For the first time in twelve years Melanie and I just had a weekend away, with no kids in sight!
Both girls went to an orchestra weekend at Grafham Water Centre, so we booked a break at Folly Farm Cottage, in the small village of Ilmington in the Cotswolds.
The place was ideal for a romantic break - a small self catering apartment with a 4-poster bed, whirlpool bath, delightfully decorated, very nice and helpful people too. We ordered a cooked breakfast for Sunday and that was delicious.
We spent Saturday having a little drive round the area, visiting a couple of antiques places, Moreton in the Marsh, Broadway, and Chipping Camden. Coming past Broadway Tower there was quite a lot of snow around - some quite deep drifts in places. The weather was good - clear and sunny - but a little chilly!
Saturday evening we booked a table at the Howard Arms in Ilmington. We walked down - remembering to take a torch to see the way.
Not everything went quite according to the original script. After arranging all this we ended up going to a function at Chilford Hall Vineyard on the Friday evening, so our carefully laid travel plans got slightly derailed. The original plan was to set out, leave the children, and carry on. Instead we came back to Cambridge, had the meal, and set out much later than planned - so we didn't arrive until nearly 1 in the morning. Fortunately our hosts at Folly Farm were very understanding and made arrangements to leave a key.
Then, on Saturday evening, having had a drink at the bar, started on the bottle of wine, and just had our starters arrive at the table, the phone went - with a message to say that Amanda had been unwell and would it be better if we went to collect her and take her home? Needless to say this wasn't particularly practical, but fortunately Amanda was fine, so we were able to stay on. It did put rather a dampener on what was looking to be a very fine meal, though.
Today we had a walk round Stratford and a warming bowl of soup before heading back to collect the kids and bring them home.
Overall, a nice weekend. Let's hope we don't have to wait another 12 years for the next opportunity.
Sunday, February 26, 2006
Thursday, February 23, 2006
Make your own website
So I don't post items here as often as I do in my main blog, which is something I'm going to have to work on.
Anyway, Hannah's been asking about creating her own website, so had a look around today. She came home with piczo in mind (although she actually told us pixo, which isn't quite the same thing).
But piczo's terms and conditions impose a strict minimum age of 13, so that one's out. And after looking at a couple of pages they host, the intrusive advertising and popups really got on my nerves. Can't recommend that one.
So I had a little look around, and Hannah signed up for MatMice. This one is aimed squarely at children, and first impressions are good. The signup was a little klunky (most usernames are already taken - it would have been nice to get suggestions rather than have to take 20 guesses). The page creator is pretty simplistic for my taste (not quite as slick as most of the ajax powered utilities I use these days) but it works. Advertising, yes, but in the fairly tasteful google style. How this will work out in the longer term I don't know, but if your kids are looking for somewhere to make their own web page then MatMice is definitely worth a try!
Anyway, Hannah's been asking about creating her own website, so had a look around today. She came home with piczo in mind (although she actually told us pixo, which isn't quite the same thing).
But piczo's terms and conditions impose a strict minimum age of 13, so that one's out. And after looking at a couple of pages they host, the intrusive advertising and popups really got on my nerves. Can't recommend that one.
So I had a little look around, and Hannah signed up for MatMice. This one is aimed squarely at children, and first impressions are good. The signup was a little klunky (most usernames are already taken - it would have been nice to get suggestions rather than have to take 20 guesses). The page creator is pretty simplistic for my taste (not quite as slick as most of the ajax powered utilities I use these days) but it works. Advertising, yes, but in the fairly tasteful google style. How this will work out in the longer term I don't know, but if your kids are looking for somewhere to make their own web page then MatMice is definitely worth a try!
Thursday, January 26, 2006
Penguins
On Saturday I took Hannah to see March of the Penguins.
I think she enjoyed it - she's mad keen on penguins - and I found it interesting. We had seen adverts for the DVD while on holiday in France last summer, and I was tempted to get the DVD even though the commentary was presumably in French.
