Patric Morgan2013-05-23T07:03:05-04:00Patric Morganhttp://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/author/index.php?author=patric-morganCopyright 2008, HuffingtonPost.com, Inc.HuffingtonPost Blogger Feed for Patric MorganGood old fashioned elbow grease.How a Sheep Saved a Nationtag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2013:/theblog//3.25105072013-01-19T08:29:03-05:002013-03-21T05:12:01-04:00Patric Morganhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/patric-morgan/
Down in Wales, which has for the last few days been blanketed under thick snow and ice, a certain weather-forecasting sheep (yes, you did read that correctly) has been keeping the nation informed of the latest weather reports by email, and on social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter. His weather forecasts are succinct and to the point: "Shitloads of snow. Get down to Tesco now for milk, bread and horse-burgers." and "It's going to absolutely piss down." He has kept a nation informed. And probably saved lives.
Enter Derek the Weathersheep. International celebrity weather personality. In Wales anyway.
No-one seems to know his real identity but he does seem to know his stuff. But more than that, he keeps the nation entertained with stories of what's happening down on his farm in Brecon. He has a girlfriend (Dolly), with whom they have a son together (Spartacus). Dolly is expecting her second this spring - which they are going to call Ison should it turn out to be a boy. Ison means "son of weathersheep" in Welsh. Apparently. Then there's Brenda. She's Dolly's best friend, who sometimes joins the celebrity couple for a spot of 'sheep love'. And they all live on a farm, looked after by Farmer Rex Honey and his wife.
It all seems a bit odd and 'out there', but somehow his popularity has gone through the barn roof, especially since the cold snap took its grip over Wales in recent days. As well as the snow updates, he's even updated people on bread availability in the country (although his advice to panic buy does seem a little irresponsible, even if it was tongue in cheek).
"I would have been up Shit Street if it wasn't for Nimble Watch!" says weathersheep fan, Teresa Clanfield. Leza Jack W says "I plan my day everyday according to Derek's forecast, without them I wouldn't be able to leave the house for fear of unknown weather."
In between forecasting the weather, Derek has even managed to write his own autobiography (A Woolly Yarn) and two books in his popular Fifteen Grades of Hay trilogy (sheep-based erotica). His autobiography tells the tale of his abandonment as a lamb by his mother, and his rise to fame as a weather-forecasting sheep. There's the tale of how he saved Mrs Honey's washing by forecasting rain (a skill he now uses now to advise people on when to get their washing in, saving them water and money - and probably the environment) and also the tale of meeting and falling in love with Dolly.
Bizarre? Yes. Massively popular in a nation of sheep? Yes.
It seems that Derek the Weathersheep is writing his place into Welsh history.
]]>From Housewife to Mini-Celeb: Vicki Abelsontag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog//3.22477312012-12-05T18:37:12-05:002013-02-04T05:12:01-05:00Patric Morganhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/patric-morgan/
"Hang on. I've got a big fucking spider on my ceiling."
I'm on the phone to Los Angeles. On the other end of the phone is Vicki Abelson - mother, writer, creator and 'fancypants' of Women Who Write. And, she doesn't like spiders.
"I've hit him with my shoe. Fucker."
It's been a hell of a few years for Vicki. From a housewife, to a mini-celebrity in her own right, in the space of four years, it's all about her creation of a literary group for women that started in her living room. Vicki Abelson's Women Who Write is billed as a "Celebrity-driven literary salon." You don't get many of them in the world.
"I started Women Who Write to workshop my book into a play and to support other women writers. As women, we generally struggle to get our voices heard. I've lived the rock and roll lifestyle over the years - I've managed bands in the past, been a promoter, booker and publicist. I've spent the majority of my life pitching other people's creativity. For the first time in a long time I'm focusing on my creative vision and giving a platform to those who share it."
"Women Who Write has gone from a group of local mommies who sat in my living room to a collection of powerful women, some of whom travel great distances, to sit in my house to be a part of the collective. It's a free-thinking forum where we read, eat, laugh, and sometimes cry. We've had Jackie Collins, Marlee Matlin and Jane Smiley. And yes - we've had men - Carl Reiner, Michael Nesmith and Fred Willard to name a few. But it's more than just artists performing. It's a shared human experience."
And, it's in large part thanks to Facebook.
