Moulsham Times March 2015

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Issue Number 27 - March 2015

MT Welcome Dear readers,

Welcome to the March Moulsham Times. A busy month coming up for us including arranging music acts for a few festivals. Nick also has his Delta Blues day at The Bassment on the 21st of this month (see page 16).

Please note Dick Madden and Simon Burns MP will not be writing in the next two editions after this one due to the forthcoming election in May. Remember to change your clocks at the end of this month spring must be on its way...

Regards Nick & Paul

Editorial Advertising Paul Mclean Nick Garner 07595 949701 07970 206682 ads@itsyourmedia.co.uk editorial@itsyourmedia.co.uk Disclaimer: It’s Your Media publish the Moulsham Times. The opinion expressed in each article is the opinion of its author and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Its Your Media Ltd. No part may be reproduced without the prior written permission of Its Your Media Ltd. Reg Co No. 09154871. Printed by Imagery UK.

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“Flipping Brilliant!”

ECFS & bestofchelmsford hold a pancake day networking event at The New London.

It was a breakfast networking event with a difference at The New London restaurant on Tuesday the 17th. Independent Financial Advisers, ECFS Limited - part of the Edmund Carr accountancy group - sponsored the Shrove Tuesday event in association with businesses profiled on The Best of Chelmsford web community.

he felt it was to support local independent restaurants, where you are more likely to find a wider choice of dishes and cuisine than you would find at a national chain outlet.

It was well attended by local business representatives from a wide array of backgrounds. The common connection was Tom Bosher, who runs and maintains The Best Of Chelmsford website (www.thebestof.co.uk/local/chelmsford), a useful source of information for all things related to Chelmsford and the surrounding area.

Bob Vorley, Glibbery Maintenance, Ivor Guthrie, Forum of Private Business, Tom Bosher, Best of Chelmsford, David Carr, ECFS, Kevin Bray, ECFS, Justin Cracknell, The New London.

Justin and his team served delicious pancakes and pastries to the guests and offered the prize of a voucher towards the cost of a meal at his establishment. The lucky recipient was Amy Trevellick of EJ Coombs Solicitors of Danbury.

“It’s great to have the support of local partners who can help put events like this together. I hope to run more networking events later this year” said Tom. A spokesman for Independent Financial Advice firm ECFS, who are based in close proximity to The New London, praised Tom for his work in showcasing local businesses.

“We are pleased to be part of The Best Of Chelmsford and were attracted to it by the diversity of businesses and business people” said David Carr, Managing Director of ECFS (www.ecfsltd.co.uk), in his welcome address.

Justin Cracknell, proprietor of The New London (www. thenewlondon.co.uk), talked about the great variety of independent dining experiences in Chelmsford and how important

“The feedback has been flipping brilliant!” said Kevin Bray, the event co-ordinator of ECFS who brought the event to a close. “We wanted to be more than just a listing on a local directory and show everyone we are very much a “people business”. It is important for us to come out from behind our desks and mix with local business leaders to understand what is going on in their world and how we can be a part of it.

“Investing isn’t just about making money. It can also mean devoting time, effort or energy to something with the expectation of a worthwhile result and that is what I believe we have achieved today”.

Editors Note: This was a great event and we look forward to hopefully attending more like it in the future!

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Look out for The Essex Delta Blues Day this month.

See page 16 for details!

New childrens page see page 26!

From the House

by Simon Burns MP - Men United Campaign I recently attended a reception in the House of Commons to support Prostate Cancer UK’s Men United campaign.

The campaign aims to ‘keep friendships alive’ by encouraging men to see their mates more and do something great together to help beat prostate cancer.

At the Reception, Owen Sharp, Chief Executive of Prostate Cancer UK, revealed the organisation’s ambitious vision to get early detection for men across the UK with effective diagnosis and better treatments needed to beat this disease.

Over the past year, Men United has caught the imagination with a new zeal for change in men’s health - with more than 200,000 people signing up to pledge support. Men from all walks of life, from footballers to lawyers and politicians to plumbers, have formed a growing army, raising funds to find the answers for the

future through research and supporting men now.

By joining Men United people will get to see their mates more, do something great together and help us beat prostate cancer.

Whether it’s big or small, signing a petition or running a marathon, doing it together is what really matters. We know that what starts with a quick hello, a chat in the pub or a barbecue with mates, can end with a nationwide army of men ready to fight for their friends, themselves and men everywhere.

I am honoured to be supporting Prostate Cancer UK’s latest drive to encourage more men to join Men United in the name of men’s health and to ‘keep friendships alive’. Seeing our friends is good for our health and well-being and with 1 in 8 men in the UK facing a prostate cancer diagnosis, men never know when they might need a friend to lean on, or be there for a friend who’s received the bad news. Investing in our friendships and being there for our mates is so important and I am wholeheartedly behind this campaign. Visit the Men United Campaign at: http:// prostatecanceruk.org/get-involved/men-united

Spring Begins in Moulsham Pubs Cast out those long dark nights of winter, the pubs of Moulsham welcome spring with a special event featuring special beers to celebrate the vernal equinox. The weekend starting Friday 20th March sees the key pubs of the Moulsham area presenting a selection of pale ales - including some unique brews never tasted in the community before - to tempt us off our lazy cozy sofas and out into the communal enjoyment of pub life.

Our local brewer, Simon Tippler (great name for a brewer!), of Round Tower Brewery on Navigation Road is creating a special Pale Ale just for this occasion. Moulsham Pale Ale (MPA) is brewed with a mix of pale and extra pale ale malt made from East Anglian barley. With a small amount of hops added for the full length of the boil to provide some of the bitter character, the majority of the hops are added in the last 10 minutes of the boil. Such a short time in the copper means that they contribute only a small amount of bitterness to the final beer, but still help provide the great hop profile that is looked for in a pale ale.

MPA is hopped using Simcoe, which can provide passion fruit, pine and citrus characteristics and also with Centennial hops which can also add floral and lemony notes to the beer.

For Moulsham Pale Ale weekend Simon says, “some of the casks will have an extra addition of hops just before they leave the brewery and this dry hopping will add to the aroma and overall complexity of flavour. Just to make things interesting, no two casks will be dry hopped with the same varieties, meaning that in each pub there will be a different variation of the core beer”.

The Orange Tree Lower Anchor Street, Chelmsford

Chelmsford & Mid Essex CAMRA

Pub of the Year 2014 & 2015 \ Home Cooked Lunches Tuesday Nights - Charity Quiz Thursday Nights - Steak & Curry Night Sunday Lunch Roasts

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Watch out for this celebration of pale ales at The Cricketers, The Queens Head, The Star & Garter, The United Brethren, The Woolpack, the newly opened Hop Shop and at Chelmsford & Mid Essex CAMRA 2015 Pub of the Year, The Orange Tree. Talk to the landlords of these pubs and find out what they have planned.

MURDER MYSTERY DINNERS Saturday 21st March MURDER AT FAWLTY TOWERS Saturday 16th May ALLO ALLO Saturday 19th September CARRY ON DICK Saturday 21st November CHRISTMAS MURDER £39.94 per person Dining 8pm.

Make it special and stay overnight.

Standard double with full English Breakfast

£85.00 per couple.

Premium room £110 & Suite £140.00 www.moulshamtimes.com

Tel: (01245) 455700

THE COUNTY HOTEL CHELMSFORD

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Bookings: Karen Murrell kmurrell@countyhotelgroup.co.uk

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Dan’s Update - You Can Follow Me at www.danskeates.com I spent the first 3 weeks of January riding into northern Thailand and then south following the Mekong down through Laos into Cambodia where I spent 3 days exploring Angkor Wat, the largest religious monument in the world and one of the most important archaeological sites of Southeast Asia. Throughout this time I had been discussing with my son Olly when he was going to be able to visit me. It was decided that he would fly to Bangkok, Thailand at the start of March for one month. This focused my mind regarding what I could do in February. As Olly and I decided we would travel from Thailand into Cambodia and then Vietnam.

I saw no point in continuing my travels in Cambodia, so the easy decision was to return to Thailand and chill out on a tropical island until he arrived.

My good friend Heiko from Germany, who I rode through Iran, Pakistan and the Himalayas in India with, had been in a very bad way when he rode through Myanmar as he had kidney stones which gave him unbearable pain. After the most painful 10 days of his life, he eventually arrived in Bangkok where he went straight to hospital and was now recovering at a beautiful guesthouse on the outskirts of Bangkok. It wasn’t a hard decision to stay with him for a few days whilst he convalesced.