I think she enjoyed it - she's mad keen on penguins - and I found it interesting. We had seen adverts for the DVD while on holiday in France last summer, and I was tempted to get the DVD even though the commentary was presumably in French.
antidecluttering
In the new year, full of good intentions, we always have a good clearout of old junk. Some of this is to make room for new stuff just received as a gift; some of it is because new gifts replace old stuff; some is just getting rid of stuff we don't want.
That's the good bit. Then we spoil it by heading off down to IKEA to buy a whole load of new things to fill up the house. The end result is a house that's just as full of clutter, just a bit better organized. And the organization will decay over the year, and in early 2007 we'll repeat the cycle again.
We also found out that the accident I had must have damaged the satellite navigation system in the car too. It works for a bit, and then freaks out. Proceeding round the North Circular, we were suddenly instructed to d a U-turn. Coming up the M11, all of a sudden we were told to turn right at the roundabout.
However, while in London we did have a good late lunch at Garfunkel's.
That's the good bit. Then we spoil it by heading off down to IKEA to buy a whole load of new things to fill up the house. The end result is a house that's just as full of clutter, just a bit better organized. And the organization will decay over the year, and in early 2007 we'll repeat the cycle again.
We also found out that the accident I had must have damaged the satellite navigation system in the car too. It works for a bit, and then freaks out. Proceeding round the North Circular, we were suddenly instructed to d a U-turn. Coming up the M11, all of a sudden we were told to turn right at the roundabout.
However, while in London we did have a good late lunch at Garfunkel's.
Sunday, January 15, 2006
District ADM
Went to the Cambridge District Annual District Meeting yesterday.
Ringing beforehand was generally good; a few hiccups due to Great Shelford being an anticlockwise ring. Usually once you're into changes and settled down, everything goes smoothly, but it was interesting how even good touches faltered as they came back into rounds.
The meeting saw a couple of elections of personal note. Amanda was elected a member, and yours truly got voted onto the district committee. I have no official responsibilities - I'm not an officer or anything so important - but there are a couple of extra committee members to give a wider spread of representation. I'm hoping to contribute more to the district - one first target might be to actually ring at all the towers, which is something I've failed to do despite being resident here for almost a decade and a half.
Ringing beforehand was generally good; a few hiccups due to Great Shelford being an anticlockwise ring. Usually once you're into changes and settled down, everything goes smoothly, but it was interesting how even good touches faltered as they came back into rounds.
The meeting saw a couple of elections of personal note. Amanda was elected a member, and yours truly got voted onto the district committee. I have no official responsibilities - I'm not an officer or anything so important - but there are a couple of extra committee members to give a wider spread of representation. I'm hoping to contribute more to the district - one first target might be to actually ring at all the towers, which is something I've failed to do despite being resident here for almost a decade and a half.
Wednesday, January 11, 2006
Sluggish traffic
Traffic on the way to work in the morning seems to be getting worse.
I'm not at all sure why. It could be seasonal (the operation or not of schools seems to make a disproportionate difference). It could be partly the weather (rain makes an obvious difference). Or - and this is my fear - it's a systematic trend.
Whatever, it's a pain.
I'm not at all sure why. It could be seasonal (the operation or not of schools seems to make a disproportionate difference). It could be partly the weather (rain makes an obvious difference). Or - and this is my fear - it's a systematic trend.
Whatever, it's a pain.
Saturday, December 31, 2005
Happy New Year!
A bit late, but this:
was made by Amanda at Guides in the run up to Christmas.
It's only small, but it's a real Christmas cake, very rich, properly iced and all.
And it's delicious.
Sunday, December 18, 2005
Oh for summer warmth
It seems like a long time ago now, but over the summer we went to France, and this was typical weather. Specifically - beautiful sunshine!
Makes a change from frosty damp grey mornings...
Good to go
Got my car back!
Looks nice and clean at the back - all the dents and squashed bits are gone. So that episode is over, thankfully.
