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My Diary/Blog For the Month of April 2021 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The links in the calendar above
link to archived pages for each date. |
Friday 30th April
2021 |
Lockdown day 402 Shopping embargo day 88 281 08:42 BST The morning was bright, with some sunshine, but yesterday afternoon was generally dull. It wasn't very warm. I'm not even sure that the temperature hit the forecast 11° C, but it probably did. The screenshot of
the early morning version of the forecast
starts all wrong. The latest revision to the
forecast shows some hastily scribbled in sunny
spells for now and 9am. Even that doesn't seem
quite right. Over half the sky still looks
blue, but that is less than it was at 8am when
it seemed like almost all the sky was blue. I
don't think the sun has gone behind a cloud in
the last 90 or more minutes. It seems good
enough to say it is "sunny" now, but as I say,
more clouds are gathering, and the latest
forecast revision may be right when it says
the rest of the day will be cloudy and dull.
Once again it may be no more than 11° C today.
Tomorrow is probably going to be almost
identical to today except for some light rain
from 6pm for a couple of hours.
Yesterday morning feels like a blur, and I am struggling to remember if I did anything of importance then, or indeed right up to the boozing started at almost 4pm. ..... wait....it's coming, thoughts are breaking through the fog..... Of course I did stuff yesterday morning ! You can read what I did yesterday, what I drunk, some of what I ate, how I slept, and about my health checks and plans for today in my full archive page for today. |
Thursday 29th April
2021 |
Lockdown day 401 Shopping embargo day 88 280 09:28 BST The forecasts from both the BBC and Met office were in a state of flux yesterday morning. Neither got yesterday right. The actual weather was a generally grey day with sporadic very light showers. The rain was so light that I don't think it ever got the road actually looking wet. It was not a warm day. The forecast generally agreed that 10° C might be about the best we could hope for, and that turned out to be about right for just a few hours. The rest of the day was cooler. There are still too
many big fluffy clouds around to give any long
periods of sunshine at the moment, but the
latest revision to the forecast still says
that 9 and 10am should feature non stop
sunshine, and that 11am will feature just
sunny spells. After that it will be generally
light grey, but it should stay dry. Like
yesterday, the weather may still be a bit
unpredictable today, but it seems very likely
that much of this afternoon will be 11° C.
Tomorrow may be a bit brighter, and it should
be 12° C for a lot of the afternoon.
Unfortunately it may end with rain after
sunset.
Yesterday was one of those days where I was busy, but not doing anything physical. I spent a fair time trying to find out why my old laptop should stop recognising a Lightscribe burner, and just thought it was an ordinary CD/DVD burner. I eventually sorted that problem out, but at the same time invented new problems. You can read all about my computer based busyness, and all the usual stuff about eating, and sleeping, plus my health observations and plans from this morning in my full archive page for today. |
Wednesday 28th April
2021 |
Lockdown day 400 Shopping embargo day 88 279 08:39 BST Maybe yesterday afternoon did feel a bit milder than previous days. The thermometer said it was just 2° C higher than the day before, but only for an hour or so, but with no icy wind it felt a lot more than that. The last forecast revision I saw was predicting just a single hour at 15° C, but I'm not sure I even saw my thermometer hit 14° C. The afternoon was probably duller than the forecast suggested it would be, but there was some sunshine in the morning. Yesterday the BBC
(Meteogroup) weather forecast was predicting a
lot of rain for today, but the Met Office
predicted a lot less. This morning they have
both changed sides. The BBC says there will be
some rain, but also a few sunny spells. The
Met Office, as in the screenshot above, are
predicting a really wet day today. At the
moment it is probably a bit brighter than
forecast, and about 2 hours ago there was some
thin sunshine peeping over the horizon.
The weather is obviously in a high state of flux. Since first checking the weather forecasts the two forecasters have switched their predictions again. The Met Office still says it will be very dull, but the deluge shown in the screenshot above is now reduced to just a few scattered hours of light rain with the first shower starting at 10am. The BBC is now predicting a total deluge, also starting at around 10am, but continuing with some periods of heavy rain until well after sunset. Both forecasters says the maximum temperature will be 11° C. The BBC say all afternoon, but the Met Office say it will only reach 11° C for couple of hours late in the afternoon. Tomorrow may be bright and 11° C, or it may be very dull, and 11° C depending on which forecaster comes closest to reality. The big unknown yesterday was what time my parcel would arrive, or even if it would arrive yesterday. It was two packs of glucose test strips. I still have about a weeks supply left of the last pack, and so I was not desperately waiting for the new packs, but the uncertainty was annoying. It did arrive, and maybe earlier than I expected. All the details about that, and what I did yesterday, what I ate, how I slept, how I feel this morning, and some speculation about what I might do today can be read in my full archive page for today. |
Tuesday 27th April
2021 |
Lockdown day 399 Shopping embargo day 88 278 09:21 BST Yesterday was another day that was often bright, but still feeling rather cold. Despite almost non stop sunshine for 3 or 4 hourss in the afternoon the temperature barely reached 10° C, and the wind chill made it feel closer to 8° C. It is sunny at the
moment, but that will soon be reduced to sunny
spells. In turn they will fade to just cloudy
skies with a few random minutes of sunshine
now and then. Even so, the temperature may hit
15° C. Sadly the latest revision now says it
will only be 15° C for as little as one hour
now. Apart from a short period of sunny spells
in the morning, most of tomorrow will be dull,
and from 9pm rain is predicted. It might still
reach 13° C in the afternoon. Of course if you
choose the BBC (Meteogroup) forecast then
there will be more sunny spells tomorrow
morning, and it will rain almost non stop from
midday !
