PhotoHunt - Beautiful

This photograph comes with an interesting story. I posted this rose from Alnwick Gardens on my Flickr page which led to someone asking me what the rose was called. This was my response to that question:

I am waiting to see if I get a reply on what type of rose it is... In the meanwhile I thought I would check out flickr to see if someone else had posted one and put the name against it...

I had a spooky moment, travelgraham-p has posted a picture taken on the same day of the very same rose taken at almost the same angle as me!!!! The photos were taken an hour apart, how weird is that?

I had emailed Alnwick Gardens to see if they could help me with the name. The Asst. Head Gardener came back to me very quickly with the following response:

The rose is 'Just Joey' and is a hybrid t which can be pruned in late winter to about 10 inches. It has a lovely perfume and repeat flowers well!

For more PhotoHunt pictures check out tnchick.

What Were You Doing When?

I saw this over at Blaney's Barney and thought it looked fun:

Princess Diana's death - 31 August 1997
I went out in the car first thing in the morning and spent the whole day in the countryside. When I got home around tea time I switched the telly on. It was a shock to say the least, I couldn't believe that I had gone all day without knowing.

Margaret Thatcher's resignation - 22 November 1990
I would have been working. I watched it on telly in the evening.

Attack on the Twin Towers - 11 September 2001
I was at work and one of my colleagues was on the phone to her husband. He was watching the telly as the news broke. She gave a little gasp and relayed the news to us. We then went down to the training wing and watched it unfold on the telly in stunned disbelief.

England's World Cup Semi-Final v Germany - 4 July 1990
I have no idea I was living on my own and sport doesn't interest me in the slightest.

President Kennedy's Assassination - 22 November 1963
Even I am a bit to young to remember that ;-)

F is for France

Well more specifically Paris, which is full of hidden gardens.

This first photograph, is a lovely quaint B&B called the Hotel Flaubert, it is built around an indoor courtyard garden. To get to the rooms you have to wind along the walkways and through the garden. It is a long time since I stayed there and finding this has made me want to visit again. I see they now have a funky website. Last time I booked it had to be by phone in French!

How about a garden outside Les Invalides (the French National Army museum). This view was taken from inside one of the rooms. Well what else would a girl do inside an army museum ;-)

Maybe you would just prefer a more traditional view? How about the Jardin Du Trocadero? I am sure all of you recognise this one!

Cross posted @ ABC Wednesday

Mr Linky

Defence Training Review Over Budget

The latest edition of Private Eye reports that Brigadier Geoff Nield has let it slip that the cost of the Defence Training Review programme had gone up and is now over budget.

"At a local “Stakeholders” meeting in the Vale of Glamorgan, home to a proposed new defence academy, the Ministry of Defence’s officer in charge, Brigadier Geoff Nield, let slip that the price had gone up from £11bn to £ 12bn. As the deal was slated to save the MoD just £400m at the old price, it seems the scheme will not only expose the armed forces to serious operational risks (see Eye 1213) but will actually cost the taxpayer hundreds of millions more than keeping training in-house."

Further on into the article I noticed that it mentioned that the Vale of Glamorgan's Labour MP, John Smith had told the South Wales Echo how good this would be for the Vale economy and that Private Eye had double checked this with the MoD who confirmed that the extra £1bn was not investment but a revised cost of the project.

"This is great news for the vale economy. The extra £1bn will be felt by people and businesses in the vale. It will mean that the Defence Technical Academy will inject more money into the local economy each year than previously thought."

I thought that can't possibly be right it must be a misquote. But on further investigation I found the original article on WalesOnLine. Surprisingly not a misquote, the headline is "£1bn investment boost for training academy". Somehow the bad news of the project going over budget has turned into good news.

In addition to that John Smith thinks that it would be a good idea to build a new dedicated rail stop to service the Academy in St Athan, saying it will benefit the Welsh economy and ease congestion. This will obviously add more cost to the project! And that's not all a proposed road link to St Athan could cost up to £135m of tax payers money.

Currently there are approximately 600 Civil Servants plus many military and private sector workers employed at RAF Cosford, the majority of these staff would be expected to move from Cosford to St Athan if the Metrix plans go ahead. Cosford is situated 800 meters from a motorway and already has it’s own railway station. Is it right that so much taxpayers money is needed to support the Metrix bid is surely a question that needs to be asked.

PCS members are now writing letters to the NAO to ask them to scrutinise this project which has already cost the tax payer millions in wasted consultant fees.

PhotoHunt - Wrinkled

Stretching the point but, the roses are a bit withered and wrinkled. I would have loved to have seen them in full bloom.

When you sing of the joy only love can bring
Heaven knows it's in my heart and my soul
Caught in a world full of tears
So many bad times and fears
So while there's a chance and you're near

Let's dance
Let's dance

There's a world far away from the one we see
There's a dream I will never let go
One thing is certainly true
This moment's for me and for you
So while there's not a thing that we can do

Let's dance
Let's dance

Chris Rea - Lets dance lyrics

For more PhotoHunt pictures check out tnchick.

A Bit of This and That

Last nights visit to the Italian restaurant was fun and the food was delicious. Some people came dressed up in what was supposed to be Italian costume. To me they looked more like typical Brits holidaying in Italy ;-)

Today I found out that I get to keep my job along with the other two people on my section. We were surprised 'we all' got to stay as our department merges with two others on the 1st September and some of the people on other sections are being moved all over the place to make sure there is an even spread of experienced staff.

I also found out that my eldest nephew has passed all his exams. He got 1xA, 8xB and 1xC I am really proud of him.

Finally a fun photograph for SkyWatch Friday. It was taken in Birmingham Botanical Gardens during my visit last weekend.

Little Miss Muffet sat on a tuffet
Eating her curds and whey,
Along came a spider,
Who sat down beside her
And frightened Miss Muffet away

Erddig Hall

Following yesterday's post Alwyn has kindly explained that Erddig translates as "little garden". I think it is rather a nice name, but agree that 'little' is a relative term.

The hall was built in 1684-1687 for Joshua Edisbury who was the high sheriff of Derbyshire, it was designed by Thomas Webb. In 1718 the master of the chancery sold the building to John Mellor who in time enlarged and refurbished the house. John never married so when he died in1767 the house passed to his nephew Simon Yorke. Over the years the house passed down through the Yorke family until March 1973 when it was given to the National Trust.

A few years earlier a mineshaft from the nearby Bersham colliery had collapsed and caused severe structural damage to the property. The subsidence caused was 5ft deep and required underpinning to stop the house collapsing. To enable the work to take place the National Trust were able to obtain £120,000 compensation from the National Coal Board. In addition 63 acres of the parkland were sold off which gained an additional £995,000 which paid for the restoration work of the house.

The house is completely furnished and offers a unique insight into servants’ life during the 18th and 19th centuries.

More information and a number of interesting links can be found on Wikepedia.

I will leave you with the following poem which still hangs outside the still room inside the house:

May heav'n protect our home from flame.
Or hurt or harm of various name!
And may no evil luck betide
To any who therin abide!
As also who their homes have found
On any acre of it's ground.
Or who from homes beyond it's gate
Bestow their toil on this estate!

PS: I will catch up with replying to comments and visiting you all later. I will soon be out visiting an Italian restaurant :-)