View allAll Photos Tagged BusMod
Since I've been at House of Gardiner, we've done a radiator pressure test and a head gasket test (her gasket is fine, phew!); fitted two old 12v computer fans in the rear air vents to pull hot air out of the bus; rigged zips between window curtains and a new curtain rail to make ninja parking (and 'guest bedroom' privacy) more efficient; fixed the MooresCloud intelligent LED lighting and hacked it to work on 12v; I've tried my hand/improved skills at welding, knife sharpening, wood carving and leather stitching (fixing my beloved old boots) and had several inspiring conversations about digital/creative culture, mechanics and greek philosophy. Seems hJ was right about coming here instead of going bush. Thanks guys, you rock x
Original: fee.withknown.com/2014/houseofgardiner-homejames-busmods-...
rummaging around #homeJames' engine to solve the suspected gasket problem (which wasn't a problem at all, phew). Photos by Ray Gardiner.
From the article: "There are many economic, social and cultural reasons for Scotland’s yes campaign to have reached such an unexpected level of success; but from my Welsh point of view I suspect that one reason must surely be frustration at the way that the English domination of Britain has led to the marginalisation – if not jingoistic ridiculing – of Scottish and Welsh identity. Our unique cultures and languages are habitually erased in favour of an umbrella Englishness. To take a trivial example: the book and Twitter account Very British Problems portrays the British as socially awkward, Earl Grey-sipping Hugh Grant caricatures. But that’s not an image I recognise from Wales – it’s not even an image I recognise in a lot of England (try looking for a stiff upper-lip on a night bus in Liverpool). It’s a particular stereotype of the English upper-middle classes which has been extrapolated to represent everyone in Britain, overshadowing Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales (and the English working class) in the process."
I claim my Welshness with great pride and love, but in all honesty it's only a claim. Much to my chagrin I wasn't born in Wales, but I lived there from the age of eight and have generations of Welsh bloodlines going back from my maternal grandmother (or "Nain" as we say in North Wales). If you want to play for the Welsh International Rugby Squad, all you need for entry is a Welsh grandparent. I long ago decided that if that's a good enough definition for them, it'll do for me! I'm very proud of this Welsh heritage and love going back there when in the UK - not just to see friends and family but for its startling beauty and unique and ancient culture. I even made 'Cawl' (Welsh stew) the other day for my current hosts, the House of Gardiner, who have been helping me with the latest busmods. Thanks to their enviable skills with wood and metalwork I have even been discussing making my own carving knife, possibly even the traditional Welsh version of a hook knife, "twca cam", so I can learn how to craft my own love spoons and teach others this ancient skill.
I applaud this suggestion of teaching Welsh in schools. Like Ellie Mae I am often asked "do people still speak Welsh?" or worse, don't even know where Wales is on the map ("the blob to the left of England" is my usual reply). At the age of eight I went to a Welsh language school, where I was even taught English in Welsh. I wasn't there long but at the time I found that hard to compute. I still have a few words and phrases but as the years have gone on I deeply regret not having become fluent in Welsh. It's still on my radar to learn, even if I'd only be talking to myself. It's tragic that Welsh - the oldest in Europe - is a dying language. Strangely enough, there are more Welsh language speakers in New Patagonia than there are in Wales - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patagonian_Welsh.
Many years ago I realised that the Welsh are the indigenous Britons, and, like many other first nations people around the world we are misunderstood and all-but ignored by the rest of the world (although certainly treated far better than Aboriginal Australians or Native Americans). Wales isn't even a country, it's a Principality. We don't have a Government, we have an Assembly, and we don't control our own budgets which leaves us extremely vulnerable to external pressures. And our triumphant red dragon ("Ddraig goch") doesn't even feature on the Union Jack (something I am often consistently found to snarl whenever the flag is raised).
It was fascinating watching the Scottish referendum recently - the Welsh referendum back in 1997 was a far different story - a painful near-miss of 50.3 to 49.7. You only need to view the voting map (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welsh_devolution_referendum,_1997) to see that we lost this opportunity because of the amount of English 'occupation' (typically just holiday homes). The red line neatly crosssections the country vertically, and the red blob down the bottom left is St Davids, known colloquially as "Dipyn Sais" ("Little England") - because of all the Londoners who own holiday cottages down there. These holiday cottages have increased the cost of housing for locals, forcing them out of the area - that can't be a good thing for any culture. It might be different if they actually invested in the areas they claimed, but usually the four wheel drive is filled from London supermarkets meaning little shopping or tourism investment returns to Wales.
So, yeah, let's end this absurd notion of "umbrella Englishness" - indeed, of all homogeneity - and instead celebrate history, culture and diversity. If that means little Englanders gain a new perspective to a past long gone, so much the better.
At y dyfodol x
* Image credit: "24 Welsh words and phrases that are just as good as popty ping" www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/ellie-mae-ohagan-we...
Original: fee.withknown.com/2014/couldnt-agree-more-misselliemae---...
RACER SEATS!!! cmon, how many buses do you know that have those, eh?!
reallybigroadtrip.com #busmod #rbrtOZ