Today, Wales U18s took on Australia School's Rugby at the Gnoll in Neath, to a sell out audience this was a taster to Wales playing Australia next weekend at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff. One little boy called Bleddyn Lloyd (aged 10) who plays for Neath Athletic got the chance to get on the pitch and become ball boy for the game, this was only his 2nd international game he had been to after he witnessed Wales beat Argentina last week, after Wales won the game 18 15 Bleddyn was proud and is now telling everyone he know's he is a Wales ball boy and is planning on carrying on this until the day he is also picked to play for Wales.

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Follow the whole nine yards here (a 95 part series) :- Half Marathon Blog

Why I am running:- West Coast Eisteddfod Bryn Seion Church

For details of how to sponsor see this post

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Not much to report on the running front today. I did go for a brief trot around the turnips earlier on and I am keeping up my training schedule. Still struggling with the demon tobacco although I have cut down to a couple of cigarettes a day. 'Cold turkey' hasn't worked for me yet.

This is probably as good a time as any to reflect on one of the reasons that I am running...the West Coast Eisteddfod. We have been promising to release details of the program for some time and today we delivered on that promise. Here is the main event daytime schedule , subject to the usual ongoing revisions, emendations, alterations and clarifications , we are still nearly six months away from the event after all

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WEST COAST EISTEDDFOD 2012 LIVE EVENT BUY TICKETS HERE!

Performance Schedule (subject to revision)

4.40-5.40 pm Doors open ( program TBA )

5.40-6.40 pm Storytelling Competition

Competitors: Julia Strozyk + five more. You?

6.40-7.10 pm Halley Weaver 'Halley the Harper'

7.10-8.10 pm Poetry Competition

Competitors: Anatoly Molotkov + five more. You?

8.10-8.40 pm Sexbomb 'America's Hardest Working Tom Jones Tribute Band'

8.40-9.40 pm Comedy Competition

9.40 pm Announcements Live and Online Competition Winners and Lovespoon Draw

10.00-11.00 pm Chris Chandler 'America's Best Kept Secret' In Concert

West Coast Eisteddfod 2012 on Facebook

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Many of you will have seen this schedule already. If not, it lives on this page ( the official WCE 2012 Event page ):-

http://www.storyforgestudios.com/americymru/directory/events

-:and we are appealing to people to help spread the word. Please help us to publicise on Google+, Twitter and Facebook. There is a Facebook page linked above and there are G+, FB etc buttons on the Events page itself.

I will have much more to say on the subject of funding for the Eisteddfod soon....and running too

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A project that may interest a number of our readers and members:-

After Coal: Welsh and Appalachian Mining Communities

" I am working to raise $5000 to support After Coal: Welsh and Appalachian Mining Communities. This documentary film that explores how two mining cultures face the challenge of their dependence on fossil fuels. Currently the Appalachian coalfields are struggling with chronic unemployment and environmental degradation, while Wales has experimented with strategies to rebuild their communities after the mines closed. As the Appalachian coalfields enter their last generation of mining, this documentary project will help map directions to a sustainable future after coal ." .... more .

"As y'all may recall, this summer I took a class on Postindustrial Wales as my first graduate course at Appalachian State. For our final assignment, we were instructed by Billy Schumann to propose three sites for a proposed Appalachia/Wales documentary. I'd love to share my proposal with y'all (it is quite humorously cinematic), but it was handwritten when I submitted it this summer. I've become quite interested in Wales and am trying to find ways to incorporate what I've seen into my thesis.".... more .

AmeriCymru would like to acknowledge and welcome the contribution of new member Nick Stradling who has agreed to link to reviews of Welsh movies ( or movies with Welsh themes or locations ) from his excellent blog Wales In The Movies

The reviews will be linked from the appropriate film listing page on the Welsh American Bookstore. Examples can be found on the pages below.

Hunky Dory - Its the long hot British summer of 1976 and Viv (Minnie Driver) has left London and her thespian aspirations, to work as a drama teacher in the local high school of her south Wales home town. Determined to fire up her hormonal, apathetic teenage charges, she sets about staging a rock musical based on Shakespeares The Tempest for the schools end of year show.

The Dark - Sean Bean and Maria Bello star in this psychological thriller about a young couple whose daughter vanishes into the ocean. The same evening that their daughter disappears, a seemingly harmless girl who bears a striking resemblance to their missing daughter appears at their farmhouse.