We reminisced about our amazing experiences riding together and discussed our plans for the next 6 months. We both want to get to Australia and I have always had a romantic notion of getting from London to Sydney, Australia without putting my motorbike on an airplane or putting it on a boat for anything other than an essential sea crossing. The vast majority of overlanders on motorbikes do use airplanes and long distance boats for good

reasons: inhospitable countries (such as Pakistan) and time constraints, as they often have limited time to travel. This means I have to use boats to cross (for the first time) from Malaysia to Indonesia, then cross the many islands which make up Indonesia, finally crossing from East Timor to Darwin, Northern Australia.

This final boat journey is fraught with delays and uncertainty.

Will I succeed and fulfil my romantic dream? Will I ride with Heiko again? I left Heiko and rode south and after a boat crossing I arrived on the tropical island of Koh Samui for the fourth time. So for the last 3 weeks I’ve been staying with Maria, a Russian girl I met here previously, getting up late, having breakfast at lunchtime and after sitting around for hours eventually getting to the beach around 3 or 4 o’clock in the afternoon before spending lazy evenings eating and drinking at cheap restaurants on the beach.

The most adventurous thing I’ve done is ride up the steepest road imaginable to a house where new friends had a party high up in the jungle with amazing views looking out over the island and sea.

Whilst my time has been great, I look forward to Olly visiting and then getting back on my motorbike and heading south again. I love the complete uncertainty of riding into the unknown.

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MT Gardening

This year is pressing on with a vengeance and it’s at this time of year that garden tasks start to mount up. For me, I just have to get out into the back garden and ensure that a) my roses are sorted and pruned, b) beds have organic matter thickly applied, c) other climbers and wall shrubs tied in and prepared and d) my three raised vegetable beds are fully ready for the season and fit for being planted and or seed sown.

Roses - I don’t have any bush roses, but do have a number of climbers and rambler roses. Along the patio wall and tied up and over this to next door is an unnamed climber which produces small, fragrant of-pinkish double flowers on and off from mid-May to July - and sometimes a late flush towards the end of August.

When it comes to pruning retain a framework of well positioned branches and keep them tied down to the horizontal, as this slows sap down and potentially allows for flowering along the length of the stems, not just at the tips. Any young growth arising from these branches should be cut to 1-2 buds; as long as the bud remaining at the end of the stub faces away from the wall or fence. Finish off with a strong rose fertiliser and heavily mulch exposed ground around the base of the plant.

onion sets.

Lastly, if you want to develop your garden/landscape skills further or indeed want to know more about everything we offer at the college, why not pop along to our information event on Wednesday 4th March between 6-7:30pm? Turn up to the main campus or book a space online following this link: http://www. writtle.ac.uk/Information-Events.

For the next issue I’ll have an update on how students and staff are getting on in their preparation for the Ideal Home Exhibition where they will be constructing a garden as part of a Young Gardeners of the Year Competition.

Good luck and happy gardening!

For any gardening tips why not contact Tom Cole, Head of Faculty for Land & Environment, Writtle College, Chelmsford, CM1 3RR by post (including a SAE) or by email at tom.cole@writtle.ac.uk.

Ramblers are treated differently from climber roses as these flower on previous season’s growth. Old flowering stems are cut out to the ground or to where there is a well-spaced and strong vegetative stem. These stems are then tied in around supports or more horizontally on walls etc. Once tied in, tip the ends.

Mulching - towards the end of February apply a thick organic mulch of well rotted garden compost, leaf mould, mushroom compost or well rotted horse manure. Aim for around 10cm (4”).

This will reduce weed growth, enrich the soil and also keep moisture in during the hotter times of the year.

Wisteria - an excellent but rampant climber. This is an ideal month to trim back whippy new growth to 1-2 buds. This particularly floriferous plant flowers on older wood only - so unless you want to extend the framework, trim back all young shoots. This technique will then reward you with a much tighter framework and an abundance of flowers. Repeat the technique again during July by cutting back young leafy growth to 2 leaves and you’ll probably get another flush of flowers during this summer.

discount when you mention Moulsham TImes

Raised vegetable beds - these were cleared of old crops late last year and a thick layer of mulch applied over the surface and left to over winter. When I looked at these the other day, the organic matter applied earlier has now enriched the soil and I’m ready for some seed bed preparation. Lightly turn soil and level.

Follow this with light firming - I tend to use the head of a metal rake. Complete the task by lightly raking the soil to loosen any indentation marks and you’re now ready for sowing or planting.

This month, I’m direct sowing perpetual spinach, beetroot, spring onions and lettuce. This is also a great time to plant any spare 10

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MT

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FROM COUNTY HALL

by Cllr Dick Madden Yes, it’s true for the fifth year in a row, we, the Conservative Administration at County Hall, are not increasing your Council Tax, which will be due from April 2015. In addition, the Conservative run Chelmsford City Council are not increasing their contribution to your tax bill, neither are Essex Fire Service. Your only increase will come from the Essex Police Service, though it will be very minimal.

Our challenges over the coming financial year involve new legislation from Central Government which is the Care Act. This takes effect on the 1st April this year. We will all get information shared with us on this matter through literature sent to all households from government offices. Basically the act revolves around the care of our elderly and to provide support for carers.

Last week, Essex County Council produced a proposed balanced budget for 2015/16 which included no increase in Council Tax, further savings towards a total of £450 million savings over the past four years. Next year, the budget will also see £272 million invested in a range of schemes, including improving the county’s roads, creating new school places and helping vulnerable people live as independently as possible. The plans also show the Council’s ambition to invest £1 billion to support projects over the next five years - dependent on government funding and the council continuing its disciplined approach to managing its finances.

Also announced at last week’s Full Council was funding to maintain a safety net for vulnerable people in crisis situations and to encourage communities to help deliver solutions to the challenges faced by the county’s public services. The leader of the council, Cllr Finch, announced the new Essex Innovation Challenge Prize as part of his budget speech at Full Council.

The five key pillars of the plan are: • Continual innovation - through new and innovative approaches, the council has been able to deliver £450 million in savings over the last four years.

• Drive for efficiency - looking for new efficient and effective ways of supporting the county’s communities and businesses.

• Prevention and early intervention - reshaping public services to prevent issues from occurring rather than dealing with problems as they arise.

• Partnership working - working with partners from every sector across Essex to reshape and redefine the county’s public services.

• Supporting independence and community resilience - helping communities and individuals to be more independent and highlighting the things they can do for themselves. This has been at the heart of the recent #SteppingUp campaign.

The Council is now setting up a £1 million Essex Innovation Challenge Prize to encourage communities and council employees to help develop solutions to some of the most difficult challenges facing councils, health services and other public sector organisations across the county. Full details of the Essex Innovation Challenge Prize will be announced in the near future.

Cllr Finch said: “we strive for continual innovation in everything we do, it is at the heart of our success story. We want to continue this success to be the most innovative council in the country. We fully recognise we do not have all of the answers. Through this prize we will tap into the wealth of knowledge and creativity that exists in our great county to support people to live full, independent and productive lives, from infancy to later years.”

I will keep an eye on this innovation fund as I believe some of our local community groups could benefit from making an application.

Finally, still no snow; keep your fingers crossed and hopefully spring will arrive sooner than later.

BE SAFE Dick Madden

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01245 269611

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UK Song Writing Competition is Launched

Future Music is launching a UK songwriting contest to find the best songwriters in the UK. The UK songwriting contest will provide the opportunity for both aspiring and established songwriters to get their music heard and potentially get signed.

There is also the opportunity to perform in a grand final showcase in London in front of A & R who work for the three major record labels - Sony Music Entertainment, Warner Music Group and Universal Music.

FUTURE MUSIC UK SONGWRITING CONTEST A prestigious panel of music industry judges will be at every stage of the songwriting contest, offering songwriters exposure of their music to the most influential decision-makers in the music industry.

The UK songwriting contest is brought to you by Future Music, the company behind the discovery of many of the best songwriters in the UK song writers such as: Atlantic Records’ Jacob Banks, Warner Music’s Birdy, Sony’s Luke Friend and Columbia Records’ Lucy Spraggan.

UK SONGWRITING CONTEST CATEGORIES The songwriting contest is open to all ages; however there will be additional categories for songwriters under the age of 15 and 18 years of age. There will also be additional songwriting awards for the categories of genres including; rock, country, jazz, pop,

world, rhythm & blues, hip-hop, urban, christian, gospel, latin, electronic and folk. Acts are not required to be a professional recording artists to enter the songwriting competition, as entries will be judged on originality, melody, composition, lyrics (where applicable) and the potential to be a hit song.

SHOWCASE OF UK SONGWRITING TALENT The winning acts that make the grand final showcase in London will have the chance to perform at Dingwalls on a stage that has hosted the likes of Mumford & Sons, Ellie Goulding, Coldplay and the Foo Fighters. A worldrenowned music venue right in the hub of London’s music scene in Camden.