"On Facebook, I found my true, authentic voice. It freed me and allowed me to stop censoring my thoughts. It gave me a platform to be real and connected me with thousands of like-minded people, and those I otherwise wouldn't have had access to. Without Facebook, my salon wouldn't be thriving as it is."
Following her creative dream presents its own challenges, especially when it comes to earning a living at it.
"I have a couple of people close to me who don't see value in what I do. If it doesn't translate to dollars they don't see its worth. They think that I should be designing websites and writing copy. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but for me, giving up Women Who Write, is out of the question. As a now single mother, I have to be practical, and find a way to have this thing that feeds me, feed me. And my children."
"I pray for funding and/or sponsorship. Just like a plumber who receives payment for services rendered, so too, should an artist. The dream is to get Women Who Write on TV, to bring it to a global audience, without cost to them, where the talent would be compensated. If someone would have told me a year ago of all the angels who would appear to help me try to accomplish that, I wouldn't have believed them."
Things are now moving too for Don't Jump, Vicki's fictionalized memoir.
"I had a small publishing contract offered to me over two years ago. It wasn't ideal and sat unattended for a long time. I now have a number of powerful people stepping up to help me get it out there. Including that original publisher."
For Women Who Write, it's onwards and upwards for 2013.
"I've begun companion Women Who Write writers' workshops, my YouTube channel will be evolving into podcasts, and we'll continue to take it on the road as we did at Michael Nesmith's invitation last summer to the Henry Miller Memorial Library in Big Sur. We've had offers from all over the US and Canada. We look forward to expanding our audience - I can only fit sixty people in my living room. We want to help other women find their voice and promote themselves in a way that's palatable. Social media helps. The collective brilliance does as well. The shared human connection, that time together, is transformative. It really does take a village."
For those seeking inspiration, community and a platform to present their work, Vicki Abelson and her Women Who Write, just may be the angels to answer their dreams.
Photograph of Vicki With Carl Reiner courtesy of Sonya Sones
W:Women Who Write]]>The Other Girl: Alicia Witt in Londontag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog//3.22356582012-12-04T02:22:45-05:002013-02-02T05:12:01-05:00Patric Morganhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/patric-morgan/
"I don't have a manager, a booking agent, a publicist or any of that for my music. In that way, it's been even more of an adventure. I've learned what I know of the music business at this point simply from doing it myself and talking to friends who have been in it longer than I have. I just try to absorb as much as I can from every experience. At some point in the near future, I feel that I will need to try and figure out a management/booking agent situation, but the good thing about knowing so much about how to do it yourself is that you're not so much looking for someone to help manage the day-to-day, but someone to really put almost as much into it as you do yourself-- which is much harder to find."
Alicia's work is helped along by a devoted army of friends and followers the world over.
"I've been incredibly lucky to have an army of dear friends, fellow musicians and countless people who have helped me in every way from spreading the word to making introductions, to just being supportive and listening. Without them, I would absolutely not have been able to do what I've done so far."
Alicia's musical life started from a young age. Playing the piano from the age of seven, she has embraced the power of music to its fullest.
"I loved piano from the moment I started to take lessons. It felt as though it was something I had always been meant to do. For me, it was an enormous creative outlet and I never felt like practicing was something I was under any pressure to do. The classical competitions were what I looked forward to the most. However, by the time I was about 12 or 13, I was starting to realise that I definitely didn't want to be a classical pianist as a vocation; the pressure on you as a kid to practice and even to play a certain way grows as you advance in levels, and I had no interest in applying to Juilliard or pursuing that sort of disciplined musical life. I'd already completed a film when I was seven (Dune) and I knew I wanted to do more of that. By the time I had moved to LA at 14, I knew that music would always be a part of my life - and that I wanted to write and sing my own songs. Acting took a big precedent over it for a long time though."
But juggling so many creative talents requires a lot of copious amount of work.
"I think trying to manage the time is the most challenging thing about what I do. Lately I've been travelling a whole lot, and that's a big part of my life in general - trying to balance the acting and music careers. Sometimes, when I'm home for a week at a time, it does feel a little all over the place. For me, having too much downtime is not a good thing though, so writing and making music has been an enormous gift. All the spare time I used to have, even while filming something, is now filled with creating songs. There are always about five unfinished ones knocking around in my head at any given time.
"My genetic makeup is very much like a night owl - like most musicians I know. I often go to bed at 4am but I write anywhere and anytime. Often I'll have a conversation with someone or just a random thought while I'm out and about, take a quick note on my phone and then go to work on it later. Sometimes it has a melody attached; sometimes only lyrics at first with some sort of basic rhythmic structure but nothing else."
