A Duck's Diary from the Jinney Ring Craft Centre

Just some of the stuff that I see here!



Monday 23 August 2010

A really Blue day!!

It was the second Jinney Ring Blues Festival on Saturday (21st) and quite a day it was....

The garden was pretty busy in the three days running up to the festival with marquees going up, beer arriving and mowing all going on but, as Saturday came closer, there there was growing concern about the black clouds over the Malvens!  The, apparently well known, adage from these parts was heard several times "If you can see clouds over the Malvern's it is going to rain - if you can't - it is raining already!!"

Saturday morning dawned and we ducks could not see the Malvern hills - it was like we were inside the cloud, and it was raining!.  Never-the-less work continued and more marquees went up, a trailer with bales of straw arrived and it was clear that the Festival was going to happen.  As the morning passed and the festival gates opened the real stalwarts arrived, some in wellies, all with coats and umbrellas - there was a really good spirit in the air!

"Pete-the-Wagon" turned up in his shorts, (clearly an optimist) - his two girls helped the team finish off the preparations on the site as Pete set up (see below)

"Pete the Wagon" - An old fashioned wheel rite from Stratford,  restores these lovely old wagons and makes mushrooms!


Gloomy over the Malverns - but at least we could see them at this point!
Happily the weather brightened up considerably in the afternoon and we saw no more rain until just before the end of the evening.  There were six great bands playing during the day covering a terrific range of music - one band had a harmonica player leading the music!  There was plenty of beer, lots of food including Chef Shirley's homemade burgers and kebabs on top of the normal suppers and lunches.

Despite the damp it was a really good spirited occasion and at the end of the evening there was dancing and some pretty "happy" folk.  We ducks thought it best to stay on the water for most of the time but we did get a pretty good view throughout the event.  Surprisingly the baby ducks asked to go to bed (in their cage) at about 6pm and slept through most of the evening!.

Simon "Honeyboy" Hickling - quite a harmonica player!
Some chilled out, some chilly! The sun was out most of the afternoon and it was warmish - honest!
Andy Ford of Hanbury band "Reflections" enjoying the day with family and friends
Many of the visitors stayed over in campers or tents, they were rewarded by a beautiful day on Sunday and had breakfast in the farmhouse restaurant.  "The Big Blues Tribe" Band leader and organiser Oliver Carpenter of Jigsaw Community Festivals  arrived about 9:00 to start dismantling the massive tent and even as they did this the team were planning for next year!

Tuesday 10 August 2010

What a "quacking" weekend!

Our garden was extremely busy and full of some very well dressed visitors (how they walk in those heels I just don't know...) on Saturday.

A large marquee went up on the Thursday and, much to'ing and fro'ing of equipment, bottles etc went on for a couple of days and then, Saturday at about 1 o'clock, the garden was full of wedding guests closely followed by the beautiful bride and her hansom groom.    The weather was reasonably kind to them as just as they came out of church the sun appeared and stayed around until about 2.30 for photographs - most of them taken here.  At 2:30 the heavens opens and everyone went inside just in time to eat.


They had a great party in the marquee, which was decorated out in black and white and even had a black and white dance floor.  We ducks could see in through the windows but were shooed away fairly regularly when we tried to go inside!

 

We did not get to bed til late but it was enormous fun watching the antics and the outfits so we did not mind much.

On Sunday there was yet more activity on in the marquee with a Wedding Fayre - lots of exhibitors including one that brought along a bed - Premier Inn, sadly, did not bring Lenny Henry - but who knows for next year!

 


The marquee (from Hanbury Marquees) has just been taken down again and the garden is back to normal - the staff here look a bit tired, but it all went very well so they are now working hard toward the next function which is the Blues Festival on 21st August, I am told by my feathered friends that this involves another type of tent and lots more people. 

Tuesday 3 August 2010

Where has our pond gone?

We ducks have been getting increasingly concerned that water has been "evaporating" at an alarming pace on the top pond for the last couple of weeks so we were relieved to see maintenance manager Mick in his waders on Monday coming into the pond to check it out.


We have been doing our own "research" - that is scratching around at the sides of the pond and, only recently, found a bit of a hole - we all worked at it pretty diligently to expose it nicely for him to see - he did not seem that pleased though, and has now made plans to fill it in with clay later this week, there is gratitude for you!   He says that there is a much bigger job needed as the ponds need dredging and rebuilding as there is significant errosion, but this will have to wait until October - ohh what joy, plenty of mud to play in!

He also had his waders on for another reason it transpired .... the new ducklings had had their second outing out and were swimming on the bottom pond. They had gone into the thick bullrushes and were under attack from a couple of rather aggressive moorhens. Happily all ducklings survived and are once again back in their pen.

Baby Barn Owls at Arden Falconry

Plenty of children about at the moment feeding us - not doing my diet much good but very tasty!  They are also visiting the new baby barn owls at Arden Falconry which are growing fast (but are still at that very ugly stage!).  Some of them, the children that is, are also doing pottery short classes with Sophia Binney which are good fun. 

 
Final news for this Blog - we thought we had the FBI here last week - the carpark had 3 black transit vans parked up early one evening - it tuned out that Chocolate Deli were installing some airconditioning equipment, as the heat was stopping the chocolate setting properly - it is "well cool" in their unit now!