Welcome to a frosty part of the world (at least it is at the moment as I type, but I suspect it will be unseasonably warm again soon enough). It feels like it’s been busy this week and time has been passing quickly.
I’ve been doing a few jobs around the house and garden this week, trying to tidy things up for winter. Still plenty to do but it’s getting there.
Work – I’ve had meetings in Southampton this weeks as well as some telephone conferences all related to potential work. Nothing that I can comment on further yet, so once again a waiting game.
Allotment – I’ve harvested the broccoli with the hope that it will grow some side shoots in the springtime, if I had let it grow it would have spoilt, so although we won’t necessarily have broccoli in the spring we had some nice broccoli and Stilton soup this week.
I’ve also been progressing with the digging of the site, getting it ready for next season, and keeping me warm when I’m down there!
Currently Reading – I’ve not been reading much this week, bits and pieces now and then, but not consistently.
I’ve mostly been trying to avoid the Black Friday nonsense, every other advert seems to be related to it, and clearly the best way to save money on Black Friday is not to buy anything. I think we have enough “stuff”, probably more than we need and I certainly don’t need to buy any more! [LINK]
When the solution to building a road is not to build it in the first place – [LINK] I’ve been on this road many a time, and it is a bit of a nightmare, but to be honest given the alternatives I’d rather that no new bypass was built. We seem determined to trash the environment and I really don’t see why we can’t just stop.
Greetings! As I mentioned last week it was the anniversary of my Dad’s death this week. We went to where his ashes are scattered and spent some quiet time there, and that’s where my thoughts have been for a lot of the week.
Otherwise it’s been a little bit of an odd week. Our cooker died quite spectacularly on Tuesday (including sparks) it was the oven that was the problem, so we still had the hob that we could use. We have a domestic appliance store in town that is a non-chain business, and I went in there the following day and they had a suitable replacement in stock which they delivered, fitted and removed the broken one on Thursday afternoon. The new one is British made, and we’re really pleased with it. I doubt that a chainstore would have been able to do that as quickly or as cheaply (they charged significantly less for the delivery, installation and removal of the old one than the chainstores quote on their websites).
Work – I’ve been preparing some documents ahead of a meeting next week, and had a related pre-meeting with a colleague. Also had a tender invitation that I was expecting months ago. Not quite decided what I’m going to do with it yet – it’s a significant amount of work, over quite a tight timetable, and the tender returns are due in just over two weeks. Given how quite it’s been for paid work just recently though it would be difficult to turn down.
Allotment – The last couple of weekends have been wet so I haven’t been able to do much on the plot. This weekend was similar, but I did manage to squeeze some digging in between showers. I also noticed that my broccoli is already putting up heads. It shouldn’t really be doing that as it is supposed to over-winter and do it in the early spring. I guess this is because of the exceptionally mild weather we’ve had so far this autumn. I think I’m going to have to pick it soon or it will spoil.
Currently Reading – I’ve been reading “Vacationland” by John Hodgman [GoodReads] this week. After seeing some publicity on social media about it, I downloaded a sample to my kindle, and then followed it up with the full version. Kind of a cross between A J Jacobs and Bill Bryson.
I also received my copy of “My House of Sky: A Life of J A Baker” by Hetty Saunders [GoodReads], which I backed through a crowdfunder earlier this year. It’s an incredibly beautiful book and I’m so glad I backed it.
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For those who don’t know who J A Baker is, he’s the author of one of the classic nature books – The Peregrine [LINK], and a couple of other books, but The Peregrine is the one that he’s best known for.
Moby Dick Big Read – There’s a podcast [LINK] where you can listen to different narrators read Moby Dick an episode at a time. There’s also a public event each year where you can go and listen in person [LINK] .
Greetings from the house with fresh paint on (some of) the walls – yes that’s right this week I’ve been doing a little decorating. It’s really to freshen up a couple of spots, but we’ve got some plans to do more after Christmas, once we’ve decided on the colour. I’ve been painting, walking the dogs and doing mostly domestic stuff this week.
We seem to have shifted our colds and bugs too which is good, I hate being sick, who doesn’t!
The week ahead is the anniversary of my Dad’s death. I remember quite clearly the events of a year ago, and those last few days of his life. Not quite sure what we’ll be doing to commemorate it, but I’m sure we will be doing something.
Work – With all the painting I’ve not been doing much on the work front this week. I did have a meeting on Friday morning, which was planning for another meeting in a couple of weeks time,and the remainder of the time I’ve mostly been working from my phone in between coats of paint.
