1. salisburyjournal.co.uk THE JOURNAL, July 3, 2014 78Newsdesk: Salisbury 01722 426511 • Advertising 426500
The local great and good were
there in force: Ceri from Spire FM,
Bill from the Journal, Mayor Jo
Broom, Wiltshire Council leader Jane
Scott – together with a host of award
sponsors and leaders of business.
And topping the bill (for me at least)
the gorgeous Sharon Corr playing
tracks from her forthcoming album.
Wonderful! But being a Salisbury
event meant that it wasn’t just an
evening for the local great and good.
The audience was made up of people
from every walk of life and from every
level of employment in the companies
represented.
“It was a real team effort,” said
one of the winners. “This award is for
everyone.” And the moment he said
it, we all knew it was true. Building a
successful business depends on
more than ambition, vision and a
good business plan. You also need a
successful team; to bring people
together with different experiences
and different skills so that the whole
is greater than the sum of the parts.
It’s true in business. And it’s true in
family life as well.
A few years ago I came across
some research that showed that
musicians made the best team
players – more so than those who
played team sports. When musicians
play together, the report explained, in
a choir, band or orchestra, they are
closely attuned to what everyone else
is doing around them.
Thursday evening’s winners could
clearly teach English football a thing
or two about team building. But
there’s something we can all learn
about becoming stronger through
diversity and commitment.
I DIDN’T think I cared much
about how mugs should be
arranged in the dishwasher
until I had to stop myself
from snatching one away
from a friend's hand just as
she was poised to place it on
the wrong side of an upper
rack.
The visit had been a long
one, however.
And while having friends to
stay conjures up images of
lingering over meals and long
amiable chats in the car on
days out, too much time in
close proximity brings out
the inner control freak.
Minor irritations become
major ones when you
discover your favourite
crossword puzzle has already
been done just as you're
about to settle down with a
pen and a glass of wine or a
guest has a marathon shower
when you're in a rush.
Specialists in common
sense have warned us for at
least 300 years.
The wry and plain-
speaking Benjamin Franklin
wrote in his Poor Richard's
Almanack: “Guests, like fish,
stink after three days.”
Brutal, yes, but perhaps
Franklin's un-nuanced take
should be more widely
accepted.
After all, the cumulative
experiences of generations of
people who come to regret
their invitations for
ambitiously long stays seem
to have had little impact.
Where's evolutionary
change when you need it?
We accept the principle of
diminishing returns in terms
of labour and productivity,
why not when it comes to
being with others too?
Wouldn't we all be happier
if we just agreed to abide by
the short-stay rule without
taking it personally?
Websites on the etiquette of
having houseguests make lots
of sensible suggestions to
avoid reaching the point of
uncontrollable rage over the
way someone has folded a tea
towel.
But if you hadn't been
organised or brave enough to
make it clear from the outset
how long you are prepared to
host and what the rules of
the house are, there are more
drastic alternatives to
ensuring a pleasantly short
visit.
You could, say, adopt a
sleep-deprivation strategy by
telling the teen in the house
that loud music way past
midnight is absolutely fine.
Or you could fake a call
from a distant family friend
in urgent need of your
company and go on your own
holiday.
The worst case scenario
option is to hark back to Ben
Franklin, of course.
A tin of tuna discreetly
placed under the guest bed
ought to do the trick.
FESTIVAL season is well
and truly upon us, and so
begins in me the eternal
conflict: “I wish I was going
to one.” versus “Oh, but the
reality...”.
Since I first went to
Glastonbury aged 17 with
my four best friends I've
romanticised and
demonised music festivals
in equal measure.
The incredible feel of this
weird, wild and wonderful
community in the middle of
the countryside. But also
feeling completely
overwhelmed by the sheer
scale.
The Levellers at dusk
with didgeridoo player
synching us in with all
people throughout the ages
- waking with squinting
eyes, dehydrated and with a
touch of sunstroke at first
light.
The fresh air and wide
open spaces - the exact
opposite of the inside of a
Portaloo.
Getting back to nature -
the fact we pitched under a
pylon and kept getting
electric shocks from the
tent pole. And so on…
It is mind-boggling how
many music festivals there
are now - from the tip of
Cornwall to the Scottish
Highlands.
Love Box, Shakedown,
Boom Bap, Redfest, Deer
Shed, Tartan Heart, Glass
Butter, Leopallooza and the
Vicar's Picnic.
And those are just the
ones I've mentioned
because I like the sound of
the words together.
Specialising in metal,
vintage or cider - ones
where you can bring your
scooter; another which
incorporates the start of
the Tour de France; 'the
north-east's largest 70s
outdoor music festival';
'south Somerset's first ever
tribute band festival'.
The specificity is
incredible.
Just up the road we have
our very own Larmer Tree
Festival in two weeks’ time,
which has really blossomed
over the years and is this
year headlined by Sir Tom
Jones.
I've never been before, but
am hoping I haven't left it
too late this year, as friends
tell me it's one of the nicest
festivals they have been to.
Additionally it has not
only won Best Family
Festival at the UK Festival
awards, but also Best
Toilets. I'm sold.
Victory for
cricketers
YOUNG cricketers from
Broad Chalke Primary
School were triumphant in
the Wiltshire Year 6 girls’
cricket competition last
week. Taking place at the
Trowbridge County Ground,
the six-hour competition
was the culmination of the
ECB National Kwik Cricket
competition in Wiltshire,
with 30 school sides coming
together to find the county
champions for the mixed
and the girls’ teams. The
Broad Chalke girls will now
progress to play in the
regional finals in Bristol in
July, representing the
county as Wiltshire
champions.
Incredible
choices for
festival fan
SJopinion
‘Too much time in close
proximity brings out the
inner control freak’
a key to success at work and at home
MARTIN
FIELD
Development
Officer,
Salisbury Cathedral
The Pyramid
Stage at
Glastonbury
Why guests can soon
outstay their welcome