If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below. |
|
|
Thread Tools | Display Modes |
#1
|
|||
|
|||
Gingers nuts
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/8245290.stm
By Clare Spencer Breda, Netherlands The idea of a ginger festival may sound like little more than a bit of fun, but when 3,000 redheads came together for a recent gathering it became a bonding experience. Bart Rouwenhorst steps on to his crane and slowly rises above his ginger empire. A sea of redheads all dressed in white look up from the park below and follow his instructions to wave at the 20 or so photographers and cameramen. The photo shoot is the culmination of celebrations for Redhead Day - an annual day - which has spilled across a weekend - to mark all things ginger, paid for by the local government in Breda, a city in the south east of the Netherlands. Festival founder Bart Rouwenhorst explains how Redhead Day was born But for its founder, Mr Rouwenhorst, who is notable for his blond rather than ginger locks, it is the pinnacle of his efforts so far to champion the ginger-hued among us. A mechanical engineer by day, Mr Rouwenhorst is also an amateur painter and it's this sideline which first awoke his interest in those of fair skin and flame hair. Finding himself drawn to the aesthetic qualities of redheads, he advertised for 15 ginger models to paint - only to be deluged with e- mail responses. The 15 turned into 150, whom he photographed. But when many of those who didn't get selected voiced their disappointment, Mr Rouwenhorst decided to make an annual event of the redhead gathering. Five years on, it has grown into a huge festival of ginger self- affirmation, overtaking the city centre for one weekend every September. "We have families with children, we have older people who were teased as children and then we have many proud women who come to the festival. They know they are fantastic and they just come to feel great." Driven out The promise of this amber spectacle also appeals to the more muted- mopped mainstream - with an estimated 7,000 non-redhead spectators attending. Strength in numbers - many redheads find the festival empowering But the initiative is firmly with the redheads. And there is much common ground. Men and women sporting a spectrum of ginger, from strawberry blonde to rich ochre, swap stories of being picked on in the playground, discrimination in the wider world - a family in Newcastle claimed they were driven from their home because of anti- ginger abuse in 2007 - and the whys and wherefores of raising a ginger brood. Walking round the city, redheads smile and laugh with one another. Since this is a celebration of gingerism, an army of hairdressers, makeup artists and cameramen have been drafted in to prepare for the fashion shoot, treating redheads like celebrities. The dermatologist's class - redheads tend to have very fair skin - is so popular it has to move to the main part of Breda's cathedral to accommodate all those who want to attend. Mr Rouwenhorst marvels at the innate connection between members of one of the most genetically distinctive yet disparate groups in the world. "When people come together as redheads, they just look at each other," he says. "They have a certain bond. And I think this whole event will some day expand to multiple events, maybe across the world. I think the ginger community will start." Strong people It's a far-sighted pronouncement. Do people with red hair really want to seek out the company of those with similar colouring? This exclusive community is already functioning and making money for Brigitte van Hengel. She runs a ginger modelling agency and is looking to add a ginger-only theatre company. Whether or not to raise a ginger brood - one topic of conversation Ms van Hengel, whose reddish locks are somewhat faded, seeks out redheads not just for their aesthetic qualities - but their character traits too. Most have had to put up with bullying, she says, which in turn has made them strong and proud characters. Behind the scenes at the fashion show civil servant Anneloes Rynders is preparing for the catwalk. While being sown into her dress by the designer Marian Kastelein, she tells a story of an uncomfortable childhood that is shared by many at the festival. "In my youth it wasn't nice to be different. It changed around the age of 16 or 17. I got more confidence, I went out and got attention - because I'm a redhead. I stopped being ashamed. It's actually nice to stand out in a crowd." Ms Rynders prefers being unusual and doesn't like the idea of an exclusively ginger community. However, she is disappointed that none of her children has ginger hair, so welcomes the idea that such a place may spawn more ginger offspring. Alan Petrie has travelled from Aberdeen to research the possibility of starting a ginger community in Scotland. Curiosity drove him to the event but he is going away with a sense of belonging. Should there be a redhead community? "I came here because I wanted to see if people with red hair would like to meet each other - we could take that back home and see if it worked on a more local level. I think redheads do enjoy being together and not being the odd one out." He is particularly concerned about discrimination against his ilk, which he thinks isn't taken seriously. "After an anti-ginger South Park episode, Kick a Ginger Day started in Canada and someone was seriously hurt. When it was revealed that one of the Big Brother contestants was dying his hair and underneath he was ginger he got shouted abuse I can't repeat, when he was evicted. If he was black the people shouting this would have been arrested." Ironically, claims of racial discrimination were also invoked when Mr Rouwenhorst investigated the possibility of getting his festival noted in the Guinness World Records. Redheads, he was told, were considered a minority by its editors, who will not record events based on racial characteristics. Certainly, there's little taste for any sort of genetic purity at the event. The majority of redheads appear happy to accommodate those of the brown, black and fair-haired persuasion. Even the organisers insist that cafes don't restrict their free drink offers to natural redheads - but include those who dyed their hair for the day. So has this year's festival helped foster a sense of ginger belonging? Thorger Enge Herrara, who grew up in Mexico, says redheads are so unusual in his homeland that when he sees one they exchange pleasantries and he buys them a drink. "It doesn't happen so often. It's not a community where I'm from because it's so rare." For this weekend, though, Mr Herrara is understanding what it's like to be one of a crowd rather than a curiosity. |
#2
|
|||
|
|||
No one is interested in michaelnewport's (aka virusman) nuts !