It was almost as if I was having a very delayed reaction to my 2nd Covid jab yesterday. I didn't feel good all day. I guess much of it was just a sort of enhanced old age creakiness, but later on one particular pain was Repetitive Strain Injury from using my computer mouse far too much. All the details, including what all that mouse work was, plus the usual stuff about eating and sleeping can be read in my full archive page for today. It also includes how I feel this morning, and what I might do today. |
Monday 26th April
2021 |
Lockdown day 398 Shopping embargo day 88 277 10:04 BST Yesterday was generally bright, but it never felt warm despite the thermometer creeping up to 12 or even 13° C (the weather forecast predicted just 11° C). It was the wind that made it feel a lot colder. It wasn't a very strong wind, but it was still really chilling. It has been, and is
very dull as I write this, but the sun has
started to try and push through the clouds.
The latest revision to the forecast has
changed to show that this hour will be extra
gloomy, but I can see a few slivers of blue in
the sky, and if one of those should end up
where the sun is.... 11am is when the forecast
says the first sunny spells should appear, and
midday could see the start of clear skies and
4 hours of solid sunshine....maybe. 2 and 3pm
could see the temperature peak at 11° C, but
it will only be 10° C for a good few hours
either side of that. Once again the wind feels
bitterly cold, or at least it did when I
walked down the road at just before 8.30am.
Tomorrow may feature very little sunshine, but
the temperature is expected to be around 15°
C.
I don't know if it was an after/side effect of my 2nd Covid vaccination shot, but I still didn't feel good yesterday. Like the day before it was mostly a case of feeling very sleepy. My muscles seemed to be working OK because I washed a large bath towel with no difficulties late in the morning. Later in the day I would feel sleepy, and have a sort of gut ache. You can read about my day, my night, and some of this morning in my full archive page for today. |
Sunday 25th April
2021 |
Lockdown day 397 Shopping embargo day 88 276 09:41 BST Apart from one flaw, it was really nice yesterday. The flaw was that the sun is now high enough in the sky to not shine through my front windows...well it does, but at such an oblique angle that it doesn't warm the rooms so much. There was sunshine all day yesterday, and the afternoon temperature was possibly a degree or two higher than the forecast 14° C. It was enough to dry my washing in 4, maybe 5 hours, and it felt nice and warm when I took it off the line to bring inside. Meanwhile, my bedroom felt slightly cool, particularly so when quietly reading, and almost too warm after putting the heater on low for a few minutes. There is a lot of
uncertainty to the forecast for today -
particularly so at this time in the morning.
The cloud patterns are obviously different to
the predictions. When it says sunny it is
cloudy, and similar mix ups. Maybe a little
later things will settle down. The latest
revision to the forecast predicts non stop
sunshine from midday to sunset, but still give
no hope that the temperature will get any
higher than 11° C. Tomorrow is predicted to
start very cold and very gloomy, but by late
afternoon the sun could breakthrough enough to
give sunny periods, and even long periods of
pure sunshine. The temperature may rise to 12°
C.
Yesterday was almost a very quiet day, but I did have a spurt of activity in the morning. I was wondering what side effects my 2nd dose of Covid vaccine might give. Maybe it made me feel very sleepy, but otherwise OK yesterday. The full details of my day, my eating, my reading, my sleeping, my health this morning, and what my plans might be today, can be read in my full archive page for today. |
Saturday 24th April
2021 |
Lockdown day 396 Shopping embargo day 88 275 08:25 BST Yesterday, and the day before were both very sunny days, but no more than slightly warm in the afternoons. The mornings were still very cold - just 3 or 4° C. The afternoon temperature on Thursday was around 11° C, and yesterday it was closer to 14° C. Today is going to be
another sunny day, and it will be slightly
warmer than yesterday with the afternoon
temperature reaching 14° C. It helps that this
morning was a degree or two higher than recent
mornings. Tomorrow will see far less sunshine
as it starts to get cloudy. In consequence it
will be a cooler day. Paradoxically, the day
after, Monday may see the temperature rise a
degree despite the possibility of hardly any
sunshine, perhaps none at all all day.
