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I have had technical problems which have prevented me from updating the blog for a little while. I think I have sorted it now so sorry to my thousands of readers if you thought I had forgotten you.

We had a grey and rain sodden trek down to Dorset on Saturday but it has brightened up and we have enjoyed warm sunshine since arriving.

A couple of nights before coming I fired up the laptop and connected to the hi-fi and we both watched a number of episodes on YouTube of “Last Choir Standing” – the human voice is capable of producing a vast range of sounds and when joined - as in a choir -  is unsurpassable by any instrument or orchestra. What we enjoyed that evening was quite simply,  uplifting. We will continue to search out more beautiful choral efforts. As olduns’ our human spirit needs this stuff like it needs water and Viagra, indispensable life essence.

It's nearly Armistice Day but I’d not thought of that when we diverted from our route to Rushden and turned into the Airfield Road at Poddington. We drove as far as we felt was polite – the control tower still there at the end of the road. It’s been converted to a house now but they have done it well and the external observation balcony with its steel railing is still in place. Returning back down the road we stopped at the American memorial and I snapped some shots here:

The marble of the memorial commemorates the men of the 92nd Bombardment Group (H) who flew missions from here and were posted as missing or killed in action. Lots of young men who would now be old men - with grandchildren – and with stories to tell and love to share. Many, like me, will not forget what they sacrificed and I know that others like me will remember them for their bravery.

Expecting a visit to the caravan shortly from S’s who wants me to make fishcakes for them. While on the subject of fish, I am reminded of another fishy moment a few days ago in a certain branch of TESCO where we asked to have a whole salmon filleted. Turns out that the bloke who normally does it is away sick and it’s left to this dozey middle aged fish hating brunette to serve us. As she handled the fish she was retching and had us in stitches as she recounted that on being deputed to the fish counter a few days previously, she had attempted to bag up a fresh salmon for a customer. Now salmon are slippery right? – everyone knows that - but she didn’t: Even dead, the salmon objected to being confined to a plastic bag and demonstrated its displeasure by launching itself into the main aisle of the supermarket and very nearly taking out an old lady with her shopping trolley. If only a younger woman could have speared the careening fish with a well placed stiletto heal we might have witnessed the first example of salmon surfing seen in a supermarket.

Recently watched this heron circle lazily over our house and land on the roof opposite – what? – on the roof? Strange behaviour for a water wading bird I thought. Was it simply admiring the view or just looking for a higher plaice……..?

Came back from Yeovil yesterday and decided to take a roundabout route well away from the beaten track. This photo gives you an idea why they are called “beaten tracks” – this one was very beaten indeed. Very shortly after I took the picture, the road became a river as well.

We visited the cider museum today as it was “open day”. They showed us the traditional way of making scrumpy cider. It was all very unhygienic and ethnic; the apples were in an old trailer, muddy and half rotten. They were given a token wash in an old bath full of very muddy water. Next, they went through an ancient apple mangle and then shovelled on to layers of straw in the juice press with a shovel that looked like it had just mucked out the pigs. I tasted the juice which was expressed, it was sweet and pleasant but as a precaution I have programmed Dorchester Hospitals number into my mobile phone.

Shortly after we did our supermarket shop – our checkout lad was passing our stuff through the till when he suddenly doubled over with his hands over his face and gave a massively snotty sneeze. With an embarrassing glance he wiped his palms on a paper towel and carried on checking our items through: that’s right I thought – now go and contaminate all our food – then I remembered the cider……….!