The week began with a conundrum. My shopping came to £11.33 and I handed the cashier (an unsmiling young lad) a £20 note. The change was handed to me…£12. Mmmm I asked for the receipt which he also scrutinised but evidently floored by it. I gently suggested that £9 was the change and looked at …
Heatwaves past and present
Memories of ’76 are all around this week and indeed for the coming weeks, with temperatures up in the 30s, just like that long ago summer. Although this heatwave is short, the heat of ’76 lasted for weeks, with water shortages, Saharan dust, great music – it was the year of ‘Under the Moon of …
w/e 21 June A lot of hot air!
Tilting back at last…and the grumpiness continues as today (21st) is hailed as the Longest Day. It is not. The longest days were the previous two days as well. Today is the day of the solstice, a fleeting moment in time when the sun pauses from the Earth tilting towards summer, before heading back …
Warming up…
The week ended on a note of excitement as I picked a presentable amount of strawberries after a garden tidy session. After a struggle for survival, quite a few of the plants have not only survived the blistering sunshine followed by Biblical deluges, but have woken up to produce fruit in the recent more …
A feast for the senses
my week ending 7 June Rapturous applause greeted the end of the dramatic production of Carmen by Exeter Opera Group. Iryna mesmerised the audience with her singing and performance of the title role. The Warmth and friendliness of the performers shone through, and they kindly stayed on to chat to the audience in the …
w/e 31 May 2026
A lot of hot air The heatwave continued relentlessly, punctuated by the inevitable downpour and clap of thunder. We just about made it from our car to a friend’s garden, all thoughts of a stroll and a picnic vapourised by the heat. British homes and bodies are not designed for sudden changes to high …
w/e 24 May 2026
Old Books, Music, and a Junk Exchange Event Inspirational Iryna Ilnytska again raised the roof of the Cathedral with a selection of arias for Ukraine. Her efforts were richly rewarded, as well as enjoyed by the appreciative audience. All monies raised are sent directly to known volunteers in Ukraine who spend the money on …
w/e 17 May
Helium and Candles Good news…a photo printed in ‘Yours’ magazine, which means a cheque is on the way. They kindly said they would be pleased to hear from me again…so I have sent off another photo with a little poem about Devon in Summer. The week ended with a bang or rather a burst …
w/e 10 May
This week got off to a cracking start with a well-received talk I gave about the Blue Streak, after which the artefacts and photos got people up and talking. It is a great privilege to show the wind tunnel model of the rocket. And meet someone whose father was out in Woomera at the …
w/e 3 May
May days of mist and murk. But the sun did shine briefly for the maypole dancing in Sidmouth on the Saturday. And then the rain came again. It was delightful to watch a dancing school perform intricate moves with the colourful ribbons while listening to lovely music. Memories of when I did this at …
Karen Hedges 