#TenThingsYouMayNotKnowAbout – #AlexCraigie

/ Marcia Meara

I’m very excited to announce that today’s #TenThings guest is my very dear friend, Alex Craigie (or Trish, as some of us know her). I’ve met many, many wonderful folks through this blog, and Trish is right there among the very best of them! And I know you’re going to enjoy her list as much as I did! Trish, the floor is yours!

Ten Things You May Not Know About Me
by Alex Craigie

Thanks, Marcia!

  1. At my tallest. I managed 4’ 11”. Cinema-going was always a hit and miss affair. As I grow older, I grow shorter…
  1. My family mainly slot into one of two camps – medicine or teaching. I loved biology at school, but as I keel over at the sight of blood I followed the teaching strand.
  1. I loved teaching and have taught all ages from nursery to 19. I also did Home Tuition for the authority to help those unable to be in school for a while. Most of these had such disturbing home circumstances, the lessons had to be held in the local education centre.
  1. When the children were small, I supplemented our meagre income by writing short stories for magazines and doing competitions. The way to win a competition was to write a snappy rhyming couplet. Armed with a rhyming dictionary, I won on average 4 competitions a month. These varied from all-inclusive holidays (which I was able to give away) to branded aprons. I won a lot of aprons.
  1. My parents were both Scottish, I was born in the north of England and my husband and I moved to Wales in 1986 with 3 children under the age of four. When I went back to teaching it was as a Welsh teacher. I love the language but it’s one where the beginnings of the words change under certain conditions. Cot is the Welsh word for coat. That sounds manageable, doesn’t it?
  • Their coat:      Eu cot  
  • Your coat:       Dy got 
  • His coat:          Ei got  
  • Her coat:          Ei chôt       
  • My coat :         Fy nghot

                           It makes dictionary use really, really tricky for a beginner.

  1. Sticking with the theme of Welsh, there’s a place in the north which goes by the name of:

Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch.

The railway station board is a tad longer than the norm!

  1. I love music and used to play the guitar – mainly classical but plenty of folk and rock as well. Arthritis has made it tricky to properly continue with it but I’ve switched to the piano – some of my books have pictures to colour in at the top of the page. Baby steps! I used to sing in a college choir. Later, a group of us impoverished students discovered that we’d be given a free meal in hall if we sang evensong on Sundays. The four of us signed up for it.
  1. My mother’s side of the family share an ability to find four-leafed clovers. I thought they stood out for everyone and was surprised that others spent ages trawling through patches looking for them.
  1. Thirty years ago my ability to recognise faces suddenly left me. I thought it was early-onset dementia but the consensus was that the migraines attacking the same part of my brain had damaged it, leading to the problem. I used to bluff it out, looking for clues. At the time, apart from friends and neighbours, we had three children in different schools, my husband and I taught in two others and I’d done Home Tuition for the authority, plus supply work across the age range in the county schools and, in addition, three evening classes. My brain can usually place people when in context, but after I failed to recognise in the supermarket the teaching colleague I’d chatted with for over two hours the night before, my husband took to sidling up to me with the details I might need. ‘The woman in the checked skirt and purple blouse is Delyth Jones, vets assistant; husband ran off with Huw the butcher…’ I come clean now.
  1. I love our garden and used to grow only pretty things but have added an increasing range of produce in the last decade or so. There’s something special about grandchildren picking the vegetables for a meal and following it up with some fresh fruit foraging. Our garden’s also home to an impressive variety of birds and we have slow worms, grass snakes, giant moles (judging by the mole mountains), visiting hedgehogs and foxes, plus nightly badgers. The only creature that properly spooks me is the spider, any spider. I can’t even watch them on the television.

You can buy Means to Deceive here:
Amazon.com
Amazon.UK

BLURB:

Eighteen months ago, Gwen Meredith left the job she loved and came back to Pembrokeshire to help support her irritable and increasingly confused grandmother.
But someone is pursuing a vendetta against her.

As the attacks become more malicious, her old anxieties begin to build.
She’s attracted to her new neighbour who is keen to help…but can she trust him?

When those closest to her are threatened, her desperation mounts.
Who can she trust?

Gwen has a dark secret of her own.
Can she even trust herself?

MY REVIEW:

A book I won’t soon forget! Let me say up front that I read mostly fantasy or urban fantasy these days, preferring to escape from the world around us as often as possible. I made an exception for Means to Deceive after coming across some excellent reviews, and I’m really glad I did.

