Christmas

I think it is partly a result of my stroke, but I find Christmas very stressful these days. Every Christmas things are expected to be calm and happy, yet I am sure that I am not alone in experiencing the opposite. Even eating the Christmas meal is a stress these days. Years ago at work I knew a couple who went camping in Scotland at Christmas. Just maybe they had the right idea?

For the little ones it is still a magical time and I'd hate to spoil it for them.

Bah humbug!

Anglesey Abbey

We visit this local National Trust property most months. It is just 4 miles down the road. At the moment the seasons are crazy.

There are daffodils out (some were out in late November!), snowdrops, hellebores and others. Some trees are in blossom. I'd guess things are some 4-6 weeks early. Mad weather! It feels more like late February or early March than December before Christmas.

Grass mowing

So it is Dec 18th 2015 and as I write this I can hear someone cutting their lawn! Yesterday somewhere in Scotland hit over 17 deg C. The grass is still growing here - quite incredibly mild for mid-December.

I suspect the grass here will be cut later this month.  Unless we get a really cold snap, I suspect I shall be cutting the grass all year around.

Bletchley Park code breaker

Bill Tutte memorial (behind red car)

Bill Tutte was a local man (he lived near Newmarket) who worked at Bletchley Park as a code breaker during WW2.  He was probably more important than Turing, although his code breaking remained a national secret until not many years ago. The work Tutte did was used to intercept Russian traffic in the Cold War! There is now a memorial to him in Newmarket, as shown in the photo.

Fed raises interest rate

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-35117405

It has started.  Gradually rates will rise across the world . People had better get ready for life when borrowing costs more. I can remember when interest rates hit 15% and mortgages were very expensive.

Pruning

At the moment it is unseasonably mild for December in the UK. Often at this time of the year it is very misty and cold but at the moment it is about 14 deg C and every chance of it getting even warmer. The grass is still growing.  

Today, in between bursts of total exhaustion (stroke after-effect), I pruned two bushes in the garden. Working outside it felt more like April than December. I also noticed quite a few bulbs pushing through. Unless we get a really cold January we will soon have daffodils in bloom in the garden. Another 2 weeks?

FTSE 100

At the start of the year, some commentators were predicting the FTSE 100 UK share index would end the year above 7000.  It briefly exceeded this, although currently it is below 6000. A late rally might see it end the year in the low 6000s. I think expecting it to end the year above 7000 is wishful thinking.

Getting ready for Christmas

Last year's real tree has been in the pot in the garden all year. To our surprise it has new shoots and, apart from a list (corrected by re-potting the roots when we brought it into the house) it is good for this Christmas too. The lights and decorations are now going on.

On Sunday the first grandchildren arrive. Over Christmas we'll see all the children and grandchildren.  It will be busy time, but I hope all the little ones and all their mums and dads have a lovely time.

Strictly

Actually, I watch very little reality TV but I do quite enjoy "Strictly" on BBC TV. This is a knock-out dancing competition. This year, the standard is very high and it is hard to see who will win. It is many years since I enjoyed ballroom dancing with Ann, my old girlfriend in my teens. These are distant memories now.

Climate change - progress

So all the countries at the Paris climate summit have reached agreement. This is just the start, but it shows a willingness to work towards a world which does not have dangerous warming. As someone pointed out on BBC TV this morning, the cost of choosing a non-carbon path has significantly reduced, so it is less burdensome to choose clean energy.

See http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-35084374 .

Lunch with old friends

This lunchtime we enjoyed lunch at a local gastro pub (in the next village) with old friends who live quite close to us. The food was good as always. The friends came back to us for tea/coffee afterwards.

Poor voice

Today I had to go to Addenbrooke's Hospital for an outpatient appointment at the Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) clinic. This meant having a camera down my nose into my throat. Sadly, the diagnosis was that my poor voice is "neurological" and there is nothing that can be done to make it better. I am seeing the "main man" just in case, but it sounds like I am stuck with my poor voice unless it gets better over time. This is a blow, although at one time I was told I would never eat ever again. For the last year I've been able to eat just about anything. Moral? Never, ever give up.

