The Garden Pantry

 The Garden Pantry

by Tana Jackson with illustrations by Melanie Thorpe

The Garden Pantry is a cookbook with a collection of delicious recipes using unprocessed, completely natural plant-based produce with a nod to some good old-fashioned favourites.

Vegan friendly, the book is ideal for people with food intolerances as the recipes contain no meat, fish, dairy, gluten, salt, sugar, honey or nuts.

Tana was inspired to write the book as she has been eating a vegetable-based diet for the last few years. To begin with she found herself developing a number of food intolerances and gradually eliminated the different types of meat, fish, dairy, fats, salt and nuts, etc from her diet until she was left with a diet consisting mainly of vegetables and carbohydrates.

Tana started to look into the many products that have been developed to substitute the meat, fish and dairy etc that is missing from a vegetable-based diet and was disturbed to find that these products could easily be described as some of the most processed food in the Western world. 

When she was eating meat, fish and dairy she avoided processed food because it is supposed to be so bad for you, but when she started to buy the substitutions this became a minefield, so she started to work on creating recipes using unprocessed, completely natural, plant-based produce. 

The book is a reflection of that journey and Tana shares her recipes in a fun and creative way. 

Ideal for people with food intolerances the recipes in the book are vegan friendly and do not contain any meat, fish, dairy, gluten, salt, sugar, or nuts. The recipes do contain beans and legumes, but these can be substituted for vegetables if you cannot tolerate them in your diet.

Did you know that in the UK, an estimated 2 million people are living with a diagnosed food allergy, and 600,000 with coeliac disease.

Clear simple instructions make it the perfect book for every cook and the delightful illustrations of the inventive little Cheflings are an inspiration.

In collaboration with Melanie Thorpe who is a super talented illustrator, they have created some friends called the Cheflings who will help you to experiment and have some fun in your kitchen making good wholesome food for you and your family to enjoy.

The illustrations of the inventive little Cheflings throughout the book were produced using an XP Pen graphics tablet. 

Connected to her mobile phone Melanie draws onto the tablet using the stylus and the drawing is viewed on the screen of her mobile phone.  The technique produces the drawings as wonderful vibrant digital watercolours.

Only £12.95 with free postage click here to get your copy now.

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The Christmas Truce

The Christmas Truce has become one of the most famous and mythologised events of the First World War. But what was the real story behind the truce? Why did it happen and did British and German soldiers really play football in no-man's land?

Late on Christmas Eve 1914, men of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) heard German troops in the trenches opposite them singing carols and patriotic songs and saw lanterns and small fir trees along their trenches. Messages began to be shouted between the trenches.

The following day, British and German soldiers met in no man's land and exchanged gifts, took photographs and some played impromptu games of football. They also buried casualties and repaired trenches and dugouts. After Boxing Day, meetings in no man's land dwindled out.

The truce was not observed everywhere along the Western Front. Elsewhere the fighting continued and casualties did occur on Christmas Day. Some officers were unhappy at the truce and worried that it would undermine the fighting spirit.

After 1914, the High Commands on both sides tried to prevent any truces on a similar scale happening again. Despite this, there were some isolated incidents of soldiers holding brief truces later in the war, and not only at Christmas.

In what was known as the 'Live and Let Live' system, in quiet sectors of the front line, brief pauses in the hostilities were sometimes tacitly agreed, allowing both sides to repair their trenches or gather their dead.

“The evidence is too hazy to say with any kind of certainty that a match took place” Mark Connelly professor of modern British military history at the University of Kent has said.

I have spent many years researching the Christmas truce, looking through war diaries, and papers at the Imperial War Museum. What I know from my investigations is that we just cannot find any conclusive evidence that a football match took place.

Taff Gillingham who has been studying British military history for more than 25 years on the other had believes that evidence discovered in 2014 proves there was football played during the truce.