Allotment – Not much action on the plot this week due to the wet weather. I’m not too bothered because things are quite up together, although if the weather continues this way, I’ll have to start tarping areas of the plot so that I can dig them in between the wet spells otherwise the ground won’t dry out sufficiently to let me dig.
Currently Reading – I’ve been dipping into Hunting Hitlers Nukes by Damien Lewis this last week [GoodReads] it reminds me that a lot of what happened in WWII runs the risk of being forgotten, and perhaps that this isn’t a good thing.
Politics – Quite a bit happening in UK politics at the moment. It used to be that politicians were – in the main – upstanding members of the community who were there to represent and do the best for the people who elected them. Over the last couple of weeks a lot of things have been coming to light that demonstrate that this is most definitely no longer the case.
If things continue this way it’s possible that there will be another general election soon, technically it’s possible for it to be before the end of 2017, although that doesn’t seem likely.
Quote of the day: "Vote. Because the mayor from Jaws was still the mayor in Jaws 2."
An extraordinary battle between sperm whales and orcas – in pictures [LINK]
The Detectorists – Pretty sure I’ve mentioned this series before, but if not you should check it out. Series 3 started this week.
Peter Rabbit – The Movie – I’m not sure about this, but so long as this trailer isn’t just all the best bits, this could be quite a fun movie.
As The Silly Season ahead of the Christmas period kicks off at full speed, the major retailers are launching their Christmas adverts. They’re quite a good crop this year, I particularly like the M&S one with Paddington Bear.
30 Day Time Lapse At Sea
I find this kind of hypnotic, and I particularly enjoyed the night sequences.
“The evidence points in one direction – we must ban neonicotinoids” – Michael Gove
I was a little surprised when I read this article [LINK] in the week, as Gove’s predecessors as SoS for DEFRA have been almost exactly the opposite in terms of their views. So I give this a warm but cautious welcome, given that I’m sure the pesticide companies will sure to be lobbying strongly to stop any ban. In related news though [LINK] it seems that the problem is probably a lot worse than was thought. I can’t say that this surprises me at all when you think about the linkages and also the food chains / webs involved.
I’ve never had much time for Michael Gove before, but I wonder whether he might have found his calling at DEFRA?
From Pesticides to Fertilisers – Again this [LINK] is something that we should have been able to foresee and prevent. As a species, we are particularly dumb.
Greetings From The Plague House – where we all seem to have come down with something, even the dogs are coughing and sneezing.I blame the event I was at last Monday, where I spent most of the evening in the lee of a draughty doorway.
Not only is this weeks post a little later in the day as a result it will also be a bit shorter than usual.
As well as the clocks going backlast weekend, and we’re now on Greenwich Mean Time again, but we’re also celebrating the failure of someone to blow something up with gunpowder, by blowing up things with gunpowder and other explosives. The beginning of November marks the fireworks silly season which will now last until well after Chinese New Year.
(The mornings are lighter again (for a while), here’s a quick read relating to that hours change).
Work –I was at a showcase / networking event on Monday. I think it went well (apart from it seems catching a chill), I had some good conversations with a number of different people. It hasn’t generated anything further as yet but sometimes these things take a little time to generate further leads. Following on from that I’ve been doing my end of month accounts etc.
Allotment – It was a bit wet to get much done this week. I did notice however that the broad beans are going from strength to strength. I also got asked to help unload a lorry of manure (s***** job!), but all for the good as it will help plants to grow.
Currently Reading – I haven’t settled on a book at all this week, I’ve read a little from several different ones, but nothing has really taken my attention. Partly because I haven’t felt like it. So I’ve been catching up on some podcasts instead.
Life In General – I spent the start of my week clearing gutters around the house and pruning trees. I had a bit of different perspective from up on part of our roof (above), it’s amazing how much more you can see from just a couple of extra metres up. It was good to get some of these chores done, as I’ve felt a bit on the back foot with some of them recently.
I also had to take Wilson to the vet mid-week. He mysteriously started limping on Monday, and despite doing all of the usual things it wasn’t getting any better. The vet didn’t think there was anything seriously wrong, and more of the same should sort things out. It does seem to have been improving as the week has progressed.
Work –I have another showcase event on Monday so this week has been about preparing for that and also thinking a little retrospectively about this year in terms of what I might need to do differently, for next year. I’m going to be starting my planning for 2018 fairly soon.
Allotment – My broad beans (sown two weeks ago) are just starting to germinate, the first ones are coming through the soil surface. Still lots of other things to do though, Winter is the time for digging the soil, and I spent a good part of Saturday doing that. I find it quite therapeutic to dig and think, and I also get a reasonable amount of exercise in the process. There is a saying that you get a double benefit from growing your own food, once when you dig the ground and the second when you harvest and eat your own produce.