For reasons I'll try and explain later, I didn't write anything yesterday, and now I have to rack my brains to try and remember if I did anything of note on Thursday. I guess there were two things of note. The first was that as I had suggested when writing on Thursday morning, I did go to Poundstretcher. I specifically wanted some bird feeding kit, but of course I bought much more. Yesterday started with my 2nd Covid jab, and was followed by a long, and very exhausting walk. That was followed by depression and boozing. Some or all these things are explained, with some pictures, plus the usual eating, sleeping, and musings about the rest of today in my full archive page for today. |
Thursday 22nd April
2021 |
Lockdown day 394 Shopping embargo day 88 273 10:11 BST Yesterday morning started off OK, but before the afternoon started the clouds were covering most of the sky. I seem to recall the sun did manage to peep through the clouds now and then in the early afternoon, but then it became very dull. The last two hours of daylight were supposed to feature clear skies, but for some reason I can't seem to recall that happening. The afternoon temperature was in that sort of no mans land. It wasn't cold, particularly compared to most of last month, but then again 13° C no longer feels warm in mid spring (late spring ? Whatever ?). I would have hoped
for something better than a few minutes at 12°
C for a day when the sun is (and several hours
later, still is) predicted to shine all
day. In fact the latest revision to the
forecast makes no mention of 12° C, and now
only shows 11° C for 4 consecutive hours. The
ends of the day are going to be a lot cooler
(it was very chilly when I went out an hour
ago). Tomorrow will also feature non stop
sunshine, but the temperature could reach a
far more pleasant 15° C.
It felt like I didn't do all that much the day before yesterday. Yesterday I easily topped that ! I had a very lazy day. I kept thinking I should go and do some gardening, but I just lacked the get-up-and-go to do it. I spent a lot of the day just reading, or on the internet. There was one other thing I didn't do, or from another perspective, I did do. It was not to eat anything too outrageous, not to eat too much, and to be careful about what I did eat. The long version of this, plus stuff about watching TV, sleeping, good and bad health this morning, and plans for today, can be read in my full archive page for today. |
Wednesday 21st April
2021 |
Lockdown day 393 Shopping embargo day 88 272 08:01 BST The weather was fine but cool in the morning, and then dull but warmer in the afternoon. I think the sunshine lasted a bit longer than the various revisions of the forecast predicted, and to be honest, longer than my opening sentence suggested. There were probably some sunny spells as late as 3pm, but soon after it did get very dull, and looked as if it might rain. Of course it didn't rain because I didn't water the garden ! I don't think the temperature reached the predicted 16° C, but I'm sure it was at least 14° C. Today is going to be
patchy, and not as warm as the previous few
days. The current revision shows sunny spells
for 8am and 11am. 9am maybe cloudy, and 10am
full on sunshine. Of course it is best to take
these as approximations, but it seems likely
that midday to 5pm will be cloudy with no hint
of sunshine. Full sunshine may appear for the
last two hours of daylight. That lack of
sunshine in the middle means the highest
afternoon temperature may only be 13° C - not
quite warm, but definitely not cold. Tomorrow
may feature an abundance of sunshine, but the
maximum temperature is predicted to be
slightly cooler - just 12° C.
The Poundshop not having anything useful in the bird feeding department was a bit of an annoyance yesterday morning. Initially it spoiled my plans for the day - not that I had any concrete plans except to finish off the laundry I had left soaking after my shower yesterday morning. After getting the laundry finished, and hanging on the washing line, I had a light lunch. I then set about making a bird table from scraps of wood. The full story of yesterday, my dreams, my good news this morning, and vague plans for today can be read in my full archive page for today - with pictures ! |
Tuesday 20th April
2021 |
Lockdown day 392 Shopping embargo day 88 271 10:59 BST It was very nice yesterday. The sun was shining, and the temperature hit 16° C. There was supposed to be a splash of light rain late in the evening, but I don't think any fell. The good thing about
the cloud, that might have produced a a splash
of rain late yesterday night, but didn't
appear to, was that it kept a bit of the
warmth in, and this morning was cool rather
than cold. By 9.30am it was just mild enough
to go shopping without a coat - about 10° C.
Unfortunately the latest revision to the
forecast shows less sunshine than predicted
earlier this morning. 1 and 2pm may only
feature sunny spells, and then the sun goes
in, and doesn't come out again until 5pm.
There could be full sunshine again at 6pm
until sunset. Also unfortunately is that the
maximum temperature is only expected to be 15°
C, although that is pretty good. Tomorrow's
high is expected to be only 12° C, but I guess
that is still good compared to earlier in the
month. The afternoon could feature some heavy
cloud.
Yesterday was a very productive day (for me). In the morning I did my weekly shopping in Aldi, and then after a good rest I washed a couple of t-shirts and some underwear. After that the real blood sweat and tears started. I did some gardening for the first time this year. All the main work I did is illustrated with pictures, and described in my full archive page for today. It also includes other stuff done yesterday like eating and sleeping, plus what I have already done, and may do later today. |
Monday 19th April
2021 |
Lockdown day 391 Shopping embargo day 88 270 09:42 BST Yesterday was another pleasant day. It was even better than the day before....I think. The weather forecast kept changing it's mind about how much sunshine there would be. It turned out that the problem was probably that the afternoon featured what I think is called a mackerel sky. All those tiny clouds, very high up in the sky, partly attenuated the sun from time to time, but generally it was bright all day. It also felt warm, or maybe almost warm. The afternoon temperature was forecast to rise to 14° C, and I think my thermometer agreed. The latest revision
to the forecast shows the last sunshine, in
the form of sunny spells, finishing after 3pm.
The temperature should still reach 16° C. That
should feel warm even without any sunshine. It
looks like it could be a warm night as well.
