Ballymoney's many attractions!

As a follow on from our rapid circumnavigation of Ballymoney yesterday we (being relative newcomers to the town) noticed that the main street (no longer than the length of a good shot with a three wood) is home to no less than five butchers. Add to this another couple or possibly three and we have eight butchers serving a small market town. This does not include the temple to Mammon (aka Tesco) lurking at the bottom of the town.

We in Ballymoney may not have a lot of variety but what we do have; we have a lot of them! This also appears true of coffee shops, churches etc. I cannot in all honesty say that the town is a great destination for someone looking to enjoy haute cuisine in the evening but should you fancy a decent cup of coffee on the way to the butchers, you will be spoilt for choice!

Therefore in an attempt to get blogging on something that actually reflects the title of the blog I will endeavour to bring to the world of Blog, ‘Mortimer Recommends…’, a short series on the delights of Ballymoney. I’m not sure whether to start with something frothy and do coffee shops or try for something more meaty and do an expose on butchers or aim to be a little more uplifting and show you the religious options in the borough. After traipsing around the town researching these options I suppose the best course of action will be to do a tour of the hostelries… or maybe the best place to start?

Spring has Sprung!

Finally, after interminable months of winter weather and dark miserable days, life is returning to Norn Iron. The lighter evenings are a joy to behold. As someone who suffers from SAD Syndrome, especially during the two months after Christmas, the return of light and the first hint of warmth; is sheer joy. This last weekend the sight of the narcissi coming into bloom in the front garden and the very mild weather encouraged me to get into the garden to start the early spring tidy up.

A bonus was found in the garden shed where my stack of pots filled with tulip bulbs are starting to come to life. About half of the pots have shoots appearing above the compost and even just setting them around the patio and garden was a wonderful tonic.

After the daily drag down and back up the M2 it is great to get out and breathe the spring air. Speaking of which, the wife has agreed to join a team taking part in the relay race at the Belfast marathon to raise money for cancer charities in memory of a friend who died of the disease at the end of last year. As a somewhat reluctant fitness fanatic, I (in a moment of weakness) offered to help her get up to speed (literally) in time for May. This involved the normally relaxed Sunday afternoon lap of Ballymoney assuming a whole new character. More like a forced march, than a dander, if you know what I mean. Forty minutes to the Portrush roundabout seemed good progress to me only to be followed by a burst of speed up to the old Coleraine road and then down through the town and back across the park to give the dog one last good run. I have to admit that as I sank into the armchair the sense of wellbeing almost cancelled out the sore feet!

FOLK ACT RACHEL UNTHANK & THE WINTERSET PERFORM IN BALLYMONEY

I went to see Rachel Unthank and her band in the town hall on Wednesday last. Their music is dark and moody and perhaps not to everyones taste. They are however excellent musicians and produced a wonderfully atmospheric performance; even including some Northumbrian clog dancing to finish the first half of the evening.  As the wife was unable to go due to other commitments I attended on my own; something I quite like. Musical taste is such an individual thing that it is sometimes difficult to enjoy a gig when it becomes apparent that the other half doesn’t share your opinion. As a singleton you have the luxury to enjoy or leave early as appropriate. On this occasion leaving early would have been a mistake as the second half contained some if the best music of the night. The four girls in the band, singing unaccompanied in harmony, produced some wonderful tunes. During the interval I met Robbie Burns (not the original admittedly) a photographer and new resident in Snowdonia, finding out what the band sounded like, whilst on a visit back home. A very interesting chat during the interval included such things as the benefit of living abroad. One of my ‘soapbox’ rants when provoked, involves my theory that all Northern Irish should be sent abroad at the age of 18 and not allowed back for a couple of years. It was agreed that some exposure to the wider world would enable the local population to get their issues into perspective. As someone who loves travel I am somewhat biased in this respect but will continue to bang on about until told to shut up!

