Real cold weather

The temperature overnight was again just below zero. Fortunately our house is quite well insulted so with winter duvets on the bed it doesn't need heating on overnight. Annoyingly the bathroom light pull-switch broke as I was getting ready for bed, leaving the light permanently on, so I had to remove the bulb before turning in.  There's front on the lawn grass and on car windscreens in the street, but snow is unlikely at the moment.

As I was clearing up after breakfast I listened to Haydn's Oxford Symphony on Radio 3. The sound quality of the new DAB radio, installed by Clare yesterday, is really good for the kitchen acoustic. At the end of the first movement, a metallic clunking sound came from the radio. DAB radios with poorly positioned antennae and signal issues are prone to noise 'artefacts'. The Sony hi-fi DAB receiver in the dining room is on times, not fit for purpose, and can't be re-positioned. Then, the presenter Georgia Mann apologised for the background noises. The end of the music had coincided with the arrival of the bin men, she declared. Evidently working from home! 

I spent the morning producing my Sunday sermon. Then I printed Christmas Card labels and forty copies of this year's newsletter, ready for assembling with the cards I bought a month ago. 

Having cooked a tasty salmon soup, Clare went into town, and we ate it went she returned. I uploaded some photos, then went out and took more photos at the sun was setting, interested to see what I could capture in diminishing light, without a tripod, and at what point the picture become too grainy or blurred to be of interest. I can hold the camera quite steady for with long lens extended when the light isn't great, sometimes it works OK, sometimes not. Sometimes I think the camera is not so quick to processing the light input and gets confused. Good shots seem to be a matter of luck in marginal conditions. 

I uploaded and edited the best of these after supper, before watching another episode of Astrid and Rafaelle, the last in season one, probably the last for a while until season two is screened on More Four. All interesting cases, instructive to watch, as they portray a true autistic savant at work, solving crimes. Favourite quote from Astrid: "They all think I'm unique. I think they're all the same."

Minus one at bed-time tonight!