrance day it's also our wedding anniversary.

The happy couple

            I've got a pal,
A reg'lar out an' outer,
She's a dear good old gal,
I'll tell yer all about 'er.
It's many years since fust we met,
'Er 'air was then as black as jet,
It's whiter now, but she don't fret,
            Not my old gall

We've been together now for forty six years,
An' it don't seem a day too much,
There ain't a lady livin' in the land
As I'd "swap" for my dear old Dutch.

I guess the words of this old song say it all,and silly as they may seem to some I don't think I swap Valerie for anything, and who would have thought all those years ago we would be living in Latvia, most of us hadn't even heard of it then.
It's interesting to look back over our life together and see just where our path has gone,You know just about everything we have done right the way through our married life, is now coming in very useful, from me working for a Sussex firm of agricultural engineers, to Valerie being trained by Dr Barnardo's as a house mother.  Now we find ourselves teaching two classes of children English,having a Sunday club in our home, helping run a christian club for children in school once a month and this week opening our home to a group of teenagers for a film evening. When we first moved here we said that life was an adventure with God, and who knows what He has in store for us down the line.
 Anyway back to the news from Upes Iela

Not sure if they were ok to eat!!!!

It's been an interesting week this week, Monday found me stripping out our shower, no matter how much acrylic sealer you use it seems that water always finds it's way past it.I always hated having to seal round baths when I was working, instructions dictate that you remove all the old sealer and make sure the surfaces are clean and dry and then re-apply new silicone, if you have ever tried to dry between the bath and wall behind the taps, or at the back of a shower with the shower head dripping down your neck you will understand why it was on my list of least favourite jobs. Anyway our shower had been leaking for some while and now was the time to attack the problem. The removal was quite simple as when I installed it I used stainless steel screws as you would, and after breaking the seal against the walls out it came,revealing a huge black fungus covered area, and yes horror of horrors mushrooms growing under the shower tray.Wall tiles were next, and when removed complete with pieces of chipboard attached we had a hole about 24''X30''which had rotted away,

One of many loads of rubbish

This has been replaced and now covered with waterproof boards. The hardest job of all though was breaking through the concrete floor which is over a foot thick, blood sweat toil and tears come to mind. I had everything but the tears. Some wise ---- once said 'it's all in the preperation' he was some wit who had never got his hands dirty, still the preparation is done now and I have started to assemble the new shower,
Historians tell us that most of the great pyramids were built by people carrying loads on there shoulders in baskets like my modern equivalent above,{Valerie wouldn't let me take my wheelbarrow indoors and besides getting it up the steps was not an option} well if it is true they certainly earned there crust and must have had muscles to match. Next weeks blog should show the finished job, meanwhile with no shower the deodorant can is taking a bit of a bashing.
In between building works this week has included, trips to Riga for floor tiles and taps, Ieceva for boards and panelling, and Bauska for other bits and bobs. Bauska was not a planned trip but we found ourselves with a distraught neighbour on our doorstep asking if we could take her to the vet's as her cat was very sick and needed treatment as soon as possible, happy to oblige we shot of at a rate of knots and all ended well.
Checking the post box on our return I found a very official letter waiting, It was from Vecumnieku novada Dome {the equivalent of local government office}. Now tell me this why is it when we get an official looking letter we always think the worst what do they want? how much is it going to cost this time etc etc,so it was a nice surprise to find a personal invitation to the local Latvian Independence Day concert on the 18th of November, sent by the head man himself no less { still makes me think What does he want} read next weeks blog to find the answer.
Talking of blogs you only have 7 days to get your answers in to last weeks competition.
On the 11th we had a torchlight parade through the village finishing at the school where  songs were sung, poems read and memories told remembering the Armistice of 1919, this was followed by a concert in the school hall performed by soldiers from the Latvian army,and boy,, could they sing.

How are the mighty fallen

I'll finish this week with a little chicken story. Now chickens must be the most stupid birds of all, I think God must have forgotten to give them a brain.
We have a magnificent speckled grey rooster who will insist in flying over the wire {oh yes we have clipped his wings}and strutting around the garden as if he owned the place,As the children were getting ready to leave Sunday club today we looked out of the kitchen window to see the ground covered with feathers.There was no sign of his lordship just feathers and more feathers. We all searched the garden only to find our neighbour tying up his dog which had got loose and apparently he had made off with our chicken!!!!!![or so we all thought],, Stupid bird if it was daft enough to fly over the fence the he had to face the consequences,anyway we have another cockerel to replace him. As the children left somewhat subdued,, a cry went up 'here he is we've found him' and sure enough in amongst the herbaceous plants looking very crestfallen and sorry for himself was our bird. He is now back with his ladies and we hope he has learned his lesson {with no brain not much hope of that}

looking very sorry for himself.

The moral of the story well -----

 Pride goeth before a fall






PS Valerie say's she doesn't appreciate being called an 'old gall' so I told her it's the sentement that counts, not the words, and I'm sticking to that!!

