Welsh Society dragon speak of Oregon the newsletter of the Welsh Society of Oregon image 1: en.wikipedia.org Hydref (October) 2016 Excalibur - the sword from the sky? Come to our October 1st meeting !! Dick Pugh, our member and Portland State University meteor specialist, will talk about the connection between King Arthur’s sword and the metals found in some meteorites. image 2: en.wikipedia.org Haiku at Kenilworth Park On September 10th, several of us met for the Welsh Society “September outdoor event.” Here are examples: The day was beautiful, with dappled sun The sun sets lower. coming down through the trees in Cool mornings herald Autumn Kenilworth Park. At picnic tables, we ate Still the Fir trees are green… Barri Hinkson our lunches, and then John Evans briefed the group on the key parts of haiku poems. All of us then went to separate spaces Cell phone put away No Pokeman Go for me under the trees. We wrote haiku poems Quiet summer day Jim Mockford and then gathered back together to read our creations. Look up in the tree There are many pine cones high Winter will have snow Cheryl Mockford Light on gnarled black bark Two firs grew close boughs woven Will we live long thus? John Evans Fir trees majestic Bark rough as steel unmoving Branches soft and swaying KarenAlice Jones Sheep graze quietly Soft breezes waft through ripe wheat End of summer soon Claudia Sterling image 3: commons.wikmedia.org Hydref (October) 2016 2 dragonspeak Editor: Membership John Evans 2309 SW 1st Av #1441 Membership in the Welsh Society of Oregon is Portland, OR 97201 open to all people interested in Wales. [email protected] To join, please contact our Treasurer: Janet Figini We welcome all contributions to this newsletter. 243 Ipswich St. Please send your news, stories, anecdotes, Gladstone, OR 97027 poems, jokes, or anything else that you would 971.295.4311 or jpfi[email protected] like to share with the Welsh Society Great castles of Wales Carreg Cennen Castle (Castell Carreg Cennen) image 4: commons.wikimedia.org In real backcountry four miles southeast of Llandeilo, and near Brecon Beacons Park, stands Carreg Cennen Castle, the most magnificently-sited castle in Wales. The site had early use - Sir Urien, one of legendary King Arthur’s knights, built a fortress there; Roman coins and even earlier skeletal remains have been found. image 5: commons.wikimedia.org Lord Rhys (Rhys of Deheubarth) built a more permanent castle in the late 12th century, though it was taken by Edward I in his first Welsh campaign of 1277. In 1321, the younger Giffard rebelled against Edward II Edward had scarcely the time to occupy the castle before it and lost the castle. In 14th century,it was owned by the was under Welsh attack, first by Llewelyn ap Gruffudd, and Lancaster family. John of Gaunt married a Lancaster then by Rhys ap Maredudd. Edward granted Carreg heiress and through their son, the future Henry IV, the Cennen to John Giffard, of Gloucestershire as a reward for castle passed to the crown. Owain Glyndwr captured his support in Edward’s conflict with Llewelyn. Carreg Cennen after a siege, but it was retaken after Glyndwr’s rebellion failed. In 1462, Yorkists under Henry Giffard rebuilt the Welsh fortress in impressive style. Herbert and Robert Vaughan took the castle. They Between 1283-1321 Giffard and his son created a complex destroyed its defenses so that it could not be held against structure which make the best possible use of the rocky hill them. The castle passed between several families, and in on which the castle stands. 1922, it was granted to the Office of Works. It is now managed by CADW, the government historical agency. Carrel Cennen stands three hundred feet above a sheer drop britainexpress.com into the green valley of the Cennen River. To the north and east, the Giffards built an outer ward, pierced by a strong gatehouse. If an attacker managed to get through the outer Visitors can only reach Carreg Cennen Castle by a stiff gatehouse, he had to make at least two sharp turns to reach uphill climb, but are rewarded by astounding views of a strongly defended twin-towered gatehouse to the inner purple outlines of the Black Mountains, contrasted with the ward. Within the inner ward, there is a passage cut into the rich greenery of the Tywi and Cennen valleys. Rough cliff, provided access to a natural cave with a well under Guide to Wales the castle. Hydref (October) 2016 3 Leeks of Interest true tidbits aboutWales and Welsh-America image 6: John Evans A scene of modern Britain played out on a rail replacement bus service in Newport yesterday. a woman wearing a niqab was chatting to her son in another language. After five minutes, a man suddenly snapped, “If you’re in the UK, you should speak English.” At this, another passenger turned round and explained, “We’re in Wales. And she’s speaking Welsh.” source Twitter 6/2016 ‘THE ARMED MAN’ GENTLEMEN: If you choose to wear a blazer by Welsh composer as part of your fashionable coutour, here