This book pulled me in from page one, with superb character development and a wonderfully intricate plot. The tension built with each page until I was reading as fast as I could, eager to find out who the main culprit was. The reader is offered several real possibilities in that regard, but every time I thought I had it figured out, I realized someone else was an equally good candidate for causing all the skullduggery going on. Craigie’s writing was strong, clear, and eloquent. The pacing was perfect, and the end, a true revelation. I highly recommend this one! 

Author Alex Craigie

Alex Craigie is the pen name of Trish Power.

Trish was ten when her first play was performed at school. It was in rhyming couplets and written in pencil in a book with imperial weights and measures printed on the back.

When her children were young, she wrote short stories for magazines before returning to the teaching job that she loved.

Trish has had three books published under the pen name of Alex Craigie. The first two books cross genre boundaries and feature elements of romance, thriller and suspense against a backdrop of social issues. Someone Close to Home highlights the problems affecting care homes while Acts of Convenience has issues concerning the health service at its heart. Her third book. Means to Deceive, is a psychological thriller.

Someone Close to Home has won a Chill with a Book award and a Chill with the Book of the Month award. In 2019 it was one of the top ten bestsellers in its category on Amazon.

Contact Alex via email here: alexcraigie@aol.com 

Find all three of Alex Craigie’s books on her Author Page HERE

105 thoughts on “#TenThingsYouMayNotKnowAbout – #AlexCraigie”

  1. What a wealth of things I’ve learned about Alex thanks to this post! It must be quite complicated to manage when you don’t recognise people around you. It also strikes me that it would make for quite an interesting story as well, or an element of a story… (not quite Memento, but…) Welsh sounds like a true challenge, but I have to try and learn a bit more of the languages I’m trying now. I’ll put it on my list for the future, though! Thanks for sharing such interesting information, Alex, and good luck with your writing!

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    • Thanks, Olga. The memory thing is quite funny now that I’m not fighting it! I hadn’t thought about it being part of a plotline but it could be like the thrillers featuring dementia at the moment but with a grip on reality that could add significantly to the terror.

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    • I’m so glad you enjoyed Trish’s post, Olga! I was amazed when I read it, even though we’ve been online friends a long time now. There were so many things I didn’t know, and I’m truly honored she decided to give #TenThings a go!

      Thanks so much for stopping by and taking a moment to comment! 😀 ❤

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  3. Wonderful ten things, Trish. And so lovely to learn more about you. The lack of facial recognition makes life a tad interesting, I’m sure! I love hubby’s information he gives you as well as simply their names! Hugs 💕🙂

    Marcia, thanks for sharing! Hugs 💕🙂

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    • Many thanks, Harmony. When the facial recognition went years ago it was terrifying as I thought it must be early onset dementia – it was such a relief to know it wasn’t. In the great scheme of things, it’s such a minor thing, really. You adapt, don’t you, to what life throws at you. ♥♥

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    • I confess, I’d never heard of the facial recognition condition before. (One of several eye-opening things in this post.) And I agree that’s it’s lovely Trish’s husband guides her when they run into someone she knows. Now that’s partnership!

      Thanks so much for stopping by and taking a moment to share your thoughts, too! 😀 ❤

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  5. I loved getting to know more about you, Trish. I’m pretty sure I once read a book (or heard one talked about) where a character had facial recognition problems. I had no idea you suffered from that.

    Loved getting to know more about you. We’re kindred spirits about spiders. IMO, the only good one is a dead one!

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    • A kindred arachnophobe 🤣. They say you can either cope with rodents or spiders and most people I know follow that rule. One of my daughters will happily remove an eight-legged for me and I’ll oblige when a field mouse takes up residence. Many thanks for the comment, Joan 🙂

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    • As I mention in my bio, I detest and loathe spiders also. (Anything with EIGHT hairy legs is surely up to no good!) But I do not kill them any more, as I accept that they have a very important job to do (especially in Florida, where insects are rampant), so I report them to my husband who handles our Arachnid Catch and Release Program and turns them loose outside.

      So glad you enjoyed Trish’s post, Joan, and thanks so much for stopping by to let her know. 😀 ❤

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    • She is DEFINITELY an amazing person, Priscilla, and don’t let her tell you otherwise. She’s a lovely, supportive friend who writes wonderful books, and … amazingly … speaks and understands WELSH! (I didn’t know she taught it before reading this post, though.)

