The Importance of the Thank-You Letter

From The Times
December 27, 2007
'I appreciate your gift more than I can say'
Thank-you letters: the last bastion in an epidemic of discourtesy? They certainly make a big difference
by Valerie Grove

Have you written your thank-you letters yet? Mother’s words continue to dog most of us for life. They hover like a black cloud over the season of festive giving and partying. We all vaguely expect a letter of thanks, but find them a crashing bore to write. Thanks sent immediately are thanks redoubled, we were told. “No duty is more urgent than that of returning thanks” – Saint Ambrose.

The thank-you letter is a last bastion in what Mary Killen (The Spectator’s witty social problem-solver) has called an “epidemic of discourtesy”. The postal strike this year did its best to kill off the personal letter, but for my generation, whose youth was punctuated with billets doux and penfriendship, a letter remains a tangible, portable, idiosyncratic and expressive form of communication. Princess Diana – who would now have been 46 – was probably one of the last of those well-brought up gels, or “chicks”, who never failed to write enthusiastic thanks in her girlishly round but emphatic hand.

more at link...

The Return of the Old Etonian

Article by Christopher Hitchens, which Sloane Rangers will surely find riveting.
There are a number of reasons why America does not have an Eton. In order to evolve such a school, you have to start with a monarchical foundation in the mid-15th century. (King Henry VI simultaneously founded King’s College, Cambridge.) A few hundred years of feudalism and empire are then required, during which time 18 of the country’s prime ministers attend the school, as do countless generals, ambassadors, and colonial governors. A vivid legend of the three B’s—bullying, beating, and buggery—must spring up, imprinting itself thoroughly on the formative years of a ruling caste. The national poetry must show the school’s influence, from Thomas Gray to Shelley to Swinburne. Eton is not just where George Orwell went to school, there to be taught by Aldous Huxley, so that the future authors of 1984 and Brave New World could be in the same classroom. It is where Evelyn Waugh sends Sebastian Flyte and Anthony Blanche, the two most flamboyant figures of Brideshead Revisited. It is where J. M. Barrie sends Captain Hook. It is where P. G. Wodehouse sends Bertie Wooster and Psmith. It is where Anthony Powell, another Etonian, sends Nick Jenkins, the narrator of A Dance to the Music of Time. It is where Ian Fleming sends James Bond (expelled, unusually enough, for heterosexuality). It is where John le Carré evolved the concept of the honorable schoolboy.
It’s impossible to overstate the effect that the Eton mystique can exert on the most improbable people. All through the spring and summer of this year, a capacity crowd went every night to the National Theatre to see Jeremy Irons playing an elder statesman in Howard Brenton’s Never So Good. Brenton is a renowned ultra-leftist, but his moving play, which is about the life and times of the Tory prime minister Harold Macmillan, is unashamedly evocative of the double-distilled Eton legend.

Will's Cup of Tea

Image from the Vanity Fair article, with thanks.

Will’s Cup of Tea
For more than four years, Kate Middleton has navigated the perilous waters of being Prince William’s girlfriend, handling the snobbery, sniping, and spotlight without official support or guidance. As Britain’s odds-makers bet on a wedding, the author takes a look at the bonds—and the breakup—that cemented Middleton’s place in both the Prince’s heart and the Palace fold.

Read the article here and view a slideshow of Kate Middleton fashion photos here.

Sloanes Surf Cornwall

'Tessa, Alicia and Becca have just been surfing at Polzeath on the north Cornish coast. They are all 18, they all talk in a manner that would do the BBC World Service proud, they are all staying just a few miles away in Rock. And they all like my clothes. But…

“But?” I say.

“Well,” says Tessa, carefully. “Are they meant to be on you? Or, you know, on somebody younger?”

Ah. Ouch. Ah and ouch. For I am here, in the chicest, most Chelsea-est bit of Cornwall, to live out a teenage dream.'

Mannanan, God of the sea, mists and the otherworld



This Is North Cornwall reports on Polzeath and surfing schools here

An article on young Sloanespeak is
here

Sloane Rangers Is Moving!

