This land is private and part of the Lombe Estate but volunteers had permission to plant 1,000 trees as a buffer zone against the countryside and new development which will eventually go very close to the new trees.
The trees should at least ward off some of the problems caused by new development which will almost certainly have a detrimental affect on the wildlife that frequent the area.
I sent a story with photographs over to the Eastern Daily Press newspaper and will let you know when its printed. In the meantime the story will be covered in my Hethersett Herald which will be online by this evening.
If you are new to the Herald you can see the latest and previous editions at www.hethersettherald.weebly.com. We have now been going for just over five years. Met a lovely family at the planting - Andrew and Amy Osborne and their daughter Maeve who I was informed was five-years-of-age but just two weeks off being six. Amy admitted that despite living in the village for over four years they had never heard of the Herald.
So I think I will have another publicity drive for the magazine shortly to bring it to the attention of a few more people. I do post details of new editions on the All Things Hethersett Facebook page which has over 3,500 members.
Meanwhile there's a few pictures here of the tree planting.
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A couple of blogs ago I mentioned that Christmas doesn't start for me until I have listened to St Nicholas Cantata by Benjamin Britten. Well I listened to it on Saturday night so let Christmas begin. It was the version featuring Peter Pears in the title role. Pears was not only the top British tenor of his day but was Britten's partner. The two are buried side-by-side in Aldeburgh Churchyard in very understated graves which take some finding.
I went in search not so long ago and it took some time to find them. Both just contain their names and dates and the headstone is black.
Benjamin Britten is not the only classical composer closely connected with East Anglia of course. Many years ago when I was with Norfolk Constabulary our department had its annual Christmas meal at a hotel on Thorpe Road in Norwich.
In the room next to where we were eating was a man on the piano who was, well let's say a tad worse for wear. He still played the piano very well. One of the sergeants in our department inquired if anyone knew "who the drunken old fart on the piano" was and asked if somebody might not like to ask him politely to refrain from playing when we were trying to talk.
A much more enlightened member of staff informed him: "That drunken old fart is probably Britain's greatest living composer." It was Sir Malcolm Arnold.
Mind you I cringe when I hear the name through association. Arnold wrote a rather splendid piece of rambunctious music entitled "The Padstow Lifeboat." (Check it out). It's a glorious cacophony of noise, whistles, horns and lasts under five minutes. It's just a joyful and silly piece.
But the mere mention of Padstow makes me feel sick. I have nothing against the Cornwall fishing village, indeed its a very picturesque and splendid place. On my first visit though I saw a lot of the bus shelter and very little of the town. The reason was simple - I was suffering from food poisoning and the bus shelter was close to the public toilets. I have been back since when I had a proper look round the town. So by association I connect the Arnold piece with feeling sick. It does, however conjure up the British countryside and long happy sunny summer days when families got together (remember those)?
The Padstow Lifeboat can be played by an orchestra but I feel its best exponents are a brass band, but then I'm a sucker for a brass band anyway. There is nothing quite as British apart from church bells and the smell of freshly mown grass (Bet as I write this by association you are smelling freshly mown grass).
Anyway back to Sir Malcolm. Nobody told him to shut up and I believe somebody from our party bought him a drink. Next year is the 100th anniversary of his birth. He died in 2006. He is possibly best known for writing the score for the blockbuster film "Bridge Over The River Kwai."
Interestingly Wikipedia has this to say about him "By 1961 Arnold had a reputation for being unpleasant, frequently drunk and highly promiscuous."
He lived not far from Hethersett in Attleborough and, according to the Independent Newspaper, regularly used to play music at Dunston Hall Hotel- playing the piano with his left hand and the trumpet with his right much to the amusement of local people who had no idea who he was - so my department wasn't alone in its ignorance. I believe Arnold was banned from many pubs around the Attleborough and Wymondham areas. He died in the Norfolk and Norwich Hospital.
I have another amusing music story involving a former police officer from my time working in Norwich for an emergency media company. One of my colleagues was a former copper. One day I went with him and a couple of others to a nearby hostelry.