It's nice to be back in my own car. It was strange driving the loan car about for a couple of weeks, and while I thought it would be interesting to try something different, I'm glad to be rid of it.
For the inquisitive, I had a 3-door Vauxhall Astra SRi. Drove well enough, but there were a few things I didn't like. I really didn't like the controls. The indicators were a bit erratic; I don't like the main lights being on the dash (in particular, making the foglights difficult to get to is a bad idea); the heating and radio controls are very messy (and sufficiently obtuse to be quite dangerous, actually). The windscreen wipers and washer were pretty poor, and the CD player had a habit of skipping. Being a 3-door was very awkward - it was very tricky to get into the back, and the way the front seats tipped and slid didn't work well.
Looks nice and clean at the back - all the dents and squashed bits are gone. So that episode is over, thankfully.
It's nice to be back in my own car. It was strange driving the loan car about for a couple of weeks, and while I thought it would be interesting to try something different, I'm glad to be rid of it.
For the inquisitive, I had a 3-door Vauxhall Astra SRi. Drove well enough, but there were a few things I didn't like. I really didn't like the controls. The indicators were a bit erratic; I don't like the main lights being on the dash (in particular, making the foglights difficult to get to is a bad idea); the heating and radio controls are very messy (and sufficiently obtuse to be quite dangerous, actually). The windscreen wipers and washer were pretty poor, and the CD player had a habit of skipping. Being a 3-door was very awkward - it was very tricky to get into the back, and the way the front seats tipped and slid didn't work well.
Friday, December 16, 2005
The Misguided Busway
It appears that the Cambridge Misguided Busway scheme has been given the go ahead.
For those that don't know, this involves the conversion of a disused railway line into a special trackway for buses, parallel to a very heavily congested trunk road. The claim, presumably, is that this will provide an alternative and relieve the congestion.
Unfortunately, what we are going to see is a horrifically expensive white elephant.
The best thing - and the obvious course of action - would have been to convert the disused railway into a used railway.
The fundamental problem lies in the idea that you can spend at least £70 million and convert a railway line into a successful bus route This simply won't work, because doing so combines the worst features of rail and road transport. The snag with railway lines is that - partly because they were built so long ago - they tend not to follow traffic patterns. Not only do they not follow the traffic, the stations tend to be in useless places. The misguided busway inherits these weaknesses.
The advantage of using the railway as a railway is that, while it suffers from these weaknesses too, it can give benefits in other areas. In particular, it can act as a feeder line, with commuter traffic a particular target - so you can go to a local station for a long-distance trip. Also, the line could be used as additional or diversionary capacity for other rail traffic.
For those that don't know, this involves the conversion of a disused railway line into a special trackway for buses, parallel to a very heavily congested trunk road. The claim, presumably, is that this will provide an alternative and relieve the congestion.
Unfortunately, what we are going to see is a horrifically expensive white elephant.
The best thing - and the obvious course of action - would have been to convert the disused railway into a used railway.
The fundamental problem lies in the idea that you can spend at least £70 million and convert a railway line into a successful bus route This simply won't work, because doing so combines the worst features of rail and road transport. The snag with railway lines is that - partly because they were built so long ago - they tend not to follow traffic patterns. Not only do they not follow the traffic, the stations tend to be in useless places. The misguided busway inherits these weaknesses.
The advantage of using the railway as a railway is that, while it suffers from these weaknesses too, it can give benefits in other areas. In particular, it can act as a feeder line, with commuter traffic a particular target - so you can go to a local station for a long-distance trip. Also, the line could be used as additional or diversionary capacity for other rail traffic.
Monday, December 12, 2005
Murky Motorways
Must have slept through the rather large bang from the exploding fuel storage depot yesterday, although we're probably in range and know people - usually slightly closer, it must be admitted - who did get woken up by it.