is Sir Karl Jenkins some important information: British regimental blazers, always double-breasted and blue, are In this ‘mass for peace,’ Jenkins distinguished by the number of buttons on the uses poetry, folk song, world cuff. The Grenadier Guards have one button, prayers, and words of a Hiroshima bombing survivor. the Coldstream Guards, two; the Scotch Guards, three; the Irish Guards, four; and the performed Oct 8 and 9th by the Welsh Guards, five. source: Orlando Sentinel 1995 Oregon Repertory Singers at First United Methodist Church tickets: brownpapertickets.com or 503.838.3006 The ‘Ceili of the Valley’ is hosting the first SAMHAIN CELTIC NEW YEAR FESTIVAL in Salem on Saturday, October 22 at Grant Elementary School 725 Market St. NE Salem, OR 97301 The WELSH SOCIETY OF OREGON will be participating! Janet & Betty will be rolling out Welsh Cakes, offering samples & selling cakes. image 7: ceili of the valley The Festival Chorus will have a group of singers singing a cappella while the cakes are griddled. C’mon down and show WELSH POWER!! Hydref (October) 2016 4 CHWARDDIADAU (Laughs) Brothers Owen and Davy went into Cardiff to do a bit of shopping, and decided to stop in a restaurant for dinner. Turned out it was quite a ‘posh’ place, and they were royally treated by the staff. Owen and Davy looked on the menu for their usual sausage, egg and chips, pie, and beans, their usual order - and everything was in French! They politely asked the server to explain the items on the menu, and she was very helpful. Owen ordered chicken with sauce over rice, and Davy a large steak. The server turned to Davy and asked him if he’d like to make his choice of potato to go with the steak. Very pleased, Davy sat back in his chair and said, “Aye, go on then luv, fetch ‘em over yer - let’s have a look at ‘em.” A cheeky English potato goes into a pub in Pontypridd, sure jôcs tatws that he is fitting in with the locals. He tells bad jokes, potato jokes makes disparaging remarks about the local brew, and worst of all, speaks in English. After a while, he decides to Ifor, Dan, and Wil were three not-too-bright mates. leave, goes outside and They went to a farm near their town to steal somebody had painted his car chickens. green. The farmer heard the ruckus and called Jenkins, the local constable, who was nearby. He goes back inside and says The boys quickly jumped into three potato sacks in a very loud voice, “OK, so they wouldn’t be seen. WHO’S THE FLIPPER WHO PAINTED Constable Jenkins kicked the first sack, and Ifor MY CAR GREEN?” yelled out, “meow,” so Jenkins thought it was a Up from a table in the back cat. stands a massive, 7 foot The constable then kicked the second sack, and leek, made of solid muscle. Dan growled “ruff,” so Jenkins thought there was a dog inside. “I PAINTED YOUR CAR GREEN,” When Jenkins kicked the third sack where Wil says he. was hiding Wil said, ”Potatoes!” “And drying lovely it is!” says the potato, and makes a hasty retreat. Hydref (October) 2016 5 Happy Birthday to WSOP’ers born in October! ! Penblwydd Hapus i chi! May your day be full of good friends and family, and good cheer! Oct 13 Robert Thomas Oct 16 Donald Katahdin Oct 23 Susan Jones Calhoun if we missed you, we may not have your birthday on the list. Please call or email John Evans (see below). also note: we are including only 2015 & 2016 paid members image 8: pixabay.com The Welsh Society of Oregon is an IRS-approved Our Meetings 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Our mission: The Welsh Society of Oregon develops, and Oct 1 Excalibur - Sword from the perpetuates Welsh heritage, culture, and music in Oregon. We strive Sky? to sustain: pride in being Welsh, support for learning about Wales, the Welsh language, and exploration of Welsh-American issues by Nov 5 Social afternoon our members and for others in the community. Dec 17 Christmas Celebration The Board Jan No Meeting KarenAlice Jones, President 503.636.1118 [email protected] Claudia Sterling, Vice President 503.692.9108 [email protected] Barri Hinkson, Secretary 503.234.1601 [email protected] Janet Figini, Treasurer 971.295.4311 [email protected] John Evans, Director 503.777.4518 [email protected] Betty Pierce, Director 503.479.1479 [email protected] 12:30pm Business Meeting for all Jeff Lewis, Director 503.804.2379 [email protected] 1:00pm Refreshments Dragon Speak editor: John Evans 1:30pm Program Librarian: Gwen Newborg 503.252.9371 [email protected] Historian: Doris Cruickshank 971.241.2157 [email protected] Unless noted, all meetings of WSOR Image credits: image 1:en.wikipedia.org (google/labncuse): image 2: en.wikipedia.org (google/labncuse); image 3: commons.wikimedia.org (google/labycuse); are held at google/labncuse; images 4 & 5: commons.wikimedia.org (google/labncuse); image 6: John Evans; image 7: perm of organization; image 8: pixabay.com (google/labcuse) ‘labncuse’ = Kenilworth Presbyterian Church 4028 ‘Google image labeled for noncommercial reuse’ SE 34th Ave.