Latest news from Wendy Arrowsmith including hiking up Ben Nevis in October!!!

Summer is drawing to a close, the schools are back and I should really be prepping a lesson plan but the prospect of Emailing you all was definitely more favourable!   People may have grumbled about the weather but personally it's been quite a good summer with lots of music taking place and the personal satisfaction of harvesting vegetables from the new veg plots we dug into the garden in the spring. A Sunday roast with all the veg being home-grown is indeed a joy!Other summer highlights have to have been Hull Shanty Festival, Hardraw Gathering and, of course, Broadstairs Folk Week.   "Life, Love and Chocolate" is selling really well which is very encouraging. Digital downloads are proving popular too which just goes to show that the folk audience is keeping up with the current trends in media. Thank you to everyone who's sent me comments or stopped me at festivals or clubs to pass on their thoughts on the CD.   Swanage Folk Festival 2011 - this weekend, 9-11 September, in sunny Dorset! I'm opening the Saturday night concert with an amazing line-up following on of PJ Wright & Brooks Williams, The Tom McConville Band and finally Martin Simpson (Golly!) If that wasn't good enough the Sunday afternoon concert has Craig, Morgan, Robson and Ric Sanders, Vo Fletcher and Catherine Howe too. To say I'm looking forward to it is a bit of an understatement.http://www.swanagefolkfestival.co.uk   Guisborough Folk Club - Sunday 18 September, 8pm at The Rugby Club. http://www.guisboroughfolkclub.ukforum.com   Cottingham Live - Wednesday 21 September, 8pm at The Back Room. http://www.andy-hammond.co.uk   Nantwich Food Festival - 23-25 September, doing some "busking" at this festival on Saturday 24th, and having taken a look at the website, my mouth is watering at what is on offer. I knew there was a good reason for calling a CD "Life, Love and Chocolate"!!! http://www.nantwichfoodfestival.co.uk   Wee Folk Club (Edinburgh) - Sunday 2 October, a gig as a trio with John and Caroline Bushby. Come along early as it really is "wee" in there and you might not get a seat!http://www.royal-oak-folk.com/page5.html   Stirling Folk Club - Monday 3 October, another trio gig with John and Caroline. http://www.stirlingfolkclub.co.uk   Ben Nevis Challenge - I've got an unusual little gig on the evening of Saturday 15 October in Fort William (Scotland), that is assuming I can still walk! I'll be doing a few songs for a daft crowd (I include myself in that description) who will have taken a little stroll up Ben Nevis (for my foreign friends, that is the highest mountain in the UK) that day to raise money for Kidney Research UK. I'm not lugging my guitar to the top but will hopefully have enough strength left to strum a chord or two in the evening as we all celebrate our success together. My fundraising target is £500 and I'm not there yet so if you can sponsor me then please help out by going to my sponsorship page and making a donation. Kidney disease can be so debilitating and restricts so many people from leading normal lives - please help out. (For those who've already donated - a massive thank you from me xxx) http://www.kidneyresearchukevents.org/WendyArrowsmithBenNevis2011   Spring Tour in March 2012 of the South and South East - I'll be on the road for nearly 2 weeks (7 - 19 March) and have only got a couple of nights left to fill. If you want me to play near where you are then ask you local club organiser and/or drop me a note of your nearby club and I'll see if I can squeeze it into the schedule.   Wishing you a mellow and fruitful Autumn, Wendy xxx   www.wendyarrowsmith.com www.myspace.com/wendyarrowsmith www.youtube.com/WendyARR1