Blog numbers

This puzzles me.  For days they remain "average" and then suddenly, for no good reason, the numbers nearly double.  Perhaps the blog gets mentioned somewhere and this attracts new visitors? The post content always varies, so I very much doubt it is this. There have been few external links in my recent posts, so I don't think it is people leaving and returning and being double counted.  My amateur radio blog attracts about 10 times more visitors than this blog.

Top of the hill

Being in East Anglia, hills are in short supply. Our bungalow, right next to the windmill, is on an East Anglian hill, although those living in the West or Wales would think our "hill" was just a small bump. We live on the highest spot in the village nonetheless. Views from the top of our roof are very good and even better high up in the windmill.

Rose pruning time

This afternoon, as it was bright and sunny, I decided to prune the roses at the front of our bungalow. There have been several flushes of roses with the last one at Christmas. I pruned them back heavily last winter and this was obviously the right thing to do. There are those who advocate careful trimming back to just above the growing points and others who advocate simply slashing them back. I am somewhere in between.   It probably depends on the rose type. Anyway, they are now pruned and the proof will come with the new growth.

A walk to the local baker and local butcher this afternoon was good for the walk in the cold January sunshine, but both closed at lunch on Saturday, so I came back empty-handed!

Errors or typos?

Almost every time I do a blog post, write an email, or post on Facebook, I seem to make at least one error that I have to go back later to correct. This may be a simple typo or perhaps my stroke leaves me unable to spot errors quickly? Either way, I try to correct the mistake as soon as I do spot it. This seems to be nearly every time I post.  Let me know if you see any I've missed please.

The most common errors are "i" and "o" interposed, extraneous full stops and "m" and "n" interposed. These could be my poor keyboard skills and nothing more, but I'm sure I'm more error-prone than I was.

Snow shower

As we awoke this morning there were quite big snowflakes falling. I took a few pictures, but you cannot even see the snowflakes!  Within an hour the snow had stopped and now there is no sign of it.  It is pretty cold outside and snow later is possible.  So far, our winter has been just about snow free and quite moderate.  It could all change.

Saudi floggings

Sorry, but Saudi Arabia has done itself, and Islam, no favours at all by choosing to give a moderate blogger 1000 lashes and a long prison sentence. If I had my way we would cease all trade with this barbaric place. I gather that (because of media outrage?) they are to review his case. Allah be praised!

See http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-30856403 .

Saudi Arabia comes across as a medieval society, best avoided. If they want to improve their image in the 21st century they know full well what to do.

Where I lived as a child

As I child, I was brought up in Salcombe, Devon. To this day it remains a very beautiful place. This video by Birds Eye View Productions shows Salcombe from the air with videos created by drones.