CoTT 2 House of Cards

[Marty]

8 hours ago, Bucket1 said:

Easter Monday is a little overcast but the sleep in was so good...

It's a little overcast here as well, and I can sleep in almost any day I like at my age.

The wind's turned round to the northeast, so it feels much colder than recently. Forecast is for it not to warm up again any time soon. Almost looks like spring might be deserting us for a while...

[Marty]

In  2013, Easter also fell right at the end of March, with Easter Sunday being the 31st of March. That was the year before I retired, so I spent the long weekend break hillwalking, staying in a hotel in the southwest of Ireland. I drove down Thursday evening after work, and didn't get back home until late evening on Easter Monday. In 2013, spring was very late arriving, there was still snow on the hills at Easter, and the weather was still quite cold.

On the Saturday, I summited one of my favourite mountains, Mount Brandon on the Dingle Peninsula in County Kerry. Rising to 953 metres (3,123 feet) above sea level, legend has it that it is named after Saint Brendan (the Navigator) who, while fasting on the summit of this mountain sometime in the early 6th century AD, was visited by an angel, and experienced a vision of "a great land to the west". This led to him building a curragh (a boat made from timber covered with animal hide) and setting off on a sea voyage lasting several years, during which he encountered new lands to the west. Some believe that these lands may have been Greenland and/or the Americas, in which case he would have discovered America almost a whole millennium before Columbus.

Here's a photo of me stood by the summit cross on Mount Brandon on Easter Saturday, 2013. I think the hoarfrost on the cross gives some idea of just how bitterly cold it was at the time...

Edited April 5, 2021 by Marty
Tidying up

[Marty]

The Brendan Theme (from The Brendan Suite - Composed 1979-1980 by Shaun Davey)

 

Full suite (The Brendan Voyage: "A suite for uilleann pipes and orchestra" 40 minutes) below:

Spoiler

 

 

[Valkyrie]

[Headstall]

5 hours ago, dughlas said:

Did you forget the first posting while trying to remember where you'd hidden the chocolate?

I admit nothing.  

[Headstall]

6 minutes ago, Valkyrie said:

Um... had to google it. Happy Dyngus Day to you and all Buffalonians.  

[Marty]

 

2 hours ago, Valkyrie said:

It's also Read A Road Map Day today.
(https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/read-a-road-map-day/

You planning a road trip, Val?

 

Edited April 5, 2021 by Marty
Tidying up

[Bucket1]

3 hours ago, Marty said:

the hoarfrost on the cross gives some idea of just how bitterly cold it was at the time...

Way too cold for me

I would be at the hotel sipping hot chocolate 

[Headstall]

Happy Monday, all!  

[Headstall]

1 minute ago, Bucket1 said:

Way too cold for me

I would be at the hotel sipping hot chocolate 

12C here. The "real feel" is 16 at the moment. Brilliant sunshine.  

[Marty]

2 minutes ago, Headstall said:

Happy Monday, all!  

And you, bro.

[Bucket1]

Happy Monday Gary. I need the gentleman to keep me warm - it’s going to be a minimum of 15C tonight. I guess I could put some warm clothes on but it’s more fun with two in the bed  

[Bucket1]

2 minutes ago, Headstall said:

12C here. The "real feel" is 16 at the moment. Brilliant sunshine.  

Sunshine is good

Hmmmm 12C is colder than here but you have those hats to keep you warm.

Need the guy, no special Canadian hats here

[Headstall]

10 minutes ago, Bucket1 said:

Happy Monday Gary. I need the gentleman to keep me warm - it’s going to be a minimum of 15C tonight. I guess I could put some warm clothes on but it’s more fun with two in the bed  

He's all yours, B.  

[Marty]

36 minutes ago, Bucket1 said:

4 hours ago, Marty said:

the hoarfrost on the cross gives some idea of just how bitterly cold it was at the time...