      So glad you enjoyed her post today, and thanks for stopping by to let her know. 😀 ❤

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  7. Nice to meet you, Alex. Great list! I’ve seen pictures of that train station before, and always think “I’m not even going to try to pronounce that!” I enjoy singing was in chorus when I was in high school. Sometimes I think I’d like to try karaoke, but I’m hesitant to sing solo in front of people. I’m sorry to hear about your problem remembering faces. I heard a while back that Brad Pitt has the same problem. I forget what the condition is called.

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    • I had never even heard of the facial recognition problem, Jeanne, and found Trish’s way of handling it to be very inspiring. But then, she’s that kind of person all the way around. So glad you enjoyed her post today, and thanks hugely for stopping by to let her know. 😀 ❤

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    • Thanks, Jeanne! It’s called prosopagnosia and I couldn’t be more delighted to hear that Brad Pitt is a fellow sufferer! It varies in severity – some people don’t even recognise family members – but mine isn’t as drastic as that. I’ve only ever sung in choirs or small groups and I’m far too wimpy to stand up and sing karaoke!!

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  8. Thank you, Trish, for sharing so personally. Your “Ten Things” brought you alive and left me in awe. What a fascinating life journey! A big “thank you” to Marcia for showcasing you today. Hugs to you both. 🤗

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    • Color me arachnophobic, too, Sharon, though as I say above, I don’t kill them because we’d be eaten alive by insects if they disappeared. (My husband removes the few that manage to get into our house, unless the cats beat him to them first.) And I agree with you about the Welsh language. It’s mind-boggling, for sure!

      Thanks so much for stopping by today and taking a moment to comment! 😀 ❤

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    • Arachnophobes united! How are you with mice? It’s supposed to be one or the other… A lot of people here want to learn Welsh so that they can sing along to the anthem. I don’t know if this link will work for you : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwdZOHm8r-Y It’s headed GOOSEBUMPS! Wales fans deliver incredible rendition of the national anthem.

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  11. It’s so great to learn more about Trish. I think I could probably sit and listen to someone speak Welsh for hours. The difference in pronouns (coupled with coat or cot) reminds me of Spanish in many ways. And wow–how about the name of that train station?!?!? I’d love to hear someone say that mouthful.

    Last year I read Rock Paper Scissors which is a book in which the lead character suffers from face blindness. Until then, I’d never heard of the condition before. I’m sure it must be difficult to manage, but it’s great Trish has her husband to assist with cues. The characters in the book did the same type things.

    Finally, I don’t think I’ve ever found a four leaf clover in my life, LOL.

    Great share today, Trish and Marcia!

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    • So glad you enjoyed learning more about Trish, Mae! I thought her post was amazingly interesting, and I learned things I never knew, even though she’s one of my long-standing online friends. (NOW, I want to see a #TenThings post from YOU, when you are back from your blog break!) And I’m going to check out Rock Paper Scissors, too! I never heard about this facial recognition condition, and want to know more. As for the Welsh language, it always leaves me agape. I tease Trish all the time about the stunning lack of vowels in those words! But then again, I speak Southernese–fluently, I might add–and we tend to add lots of extra ones, so who am I to talk?

      Thanks so much for stopping by, my Penderpal! It’s always a treat to see you, and I’m glad you took a moment to share your thoughts! 😀 ❤

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  12. Thanks so much for this opportunity, Marcia! I’ve had a wonderful time reading people’s comments – who’d have thought that Craig had a Welsh grandmother! I love this series of yours. ♥♥

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    • It was my great pleasure to have you visit with us today, Trish! I knew folks would enjoy your list, and I fully expect many more comments to roll in over the next couple of days, so stay tuned for more fun! And I do hope you know you are welcome as a guest poster here on The Write Stuff any time you wish to join us. Always glad to have you!! 🤗💖🤗

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    • That was utterly amazing, Trish, even if I was slightly distracted by all the very handsome young men on that team. And moved by the long-haired man with the tear running down his cheek! Beautiful! Thanks for sharing, and folks, you ought to check it out, if you haven’t already done so. ❤ ❤ ❤

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      • It’s really something, isn’t it! When they play at home, the band plays the opening few bars and then stops because the crowd carries it at their own pace. When they play abroad, the band finishes well in advance of the crowd! So glad you saw it for yourself! ❤ ❤ ❤

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  14. I enjoyed learning more about you, Trish. How frightening that must have been when you began to struggle with facial recognition. I’ve never know anyone who’s experienced that, but I’m happy your husband helps you out. Good for you for entering competitions! I probably would have ever received my first publishing contract if I hadn’t entered a writing contest. Thanks for hosting Trish, Marcia!