Currently Reading – I’ve been reading The Blue Demon by David Hewson [GoodReads] this week. I really enjoy David’s books and had the pleasure of meeting him a few years ago. I love the way he is able to blend cultural and social history into his books, and this one is no exception.
Not sure what’s going to be up next, have plenty to choose from at the moment.
Mapping the U.K.’s Many, Many Names for Streams – There are always many names for the same thing, partly due to local dialects this interesting piece looks specifically at the different names for watercourses. Interesting though that one of the local names here – lavant – isn’t included.
EU on brink of historic decision on pervasive glyphosate weedkiller – I know that this won’t please a lot of people, but I can’t help thinking that it is probably a good idea on balance.
What we can learn from the man who swam five miles with a tiger shark – [LINK] I’ve had many close encounters with wildlife, but never in the sea – probably because I don’t swim in the sea all that often.
A Couple of TV Shows that I want to mention. “H is for Hawk: A New Chapter” is still available on BBC iPlayer (if you can access it) [LINK]. I’ve posted a video preview of this previously, and I really enjoyed it. You’ll probably get more from it if you’ve read the book H is for Hawk, by Helen McDonald, who also presents the programme, but it’s not essential.
The second one that I want to mention is WWII’s Great Escapes: The Freedom Trails [LINK]. This has been on for a number of weeks and was a good watch. Incredible to see what some soldiers and airman managed during WWII to escape from captivity or avoid capture. Particularly when you consider the equipment that they didn’t have and the terrain that they had to negotiate.
(It might be that the links in this section don’t work if you’re outside of the UK, but both programmes are worth watching out for if you get a chance).
London National Park Map – I mentioned this a couple of weeks ago, and my free copy (I had to pay the postage) arrived last week. It is pretty amazing in terms of how much “green” space there actually is in London. If you’d like your own copy you can get it here (once they’ve reprinted because they’ve currently sold out). Here’s a sneak peak:
Podcasts – I’ve added a couple of podcasts to my app this week. The first is The Kevin Rose Show [LINK] which covers a variety of things including technology, lifehacks and other things. The second is On Margins [LINK] which covers publication and writing type topics.
Tomorrow is another day – Today is Sunday, but who knows what Monday might bring. I hear there are some likely movements in the Trump / Russia investigations:
Life In General – Well this week started out a little weird. Ex-Hurricane Ophelia was forecast, although we missed the worst of the winds and rain, she did bring a lot of Saharan sand with her, leaving some truly odd skies during the day. Sadly Ophelia claimed three lives, and did quite a bit of damage [LINK] elsewhere. We also had storm Brian at the end of the week, which for us was a bit of a blustery day and like the start of the week we missed the worst of the storm.
Had my flu jab during the week, hopefully that will offer me some protection from getting sick over the winter months. The media are getting a bit of a fever (sorry) about this flu season predicting it will be bad, after a bad season in Australia.
The clocks don’t go back until next weekend, and so the mornings have been that much darker, so I’ve been using the dog’s illuminated collars for the first time this autumn/winter, when the clocks change it’ll be a bit lighter again in the mornings for a while, but darker much earlier.
Work –A little progress this week, getting ready for another Chamber of Commerce event at the end of the month.
Allotment – The weather hasn’t been conducive to getting much done on the plot this week, but the overwintering onions are now starting the germinate and stick shoots up above the ground. The weeds don’t seem to be abating though – plenty to do.
Currently Reading – Most of the week I’ve been reading – Floating: a Life Regained
by Joe Minihane [GoodReads] – it’s essentially a revisit of Waterlog by the late Roger Deakin [GoodReads], and it’s a pretty good read. It takes a different perspective, given the different backgrounds of the two authors, but I enjoyed it, although wild swimming in winter is unlikely to become a thing for me.
Warning of ‘ecological Armageddon’ after dramatic plunge in insect numbers [LINK] There’s plenty of coverage of this out there if you want to read more [LINK], but in reality I don’t think that this comes as much of a surprise to many people.
Life In General – Had some DIY jobs to do at my Mum’s house this week. Her curtain pole had become detached, so after the application of some glue and new screws I managed to get that fixed back up again. There were a couple of other things to do while I was there too.
I had to replace a headlight bulb on the car this week, after recovering from the shock of how much a new bulb is (£35), it took me the best part of an hour to make the change. It’s interesting that the autopart store offered to install it for me (for a £5) charge, but I thought it would be easy enough to do myself! Of course what I won’t ever know is how long it would have taken the autopart technician to complete. I took the opportunity to check the anti-freeze / coolant levels as well, so in theory we’re all set for the winter.
