June snow

I am reminded that 40 years ago we actually had snow on this day! At the moment, it is still windy and wet although the temperatures are not too bad. Later this week we may get better, although there is now a threat of thunderstorms! You cannot win. British weather! I love it.

Lawns

Usually our lawns look pretty good and weed free. They ought to as we pay Green Thumb a decent amount each month to treat, scarify and tine.  The last time they treated the lawn they scarified and removed a fair bit of moss. I have removed the dead moss and reseeded in places, but there is a lot of course grass and there are brownish patches.

My wife is very cross and wants them back to fix the lawn, which looked far better last year. They are coming again on Friday and have promised to put things right. We shall see. If not, they will lose our business and I am pretty sure my wife will "go viral" with her displeasure.

Green Thumb ought to have done a better job as lots of people have looked over the front garden wall and asked, "what happened to your lovely lawn?". The front lawn is right next to the local windmill and museum and should be a showcase for Green Thumb.

Poor voice

Amateur radio has been one of my great interests for years but since my cerebellum brain bleed in Sept 2013 I have had a very poor speaking voice and this has been a real handicap. Speaking at all takes real effort and I feel breathless.

Although I (just about) get onto the East Cambs 2m FM amateur radio net most Mondays  for about 20 minutes and I get on for about 1 hour in the 2m and 70cm legs of the RSGB's Tuesday evening contests, I find using my voice hard work, so I avoid talking on the radio too much currently.

East Anglian Churches - blog updated

We actually visited Wiveton Church in North Norfolk a couple of weeks ago,  but I have only today updated the blog to reflect our visit.

See http://eachurches.blogspot.co.uk/.

Mildenhall Museum

This afternoon we visited the local museum in nearby Mildenhall. Entry was free and it was well worth it!

Sadly our local museum charges £4 entry for adults. It is a much bigger museum in Burwell.   Although I understand why our local museum in Burwell charges, I think they should charge far less and try to recover moneys elsewhere such as donations, gifts and in the new cafe. £4 is far too much.

Stroke update

Not sure if the cranial osteopathy is the reason, but I do seem to be less tired than I was.  This week we have had all our little grandchildren staying (2 lots of 2 and they are all less than 7.5 years old) yet I am coping better.

Overall, I still have a poor voice and poor thin liquid swallow and I still feel drunk when walking, but feeling less tired is a positive step on a long road. Small steps.

Cranial Osteopathy

I still have several stroke related issues (feel drunk when walking, tire easily, poor thin liquid swallow, poor voice), so today I started a series of cranial osteopathy sessions with someone recommended to me in Cambridge. The first session went well and I have fixed up a couple more sessions. Time will tell if these help with my symptoms. Although I am improving, the pace has slowed considerably so I am game to try anything that may help.

Kent earthquake

Earthquakes are far less common in the UK, but they do occur. Last night one occurred in Kent shaking homes and waking people in the middle of the night. This one was 4.2 on the Richter scale. This one was felt by my son near Canterbury and they think some tiles came off their cottage roof.

Some UK earthquakes have caused real disruption and damage. This one must have been quite a shock to those that were aware of it. Being in the middle of the night, many may have been totally unaware. Even though this one lasted several seconds it was nowhere near the force of the recent ones in Nepal which were many orders of magnitude stronger. The strongest UK earthquake in recent times was the Colchester earthquake of 1884 which measured 4.6 on the Richter scale.

Begonias

Today we planted our remaining begonias against the house wall in the back garden. As they grow and get established they should look good.  Unlike many  bedding plants they need very little attention and they usually last until the first frosts in late October. They don't need dead-heading either.When these finish we will plant winter flowering primroses. This is not until late October though.

Another success this spring are our clematis. One has just come into flower and looks a picture. We thought this one had died and very nearly dug it up! We are hoping that 2 clematis plants will grow and cover our brick archway into the back garden. Both are growing well and this should happen.

A few bare patches in the front lawn have been reseeded. It will take 2-3 weeks for the seeds to germinate and grow, but hopefully the few mossy patches will soon be grass again.