A band well worth seeing and should you want to find out more try the hyperlinks below. The following is extracted from the blurb on the leaflet advertising the event. Forging links between folk worlds old, new and other, Rachel Unthank & The Winterset have blown a bracing north easterly gale through traditional English song, casting it in an endlessly inventive and playful new mould. The geordie quartet brought their unique blend of folk to North West audiences when they stopped off in Ballymoney Town Hall on Wednesday 4 February. Subverting folk music with love and authority, Rachel Unthank & The Winterset have been heralded for their unique ability to communicate traditional music to unforgiving mainstream audiences.  Singing in their own lilting Geordie accents, they have been described by poet Ian MacMillan as the "inheritors, curators and gleeful distorters" of Tyneside's traditions and since first emerging in 2004 have gained a disparate legion of fans including Robert Wyatt, Kate Rusby, Paul Morley, Tracey Thorn, Nic Jones, Phill Jupitus and Joan As Policewoman. A modern-day girl band with an antiquated twist, The Winterset is led by Rachel Unthank on vocals and cello and features her sister Becky Unthank on additional vocals, Niopha Keegan on violin, accordion and voice and Stef Conner on piano.  Using discreetly provocative arrangements this intriguing quartet’s take on folk music is peerless, fearless and wholeheartedly brave as they fuse elements of blues, jazz, burlesque cabaret, classical and leftfield contemporary styles of music together and deliver songs inspired by old, new and imaginatively borrowed tales of booze, brawls, abuse, loss, fear, infantile death, depravity and sorrow.

For full tour information and booking details, please log onto www.movingonmusic.co.uk. For further information on Rachel Unthank and the Winterset visit www.rachelunthank.com

 

Farewell John Martyn

Just noticed on the BBC website that legendary musician John Martyn passed away this morning. Discovering his seminal album 'Solid Air' was an important moment in my own musical education. The title track was dedicated to Nick Drake and is a sublime piece of music. A lifestyle that must have put great strain on his health was also attributed with helping him produce exciting innovative music. With songs such as 'May you never' and 'Sweet Little Mystery' he has left a wonderful legacy.

Check out YouTube for clips of him in action. http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=LOi_wxypeGc

Have a look on Amazon for a copy. http://www.amazon.co.uk/

EMC 250 Motocross Memories

A new year and a bit of reminiscing with a work colleague about motorbikes led to memories of an old motocross racing bike I once owned. It was an EMC and was designed and built by a brilliant engineer call Mike Eatough. It had the longest suspension travel of any ‘twin shock’ bike of its generation. (assuming my memory is correct!) After some legal issues, subsequent bikes were produced under the Cotton EMX name.
A bit of googling produced a YouTube clip showing some examples of the bike being built. http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=gQbZiiGGTi4 Just the same as my one, well, apart from being nice and new. The earlier frame was chromed and a real work of art. Unfortunately this stiffened the frame and it tended to crack due to the forces exerted by competition. The later ones were painted and worked extremely well.
It’s nice to see engineers hand making exhausts etc, although the factory looks more ‘traditional’ than the gleaming production facilities of the big manufactures nowadays.

Ballymoney pipped by Coleraine !

A freezing cold but bright day saw the derby match between Ballymoney and Coleraine rugby clubs end in defeat for the hosts, Ballymoney. A spirited first half when they led 13-3 at the interval ended up a 13-25 defeat, much to the delight of the travelling supporters. A very noisy contingent, positioned close to entrance to the bar, entertained the considerable crowd with what they saw as pertinent advice to the referee! These earthy suggestions were interspersed with renditions of well known tunes; remarkably well sung and in tune given the bitter cold. The on board liquid heating obviously helped.

So, bragging rights have gone back to Coleraine and we will just have to wait until next season (and turn up for the second half!) to give them a good stuffing.

http://www.ballymoneyrfc.com/home.php

Victor Meldrew reporting.....

The recent installation of a walk/cycle path around Ballymoney as part of the sustainable transport initiative http://www.sustrans.org.uk/ has been in my humble opinion, a great success. It is now possible to circumnavigate Ballymoney on safe and attractive paths. This has been particularly handy during the recent freezing weather, allowing the dog to be walked in safe and mud free conditions.

However, as with all new initiatives, not all the natives seem to understand how it works, either now or for the future. As for the ‘now’ the amount of broken glass and dog pooh, especially on the path up towards the leisure centre, is appalling. Damage done to the stripwood fencing is also annoying. Given that the glass appears to be the remains of alcopop bottles, I blame that subset of our youth population who hang around swigging cheap booze. They seem incapable of showing any initiative when it comes to doing something constructive. Having said that, the dog walkers form a more mature population and as such set a very poor example to the kids by not picking the stuff up.

On a more profound level, considering the future development of the walkway, the destruction of quite a number of the young trees lining the walkway is dispiriting. The youngsters who have destroyed these trees seem to have no appreciation that it is THEIR environment they are ruining. I wonder if in fifteen or twenty years as they walk their own kids along the pathways, will they even remember that the gaps in the trees were caused by their vandalism?

Well that’s it off my chest…….