The knock-on effect was chaos on the roads. But not quite in the manner I would have expected. The A1(M) south was busy this morning between junctions 9 and 10, with traffic queuing back from Stevenage. But was otherwise pretty clear once I worked past that queue. It did seem a little busier coming the other way. Coming home this evening the usual delays at junction 7 were worse than normal, but I reckon that was due to a localized incident - half a dozen cars parked up on the hard shoulder was one clue, and also the fact that traffic was actually lighter than normal (presumably due to delays further south round the M25).
From my office I can see the plume of smoke, which is pretty massive. But from that distance the base is hidden so I can't see the fire itself. But I'm still amazed that an explosion of that magnitude didn't have much heavier casualties.
The knock-on effect was chaos on the roads. But not quite in the manner I would have expected. The A1(M) south was busy this morning between junctions 9 and 10, with traffic queuing back from Stevenage. But was otherwise pretty clear once I worked past that queue. It did seem a little busier coming the other way. Coming home this evening the usual delays at junction 7 were worse than normal, but I reckon that was due to a localized incident - half a dozen cars parked up on the hard shoulder was one clue, and also the fact that traffic was actually lighter than normal (presumably due to delays further south round the M25).
From my office I can see the plume of smoke, which is pretty massive. But from that distance the base is hidden so I can't see the fire itself. But I'm still amazed that an explosion of that magnitude didn't have much heavier casualties.
Sunday, December 11, 2005
End of term concert
Both girls go to String Orchestras organized by CIMA - First Play Strings and the Cambridge Junior String Orchestra.
Every term they put on a concert, and we went along last week. The music was excellent - highlights included "Susanna and Polly meet Liza at the Races" and the theme from "Blackadder".
Not only that, but despite delays on the A1 I made it in time, and Melanie was amazed at being able to get from one side of Cambridge to the other, eat, and get back again in 50 minutes.
There seems to be some seasonal music being practiced at the moment, so we may get an extra private concert in a couple of weeks...
Every term they put on a concert, and we went along last week. The music was excellent - highlights included "Susanna and Polly meet Liza at the Races" and the theme from "Blackadder".
Not only that, but despite delays on the A1 I made it in time, and Melanie was amazed at being able to get from one side of Cambridge to the other, eat, and get back again in 50 minutes.
There seems to be some seasonal music being practiced at the moment, so we may get an extra private concert in a couple of weeks...
Friday, December 09, 2005
Dodgy Drivers
Driving on the A1(M), I see an awful lot of bad driving. (Not just people who run into the back of me, either.)
This takes a variety of forms. We're all familiar with the middle-lane moron - sitting there in the middle lane doing 50, effectively turning a 3-lane motorway into a single-lane queue. Then there's
the compulsive lane-changer, who will dart into any space in another lane at the first sign of delays, even if they lose out in the process. (This last habit generates a good illustration of the transition between laminar and turbulent flow.)
Often the root cause of much of the bad driving I see is sheer impatience. And the possible gains are infinitesimally small - usually you might move up one car in the queue.
But last night was just lunacy. Up the A1 there's a choke point where it goes from 3 lanes to 2. So at the merge point I'm letting a lorry into the space in front of me. All of a sudden this old banger in the inside lane swings onto the hard shoulder to pass the car merging in behind me, shoots between me and the lorry (almost at right angles), screeches up past the lorry, and swings at right angles again across the front of the lorry, back on to the hard shoulder, and disappears off to heaven knows where, with the lorry driver flashing his lights and tooting his horn.
This takes a variety of forms. We're all familiar with the middle-lane moron - sitting there in the middle lane doing 50, effectively turning a 3-lane motorway into a single-lane queue. Then there's
the compulsive lane-changer, who will dart into any space in another lane at the first sign of delays, even if they lose out in the process. (This last habit generates a good illustration of the transition between laminar and turbulent flow.)
Often the root cause of much of the bad driving I see is sheer impatience. And the possible gains are infinitesimally small - usually you might move up one car in the queue.