By 6am tomorrow morning, the temperature may
only have fallen to 7° C, but it will rise up
to 16° C again thanks to much of the day
featuring sunshine or sunny spells.
I was considering going out for a short walk, perhaps little more than just one mile, yesterday morning. The plan was to try some new/different socks with my walking boots to see how they felt. I was reluctant to walk very far because I didn't want to be tired and sleepy in the afternoon, although if the socks had cured the aching feet problem I may have decided to walk a bit further. There were reasons I didn't go out, and they are explained in my full archive page for today. It also includes the usual stuff about boozing, eating, sleeping, dreaming, my health this morning, and what I might do today. |
Sunday 18th April
2021 |
Lockdown day 390 Shopping embargo day 88 269 07:52 BST It was nice yesterday. As I suspected, the sunshine or sunny spells went on far longer than the early forecasts said they would. Having said that, when I glance back at yesterday's archive page, I see that the screenshot of the forecast did predict that the sunny spells would last until sunset. I am not sure why I thought otherwise. One small, but nice change, was that the temperature may have risen faster and higher than forecast. I am sure I saw my garden thermometer showing it was 13° C when I came back from my walk yesterday (although that would have been 3pm, and the forecast said 12° C for 3pm). I think the early
morning temperature in the screenshot above
may be a degree higher than reality, but it is
sunny now, and plenty of sunny spells are
forecast, and they will warm things up a bit.
Sadly, the latest revision to the forecast is
now showing a bit less sunshine. Midday and
1pm may be just cloudy, but the temperature is
still expected to reach 14° C by late
afternoon. It seems the curse of winter may
finally be over, but a year ago April saw
temperature approaching 20° C on some of the
later days of the month. Tomorrow may see a
lot of sunshine, and the temperature hitting
16° C, but not until after the sunshine has
given away to clouds as early as 3pm.
I was thinking of going out later in the afternoon when it would have been a bit warmer yesterday, but by 1pm it seemed to feel about right - and it was. I walked almost 3.6 miles, and I have illustrated my walk with quite a few pictures. That, and stuff about the rest of my day and night, plus predictions for today, and bad news this morning, can all be read in my full archive page for today. |
Saturday 17th April
2021 |
Lockdown day 389 Shopping embargo day 88 268 08:40 BST I was too pre-occupied to pay that much attention to the weather yesterday, and yet I do remember the afternoon being often bright and sunny. I did mention that the forecast had been revised to show the morning sunny spells and sunshine to end later when writing yesterday. It seems that later revisions would have shown the last of the sunny spells being later and later in the afternoon. I don't think it pushed up the temperature much beyond the predicted 10° C. At some point
in the night the skies cleared, and the
temperature dropped enough for a frost this
morning. I saw 1.7° C on my garden thermometer
when the forecast was saying it should be 3° C
at 8am. The latest revision to the forecast
makes one small change. The sunshine will give
way to sunny spells at 2pm, and those will
finish after 6pm. The temperature is still
predicted to rise to 12° C by 3pm. Tomorrow
may start off with sunshine, but that may
reduce to sunny spells. It could cloud over by
mid afternoon, but the temperature may reach
14° C.
I believe there is an army saying in one or more of the armies of the world that says something like "hurry up and wait". That is a fair description of my day yesterday. I do my best to explain this, although probably not that well, in my full archive page for today. It includes stuff like sleeping and dreaming, and what my possible plans are for today. |
Friday 16th April
2021 |
Lockdown day 388 Shopping embargo day 88 267 08:06 BST It was a day of two halves yesterday. The morning was cold and bright. The afternoon was not that warm, but it was dull, and it was sometimes wet. The best temperature was about 8° C. The latest
revision to the forecast is a bit more
optimistic than the earlier version in the
screenshot above. The sunny spells may now
last until midday, and the grey clouds in the
afternoon are now shown as white clouds. The
only negative thing is that the afternoon
temperature is now predicted to be just 10° C,
although with only one hour at 4pm originally
predicted to be 11° C, it is not a great loss.
Tomorrow may feature much more sunshine, and
the afternoon temperature may rise to 12° C by
about 4pm.
Two things were of the greatest significance yesterday. The morning featured cloning the failing hard disk in my PC, and the afternoon featured another Thursday boozing session. Of course other things happened as well - during the day, during the evening, and then, after sleep, this morning. It is all described in my full archive page for today. It also includes what my plans might, or might not be for today. |
Thursday 15th April
2021 |
Lockdown day 387 Shopping embargo day 88 266 09:21 BST Yesterday was another day similar to the day before, although not quite as good.It was probably a degree or two cooler, but probably the 11° C predicted in the weather forecast. The morning featured sunny spells, but they seemed to fade out a bit earlier in the afternoon. They returned for the last couple of hours before sunset. It was another
cold night, although not cold enough for a
frost this morning. It has been quite sunny,
but the clouds are building up now. The last
of the sunshine may finish not too long after
10am. This afternoon it is probably going to
rain. The latest revision has changed the
forecast in the screenshot above to say it
will be dry at 3pm, instead of light rain, and
there will be heavy rain at 4 and 5pm instead
of light rain. 6pm should see just light rain
again. The rest of the evening should be dry.
