Congleton and Feng Shui

Last week I attended a meeting in the Town Hall on a Feng Shui (pronounced 'fung shway'). The report was given by Simon Brown at http://www.chienergy.co.uk/ The event was commissioned and sponsored by local, national and global business person Dawn Gibbins http://www.barefoot-fengshui.com/ whose energy levels are a good advert for her beliefs. Basically her mission is to make Britain a happy, healthy and prosperous nation with Feng Shui. Congleton is to be the first ambassadour! We are certainly a happy and healthy town but perhaps with Dawn's enthusiasm we could become more prosperous. Simon presented to us what he felt about the town on a short visit and told us what we know already , but it is the first time I've come out of a meeting laughing!

You can get the report on Congleton on Dawn's website

Weddings of the year

In September my eldest son Jamie and his partner Tracy had a lovely wedding at Astbury church. Against all odds the sun shone and we all had a great time.

However they were outshone by a later wedding in Congleton in October. Check out the article in the Daily Mail.

http://www.mailonsunday.co.uk/femail/article-1081355/The-100-000-white-wedding-16-year-old-girl-lives-caravan.html

Quote from Jamie

"When Congleton makes the headlines you always know its gonna be a classic!!"

Garden Autumn colours

The leaves are falling fast and furious now and when the sun shines we have some colour left to enjoy before the starkness of winter sets in next month. The red bush is Cotinus coggria.

LATE LEAVES

The leaves are falling; so am I;

The few late flowers have moisture in the eye;

So have I too.

Scarcely on any bough is heard

Joyous, or even unjoyous bird

The whole wood through.

Walter Savage Landor

Sorry Walter - did see a wren and treecreeper in garden to gladden my heart.

West Heath detectives

Since post of 26 Oct about The Quinta House now demolished from Sandbach Rd Congleton, I have been asking my local history chums about the area. The house was built 1890/91 and called 'Highfield Lodge', then from 1902 -1914 the wealthy Miss Eleanor Faulder lived there and it was called 'The Quinta'. It was this lady who married the Rector of Swettenham and had the house built of the same name at Swettenham, now occupied by Sir Bernard Lovell.


I remember in the late 1960's the only shop in West Heath was called The Lodge, a general store located at the corner of Sandbach Rd and Heath Rd. This was a flat-roofed building which became Lennon's wine shop until the roof became unsafe and it was demolished to make way for 2 bungalows.

In Congleton library there is a map of 1911 (OS 6'' - F8/7) showing a previous lodge on this land in the same location. Also in the middle of what is now Heath Rd another building called 'West Heath House'. A map of 1938 revealed that these 2 buildings had disappeared to make way for Heath rd and Blythe Ave.

I now wonder who lived in West Heath House? Perhaps Mr Solly of Mill fame as the other road in this area is of this name.

There is a splendid book on Mills of Congleton by Mr Lyndon Murgatroyd entitled
' Mill Walks and Industrial Yarns'

Big Skies over Marton

A few years ago when I saw this newly created path round a big field whilst cycling down Messuage lane near Marton, I thought "How boring". Now I am older and not so nimble, I love this 40 minute walk and can always find something of interest. If it has been very wet and let's face it we do live in rain-soaked Cheshire this hard surface is ideal. It was created by DEFRA (Dept for Environment, Food and Rural affairs) for those with a disability and to protect certain habitats - in this place the hay meadow) . The notice says access ends in 2011 with only 2 years to go should we start campaigning now I wonder?

A couple of weekends ago I set off from the car park at Messuage Farm in an anti - clockwise direction. Visibility was good and on the eastern horizon familiar landmarks of the Gritstone trail were scanned - Shutlingsloe, Sutton bank with post office tower, The Cloud and Mow cop. Black cattle (Aberdeen Angus?) are overwintered here on the cropped hay meadow, home to lush grasses and Ox-eye daisies in the summer. A couple of skylarks were lingering overhead and a Buzzard was lurking in the wood.

Here skies are big and great for cloud spotting. After reading Gavin Pretor-Pinney's book

'The Cloudspotters Guide', looking up will never be the same again!

There is a website at http://www.cloudappreciationsociety.org/

Other than 1 memorial seat, all other seats around the field are in poor condition. However there was no time to linger today as storm clouds chased me back to the car for hot chocolate and Classic FM.

Canal walk

Last weekend I took a local walk in the sunshine along the Macclesfield canal. It was a linear route parking in a layby where the road goes over the canal at Dodds lane on the Astbury / Mow Cop road. I didn't have my camera at the ready and missed a wonderful sight of a herd of bullocks stampeding down the bank to the canal ( on opposite side !) . However I did notice they made some interesting reflections in the water together with tree in it's autumn glory.

You are never alone walking along the canal as boat owners are cheery folk but one can only exchange one - liner remarks! The boats also have interesting names like 'Why Hurry' and bits of philosophy posted in the windows. Today I spotted 'All that wander are not lost' , which I found most comforting. After a couple of miles my hot chocolate stop was by Ramsdell Hall where a stretch of Cheshire black and white railings had been recently restored. Apparently the original owner of the house had the railings installed to improve the view across the plain instead of the usual hawthorn hedge.

http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/76758 for a photo of Ramsdell Hall

This site has an article on the railing in 2006

http://adkins-family.org.uk/macclesfieldcanal/scholargreen_railings.htm

Prize Pumpkin

This is John with an enormous pumpkin, weighing in at 6 stone with a diametre of 2 foot. The plant itself spread over nearly half the vegetable garden - 11 metres long. The story is my eldest son Jamie is learning how to grow veggies and needed a courgette plant. A gardening friend donated a plant to me but wasn't sure what it was. Turned out to be said pumpkin which grew and grew - was never fed but was in a bed that had lain fallow for a few years. Jamie has the awesome task of dealing with the yellow beast!

Spooky music

I like Halloween night when all the local kids dress up to scare away the evil spirits. However this year I missed the local fun as I was out in Manchester - and there were sights there that would scare old 'Lucifer' himself. Graham and I got tickets for a 'Halloween Spooktacular' at The Bridgewater Hall. I had picked up a flyer a few weeks ago whilst at the Halle concert with a local organised group and thought how am I going to get to this concert? Well what does raise sons for if not taking their Mum out occasionally, especially as one has returned temporarily to the home nest?

We got our money's worth with the opener 'O Fortuna' from Carmina Burana - with the 100 strong Halifax Choir and The Manchester Concert Orchestra, the sound was stunning especially as we had circle seats overlooking the platform. It was Gray's first visit to the concert hall and he was impressed. Music from 'The Omen' at the end was counteracted by 'ET' for an encore. The 'ghouls' and 'girlies' thronging the streets still looked frightening at 10.30pm - I dread to think what it was like after midnight!