A letter written by Corporal Albert Wyatt of the Norfolk regiment, published in a newspaper in 1915, said he had played a match in Wulverghem, Belgium. This was a breakthrough, as it corroborated a letter sent by Sergeant Frank Naden from the 1/6th Cheshires, telling home that he had played a Christmas Day match.

Taff said so here we suddenly have two people in the same place saying they had played a game of football which is corroborated evidence. I think the fact that we don’t see lots of soldiers talking in letters and diaries about having seen the match indicates it was on a small scale – but there was a kickabout.

A few months ago German historian Rob Schaefer uncovered a postcard sent home by another soldier of IR133 who claimed to have played. The card corroborates a well known account by Lt Johannes Niemann of the same Regiment. Again, two men, same place, same time. The kickabouts at Wulverghem and Frelinghien are the only two places where kickabouts are corroborated, although in both cases there is no corroboration from the opposing side.

Poem by Lee Jackson www.moonink.co.uk

Click here to view the guide showing you How to Write a Tanka Poem.

Click here to go to the MoonInk Tanka Poetry Anthology to see the brilliant submissions we have received.

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Showcasing the work of Michael H Lester

 MoonInk Tanka Poetry Anthology 2020

Click here to learn how to write a Tanka poem and submit your work for publication in the online Anthology, subject to the Submission Guidelines. 

Visit the anthology at www.mooninkpoetry.com and send your entries to submissions@moonink.co.uk

In this month’s blog we are showcasing the work of the writer and poet Michael H Lester.

a two-bit hustler

in the silver-dollar saloon

throws snake-eyes

those loaded dice no match

for the outlaw's six-gun

cherry pits

dry on the windowsill

I imagine

a hanami festival

in my own backyard

the cuckoo

with its guttural croak

and black bill

vanishes in the foliage

like a thief in the night

in search of the truth

these cracked brown feet

have scaled mountains

weathered fierce blizzards

and forged raging rivers

perched on a limb

this troubadour sparrow

whistles

a bewildering assortment

of enchanting birdsong

its feathers

shimmering jet black

the raven

pecks at the cobblestones

one eye on the children

Beachcombing

Beachcombing is a combination of the word ‘beach’, from the Proto-Germanic word ‘bakiz’ meaning ‘loose pebbles of the seashore’, and ‘comb’, from the Old English word ‘cemban’ meaning ‘examine closely’. In English, the combined word beachcombing first appeared around 1840.

Beachcombing is simply the art of hunting the coastline for things of value, interest or usefulness.

Though you can beachcomb any time of year the autumn is particularly good - as the beaches are a little quieter, while the stormier weather out in the ocean will mean a few more treasures will wash up.

Here are ten things to look out for when combing the seashore.

1.       Shells

•         When you return from your trip, check the internet to identify what your shell is.

2. String and rope

·         String, rope, discarded pieces of fishing net can be used for recycled crafts.

 

3.       Fossils

·         These are the remains of tiny animals that lived in the sea from 470 million years ago, found in among the pebbles.

4.       Seaweed

·         Seaweed might look a bit slimy and smell a bit but its often home to an abundance of wildlife. See how many colours you can find - red, brown and green are the most common.

5. Heart-shaped stones

·         Smoothed by the sea, heart-shaped stones are a beautiful creation of nature and a lovely way to bring a memory of your day at the beach into your home.

6. Driftwood

·         Driftwood can be dried out to use for craft or use in your garden. The best times to look are after high tide or a large storm.

7. Sea glass

·         Sea glass is formed when man made glass items such as broken bottles are smoothed and frosted by the waves over around 20-30 years leaving them beautifully finished.

8. Sea creatures

·         Often home to crabs and small fish, rock pools are a great place to start when looking for sea creatures.

·         Look out for cuttlefish which are loved by pigeons, magpies and crows if placed in your garden and look out for shark egg cases, often known as mermaid’s purses

9. A message in a bottle

·         Did you know a message in a bottle has been reported to have been found 10,000 miles away from where it started? Keep your eye out for messages from strangers or send your own.