So, if you think you’ve got what it takes and want your songwriting heard by music industry professionals, enter the UK Songwriting Contest. www.songwritingcompetitionuk.com

CHELMSFORD GOLF CLUB (FOUNDED IN 1893)

MEMBERSHIP OPPORTUNITIES AVAILABLE ONE OF THE OLDEST TRADITIONAL, PRIVATE MEMBERS’ CLUBS IN THE COUNTY. A BEAUTIFUL PARKLAND COURSE, DESIGNED BY JAMES BRAID AND HARRY COLT. A HIDDEN GEM TUCKED AWAY IN THE MIDDLE OF CHELMSFORD.

WE WELCOME LADIES, GENTLEMEN, BOYS AND GIRLS AS MEMBERS.

• Full Membership • 3 Month Trial Membership • Starter Membership • Cadet Membership FOR FURTHER INFORMATION ON CHELMSFORD GOLF CLUB AND MEMBERSHIP OPPORTUNITIES, PLEASE VISIT OUR WEBSITE OR CONTACT THE CLUB DIRECTLY.

TEL: 01245 256483 EMAIL: OFFICE@CHELMSFORDGC.CO.UK WEBSITE: WWW.CHELMSFORDGC.CO.UK

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MT Baking by Alison Motley

When I’m baking, I don’t often stop to consider just how much sugar and butter I’m creaming or the number of chocolate bars I’m melting (and nibbling at!), moreover, the last thing on my mind when I cut that generous slice of homemade fudge cake is just how many calories I’m wolfing down.

However, most of us try to eat healthily and a friend recently asked for some advice on healthy baking. Now this is a tough one. Short of suggesting smaller slices, I was slightly stumped.

Sugar and fat are vital in baking for texture, taste and to add moisture. Baking is a science and without these ingredients the majority of recipes would fail. You can use sugar substitutes, but they don’t come cheap and not all are natural, likewise with low fat margarines, which have a bewildering list of ingredients and don’t always perform well in baking - and both of these alternatives fall down when it comes to taste.

For this reason, I’d rather suggest healthier baking; little ways to tweak recipes, reducing the naughty stuff or replacing it with healthier alternatives that still result in a bake worth eating.

So here’s my top eleven healthier baking tips. It should be my top ten but I couldn’t bring myself to leave one out. See, I always over indulge!

1. In many cake recipes you can reduce the amount of sugar by about a quarter before negatively affecting the finished bake; however, it’s a case of trial and error with this.

2. Natural yoghurt is brilliant, both as an ingredient to replace fat or to use for filling and topping cakes.

3. For low fat bakin,g try a whisked sponge or meringue filled with low fat Greek yoghurt and fruit for a lovely dessert.

4. Vanilla makes things taste sweeter, so if you feel a low sugar recipe is not sweet enough, add a few drops of vanilla extract.

5. Look for fruit or vegetable cake recipes - not just banana, but pineapple, courgette, or even beetroot, which goes amazingly well with chocolate. Yes, fruits are high in sugar but contain fibre and nutrients and recipes including fruit tend to require less sugar. Plus you get another of your 5 a day.

6. Consider bakes that use oats, for example - flapjacks. These are filling, full of fibre and oats reduce cholesterol. Just keep an eye on the sugar and golden syrup content!

7. Try recipes with unrefined sugars such as Muscovado or Demerara, or replace white caster or icing sugar with golden.

Obviously, they are still sugars but retain more nutrients and have a wonderful flavour.

8. Some recipes use honey, maple syrup or molasses instead of sugar, still high in calories but also less refined.

9. Tea loaves or dried fruit cakes tend to include less added fats and sugar. Another advantage is that they keep well so you don’t need to eat them all in one go!

10. Try cake recipes using vegetable oils rather than butter.

However, don’t just substitute oil for butter in an existing recipe.

11. Consider using wholemeal or brown flour for added fibre. I particularly love wholemeal pastry for it’s nutty texture. Look for recipes or experiment, perhaps replacing half white flour with wholemeal.

This recipe is simple to make and produces a moist tangy cake bursting with real orange flavour. I baked mine in a decorative Bundt tin (purely because it was new and I was itching to use it!) but the recipe works well as a loaf cake or a 20cm round cake. If you use a round cake tin, you will need to reduce the baking time.

Whole Orange Cake: 150g golden caster sugar 100g rapeseed oil 60g natural yoghurt 180g self raising flour 3 large eggs 1 thin skinned orange, washed 1 tablespoon golden icing sugar 1. Preheat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas mark 4. Grease and base line a 2lb loaf tin.

2. In a large bowl, beat together the caster sugar, oil, yoghurt, flour and eggs.

3. Finely grate some zest from the orange, cover and reserve.

Squeeze and reserve a little orange juice then cut up the orange and remove any pips.

5. Blitz the orange in a blender or food processor until a pulp.

6. Fold this pulp into the cake batter with a metal spoon.

7. Spoon the batter into the prepared tin and bake for approx 40 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean.

8. Leave the cake for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

9. For the icing, sieve the icing sugar into a bowl and gradually beat in the orange juice until it is the consistency of thick cream (if you don’t have enough orange juice, add a little water).

10. Drizzle the icing over the cake and sprinkle on the orange zest.

I’d love to hear from readers with any suggestions and ideas, or what recipes you would like to see here. Drop me an email at motleybakes@aol.com.

Deja Vu in Moulsham Street “I have taken over 30 years of catering experience, working in some of the finest restaurants around the world and have transformed my passion for food into our sandwiches and products.

“It is important to me that our food tastes better than everyone else’s and to achieve this, we prepare all of our products inhouse, fresh on the premises.

“This has been recognized by the Healthy Living Award which I have held for over 6 years.”

These are the words of Roy Duncan, owner/proprietor.

“Based in Moulsham Street, we operate a very busy sandwich bar and cafe with a large kitchen at the rear, where we are able to offer a five star outside catering service.

“Our service includes all corporate and office requirements, as well as a tailored service for all functions - whether it be weddings, parties, christenings or wakes.

“Come and meet our great team at Deja Vu - always willing to assist in all your catering requirements. Claire is our manager, who is only too happy to guide you in any area of catering. Darren is our chef who is always creating new and tasty soups & cakes.

Sophie and Michelle are our delightful sandwich artists and Julie is our delivery lady who gets around very quickly on her electric

bike. Our two sandwich delivery drivers, Susan and John, are more than happy to stop by your place of work with a vast array of our delicious products.

Address - Deja Vu Sandwich Bar, 160 Moulsham Street, Chelmsford.

Telephone - 01245 265 777 Email - chelmsford@dejavu.uk.com

DeJaVu

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Blues In the City 2015

I cannot believe it’s March already and nearly time for the first Essex Delta Blues Day at the Bassment on Saturday 21st March - and all seems, dare I say it, to be in place. Tickets are still available either online via my sites (listed below) or from the Bassment, The Ale House or the Hop Beer Shop and from me at my events. I will be at the next Blues Jam on Thursday 5th March which is great fun and you never know who will turn up. Maybe Suzi Quatro again, she enjoyed herself last time.

The Bassment hosts many great events covering all music genres and has to be one of our best music venues in Chelmsford, along with Asylum, The Star and Garter, Indigo and The Fleece.

Last month, we had a great night for Blues in the City. It was one of those special nights with the Delta Ladies, who blew everyone away and were kept on stage for a further forty five minutes as the audience would not let them go! We cannot wait for them to return. Clive & Simone took the audience by storm with Clive’s

great guitar playing and Simone’s amazing voice and humour.

They will also be back I am sure.

Coming up this month, on Wednesday the 19th March we have as a great warm up to the event on the 21st, two fantastic acts from Essex. It is a welcome return to Rag Mama Rag who now reside in France, so this is rare opportunity to see this great act in Essex.

Then we have a new name for you, Booga Red, who are Steve English (guitar and vocals) and Claire Hamlin (keyboards) they play a cross between early blues and rock & roll, played in their own style. They will be well worth seeing. See the advert for full details.

The big one of course, is The Essex Delta Blues Day, with eighteen acts playing over a period of twelve hours on two stages at the Bassment from noon to midnight on Saturday 21st March.

We will be showcasing some of the very best that Essex has to offer from the blues scene - from the beginning to the end, all the acts are great. See the advert with the full line-up and details of the day and tickets. We will give you a wristband when you enter, so that you can come and go on the day - we know 12 hours in one place maybe too much for some! The Bassment have also got Woodleys Pizza stationed in the car park for the day, these are freshly handmade to order pizzas that set my taste buds going just thinking about them.

There is also lots of other great live events happening all over our city; pick up a copy of the City Times to find out what is on where and when, as there is too much to list here.