I gave the central heating a quick test run too, bled the radiators etc. and all seems well. I need to get the boiler serviced, so I’ll try and book that in sometime soon.
I’ve also been using the Headspace app this week to get back into meditation again, it’s been pretty good, but I don’t think I’ll be progressing from a free account, as I can’t really afford it, and I think it’s a little overpriced. That said, what I’ve had for free is pretty good, so I’d recommend a free trial. It’s certainly been helping me to de-stress a bit from some of the family related things that have been going on over the last year.
Work –Ongoing development work this week and an update meeting. Things are moving forward slowly.
Allotment.
I’ve got my broad beans sown this week, so they should be ready around May time next year all being well. The garlic that I sowed last week is already shooting which is great, no sign of similar activity on the onions yet though. Otherwise it’s pretty much tidying and digging.
The mower has refused to start, and probably needs a new spark plug, so I’ll give that a try, but I’m not going to spend too much money on it, as it’s pretty much on it’s last legs anyway.
Currently Reading – You’ve heard of Amundsen and Scott, and probably Shackleton, but like me you might not have heard of Douglas Mawson. I read Mawson’s Will by Lennard Bickel [GoodReads] this week, and was surprised at how I’d missed this adventure tale until now. It wasn’t an easy read, both in terms of it’s content and also the way it was written, but it was very definitely worth sticking with.
H is for Hawk – I’m really looking forward to watching this. Having read the book, it will be interesting to see how they are going to translate that to television for an hour.
London Green Spaces Map – I hope my copy of this map is on the way, I managed to snag a free one (had to pay the postage), but it looks really interesting, and I love maps (as you probably already know). If you fancy grabbing one yourself, they’re taking pre-orders for the next printing. I’ll update when mine arrives.
Gunpowder – This looks interesting, will probably make an effort to watch.
Star Wars: The Last Jedi – You’ve probably already seen this, but just in case you missed it…
Life In General – I had to spend an afternoon fixing the garage door again this week. I think I might have said that I wasn’t certain that I had put enough tension in the spring at the last repair, well I was right. It didn’t take me all that long to put right, and I was a lot quicker second time around!
We had a nice afternoon walk alongside a local river. I’m not sure what it’s actually called, and it doesn’t appear to be named on any of my maps. It was a nice sunny autumn afternoon, and made a nice break in the middle of the week.
I also had a couple of appointments with my Mum at the end of the week, and on Friday the sale of my Grandma’s old house completed, so another chapter closes.
Work –Still doing development work, and moving forward with planning for the remainder of this year and into next.
Allotment. – I’ve been planting my over wintering onion sets and garlic, and starting to tidy the plot up for the winter. There are still quite a few autumn jobs to do, and I’ll be progressing with those over the coming weeks. I’ve had some slug damage on my over-wintering broccoli which is annoying, but hopefully the damage won’t cause too much lasting damage.
Currently Reading – I’ve been reading Magpie Murders by Anthony Horowitz [LINK] this week. It’s really a book of homage to many things from other authors, tv series, characters and locations in other books, pen manufacturers and a whole variety of other things. It’s a good story but all the hat tipping became a little tiresome towards the end, and particularly when the author wrapped that into the story as well.
I also received a copy of The Almanac – A Seasonal Guide to 2018 by Lia Leendertz [LINK] This is one of those books that traditionally you would have bought each year, but is a tradition that has pretty much died out. I’m hoping that perhaps this will be revitalised with this publication. Each month has details of natural events that are happening that month, seasonal recipes, what you should be planting / harvesting in the garden and a whole host of other useful natural information. I’m going to use it as a kind of daily reader through next year, and I expect it will teach me a few things in the process.
Life In General – I get a bit of a sense of deja vu for what I’ve been up to this week, being very much like last week. A few family things with my Mum, including getting her back to driving again following her knee replacement – a milestone achieved. Otherwise I’ve been at home working (see below), and nothing really exciting to report.
I did get to try the gherkins that I pickled a month ago. There are mixed views on how long you should leave them before trying, but I went for a straight month.
They were pretty good if I do say so myself, and had retained the crunchy texture and not gone soft! I only made two jars, so they’ll be relatively short lived but I am encouraged to perhaps try them again next year.
Following up on last weeks post about maps, I picked up the latest version of my local sheet this week. My how things have changed. It now comes with a digital download, so that you can have the map on your smartphone (or other device). I’ve yet to try this, but it seems like it might be handy. At first glance there are some minor differences but nothing as significant as the changes I post last week comparing the my two older versions.
