Updated: 7 days ago
Wanting to try something new by way of welcoming the new year, we left the comfort of a family member's cosy living room, put on our hats and coats then set out into the night (and the drizzle), heading for the Northumbrian village of Allendale.
It's not really clear where the tradition of the Allendale Tar Bar'l came from and there are plenty of stories that have been considered over the last 160 years or more that this celebration has been taking place. All sorts of theories from warding off evil spirits to carol singer's being left in the dark due to strong winds. But today, it stands as a good excuse to celebrate together and to enjoy the tradition, if nothing else. Scaring off some evil spirits would be great too though.
Allendale is quite a small village and you can see why the locals would look forward to this celebration, it's the biggest event in their cultural calendar and who wouldn't love the excuse to have some fun and light a massive bonfire in their town square!
We found ourselves stood amongst the fun between locals and some who had travelled from as far as London and even overseas.
Huddled together in the strong smell of lighter fluid and the hope that the rain would stay off for at least another hour or so, the crowd became giddy and excited when a brass band started to play and the local men started to collect their barrels (supplied by a local whiskey distillery).
45 men born in the Allen valley use their inherited status to lift the burning barrels of tar over their heads and begin the march around the village to the beat of the brass band. Suspense builds as the procession reaches the village centre. The men gather around and tip the contents of their barrels onto the awaiting bonfire. The bonfire lights up with a roar as the crowd encourages it. Laughter, giddiness and cold shivers ran through everyone and we all shouted together to welcome the new year.
Part of the tradition at the Allendale Tar Bar'l is that only men can become guisers. Only one woman has ever taken part, Miss Vesta Peart. She was allowed to carry one of the barrels in the 1950's as a thank you for creating a large amount of costumes for the event. Some of these costumes are still worn today... some have taken a more modern approach as we watched Super Mario, some Oompa-Loompas and a ballerina run past!
*A few notes if you're hoping to attend a future event:
-We were dowsed in hot ashes due to the wind - don't wear your brand new coat (like I did) it will smell like fire and possibly get burn holes in it from embers.
-There's a strict no parking rule in the village during the event, there's plenty of free parking on the road leading up to the village but be prepared to walk a distance and it would be a good idea to take a torch.
-The local pubs get packed out, there's public toilets near the town square
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We found the event online, Visit Northumberland have a great article HERE
and This Is Northumberland magazine have a beautiful article with stunning photos by Callum Thompson HERE.
(I would highly recommend treating yourself to a copy of This Is Northumberland magazine if you're heading up north this year or if you'd like to learn more about northern folklore- or even just enjoy nature photography).
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Updated: Mar 17
The Mission.
I started 2023 with the very exciting task of opening my business again after closing it in 2022 (more about that here if you missed what went on). With 'health' being a new priority, I approached everything with this fresh new filter and set about making changes.
Starting with cutting ties on what was no longer serving me or that were taking away too much from my time, attention or energy away from the important things. Etsy shop, GOODBYE. Instagram account ADIOS, standing outside at craft markets all weekend, no thank you.
I wanted to fall in love with making again, as much as I loved it when I was little.
Noticing that my attention span was short and the days of having dead legs from sitting uncomfortably on the floor for hours lost in flow state were way behind me. I wanted this concentration level back. I noticed that my phone was in my hand more than my pencil and I wanted things to change.
Over the year, I experimented with everything from digital detoxing, being more mindful by 'single-tasking', actively including idle time into my day and even trying 4 hour slots of concentration. I learnt something from each experiment and use these bits to push me forwards.
I also looked at longer forms of content and what activities fill up my energy bucket instead of draining it. I stuck to 3 simple things; my email newsletter (I call this my Round Ups), my blog and a drawing journal. These three things create meandering paths of creativity and inspiration for me, they fill that energy bucket right up and I get excited to share them with a creative community every month.
The Next Mission?
After learning from little daily habits that stretch my attention span, I'm starting to look at creativity as a muscle that can be stretched too. Maybe this will be the topic for next year's posts?
As always, I'm so glad you're here and I'm so grateful that you support me and my work.
Thank you.
Books that helped me:
Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World by Cal Newport
Podcasts that helped me:
Grow With Soul Podcast (now called Fireside)
It's that time of year and I don't know about you but 'goal setting' is something that fills me with dread and reminds me of school. The start of the new year, get out your shiny new notebook and some fancy pens, write a list of goals that are too extreme or too vague, close the book. never return. job done.
Looking around for some examples to cherry pick can be more draining than inspiring too and can lead to us choosing goals that we want to want or that we think we want.
After being lost in social media land and not really having a main goal as such, my aims became a bit number and vanity based: 'reach 3,000 followers,' 'make 50 sales on etsy' or 'get 300 people on the mailing list.' Well, since deleting most of those apps, I can't focus on those goals any more and had to find a new set of targets. Although these were measurable, they weren't getting me anywhere and they weren't adding any extra value to my life or work - something that's trickier to measure.
After taking 2 years out of 'normal life' for Covid and then a year out for an even less 'normal life' for chemo, I had a new priority: HEALTH. This priority came with some tasty new perspectives: time, attention and energy.
What Do I Want More of?
I go about setting goals by thinking 'what do I want more of' and 'what do I want less of?' in my day to day life. This helps to set little habits that change over an achievable time period and not just setting big and scary goals that encourage me to focus on the end goal and that keep me swimming in the same circle.
Health as a priority
I started with my priority - health, then I worked from there. Yours might be family, self-care, eduaction, exercise, travel... could be anything (I find it easier to just have one).
I started with what I need and how I can get more of that in my life
Rest. A Freelance role allows me to take time when I need it, I'm not closed in by a strict contract or holiday days.
Money. To pay my bills and to work on a 'buffer fund' of a few month's wages - to reduce any money anxiety.
Social. Having colleauges to interact with on a daily or weekly basis.
Then I started to add into what else I'd like more of:
Rest. To take a regular day out to refil my energy bucket, to be inspired and well fed.
Money. To add to my pension and aim to save for a car.
Social. To enjoy coffee with friends, fellow small business owners and new connections.
I felt like these goals were something that I could achieve, I also threw in a challenge, to increase my attention span over the year too. I'd use research, experiments and determination to see if I could be less distracted and more focused.
How do you attack goal setting? Do you fight it with procrastination and scrolling online? Do you stab it in the eye with a glittery gel pen? Or are you in the 'I just don't bother' camp?
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Another post from me about being organised with a to do list and a post on how I tackled a Digital Detox whilst trying to stretch my attention span.
I share more random life hacks, inspiration and ideas on my monthly Round Up. Click HERE, sign over your email adress and enjoy monthly stuff from me
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