I am thrilled to say that my 5th Blues in the City Festival, which takes place in Chelmsford from Friday 2nd to Sunday 4th October, is booked. Yes, I have all the acts confirmed and it is a great line-up. We are so excited to have so many great acts playing this year. Visit the website or Facebook page, or find us on Twitter, to find out more. As you know, the festival is a not for profit event and we are pleased to be supporting the Remus Memorial Horse Sanctuary this year. They do amazing work and need £440,000 just to survive, so we are glad to be able help in our own little way.

We are still looking for sponsors so that more of the money we take can go to the charity; please contact me for details if you are interested in sponsoring the festival.

Clive and Simone (above) Delta Ladies (below)

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That is it for this month, so I will see you on the other side of what is going to be a great March.www.bluesinthecity.co.uk, www. facebook.com/esinthecitychelmsford, Twitter: @BluesintheCity1

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Joanne Kyger My intention in 2015 is to move on to rock biographies of Essex bands, but before I do, I have a couple of articles relating to the Chelmsford connection to the Beat Generation writers of the US, begun by the researches of the late Dr. Chris Challis, as previous articles have proved very popular. The intention is to continue to feature the lesser known work of Beat women, as most literature of the genre was originally written by men, and I begin with Joanne Kyger.

An established poet in her own right in the San Francisco literary scene by 1960, Joanne took on an extra dimension in Beat Generation history when she accompanied Gary Snyder to Japan and then India where they met up with Allen Ginsberg and Peter Orlovsky.

She was 26 when this happened. She had arrived in ‘frisco in 1957 and became part of Robert Duncan’s literary circle. Snyder had sprung to readers attention as part of the West Coast scene when Jack Kerouac brought Gary’s mountain man and Zen presence to the fore by casting him as Japhy Ryder, hero of his third novel Dharma Bums. Instead of hanging around, he decided to take his Zen to the most serious level and sail to Japan and study with the masters at the Zen Institute of Kyoto. As she had been in a relationship with Gary, Joanne decided to go with him. Her travel diaries, published as Strange Blue Moon provides a chronicle of those four important years away from the US. Joanne formed an early feminine voice in the Beat movement, as all the leading protagonists had been men and women like Lu-anne Cassady may have played a part in roles within the novels, but did not at first contribute to the writing of the growing body of literature.

Joanne was a bosom buddy of Philip Whalen, who also took his Zen seriously and soon got clued in to the spiritual dimension of the Beats, making the trip with Gary a spiritual journey of exploration for her too. She adopted Buddhism as a way of life in later years.

After farewell parties with Whalen and Lew Welch, the couple boarded the steamer on 30th January 1960 and arrived on the other side of the Pacific Ocean on 20th Feb. The Zen Institute were not as liberated in their social attitudes as their spiritual disciplines promised and on 23rd February, Joanne and Gary undertook a marriage of convenience at the American Consulate at Kobe, port town for Kyoto. Joanne certainly felt trapped by this at first, but to some degree grew into the role. The physical side of their relationship was in no doubt, as they continued to incorporate yab-yum asana into their love play. Gary mostly went to the Institute by himself to practice Zazen sitting. But increasingly Joanne would accompany him as domesticity wore thin. Much of their social life was with the large expat community and involved everyday American socialising. Joanne read that most independent woman of the ancient Greeks, Sappho, and then started to learn Japanese, so that she could teach English as a foreign language. Although Kerouac portrayed Snyder as a very clued in character, from the female perspective, Joanne thought that he often felt the need to assert his masculinity over women - as was the social norm of the era - and she expressed regret at their enforced marriage and wanted out. Gary also took up his other favourite pastime and climbed Mount Fuji.

By September ‘61 they were beginning to firm up the idea of meeting up with Allen Ginsberg in India and found a French boat to take them around the coast, boarding on December 12th and finding the social revolution well under way with many Beat-style students on board.

They first reached Saigon in Vietnam and had three days to explore.

They arrived in Colombo, Ceylon on the 28th December. A train took them to Kandy on the 31st and then the ferry to India on 4th January

‘62, arriving in Madurai in the Southern state of Tamil Nadu on 5th January.

A train to Villumparum, then transferring to one for Pondicherry, took the couple to the town of the Sri Auribindu Ashram. The guru had died in 1940 but his wife carried on his work and was referred to as Mother by their followers. By January 10th they had arrived by bus to Tiruvannamalai to stay with a family called the Osbournes, who were followers of Ramana Maharishi, a saint who had kept a lone vigil of meditation on the neighbouring Arunachala hill. They visited the ashram and circumambulated the hill as was the local custom.

It was bullock cart and bus that took then to Madras, where they were impressed to find Ginsberg’s Howl and Kerouac’s Scripture of the Golden Eternity on the shelf of a bookshop. From there they took an excursion to Mahabalipurum by bus, then left Madras by train overnight to Bhubaneswar, where they visited temples, but could only view them from the outside as only Hindus were allowed inside. A further bus journey took them to Konarak where they were able to take rubbings of relief sculptures. By 19th January they were in Calcutta, and found a letter from Ginsberg waiting for them, suggesting that they meet on February 28th. From Calcutta they took a bus to the Buddhist shrine at Bodh Gaya, where many ex-pat Tibetans had gathered. They continued in a northerly direction up the Ganges by boat, then by train to Nepal, arriving in Kathmandu on the 3rd of February. On the 10th they flew back to Patna and took a train to Benares, where they stayed at the Sarnath Mahabodhi Society.

Benares is a favourite centre for Hindus to be cremated, so that their ashes can be scattered in the Ganges, so on the 14th they visited the Burning Ghats. On the 20th they visited Gwailor hillfort by bus to see the lightly carved temples and a Jain one, and then went on to see the Red Fort and Taj Mahal. Another train took them back to Mathura to visit its museum.

The 23rd February found them in Delhi, where they met up with Ginsberg and Orlovsky, although they were out when Joanne and Gary arrived at their hotel to find a note to say they would be back at 10.30. They duly did so - high on morphine. Allen showed them a letter from Kerouac that kept them laughing. On March 1st they visited Rishikesh, also on the Ganges, where they met the Yogi Sivananda. All four booked into the Swarg Ashram, which is a centre for Sadhus (wandering holy men), to gather at. They got to read a review of one of Allen’s books and some of Tim Leary’s writing from Harvard about mescaline. On March 4th they headed for Hardwar.

Joanne read Rudyard Kipling’s Kim and a Gandhi biography, while Allen and Peter got high on morphine again. On March 8th it was off to Almora by train. On the 14th it was a hill resort by bus. On 19th Allen and Peter visited an opium den. On 21st it was to Jaipur for Holi Day, where powdered paint and dye are thrown over the crowd as part of the celebrations. On the 26th, they met Gregory Corso’s ex-girlfriend, Hope Savage. On 28th they visited the Dalai Lama, and Allen asked him if he wanted to try LSD. He also asked him how long he meditated for, and the Dalai Lama replied that he didn’t need to: a bit of a culture shock there. By April 5th they were in Sanchi, taking more temple carving rubbings, and taking a bus tour of other temples on the 8th. By the 10th they were back in Almora, and found a letter from Lawrence Ferlinghetti asking Joanne if they’d met Allen.

Orlovsky took so many opiate drugs he was often sick. Allen said that it is only when he has taken drugs that he is relaxed enough to meditate, which Joanne thought made him sound like a bit of a fraud.

She found him dirty and unkempt, and far too egotistical. She had collected many ornaments and souvenirs as they travelled, but was getting tired of her one westernised dress. On April 11th they took an

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overnight train to Bombay. On April 21st they boarded their boat, the Cambridge, ready to set sail. Joanne was exhausted by India by then and glad to feast on western food and wine. By the 29th they were in Singapore, then Saigon by the 31st and Hong Kong by the 5th May. Back in Japan, they returned to socialising with ex-pats with much discussion about their Indian travels. Plenty of drugs were the order of the day: marijuana for cookies and to smoke and the mescaline Tim Leary had sent them in December.

Gary returned to Zazen practice for a big meeting on the 5th December. Joanne too, but to a lesser extent. January 1963 found Gary translating Japanese texts and Joanne reading Ezra Pound. On the 21st February one of their cats got its paw crushed by a trap, Gary freed it in what Joanne described as a helpful but dispassionate way, no doubt as a result of his backwoods experience with livestock. On March 17th they took the train to the ferry at Kyoto, Allen caught up at Raitukuji and performed at a poetry reading, then went on a sightseeing tour before partying with the others. OnAugust 30th a friend of Alan Watts showed up, and then Alan himself on September 29th for a Noh performance.

On October 6th Watts, Joanne and three others took LSD and drank saki. On the 20th January 1964 Joanne left to return to the US. via the Phillipines, but Gary stayed on. She arrived at Golden Gates on February 3rd to find Philip Whalen waiting to greet her.