10. Stones

·         There are many beautiful stones on the beach.

·         Stones with holes have always been considered lucky and there are various stories about them – in some areas they are called fairy stones as if you look through the hole towards the end of your garden at dusk you will see the fairies dancing and going about their fairy business.

·         They make great wind chimes strung up in the trees in the garden.

Beachcombing is most effective just as the tide is going out. As the waters move back, a whole host of new treasures are left behind.

Our beaches and rock pools are home to a variety of interesting wildlife, so be careful not to disturb or remove any living creatures. Remember that if you turn a rock over, put it back - it’s part of an ecosystem. Rocks protect creatures from predators but also from the sun.

Only take home open shells where you can see from the outside that someone’s not at home and be sensible about the finds you keep.

Make sure you take a hat and sun cream to protect you on sunny days, along with plenty of water.

Make sure you know the tides and take a watch so you’re not forced into a hasty retreat

Sadly, the beach isn’t always clean - so watch out for obviously dangerous items - fish hooks and metal in particular. If you’re planning on exploring rocks, always err on the side of caution. Be adventurous - but take care!

Use your inspiration to write a poem. Click here to view the guide showing you How to Write a Tanka Poem.

Click here to go to the MoonInk Tanka Poetry Anthology to see the brilliant submissions we have received.

Visit us at www.moonink.co.uk to sign up for the free Poem of the Month and follow us on social media for more poems.  

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Mexican Muralism

At the end of the Mexican Revolution the government commissioned artists to create art that would educate Mexicans, who could not read, about their history. 

The muralists developed an iconography featuring atypical, non-European heroes from the nation’s illustrious past, present, and future and epic murals were created on the walls of highly visible, public buildings using techniques like fresco, encaustic, mosaic, and sculpture-painting.

Although the mural movement stretched all the way through the 1970s, the Mexican muralists produced the most significant paintings in the years between the 1920s and the 1950s. 

Undisputed by the state, it was public and free and it was made accessible to the people and not just a few wealthy collectors. These large-scale paintings graced the walls of centuries-old colonial buildings, prestigious schools and national offices, as they depicted indigenous Mexican culture, the fighting and the outcome of the Revolution.

The muralists were completely free in their choice of topic and technique, as they all believed art is the highest form of human expression, and because their murals carried a political message, Mexican muralism became a form of social realism at its finest.

After the Mexican Revolution, the country saw the creation of a new party and the land was finally in the hands of its own workers. Mexican muralism became a vital part of the country’s new industrialist identity with the full support of those in charge of it. 

This movement proved that art could be a valid communication tool outside the confines of the gallery and museum.

The artists portrayed the Aztec warriors battling the Spanish in their fight for independence, humble peasants fighting in the Revolution, and the common laborers of Mexico City. They worked in the country’s urban areas and were prominent political activists overall, dedicated to creating a modern Mexico. Their communist backgrounds and the respect for Marxism and class struggle were often visible in their murals, although always subtly and never quite radically.

Although the early Mexican murals were inclined toward the favouring of Socialism - as did its most important artists including Diego Rivera - they would evolve over time to also favourably portray the industrial revolution, the progress of technology, and capitalism and today the mural's role as a key gauge of current events cannot be denied.

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WRITE where we are NOW

Carol Ann Duffy and the Manchester Writing School at Manchester Metropolitan University have brought together poets to write poems about the pandemic or about the personal situation they find themselves in right now.

The poems are presented in date order and each includes a note about where it was written. The WRITE where we are NOW website will be updated frequently throughout the pandemic with new contributions.

Readers are welcome and encouraged to share any of the poems, or their own creative responses, using #WWWAN or tagging @McrWritingSchl on social media.

Carol Ann Duffy , the former poet laureate hopes the project called ‘Write Where We Are Now’, “will provide an opportunity for reflection and inspiration in these challenging times, as well as creating a living record of what is happening as seen through our poets’ eyes and ears, in their gardens or garrets”.