THIS WEEK FROM MOUSE TO PIG

I'd like to start this weeks blog with a competition. It has a real prize for the winner!!!! The question is how many nuts does a mouse have. Naughty naughty!!! we won't even go down that road. Whilst working in the garden the other day tidying up for the winter and working my way through the compost heap, I came upon these. Some small mammal had been so busy hording hazelnuts for it's winter stash. Now I know Cadburys take 'hazelnuts whole hazelnuts and cover them with chocolate' but this little mouse had hidden them deep inside my compost heap, I couldn't pass up the opportunity and thought,  I feel a competition coming on.So the question is how many nuts were in this store? Yes I did count them and have the answer in a sealed envelope locked in a safe place, I just hope I can remember where I put it. NOW FOR THE PRIZE. The winner will receive, one weeks free accommodation at the five star (*****) resort of 13 Upes Iela, yes completely free of charge, { conditions do apply}and no it is not 'timeshare'.

 

                 Answers must be received by the 20th of November 2011.

In my PS. last week I mentioned that we were off to see a show in Riga this week so here is the full report.
  Valerie is a fan of Radio Skonto, one of Latvias most popular radio programs, and while listening to it the other day she caught the name of  an American gospel quartet,who we listen to each week on a Swedish TV channel. Checking it out on the Internet she found that they would be at the Riga Kongress hall on the 1st of November, tickets could be bought online,so here was an opportunity not to be missed. With my birthday just passed, our wedding anniversary next week and Valeries birthday due shortly, we could roll these up together with Christmas,and with a McDonalds { last of the big spenders} meal give ourselves a present we could enjoy.
Booking tickets online is supposed to be a simple task, and finding the sight to do it was, but that was when it all started to go downhill and fast.
Step one check out the seating plan and choose seats,  check
Step two place order, check {sorry the seats you require are not available, I know I just chose them and booked them}!!
Step three go back to step one.!!!
Sorry connection broken!!!!!!!!
Step four return to booking site and go through steps one and two again!!!!!!!!!!
Sorry  your Gmail log in has expired you need to log in again,!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and so it went on but eventually I had successfully booked,paid and printed tickets.

Erni and Signaturesound in Riga on Tuesday

 The good thing about the whole saga was it prompted me to phone our Internet providers and ask them to check if we had any problems with our modem {think that's what it's called} anyway it's the box that sits outside with a sticky up bit on it} Bearing in mind this was Saturday morning Janis the boss said he would have someone come to see us, no not next whenever we have someone available but within half an hour, true to his word an engineer was with us, he checked,  fiddled and did what engineers do I guess and Bingo!!! we now have Internet that is working well. As we rely on things like email,Facebook and Skype to keep in touch with family and friends this is a real blessing, and one of the things we take for granted until it goes wrong.
But I digress, back to our trip to Riga, the good thing about booking when I did was we didn't have a long wait, so Tuesday saw us all dressed up with somewhere to go. We have found the best way to approach Riga is on the tram and with this in mind we drove to the outskirts of the city and boarded the number seven tram, which would take us  the central market  and just a short walk from McDonalds.

The central market Riga

 Here you see the market {according to Wickapaeda} the largest market in Europe housed in five Zeppelin hangers it's a virtual Aladdin's cave. We were not looking for gold or treasure but something much more mundane, ground cloves and allspice, try as we might we have been unable to find these two in the supermarkets here, would we be lucky? As Latvians would say 'but of coarse' and sure enough there it was on display with dozens of other spices, 100g of each plus another find glace cherries cost us the princely sum of 82 santimes, and we were on our way, for the per show dinner. Five minutes walk away found us in McDonald's. The last of the big spenders that's me, a fifteen  minutes walk and we were at the venue with plenty of time to spare.
The concert was just the best ever and with about a 1000 others we enjoyed almost two hours of  music of all shades from very loud up to date ear splitting gospel music to soft gentle four part harmony old and new songs all performed with feeling. As the concert came to an end the group performed a piece and encouraged the audience to join in and as we all sang they left the stage, this we found to be a very moving time, we were then treated to an encore to bring the show to a close. Everone  rose from their seats and started to move twowards
As we left we found the whole group of singers and musicians in the foyer waiting to say hello,sign cd's tickets or whatever and shake hands or have a hug, in Valeries case two hugs from the man himself.
 Walking out into a clear cold night. As the trams run until midnight took a romantic stroll through the park, the way the trees have been lit and the autumn leaves still hanging on them made it look really lovely as we made our way  back to catch  tram .The Autumn leaves and the lighting A great end to a great afternoon and evening.We arrived home about midnight
Monday morning brought us back to earth with a bump, and a leaking shower which had be taken out and replaced, but that's a story for next week. The other highlight of the week was the purchase of half a pig,which I had to collect from the farm I had to put my butchers hat on but it is now jointed and packed away in our freezer.