Joanne has written poems about history, natural history, climate, and the lives of friends, amongst a wide ranging group of subjects.

She taught at the New College of San Francisco on Poetics Progammes, and at the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics at Naropa University in Boulder California. She has 18 books to her credit, edited Bolines Hearsay News, ran workshops, took part in poetry readings, promoted environmental issues, and encouraged younger writers. In 2006 she was given the Lifetime Achievement from Small Press Traffic.

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MT Therapy by Jenny Hartill

Carrying on my discussion about drug addiction from my last article, in this issue and coming issues I will discuss addiction to drugs specifically by category, starting with hard drugs. Hard drugs are drugs that lead to physical addiction.

Many countries do not allow people to make, sell or use some of them, other than for medical purposes. Examples of such drugs are heroin, methamphetamine (meth), cocaine, alcohol and nicotine. Here are some brief descriptions of these examples individually, to give you a better idea of how they affect humans: Heroin. This is an opiate, produced from morphine derived from poppies, which was originally designed as a painkiller. However, this highly addictive Class A drug is used by all sorts of people.

Pure heroin comes as a white powder, but other versions are sold on the street, for example, brown, as many of these are mixed or cut with other substances. It can be inhaled, smoked, snorted or injected. Injecting is the most popular form of use as this tends to give an instant hit. Street names include ‘H’, ‘horse’ and ‘brown’. Anthropologist Michael Agar once described heroin as “the perfect whatever drug.” Tolerance develops quickly and increased doses are needed in order to achieve the same effects. Its popularity with recreational drug users, compared to morphine, reportedly stems from its perceived different effects. In particular, users report an intense rush, an acute transcendent state of euphoria, which occurs while diacetylmorphine is being metabolised in the brain.

Methamphetamine. This is a member of the phenethylamine and amphetamine drug families. Their street names include ‘speed’, ‘whizz’ and ‘uppers’. They are either inhaled (snorted), smoked, taken as pills or injected. In low doses, methamphetamine can cause an elevated mood and increase alertness, concentration, and energy in fatigued individuals. At higher doses, it can induce psychosis, rhabdomyolysis and cerebral hemorrhage. Heavy recreational use of methamphetamine may result in psychosis or lead to post-withdrawal syndrome - a withdrawal syndrome that can persist for months beyond the typical withdrawal period.

Unlike amphetamine alone, methamphetamine is neurotoxic to humans, damaging both dopamine and serotonin neurons in the central nervous system. Contrary to the long-term use of amphetamine, there is evidence that methamphetamine causes brain damage from long-term use in humans; this damage includes adverse changes in brain structure and function, such as reductions in grey matter volume in several brain regions and adverse changes in markers of metabolic integrity.

Cocaine. This stimulant increases energy and alertness as well as giving a feeling of euphoria (a high). It increases heart rate, breathing and body temperature and makes the user feel more confident and assured. It takes the form of a white powder which can be inhaled (sniffed) or injected. It can also be made into a solid rock called crack, which is then smoked or prepared for injecting. Cocaine can also be mixed with other drugs like heroin. Street names include ‘charlie’, ‘snow’ and ‘rock’. At high doses, it is markedly more dangerous than other central nervous system stimulants, including the entire amphetamine drug class, due to its effect on sodium channels, since blockade of Nav1.5 can cause sudden cardiac death. Its effects can last from fifteen to thirty minutes, to an hour depending on the amount of the intake dosage and the route of administration.

Cocaine when inhaled or injected causes a numbing effect.

Cocaine’s effects are very similar to that of amphetamine, 20

however, cocaine’s effects tend to be much shorter lasting, but more prominent. Anxiety, paranoia and restlessness can also occur, especially during the comedown. With excessive dosage, tremors, convulsions and increased body temperature are observed. With excessive or prolonged use, the drug can cause itching, tachycardia, hallucinations, and paranoid delusions.

Possible side effects include insatiable hunger, aches, insomnia/ oversleeping, lethargy and persistent runny nose. Depression with suicidal ideation may develop in very heavy users. The lack of normal amounts of serotonin and dopamine in the brain is the cause of the dysphoria and depression felt after the initial high.

Physical withdrawal is not dangerous. Physiological changes caused by cocaine withdrawal include vivid and unpleasant dreams, insomnia or hypersomnia, increased appetite and psychomotor retardation or agitation.

Alcohol. Alcoholic beverages, typically containing 3 - 40% ethanol by volume, have been produced and consumed by humans since prehistoric times. The short-term effects of alcohol consumption range from a decrease in anxiety and motor skills at lower doses to unconsciousness, anterograde amnesia and central nervous system depression at higher doses. Cell membranes are highly permeable to alcohol, so once alcohol is in the bloodstream it can diffuse into nearly every cell in the body. Extreme levels of consumption can lead to alcohol poisoning and death (a concentration in the blood stream of 0.40% will kill 1/2 of those affected). Alcohol can greatly exacerbate sleep problems. During abstinence, residual disruptions in sleep regularity and sleep patterns are the greatest predictors of relapse. High levels of alcohol consumption are associated with an increased risk of malnutrition, chronic pancreatitis, alcoholic liver disease and cancer. In addition, damage to the central nervous system and peripheral nervous system can occur from chronic alcohol abuse.The long-term use of alcohol is capable of damaging nearly every organ and system in the body.

Nicotine. Nicotine is a potent alkaloid found in the nightshade plant family, it is also a stimulant drug and was used widely as an insecticide. Nicotine has been found to promote tumour growth. Difficulty concentrating and deficits in task performance are symptoms of nicotine withdrawal. These symptoms begin as soon as 30 minutes after tobacco cessation begins and can last for several weeks. Nicotine appears to have significant performance enhancing effects, particularly in fine motor skills, attention and memory. These beneficial cognitive effects may play a role in the initiation and maintenance of tobacco dependence.

When we think about the nature of addiction, the fact is that addicts are usually searching for the initial high. Therefore, drugs such as heroin and cocaine that produce a more extreme high than say alcohol or nicotine, can be seen as psychologically more addictive and therefore worse. However, the drugs in this class actually have a physical long-term effect on the body; they change the way the body functions, be that in the brain or in other parts of the body. This is partly because all of these drugs are highly toxic, I actually saw an episode of CSI Miami where the victim was murdered with a small, but very concentrated amount, of nicotine! The reason I gave such detailed descriptions of these drugs is because as a counsellor it can be very difficult to understand exactly what addicts to hard drugs are gong through. The physical symptoms of the detox can have a significant psychological and emotional effect on the individual. That’s before you get to deal with any of the long term damage, that may be covered up by the detox symptoms at first! Yes, treating an addict can be very difficult, but there are so many factors to consider that it can be a bit of a minefield. For example, a client doesn’t turn up to therapy (this happens A LOT

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with addicts, especially in the early stages of treatment) - have they gone back to the drugs or are they genuinely ill from the detox? Counselling an addict to hard drugs is a big learning curve and something that should never be taken on lightly.

You need one hell of a backbone, thick skin, oodles and oodles of empathy and the patience of a saint!

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21

Wine Corner

Hello again, hope you are all ok. I am glad that the days are getting longer as I see this as the sign of warmer weather to come. It does make me smile though, when I find myself saying, “look, half past five and it’s still light” as if it has never happened before!

This month I will start with a bit about the production of wine. The science of wine making is oenology, and the person who makes it is a winemaker or vintner.

Firstly the grapes must be harvested either mechanically or, for some more expensive wines, by hand. It is interesting when passing a vineyard in the middle of nowhere to catch sight of groups of people picking the grapes. These people often go from one vineyard to the next, throughout the picking season, from September to November. These harvests are often at different weeks in the year so the pickers can travel throughout the country.

On delivery to the winery, both red and white grapes go through the first ferment. After this point the red and white grapes are treated differently. White wine is made from the juice, which is squeezed from the grape and the skins and all other bits are discarded. With the reds, fermentation occurs in the skins and this is what gives the wine it’s colour. The whole mixture is used to make the wine. Red grapes are used to make white wine as well, with just the juice used with minimal contact with the skins. Rose is produced in a similar way, but the skins are allowed to contact the juice for a short time to produce the pink colour. During the fermentation, yeast converts the sugar into ethanol (alcohol).

With red wine, the next stage is malo-lactic conversion changing the malic acid to creamy lactic acid which softens the taste of the wine. So that’s it, simple - or perhaps not; there are lots of other factors that influence the taste of the wine which I have covered in the past.

I have always been a bit suspicious of some of the expert descriptions of wine flavours. However, after a bit of research I find there are reasons for the various tastes.