Activity contests and antenna article

It must be my age!  My wife said last Tuesday "have you got a radio contest tonight?" I said, "no" thinking it was the end of November. Somehow I also read my email reminder of the 70cm UK activity contest too late last night.  So, I managed to miss both the 2m and 70cm December legs of the monthly RSGB amateur radio activity contests, thinking it was the end of November still!

Incidentally, my article on the big-wheel antenna for 2m is in the January RSGB magazine RadCom. If I had remembered, this is the antenna I would have used! It works well and is a horizontal omni with gain. Mine was very kindly erected by a fellow radio amateur David Tegerdine G0LRD, to whom I am much indebted.

Stroke exhaustion

It is perhaps surprising that well over 2 years since my stroke, I still get very exhausted so easily. We have had good old friends staying for a couple of nights and after helping to prepare lunch and washing the dishes, I was totally exhausted. After 10-15 minutes I am OK again, but anything physical or mental gets me very tired after a short time.

I guess I have to accept this is how it is going to be, although people tell me I am getting slowly better. They can see progress, although I cannot generally see it.

Sitting down  and driving are OK generally.   I find I get stressed more than I did and my instinct is to, "say it as it is". This sometimes gets me into trouble! I am sure I was more tactful in the past.

Floods

As I write this, Storm Desmond is dropping record quantities of rain over northern England and Scotland.  I can imagine little worse than having your home or business flooded out, especially at this time of the year.  My heart bleeds for those affected, who may be without homes for months and even when they get back there is the ongoing threat of it all happening again.  There is also the worry over insurance. No, flooding is going to become a major issue in the years ahead.

See http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-35019021 .

Winter

The Met Office official "winter" is December, January and February.  To me, this makes a lot of sense. In just over 2 weeks time the evenings will start to get lighter again, although the mornings get darker still for a few more weeks. Once January has passed the nights are quite a bit lighter. By mid-February there are usually clear signs that spring is on its way. Mind you, snow is not unusual in January and February and the summer bird migrants don't usually arrive until April mainly.

Boring old fart?

I am officially a boring old fart!

Coming back from my U3AC course on the buses today I could not help overhearing the word "like" interjected many, many times in every sentence by most youngsters! Also, most under 30 years old seem to be in love with their smart phones. In days gone by we'd actually talk, but these days this would be too much to ask.

Syria

It looks likely there will be a free vote in the UK House of Commons this week on whether or not to join the coalition forces bombing targets in Syria.

As much as I hate the despicable acts being carried out, I very much doubt more bombs are the answer. All the fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan seem to have the opposite effect on the number of terrorists in the world to that intended: there are now far more than before!

I am against the bombing Syria and believe a long term, fair, peace deal would achieve far more good. This will never be easy.

Small steps?

My wife tends to do the major housework on Tuesdays and I usually try to clean some windows. This morning I managed far more than before. I also managed a 200ml glass (actually a cup) of orange in 16 sips. To me, both are progress. To "normal" people these may seem trivial but if you have had a brain bleed, like me, they represent small steps on the road to recovery.

Months passing faster?

Someone said that time passes faster as you get older. It certainly seems this way. November came and went in no time at all. October was just as fast. It will soon be Christmas, January will soon go, February is a short month and before you know it there will be buds and daffodils everywhere. I am not wishing my time away, but time does seem to disappear.

Sunset

We are at the "pits" end of the year as far as sunlight is concerned, but the evenings start to get lighter from mid December here even though the mornings get darker for a few weeks more. By the end of January the evenings are getting better light-wise by almost an hour. February is a short month. It is good to think the nights will soon be getting lighter again. It may be a little different where you live.

See http://www.timeanddate.com/sun/uk/cambridge?month=12&year=2015

Family weekend

Family weekend - a typical scene

This weekend we had our "London" grandchildren here with their mum and dad. As you can see, our grandson, aged 8 years old,  decided to play dead on the rug.  They left quite late in the afternoon.