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  17. These are great, Trish. I have been to Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch.and have a picture of hubby on his motorcycle under the sign to prove it. You have had an amazing life!

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  18. It was sure nice getting to know you better today, Alex 🙂 That is the longest name for a train station I’ve ever seen. It is so great you won so many contests and all those aprons too. That is scary that migraines can do that but it also makes sense too. I have been switching over to produce from pretty too in my garden. Finding four leaf clovers comes easy for our family as well 🙂 great list, Alex xo
    Thanks for sharing this, Marcia xo

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    • Thanks, Denise! That railway station is in North Wales and I live in the South. There are regional variations to the language and the word for ‘now’ is nawr (pronounced nour) here, and rwan (pronounced roo-an) there – interestingly they’re the same word spelt backwards. Good to know that we share an innate talent for finding four leaf clovers and that you’re growing produce, too! ♥♥

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  19. That was an enjoyable read. I laughed out loud, thinking about Trish’s vast apron collection and her formula for acquiring them. It was great to learn more about one of the most supportive bloggers in the blogosphere.

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  20. How wonderful to get to learn more about Trish! Her top ten is full of interesting stuff. And I would even begin to pronounce the city with the longest name. Wow! I’d hate to live there. Thanks for hosting today, Marcia. This was great!!

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  21. I’m about a thousand percent sure I’d never be able to learn Welsh, lol. Some days I struggle with English, lol. I’ve heard of facial blindness before – it was actually in a novel I read – and I can’t imagine how frustrating that must be, Trish. My hubby wouldn’t be any help at all because he’s horrible with names! Sure enjoyed learning more about you – thanks for hosting, Marcia!

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  22. Thanks, Teri. I wonder if it’s the same book Mae mentioned? I don’t know anyone else with the problem and it’s been really interesting to hear comments from people who are familiar with the condition. Rock Paper Scissors is definitely joining my TBR mountain!

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  23. So great to see Alex here today. I love learning more about my writing friends. One thing I don’t understand is Scottish dialogue, lol. And like Alex, I cannot look at blood, so nursing was out.
    Great review Marsh for Alex’s book. I too thoroughly enjoyed it. Hugs to both ❤ xx

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    • Many thanks, Debby! I know what you mean about Scottish. There’s an actual Scottish language version like the Welsh but the ‘English’ version is well nigh impossible to cope with for someone not familiar with it. My mother and Kevin’s grew up in the same region of Scotland and we didn’t appreciate how weird it was for others when we used ‘greeting’ for crying, ‘haud yer wheesht’ for be quiet, ‘piece’ for a sandwich and the weather’s ‘dreich’ (awful). We’ve also both used the expression ‘Awa’ an bile yer heid’ to express disbelief – it literally means ‘Go and boil your head’ but it does lose something in the translation! Nice to meet someone else who can’t look at blood and I’m so happy with your lovely comment. So many thanks to you and Marcia for making my day such a lovely one! ❤ ❤ ❤

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  24. I love your ten facts, Trish. I’ve seen people challenged to spell “Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch” on YouTube and TV. I can’t say it or spell it, and I wouldn’t attempt to try either.

    I’d never heard of fact blindness until my daughter was in junior high. Her science teacher had it. I wasn’t sure I believed her at first. I thought maybe she just didn’t want to learn the kids’ names. But she learned them all quickly based on silhouette (which in and of itself is interesting). When my daughter (a favorite student of that teacher) changed her hairstyle (drastically), her teacher didn’t recognize her in the hall. I can’t imagine the challenges the condition presents.

    Thanks for sharing these details about your life. And Marcia, thanks for hosting.