The Sloane Rangers blog is growing and will soon move to a new domain: http://sloanerangers.com/

Devon Open Studios

"Over 300 artists are taking part in this year's Devon Open Studios event. A series of nine Art Trails, each with its own map will run across the county between September 6-21 with trails in North Devon, West Devon and South Hams running from September 6-14 and those in Exeter, East Devon, Torbay and Teignbridge running from September 13-21. In addition to the artists, the trails will also feature local food outlets and producers enabling visitors to plan their routes and enjoy high quality local food as part of their Open Studios day out."

Rambles in Devon to see art studios - what could be nicer?
Update: LINK

Cowes Week

http://www.skandiacowesweek.co.uk/

The Passionate Planters

Image: Cedars of Lebanon planted at Chelsea Physic Garden in 1683; watercolour by Fuge.

How Britain Became a Nation of Gardeners.
Delightful and informative article from THE LADY.
Link

“I found the Gardener’s Dictionary , first published in 1731 by Philip Miller, and was most surprised to find just how many plants had been introduced into Britain in the 18th century. There was a network – of English merchants, American farmer John Bartram and famous Age of Enlightenment figures, such as Carl Linnaeus, Benjamin Franklin, Hans Sloane and Joseph Banks – which stretched across the world, importing and selling plants by the thousand.”

It was their stories that inspired her to write her gem of a book, The Brother Gardeners: Botany, Empire and the Birth of an Obsession . It was on a mission on behalf of the great botantist Carl Linnaeus, that Daniel Solander arrived on our shores in 1760 and wrote back: “The English are all more or less gardeners.”

Wulf explains that this came with the spread of the British Empire, which brought access to plants as never before.

Ascot: Anti-Chav Rules OK

Ascot chucks out the chavs
Sri Carmichael, Royal Reporter
13.06.08

Women face being banned from the Royal Enclosure at Ascot this year if their skirts are more than two inches above the knee or their tops have straps less than an inch wide.

Course chiefs have spelled out how to dress properly at one of the highlights of the Season and they have even warned about under-wear. Women, they advise, must wear "knickers", adding: "But not on show, please ladies!" Streaky fake tans are "a total fashion faux pas and there's no excuse".

A dress code for racegoers, dubbed "anti-chav" by insiders, has been posted to each attendee with their ticket and is available on the Ascot website. No exceptions will be made this year and race course stewards will enforce the ban strictly.

The article is here


Glorious Goodwood has a lovely site design: see it here.

Asda's 2p British Sausage: Yes, Minister Redux?

What's in Asda's sausage? Not much meat, it seems.

Zac Goldsmith calls for boycott of Sainsbury's

Good idea.
An affectionate profile of Zac is here.
Zac's magazine, The Ecologist, is here.

Findhorn

Findhorn Foundation
Articles on Findhorn and sustainability by Jonathan Dawson at
The Guardian

Lt. Churchill: 4th Queen's Own Hussars

Lt. Churchill: 4th Queen's Own Hussars

Read about Lt. Churchill's days in the 4th Queen's Own Hussars here.

Happy Birthday, Your Majesty

VICTORIA (r. 1837-1901)

Victoria was born at Kensington Palace, London, on 24 May 1819. She was the only daughter of Edward, Duke of Kent, fourth son of George III. Her father died shortly after her birth and she became heir to the throne because the three uncles who were ahead of her in succession - George IV, Frederick Duke of York, and William IV - had no legitimate children who survived.

Warmhearted and lively, Victoria had a gift for drawing and painting; educated by a governess at home, she was a natural diarist and kept a regular journal throughout her life. On William IV's death in 1837, she became Queen at the age of 18.

Queen Victoria is associated with Britain's great age of industrial expansion, economic progress and, especially, empire. At her death, it was said, Britain had a worldwide empire on which the sun never set.

In the early part of her reign, she was influenced by two men: her first Prime Minister, Lord Melbourne, and her husband, Prince Albert, whom she married in 1840. Both men taught her much about how to be a ruler in a 'constitutional monarchy' where the monarch had very few powers but could use much influence.