Chardonnay is said to have a buttery flavour, and indeed, it contains a compound called diacetyl which comes from the fermentation process and has a strong buttery smell.

Fruit flavours are often quoted as being a characteristic of red wines. Why different then? Well it seems that grapes grown in colder climates will produce flavours of cranberries or currant.

Warmer climates produce are more strawberry like tastes. Vanilla

is the product of oak ageing.

A lot of Australian wines are oak aged, so if you ever attend a wine tasting event, this oak effect can lead you to the Southern Hemisphere for a start.

Most days I walk to the newsagents to get a daily paper. I always considered this to be healthy and, as is the trend these days, green, saving the planet by not using the car for short journeys.

However, the other day I realised that I was not as ‘green’ as I thought. Over the last couple of months, I have found myself walking in the dark. Now this is not surprising given the time of year, but I have noticed that I am inadvertently affecting global warming and also costing innocent house holders money by increasing their utility bills.

As I stroll along the pavement, poorly positioned outside lights are triggered as I pass. I can look behind me and see the whole street brightly illuminated. They are all on timers, so as I return home I see the lights going out in front of me, only to be lit up again as I pass! I wonder how much is wasted all over the country as the result of ‘green’ walkers in the darkness.

Going back to wine flavours, I hope this has helped explain the various different tastes. It still does not cover some wine list tasting notes though. I read recently of wine having a herbaceous ‘nose’ (I thought that was a plant). One with a herbal twist, is that like a bit of orange in a cocktail? Another had a roundness, I thought that would describe the wine glass. Oh well, what do I know!?

Bin end chuckles.

Remember, when you are tempted to fight fire with fire, it’s probably better to use water.

I have not got a bad memory, I just let my mind wander and it didn’t come back.

Keep calm and carry on drinking, in moderation.

Jackie Pittman Sings - Biography Jackie loves to sing, and has done so since she was very young.

She trained with Ivor Evans of Sadler’s Wells Opera Company, then went on to sing in his opera company. In 2009, Jackie was invited on to the Steve Scruton show on BBC Radio Essex, where they discussed Jackie’s musical career and her early years and what the future might have in store and played a couple of tracks from her CD. Her appearance on his show gave her career a boost, which has led to regular concerts at Hyland’s House, Ingatestone Hall, Greenwood’s and London Venues, including a concert where she performed to a celebrity audience from the world of politics and the House of Lords. Jackie’s concerts have provided her with wedding enquires and bookings which keep her busy between concerts. The highlight of 2012 was when Jackie was invited to sing the National Anthem at Hyland’s House while the mayor of the new City of Chelmsford lit the beacon in celebration of the Queens Diamond Jubilee. This was a well supported event, with in excess of 20,000 people.

www.jackiepittmansings.co.uk https://www.youtube.com/user/JackiePittmanSings A Evening with Soprano Jackie Pittman & Guests, Classical & West-End concert at Ingatestone Hall on the 11th April.

Featuring Sopranos Jackie Pittman, Marilena Gant, Tenor Jezz Saint- James, accompanied by pianist Tim Smith.

Start 7.30 - 9.30pm doors open 7pm.

• • •

Complementary wine cheese & biscuits served during the interval, sponsored by Paul Taylor, owner of Budgens Ingatestone.

Raffle with excellent prizes donated by local businesses, in support of the British Liver Trust.

Free Car parking.

For more information about Jackie visit her YouTube channel and Tickets are now available £25 (concessions £22) call Colin 07435 website.

760153 / 01277 841667.

22

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Chop Bloc Launch in Chelmsford TRUE LOVE IS RARE – LIKE GOOD STEAK

Picanha – sliced rump cap.

True love is rare, like a perfectly pink, 28-day-aged sirloin steak straight off the grill, so you’re about to fall for the great big cuts of meat at Chop Bloc. The US-style steakhouse, in the heart of Chelmsford in Essex, freshly butchers prime cuts of beef, dryaged in-house, before searing steaks to perfection over charcoal.

Chop Bloc’s burgers are made in-house using 28-day matured British chuck steak and cooked using the traditional 1940s American ‘smash’ technique to create a crust on the outside while leaving a juicy burger on the inside. Choose from Double Cheese Burger; Triple Cheese Burger; the signature Chop Bloc Cheese Burger, plus chicken and veggie versions. Juicy burgers are topped with Monterey Jack cheese and served with lettuce, onion and tomato in a rich brioche bun.

Don’t like beef? No problem, take your pick from mains like Whole Boneless Roasted Sea Bass; Rack of Lamb; or the fabulous Filo Goats Cheese. Save room for sides as you’ll be spoilt for choice deciding between Mac & Cheese; Sweet Potato Wedges; Truffle Parmesan Fries and Poutine (chips with gravy and cheese Canadian style).

Sundays are all about the good old roast dinner: Dry Aged Sirlion or Stuffed Chicken with Yorkshire pudding and all the trimmings (duck fat potatoes, parsnips, carrots, green beans, garlic and gravy). Little ones are not forgotten and have their own à la carte Kids’ Menu, which includes Little Steak; Little Burger and Mac & Cheese, all served with fries.

Housed in an 18th century former brewery, Chop Bloc is spread across three floors and includes a Manhattan-style cocktail bar. At the entrance, magnificently marbled meat is on display to tempt diners with a sneak peek of what’s in store. An open-plan kitchen on the ground floor lets the fire and fury of the grill be seen for walk-ins, while upstairs offers pre-booked tables for larger groups and celebrations. Booths and long tables offer ample space in the dining room fitted with filament light bulbs, original warehouse meat hooks and exposed beams in the rafters.

Phew, take a deep breath before diving into decadent desserts like homemade Chocolate Brownie; Raspberry Cheesecake and Ice Cream Sundae to finish the event.

MARVELLOUS MEAT DUO The Chop Bloc vision has been reared by brothers Steve and Dave Patten together with the help of their father – meat industry pioneer and liveryman of The Worshipful Company of Butchers, Colin Patten. The brothers boast extensive experience of the meat industry, having worked for market-leading meat companies and trained in all aspects of the farm-to-fork process. Decades of meat experience means impeccable sourcing from the very best grass-fed Herefordshire cattle, all dry-aged and chopped in house.

UPSTAIRS TO THE BLOC BAR Venture to the top floor for cocktails in the stylish and decadent Bloc Bar. Split into two sides, one room is filled with scattered seating, round tables, blood red leather chairs, curved booths and gold dome lighting – ideal for intimate evenings or available to be hired out in entirety. Over in the adjacent space, you can perch at the bar on a throne-like leather stool while one of the barmen mixes you a special from the cocktail list put together by leading consultants Soul Shakers.

THE MENU There’ll be no hungry diners at Chop Bloc, the carefully crafted menu is expansive and enticing in all respects. Starters include the delicious Panko Pork Belly (pulled pork in Japanese-style bread crumbs served with Ketjap Manis); Salmon Ceviche served with finely sliced fresh red chilli, red onion, avocado, and coriander; or start as you mean to go on with Seared Beef Fillet Tartare.

Favourites include the Chop Bloc Negroni (Campari, Sipsmith, Sweet Vermouth); the expertly prepared and chilled to the perfect degree Martini (Langton’s, Cocchi Americano, lemon twist and olives); the hot pink Chop Bloc Cosmo (Finlandia Grapefruit Vodka, Cointreau, Lime, Pomegranate); and if you’re wondering what’s up with all the blue faced tiki mugs ask for a signature Blue Lady (Sailor Jerry Spiced and Bacardi Gold, Guava, Passionfruit, Lime and Pineapple).

IT’S ALL ABOUT THE BEEF Choose a cut, sold by the gram, including bone-in beef. All chefs are trained to butcher whole cuts of meat in-house – a skill that has been dying out in recent years. Select your weight and how you like it: Rump, Fillet, Sirloin or Rib Eye, all cooked over charcoal to your preference. For keen carnivores, have it large and order a T-bone, Wing Rib, Prime Rib or Chateaubriand, which are also ideal for sharing, or why not try favoured Brazilian cut www.moulshamtimes.com

A vast range of spirits and premium beers fill the bar and an extensive list of wine, prosecco and champagne is also available.

On the third floor, the well-stocked Bloc Bar features a range of spirits and tipples all gloriously backlit by Himalayan rock salt slabs. The overall look is sleek, simple and inviting – think exposed brick, tan leather seating, soft lighting and paired back colours all exuding understated glamour.

Chop Bloc – No cutting corners, just cuts of prime beef.

8-9 Grays Brewery Yard, Springfield Road, Chelmsford, Essex CM2 6QR T: 01245 860 070 www.chopbloc.com / info@chopbloc. com @Chop_Bloc 23

MT Charity Remus Memorial Horse Sanctuary Founder of horse sanctuary implores the public to help end animal suffering.

