With all the cold weather lately, it’s hardly surprising that I’ve started to hear rustlings in the loft again. It’s been so cold and generally unpleasant outside that the mice have, understandably, been driven inside in search of shelter. Understandable, but not at all welcome! This time the noises haven’t been coming from the usual […]
Way back last November I had a problem with the fan in my en-suite shower room. It had an intermittent short, and was turning itself on and off at random. My regular electrician was able to come out at short notice, diagnose the fault and disconnect the unit from the mains. Water had got into […]
I was back at Eastnor Pottery today for another session throwing pots on the wheel. Today I decided to have a go at making myself a gravy boat, which turned out to be trickier than I had anticipated. The classic shape for a gravy boat is of course oval, but the whole point of throwing […]
Well, as expected it did snow last night. Not in Malvern itself, particularly. That was largely clear. However, there was a very clear snow line half way up the Hills, and I was well above it. My drive wasn’t too bad. The worst bit was the steep slope directly off the road. That had about […]
It’s snowing for the first time this winter. Not particularly hard, yet, but the forecast is for an accumulation of 5cm or more overnight. Considering it logically, that’s not a particularly big deal. The main road will be gritted overnight and ploughed if necessary, and I’ve put salt down on the steep slope onto the […]
I’ve had comments that it’s difficult to tell from my last few posts whether I had a good holiday, or a really crap one. Well, I think the overall balance is “Good on the whole”. I enjoyed myself and certainly shan’t be writing a long letter of “constructive criticism” to the holiday company – though […]
I’ve just got back from a week spent on a tour of the lesser-known sites of North Cyprus. I wanted to go away for Christmas, as I’ve done for the past few years, and this tour seemed to fit the bill. About ten years ago, Christopher and I spent a Christmas in North Cyprus, hired […]
The course on Hadrian’s Wall finished a while ago, and I’ve missed reading and learning about Roman Britain. But then I received my copy of the Balliol Record, my college magazine. It’s the usual mix of college, university and alumni news, and it usually is of only passing interest. But this issue had a book […]
The local planning fuss I mentioned recently about broiler sheds is rumbling on. I’ve been keeping half an eye on Herefordshire Council’s Planning website, and there have been over 600 comments from members of the public, approximately 95% of which are objecting to the development. Interestingly, one of the local big landowners wrote a letter […]
I’ve got an open fire in my living room which is hardly ever used. It’s a useful back-up if and when the boiler breaks down or there’s an extended power cut, as it means that at least I can heat one room. And Christopher used to quite like occasionally having a roaring blaze on a […]