It is going to be cooler today, and the
maximum temperature may just be 8° C. It could
reach there by 11am, and start falling again
after 3pm. Tomorrow should see a lot of sunny
spells, and maybe a maximum temperature of 11°
C.
Yesterday was good and bad, and sometimes the good was bad. I was unsure if I would go for a walk yesterday, but I had a route in mind if I did go out. By 11am the weather was not perfect - sunny spells instead of sunshine, and it didn't seem like it would feel warm - but in the end I decided I would go out. I describe my walk with a handful of pictures, and then there is other stuff about some good news from Angela, how my dinner was almost the same as my dinner the previous night, a description of my sleep and one of the dreams in it, the huge shock I had when I checked my blood glucose this morning, and finally, my plans for today in my full archive page for today. |
Wednesday 14th April
2021 |
Lockdown day 386 Shopping embargo day 88 265 08:16 BST It wasn't exactly warm yesterday, but 10 or 11° C did feel mild. The morning, and some of the afternoon featured sunny spells, and they helped to make it feel almost warm. Maybe with a more gentle breeze 11° C might have felt warm in the sunshine. For a time I thought it felt a bit humid, but I think that was just my high blood glucose making my brow a bit sweaty. There was some rain forecast for late evening, but I was not aware of any falling. The forecast
has already been revised to show this morning
as featuring more sunny spells than shown in
the screenshot above. Maybe a further revision
will show the sunny spells popping up in the
afternoon too...or maybe not. 6pm is still
shown as being sunny, and sunny spells for
7pm. The temperature may only reach 11° C for
a couple of hours this afternoon, but that is
going to be similar enough to yesterday, and
that didn't seem to bad. Of course it will
depend on how the wind feels. Tomorrow may
only reach 9° C, and the afternoon is likely
to be very grey, and from mid afternoon it
could get very wet !
Several things happened yesterday morning, and I guess both were very significant, albeit for different reasons. The first thing was that my new computer was delivered. The second was that workmen arrived to replace the back fence (as ordered and paid for my the people from the other side of the fence. The afternoon featured a walk. All the details about these things, with pictures, plus the usual stuff about eating, sleeping, dreaming, and what my plans might be if circumstances feel right for today, can be read in my full archive page for today. |
Tuesday 13th April
2021 |
Lockdown day 385 Shopping embargo day 88 264 08:26 BST Yesterday's was the reverse of the previous day...at least I think it was. It was a very dull morning, and the start of the afternoon was not exactly bright, but the last 3 or so hours before sunset was bright with a lot of sunshine. It was another cold day that seemed like it would have suited January better than mid April. The late afternoon temperature reached 8° C, and possibly a tiny bit higher. The morning was rather different - just 1° C, and even at midday it was still around 3° C. Today started
with a clear sky and frost ! It is currently
bright and sunny with a clear blue sky. It
could be a summer's morning, but the
temperature says very different. By 2pm, after
first sunshine, and then sunny spells, the
temperature should rise to a more friendly 11°
C. Sadly it is at 2pm when the forecast says
we will lose the sunny spells in favour of
100% white cloud. By 9pm it might start to
rain. Only a few sunny spells just before
sunset are predicted for tomorrow. Most of the
day will be either slightly dull or very dull,
but the temperature should still rise to 10° C
from around 5 or 6° C at daybreak.
When I think back to yesterday I can't seem to remember anything of any great significance. It was as if my early morning shopping trip was the highlight of the day yesterday. I did finish the laundry I mentioned yesterday morning, and so I did do something during the day. Eating was one thing I did yesterday, and I describe all my stupid eating decisions, plus anything else I can think of about yesterday, last night, and a fair bit about this morning, in my full archive page for today. |
Monday 12th April
2021 |
|
Lockdown day 384 Shopping embargo day 88 263 10:02 BST Yesterday started bright and sunny, but the sunshine gave way to sunny spells, and it was around midday that the sky completely clouded over. Mostly it was fairly light cloud, but from time to time the clouds turned rather grey. The last hour or two of daylight featured some sunshine. It was a rather cool day with the temperature around 8° C maximum. On the day the
pubs are allowed to re-open to serve cusomers
sitting outdoors it is going to be a perishing
day with snow. The early forecast said
there would be light snow at 10am. It actually
fell at about 7.30am.
Yesterday was probably rather typical of a Sunday - mostly boring. That is more true of the afternoon. As I described yesterday, I was semi busy in the morning. The most important thing I did yesterday was to take a backup of my PC. It took several hours, and that long wait made me think about a future job I have to do. There is more about my day, my night, and about this morning in my full archive page for today. |
Sunday 11th April
2021 |
Lockdown day 383 Shopping embargo day 88 262 12:54 BST Most of yesterday was dull, and some of it was damp. I can't recall any heavy rain, as predicted in the weather forecast, but there was certainly some prolonged drizzle. The curious thing was that the temperature was probably around the forecast 6° C, but it didn't feel that cold. Maybe it was because there was very little wind. It has been
sunny this morning, but as I write this it
seems like we have entered a dull phase. The
latest revision to the forecast predicts no
sunny spells or sunshine from 2pm until 5pm,
and there is a 30% chance of light rain at
3pm. From 5pm there could even be some very
long sunny spells until sunset. Today has been
a few degrees warmer than yesterday. It is
around 8° C now, but the latest revision to
the forecast says the temperature will start
to slowly fall from 6pm. Tomorrow morning, the
day the pub gardens are officially allowed to
open, will start at 2° C, and then warm up to
around 8° C again. At 1pm, when I could in
theory meet Angela in the beer garden, it may
be very dull with thick grey clouds, and only
8° C. At 3pm it may well rain !