Ingatestone, Essex - Sue Burton, founder of Remus Memorial Horse Sanctuary in Essex, has spent three days over the past week visiting horses in need: on the M11 at Stansted, Surbiton in Surrey and Hamble Airfield in Southampton, following cries for help from the public who are concerned for the horses’ safety and wellbeing. Additionally, again in the past week, Remus have been notified of a foal that died alone in a field, another shot to spare its suffering, a dead Shetland that was dumped and a living horse tied to a telegraph pole.

Sue says, “the horse welfare crisis in this country is escalating.

The scenes I’ve witnessed are replicated the length and breadth of the country and there can be no excuse for us to turn a blind eye and allow this suffering to continue. Horses on tethering chains with no food, no water, no access to the five freedoms and when you look into those dark sad eyes - no hope!”

The five freedoms that Sue refers to are a fundamental part of The Animal Welfare Act 2006 and the animal owner’s ‘Duty of Care’ in British Law. The five freedoms are: Freedom from hunger and thirst.

Freedom from discomfort.

Freedom from pain, injury and disease.

Freedom to express normal behavior.

Freedom from fear and distress.

Sue was particularly struck by a thin piebald stallion, so desperate for water that he has learnt to rub his nose across his fetlock effectively bowing in his request for a drink. Sue expands: “drink should be a natural bodily function and not something a horse should have to beg for. When I see these sights I am ashamed to be a human - part of a race who can treat animals so and a political system that turns a blind eye.”

Sue believes that we, the people, are allowing the Government to turn a blind eye, because the people - the animal’s voice - do not shout loudly enough. Says Sue: “we tut and we complain but we then go about our daily life having food and drink when we want, enjoying our freedom, enjoying the warmth of our houses leaving these animals to live another night deprived of all of its natural needs.

How many of us care enough to this time really make a stand?”

horse welfare crisis in this country, people need to take action.

These gentle creatures, upon whose backs our history has been borne, suffer quietly on a daily basis, often only ending with the violent death that awaits them upon the chain. “We don’t even step in then” says Sue, “and these animals are allowed to rot where they die. Shameful!”

For further information or to participate in the new Remus Welfare Watch, visit www.remussanctuary.org or contact Sue Burton on tel: 01277 356191. Anyone wishing to make a donation to the Winter Feed Appeal can do so via www.justgiving.com/rmhs.

Remus Memorial Horse Sanctuary provides rehabilitation and lifetime care for over 200 horses, ponies, donkeys, cows, sheep, goats and cats near Ingatestone in Essex.

The Sanctuary provides a safe environment for these animals that have been victims of physical and mental abuse, whether because of ignorance or malicious intent.

Sue Burton founded the Sanctuary in 1983 following the plight of the horses on Rainham Marshes in Rainham, Essex, where over 100 horses were left on the bleak marshland. As the water inlets flooded, they became cut off resulting in 13 horses dying in the most awful conditions.

Sue makes an important point and if the UK is to get a grip on the

Calling local charities! As regular readers will know we feature a charity in each of our magazines every month.

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Love Your Museum: Be a Friend Do you know which venue in Chelmsford has been visited by well over half a million people over the last decade?

T: 01245 206220 or 07785 722350 E: holmesco@sky.com www.holmesaccountants.co.uk ceramics, glass, coins, pictures, a Victorian kitchen, the Essex Regiment (including Victoria Crosses), fossils and natural history (notably the brown bear and living bee hive known to generations of Chelmsfordians).

If you are one of the 60,000 people each year who go to Oaklands Park at the top of Moulsham Street to visit Chelmsford Museum and the Essex Regiment Museum, you know the answer. However, have you thought about doing more? You could become a Friend of the Chelmsford Museums.

The Friends were formed in 1990 to promote the museums and to assist in practical and financial ways. They have done so with great success having helped to purchase paintings by local or internationally-known artists, Iron Age and Saxon coins, a pot by 2003 Turner Prize winner Grayson Perry and many other items. Contributions have also been made towards security and signs in the museum, improvements to external lighting, kitchen equipment and an interactive whiteboard.

There are currently over 170 members of the Friends. Some are attracted by the varied talks given for them at the museum or the visits to places of historic interest in Essex. Others have helped with research for exhibitions, seven of which have been mounted since 1993, the most recent being Ale and Hearty: the story of beer and brewing in Chelmsford. Some members help to raise money, work on collections under supervision or help at ‘handling tables’ during school holidays when children can touch museum objects. Information about all of these activities and details of future events are reported in the quarterly newsletter which is provided to members by email or post.

There has been a museum in Chelmsford since 1835 and it has occupied Oaklands House since 1930, being set in an attractive small park with good facilities for children. Visitors of all ages are fascinated by the displays of temporary exhibitions, local history, www.moulshamtimes.com

The museum is open every day of the week except Fridays in term time. It is run by Chelmsford City Council who recently provided a new £5 million wing, opened in 2010, principally for the display of items relating to the industrial giants of the past: Marconi, Crompton, Hoffman, Christy etc.

The Friends provide the opportunity for anyone to help the museums. As Lord Petre, HM Lord Lieutenant for Essex and President of the Friends has said: “if you have a skill to offer, are prepared to raise funds, assist at events or are simply a museum enthusiast, please join us and become a Friend”.

Further details are available on the Friends website at: www.friendschelmsmuseums.btck.co.uk 25

Ami’s Diary

I’ve had a great month. I have been asked to sing some songs for an educational production. I have been sent the songs sung by a grown-up plus the backing tracks and the lyrics. I have to record myself singing them and send them to the production company who then edit them. Then they are sent to schools to use for children to sing to. I think it is a great job as it’s for children to have fun and I get paid for doing something I love.

I also went to a casting in London for a food commercial. I wasn’t feeling very well because I’d been coughing all night and hadn’t slept, so my mum drove us into central London. Before the casting, we went to Chinatown as it was nearly Chinese New Year and it looked amazing with all the Chinese lanterns.

Clearance curtains, tracks and poles 2

The casting was at Redbrick Studios which I have been to before.

We sat in a room waiting for me to be called and everyone had a guitar. Then we realised I was in the wrong room so felt embarrassed and went to the right room! There were lots of girls and boys there so I knew there was lots of competition. For the casting, I had to be lazy by chilling out, playing on my phone while my brother played on his games console which was fun.

After the casting, we went to Leicester Square and it was the premiere of Fifty Shades of Grey. There were hundreds of people queuing to see it and I saw Jamie Dornan arrive. Everyone was screaming which just makes me want to walk the red carpet myself even more! My favourite actress is Jennifer Lawrence, so I would love to see the premiere of Mockingjay Part 2 in November.

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Baroque Here in Chelmsford Mystery and intrigue surround the program chosen by Waltham Singers for their next concert at KEGS on Saturday 14 March, 7.30pm. Throw into the mix religious persecution, ruthless aristocratic rivalries and boundless creative energy and here you are back in Europe of 1700.

Most people have heard of Bach, Handel and Vivaldi. How then is it possible that the collected works of a composer whose own work was admired by these greats could have remained almost undiscovered until recently? The man in question is Zelenka, of whom not a single picture has been found. A Bohemian Catholic double-bass player, who lived most of his life in Lutheran Protestant Dresden, which was a leading artistic centre of the age. Zelenka’s employer, the King of Saxony, ran a court of two faces - one Catholic, the other Lutheran, ostensibly a trick so he could be both King of Saxony and Poland at the same time.

Zelenka’s work is distinctive, exciting to hear and extremely fastpaced, and this is the first ever opportunity to hear him locally.

The chosen piece is Missa Purificationis Beatae Virginis Mariae.

The news that Biber is also coming to Chelmsford will demand crowds of girls mobbing KEGS in the hope of catching a glimpse of the Canadian heartthrob! Heinrich Biber was a star in 1670 too. He worked most of his life out of Salzburg, for two ruthless archbishops during times when thousands of Protestants were persecuted and expelled from the city. His music is masterful and hugely atmospheric and the chosen piece, Requiem in F Minor, is both of these.

Vivaldi of course needs no introduction. However did you know that he wrote mostly for the abandoned children (girls) of the 28

Ospedale where he worked? Or that until the early 20th century his work had slid into obscurity and it is only relatively recently that he has become a superstar. Well if you like your latin sung superfast then you’re in for a treat - they really don’t come any faster than the 7 minutes of Domine ad adjuvandum me festina. If you like your pulse to race, and your senses to tingle, then this is for you.

Waltham Singers have been performing in and around Chelmsford for 40 years and will be accompanied by the highly regarded Meridian Sinfonia playing period instruments. Tickets are just £13 (£11 concessions) available from Kate on 07808 584 826. For more information or if you’d like to sing with us, please visit: www.walthamsingers.org.