On our way out after having had lunch we were accosted by a chap who thrust his camera at my colleague (let's call him Dave although his real name is Mike). "Here mate take my picture with Shaun Ryder will you."
Dave, thinking the guy was drunk and being aggressive told him to "do one" but using slightly stronger language.
When we got back to the office Dave said to me "Have you heard of Shaun Ryder?" I replied in the affirmative.
"Well what does he look like and who is he?" Dave inquired.
"The only Shaun Ryder I know is in a strange rock band called the Happy Mondays," I replied.
"Well does he look anything like that geezer at the pub?"
"Well now you come to mention it yes he did a bit."
"Thaas bollocks what would a pop singer be doing in a pub up here," Dave asked.
So I thought I would check on the internet and guess what - The Happy Mondays were playing the UEA that night. That was all of course before Ryder became known through appearances on "I'm a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here" etc. Now he's instantly recognisable. A few years ago I read his autobiography which is beautifully named "Twisting My Melon." It was an interesting read.
Apparently the dictionary definition of "Twisting ones Melon" is to be really confused by something to the point that it is annoying you. So the next time somebody says something you don't understand just say "you're twisting my melon."
Personally I stay away from the idea of Melons since a trip to France many years ago. We shopped on our way back to the ferry at a hypermarket and bought loads of stuff. The boot was full so I crammed goods into the passenger seat (this must have been before we had children). Anne opened the door and said very loudly "Oh damn my Melons are rolling all over the place" to which a man walking past almost fell over in shock and burst out laughing.
That was the same car park where an Englishman asked me in dreadful French whether I had a franc (this was in the days before Euros) for the trolley. When I looked blank he asked if I spoke English. Quick as a flash I said: "Sólo puedo hablar español" - I only speak Spanish. He apologised and walked the other way.
Talking of the Happy Mondays. One of their musicians was named Bez. I say musician but Bez just appeared on stage and jived around a bit. He never played an instrument but was an integral part of the band as a dancer - sounds like a good gig to me.
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Regular readers will know of my obsession for figures and records. So in an idle moment on Saturday night I enumerated various phrases of my life.
So here comes probably the most irrelevant exercise I have undertaken since I started this blog. My life in figures (most of the figures are estimates) although some are exact.
Exact Figures
Days I have been alive 24,889
Days I have written a diary 17,509
Days I haven't written a diary 7,380
Days I have been married 16,200
Days When I haven't been married 8,689
Days living in Hethersett 15,068
Estimated Figures
Time at home before going to school - 4 years 11 months
Time at Kinsale Avenue School, Hellesdon - 5 years 10 months
Time at The Norwich School - 7 years 10 months
Time at Harlow Technical College - 9 months
Time on the Lowestoft Journal - 1 year 1 month
Time on the Eastern Evening News - 8 months
Time on the North Norfolk News at Cromer - 18 months
Time on the Beccles and Bungay Journal at Beccles - 2 years 8 months
Time working for Raymonds News Agency, Nottingham - 5 months
Time working for the Belper News - 3 months
Sub Editor Norwich Mercury Series - 5 years
Sports Editor Norwich Mercury Series - 5 years
Working for Norfolk Constabulary (various roles) - 17 years 9 months
Working for Media and Crisis Management - 6 years
Places Lived (Estimated figures)
157 Reepham Road, Hellesdon - 12 years
31 Middleton's Lane, Hellesdon - 8 years
123 The Maples, Harlow - 9 months
211 St Margaret's Road, Lowestoft - 13 months
7 Corner Street, Cromer - 18 months
Upper Grange Road, Beccles - 12 months
Waveney House, Ravensmeer, Beccles - 8 months
Blyburgate, Beccles - 4 months
Nursey Close, Kirby Cane -12 months
Lodge Road, Long Eaton - 8 months
Buckingham Drive, Hethersett - 9 years
Karen Close, Hethersett - 32 years
See you tomorrow.