For any true artist, especially one who invests so much time in their work, there has to be a goal, something that drives them. Alicia's fans in the UK have been pestering her to visit Blighty for years. And sure enough, she's hopped on a plane to bring her music directly to them in person.
"You know, I really just want to bring my music to as many people as possible and see what happens. There's no greater feeling than when a stranger gets in touch with me and tells me a song meant something or related to their life, or helped them through a rough patch; or as happened at my last LA show when the entire front row were standing at the edge of the stage singing along to my songs! I don't think I could ask for too much more than that. For me it's really about keeping on with it and putting it out there and taking it to as many ears as I can. Then the rest is up to the people who find it. I've travelled to play in the UK this week only because so many people have reached out to ask for London shows, so they really made that happen. I've been looking forward to finally playing here for so long now.
"It's not the first time Alicia has been here. "I have spent a great deal of time here. My film The Upside of Anger was shot entirely in London, so I had a flat in Notting Hill for two months; then a few months later I ended up doing a play (The Shape of Things) which ended up in the West End, after runs in Plymouth and Brighton. A few years later, I did another play at the Royal Court - Piano/Forte. I have many friends who live in London, many of whom I haven't seen in way too long now. It's one of those places I've felt instantly at home in and have missed a whole lot."
But there's plenty more to come from the flame-haired singer.
"I feel like I'm only just getting started in all aspects of my life. It is important to sit back now and then and say: 'Holy Shit! I'm playing at Brixton Academy!' You've got to enjoy those moments. I also know that as soon as I'm done playing there, I'm just going to want even more than I do now!"
Alicia plays at 12 Bar Club on December 6th, 9:45pm. Tickets available from 020 7240 2622 www.12barclub.com www.aliciawittmusic.com]]>Ann Romney Raisin the Battlelinestag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog//3.20826982012-11-06T19:00:00-05:002013-01-06T05:12:01-05:00Patric Morganhttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/patric-morgan/
Let's just set the record straight before we go any further. Welsh cakes are not a new invention. Oh no. They have been around for hundreds of years. They were traditionally made by the lady of the house as a treat to serve at afternoon tea. They were also given to children with their school lunches. Filling and tasty, Welsh cakes became popular with the black-faced miners who would descend into the bowels of the Welsh hills to rape it of its coal.
Imagine a cross between a scone and a cookie, with some sultanas and a dusting of sugar on them. Well done. You've got yourself a Welsh cake.
So back to Ann Romney. Mrs Romney seems very proud of her Welsh heritage. Ann's father Edward was from Caerau (pronounced Kai-ruh). He left Wales in the 1940s for Michigan where he made a name and a lot of money for himself. He was not a religious man, despite being raised within the Welsh chapel movement. Word has it that both Ann and Mitt Romney, both Mormons, baptised Edward in the Mormon tradition on his behalf, months AFTER Edward's death.
Very considerate of them don't you think?
So what are Ann's plans for the humble Welsh cake - that symbol of the understated, the unpretentious and the plain? Is there are darker side to all this cooking?
Well she certainly seems to have hijacked the little blighters for her husband's political gain. Her recent appearance on Good Morning America seems to have raised suspicions here in Wales that our little floury friends are being used merely as pawns in this great election battle.
Eyebrows were raised only a few months ago, when she was handing out Welsh cakes on a campaign trail flight. A Welsh journalist who was on the flight, took a few bites from Mrs Romney's cakes and wasn't too impressed. The cleaners would have found it, half-chewed, wrapped in a napkin and stuffed down the side of the seat.
It remains yet to be seen where the Welsh cakes will make another appearance as the campaign draws to its dazzling finale. There have been rumours, and they are just rumours at the moment, that Ann Romney will be dressed as a Welsh cake on Election Night. She'll be there, telling the world how her grandparents showed her how to make Welsh cakes, and how she wants to continue the tradition to her children and so on and so forth. And how thrilled America will all be.
But here in Wales, we're all a bit bored by it all, and even a little bit annoyed. Why us Ann, why? Why did you have to pick on us? Why our cakes? From a land where working-class is the way of life for most, we don't want our cuisine linked to right-wing rationale.
As we would say here in Wales, "Welsh cakes won't win you an election love."
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