Albert took an active interest in the arts, science, trade and industry; the project for which he is best remembered was the Great Exhibition of 1851, the profits from which helped to establish the South Kensington museums complex in London.

Her marriage to Prince Albert brought nine children between 1840 and 1857. Most of her children married into other Royal families of Europe.

Queen Victoria

Emett, Grockles in Devon

Image: This is an Emett

These are Grockles: Jackson 5 arrive in Devon

Tarka the Opera

Yes, it's true! The little water wanderer's opera is at the Two Moors Festival. Read the synopsis here.
Otter sanctuaries are listed here.
Everything Exmoor is a lovely site, here.

Not Sloane Ranger and the Guccis

Image from FIRST POST.

Q.E.D.

Sun King: David Harber Sundials

Image from Armillary
It’s impossible to think of Chelsea in May without also bringing to mind the RHS Chelsea Flower Show. One regular exhibitor there is David Harber, maker of bespoke sundials, water features and sculptures. This year, like all the others (for three years he has won the RHS Sundries Trophy) he is putting the finishing touches to a selection of innovative products. Star of the show (so new it isn’t named) will be a bronze sphere with stainless steel and gold-leafed petals. ‘We set up the stand as a garden and put a lot of effort into it,’ says Harber. Those in the know credit Harber as having single-handedly breathed new life into the ancient craft of sundial making. His work graces private gardens, corporate headquarters, national institutions and royal palaces worldwide.

The Resident profiles the wondrous sundial creations of David Harber

David Harber's website is here

"I didn't make the Bullingdon"

From the Spectator.
Smashing Job, Chaps

Recipe: Nigella's Chocolate Cake

Nigella with daughter Cosima











Recipe

Dense Chocolate Loaf Cake

Makes 8 to 10 slices

Ingredients

225g soft unsalted butter

375g dark muscovado sugar

2 large eggs, beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

100g best dark chocolate, melted

200g plain flour

1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

250ml boiling water

Use one 23 x 13 x 7cm loaf tin

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 190C/gas mark 5; put in a baking sheet in case of sticky drips later, and grease and line the loaf tin. The lining is important as this is a very damp cake: use parchment, Bake-O-Glide or loaf-tin shaped paper case.

2. Cream the butter and sugar, either with a wooden spoon or with an electric hand-held mixer, then add the eggs and vanilla, taking care to blend well but being careful not to overbeat. Nigella says: "You want the ingredients combined: you don't want a light airy mass."

3. Gently add the flour, to which you have added the bicarb, alternately spoon by spoon, with the boiling water until you have a smooth and fairly liquid batter.

4. Pour into the lined loaf tin, and bake for 30 minutes. Turn the oven down to 170C/gas mark 3, and continue to cook for another 15 minutes. Nigella says: "The cake will still be a bit squidgy inside, so an inserted cake-tester or skewer won't come out completely clean." Charles says: "Unlike King Alfred, keep an eye on the top of the cake, to avoid burning."

5. Place the loaf tin on a rack, and leave to go completely cold before turning it out. Nigella says: "I often leave it for a day or so: like gingerbread, it improves."

Nigella's serving suggestions: Eat with ice cream; or with a bowl of straw-berries and a jug of white-coloured rum custard; or cold cream cheese.

Visit Nigella's site here

Boris Johnson writes for NOTW

See what the Lord Mayor of London wrote at News of the World here.

The Independent - Dalai Lama: Karma Chameleon

The Dalai Lama charms the West, but can he save Tibet?