But last night was just lunacy. Up the A1 there's a choke point where it goes from 3 lanes to 2. So at the merge point I'm letting a lorry into the space in front of me. All of a sudden this old banger in the inside lane swings onto the hard shoulder to pass the car merging in behind me, shoots between me and the lorry (almost at right angles), screeches up past the lorry, and swings at right angles again across the front of the lorry, back on to the hard shoulder, and disappears off to heaven knows where, with the lorry driver flashing his lights and tooting his horn.
Monday, December 05, 2005
Back in black.
After my recent unfortunate incident, my Toyota went in to be repaired today. It's going to take a few days, so I've got a hire car to get around in.
Not just any car, either. This is a black Vauxhall Astra SRi, which is allegedly pretty fancy. Still, I prefer the old Toyota - it has a level of solidity that is difficult to match. (And I'm not too bothered by cars that are bland or boring. It's whether they do the job that matters.)
Not just any car, either. This is a black Vauxhall Astra SRi, which is allegedly pretty fancy. Still, I prefer the old Toyota - it has a level of solidity that is difficult to match. (And I'm not too bothered by cars that are bland or boring. It's whether they do the job that matters.)
Friday, November 18, 2005
Brrrrr!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It's getting a little chilly round these parts. I think it was below zero all the way to work today.
The other snag with driving in winter is the glare from the Sun being low in the sky. There are a couple of places on my way to work where you're looking straight into the sun. It's essentially impossible to see properly, which makes it a little tricky to say the least.
The general opinion seems to be that it's going to be a hard winter. I really don't mind that. I would much rather see some decent hard weather than 3 months of dank chills.
The other snag with driving in winter is the glare from the Sun being low in the sky. There are a couple of places on my way to work where you're looking straight into the sun. It's essentially impossible to see properly, which makes it a little tricky to say the least.
The general opinion seems to be that it's going to be a hard winter. I really don't mind that. I would much rather see some decent hard weather than 3 months of dank chills.
Sunday, November 13, 2005
Bells all day
Yesterday was a busy ringing day.
We started with a nice quarter of coldstream at Duxford, conducted by yours truly.
Then on to a new tower and a new method for me - stamford at Thriplow.
This was followed by an excellent lunch at the Star in Melbourn.
Then just down the road to the Cambridge District meeting, ringing on the eight at Melbourn, followed by an excellent tea and short meeting. Just a quick diversion via Foxton on the way home to round off a busy day.
That made three new towers for me, 2 successful quarter-peal attempts, and one new method.
We started with a nice quarter of coldstream at Duxford, conducted by yours truly.
Then on to a new tower and a new method for me - stamford at Thriplow.
This was followed by an excellent lunch at the Star in Melbourn.
Then just down the road to the Cambridge District meeting, ringing on the eight at Melbourn, followed by an excellent tea and short meeting. Just a quick diversion via Foxton on the way home to round off a busy day.
That made three new towers for me, 2 successful quarter-peal attempts, and one new method.
Monday, October 31, 2005
Lower than low
There are some heartless morons in this world, including the one (or group of) who stole the pumpkin off our doorstep tonight. What's the point?
Sunday, October 09, 2005
District Outing
We went on the district outing yesterday, round the Peterborough area.
First up was Fotherighay, a very impressive church in what is now a pretty small village. A nice (although loud) ring of 6, and we managed a lovely course of Cambridge minor.
Next up was the lovely 8 at Castor, followed by speading out for lunch so as not to overwhelm any of the local establishments.
After lunch, we went to the very light 6 at Wansford. Many struggled, but it was a good experience - visiting a variety of towers will help improve most people's ringing. Amanda grabbed the tenor, which is probably the lightest bell she's ever rung.
Off to Peterborough for some serious rings. St John the Baptist are a 25cwt eight, in stark contrast to a very light six. And then off to the Cathedral, to try out the twelve.
Unfortunately, we simply didn't have the ringers to do more than rounds on the twelve. I guess that many people on the outing had never been to a twelve before. Good experience, but not enough strength overall to bring anybody on.
First up was Fotherighay, a very impressive church in what is now a pretty small village. A nice (although loud) ring of 6, and we managed a lovely course of Cambridge minor.