"Tofu" a écrit dans le message de ... http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/8245290.stm By Clare Spencer Breda, Netherlands The idea of a ginger festival may sound like little more than a bit of fun, but when 3,000 redheads came together for a recent gathering it became a bonding experience. Bart Rouwenhorst steps on to his crane and slowly rises above his ginger empire. A sea of redheads all dressed in white look up from the park below and follow his instructions to wave at the 20 or so photographers and cameramen. The photo shoot is the culmination of celebrations for Redhead Day - an annual day - which has spilled across a weekend - to mark all things ginger, paid for by the local government in Breda, a city in the south east of the Netherlands. Festival founder Bart Rouwenhorst explains how Redhead Day was born But for its founder, Mr Rouwenhorst, who is notable for his blond rather than ginger locks, it is the pinnacle of his efforts so far to champion the ginger-hued among us. A mechanical engineer by day, Mr Rouwenhorst is also an amateur painter and it's this sideline which first awoke his interest in those of fair skin and flame hair. Finding himself drawn to the aesthetic qualities of redheads, he advertised for 15 ginger models to paint - only to be deluged with e- mail responses. The 15 turned into 150, whom he photographed. But when many of those who didn't get selected voiced their disappointment, Mr Rouwenhorst decided to make an annual event of the redhead gathering. Five years on, it has grown into a huge festival of ginger self- affirmation, overtaking the city centre for one weekend every September. "We have families with children, we have older people who were teased as children and then we have many proud women who come to the festival. They know they are fantastic and they just come to feel great." Driven out The promise of this amber spectacle also appeals to the more muted- mopped mainstream - with an estimated 7,000 non-redhead spectators attending. Strength in numbers - many redheads find the festival empowering But the initiative is firmly with the redheads. And there is much common ground. Men and women sporting a spectrum of ginger, from strawberry blonde to rich ochre, swap stories of being picked on in the playground, discrimination in the wider world - a family in Newcastle claimed they were driven from their home because of anti- ginger abuse in 2007 - and the whys and wherefores of raising a ginger brood. Walking round the city, redheads smile and laugh with one another. Since this is a celebration of gingerism, an army of hairdressers, makeup artists and cameramen have been drafted in to prepare for the fashion shoot, treating redheads like celebrities. The dermatologist's class - redheads tend to have very fair skin - is so popular it has to move to the main part of Breda's cathedral to accommodate all those who want to attend. Mr Rouwenhorst marvels at the innate connection between members of one of the most genetically distinctive yet disparate groups in the world. "When people come together as redheads, they just look at each other," he says. "They have a certain bond. And I think this whole event will some day expand to multiple events, maybe across the world. I think the ginger community will start." Strong people It's a far-sighted pronouncement. Do people with red hair really want to seek out the company of those with similar colouring? This exclusive community is already functioning and making money for Brigitte van Hengel. She runs a ginger modelling agency and is looking to add a ginger-only theatre company. Whether or not to raise a ginger brood - one topic of conversation Ms van Hengel, whose reddish locks are somewhat faded, seeks out redheads not just for their aesthetic qualities - but their character traits too. Most have had to put up with bullying, she says, which in turn has made them strong and proud characters. Behind the scenes at the fashion show civil servant Anneloes Rynders is preparing for the catwalk. While being sown into her dress by the designer Marian Kastelein, she tells a story of an uncomfortable childhood that is shared by many at the festival. "In my youth it wasn't nice to be different. It changed around the age of 16 or 17. I got more confidence, I went out and got attention - because I'm a redhead. I stopped being ashamed. It's actually nice to stand out in a crowd." Ms Rynders prefers being unusual and doesn't like the idea of an exclusively ginger community. However, she is disappointed that none of her children has ginger hair, so welcomes the idea that such a place may spawn more ginger offspring. Alan Petrie has travelled from Aberdeen to research the possibility of starting a ginger community in Scotland. Curiosity drove him to the event but he is going away with a sense of belonging. Should there be a redhead community? "I came here because I wanted to see if people with red hair would like to meet each other - we could take that back home and see if it worked on a more local level. I think redheads do enjoy being together and not being the odd one out." He is particularly concerned about discrimination against his ilk, which he thinks isn't taken seriously. "After an anti-ginger South Park episode, Kick a Ginger Day started in Canada and someone was seriously hurt. When it was revealed that one of the Big Brother contestants was dying his hair and underneath he was ginger he got shouted abuse I can't repeat, when he was evicted. If he was black the people shouting this would have been arrested." Ironically, claims of racial discrimination were also invoked when Mr Rouwenhorst investigated the possibility of getting his festival noted in the Guinness World Records. Redheads, he was told, were considered a minority by its editors, who will not record events based on racial characteristics. Certainly, there's little taste for any sort of genetic purity at the event. The majority of redheads appear happy to accommodate those of the brown, black and fair-haired persuasion. Even the organisers insist that cafes don't restrict their free drink offers to natural redheads - but include those who dyed their hair for the day. So has this year's festival helped foster a sense of ginger belonging? Thorger Enge Herrara, who grew up in Mexico, says redheads are so unusual in his homeland that when he sees one they exchange pleasantries and he buys them a drink. "It doesn't happen so often. It's not a community where I'm from because it's so rare." For this weekend, though, Mr Herrara is understanding what it's like to be one of a crowd rather than a curiosity. |
Thread Tools | |
Display Modes | |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
Left Wing nuts get Bolton | PJ O'Donovan | Europe | 11 | December 8th, 2006 05:53 AM |
euro airfares R nuts | Douglas W. Hoyt | Europe | 15 | September 24th, 2005 09:46 PM |
My GOD you're all nuts! ( BA flies 747 on 3 engines LAX-UK - New EU comp rules) | Chanchao | Air travel | 1 | March 8th, 2005 02:38 AM |
This is Just Nuts | Air travel | 56 | January 22nd, 2005 08:25 AM |