"Decline of deference much overrated"

Posh spice up life for Britain with class act





A sound not heard since the early Eighties floated over the Thames one recent morning - that of posh young Tories braying with delight.
"It was like a donkey sanctuary," said the Telegraph nark infiltrated into Boris Johnson's victory party in the Millbank Tower. "Lots of very drunk public schoolboys alternately booing and cheering at BBC News 24 as first Boris then Ken came on. You know, like very, very drunk.
From the Hong Kong Standard

Summer Evening in Sloane Square

The sun was shining, and we sat on the sill of the big open front window swinging our legs, sipping champagne, spotting the 'human statue' climb down from her plinth and slip round the corner for a sneaky cigarette, and watching the latest batch of Sloane Rangers swing by. They are much prettier these days - their hair long and golden, their skirts much shorter, and their sense of style completely different from the pie-frill collars, frumpy long navy skirts, flat buckled shoes and padded velvet hair-bands of Princess Diana's youth. We could have been in Rome, with the fountain playing in the Square and the trees bursting into leaf.
From America's Huffington Post

British UFO Files Released

Not Time Lords, but still entertaining - government UFO report is here.

Video: The Real Sherlock Holmes

Joseph Bell, an Edinbugh physician and pioneer in forensics, was the model for the fictional Sherlock Holmes; an article about him is here. Video is 45 minutes long.

Britain's Ten Best Country Houses to Lease

Bradley House

"The house managed the neat trick of being grand without being in the least formal. I realised that this was how a manor house would be if I owned one myself: full of books and comfy sofas and log fires. There were piano duets in the music room, chess games half-finished in the library, a great gaggle of muddy wellies inside the back door and a kitchen that was the warm heart of the house.
Every morning while the others slept, I went about the house opening the heavy curtains and the tall wooden shutters, a ritual that took a good quarter of an hour. As light flooded into the rooms, the view was revealed piece by piece – the curving drive encircling the fountain, the flat croquet lawn, the mature trees of a Wiltshire parkland, the decorative sheep on the far side of the ha-ha and the distant pastures rising to the heights of Brimstone Hill. Every evening, we had drinks in the Drawing Room in front of a roaring fire before we repaired to boisterous candlelit meals at the long dining table."
Read more here.

Mums - and Mumm's

Happy Mother's Day, everyone! Have a wonderful celebration - perhaps some
Mumm's with your Mum!

Chandeliers

Sloaniture and Sloanishings: This Ranger shopped for chandeliers this month. There are so many to choose from!
The steampunk Venetian glass dirigible and the crystal ship charmed me. You can see more here.

A Conversation with a Virtual You

You can make a virtual version of yourself here and then you and your friends can have fun chatting with it.
Tim Berners-Lee might not approve of using programming for something so frivolous, but perhaps Douglas Adams would.

The Rubiayat of a Persian Kitten

This priceless parody of the Rubaiyat is extraordinary for both its clever verses and its charming illustrations.
It's online here.

Brideshead Revisited, Again

Emma Thompson as Lady Marchmain, for Vanity Fair

Hope it's good. View the trailer here

Love Aga?

Splendid is one word for beautiful new design of the Aga site, here.
For recipes and more, go here.

May 1 - Morris Men and Beltaine

Green Men image is a boss from Exeter Cathedral
A Morris Dancers slideshow is here
A Morris Dancers BBC article is
here

James Bond show at Imperial War Museum

Ian Fleming
"Times Online has teamed up with Imperial War Museum London to offer you an interactive sneak preview of its brand new For Your Eyes Only exhibition which features an array of fascinating material, much on public display for the first time.

The exhibition explores the early life of Ian Fleming, his wartime career and work as a journalist and travel writer and how, as an author, he drew upon his own experiences to create the iconic character of James Bond that continues to have global appeal.

Click the link below to launch our interactive sneak preview of the exhibition, which also includes audio commentary by Times writer-at-large Ben Macintyre, who has also written the accompanying exhibition book."

The Virtual Exhibition link is here.

BBC Radio 4 will mark the 100th anniversary of the birth of James Bond creator Ian Fleming with the first full-length radio adaptation of Dr No, starring Toby Stephens and David Suchet.
The drama, which airs on May 24, will also star Samuel West, John Standing, Martin Jarvis and Peter Capaldi.
The link is here.

The London Season website has a link about this show here.