As I said I would do, when writing yesterday, I had a shower, washed my hair, and a little later I put my two trail cameras out in the garden to watch the foxes. They recorded some really good stuff, but more about that later. The rest of my day involved resting, reading, boozing, eating and sleeping. There is a lot more about all this, plus what has already been happening today in my full archive page for today. Don't miss the video of the foxes on that full page ! |
Saturday 10th April
2021 |
Lockdown day 382 Shopping embargo day 88 261 08:31 BST Yesterday started bright and sunny, but by midday it had clouded over. It was still semi bright at first, but by late afternoon the clouds were looking a very dirty grey. An hour or so before sunset there was some light rain. It lasted long enough to get the road outside wet, but didn't seem heavy enough for any puddles. The afternoon was fairly mild. It may have peaked at 12° C, possibly even 13° C, but 11° C was more representative of the afternoon. With no supporting sunshine it was not enough to actually feel warm. It's a bit
dull now, but by 11am it is predicted to be
exceedingly dull with initially light rain,
and then heavy rain for a few hours from
midday. The actual times the rain will be
heavy, and when it will be light, are pure
speculation, and the rain will make up it's
own mind without consulting the forecasters.
What does seem very likely is that from
sometime around 11am, until around 7pm, it is
going to be wet. It is also going to be cold.
The latest revision to the forecast says the
highest temperature today is about now, when
it is 6° C, but will fall to just 5° C once
the rain starts. It will stay 5° C for the
rest of the day. by 4am tomorrow morning it
will be down to 3° C, but by 4pm it could be
9° C. Tomorrow is going to be dull with a
small chance of rain in the late afternoon.
I'm trying to think of any highlights from yesterday, and my mind is a blank. That is probably because not a lot happened, but not a lot does not equate to nothing. I did several unremarkable things yesterday, and I describe them, with some pictures in my full archive page for today. it also includes the usual tedium of what I ate, what I dreamed of last night, and what I plan to do today. |
Friday 9th April
2021 |
Lockdown day 381 Shopping embargo day 88 260 08:37 BST It almost felt mild yesterday afternoon. The forecast said the temperature would rise to 11° C, but I think it rose to 13 or even 14° C. Had there been any sunshine it might have been a nice afternoon, but sunshine was in very short supply yesterday. The forecast showed none at all, but I seem to think there was a little bit. Unfortunately I can't remember when, how strong it was, and how long it lasted. The latest
revision to the forecast only makes a couple
of small changes to that in the screenshot
above. The latest prediction is that this
afternoon the temperature may now briefly peak
at 12° C, and that only three hours may
feature some light rain this evening - 5pm may
just be very cloudy, but dry. Oh well, it is
bright and sunny as I type this. Tomorrow may
be very grey, a bit wet, and more than a bit
cold - max 7° C
One of my main concerns yesterday was to try and keep control of my eating - even while drinking lots of beer ! This morning it seems that I succeeded, but more on that later. About the only thing I can say I did yesterday morning was that I had a shower. That happens most morning, and so it hardly counts. All I can think of about yesterday, plus my sleep and dreams, and my thoughts and plans for today can be read in my full archive page for today. |
Thursday 8th April
2021 |
Lockdown day 380 Shopping embargo day 88 259 08:55 BST The wind was viciously cold yesterday morning, and probably at all other times yesterday. The actual temperature rose from -1° C before 8am to 8° C 3pm. There was some sunshine in the morning. I know this because I mentioned it yesterday morning, but it doesn't seem to have really registered on my memory. I think my memory was clogged by thoughts of just how bloody cold it felt when I went out in the morning ! Today,
according to the latest revision of the
weather forecast, may not be quite as grey as
shown in the screenshot above, but only by a
small degree. It seems unlikely we will see
any sunshine today, but the wind is probably
going to come from a more friendly direction
because the afternoon temperature should reach
11° C. If there were any sunshine that could
feel mostly pleasant, but sadly sunshine is in
very short supply at the moment. There is a
persistent 10% chance of rain for most of
today, but that usually means it will stay
dry. Tomorrow could see some sunshine, and
also some light rain, but the temperatures
should be similar to today.
