Blacka Moor Parfait

I have a lot to learn about presentation. The coulis obstinately refused to drizzle where I wanted it to. But the taste!

This is based on a recipe card in Waitrose's July selection free on a laminated card in store. But they use blackberry. The blackberries on the moor are not quite ready yet. So I substituted bilberries.

The recommended Australian dessert wine was excellent too

Consultations

You can approach consultation processes with local people in various ways.

1 One way, the unashamedly top down way, is to decide beforehand what you want to do and get a bit of help on some of the less important details from some local people.

2 Another way, the bottom up way, could be to ask people what they want and making some adjustments for different opinions do what they want. This is a rare phenomenon.

3 A clever way is to decide beforehand as in (1) and then persuade the punters to follow your ideas. Success here depends on having exclusive and effective control of the relevant (and some irrelevant) information and being sure to have some strategies in place in the unlikely event that they don't accept your view. (like saying the European Directorate will only sanction your plan and no others)

4 A more devious version of (3) is the one increasingly preferred these days. You've effectively made all the decisions yourself well in advance but you don't tell anyone. Using various now well known methods you conduct your consultation in such a way as to make it look as if the preferred outcomes all come from those consulted. The important thing in this is not to be seen to be sniggering behind your hand.

A Monster

This is likely to be the worst blight on the view from Blacka for some time, maybe even worse than the awful straight lines of the King Ecgbert School.

Does Telling the Truth Matter?

A few things have led me to think that truth and objectivity no longer have the premium they used to. More important seems to be knowing what you want to achieve and putting together a story which helps you to do it. Disturbing for those of us who were brought up fearing the the wrath of God (well mum's tongue actually) if we behaved deviously. Much that goes on today depends on an attitude of 'talking up' what you're doing. That's all very well. But if somebody says "But it's not really like that" and proceeds to demonstrate why, it becomes a challenge to the public relations spin you want to project. Too often the critic is labelled as being 'negative' ( itself a negative comment, but who cares?). Things rapidly deteriorate into subjectivity and emotionalism, brothers and sisters of falsehood.

Take some recent comments in statements and messages from SWT about people who they don't wish to attend their 'public' meetings. It seems OK to say anything that makes a case for what they want to do whether it's true or not and to hell with consequences like defamation. Here is one example:

....it went well beyond what is reasonable behaviour at a privately organised meeting set up with the entirely positive purpose of engaging people voluntarily in influencing the future of part of their local countryside. I understand that two people walked out of the meeting specifically because of the tone, approach and behaviour of the Friends of Blacka Moor...

Now I really like this one. Because three people left the meeting before the end. One because she could not stay anyway and two, at different times having said there was no point in staying because SWT were ******* and were not listening to what they said!! But wait a minute two others did go outside briefly, SWT's 'Reserve Manager' and a close ally from PDNPA who each left the room ( one assumed a call of nature). But wasn't this in fact a carefully staged and wholly synthetic wobbly throwing exercise?

Of course, a set-up! And the sanctimonious tone is splendidly realised!

Giant Bird on Lenny Hill !!

FIRST WITH THE NEWS

Trust Blacka Blogger to be on hand and bring you the stories before the rest of the media.

Quietly picking bilberries for this weekend's Bilberry and Lemon and Organic Ice Cream Parfait, what is this buzzing me? Is it the police - now we're on the wanted list. Have we been banned from the area as well as from meetings? Have they seen Bertie off the lead?

But no it's not Sth Yorks Police. It's the air ambulance. The sun has brought out a little party from SWT who are doing something to the paths and of course the loose rubble is awkward underfoot after the rain played havoc recently. One of the helpers had the misfortune to fall and broke a leg.

I wonder what kind of footwear was being worn? Even so it could happen to any of us on that path. I could never understand why all that broken housebrick rubble was brought up in the first place, but then ......

............. it's not right to be negative about these things.

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The Day of the Midge

One of the perishers.

It's not often I can't wait to get off Blacka, but this morning was the worst for midges yet.





Scotland is usually thought of as the midge capital of the world.

PATH IMPROVEMENTS

Good to see some work done to this path. The extra width will be welcome when the rains return.

A Recreation Project

This would cost very little and would be very much in the spirit of Blacka's original public pleasure ground designation. Around the stepping stones is an ideal place for a family to linger. All it needs is an area identified where vegetation is kept short and managed. Eventually it would become grassy and pleasant to sit on. A bench could also be part of the plan. Children need no encouragement to splash in the water.

Again this is a perfect illustration of the value of a regular on-site worker who could cut the greenery several times early in the season.

Do I Want All of Blacka to Become Woodland?

This is what Sheffield Wildlife Trust and some of its simplistic supporters would like people to believe. They tell people this is Friends of Blacka Moor policy without reference to our actual views. They have an agenda which is to discredit any opposition in as personal a manner as is possible. Anybody who disagrees with their plans lays themselves open to this kind of misinformation campaign. It's a well known trick in political and debating circles. First redefine your opponents position in terms chosen by yourself then show how unacceptable it is. It works particularly well with 6 year olds which is why it has such appeal to SWT.