Old university friend

Today we were visited by an old university friend, Robert. Although we met at a reunion 3 years ago in Shropshire it was really good to have a chance to properly catch-up today. We went out for lunch at The White Pheasant in the next village. The food was very good.

Another crash?

Some commentators are predicting that we are on course for another crash. I have no idea if they are right or wrong, but economics does seem to be cyclical. Some investments may give lower returns but may be safer bets?

Petrol and diesel prices - creeping upwards

Have you noticed that the price of petrol and diesel is creeping upwards again? OK the price of a barrel has risen slightly and the exchange rate against the dollar of the UK pound is a little worse. However, it seems someone is out to push prices up again to maximise profits.

Personally, I think fuel prices should be set nationally as in Iceland. In Iceland prices are the same wherever you go.   I also think it is odd that anyone profits when fuels are essential to all of us.  I'd run all energy supplies as nationalised industries, with any profits benefiting the consumer and not private share-holders. In this I'd put all essential services like energy, trains and buses. Clearly privatisation may encourage efficiency but making profits for private shareholders is stupid, in my opinion, when we are talking of essential services. These should be run for the benefit of all, not the few.

Jackdaws

Jackdaw

At the home we moved to a couple of years back, just before I was taken seriously ill, we see far fewer smaller birds.  They are around, but don't seem to be attracted to the bird table or nut feeders. We also see no squirrels.  We get a reasonable number of small birds in the garden and nearby such as dunnocks (hedge sparrows), great tits and blue tits, robins etc. Maybe they visit other bird tables or find food naturally very locally?

Our nut feeders seem to attract larger birds in the main like pigeons and collared doves. We have lots of trees and other cover in the garden and nearby.

Every morning at much the same time we get jackdaws on the bird table. We have red legged partridges in the road most days and we have even had mallard ducks in the garden.

See http://www.rspb.org.uk/discoverandenjoynature/discoverandlearn/birdguide/name/j/jackdaw/ .

Football playoffs

If Norwich win against Middlesborough in the Championship playoff final they could be back in the Premier League next season. Quite a few hoops to jump through though but a win against local rivals Ipswich must give them hope.

No such luck for League 2 team Plymouth Argyle who were beaten by Wycombe Wanderers for a place in the League 2 playoff final. Still, they did well this season and I wish them well in the next.

See http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/32670810 .

Swallows, swifts and house martins

In the last week the skies have changed. Summer migrant birds are everywhere now but even a week ago they were harder to spot. Screaming swifts are a sure sign of late spring and summer and bring joy to the heart.

Ebola - out of the news?

Have you noticed that the deadly disease Ebola is no longer in the news? This started to cease to be newsworthy around Christmas last year.  I guess the BBC decided there were more important issues like Nigel Farage, he says with a great deal of sarcasm.

The disease is still present in some West African nations but others have reported no new cases in some time now. I think the world was late to "wake up" to the real dangers of this condition. Luckily, it managed to be contained in West Africa, in the main. It could have spread so easily to western nations and been a real public health catastrophe.

See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ebola_virus_epidemic_in_West_Africa .

Churches blog updated

See http://eachurches.blogspot.co.uk/ .

Today we visited North Norfolk and called in at Cley and Wiveton churches. I have updated the churches blog with Cley church. Wiveton church will be added shortly. A few more images will also be added later.

Lawns cut

Today I managed to cut both our front and rear lawns and drink a can of "Old Speckled Hen" beer.  In the past this would have been trivial, but since the cerebellum brain bleed this is an achievement, especially as I needed no breaks whilst doing them. Mind you, I was pretty tired by the end.

Most of the blossom has now gone - so ephemeral - but the Californian lilac is in flower as is next door's lilac bush.  I expect both will soon be gone!

Spelling

One of the after-effects of my cerebellum brain bleed seems to be an inability to quickly spot spelling mistakes. In the end I tend to notice these, but often long after an email has been sent. As an example, I had "an" instead of "am" in an email sent this afternoon. It really is not that important, but I seem slower to pick up this sort of mistake than before.

