Tuesday 30 December 2008

While we were offline

Lots has happened; my Daughter Kate and her boyfriend Luke visited for the week leading up to Christmas, excellent timing as the rain stopped and the sun came out for the whole of the time they were here. We had some fine frosty starts although the car thermometer was reading +3C before dawn, the Arum lilies survived fine unlike in Cornwall where ours melted at the slightest sign of frost, we think maybe the mist floating through caused it rather than a hard ground frost. As you can see I have been doing more logging too.
By lunchtime most days it was feeling like early summer in the UK and we visited a fair few beaches despite most of us being ill most of the time.

Action men at Cedeira


Resting at Ortigueira
Low tide on Ortigueira estury


Kate and Luke at Pantin

We met Mark, an English friend, on the beach at Pantin, he spotted us from the sea and popped over to see us..here is a pic of him paddling out in the rip.
Rowan learned a new trick on the trampoline eek unfortunately he managed to handstand off the edge a couple of days later but was unhurt. Kate and Luke trying to chill in the sun.
The Fragas were looking good ..the river was flowing well, Luke tried to fall in
And this old mill by the Monesteiro de Caveiro is a place I would like to spend some more time although it was a bit scary with two adventure boys rampaging around. Jen and Rowan are on the bridge that has an alarmingly unprotected long drop to the river.

Christmas was fun...

I stood on a rusty nail while gathering wood for the Christmas fire wearing slippers... so was hobbling for a few days.

Wildmite/Prince Rollo is now very friendly although still runs a mile when I am around.
Christmas over and our colds thrown off we immediately all got ill again, Jen lost her voice and Rowan was very feverish but we are all recovering now and looking forward to more visitors on the 2nd Jan.
Oh and its my 50th birthday today - feliz cumpleanos to me - how time flies when you are having fun.

telefonica probs

We lost internet access on 14 Dec, our modem router supplied by Telefonica stopped working possibly during an unexpected lightning storm... 5 phone calls and 10 days later there was still no response so I bought a new router myself, I was still unable to access the internet so another four phone calls and a final one suggesting I would be seeking compensation if lost my job as a result of their non response and miraculously access was restored 30 mins later.

I don't understand why a friend near here had a replacement modem mailed out to him fairly promptly after the same storm and another friend reports giving up on Telephonica and going for a mobile BB solution as they ignored their similar problem for three months. Telephonica's support service seems variable to say the least. Next step is to claim compensation for no service and to try and extract a new modem from them or recoup the cost of the one I had to buy...then try and find a better service provider.

Saturday 13 December 2008

OS Catedrales


I stumbled across an expat site full of interesting people - link on my other computer I will add it later but someone was talking about Os Catedrales and I found a pic from past year when we were there - It is East of Viveiro on the Western part of the North Coast - amazing place amazing rocks in the right light.

Amanita


It is rather like the Cornish summer justnow week after week of rain but at least hte temperature is holding up and we get the odd afternoon of sunshine. The Birch and oak trees are still holding their leaves autumn is going on forever, in COrnwall it sometimes used to seem to las a few days between the leaves starting to turn and them being blown off.

No piskies but a wonderful Amanita in the woods.

Tuesday 9 December 2008

Rercruiting students

We are now recruiting students for our 10th intake ready for a February start; if you can't or don't want to give up work but do want to get a degree in three years this course lets you do so because it integrates your study with your work activities. You apply reflective practice and action inquiry as a means of systematically improving your own practice and that of others in the workplace. It is a great way to move up the ladder without having to take time out of working or spend many years studying part time. All of your study is directly relevant to your work role so you are embedded in authentic learning on a daily basis rather than disappearing onto campus for three years and returning to an employment world that has moved on without you. We have seen a huge range of students through to graduation - dinner ladies, TAs, charity workers, people in small businesses and large businesses, some from the Health sector, some from LEAs and many other contexts too numerous to mention. Double click on the poster to enlarge or check out the information on the web-site http://www.ultraversity.com/ Like any good degree it is hard work but it really does pay off.

Pantin and Vilarrube

We have not been out and about a lot recently although we had a lovely walk at Pantin with Graham and Liz at the weekend. The weather was changable but the rain held off and the clouds were gorgeous.Even on a moderate swell there is a cracking great wave a Pantin, I took some video but the camera is playing up today so will maybe post it once I get it sorted.


Graham made it up to a high point to see the view along the coast but the boys were a bit cliff happy so the rest of us stayed on lower ground.


Boys did climbing and dismantling the cliff.

We had an evening walk at Vilarrube again on Monday, it was a lovely evening but the boys had filled their wellies by the time they got down the path to the beach.
Snowbird is now laying although her eggs are half size but that is quite convenient when you want a little omlette.