Chatiryworld

December 24th, 2007

Festive Fog, originally uploaded by Falling Sky.

Festival and seasonal greetings to you all, whatever you are celebrating, or not celebrating.  We used this photo that Jon took last christmas eve for our real cards, so I thought it would make an excellent final calendar post.

December 23rd, 2007

Been having a bit of a think about what to do with the advent calendar next year, because I've found it a bit dull this year and felt like I haven't put that much effort in.  I've got a few ideas up my sleeve for next year which should make it a bit more interesting than a bunch of links.  There may well be audience participation...

Speaking of links, here's today's, how to make a pretty winter mobile. via decor8.

December 22nd, 2007

Blithe Yule!  Today is the Winter Solstice.  We'll have to imagine there's a log on our living flame gas fire today.  Soulemama posted a gorgeous solstice poem the other day, and whilst finding out more about it I also discovered another beauty from Susan Cooper.

I posted about Maeshowe the other day, here's some more information about it and the solstice.  Hope you've been having a look at the webcam because there have been some great sunsets this week.

December 21st, 2007

Huddle round your computer to hear Mark E Smith read a Christmas story (apparently it is festive according to the email they sent me, can't tell from the title though).

Find some stories to read at the Children's Literature Web Guide.

December 20th, 2007

When going through the decorations the other day I discovered some cards I'd kept from last year to make these Martha Stewart ornaments.  Guess what?  I haven't made them!  Maybe next year.  I know there are several days to go but we have work and baking and visiting and tidying and stuff to do.

Big long list of more ornaments to make at whip up.

December 19th, 2007

Can't talk, just found Clothkits group on Facebook.  Here's some festive music, via BoingBoing.  Some may offend apparently.

Decmber 18th, 2007

Can't believe I haven't blogged this yet.  A recurring feature of the Chatiryworld advent calendars is a link to the Maeshowe Winter Solstice Webcam.  Keep checking it as you may get a good sunset in action, as I managed the other year.  Looks like yesterday might have been good.

What is Maeshowe?  Basically a Neolithic chambered cairn over 5,000 years old that was built so that when the sun sets on the winter and summer solstices it illuminates the entryway and hits the back wall.  My dad saw it in person many moons ago when he was still living on Orkney.  There are loads of good examples of it in action on the site as well.  You can also get some rather lovely calendars of Orkney, Shetland, Caithness and the Western Isles featuring photography by Charles Tait (who I believe used to take my school photos when I was a kid).  I have no need for another calendar but these are pretty good.

There's a bit more sciencey stuff here.  I like that Orcadian history and culture has elements of paganism in it (what doesn't though?), I relate to it more than the po-faced misery of some of the religious elements of the Western Isles and Skye.  Not that Orkney isn't without it's religious nutjobs (also known as holy rollers by my 'other' mum, MM), it's just less in your face and isn't part of the dominant culture.  Going by the continued state of the letters page in the West Highland Free Press maybe Jon and I should set up a 'school for kids who don't believe in god real good'.

December 17th, 2007

Gift tags!  Camilla Engman has some sweet ones for download, I used some of the ones she did last year.  Amy at Angry Chicken has done some honest tags, also available for download.

Knowing how to wrap a present in the first place might also be useful.  Via Lifehacker.  Need wrapping paper?  Download it from Blueprint.

December 16th, 2007

I know I said I'd try and make more of an effort at weekends but I had to work yesterday so more in the mood for knitting and reading the paper on the sofa.

Anyway, whip up have a post all about different gingerbread houses, I like the modern (which you can buy) and the Moomin ones!

Gingerbread house photos at Flickr.  Plus recipes from Martha Stewart.

December 15th, 2007

Capture some of that Christmas nostalgia with Old Radio Fun, who have loads of old-fashioned Christmas plays to listen to  - for free!  Via Boing Boing.

December 14th, 2007

Yesterday was St Lucia Day in Sweden (the first year I did this calendar I kept abreast of these things).  Camilla has some lovely images on her post.  Posie Gets Cosy also has a sweet post, anyone buy one of her St Lucia kits this year?

December 13th, 2007

Blatant advertising today.  Looking for gifts?  Try my family!  First of all, you could buy one of Jon's paintings.  Highlights?  As far as I'm concerned, Northern Light that he did in Orkney, A Slow Sinking and Sleeping Pastels.

Or how about some wooden goodies from one of my dads, Hugh?  He doesn't sell through his website but if you spot something you fancy, email him via the form on his site.  You can buy his chopping boards (scroll to bottom) and spurtles through David Mellor.  These are also available at Twice.

December 12th, 2007

Inspired by Boing Boing's 2007 Charitable Giving Guide, here's a few charities close to my heart that I feel are worth donating too (not to say that there aren't many more that are worth donating too as well):

Maggie's Centres.  One in three of us will get cancer at some point in our lives, Maggie's Centres do a lot of good work in providing a variety of different support to those with it, in non-clinical, homely environments.

Cancer Research UK.  I looked up Bradford War on Cancer as they worked on funding the ward my Granny Pip stayed on 12 years ago, it's now part of Cancer Research UK. 

Gorgie City Farm.  Just round the corner (well, a few corners) from us and they do a great job of bringing the country to the city, plus they sell yummy veg and look after bunnies.

Yorkhill Children's Foundation.  Some good friends of ours spent a significant amount of time in this Glasgow children's hospital this year.  The foundation works to help make a hospital stay less distressing for all concerned.  You can donate towards a specific ward, I think I'd actually like to donate money to the canteen to improve it.  Seriously, good food for stressed parents goes a long way to making life a little more bearable.

Marie Stopes International provide sexual and reproductive healthcare throughout the world.  They are also behind one of the best sexual health education websites (IMHO) for young people, likeitis.

Jessie's Fund.  Jessie was the daughter of some friends of my mum, and died from a brain tumour in 1993.  Her parents are musicians and set up Jessie's Fund to provide music as communication and therapy in hospices across the UK.

Mental Health Foundation.  It's hard to choose a mental health charity (I suppose I don't have to choose one but this could end up being a very long post if I don't) but MHF are UK-wide and provide great information as well as conducting research.  More stats for you - one in four of us will have some kind of mental health problem in our lives.  I suspect this may be an underestimate.

National Secular Society are the only secular/atheist/humanist organisation who haven't managed to annoy me yet.

December 11th, 2007

Some gift guides today.  By the way, if you want more interesting advent calendar content, you could have a look at the ones I did in previous years (see categories to the left) which have more information about different traditions.  This is the fourth calendar I've done so trying hard not to repeat myself, hence why we have lots of links and things.

Design*Sponge asked fellow bloggers for their recommendations, some of my favourite bloggers are in there.
Mav at port2port has some books and magazine ideas, mainly design and art focussed.
Gifts to make, from Craft.
Handmade (by others) gift guide from Bloesem.
Indie Quarter have made a podcast gift guide.

December 10th, 2007

Elf yourself!  Via lots of blogs.  Totally daft, but I can't quite bring myself to do one for us.  Sorry to disappoint.