I also succumbed and bought my first Christmas presents this week. All are items that, in my experience, sell quickly and therefore although I’m a little ahead of time I know that at least I’ll be able to give them as presents. I’m not planning on doing anymore Christmas shopping for a while longer.
Work –Development work all week long, which isn’t particularly exciting to talk about, as it’s mostly involved spreadsheets.
Allotment. – The weather hasn’t really been on my side this week, I’d hoped to get garlic and onion sets in the ground, but due to rain the ground is just a bit too wet to work without compacting it, so I’ve delayed that. No big deal, still plenty of time to get them in.
Currently Reading – I finished rereading J R R Tolkein’s “The Two Towers” [GoodReads], it’s still as good as I remember it to be. Haven’t started anything else yet, not quite sure what I want to read next.
I’ve spent some time making chutney and jam this week. As you’ll know we’ve had a bumper crop of apples, and also have a few large pumpkins, so I’ve been focusing on what I can do with one or both of those. So I’ve made pumpkin and apple chutney and pumpkin and ginger jam. We’ve also had some roast pumpkin to go with various meals – still plenty of pumpkin left!
I’ve also been looking at an old (c.1974) map of my area, and comparing it to a more recent – but still 12 years old (c.2005) – map of my local area. It reminds me that next time I’m near a bookstore to try and see if there’s something more up-to-date. There’s been a lot of change, mostly development, in the area in between the two editions. I’ve been trying to explore more of my local area on foot, partly to find different routes that I can walk the dogs, but also because I’m aware that so much is changing it all the time, some areas have changed a lot since I was last there.
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Work –A couple of meetings and a few things going on this week. I seem to be back in the development zone of work for the time being, with all of the outstanding proposals etc. now known quantities. I suspect that’s how it will be for the next week or so too.
Allotment. – I’ve been mostly digging this week. Getting beds ready for my garlic and onions, and I think that I’m just about ready to start planting. Still more digging on the rest of the plot, but I have prepared enough space for my aliums, and also my overwintering broad beans, which I’ll put in a little later on next month.
Otherwise the turning of the seasons and the colder nights have caused a few things to start dying back, my cucumbers plants are turning brown due to those colder nights.
Currently Reading – I finished reading “Moods of Future Joys” by Alastair Humpreys [GoodReads], the first part of his epic cycling adventure around the world. It was interesting to read how his journey changed from his original plan following the September 2001 attacks and how his plans of going through Iraq and Afghanistan changed, instead going through Syria and through Africa. I’m not sure now with the current geopolitical climate that even his revised route would be viable now. I haven’t started the second book yet.
Instead I started a reread of J R R Tolkein’s “The Two Towers” [GoodReads]. I read The Fellowship of the Ring last year, meaning to reread the entire trilogy, but with other events taking over I never got a chance. I might go onto the Return of the King after I finish The Two Towers or I might save that for another time.
Books for Sixth Graders – My good friends Will and Maria are sixth grade teachers at a school in Tijuana, Mexico. Their school library has become pretty denuded of books and they’re trying to build the library back up. The schools budget is stretched and isn’t able to support buying all the books needed, so they’ve launched a wishlist of the books they’d like. I’ve bought a couple of my own personal favourites from the list and they’re on the way (nice to see that some of the books I read when I was at school, are still on the curriculum lists). If you’d like to help them too, please click on the link, the books are delivered directly to them via Amazon. If not no problem.
IT – I haven’t been to see IT yet, although I do intend to if I can find a free afternoon at some point. There are of course lots of articles out there with backstories to the film and comparisons to the earlier TV mini-series. There are a couple that I’m going to link to, but there are many more out there along the same lines if you’re interested.
The first is the authors experience reading IT over the summer ahead of the film coming out in the autumn.
The second is a tour of some of the places in and around Bangor, Maine that inspired or featured in some of King’s books and films.
Still On A Stephen King Theme –
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I picked up a couple of DVDs which were on offer at the local supermarket when I was there doing my grocery shopping this week. Both are adaptations of Stephen King’s books of Salem’s Lot and The Stand. I’ve never seen The Stand, but I remember Salem’s Lot giving me a good scare when I was a kid. I was curious to see how they stood up. I haven’t watched Salem’s Lot again yet, but I was told it is still a good watch. I did however watch The Stand, or at least started to. It’s pretty dire, and I’m not sure whether or not I’ll be finishing it.
I also received a copy of The Almanac – A Seasonal Guide to 2018 by Lia Leendertz [
I did get to try the gherkins that I pickled a month ago. There are mixed views on how long you should leave them before trying, but I went for a straight month.
Electronic Scrapbook 