Thursday 2 January 2014

The Order of the Laughing Horse

Many moons ago I declared this blog to be an award-free zone.  It was at a time when awards seemed to appear every week on every blog.   Some of the awards were well thought out and given with thought too.  My brother CJ (Scriptor Senex just in case there is anyone left out there who doesn't know our relationship) did just such an award.   So far as I can gather the main purpose of the award system was to get like-blog-minded bloggers to read each other's blogs with a view to getting more readers and followers.  There is nothing wrong with that.  At that time, however, my blog world was very small and I really wanted to keep it that way.
Many of the awards had conditions which basically were designed to get people to tell other bloggers something about themselves.  I found that interesting but, on the whole, I prefer to be the decider of what information I give out publicly.

YP at the blog Yorkshire Pudding has, apparently, been giving the Laughing Horse award for whatever reasons he happens to think up for some years.  I have no idea how many.  Although I've 'known' him though Katherine's Blog for several years I've only actually been following his blog for a few months.  Now I wonder what took me so long.  An interesting set of bloggers received awards at a ceremony at Chatsworth House (the Duke of Devonshire's stately pile in Derbyshire - not Devonshire which doesn't exist) yesterday.  As an itinerant blogger (in that I blog from Scotland and New Zealand) I was duly given the Laughing Horse Award for the best Itinerant Blogger.  The only other contender for that category so far as I am aware was Adrian but he was entered in so many categories I was, effectively, unopposed.

So thank you YP.  Despite the scurrilous tabloid description of the Award Ceremony.

17 comments:

  1. Just a pity you missed the party. I recall little of it but it sounded like a wonderful evening.

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    1. You mean to say, Adrian, that I wasn't there. So it was all just a figment of my nightmared imagination. Thank heaven for that.

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    2. No, no, no GB - you WERE there. Don't you recall playing blackjack with me into the early hours? I won your house in Eagleton and trust that you have already done the gentlemanly thing by instructing your solicitor to transfer the title deeds.

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  2. Popped over and said hello to your bro' ~ always nice to meet another person who likes postcards.

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    1. Glad that you enjoyed the visit Carol.

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  3. So there really WAS a party! I must go and check that out.
    Chatsworth is one of the places on my ever growing "to be visited" list. My other sister-in-law (not the one living in Yorkshire) lives not too far away from there, and has been describing the place to me in most enthusiastic tones.

    Anyway, you fully deserve the award, Graham. Congratulations!

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    1. Chatsworth is a wonderful place Meike. I first went when I was very young and most recently about 2006. The gardens are fabulous and they are not too' precious' about things either. There is a wonderful water feature which runs down the hill in very large steps and you are even allowed to play in it. To demonstrate how young I was when I reached 60 I took my shoes and socks off and walked up it. Felt really good!

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    2. I will be happy to give Librarian a private tour of Chatsworth - perhaps including a short detour amongst the rhododendrons. Botany is one of my lifelong passions.

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    3. Sounds like a plan! In all likelihood, I shall be in Yorkshire in June (don't want to be there for "Le Grand Madness") and will probably arrange a visit with my Derbyshire-based sister-in-law.

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  4. Congratulations on your award. the Order of the Laughing horse has a very humorous aspect to it. I just started following YP and he writes excellent posts. I agree with you that there were awards that were more like chain blogs that would promote your blog where ever. There were too many hoops for me to jump through to get those awards. I think bloggers found out that they didn't really work.
    So, for you this was a good way to start the New year!

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    1. Thanks Red. They certainly don't work when they are very plentiful but this 'award' was just a bit of good fun.

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  5. There does seem to be fewer awards circulating lately - although I may of course just not have been nominated for any because of having shown disrepect to attached rules in the past... Thanks for sharing the news. So that's what you were really doing whilst letting us all think you were having a quiet New Year in New Zealand! ;)

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    1. I haven't been conscious of an award for ages Monica. Perhaps I just don't 'see' them any more though.

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  6. Your humility is admirable sir but in reality the judges have examined dozens of itinerant blogs from across the world. It just so happens that cream rises to the top and that is the reason you were honoured. By the way, out of idle curiosity, I have just driven past your two homes courtesy of Google Street View. You are a very lucky man.

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    1. Well I've never been accused of humility before YP. You are a worse judge of character than I'd imagined. On the other hand humble my homes may be but so far as location goes I am, indeed, exceptionally fortunate.

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  7. Well Congrats are in order on receiving such a prestigious award....next time please check the mirror before leaving home.

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    1. Thanks Virginia. I'll obviously have to re-instate the warning. Perhaps on the front do so that when I'm leaving home.....

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