I have to admit that some of yesterday afternoon was boring. It should have incited me to do something like a bit of gardening, but I didn't fancy going out again after a short walk in the morning. It was fairly late in the morning, maybe 11am, when I decided I would walk to the cash machine by Catford station, and then spend some of the money extracted from the hole in the wall in the little supermarket on Catford Bridge. Warming up after being exposed to the wind that must have been blowing direct from the Arctic was first priority of the day. That, and the rest of my day, including eating, sleeping, and plans for today, can be read in my full archive page for today. |
Wednesday 7th April
2021 |
Lockdown day 379 Shopping embargo day 88 258 07:45 BST It was most definitely cold again yesterday, but there was a fair bit of sunshine. The morning featured sunshine and sunny spells, and to a limited extent they continued past the forecast end, and a little way into the afternoon. Behind glass, aka my bedroom windows, the sun felt nice and warm, and for a few hours I had the heating off. After the last of the sunshine it rapidly started to cool down again. There were some snowflakes blowing in the breeze in the late afternoon ! At 7.30am my
garden thermometer said it was -0.4° C, and
there is a sharp frost outside. It is
currently sunny, and it is supposed to stay
sunny for quite a few hours yet. The sun will
help warm things up a bit, and by 3pm the
temperature could be up to 8° C. Soon after
that the clouds may be thick enough to make it
very gloomy (and there is a 10% chance of rain
possible - although no rain is actually
predicted). No sunshine is predicted for
tomorrow, but paradoxically the temperature is
expected to rise to an almost, but not quite,
good 11° C.
Yesterday turned out to be a fairly productive day. One bit of productivity was a bit of hand laundry - 2 t-shirts and some underwear. Another bit of productivity was a bit different to the rest, and I'll come to that later. The final bit of productivity was some photo and video editing. All the pictures, and the video (if your web browser will show them), plus the usual stuff about eating and sleeping can be seen and read in my full archive page for today. |
Tuesday 6th April
2021 |
Lockdown day 378 Shopping embargo day 88 257 07:39 BST Yesterday afternoon turned out to feature a lot of sunshine. It looked lovely through the window - blue sky and sunshine - but outside it was very cold. The afternoon temperature should have been 6° C, but I don't think it was as high as that except for am hour or so. It was all the fault of a wind that felt like it was blowing down from the arctic. The current
temperature is, or was 0.8° C when I checked
my garden thermometer maybe 20 minutes ago. By
the afternoon it is forecast to rise to 6° C,
and maybe 7° C at 3pm. This morning will
feature a fair amount of sunshine, but the
afternoon will probably be a bit dull. This
spell of winter like weather continues
tomorrow morning, when 0° C is forecast for
the early part of the morning. It should then
start to warm up to as high as 8° C in the
afternoon. Like today, there will probably be
sunshine in the morning, and a cloudy sky in
the afternoon. The day after, Thursday, should
see the temperature get back to 10° C, and
maybe 11° C if we are lucky.
After my early morning shopping things got a bit routine yesterday. I didn't really do anything during the morning, and I didn't really do anything for a few hours into the afternoon. Maybe that should be a few hours plus one. A broken down train blocked the line at Catford Bridge when Jodie was due to come over for a boozing session. In the end it seemed easier for Jodie to get the bus instead of the train, and out boozing session started later than usual. Most of my day, my evening, my sleep, and plans and feeling this morning, is described in my full archive page for today. |
Monday 5th April
2021 |
Lockdown day 377 Shopping embargo day 88 256 09:14 BST Yesterday was glorious, or at least the afternoon and evening were. The morning was a bit dull, but we can skip over that. By midday the sun had been shining for a while, and it was starting to warm up. By 1pm the sky was blue, the sun was shining, and it was starting to feel warm. By 4pm it was like a summers day...well maybe not quite as warm as summer, but it was at least 15° C. Another important factor was the very gentle, warm feeling breeze. It was wonderful. The one
constant in the weather forecasts for today is
that it is going to be cold, but otherwise
things get complicated. The BBC forecast was
full of doom and gloom - dark clouds and sleet
showers. The Met Office forecast was not so
gloomy. A few hours later and the BBC were
forecasting sunny spells and sunshine all
afternoon. The Met Office were less
optimistic. The sunny spells at 8am in the
screenshot above have been moved to 10am but
seemed to actually happen at 9am ! From 3pm
until sunset there should be sunny spells at
first, and then maybe full sunshine for the
last few hours of daylight. Nothing has
changed to show the temperature at midday as
being as low as 4° C (or maybe 5° C in BBC
land). Tomorrow could see the temperature hit
0° C at 7am, and only 6° C in the afternoon.
Yesterday started with some excitement - one of my traps caught a mouse in the kitchen - hopefully the last of them, but probably not. The afternoon included a lot of hill walking, some wildlife photography, and some gig photography. There are examples of both along with a description of my day, my night, and some stuff about this morning, and what I will be doing today in my full archive page for today. |
Sunday 4th April
2021 |
Lockdown day 376 Shopping embargo day 88 255 08:38 BST Dull, grey, and not warm could sum up yesterday quite well. During the afternoon I have a vague memory of the sun trying to peep out from between the clouds, but it didn't quite manage it. The odd thing is that 10° C didn't seem that cold yesterday. Maybe recent days have switched my body back into winter more where even 8° C might be considered tepid. Today the
weather makes one more effort to be like
spring. Tomorrow we plunge back into winter.
The latest revision hasn't changed the
forecast, and so I think we can assume that
this afternoon will be bright and sunny, and
that the temperature will eventually reach 15°
C - albeit quite late in the afternoon. From
midnight the temperature staarts falling quite
fast, and by 10am tomorrow it could be as cold
as 3° C. There could be a mix of sunny spells
and sunshine after that, but the afternoon
temperature may not rise higher than 6° C. On
Tuesday the early morning temperature could be
down to 0° C, and once again might only reach
6° C in the least warm part of the day.
