Hello Hello Hivians.
Today is Sunday but it actually feels like a Saturday, because here in the UK we have a bank or public holiday tomorrow.
The May 1st workers day holiday has its roots in the labour movement of the late 19th century. It commemorates the struggle for workers' rights and in particular the fight for an eight-hour workday. A key event was the Haymarket Affair in Chicago, which began with a general strike on May 1st 1886 and tragically ended in violence days later. In 1899 a an international congress of socialist and labour parties designated May 1st as a day for demonstrations supporting workers' demands. But it seems to be more of a day off work than a day of demonstrating for demands from what I have seen on my travels around the world...
Do you demonstrate on International Workers Day?
Here in the UK we are aware of International Workers or Labour Day but don't really celebrate it, rather we celebrate Spring and pagan festivals. England has the May pole dancing and morris dancers and up here we have the Edinburgh Beltane Fire Festival which I have not been to for a few years, but usually happens on 30th April.
The Edinburgh Be;tane Festival is a pretty spectacular modern reinterpretation of the ancient Celtic Beltane festival. When we went there some fluffing awesome fire displays and loads of loud drums. People were either covered in body paint or in fancy costumes and the highlight was the procession telling the story of the May Queen and the Green Man bringing in summer.
Not a green man, but a green smoothie in the greenery courtesy of Mrs T!
In Scotland the first Monday in May has been a public holiday since 1871 but it wasn't until 1978 that the rest of UK played catch up and we have the early May bank holiday which celebrates Spring. It is a long weekend and the time for barbeques and general shenanigans!
Well I won't be having a BBQ but I am getting up to some shenanigans!
And today marks the first day since my vaccinations on Wednesday that I ventured out of the house and been feeling more like usual self!
We bought a pretty solid magic bullet blender from Nutri bullet and Mrs T has been green smoothie batches, three days supply at a time.
But yesterday used the last of the spinach, I was hoping I would be able to get out and get some, but no the body said gtf!
Today though was a different story and I went down to the grocery shop, and not only did I get said spinach but a bonus!
So that one kilo bag is sitting pretty in the freezer and should last to make a few smoothies.
For me the key is in the banana...Get creamy bananas and you can't go wrong.
We use spinach (sometimes kale or spring greens), bananas, some orange juice to help iron absorption from the spinach, water and then some berries if we have them.
A glass of that is my breakfast and I tell you it sets me up for the day.
I am a bag of nerves, but not as much as normal. It is Old Firm day and that means Rangers playing Celtic. We have beaten them the last two games and scored three goals each time. Beating Celtic isn't our problem it is everyone else that we struggled with!
Today the game is on, in fact it is on now and we have just deservedly took the lead...
So I hope the green men are not smiling today!
Well that was bummer, while I was hitting publish they disallowed the goal 馃ぃ
It's as you were ....
Back to nail biting time!
All images and ramblings are from me, the mad Scotsman TengoLoTodo unless otherwise stated.
@tengolotodo May 4th 2025