Now is a good time to visit the bookstore with Christmas purchases in mind. AND if you are particularly looking for a movie with a Welsh theme or location then this is the page for you - Film & TV The film and TV section includes box sets of popular Welsh TV shows as well. All items can be purchased from Amazon.com by clicking the 'Buy Now' link on the listing page.

We are confident that Nick's reviews will help you make the right choice and we invite other readers/bloggers to consider posting book or film reviews on the site. We will accept links back to your site or blog in the event that you post a contribution of reasonable length and quality on the site. To join the Welsh American Bookstore please go here:- Create an Account

( All reviews are subject to review and may be removed at the editors discretion if they are deemed not to have met quality standards. )

The latest edition of Ninnau the North American Welsh Newspaper prominently features a report from the Los Angeles West Coast Eisteddfod by Mona Everett on its front page. Also in the current edition you will find reports on the new WNAA/WNGGA Board of Trustees and the organisation's name change ( from WNGGA to WNAA ) AND much, much more.

To subscribe ( only $20 a year ) go to this page:- Ninnau Subscriptions

More about Ninnau:-

NINNAU & Y Drych is the North American Welsh Newspaper . It is the result of the merger in November 2003 of NINNAU, then the North American Welsh Newspaper, and Y Drych, the oldest Welsh newspaper in the Americas. Now united as one newspaper, NINNAU & Y Drych provides complete coverage of the North American Welsh community.

NINNAU & Y Drych is dedicated to preserving and enhancing the vitality of the North American Welsh community. To that end, we are guided by the following editorial policy:

* Endeavor to maintain the North American Welsh informed of local and general news and events of interest
* Publicize individual contributions to community life
* Provide a forum for discussion and individual expression
* Educate the Welsh people in their traditions
* Serve as a link between North American Welsh people and organizations
* Serve as a link between the North American Welsh people and Wales.

Here's how you can join us in promoting a vital Welsh community:

* Subscribe to NINNAU & Y Drych
* Attend a Welsh event
* Submit an article for possible publication
* Get involved!

Stumbleupon is a great promotional tool and a great way to drive traffic to your website ( and of course this one ). We are inviting all members who are keen to promote Wales and Welsh and Welsh American websites in any way shape or form to consider signing up. Besides anything else its great fun!

Here is the url:- http://www.stumbleupon.com/ . If you decide to join please email me at americymru@gmail.com or through the site email page and I will add you as a friend on Stumble. If anyone has problems working out how to use Stumbleupon please email and we will try to help. We will also get around to posting a tutorial sometime in the site promotion group.

The evening, taking place in Caerphilly, will feature songs from West End and Broadway musicals and feature a host of West End and local performers including; Peter Karrie, Dan & Laura Curtis, Adam Robert Lewis, Billy Harvey, Bruce Anderson, Samantha Link and Your Voice Competition winner, Kasia Howley.

The concert has been organised by composers, Dan and Laura Curtis, who have recently returned from working on their new album in New York and are currently working on a musical about Richard Burton.

Dan Curtis said We recently worked with one of the Philipines most renowned artists, Lea Salonga on a song that we have written for a forthcoming album. As a result of this we have been in contact with many of her fans from the Phillipines. When the Typhoon struck we were hearing first hand about the terrible ordeal people were going through and heard several heartbreaking stories about those who had lost contact with their families. We just want to try and do something to help.

The concert will be held at St Martins Church in Caerphilly on Thursday 28^th November at 7:30pm, with tickets available at 10. Tickets can be purchased directly from the church or reserved via e-mailing dan.curtis@dlcmusic.com or phoning 07584486312.

Typhoon Haiyan

Typhoon Haiyan slammed into the Philippines on Friday (8 November), causing catastrophic damage. It is the strongest storm ever to make landfall, hitting an area where thousands of people are already homeless after an earthquake in mid-October.

The 300-mile wide typhoon locally known as Yolanda has left a trail of destruction with thousands feared dead. The full extent of the damage will become clearer in the next few days as rescue teams reach the more remote areas.

Philippine Red Cross volunteers have been on the ground since before the storm hit, helping with evacuation plans and warning communities. Now, they are getting aid to the people who are most in need and preparing to help thousands more.