If you have a yen for a ride in a flying automobile, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and other delights created by Rowland Emett are here

Luton Hoo: The Grand Opening

Many of us know and love Luton Hoo - from visits and stays, if we are lucky, or from films and television (darker image above is from THE AVENGERS). A potted article on its history is here
and this link will take you to information about Randlord Julius Wernher's fabulous art collection.
The Times offers two short videos on Luton Hoo's refurbishing and reopening as a very splendid hotel here.

The Times Rich List Welcomes...

Dame Margaret Barbour.

Cup of Brown Joy

For your inner Young Fogey - or Steam Punk. This is surprisingly catchy - join me for a cup of tea and watch! Will you take Earl Grey, and do you prefer Wedgwood from 1920 or Meakin Indian Tree from 1937?

And I would be remiss if I did not offer you this compilation of links to Steam Punk/Neo-Victorian sites. Down the rabbit hole!

The Great Migration Crisis

Many of the birds that migrate to Britain and Europe from Africa every spring, from the willow warbler to the cuckoo, are undergoing alarming declines, new research shows.

The falls in numbers are so sharp and widespread that ornithologists are waking up to a major new environmental problem – the possibility that the whole system of bird migration between Africa and Europe is running into trouble.

It is estimated that, each spring, 16 million birds of nearly 50 species pour into Britain to breed from their African winter quarters, and as many as five billion into Europe as a whole, before returning south in the autumn. Many are songbirds weighing next to nothing, and their journeys of thousands of miles, including crossing the Sahara desert each way, have long been recognised as one of the world's most magnificent natural phenomena on the scale of the Gulf Stream or the Indian monsoon. But now their numbers are tumbling precipitately.

Well-loved migrants such as the spotted flycatcher, the garden warbler and the turtle dove are increasingly failing to reappear in the spring in places where they have long been familiar. Across Britain, many people who used to look forward each year to hearing the first cuckoo – just about now, in the third week of April – no longer have the chance to do so. If fewer and fewer birds are returning to their breeding grounds, the inevitable consequence is that their populations will shrink ever more rapidly, ultimately, towards extinction. That may still be a long way off for the global populations of many migrants, but in Britain, several species are heading towards disappearance.
Article and downloadable report are here.

The World According to Monsanto

bande annonce film Monsanto
Uploaded by rue89

Watching this video, you will wonder where the foxes, mice, birds, butterflies and pretty herbs will live in the fields we know.
It isn't nice to fool Mother Nature, and this is very nasty indeed.


This wonderful nature image is from
the Cornwall Wildlife Trust.

Vanity Fair: Two Ladies, Two Yachts, and a Billionaire

Image: Hon. Diana Spencer and her sister, in Paris, as jeunes filles.

Did you believe that the Princess of Wales was in love with Dodi al Fayed? Read this excerpt from Dominick Dunne's VANITY FAIR article:
"The more I hear and read and think about Diana’s and Dodi’s deaths in the Pont d’Alma tunnel, in Paris, on August 31, 1997, in what is possibly the world’s most famous car crash, the more I doubt the truth of their great romance. If it was anything at all, it was a flirt, a fling, “just one of those things,” as Cole Porter once wrote. Like the conspiracy theory surrounding their deaths, their romance, too, was orchestrated by Mohamed Al Fayed. The shrine to the eternal love of Dodi and Diana, in Harrods, the most famous of English department stores, owned by Al Fayed, is a popular tourist attraction. People line up to look at it. They speak in whispers, as if they were in church, instead of next to the Egyptian escalator in the basement of the store. The shrine, which is tacky but curiously touching, consists of a fountain, two large portraits—one of Dodi and one of Diana—and floor-lamp-size candles, the scent of lilies in the air. Under a glass pyramid is a crystal glass from which one of them had drunk champagne in the Imperial Suite of the Ritz Hotel just before they died, and the so-called engagement ring, which Dodi had bought that afternoon at the jewelry shop down the street from the Ritz. Diana never wore it. They had been romantically involved with each other for less than a month."
Read the rest of Dominick Dunne's article here.

The Joy of Colour: Kaffe Fassett

Simply gorgeous. This site will lift your spirits and give you wonderful ideas for your own environment.