A second large earthquake in Nepal

News is just breaking that a second large earthquake has struck eastern Nepal. This was a 7.3 magnitude quake and it must have been so frightening for those poor people already struggling to come to terms with the first earthquake a few weeks ago. It must be so hard for the children.

See http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-32701385 .

Heading home

After a long weekend visiting our son and family near Canterbury, today we head home. It was lovely to see them all and they are all coming up to us at half-term in 2 weeks time.

Stroke and spelling

About  19 months after my cerebellum brain bleed and operation I am still far from right. My symptoms that I had last year are still there although, on average, I feel a little less tired than I did. Some days are still bad and I feel totally exhausted.

My other issues are feeling drunk when walking (but I do not fall), poor speech and poor thin liquid swallow. These have improved very little if I am honest. Life is still very hard and I find stress harder to cope with. I still feel unwell and still a long way from my old self.

One thing that I am attributing to my stroke is poor spelling. It is not that I make lots of mistakes but rather it seems to take longer for me to realise when I have made an error. Some of these are keyboard typos but some are genuine errors that I am sure are a more recent thing.

An example: yesterday I really struggled with "bare" and "bear". There are other examples but in the past these would not have been a problem. Also, I find I am more forgetful too. Although my wife can remember who has called to see me in the past, I sometimes forget who has, and has not, called, say last year. A few weeks ago I posted something on Twitter but I have no recollection of doing this, at all.

Overall,I still feel in a bit of a fog.  Oh for my old self!

Your democratic right

Thankfully we live in a free country where we have certain rights.  Tomorrow we can vote for whichever candidate/party we like. This is our right. Please use your vote and don't waste it.  

Churches blog updated

http://eachurches.blogspot.co.uk/ has been updated to include Exning Church in Suffolk.

Exning is much older than nearby Newmarket.  Newmarket, the worldwide home of horse racing, was literally the "new market" for Exning.

Election blues

See http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2015/05/05/richard-littlejohn-labour-jimmy-savile_n_7210932.html?1430818808 .

People are getting rather stupid about the upcoming UK General Election voting for which is on this Thursday.  The real difference between Labour and Conservatives is actually not that great.

 We are likely to be in a hung parliament with another coalition, so the policies of either Labour or Conservatives will have to be moderated. Both want the deficit to be reduced. Both want to keep the NHS free at point of use. Both want to keep Trident (I don't).

In the end, I hope we end up with another coalition involving the Lib Dems.

Royal baby named

Today, they named the royal baby girl. I am ambivalent on royalty: they probably help the country by encouraging tradition, visits to stately homes and the sale of useless memorabilia.

On the other hand, the royals really have no great claim to wealth or privilege. One problem is we'd never agree on a president! So, for now, I sort of favour royalty, but I think they have to earn our respect and never just assume it.

Cuckoo

We visited West Stow today with 2 of our young grandchildren. This is a reconstructed Anglo-Saxon village. We heard a goldcrest and the first cuckoo whilst there, but saw neither. A cuckoo is a sign if the return of spring. I have yet to see house martins or swifts and have only see 2 swallows so far this spring.

Royal baby

See http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-32567875 .

I am not sure what I think about royalty. On the one hand I think they must do our tourist trade a lot of good encouraging visits to historic houses and trade in royal trinkets and memorabilia.

On the other had, all royals still have to sit on the loo and have nothing really that is any different from the rest of us. Why do these royals have any right to wealth and privilege?

Stroke - often hungry

One thing I do not understand is why I feel hungry so often, yet do not put on weight.

I recently had a bowel cancer check and that was all clear. I eat a very full breakfast (Weetabix, half a banana followed by a cooked breakfast cooked in very little oil) and I have a good lunch and tea, but already I am hungry again! My weight has been pretty constant for over a year - maybe a few pounds heavier. I drink very little alcohol these days and have no sugar in tea or coffee, but I guess there is sugar in the chocolate drinks I have.

Stroke update

Although, on  average, I am a little less tired overall, I still have very bad days, like today, when I feel very exhausted.  I still have problems with thin liquid drinks and still feel wobbly on my feet. Progress is painfully slow.

