Blogs

Siobhan won the "Most Outstanding New or Emerging Artist" award at the South Australian Folk Awards.

Thank you to all who voted for her

When I was at the gym today, I happened to think "Hey, isn't Aphex Twin Welsh?". The answer, of course, is "yes". And there is another Welsh artist whose name is even further out there. It's Thighpaulsandra. I know the latter from his collaboration with Coil.Thighpaulsandra is a bit edgy for me (I'm showing my age now), but Aphex Twin's ambient music is actually good stuff to listen to while running or lifting weights. I'm sure he'd be delighted to know how much he's helping middle-aged Americans in stretchy pants to pump it up.

On this day in Welsh history...nothing happened! So says the Welsh Calendar.http://welshcalendar.blogspot.com/2008/12/maymai.htmlBut, and it's a big "but", the 18th was Bertrand Russell's birthday!As a present to myself, I have just bought another copy of "Unpopular Essays", my well-worn copy having evaporated.What a rare man. A giant of mathematics and philosophy who single-handedly challenged mathematical empiricism, Aristotle, and the Christian Church, he also had the courage of his political convictions. Years after getting kicked out of Trinity College and being thrown into Brixton Prison for his anti-war protests, he took on both the Soviet Union and the United States for their nuclear proliferation, conquest of sovereign nations, and the Viet Nam war.

Has anyone ever noticed that, during the Linux boot process, there used to be a kernel message "Based upon Swansea University Computer Society NET3.039"? It had to do with the TCP/IP networking stack, and was removed from the source code in 2003:http://twenty.sucs.org/TheSociety/AboutThere are links on the page cited above to material about Linux hero Alan Cox, who still lives in Swansea. He is also the Technical Director of CymruNet http://wri.cymru.net/ .

Today....as part of our ongoing first birthday celebrations....we are pleased to announce the launch of our new Americymru GAMES ARCADE . Waste hours of your own and your friends time in fruitless and futile competitions to establish ( e.g. ) who is the Americymru Supreme Frisbee Dog. Yes folks its sync'd with our database so you can compete against other members high scores.

When you first use the Games Arcade ( or any of our other new features:- Classifieds , Polls , New Forum , Download Center ) you will be asked for your email address. Please provide your Americymru registration email address. This will happen only once...and the sole purpose of the exercise is to complete the bridge between the two databases. Anyway dont sweat the technical stuff....just register and enjoy!

We have configured the games to open in a new window....so you may need to selectively disable your popup blocker and resize the window in some cases. There are currently 302 games in the arcade including Shooters, Sports, Strategy and RPG's. Any problems, comments or suggestions please post in the box at the bottom of this page.

GAMES ARCADE HERE

Reprinted with permission from David Western's blog , all material 2009, David Western --

The other day, while she examined some lovespoons I had on display, I overheard a young girl saying to her friend, "Wooden spoons? What's with that?" Sadly, the romance and the whole love message idea of them went right over her head. Even after I valiantly tried to explain the history and meaning of them in a snappy Coles Notes version, I could tell she really didn't get it. Although the rest of the day went much better than that and the majority of visitors to my booth were effusive in their appreciation of the lovespoon tradition, that little girl weighed heavily on my mind. I'm no luddite, but I find it a little bit sad when I encounter people who would rather an Ipod or a bog-standard diamond ring to a wooden gift which has been hand made and is loaded with subtle meaning. I even understand them. Day in and day out we are bombarded with ads and propaganda telling us what to buy and what is in fashion (and let's be honest, handmade wood stuff is not particularly fashionable)...the commercial gift industry is both slick and persuasive...and after all, who wouldn't want an Ipod?

But I'm going to use the spoon shown here today to show you why some 'dime a dozen' mass produced diamond ring which may even have blood on it can NEVER compete with the power of these delicate pieces of wood.

What really makes this spoon special is something that you can't see. Rather than putting together a series of symbols or meaningful images, this spoon was designed to capture a feeling. For the couple who commissioned it, the spoon is a remembrance of a single significant event in a lifetime of memories. For you and I, it is a nice walnut spoon with a cheerful yellow cedar inlay and some nice Celtic knotwork. For them, it is the memory of a long-ago walk on a wintery moonlit night when the promises of a life-long love were made.

The spoon begins with an obvious and easily understood symbol. The heart shaped bowl signifies the unity and strength of their love joined as one. Even to those of us unaware of the true meaning hidden in the spoon, the heart lets us know this spoon is about love. The little diamond above the bowl is another traditonal theme. It is a wish for prosperity, but it indicates the kind of prosperity which doesn't come with money alone. It symbolizes the richness of a full and happy life shared with someone who has won your heart and who has given their heart in return.

Celtic knotwork is a modern addition to the lovespoon vocabulary which is often used to symbolize eternal love. While that is completely relevant on this spoon, the knots here create a valley which the couple gazed down into on that distant night. The valley came to be a significant symbol of separation for the couple when they were parted, but as they are now reunited, so the valley walls are now linked by the knotwork.

The yellow cedar inlay moon is the most significant feature of the design. Inlayed into the centre of the walnut, it is visible behind walnut knotwork from both sides of the spoon. The moon itself is carved with an 'eternal' Celtic knot to symbolize the never-ending nature of their love; its brightness against the dark grain of the walnut a reminder of the brightness and promise of that night. As the light travels down into the valley, the walnut knotwork surrounds it and acts to symbolically carry the moon's light into that winter night.