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Dieting Is like Riding a Bike - You Have to Expect to Fall Off Every Now and Again!

If you started your New Year diet and exercise regime with all of the enthusiasm of a 4 year old boy in a soft play centre, the chances are that in recent weeks you have struggled to keep up with this new lifestyle of yours and reverted back to the old you!

So why do so many diets fail?

Trying to remain on a diet is like learning to ride a bike - you’ve got to expect to fall off from time to time! Unfortunately, the more extreme the diet - or exercise regime for that matter - the more often you fall of.

So if you have been following some sort of fad or extreme diet since the New Year and fallen off so many times that you have given up, now is the time to get back on that bike and a begin a more sensible diet.

For many people, diets which prohibit particular food groups or require you to semi-starve yourself for X amount of days per week are just too hard to follow for any real length of time. They either restrict your food choices so much that you are constantly craving that forbidden food, or they leave you feeling too hungry too often.

So rather than trying to cycle the equivalent of the Tour de France with an extreme diet and training regime, just make a few changes that will make it less likely that you fall of that diet bike again.

For example, the single most important factor when it comes to

weight loss is calorie restriction. This does not have to be done by following a fancy diet, it can simply be done cutting down on your portion sizes through serving your food on a smaller plate!

If you’ve been following an extreme high intensity interval training DVD and found it so hard that you have injured yourself or been left so exhausted that you simply cannot bring yourself to continue with it any more, remember it does not have to be this way. People often ask me what is the best form of exercise and invariably by common response is - it depends. At this point I could baffle you with various pieces scientific research to support various training methods, but I am not. The ‘it depends’ simply refers to it depends on what the individual enjoys doing. Find something you enjoy doing which gets your heart rate up and make a commitment to keep doing as often as you can.

In short…

Diet and exercise should not be like a form of extreme religion which guides your whole life. It should be viewed as something that compliments you, but does not define you! So choose a diet and method of exercise which can fit in with your lifestyle with the minimum of fuss. This way, you are more likely to stick to it for the long haul - not just a few weeks of the year when you are feeling highly motivated.

For any training advice please feel free to drop me an email at: matt@mlrpt.co.uk. Website: www.mlrpt.co.uk, Facebook: www. facebook.com/mlrpt. Twitter: www.twitter.com/mlrpt. YouTube: www.youtube.com/mlrpt.

Deadlines for March Edition Articles 13th March Print ready art work 19th March

Chelmsford Schools Qualify for National Rugby Competition St Cedd’s School and Widford Lodge Preparatory School are jointly celebrating their success in qualifying for the final of the prestigious Lexus Schools National Rugby Competition to be held at Epsom College on Sunday 1st March 2015. This is a tremendous achievement for these two Chelmsford preparatory schools, particularly in light of the strength of the competition.

Their success reflects outstanding rugby coaching and the breadth of the boys’ rugby skills. They will be pitched against the top schools in the country in an event in which the current England Captain, Chris Robshaw, competed in 1996.

them compete in the final.”

Tim Sawyer, Head of PE, said: “I am extremely proud of the boys for getting this far - this is truly a great achievement and their hard work has paid off. I cannot wait to see how they perform in the final.”

While Dr Pamela Edmonds added: “it is always a pleasure to see pupils achieving this level of success. The boys should feel very proud of this achievement and I look forward to seeing www.moulshamtimes.com

29

Volatile Descent: A Detective Carter Mystery by JR Blake - Part 3 Last time we saw DS Carter relive the moment her marriage ended as she headed up the Cathedral steps to find evidence of a murder. Now we rejoin the investigation as some life changing evidence is found in this case…

DS Erin Carter and her friend and colleague, Dr Diane Looker, stomped down the stairs and back into the Cathedral. Nothing.

Absolutely Jack. Not one shred of evidence to prove murder.

Her partner DC Reid was her last chance, he emerged in front of her...

“Reid, please tell me you have something?” Carter asked, hoping she didn’t sound too desperate.

“As a matter of fact…” Reid dangled a white piece of cloth in an evidence bag in front of her “…would some disgusting smelling substance on a white cloth do?”

“Depends what the substance is” Carter replied, she took a whiff, as did Dr Looker, who exclaimed: “ding ding ding ding ding, we have a winner!”

“Jesus!” DS Carter pushed the bag away from her.

“And that my friends is Chloroform. Homemade from the stench of it….” Dr Looker commented.

“Homemade? So we’re looking for a chemist then? Reid asked “Not necessarily, there are videos on YouTube telling you how to make the stuff these days” Dr Looker replied.

“Seriously? Those are the videos that could make a copper’s life just slightly more stressful. Ah well, anything else Reid?” Carter asked.

“Ummm, yeah...” Reid hesitated. Carter sighed.

“Spit it out Reid!”

“There’s this...” Reid showed an emblem embossed into the white cloth.

“The St David’s Hotel. In Cardiff” Carter said. Great, it had to be sodding Cardiff.

Outside the Cathedral, after she had called in to DCI Maslow with the news, DS Carter and her partner DC Reid sat in the car.

Their instructions were to get up to Cardiff, immediately, but as Carter turned the key in the car nothing happened. The engine refused to awaken. Exasperated, Carter turned to her partner.

“Did you see any spare cars at the station?”

“Nope, everyone had been called out to an incident in Oxford Street. Someone tried to rob Debenhams. With guns. Idiots.”

Reid replied.

“Only one thing for it then” Carter said as she reached for her phone and scrolled through her contact list to find her cousin.

Reid continued his rant.

“I mean, if I was going to rob a department store in Oxford Street, I’d go for somewhere like Selfridges or one of those boutique jewellery stores you know?”

“We don’t usually pride our thieves on their taste in loot Reid.

And anyway, when did you become such a snob?” Carter asked jestingly.

“Says the police officer calling her uber rich cousin to lend her a car….” Reid replied.

“How do you know who I’m calling?”

“Because I know you!” Reid replied. Carter switched her attention to the phone.

“Hi Abs, I need a massive favour. Car’s broken down, no other cars available due to some numb nuts trying to rob Debenhams on Oxford Street at gun point and I have to get to Cardiff asap or my boss will rip his own face off and probably sack me - could I borrow a vehicle?”

“Of course darling!” Miss Abigail replied, hang on a sec…

“Cardiff? Oh darling, we must get you a nice one then if there’s even the slightest chance you’ll bump into that gormless pillock of an ex or yours…”

“I’ll be working with him” Carter replied.

“Lamborghini!! Get a Lambo!!” Reid was saying to Carter “Reid we’re not driving to Cardiff in a Lamborghini”

“Why not?”

“It doesn’t exactly scream ‘detectives investigating important murder case’ does it?” Carter replied to her partner before turning her attention back to her cousin. “Seriously Abs, you’d be doing me a massive favour, I’ll take anything - just chuck a Ford Fiesta at me or something.”

“Darling I do NOT own a flaming Ford Fiesta!! But I can get you a nice car. Something quick if you’re in a hurry - I’ll have it dropped round to the station in a few shakes of a pedigree Labrador’s tail!!” Miss Abigail replied, “and why on earth would you rob Debenhams at gunpoint? That certainly wouldn’t be my first choice…”

“I think that’s supposed to be two shakes of a lamb’s tail but thanks Abs” DS Carter said.

“What are we getting?” DC Reid asked excitedly.

“I don’t know!” Carter replied.

“Where are you going in Wales anyway darling? Anywhere nice?” Miss Abigail asked.

“We’re making enquiries at The St David’s Hotel.” Carter said.

“Oh darling! You’ll simply love it there! It’s one of the best hotels I’ve stayed in - and it’s St David’s Hotel and Spa, the spa is simply wonderful, you must have a massage there! You’ll need it if you’re woking with Eric the imbecile.”

“We’ll just be conducting some enquiries there, not staying. I don’t think the constabulary budget quite stretches to a spa either.”

“What?? Oh no darling we can’t have that! I’ll book you and Reid in for the week, and I’m assuming Dr Looker will be going along with you as well for a bit of sanity - I simply must insist that you get some relaxation time. Like I said - you’ll need it working with prat face” Miss Abigail exclaimed. Carter chuckled, she did enjoy her cousin’s insults of Carter’s ex-husband, as for the hotel booking - she knew not to argue from past experience.

It wouldn’t get her anywhere and they needed to get to Cardiff before DCI Maslow started plucking his own eyes out.

“Thanks Abs, speak soon.”

“Question: how are going to get back to the station?” Reid asked.

“Walk, bus or taxi” Carter replied. Two seconds later they said together: “Taxi.”

Tune in next time to see how DS Carter and DC Reid will be getting to Cardiff and to meet DS Carter’s ex husband, DCI Eric Carter.

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