I was reminded recently that I had earrings. "Oh - two earrings," said the glazier's boy come to fix our back window. "Two earrings?" replied I. "In your left ear," quoth the young fellow. "Ah yes," said I, "They've been there since - well a wee while now anyway." Just two silver hoops which I've had for more than twenty years; I never bother them and they never bother me, or anyone else as far as I can tell, but the glazier's boy noticed them as he'd just had his (ear) pierced and wanted to talk about it.

Last year we had a Lancastrian heating engineer who was covered in impressive Maori-style tattoos which would appear to very popular right now. I showed him my book with the tattoo from an Siberian chieftain's arm circa 500 BCE (Frozen Tombs - The Culture and Art of the Ancient Tribes of Siberia, British Museum, 1978) and he was very impressed. Similar things can be seen HERE.

I didn't realise Mudcatters were such a bunch of nannying self-righteous nerdy gossips (well I did but it always alarms me to see evidence of it) - I did try a while back there, so it's heartening to see the usual inspirational sense from CS and VT though. You'd really think folkies would delight in such cultural wonderments & idiosyncratic manifestations of vernacular folklore - and, dare I say, tradition?