It is surprising how lack of pain can lift the spirits, or maybe it is more correct to say that it is the absence of pain that makes you realise how depressing persistent pain can be. I was not 100% free of pain yesterday, but my right knee seemed to be perfectly healed (probably until I stress it again), and some random tooth pain seemed to have vanished again. I never did find out if one pain was a tooth problem or the blocked saliva duct I mentioned a week or two ago. The details of all this, plus more stuff is described in my full archive page for today. It also includes stuff about dinner, and excellent night's sleep, a good blood glucose reading this morning, and my plans for today. |
Saturday 3rd April
2021 |
Lockdown day 375 Shopping embargo day 88 254 09:57 BST Yesterday morning started very dull and depressing, and the afternoon featured some hazy sunny spells. Early forecast predicted sunshine for the afternoon. later forecasts downgraded that to sunny spells. The reality was that when the sun did break through it was usually rather hazy. Most significantly, it was cold. I am not sure if the temperature actually rose to the forecast 10° C (and 11° C for a very brief time). By my reckoning it barely reached 9° C. To make matters worse it seemed quite breezy. I gave in and closed the bathroom window because it felt like an icy blast coming through it. I had hoped I could leave it open until as late as next November. Today has one
big similarity with yesterday. It is cold and
grey this morning. Maybe the weather will
improve a little later. The latest revision to
the forecast says the dark grey clouds should
lighten up to maybe even white cloud by 2pm.
Between 4 and 6pm there could be sunny spells.
It is going to be cold again. The latest
revision to the forecast only gives hope for a
mere 10° C. Tomorrow may offer a brief
respite. The afternoon should feature
sunshine, and the temperature could rise to
15° C.
Yesterday could be described as a horrible day, but once I had decided I was depressed, and there was nothing I could do about it, it was not nearly so bad. Sometimes you just have to let these things happen, and not struggle against them. Struggling just makes the binding tighter. I probably say more about last night and this morning, than I do about yesterday in my full archive page for today. |
Friday 2nd April
2021 |
Lockdown day 374 Shopping embargo day 88 253 09:23 BST The build up to the long, bank holiday, weekend weather was well underway yesterday. The temperature was only 14° C, but it did feel slightly warm in the hazy afternoon sunshine, and probably wasn't that bad for the start of April. The morning was rather dull yesterday. In earlier forecasts there was supposed to be a fair bit of sunshine in the afternoon. That changed to just sunny spells in later revisions. The reality was halfway between sun and sunny spells. The cloud cover was very thin, and so we had rather hazy sunshine breaking through for a lot of the afternoon. To sum up, the day was neither good nor bad. It was mediocre. It has been
very dull, but is now a bit brighter. This is
in line with the early forecast of dark cloud
until 9am, and then light cloud. This morning
has started off very chilly, and the best we
can hope for is maybe a brief peak of 11° C
this afternoon. Maybe that won't happen
because it looks like it was based upon
sunshine from 3pm, but the latest revision to
the forecast now shows just sunny spells, or
maybe even sunny intervals, for this
afternoon. In broad terms, the forecast for
tomorrow looks very similar to today.
My right knee definitely showed an improvement yesterday. It was still a bit stiff from time to time, but it was rarely painful. In fact the only time I can remember it being painful was just for a brief moment as I stood up after sitting at my PC for long periods (where long could be as little as half an hour, but often more). The rest of my day, including eating, boozing, and sleeping, plus how I feel, and what I have planned this morning for the day, can be read in my full archive page for today. |
Thursday 1st April
2021 |
Lockdown day 373 Shopping embargo day 88 252 09:54 BST Yesterday was very disappointing. I had originally hoped that yesterday might have been a slightly toned down version of the previous two day, but it turning out to be much worse. There was some sunshine until mid morning, but from then on it was just another grey day. I can't even recall the sun breaking through for the last hour or two before sunset as was once hoped for. The temperature did rise to over 20° C - possibly even to 22° C. It actually did feel warm outside in the afternoon when I went out briefly to put some stuff in the wheelie bin, but with no sunshine to warm my front rooms, it felt cool enough to put the heater on now and again (particularly when trying to snooze). You can tell
we are coming to a long bank holiday weekend -
the temperature is dropping ! The weather
forecast has actually improved since taking
the screenshot above. The afternoon
temperature will still probably be 14° C for
an hour or two, but more sunny spells have
been added between late morning and mid
afternoon. The sun is trying to come out as I
write this, but while it was very bright for a
few minutes, the cloud seems too thick at the
moment. Tomorrow may touch 12° C for an hour
or two in the afternoon, but perhaps no more
even though the afternoon is predicted to be
very sunny.
Some of my day was constrained by waiting for a parcel delivery yesterday. I did have an earlier idea that I might go straight to the park to see if Angela was in there at lunchtime, but two other things put paid to that before I was informed about the parcel delivery being due. The other constraints on my day, plus what was in the parcel, together with an overview of my day, night, and plans for today are all in my full archive page for today. |