Maslow's hierarchy of needs

I remember as a Psychology student, years ago, reading about Maslow’s hierarchy of needs and wondering how long it would take to climb the ‘ladder’. Now all that seems a long time ago and strangely enough despite everything that has happened in the last few years, I seem to be able to tick off quite a few of the items.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Self-actualization
personal growth and fulfilment

Esteem needs
achievement, status, responsibility, reputation
Belongingness and Love needs
family, affection, relationships, work group, etc.
Safety needs
protection, security, order, law, limits, stability, etc.
Biological and Physiological needs
basic life needs - air, food, drink, shelter, warmth, sex, sleep, etc.

As preparation for this ‘new years resolutions’ I intend to review the hierarchy of needs to see what I need to focus on this year…. (Yes, work is a bit slow at the moment!)

It’s could be difficult to be honest about these as we all like to paint ourselves and achievements in as good a light as possible. Anyway, as I approach a significant birthday next year, let’s do a bit of self-actualizing …..

Self-actualizing characteristics

• keen sense of reality - aware of real situations - objective judgement, rather than subjective


• see problems in terms of challenges and situations requiring solutions, rather than see problems as personal complaints or excuses


• need for privacy and comfortable being alone


• reliant on own experiences and judgement - independent - not reliant on culture and environment to form opinions and views


• not susceptible to social pressures - non-conformist


• democratic, fair and non-discriminating - embracing and enjoying all cultures, races and individual styles


• socially compassionate - possessing humanity


• accepting others as they are and not trying to change people


• comfortable with oneself - despite any unconventional tendencies


• a few close intimate friends rather than many surface relationships


• sense of humour directed at oneself or the human condition, rather than at the expense of others


• spontaneous and natural - true to oneself, rather than being how others want


• excited and interested in everything, even ordinary things


• creative, inventive and original


• seek peak experiences that leave a lasting impression

The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas

We went to see the film ‘The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas’ at the weekend. It is a well made movie (adapted from the book by John Boyne) and showed how the innocents can be caught up in nightmare scenarios such as the holocaust. The intimate personal nature of the film enthralled the audience in a way that a big noisy blockbuster can not. The effect was most pronounced at the end when, along with the rest of the audience, my expectation as to how the movie would end was proved wrong. The stark simplicity of the ending had a profound effect on the audience. Quite a lot of the credits had rolled before the first person stood up. It seemed almost disrespectful to move given the ending and total silence pervaded the theatre. I don’t think even Schindler’s List had the same effect despite being a much ‘bigger’ film.

http://www.thefilmfactory.co.uk/boy/

Ballymoney Artist takes flight...

After experiencing a bit of a posting drought recently, my ‘blogger’s block’ appears to have been eased by local artists and their exhibitions. When the routine of the daily commute gets in the way of savouring life, action is needed. This is particularly pertinent today as the normal Friday surge in morale is being countered by an unusually strong feeling of pessimism. The shortcomings of my current employment are rather too evident at the moment. I may moan a lot but would consider myself as someone who generally looks on the bright side, so having a downer on a Friday worries me. A fundamental tenet of my philosophy on life is the need to achieve a good life-work balance. At the moment this is not happening. The daily, 47 mile drive to work is becoming tiresome. The road works at Glengormley appear to be getting a bit closer to their conclusion; but not quick enough. I figured out that the daily delay there alone, wastes the time equivalent to that needed for one round of golf, each week. Nuff said.

On a more positive note it has come to my attention that someone I haven’t seen in years has made a bit of an impact in the Art world. Her name is Sharon O’Reilly and we shared a house for a while in Belfast; strangely enough I now live just round the corner from where she grew up in Ballymoney. Having gone back to university and graduated with an honours degree in fine art she has now used her experience working in the caring services to produce a work of art involving a range of people who are disadvantaged in different ways.

This is in keeping with my recollection of Sharon who was and presumably still is a very caring person. I remember being in the car, driving across Belfast one spring evening when she noticed a great swathe of daffodils at the side of the road. On a whim she decided her ‘old ladies’ (she was working in a care home at the time) would love a bunch of flowers and asked me to pull over. Quite a few minutes later she reappeared with an enormous bunch of daffodils which she proceeded to dole out to the ladies in her care. They were delighted. Typical of Sharon. To have a look at her installation visit the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum at Cultra, Holywood, just outside Belfast. For a preview, visit the UFTM website and have a look. http://www.uftm.org.uk/learning/The_Spirit_of_Flight_Public_Art_Project/

If you are visiting NI and looking for an excellent day out, it’s worth considering the Folk and Transport museum. The kids will love it as there is plenty of space. The village, created using actual buildings from around the country which have been dismantled and rebuilt on the site, is a great way to experience the way we used to live.