The truth is something more complex and demands a rather more advanced mental age (15 or so?). It demands that you acknowlege two things. One is that there is an overwhelming natural momentum to regrowth of tree cover. Second that there has been a tremendous benefit in wildlife and visual terms to to nature having gone its own way over the last 75 years.

But the views and the openness of certain parts of the site are best retained unobtrusively with the light hand of a manual maintenance regime by a dedicated site worker, occasionally backed up with a blitz from a few volunteers. This is infinitely more suitable to the site than the importation of a herd of bovine heavyweights supported by many thousands of pounds worth of hideous barbed wire and the consequent trashing of footpaths.

While some parts of the site do revert over time to woodland a manual management regime can easily keep this to the right sort of open woodland with trees well spaced and views retained. The picture above shows that this is not that difficult.

I may once or twice have said that if it was a choice between reversion to woodland and management by an outfit like SWT, I know which I would choose.

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Foot in the Mouth Disease

The cattle newly imported to Blacka need to stay where they are according to DEFRA. That lets SWT off the hook I suppose, well that particular one.

Local pranksters and others need to be aware that wedging the gate open and inviting the cows to go in with the sheep is now a serious offence.

Movement Restrictions

How long do you expect us to keep this up?

Naming the Landscape

Some time ago I decided that there were not enough commonly accepted names for landscape features on Blacka. Wimble Holme Hill is established but that's not part of Blacka.

It gets a bit tiresome talking to folk and having to say "You know that spot where the path goes next to the tree with the thingummy on it"

I also find names like Bole Hill pretty..well, boring. After all there are so many bole hills. So I'm on the hunt for names that work. So, at least for the moment, the official name on this blog for the feature in the picture above is The Buttresses. And the hill from which the photo was taken is Thistle Hill. Well anything must be better than 'the in-by land'. Oh, and by the way the two sheep are Gert and Bessy.

This distinctive stone gate post leaning to the east also needs a name but I've not decided yet. It's already been effectively annointed by one of Blacka's many bilberry-gorging birds!

PLEASE no flat roofs

From this point the new building going up is partly hidden by trees. I hope it doesn't get any bigger. And I hope it has a pitched roof. Already it makes a big impact on the view from Blacka. Flat roofs don't blend well in this area. They look intrusive and monolithic.

The second picture shows the same new building from above on Blacka Moor.

An Afternoon Nap

I've always liked to have a good-sized bed to stretch out in, but it's still nice to be together in the middle. Doubtless each one is primed to keep an eye on one line of approach.

Field off Whitelow Lane.

Bog Asphodel

Now in flower. Something like an iris with stunning yellow star like flowers, related to Bluebell and Star of Bethlehem i.e. of the lily family.
Orange coloured anthers.

Something to cheer you up after you've just started to feel the muddy water coming over the top of your boots.

Thoughts on Management and Dirty Tricks

Something poisonous lurking in the Blacka Moor undergrowth. The veil fragments suggest an Amanita, probably Panther Cap

I've been lucky in that the people I've worked with, and for, have on the whole behaved honourably. But talking to others suggests that this is not a common experience, perhaps getting less so.

Organisations like to tell a flattering story about themselves which constitutes their public face. It's part of the public relations agenda that this story has to be coherent and convincing. The important thing is not to let trivial and unimportant matters like facts and the truth get in the way of the story you want to tell. Effective management keeps the troops under control all toeing the management line. In the event of any independent thinker daring to raise his head he must be dealt with ruthlessly.

There are various strategems available to the assiduous manager.....
......................................aarghh!!!

no, ………….. false alarm, my bilberry pie was not, after all, laced with tincture of panther cap, but that may yet come.

As I was saying there are a number of devious approaches all useful in marginalizing the opposition who dare to have independent thoughts. Key to a successful approach is a determination, come what may, not to discuss the real issues. If you do this you are almost certainly lost, because the independent thinker is quite likely to be right, in fact he almost certainly is. And this is not about being right, it’s about having power. The really successful people are leaders who get their own way even when everyone knows they are in the wrong.

To effectively marginalize the independent thinker’s valid criticism firstly nod sagely and patronize, talking broadly about philosophical distinctions and implying that we have to live in the real world.
If this medicine is rejected or ineffective move on to stage two. This is to personalize the issue. Indicate in the sketchiest way that you know the individual concerned has a particular interest in this area implying but not saying that they have ‘a bee in the bonnet’ or an unhealthy obsession and eventually maybe a sense of paranoia. At the same time cultivate a small loyal group hopefully not of the brightest intellects, who you favour in some way. It’s useful to talk about the non conformist to this group initially in the most tolerant terms while allowing it to be known that this is causing you untold pain. Once a whispering has been set up the process of isolating your prey becomes a lot easier. Sooner or later the individual begins to see the advantages of seeking employment elsewhere or even taking early retirement.

Oh what a tangled web we weave.................

