What a wonderful weekend full of harvest celebrations, pasties (yes, at church :-)) and lots of communal hearty singing of old harvest favourites. Brings back memories of my dear Dad who loved singing 'We plough the seeds...' Miss him very much. Harvest is certainly a time to make sure we are winter ready in respect …
Partial Lunar Eclipse 0315 18th Sept 2024
Thanks to the Met Office for flagging up potential cloud cover around the time of the maximum, I was able to see the beginning of the partial eclipse ahead of the impending cloud cover. At 0230 it was like daytime outside, but by 0330 it was dark due to the clouds. Was it worth it? …
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Moonlight
If any of you came along to the NLO last night to hear me give a talk about Lunar Eclipses and were disappointed...you are not alone. I did give two talks but one group missed out due to the scheduling. I left feeling deflated and disappointed. But do not let this put you off attending …
w/e 8 September 2024
Sunday lunch had been booked for a family lunch but sadly, Mum came down with Covid. It is still rearing its ugly head now and again, despite precautions and despite vaccinations. However, Roy and myself met with my son and his partner at the Crown near Avalon Marshes. The food was amazing, the staff were …
Music and Mayhem
It's been a busy couple of weeks with a virus, a trip to Wales, and a busy week. During all this we enjoyed a concert by Ralph McTell at Sidmouth Folk Festival during which I was entranced by his amazing guitar skills. His songs and reminiscences of times past were thought-provoking. Last week we listened …
w/e 18 August 2024
Well, what adventures have been had this week. Not all of them good. I bought an advance ticket for train travel to and from Cardiff but had to reschedule as we were unwell. It turned out the ticket I had bought had limited validity and it was only the return that was flexible. A costly …
4 August 2024
Well, after many years, decades even, of trying to learn the piano, I am happy report real progress. During the last year I have been trying a different approach from a book found in a random meander in a bookshop and a lucky find in a second hand bookshop. An adult piano course complemented …
Astrofair at the Norman Lockyer Observatory, Sidmouth
29 June 2024 The sun shone, its flares blazing away, lots of sunspots to spot, and even the Moon showed up for the return of the annual Astrofair at the Norman Lockyer Observatory in Sidmouth. I was on duty with the Lockyer telescope for the final couple of hours and, even then, there were a …
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Back to Normal!
With much excitement, I was back at the Norman Lockyer Observatory yesterday evening to help show around a group of 20 young Beavers anc cubs and their helpers. It was a real joy to be talking about the Lockyer telescope and enthusing the group about the achievements of Sir Norman. To add to the excitement, …
January Blues
Last Monday was Blue Monday apparently...yet that was the day I felt ready to begin the new year. The mornings are becoming lighter and we are past the Christmas and New Year disruption. The news is dominated by the post office debacle and the beginnings of electioneering. I drafted out a diagram illustrating the problems with the post …
Karen Hedges 