The European Union Goes Nuts Over Olive Oil in Rustic Jugs and Dipping Bowls

As most people know the European Union — the EU — is in the middle of an immense economic crisis, with a lot of its members in recession and others such as Portugal, Ireland, Spain, Italy and Cyprus needing bailouts from the EU and World banks to keep them afloat. You would think that our esteemed MEPs — Members of the European Parliament — would be working determinedly to find ways of improving the economic situation and easing the rampant unemployment and ensuing poverty caused by stringent cuts.

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Prehistoric Portugal and the Iberian Mesopotamia

Hidden away in the cork forests and olive tree covered hills of Alentejo are some real historical gems — especially in the area around Guadaloupe near Evora which is known as the “Iberian Mesopotamia.” The most famous of these is the Cromlech of the Almendres megalithic complex — an ancient stone circle, and to the South the amazing passage mound — The “Anta Grande do Zambujeiro.”

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MRSA Revisited: “Out, D-a-m-n-e-d Spot! Out, I Say!”

Four or five months ago when I was doing my routine self-breast check I found a small pea sized lump on my breastbone, nestled in my cleavage.

A quick check with our doctor at the time confirmed what I had first thought — a fatty lump or sebaceous cyst — nothing to be concerned about.

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Moving Boxes and Boxes of Kittens

Big boxes, little boxes, round boxes, wooden boxes, plastic boxes, crates, chests and of course a suitcase or four, plastic bags a plenty and of course a kitten or five — yes it is official — we are on the move.  Official tenancy starts 1st June — we have until 31st May to pack up the contents of the house — that is my job — and all the agricultural equipment, a dead car or two plus all the tools and spares and their housing as well as our tractor. There is also a garage to clear — thank goodness that is his job!

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The A to Z of Our Handfasting

Mr P and I chose to be hand fasted for several reasons. Most importantly it fitted our belief systems to a “T,” but there were secondary issues to take into account such as the Catholic church’s refusal to marry couples where one of the couple has been previously married and divorced and the nightmare of red tape that would have to be surmounted for a couple of two different nationalities to get married in a civil ceremony in a third party country. We are also both of the opinion that we did not need or want the state to recognise our union.

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The First of May: You Call it May Day; I call it Beltane, a Wiccan Sabbat

International Workers’ Day (also known as May Day) is a celebration of the international labour movement. May 1 is a national holiday in more than 80 countries and celebrated unofficially in many other countries.  All around Europe people are celebrating with a day off or a “bank holiday.”

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Hidden Treasures of Alcácer do Sal

Last time we visited the house at Alcácer, not only did I solve the mystery of things that went bump in the night, I also discovered some previously hidden treasures including some rather nice Moroccan swag which has gone onto the adoption list.  Eat your heart out David – this is a copper lamp shade from Morocco. It needs a good polish and then it is being adopted. As it is very heavy we may use it with a large multi wick candle in the base. I will of course update you with pictures when it is cleaned and in use.

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25th April — 25 de Abril — is Portuguese Freedom Day

Today, 25th April, is a national holiday in Portugal. It is the anniversary of the Carnation Revolution and this day commemorates the start of the bloodless military coup which with the help of civil resistance led to the fall of the Estado Novo bringing democracy and civil liberties to the Portuguese people and the withdrawal of Portugal from its African colonies. It brought to an end nearly five decades of dictatorship (1937-1974).

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The Alternative Horizon Tutorial: How to Create Great Portrait Images for Online Publication

Here are some composition lessons learned from my recent photo challenge for getting great images for blog article.

First the basics

1 Read the manual — know your camera, learn what each button does, which the flash is, which the backlight, which is the timer is and how to control the zoom.

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Alentejo Landscapes in Portrait

This was a photographic challenge — to share my backyard/neighbourhood landscapes in portrait format instead of traditional landscape format.

This first view is across the fields towards the small mountain range called Serra do Cercal, you can see the aqueduct which is part of a huge irrigation project in the region crossing the valley and the fire breaks in the forested mountain slopes behind.

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