Could an Ipod or a diamond bring the magic of that night and all the feelings and emotions it holds back to our couple like this wooden spoon has? I seriously doubt it and for that I am thankful that there is wood in the world and the tradition of working it this way.

"Wooden spoons? What's with that?" Sorry kid, you're missing out.

The first batch of Left Coast Eisteddfod posters are now available for download from our new download center . Attending a Welsh or Celtic event in the next few months? Please feel free to download our posters and print them off for display at your function. We will be adding more designs as the Eisteddfod draws closer.

You will need to be logged in to Americymru in order to download the posters and you may be asked to confirm your login email address before you access content. The new download area is available for all members to share files and you may upload any file to a maximum of 8 MB. If you have an event advertised on our events page and you want fliers to be available for distribution in the area, upload them here . You can link to the download center from any blogpost or events page on Americymru. . Welsh language course materials may also be added. In short ...anything that you want to make generally available. Dont forget that you can only share documents which are in the public domain or for which you own the copyright. All documents are subject to administrative approval before they are added to the repository. If you have any questions or comments about this new feature please feel free to add them to the comments box at the bottom of this page or as a thread to our new forum .

Poster number 4 in the download center is all about the Left Coast Eisteddfod online competitions and would be ideal for displaying in local libraries. Just one well placed poster could attract many new submissions.

21-22 August 2009 McMenamin's Crystal Ballroom
1332 West Burnside, Portland Oregon (503) 225-0047 FRIDAY NIGHT SHOWS 21 AUGUST 2009
HERE BE DRAGONS
JESUS PRESLEY
RUNAWAY NORM

21-22 August 2009 McMenamin's Crystal Ballroom
1332 West Burnside, Portland Oregon (503) 225-0047 SATURDAY NIGHT SHOWS 22 AUGUST 2009
CHRIS NEEDS
BRUCE ANDERSON
OCEANS APART
TYLER STENSON

21-22 August 2009 McMenamin's Crystal Ballroom
1332 West Burnside, Portland Oregon (503) 225-0047 ONLINE EISTEDDFOD COMPETITIONS Now Through 20 August 2009 Poetry Short Story Photograpy/Digital Image Biographical Essay

21-22 August 2009 McMenamin's Crystal Ballroom
1332 West Burnside, Portland Oregon (503) 225-0047 DAY TIME PROGRAMS FRIDAY AND SATURDAY 21-22August 2009 Welsh Market Vendors Children's Entertainment and Activities Welsh Authors Readings, Artists Music, History, Genealogy, Culture

Congratulate the Devil , Howell Davies, (2008) Parthian Library of Wales

This Howell Davies science fiction novel was originally published in 1939 and has been re-published in paperback by Parthian Books under their Library of Wales imprint.

Congratulate the Devil is a revelation: engaging, unique, relevant and vibrant, seventy years after its initial publication. The narrative is subtle, darkly humorous and cheerfully bitter. Davies solidly built his characters: mannerism by action by reaction, as protagonist James Starling evolves steadily and subtly, from useless playboy to doomed and unwilling witness to tragedy and, ultimately, himself its victim. Starling visits a friend from his school days, Roper, to find that Roper, now a chemist, has made the startling discovery of a new drug which gives its user omniscient control over the actions and attitudes of others. Use of the drug also alters its user and provides Davies his platform to discuss which has greater effect and so is more destructive: malignant lust or good intention.

This new edition includes a marvelous, sparkling foreward by Howell Davies' grandson, Adrian Dannatt. Rather than another writer's hopefully very interesting impressions of the book, the author and the author's style or ability, Dannatt shares with us memories of his grandfather, intimate snapshots of Howell Davies as an individual that no acquaintence or contemporary could provide.

Congratulate the Devil is a classic, "Golden Age", sci-fi masterpiece of the 1930s, easily on par with any other work of its time and which never received the recognition it deserved. Unlike its American counterparts of the Joseph Campbell era, Davies novel is not pulp, it's a novel. There aren't any spaceships, aliens or gadgets and the science in the story is not the focus, its details and particulars are barely described. Fictional science is the catalyst that directs all the characters' narrative thereafter but the characters, their interaction, their fates and how they are effected by a product of science, are the story.

Parthian's Library of Wales series features works of Anglo-Welsh literature (works by Welsh authors in English) and their catalog can be found here .

"Nothing remains for me now but to congratulate the Devil on all his works." Howell Davies (1939)

A very big thank you to our dear friend Micheala for the running the London Marathon in just over 4 hours in memory of darling boy Ieuan, raising 3298.00 . What a wonderful achievement, well done Michaela. DO YOU DONATE TO CHILDRENS CHARITYS ?... NO?... WOULD LIKE TO DONATE TO FIVE IN ONE DONATION ? PLEASE SUPPORT US SOIEUAN THE LION'S MEMORIAL FUND CAN HELP TO SUPPORT THETERMINALLY,DISABLED AND SICK CHILDREN OF SOUTH WALES.PLEASE CLICK ON THE DONATE BUTTON WHICH YOU WILL FIND ON www.ieuanthelion.com TO HELP KEEP IEUAN'S NAME ALIVE BY SUPPORTING HIS FUND.May God Bless You All

Next Saturday I will start a sponsored ride from Cardiff to Holyhead to raise money for a Cardiff based charity that helps children with Cerebral PalsyBobath Children's Therapy Centre Wales. It is 250 miles over 5 days and we climb about the height of Everest in total. Not bad for a 61 year old cancer survivor.

I need to raise about $1500 and I'm about $150 shy. Go to www.justgiving.com/keithunderdown for more information and a secure, online donation facility.