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| W P Clipart |
As of today, I have been blogging for one year now. Quite a suspenseful year for me, as it seemed that I might have to leave Rudd's Little Acre and take shelter like Saint Alexius under a relative's staircase. But God has provided otherwise - for now.
Last year, I wrote:
Traditions, superstitions, weather lore... the year is full of them, along with holidays, holy days, and remembrance days.
For instance, one tradition is that the weather on each of the twelve days of Christmas forecasts the weather for the next twelve months. An alternate tradition uses the period between the 1st and the 12th of January. There are also the Ember Days, and some single days, such as Saint Swithin's (July 15), which are supposed to accurately predict the coming weather.
But weather isn't the only thing of which our ancestors wanted to have foreknowledge, and so I have added other superstitions and traditions pertinent to the year's celebrations. My guests will also find recipes to aid in the celebrating, some astronomical data, links to pages of interest, and (because I am opinionated) my opinions.
Please note: This is all very lighthearted. I enjoy seeing how accurate the predictions are (although it may take some real convolutions of the mind to base August's weather on that of January 8). I also like to find reasons to celebrate. If you have a comment or suggestion or something I can add to this list, please feel free to either use the comment box or my email.
For instance, one tradition is that the weather on each of the twelve days of Christmas forecasts the weather for the next twelve months. An alternate tradition uses the period between the 1st and the 12th of January. There are also the Ember Days, and some single days, such as Saint Swithin's (July 15), which are supposed to accurately predict the coming weather.
But weather isn't the only thing of which our ancestors wanted to have foreknowledge, and so I have added other superstitions and traditions pertinent to the year's celebrations. My guests will also find recipes to aid in the celebrating, some astronomical data, links to pages of interest, and (because I am opinionated) my opinions.
Please note: This is all very lighthearted. I enjoy seeing how accurate the predictions are (although it may take some real convolutions of the mind to base August's weather on that of January 8). I also like to find reasons to celebrate. If you have a comment or suggestion or something I can add to this list, please feel free to either use the comment box or my email.
So, now what? It is still very lighthearted - some days lighter than others. I am not asking anyone to believe in anything that is written here, especially the love charms or any other superstition. These are things which surrounded, if not governed, the lives of my ancestors and possibly yours as well. They are meant to be enjoyed as such.
I turned off the comment box earlier in the year - debating whether to put it back on. The email is still available in my profile, which some people are kind enough to use.
This is an almanac of sorts, so I will recycle my previous posts, probably with a few changes and additions here and there, and add some new posts as they come along. Of course, the weather prognostications must change.
And maybe if I can learn to operate the camera, I will post photos. Don't anyone hold their breath.
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Some have wondered why I have a picture of Margaret Caroline Rudd on my blog. I first came across her, when my husband and I ran a business making reproductions of antique furniture. In "The Cabinetmaker's and Upholsterer's Guide" by George Hepplewhite (yes, Hepplewhite furniture. That Hepplewhite), I found a picture of a "Rudd's Table", with the description that it took its name from "a once popular character, for whom, it is reported, it was first invented".
Naturally, I had to find out who this once popular character was. This being in the days before Easy Scholarship via The Internet, I resorted to the public library, where a perusal of Boswell (who had a nasty fascination for the lady) and a few other tomes of Georgian history revealed the popular character. She was a forger. At least, she was put on trial for, and acquitted of, being a forger. An interesting story, and as there are a few books out now which are dedicated to her, and blog posts with their opinions as well, you won't have to peruse Boswell to find out what happened.
Anyway, I found a picture of her in one of the books, had it blown up and framed, and there she hangs in my library, and now on the blog. We made reproductions of antique furniture and she made reproductions of money-bearing instruments. Our efforts were legal; she ended up in Old Bailey.
Sic transit gloria mundi.
