Well, the first week of February has been washed away...hopefully, life will become drier now that all the reservoirs are full to the brim, and overflowing. The potholes are like crater lakes these days. It is now two years' since getting about on crutches following a second foot operation to remove arthritis. And still struggling …
A great end to January and a brilliant start to February…
On the last evening of the very wet month, we enjoyed a ray of sunshine in the form of a celebratory concert of Mozart's music from Exeter Opera Group in Topsham. The singers, some of whom were not used to singing solos, performed bravely and magnificently. We were carried away on a sea of sound …
Continue reading "A great end to January and a brilliant start to February…"
w/e 25 January
Uncharted waters. I have realised I should be receiving my state pension next year, and turning 65 has focused my mind on my age for some reason. My sixties are not what I had in mind many years' ago, but that was before the changes to state pension age for women, and before the pandemic …
w/e 18 January
Yesterday (Saturday) was a lovely sunny Saturday afternoon...and around 25 people came to Seaton Library to listen to me talk about the stars, the sun, the moon, and the Norman Lockyer Observatory. Great audience, with some wide-ranging questions, and some familiar faces! Thank you to all who came. Stargazing for All is available from Winstone's …
w/e 11 January 2026
Well, it's been a cracking start to the new year with an outing to Royston Lake and a trip to Topsham Rugby Club to enjoy ladies rugby...for my husband Royston's birthday weekend treats. In all the years I have lived in Honiton, I had not been to the area around Otterhead Lakes let alone seen …
2026
And a woman still has to prove her identity every single time. Surely, by now there must be an easier way for organisations to check identity. The Inland Revenue know who and where we are, surely this information could be made available to others seeking verification? I cannot face going through all my papers yet …
Last of the late sunrises.
The sun has had a good rest, now it will be back to getting up earlier and earlier. Today is the last day of the late sunrises...so tomorrow will be brighter for those back at work, by a minute, but a minute is a minute! Glad to have time to enjoy the changing seasons, although …
Happy New Year
What an odd occurrence, to have a new year in the midst of a run of the latest sunrises. Doesn't make sense. The old Yuletide of 6 January makes more sense as the first day of the new year when the sun rises a bit earlier, minute by minute, from then on. Interestingly, the new …
Stargazing for the New Year
Hello and welcome to another year of stargazing. Among the articles about the Star of Bethlehem I said there would surely be, there was one by a Mark Matney suggesting the object may have been a comet. This is not a new idea, indeed there were several plausible ideas put forward in a book …
Christmas bonus
Just watching the lunchtime news...apparently one Christmas meal costs nearly £40. Eh?! I've just spent £40 on a massive amount of vegetables, and a large turkey in Lidl. Oh, and I make a Christmas pudding in October which means I can buy the ingredients a bit at a time. It's not only cheaper, but tastier …

