Carols and lights and Pannal

Two comments on my blog. Thank you Judith I have seen it. Tonight was the night of the Carols around the tree on Pannal Green. The lights are great this year. Pannal Village Society paid for the lights and I arranged for them to be put up. A great job has been done this year. They look very good. One comment I must make was the Carols were advertised for 6.30pm in the newsletter and on the notice in the notice board it was 6pm. We very nearly missed it. Good to see some villagers turned out on a rainy night. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. The Dickensian Festival at Grassington was very good. This is the first year we have gone for the weekend. We usually just go for the day. Thought I would treat Bas as it is his birthday soon. I am chief driver now as Bas eyesight rubbish so I drove over on a very foggy Friday. Bit of snow at Greenhow. Fog cleared as we reached Grassington. Stayed at The Foresters Arms which was good fun and very lively. There was a group of rugby players in the bar singing Irish songs. They had been in all day and by the evening the landlady decided enough was enough and good naturedly showed them the door. She held it open and they all went out on there knees singing Heigh Ho its off to work we go. Saturday of the Festival light showers but that did not dampen the spirits. Chestnuts, mulled wine, Christmas stalls, shops open. Hebden Bridge Band played and were excellent. A stall with a great take on a one armed bandit. Had to be seen to be believed. Very funny. The day closed with a little girl as Mary on a donkey and a little boy as Joseph touring the village and Joseph went into the various pubs asking for room and when he went into ours the landlady said "You never book so there is no room. You have the same problem every year". We attended the concert in the evening and that was very good. The Chairwoman of the Calendar Girls sung in the choir. Their take on the Twelve days of Christmas involved the audience. Bas was a - ladies dancing - and had to wear a lovely little hat with a flower on it. On another subject I am applying for Rights of Way on the field at the end of Pannal Quarry. Pannal Quarry was going to be completely fenced off with no access to the fields but I have stopped that and shall have a meeting with North Yorkshire County Council in the new year. Hopefully I shall win.