Never, ever, take your health for granted, as you never know when things might change. Before Sept 2013 I was fit and healthy. These days, still, I feel just a shadow of my old self.  How I wish I was back to as I was!

At the moment, long travel is a real problem. I have not been down to Devon for 2 years.  Last year the furtherest we managed was Kent and Cheshire, both by train.

Neck and neck still

The UK General Election next week still looks far too close to call. Some opinion polls show the Conservatives ahead and others show Labour.  UKIP seem to be gradually losing support.

At the moment my intention is to vote Lib Dem as they do have a chance of winning here in East Cambs. Labour really have no chance at all having won just 6.5% of the vote last time. UKIP could well split the Conservative vote, so the Lib Dems have a decent chance. Personally, I think the moderating influence of the Lib Dems on either the Conservatives or Labour would be a good thing. I supported the Greens in the European elections but in a "first past the post" General Election they (sadly) have no chance here. Elsewhere, who knows?

FTSE 100 falls

6946.28 today so quite a large fall in the FTSE 100 share index.  I think we can expect quite large  fluctuations in the index in the period close to the UK General Election. It could go up or down as we are very likely to end up with a hung parliament, coalitions and uncertainty for a few weeks.

Glasswells - what a dosy shower they are!

Last October we wrote to Glasswells in Bury-St-Edmunds as our so-called stain protected lounge carpet had a stain we could not remove. A month later, having heard nothing, I emailed again. Eventually someone was sent and as he could not remove the stains, we were promised a free replacement carpet. All this was before Christmas 2014.

It is now April 2015 and we were still waiting, so I emailed  Glasswells again today. Oh," we were waiting for YOU to contact us with a suitable fitting date!". Like heck they were!! Yet more lame excuses. It only would have taken a phone call.  We have now been promised this carpet will be refitted this Friday morning. We will see.

Overall, I am totally unimpressed. Frankly, their service and care has been pathetic.

I hope NEVER to do business with this bunch of amateurs ever again.

Nepal Quake

This puts thing into perspective. Winter is approaching. Many are living in tents. Already 2500 are dead and the number is rising. People are terrified of the next shake.

See http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-32475030 .

UK General Election

With less than 2 weeks to go this will be the closest election in years and it is very unlikely a clear winner will emerge: Labour and Conservatives are neck and neck with some polls saying one is marginally ahead only to be contradicted by another poll! Some sort of coaltion appears to be the most probable outcome but whether Labour or Conservatives are the main party is anyone's guess.

East Anglan Churches Blog

Today we visited Sutton, near Ely and I have updated the East Anglian Churches Blog.

See http://eachurches.blogspot.co.uk/ .

Cambridge, UK - concert reminder

A reminder that the concert shown on the attached poster will be held this Saturday evening (April 25th) starting at 7.30pm.  Tickets may be bought on the door.  It is excellent music in a great venue (West Road Concert Hall, Cambridge).

Click image to enlarge.

Other people - how we cannot know them on the inside

Time and again I have to remind myself that we have very little idea what really goes on in the lives of other people. On the outside all may appear fine, but inside they are living a real hell.

One of our neighbours, we found out only last week, has breast cancer and her daughter had post natal depression badly. Both are so worrying.   We sometimes have to pinch ourselves and remind ourselves not to judge others as we really cannot know all their inner worries. We must never, ever judge anyone. Accept them as humans like us with weaknesses and worries, as well as joy.

I so wish that everyone could be happy, but the human condition is we have joy and sadness. Overall, we have to love everyone as ourselves and be kind to everyone.  Everyone is a mixture of happiness and sadness, just like us.

Still too close to call

The UK General Election is on May 7th (2 weeks only) and the leading parties are still too close to know who will get the most votes. It depends on which poll you look at who is deemed ahead. The margin of error is greater than the difference, so essentially they are tied.

UK General Election - First past the post

A reminder than the UK General Election, which is only a few weeks away, is "first past the post" so if you are just one vote behind you lose everything. In the European elections I voted Green, but fear this will be a wasted vote in a "first past the post" contest.  Tactical voting will be needed.