Way too cold for me

I would be at the hotel sipping hot chocolate 

One of the challenges I had set myself around 2013 was to stand on the highest point of all 32 counties on the island of Ireland. So, on the  Easter Monday of that weekend trip to the southwest of Ireland, I decided to climb Knockboy which, at 706 metres (2,316 feet) above sea level, is the highest point in County Cork. Actually, I had set out to do it on Easter Sunday but, after a hair-raising six or seven mile (10 kilometre, or so) drive down a narrow switchback single track road with grass growing up the middle of it, and often steep drops on either side, I got to the start point and stepped out of the car into a howling gale, and a mist that had come down leaving almost zero visibility. I wisely decided that the mountain would still be there another day, and got back in the car and returned to the hotel (where I possibly did have hot chocolate, Mr B).

The next day proved better, so I returned to make the climb. Here's a photograph of the summit triangulation point with my rucksack next to it:

You may notice that I had my tripod strapped to my rucksack. However the day was so cold that my fingers froze after taking my gloves off to take this photograph. So there was no way that I could have managed to assemble the tripod and attach the camera to it and set it on "Timer" to get a 'selfie' without severe frostbite setting in.

And before any of you ask whether there is any hidden meaning behind the name of the mountain (Knockboy), it's derived from the two Irish Gaelic words cnoic buí, which basically translate to yellow hill.  (Buí means yellow, and is found in many Irish place names, and is often anglicised to 'boy')

 

 

 

 

Edited April 5, 2021 by Marty
typo

[Valkyrie]

58 minutes ago, Marty said:

 

It's also Read A Road Map today.
(https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/read-a-road-map-day/

You planning a road trip, Val?

 

  

[Headstall]

I wrote a poem...

https://gayauthors.org/story/headstall/headstallsreflections/84 

 

[dughlas]

2 hours ago, Headstall said:

12C here. The "real feel" is 16 at the moment. Brilliant sunshine.  

It's a lovely spring day here. At 2pm it's 71/21°with bright Carolina sunshine. Mum and I spent the morning spreading mulch in the flower beds. About a third of the way to finished. We're doing it in "fits and starts" as my head will not tolerate a full day of it and mum's as near to 86 as she is her 85th birthday. Last week I had mulched a large shared bed between mum and a neighbor. I would do all of the mulching but mum likes doing some and it gets her out in the fresh air and sunshine.

[clochette]

2 hours ago, Headstall said:

Happy Monday, all!  

Hey my Sexy Lumberjack  looks like he need someone to warm him up

2 hours ago, Headstall said:

12C here. The "real feel" is 16 at the moment. Brilliant sunshine.  

Ugh lucky you it was barely 10°C today and the sun only made an appearance at 7pm

[Headstall]

15 minutes ago, dughlas said:

It's a lovely spring day here. At 2pm it's 71/21°with bright Carolina sunshine. Mum and I spent the morning spreading mulch in the flower beds. About a third of the way to finished. We're doing it in "fits and starts" as my head will not tolerate a full day of it and mum's as near to 86 as she is her 85th birthday. Last week I had mulched a large shared bed between mum and a neighbor. I would do all of the mulching but mum likes doing some and it gets her out in the fresh air and sunshine.

I did some mulching over the last few day too. It's partly decomposed so it's really rich. I've covered the side and front gardens over leaves I raked into the gardens. My hostas should do amazing this year... maybe the ones I damaged when I was doing the windows will catch up to the others.

I still have a half pile of mulch left but it's frozen. 

[Headstall]

5 minutes ago, clochette said:

Hey my Sexy Lumberjack  looks like he need someone to warm him up

Ugh lucky you it was barely 10°C today and the sun only made an appearance at 7pm

It's even warmer now.  

[clochette]

I've finally finished the chest of drawers. I'm very happy with the results 

 

[Marty]

3 hours ago, Headstall said:

I wrote a poem...

https://gayauthors.org/story/headstall/headstallsreflections/84 

 

And a damn good one as well!

[Marty]

3 hours ago, dughlas said:

I would do all of the mulching but mum likes doing some and it gets her out in the fresh air and sunshine.

Good for mum!

Tell her I said hello.  

[Marty]

3 hours ago, clochette said:

Ugh lucky you it was barely 10°C

Ugh! Lucky you!

It only reached about 5°C/41°F here, but felt like 0/32 with the bitter north-easterly wind blowing.

Currently 2°C/36°F with real feel of -3/27. Expected to get several degrees lower overnight...