SWT's Defamation

This is the text of the disgraceful email sent out by SWT. You can only feel sorry for people who cannot tell truth from fiction.

Dear Councillors,

I'd like to bring your attention to a recent decision to exclude some individuals from Blacka Moor reserve advisory group meetings. I am informing you of this decision as the individuals may be in touch with you.

As you may know, there has been a certain amount of controversy surrounding the introduction of cattle to Blacka Moor. We have been running consultative meetings for the last 5 years. In the most recent 3 or so years, the meetings have been dominated by a vociferous few (calling themselves 'Friends of Blacka Moor') who have in general opposed the introduction of cattle to the moor (some preferring it all to revert to woodland). Their concerns have been taken on board and resolutions reached or further
research undertaken where reasonable or practical.

We are now management planning (for a 5 year management plan) in consultation with local users. In anticipation of further disruption, we asked Dave Aspinall (Area Co-ordinator for the South, who you'll know) to chair the meetings so as to ensure that the meetings are productive. However, despite his best efforts, the most recent meeting was dominated by the individuals in question being rude, aggressive and insulting to other participants (including SWT staff, the Chair and local people taking part in the meetings). This is unacceptable behaviour and therefore Sheffield Wildlife Trust has decided to exclude these 5 individuals (**********5 names removed to avoid repeating a libel*****) from the meetings for a period of 6 months. However, they are not excluded from the consultation process and can contribute verbally, via email or by letter as they'll continue to receive all letters, updates and consultation papers.

Their recent behaviour has run entirely contrary to what is considered to be acceptable, and it is becoming a serious handicap to the group fulfilling its intended purpose (the engagement of interested people in the management, maintenance and enhancement of Blacka Moor). A large number of other group participants have expressed distress and dissatisfaction at their disruptive and unhelpful behaviour and a number of individuals are known to have been driven away from this community participation mechanism by the constantly hostile, confrontational and unproductive atmosphere that they have succeeded in generating. We can no longer tolerate this kind of behaviour, as it is to the detriment of the process and causes considerable distress for the staff, volunteers and local people taking part in meetings.

The local police sergeant has been informed of the situation, and the potential for the individuals to disrupt meetings. They will be present if they can be, and will act in the interests of public order and preventing a breach of the peace.

If you would like further information on the matter then please do not hesitate to contact me.

Kind regards,


Reserves Manager

The story being told here is so far from what happened at the June meeting that one has to conclude that the writer lives in a parallel universe. Representatives of horse riders arrived at that meeting who were unknown to us. They caused something of a stir by insisting that the cattle be taken off the moor because children had felt threatened by them hanging around the gateways. They were pretty forthright, saying among other things that they had signed the petition against grazing 2 years ago so were amazed that it was going ahead. They would not accept SWT's explanations which as usual were on the feeble side. Then they said that SWT were not listening. This was the cue for some explanation from some of the Friends present who pointed out that SWT very rarely listened. We then explained some of the background to the newcomers, certainly my contribution was with the full approval of the chair.

The sinister thing here is the way that SWT staff manage to solicit from some of their members and supporters complaints about 'behaviour' which have no substance at all. This is manipulation of a kind that Joe Stalin would have recognised. They have of course been wanting to find an excuse for getting rid of us for some time. Next we will be banned from Blacka itself no doubt!

A Favourite Bit of Wall

Sometimes the simple craftsmanship of the stone waller seems to transform into art.

Certainly better than anything I've seen by Tracy Emin or Damian Hirst!

Bloodsuckers!

As children we used to tell each other that these orange creatures were bloodsuckers. As adults it was a bit of a disappointment to learn that they are quite harmless soldier beetles with the name Rhagonycha fulva. They have a penchant for eating the tiny insects found on the flowers of hogweed.

Path and Shrub Maintenance

The attractive bilberry and cowberry mix here is a tribute to the work of Friends of Blacka Moor who regularly pull the bracken. They have been helped by visiting bilberry pickers who also see the benefits of good unimpeded access to a favourite fruit.

The path here is developing into a delightful semi wild area, just the kind of thing that a good on site worker can achieve with a few brief minutes work every now and then. Part of the attraction is in the way human intervention gradually shades away into a natural wilderness.

Bilberry and Banana Teabread

Self Raising Flour,

Melted butter

About three bananas

Light Muscovado Sugar

Walnuts or Pecan Nuts

3 large Eggs

A couple of handfuls of bilberries

Quantities as preferred.

Each time I've tried this it tastes the same but the fun is in the fact that it looks different. If you put the chopped bananas in the mixture after the rest has been well blended I think it helps to keep the mix fairly stiff.That may help the bilberries to stay well spread out. They of course just get thrown in at the end before cooking (160C for 45-50 mins).

Purple Poos

Walking along the once springy and pleasant paths of Blacka at this time of year it's common to find purple poos. I've always assumed these came from foxes who've been gorging on bilberries. This morning coming round a corner I saw a young fox with it's head in the bilberries. As usual he was off before the camera could be pulled out.