For example, in my constituency Labour really have no chance of winning as they only got 6.5% of the vote last time. The Lib Dems (currently in coalition with the majority Conservative government) have a real chance of winning - they came a good second last time - especially as we have UKIP nowadays and the Conservatives could lose some votes to them. The most probable outcome is a Conservative win again in this constituency.

Nationally, the outcome is almost certainly another coalition government as the polls show Labour and Conservatives neck and neck nationally. UKIP support nationally is fading, although I always suspected this would be the case.

No brain? Very odd brain?

See Remove Katie Hopkins as a Sun newspaper columnist.

This woman is writing rubbish about poor and very desperate people trying to reach Europe in flimsy boats from Libya.  Most are fleeing war and strife.  Many have payed thousands for the trip and thousands have drowned.  The sooner she is stopped the better.  The petition is being signed by very many people and very fast.

Please sign and share on social media.

Delhi - the most polluted city on the planet

Delhi in India has the highest levels of air pollution on the planet but only now are the locals being made aware of it. Daily, its inhabitants breath in air that is so toxic that it can lead to death or serious diseases. We may think London, on a bad day, has problems but these are insignificant when compared with Delhi.

I have heard that pollution is also bad in China.

See http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-32352722 .

Churches blog updated

A few weeks ago we visited St Botolph's church in Cambridge. I have just updated the East Anglian Church blog.

See http://eachurches.blogspot.co.uk/ .

That General Election in the UK

Well, I look at the BBC pages on the polls and it is clearly going to be a hung parliament with some sort of coalition the most likely outcome.

Personally, I think the UKIP support will weaken and a coalition involving the Lib-Dems (with either the Conservative or Labour) could be probable. This would be no bad thing.

We have only a few weeks left. There is still plenty of time for politicians to make gaffs, that could lose them a lot of support.

Stranded assets?

See http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-32320825 .

Will fossil fuels remain in the ground if we really fight climate change?

FTSE 100

At the moment the FTSE 100 share index is over 7100 - giddy heights! With the election not many weeks away and a very close run contest, I expect the markets to tumble with the uncertainty of the outcome. The last poll I saw showed Conservatives and Labour neck and neck. The UKIP vote could lose Conservative votes.

I shall probably vote Lib Dem again.

The active Sun

See https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=zXN-MdoGM9g .

An impressive video showing how active the Sun has been since 2010.

Activity is now declining to the next sunspot minimum. Many experts predict the next solar cycle (cycle 25) will be very weak indeed. Some are even saying we are approaching a Maunder Minimum with extreme cold on the way and virtually no sunspots for many years. Predictions are getting good these days.

See also http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/paulhudson/entries/6d50a6bd-779a-32d6-bfca-06e4484d6835 .  This dates from 2013, but still applies. The last peak was a pretty weak affair. The next could be almost a non-starter. A Maunder Minimum might help offset global warming to some extent?

Church blog updated

Today we visited Cavendish in Suffolk. Churches blog has been updated.

See http://eachurches.blogspot.co.uk/ .

Politicians - don't you just love them?

Like many, I now just switch off when I hear politicians, of all persuasions, making "promises".  Most of these are just election hot air.  Nowadays, I simply turn off as I just know they are empty words.  Mr Cameron was going to limit net inward migration to 10000 a year (no ifs , no buts - remember?). Ed Miliband is also making promises which are unlikely to be met. And what about the NHS?  Most parties have promised an extra £8 billion with little idea how this will be funded. What the NHS needs is better communications and less waste!

At the moment I am still very much a "floating voter" with little idea who to vote for.  What I do know is I shall be ignoring those promises and voting tactically.

Stroke - small steps

Recovery progress is painfully slow these days. For the last week I have had more energy in the mornings after breakfast. Until about a week ago I'd have breakfast  and then be totally exhausted. For about a week now I have managed to do a few household tasks before resting. The progress is small, but this is progress and I am grateful for it. I still get exhausted but not quite as badly. I seem to require rest, but I am not totally "done in".

All I want is my old self back.....