Minimus at Hexham Book Festival and Hands-on-Latin new website

Image - Copyright David Taylor

salve(te)! hello!

The Barbara Bell talk at the Hexham Book Festival went tremendously well - as did the tour of Vindolanda site and museum in the afternoon following the talk. Barbara got practically everyone in the audience involved. Even F, a reluctant actor, became a phenomenal Whiskers 'Vibrissa' cat. There was a super Minimus mouse and an excellent version of Lepidina. It was really good fun and everyone enjoyed everyone's performance.

Barbara also visited local first schools Greenhead, Henshaw and Herdley Bank the day before her talk. We were all involved in rousing renditions of Senex (Old) Macdonald throughout the day. The children loved the singing - even in rounds! The children all got excited learning about Minimus - the Latin Mouse...what he and his family at Vindolanda get up to...

There had been a big lead-up to the festival and I hadn't quite realised what goes on behind the scenes. Our thanks go particularly to the organisers of Hexham Book Festival (Susie and Gil), all at The Vindolanda Trust and Headteacher and Staff at the three schools. All the friendliness and superb organisation made everything go smoothly. gratias maximas vobis agimus! We thank you very much!

The reason for the absence from my blog is that I've also been working very hard on getting my new business 'Hands-on-Latin' up and running. The website is ready too (I will keep adding to it and tweaking it in various places). Maybe you'd like to take a look?: www.hands-on-latin.com
Your thoughts and feedback would be most welcome.

I'd like to offer a huge, huge thanks to local husband and wife team - David and Tania Taylor - for helping me with the website. I'd never have managed it without them. David's a wonderful photographer (whose images I often use), excellent with technology and Tania is superb with words. They make a great team.

I got to know David first through his amazing photos and then his wife, Tania, (almost by accident as she uses a pseudonym for her wonderful writing) on Twitter (I tweet as @hadrianasblog and @handsonlatin) and hey presto! a working relationship was created with the pair of them. They've formed a business to help other businesses get started. You can check them out via Twitter @WordsPhotos and their new website www.wordsphotos.co.uk David's photographic work can be found here: www.davidtaylorphotography.co.uk

A thank you too to Alison Raimes at WhistleArtStop based in Haltwhistle. She's a mover and shaker doing a lot for Art in Haltwhistle and the Tynedale area as a whole. Alison was the one who helped me a while ago and kickstarted me in starting to set things up. Anne Lawson - my business adviser - has been a massive source of strength, wisdom and recuperative cups of coffee as well.

Hey! This is turning into an 'Oscar' speech but....it all goes to show....how many people are there in the background...willing others on.

And what's the Latin motto for my inspiration? 'Carpe diem' - Sieze the day! which maybe a little overused but it encapsulates everything I believe in. Just get on with it!!!

vale(te)! for now and toodlepip! Hadriana/Catherine :-)

Just a quickie!

Some of these stones (featured) are actual Roman stones pinched from Vindolanda in the 1800s to help build this outhouse. I've also taken a photo of the side of the chapel with the stained glass windows to show you how the main chapel looks (at least from one side).

I mentioned these stones beforehand in another post. Robin Birley, from The Vindolanda Trust, has confirmed that they are indeed from the granaries (very highly likely) back at the main fort at Vindolanda. In a recent talk which he gave last year...he stated that there was a big trench found alongside the granaries which could have only been made in more modern times. He had a hunch that the stones had disappeared down to Henshaw in the direction of the Methodist chapels which were being built at the time. His visit to my parents' chapel seemed to confirm his theory.

The local newspaper (the Hexham Courant) has written two articles on the two differing chapels which are located in the hamlet of Henshaw - which is a mile or two further south down from Vindolanda.

My parents own the bigger of the two chapels. Theirs is the Wesleyan Chapel designed to sit 100 people all at one time and here it is described in the local paper here.

The other more "Primitive" chapel is described here. It is incredible to think that such a tiny place as Henshaw used to support two big chapels such as these. Both are now residential homes.

I love the thought that there are some old Roman stones in the family. (Mr. Birley pointed out that the more regular stones are the Roman ones...which makes complete sense. I wasn't there when he was but I like to think that the chisel marks on the stones were made by the Roman legionaries/stone masons. I need to double check on that point. Of course my imagination just runs away with me..!)

The chapel is currently for sale but I would be great to keep it and the Vindolanda stones in the family. Funnily enough through Mr. H's side of the family - some of them are descended from Charles Wesley, brother of John Wesley. So it shows that all sorts of history are meeting together in one place...PLUS it is a good representation of our lives right now - up in this neck of the woods! It is also a fantastic representation of where a lot of Hadrian's Wall ended up....recycled into farms, castles, houses and bastle houses. One of these days I have a superb piece of wall to show you. I just need to pop out one day with my camera...