I hope that these poems will provide an opportunity for reflection and inspiration in these challenging times, as well as creating a living record of what is happening as seen through our poets’ eyes and ears.

'We need the voice of poetry in times of change and world-grief. A poem only seeks to add to the world and now seems the time to give.'

Each work reflects on the writer’s own personal experiences of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak from all over the world, supporting readers in reflecting on and articulating their own feelings through the power of poetry. The poems are available to read and share on the WRITE where we are NOW website.

Hands, Carol’s own poem, reflects on how every Thursday, “we clap at the darkness”, and on how she can see the hands of her absent daughter “when I put my head in my own”.

Duffy is spearheading the project with the Manchester Writing School at Manchester Metropolitan University.

“We need the voice of poetry in times of change and world-grief. A poem only seeks to add to the world and now seems the time to give,” said Duffy, who is creative director of the writing school.

Professor Malcolm Press, Vice-Chancellor of Manchester Metropolitan University, said: “I am delighted to support this inspiring initiative by Carol Ann Duffy, one of the world’s greatest and most admired poets.

WRITE where we are NOW brings together some of the most creative minds of our generation in a growing online anthology of poetry that reflects our journey through these challenging and troubling times. I am sure that these outstanding poems will voice the sentiments and feelings that many of us around the world will share. At the same time, I am confident that these innovative and imaginative works will inspire creativity and hope.”

Hands by Carol Ann Duffy:

We clap at the darkness.

I hearken for the sound

of my daughter’s small hands,

but she is miles away...

though I can see her hands

when I put my head in my own.

Andrew McMillan, winner of the 2015 Guardian First Book Award and inaugural 2019 Polari Prize, who is Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing at Manchester Metropolitan University, has contributed.

Garden by Andrew McMillan:

in the beginning

the dead   like the first flowers

for Adam   were few

enough to name them

but soon   they grew too many

the vast fields of them

WRITE where we are NOW brings together some of the most creative minds of our generation in a growing online anthology of poetry that reflects our journey through these challenging and troubling times.

MoonInk are creating their own Tanka Poetry Anthology 2020

Click here to learn how to write a Tanka poem and submit your work for publication in the online Anthology. Send your entries to submissions@moonink.co.uk

Visit us a www.moonink.co.uk to sign up for the free Poem of the Month and follow us on social media for more poems.  

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Art Abandonment

There is a movement of people across the world creating art and placing it for strangers to find. 

The Art Abandonment Group can be found on social media and you can scroll through the pieces of art that people had lovingly created to pass on to strangers.

The artist makes a decision to leave one an artwork in a public place, for someone to find and keep or pass it on.

The group was founded by artist Michael deMeng, artist and owner of Michael deMeng Art.  He says the inspiration for the group came from a sketch on a napkin. He decided to leave it on the table for the next person to find wondering what would become of the artwork. Would it be liked? Would it be thrown away?

The response to the posting of his first abandonment was so popular that they started the Facebook group to inspire others. Within a week there were more than 800 members and today they have nearly 30,000 members worldwide.

Traditional pieces of art like painting and drawings are made and left outside, but members also abandon jewellery, pottery, garden and home décor, books and zines, and even rocks! Whole families are getting involved and people are abandoning their art in shops, on the beach, in parks and anywhere there might be a flow of pedestrian traffic.

Next time you’re feeling overwhelmed by the sad and tragic news of the world, visit the Art Abandonment Facebook page and if you want to join in, you’ll find all the details there as well.

This is a clever way to make people think about art and anyone from adult to child can participate while the pieces vary in theme and size.

Here at MoonInk it is our mission to take the poetry out of the page and into the world and we have started a project where we are writing Tanka and Haiku poems onto stone. We are leaving them on the seafront and in town for people to read and take home if they like a particular poem.

Visit us a www.moonink.co.uk for more information, sign up for the free Poem of the Month and follow us on social media for more poems.  

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