:: northern lights

There's been a huge solar flare this week, which caused a big geomagnetic storm. It could blow out satellites and make your mobile phone play up -- but the really good news is that it means there may be some good aurora displays.

I've never seen the northern lights, so I'm excited.

Actually it says on the BBC link up there that "aurora have been seen at night all over the globe." Not in my 'hood. But I live in hope. More flares are expected.

The only lights in the sky so far this week have been from damned fireworks. Yes, it's that time of year again. I used to love fireworks -- now I've got a big chicken-hearted dog who paces the house crying and peering out of windows. I've been leaving the curtains drawn when I go to work, and radios on.


Here he is hiding behind the chair last November.

:: busybusybusy

The days are just flying by. Visitors are coming thick and fast, I barely have time to get the sheets washed in between times. I have all these projects on the go too, plus there's the regular stuff I have to shoe-horn in, like dog-walking and, oh, a full-time job.

Today was spent mainly getting quotes for shifting Anthea's cast-off furniture up to Andrew's place. The lowest was £258, a snip compared to the highest at £700 plus VAT but still too much for Andrew, so a lucky charity organisation will benefit instead.

Yesterday I got a cheapo flatpack desk and put it in the study as a sewing table. It's from Argos, and the quality is so wretched it makes Ikea look like Chippendale. Still, it does the job. And I've already done a spot of sewing!

:: correction

I was mistaken about Faye going up to Inverness, by the way, the car's being collected instead.

In other news: went to see Calendar Girls finally, with Fiona and Penny. John met us afterwards and we had a meal at Giulianos in Leith, very nice.

I was surprised at how dark Calendar Girls was, in parts -- it was also very funny, obviously, but parts were terribly sad and even grim. It being a movie, however, everything worked out lovely in the end. Apparently in real life the ladies didn't end up getting on so famously afterwards, though. I'd be interested to read more about the real-life story having seen the film.

:: a long silence...

Well, I've been busy. I'm going to be busy for the next couple of months too -- lots of visitors, lots of stuff to do, lots of work at work.

I'm in the throes of several home-improvement projects, mainly involving chucking a lot of stuff out. I want to get my sewing machine set up permanently so I can crack on with other projects, such as making curtains. Right now I'm going off to buy a new fluorescent light fitting for the kitchen -- I noticed with horror the other day that the current one is broken, and the bulb was actually dangling, probably held in only by accumulated grime.

I've added a new comments system -- the old one became defunct. This one has animated emoticons! Oooo!

:: back in the real world ...

Holidays vanish like spit on a griddle, don't they?

However, there are lots of upcoming visits and fun times to keep life interesting. Andrew's coming down for a few days at the end of this week. We're having a night out with his cousin, Grace, so that should be fun, and we'll maybe catch a movie one night too.

Then next month, Faye passes through en route to New Zealand. Yes, I know it's a considerable detour -- especially since she's going right up to Inverness -- but she's leaving her car in Scotland. She'll be back in February.

She may get here in time to go with me to my next door neighbours' tenth wedding anniversary bash, a ceilidh in a local pub. My other next-door neighbour had a 50th birthday party on Friday but I was working. All her line-dancing pals were there, so I imagine there was some boot-scootin' going on!

I'm negotiating to get Christmas week off (we work statutory holidays: the only guaranteed day off is Christmas Eve, because we don't publish on Christmas Day) because I've been invited to the farm, hurrah. I haven't been there for Christmas for years. My visit was memorable for me because it was soooooo cold the windscreen washers froze up on the way back and I had to keep stopping to wash it. Every layby was full of other cars with frozen windscreen washers -- the roads are salted, so even though it was 15 below zero there was a constant spray of wet slush. Which dried white, due to the salt. My visit was memorable for my hosts because they got me to film their granddaughter opening her presents and I had the video recorder upside down the whole time.

So yes, I'm looking forward to that.

I've applied for some Hogmanay street party passes even though I won't have New Year's Eve off -- it's always nice to have the option.

Nothing much else to report. I'm well and so is Bertie. The weather's turning cold and wet, leaves are falling, Christmas decorations are appearing in the shops.

:: updating as we speak

I'm chuntering on with the Paris entry, please do check it out for new pics.