From
the Prairie Schooner.
Some are part of a series- check the reverses.
Tuesday, 28 January 2020
Monday, 27 January 2020
Andy's Man Club Oldham Moves to Oasis Academy
Men's
support group Andy's Man Club has
gone from strength to strength, with now 25 groups meeting across the
country and another opening in Scarborough 3rd Feb. Last
week we had over 800 men walk through the doors of our clubs. My
local group in Oldham had long
outgrown the Chadderton Wellbeing Centre where we met, but as of
tonight we will be meeting at The Oasis Academy.
7pm.
Come have a brew and a chat.
Also
on the blog, I'll be covering a blogger dinner, a yoga class launch
and a vodka brand launch.
Sunday, 26 January 2020
RIP Manchester Cool Bars and Clubs / Cold Storage review
It's
the end of an era: Meetup group Manchester Cool Bars and Clubs has
folded. Neither me nor Silvia were running events through there any
more, and when we did something always got in the way of a good night
out: either people didn't respond to the event, or they did, but then
didn't turn up, or they turned up dressed inappropriately or without
ID meaning we couldn't get into the clubs. It became more hassle than
it was worth.
Over
the past 5 or so years I've had some good times with the group and
met some great people. We went to many a celeb haunt, saw some
impressive DJs and singers perform, and bumped into a few other
famous types too. See the album.
Most importantly, we just had good nights out with good people.
There
are still plenty of Meetup groups active in Manchester, despite their
turnover. Many like Manchester Minimalists have disappeared too, but
Young Professionals in Manchester,
Socialising in the City,
Happy, and After Work Drinks
are still active. I've enjoyed their events, and may do again.
In
other news, I finished Cold Storage, the first novel from Hollywood
screenwriter David Koepp. After containing a deadly virus, Pentagon
worker Diaz locks it away in a storage facility for decades, only for
it to break out. Now, teaming up with a couple of mismatched security
guards, he must contain it again. The virus, Cordyceps Novus, takes
over any creature it can, dead or alive, zombifying it, making it
climb high structures or find other creatures- most recently humans-
and exploding it to spread itself.
A
story heavily influenced by movies like the 70s zombie trend, Night
of the Living Dead etc, plus also Dustin Hoffman film Outbreak, Cold
Storage has a very movie-like plot: gung-ho Americans with guns, a
short time period, an unconvincing attraction between 2 completely
mismatched characters, and lots of visual twists and turns. It's fun,
but hardly original and even clumsy in places.
I met Mr Koepp in September last year.
Saturday, 25 January 2020
Try This New Mental Health App and This New Mental Health Podcast
Mental
Health support groups are opening up across the country with
increasing frequency, which is fantastic for those that need the
help. Still, though, a weekly meeting in a specific place just might
not be right for people: perhaps some can't attend due to work or
travel, or family commitments. Or maybe some people just aren't ready
to walk through the door.
These
issues led three Calderdale men, Logan Smith, Robin Cunningham and
Doug Dennison, to create
Unmasked, a first-of-its-kind
Mental Health app that can be downloaded to Android or Apple devices.
As The Hebden Bridge Times explains, 'The app is designed to enable
users to create bonds with people they would not ordinarily meet, to
bridge a gap between appointments with mental health specialists.'
In
other MH news, 2 of my mates, Dan Rowe and Omar Latif, have created
The 84, a monthly radio show
discussing all things Mental Health. It's broadcast on Manchester's
Reform Radio, and shows are stored as podcasts on the station's site for those who
missed it. Each show is a great listen, with a new topic or story
covered each 'cast, which goes out on the 3rd Monday of the month.
The podcast title refers to the number of men who take their own lives, every week, in the UK alone.
Friday, 24 January 2020
How my Viking Ancestors Survived the Blood-Soaked Harrying of the North
 |
| Tuckey Coat of Arms |
A
family story my dad passed down to me was that of the Viking tribe
Toki, our ancestors, and from whom the Tuckey name originates.
('Tuckey' comes from the Norse name Thorketill, meaning 'Thor's metal
cauldron.')
So how did this Viking name, and bloodline, sustain to the current
day? A theory states that the tribe landed in Toxteth in Liverpool,
founding that town. The
Vikings founded many towns across the country, and their dominance
lasted over a century. But the Toki tribe were one of the few Vikings
to convert to Christianity. I asked my dad his take. There's a few
gaps in our family knowledge, so if anyone wants to enlighten us,
please get in touch.
“We
doubt that they decided to 'give it a shot.' There was a continuous
battle between King Alfred the Great and Vikings in
various parts of England. Once or twice King Alfred managed to beat
them and they surrendered. He gave them a deal: If you submit to the
king and convert to Christianity, we'll let you live and farm here.
Otherwise you'll be killed. So they converted. We don't know if
history records that they stayed converted.
“Before
you (this writer) were born, we (writer's parents) went to an
exhibition in York – not Yorvick Viking Centre, but something similar. There
was a mention that there was a teaspoon in one of the major churches
in London, maybe St Paul's or Westminster, that was given to the
church when Toki converted to Christianity. I've not managed to find
anything else. I'll write to both, and ask which king they subscribed
to (Alfred the Great, of Britain, or
Guthrum, leader of Danelaw, the
Viking-held area of Britain).
“During
or after William the Conqueror's time,
They murdered a particular character.” (This was probably Copsig,
AKA Gospatric, Earl of
Northumbria. This assassination is regarded as the turning point and inciting incident for the end
of the Viking era.) “WtC got absolutely fed up with Vikings
starting petty wars all over the place so he ordered The Harrying of the North, 'harrying' as in the harrier bird which attacks other birds. He sent
an army northwards just to wipe out the Viking race. It was ethnic
cleansing. But he let those around Rugby off; the Toki tribe
survived. Is that because they'd become good Christian people? It's
possible. In the Harrying WtC wiped out the populations of 5 towns,
including Huddersfield and
Wakefield. He didn't just kill
the inhabiting Vikings, but salted the land so they couldn't grow
crops, and slaughtered the livestock. There wasn't a chance of the
Vikings' survival.”
The
Christian monk and Anglo-Norman chronicler Orderic Vitalis (1075-1142) was
horrified at what WtC's men had done. His diary entries survived for
historians to read.
'The King stopped at nothing to hunt
his enemies. He cut down many people and destroyed homes and land.
Nowhere else had he shown such cruelty. This made a real change. To
his shame, William made no effort to control his fury, punishing the
innocent with the guilty. He ordered that crops and herds, tools and
food be burned to ashes. More than 100,000 people perished of
starvation. I have often praised William in this book, but I can say
nothing good about this brutal slaughter. God will punish him.'
Dad
went on to explain, “It was a very effective wipeout, but the Tokis
survived. There are still loads loads of Tuckeys in the Rugby area,
around 20km (12m) east of Birmingham.” (Take a look at Tuckey's Farm, Warwickshire.)
We
don't have any immediate family there, but their ancestors would
undoubtedly have stepped off the same longboats as ours. I'd be
interested in hearing from you if you know anything about the above-
or are perhaps a distant relative! Tweet me.
Thursday, 23 January 2020
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