Next up was the lovely 8 at Castor, followed by speading out for lunch so as not to overwhelm any of the local establishments.
After lunch, we went to the very light 6 at Wansford. Many struggled, but it was a good experience - visiting a variety of towers will help improve most people's ringing. Amanda grabbed the tenor, which is probably the lightest bell she's ever rung.
Off to Peterborough for some serious rings. St John the Baptist are a 25cwt eight, in stark contrast to a very light six. And then off to the Cathedral, to try out the twelve.
Unfortunately, we simply didn't have the ringers to do more than rounds on the twelve. I guess that many people on the outing had never been to a twelve before. Good experience, but not enough strength overall to bring anybody on.
Thursday, September 01, 2005
Last week of the holidays
Time flies, and it's the last week of the summer holidays: school starts tomorrow or Monday (depending on which school).
The weather has been good too, so we've squeezed in a couple of trips.
Monday (that quaint and mindless British invention the bank holiday) we went to Felixstowe. Some hours on the beach, a picnic lunch, feeding the slot machines, and a swim at the pool.
Yesterday we went to Chessington World of Adventures. Those who know us will know that we're keen on theme parks, and we hadn't been to Chessington before.
It was hot, the park was busy, and the queues were long. That's only to be expected. But again, the park did a less than optimal job. To start with, the ticket sales at the entrance were excruciatingly slow - it took about 45 minutes to buy a ticket. Then the ride staff were doing an indifferent job of filling the rides. Few rides were full up - some only half full - which extended the queues even further. One of the major rides was closed all day, and another operating at partial capacity. On the plus side, they did let the rides run over the scheduled closing time slightly so we managed to get an extra ride and came away feeling happy.
(One hint to theme park operators: you're missing a trick here. It's a baking hot day, people are standing in a queue for an hour, and you have a non queue-jumping policy that means people can't leave the queue and join back. You could make a fortune by having roving ice-cream and drinks sellers working along the queue line - we would have bought something more than once.)
The weather has been good too, so we've squeezed in a couple of trips.
Monday (that quaint and mindless British invention the bank holiday) we went to Felixstowe. Some hours on the beach, a picnic lunch, feeding the slot machines, and a swim at the pool.
Yesterday we went to Chessington World of Adventures. Those who know us will know that we're keen on theme parks, and we hadn't been to Chessington before.
It was hot, the park was busy, and the queues were long. That's only to be expected. But again, the park did a less than optimal job. To start with, the ticket sales at the entrance were excruciatingly slow - it took about 45 minutes to buy a ticket. Then the ride staff were doing an indifferent job of filling the rides. Few rides were full up - some only half full - which extended the queues even further. One of the major rides was closed all day, and another operating at partial capacity. On the plus side, they did let the rides run over the scheduled closing time slightly so we managed to get an extra ride and came away feeling happy.
(One hint to theme park operators: you're missing a trick here. It's a baking hot day, people are standing in a queue for an hour, and you have a non queue-jumping policy that means people can't leave the queue and join back. You could make a fortune by having roving ice-cream and drinks sellers working along the queue line - we would have bought something more than once.)
Sunday, August 28, 2005
Fixing the plumbing
Plumbing isn't my strong point. Frankly, it's pretty weak.
Yet occasionally it has to be done. We had a leaky cistern, and after plucking up courage we changed a washer.
Didn't fix it. We still had leaks. Clearly more drastic action was called for.
So I ended up changing the entire valve mechanism for a new one. With a quick break in the middle to get some extra tools, and a second attempt to fit it correctly, it was eventually fitted.
And successfully, too. No leaks now!
Yet occasionally it has to be done. We had a leaky cistern, and after plucking up courage we changed a washer.
Didn't fix it. We still had leaks. Clearly more drastic action was called for.
So I ended up changing the entire valve mechanism for a new one. With a quick break in the middle to get some extra tools, and a second attempt to fit it correctly, it was eventually fitted.
And successfully, too. No leaks now!
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