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    • Many thanks, Staci. I think LlanfairPG was made by putting the names of the area together as a publicity gimmick and I think it’s likely that many of the residents can’t pronounce or spell it either! I’m also fascinated by your account of the teacher who used silhouettes to identify her class rather than go by their faces. I’ve acquired several new bits of information about prosopagnosia from this blog of Marcia’s alone! The response to this has been lovely and I’m truly grateful for the comments from everyone and to Marcia for making it all possible. ♥♥

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  25. This was fascinating. I learned so much about not only Trish, but Welsh, face blindness, and winning competitions with rhyming couplets, too. Trish has so much to share with the lucky grandchildren she mentions. I have Means to Deceive on my Kindle and in the queue. Congratulations on your writing success, Trish!

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  27. Pingback: Smorgasbord Blogger Weekly 25th June 2022 – #Poetrycontest Colleen Chesebro, #DriveThrues John Howell, #Runes Jan Sikes, #Reviews Diana Peach, #Funnies The Story Reading Ape, #TenThings Marcia Meara and Alex Craigie | Smorgasbord Blog Magazine

  28. It was great to learn that Trish was here, Marcia, and I headed right over. It was lovely to learn more about her including the fact that she and I are about the same height and both love gardening. And I get shorter every year too! I love that she wrote for magazine contests to supplement her income, and won aprons! LOL. Impressive regardless. Wonderful review of a book that I thoroughly enjoyed. Great post, Marcia and Trish. Have a lovely weekend. 🙂

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    • I am so glad you enjoyed Trish’s post, Diana. It was a great pleasure to have her visit us, and I thought her list was wonderfully interesting, too, especially the bits on the Welsh language. (A total puzzle to me, for sure!) Thanks so much for stopping by and taking the time to say hello! 😀 ❤

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      • Yeah, the Welsh language tidbits were fascinating. My daughter spent a year in Thailand, and I remember her telling me that the city of Bangkok’s real name is the longest in the world: Krung Thep Mahanakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahinthara Ayuthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom Udomratchaniwet Mahasathan Amon Piman Awatan Sathit Sakkathattiya Witsanukam Prasit. Lol. A super fun post and great getting to know Trish better. 🙂

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        • i have a good friend in Thailand who is trying to learn the language but she says the same word can mean so many things depending on stress, inflection and tone. She says her problem is that she can’t actually hear the difference and so can’t replicate it. I didn’t know that fact about Bangkok and I’m guessing it’s not a name you’ve committed to memory! Many thanks to you and to Marcia for what’s been a really friendly and entertaining time for me! ❤ ❤ ❤

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  29. Thank you, fellow Hobbit! It was a lot of fun writing these for Marcia and I’ve loved all the responses – a couple of years ago I was only vaguely aware of this community, now I really value the friendship, support and wisdom out there. ❤ ❤

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  31. Very cool interview! (top ten) Love the stuff about the language. The name of that town is unbelievable. I enjoyed reading more about Trish. Really fascinating.

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    • Trish is a great gal and does have some interesting stuff to share, doesn’t she? And the Welsh language always blows my mind. (I tell her they are definitely Vowel Deprived over there. 😁) Thanks for stopping by, Sue, and taking a moment to share your thoughts! Always good to see you! 😀 ❤

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      • (Ah, Marcia, we have a sneaky extra two vowels masquerading as consonants! Y is usually an uh sound and w is an oo.) I love this series and have had a wonderful time being part of it – so many thanks! ❤ ❤ ❤

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        • Hey, sometimes I refer to my CAT who follows me around all day as a DOG, too, but that ain’t never gonna make it so.😁 However, far be it from me to pick on you for that crazy Welsh language. At least not much. (Hahahahaha. I’m telling a whopper. I pick on you for it all the time, I know, but I can’t help myself. It’s SO confusing!!!) 😂😂😂 I’ll try to do better. Probably. 😁

          In the meantime, I’m truly glad you’ve enjoyed taking part in the #TenThings series. I knew your post would be a big hit, and it certainly has been! Such fun, even if I’ll never understand the Welsh language. I loved every item you included, and as you can tell from the comments, so did everyone else. Thanks so much for being part of this, and I can’t wait to have you visit us again! 🤗💖🤗

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    • Thanks so much for that lovely comment, Sue! Welsh is a beautiful, lyrical language but first you have to cross a minefield of horrors to access it!

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        • I think you’ll reach more people with that than with Welsh! Congratuations. I’ve learned Makaton which is a very, very basic sign language to help mainly hearing children with special needs. I looked at the syllabus for English Sign Language and that’s a whole different kettle of fish – as we say here!

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