Monday 21st February 2022 - Storms, Launch and New Publication

Some may disagree but I think, overall, here in Overstrand we got away pretty lightly when Storm Eunice passed through the county. We had just the garden bench blown over and one of the composters, recently emptied, went walk about on the vegetable plot. Nothing like when in September 2020, while we were out of the county, the storm that hit this part of the UK left our garden looking as though a whirlwind had been through it. But this is not the end as Storm Franklin is with us today, bringing with it more high winds. The big difference between the storm in September 2020 and the most recent three storms (Dudley, Eunice and Franklin) are, they have come from a westerly direction and have lost a fair bit of momentum by the time they reach us here in the east. Not just winds, we have also seen a good amount of rainfall which has given us concerns about the stability of our cliffs.

In my last blog, I said we would be attending the Poppyland Radio launch on Saturday. Well, yes we did but only briefly. A credit to the publicity prior to the event because there were, according to press reports, over one hundred in attendance, far more than we felt comfortable with in a relatively small area, especially considering Covid is still very much with us. As I have said before, had it and don’t want it again. So, after a brief chat with the Director, Paul Hensby, we headed home where we listened to the launch on the radio and the interviews that followed with some of the presenters. The schedule of programmes is gradually filling up with a current predominance towards various music genres. However, during my brief chat with Paul he told me they are planning to bring in more variety within the schedule. It’s early days for this venture which is looking to be a valuable asset not only to the local community, but as it is broadcast via the internet, can be listened to anywhere in the world.

Last year, I set up some additional pages on my website. One of them, under the drop down menu from ‘Useful Information’, is a page titled, ‘Professionals and Hobbyists’. I am particularly referring today to this page as one of our village authors, Laurence Staig, has his latest book, ‘Told at Dusk, Remembered at Dawn’, published this month. As a writer too, I know what an achievement this is. It is not just a case of writing a story or stories, believe me there is a whole lot more involved before finally you see your book published and available to purchase. All of Laurence’s books are available from Amazon where you can enjoy a taster by clicking on the ‘look inside’ facility – what I call a; try before you buy. For all those who like to read using Kindle, Laurence has told me, this is in the hands of his publishers and is in the pipeline. Laurence has kindly sent me a copy of the cover for ‘Told at Dusk, Remembered at Dawn’, which features as today’s photograph. Finally, why not take a look at the 'Professionals and Hobbyists' page, there is a lot of talent in this small coastal village of Overstrand.