Very early daffodils

This evening we went to nearby Anglesey Abbey, a National Trust property near Cambridge, to see the winter lights. To our utter surprise there were a couple of daffodils already out. This is only Nov 28th!! This particular clump is always early, but November is just odd.

Stroke update

Things here seem to be on a plateau with no real improvements for months.

Just after breakfast seems to be my worst time, as I am always exhausted. A short sit-down rest and I am back to normal - well normal as I can be for now.

My main issues are my voice, which is still poor, liquid swallow, giddiness when on my feet and bouts of exhaustion after physical or mental exertion.

Cambridge Parks

Cambridge has several parks and, of course, the famous Backs (of the colleges) along the River Cam.

This is the park that is behind Drummer Street bus station. Most trees are now bare.

Stroke after-effects

It is true to say I am really fed up with the after-effects of my stroke. Most of the time on my feet I am exhausted and giddy. My voice is still very poor. Nobody, and I mean nobody, seems to comprehend the hell I am living through. Outwardly I look "normal" and healthy. Inside is a different matter.

All I want is for things not to totally exhaust me and not to feel so wobbly. I feel so useless inside. Sitting down on the PC is fine, but the moment I try to do anything physical or mental I am soon "done in".

It seems a long time since I was my old self.

Made in China

Today is my wife's birthday and one of her presents was a Cath Kitson 3-tier cake stand for the table. Even this is marked "Made in China". Surely suppliers can source this from the UK? It is just 3 slabs of plates, a few screws and some wood.

In the end this "Made in China" rubbish has to end. The wealth of the UK depends, in the end, in adding value and making things. They must make huge profits on this stuff. A few pence more to source from the UK would mean a few pence less profit. So?

We are addicted to goods made abroad, mostly in China. Ultimately this cannot go on for ever. The sooner we make things here again the better.

Happiness

Seen on Facebook. Written by a 92 year old lady.

Remember the five simple rules to be happy: 

1. Free your heart from hatred. 
2. Free your mind from worries. 
3. Live simply. 
4. Give more. 
5. Expect less.

Not bad advice.

Getting older

I got sent a photo of my wife and I when we were about 19. It is hard to believe just how thin we were then. Our combined weight was about 17 stone. I won't say what it is now!

In some ways those days seem like only yesterday. All our futures were before us. On the other hand, it is an age ago.

Second chance

A very moving, but uplifting, account from a Paris hostage.
See http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-34889539 .

"We've been given a second chance - we have to live life to the full!"

No snow

We seem to have missed the snow.  But there is a biting cold noth wind, it is dry and the sun has come out. It would not surprise me if we got a frost tonight. This would be the first time this autumn. Up to now it has been very mild.

This afternoon we are doing a walk in the village, but we will have to dress up in warm clothes.

FTSE 100 and Dow

The FTSE 100 is recovering but it would only take a successful terrorist attack in the UK or USA to send both the FTSE 100 and the Dow into a downward spiral.

UPDATE 2045z: The FTSE 100 ended the day just marginally higher on the day.

Wind

We are about to get our worst storm so far this autumn with gusts later tonight of 60mph. The worst is expected at 2200z. This is very far from the hurricanes seen in the USA and Caribbean areas. 

Nonetheless, it should help to bring down the leaves which remain on the deciduous trees. I hope no-one has to cope with floods. The garden looks its best in spring. Now most of the leaves have fallen it is starting to look bare and "winter".  Thankfully the nights start to get shorter from late December. By mid-February, even though winter, there are clear signs that spring is on the way.

Who visits?

My blog visitors puzzle me.

My amateur radio (mainly) blog gets around ten times the visits of this blog and yet people still come back here! Already today this blog has had more visits than at the weekend for the whole day. As far as I can tell, there is nothing special today. This blog is updated most days. It is usually an eclectic mix of thoughts - some days politics, others finance, family etc.