We diverted from part of the north coast to visit some inland places; it was a day of valleys, woodland, mountains, lochs and narrow, winding roads.
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Donna and I had an amazing trip around the north coast, mostly following the North Coast 500 route. We flew into Inverness and made our way north, then west and eventually south again, finally heading back to Inverness for the flight home.
In June 1963 I was 14 years old and on a school day trip to Coventry; I took a photo in the new central area of the city.
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Notes from bygone years – June, June and yet more June
Hint: Click on the thumbnails for larger images.
On 25th June 2022 we walked a section of the Cotswold Way, from Dowdeswell Reservoir a couple of hours south-east of Cheltenham, to Cooper’s Hill four miles or so south-east of Gloucester. The walk was 13 miles on a beautiful clear day with light haze, the Malvern Hills (on the horizon in the photo, but nearly lost in the haze) are 22 miles away.
We walked with Donna’s brother, Paul, and his wife, Vanessa; they do a lot more walking than we do. With stops along the way for coffee and lunch, it was a great experience. A steep climb up the scarp at the beginning and then a more gentle amble along the top took us to Cooper’s Hill.
In June 2021 we visited Malham Cove with the family, an area of limestone pavement in Yorkshire.
Steep climbs up and down, but fantastic views and an astonishing area of deep and wides cracks to enjoy at the top.
In June 2018 I posted an article on JHM, ‘Adoption as an heir‘. In Roman society, wealthy people might adopt someone as their heir, to ensure that their life’s work would be continued. And this same notion would make sense in helping them to understand that a god might do something similar. Paul uses this tradition to explain that the One God of the Jewish nation doesn’t want us to be slaves or even employees, but heirs with Christ.
In June 2013 I wrote about leadership, and how Jesus trained leaders. Like the Pharisees, Jesus taught his disciples how to teach. He did it by example, but he also took his closest followers away from the crowds from time to time to spend time teaching them personally in some detail. For more about this, read the original post.
In June 2008 I wrote about ‘Jesus in the prison cell‘, with a video of an Iranian Muslim who met Jesus and decided to follow him. It was an extraordinary story. There are more recent videos, in much better video quality, but I have not watched those. You can find them by searching for Afshin Javid in the You Tube search bar.
In June 2003 we were going to meet for prayer and to hear what the Holy Spirit would say to us, but as there were only two of us, we instead took a walk up the riverbank.
In June 1998 Donna and I visited Kimbolton School where there was a summer fair with old cars and all sorts of stalls and events.
We were able to see the inside of the house as well.
In June 1993 Judy and I took our daughter Beth and her French school exchange visitor, Julia, to see the Brecon Beacons.
In June 1988 we were still using a Sinclair QL for word processing with a green screen monitor (though the QL supported colour).
In June 1983 I was experimenting with apple pollen tube growth at Long Ashton Research Station.
In June 1978 Debbie was three and we met my grandmother (in the wheelchair) at my parent’s home in Cirencester.
In June 1973 Judy and I, along with my Mum and Dad, watched a hydrogen balloon (or perhaps a helium balloon) being filled and flying out of Cirencester Park. Amazing to see!
In June 1968 I was on a sandwich degree course at Bath University and was working hard on a fruit and vegetable farm. I had my first car at this time and was able to visit Judy in Cheltenham and my parents in Cirencester.
In June 1963 I was 14 years old and on a school day-trip to Coventry; I took a photo in the new central area of the city.
In June 1958 I was nine-years-old, in my 5th year at junior school.
<Nothing earlier – Jul 1958>
In June 1953 I was four and chose a postcard of Mallard to send to my Granny-in-Ireland.
<Nothing earlier – Jul 1953>
In June 1948 I was almost a full-term foetus, and had not yet seen the big world outside my Mum.
<Nothing earlier – Jul 1948>
In June 1943 my Dad was at boarding school. On 17th they held a fire drill in which he played the role of a casualty with two broken legs. Rendcomb College clearly took World War II seriously (as, of course, they should).
<Nothing earlier – Jul 1943>
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(See indexes on other topics)
This is an index page, from here you can browse around all the articles in this series, or find a particular one you’d like to read. I’ve rearranged this page to make it possible to pick out individual months more easily. Please note, I make a point of not posting anything more recent than three moths old.
Blast from the past… 13 – December 2023
Blast from the past… 12 – November 2023
Blast from the past… 11 – October 2023
Blast from the past… 10 – September 2023
Blast from the past… 9 – August 2023
Blast from the past… 8 – July 2023
Blast from the past… 7 – June 2023
Blast from the past… 6 – May 2023
Blast from the past… 5 – April 2023
Blast from the past… 4 – March 2023
Blast from the past… 3 – February 2023
Blast from the past… 2 – January 2023
Blast from the past… 1 – December 2022
They are both unusual people, have rather special ways of looking at the world, and comment from opposite sides of the war in Ukraine.
Yaroslava (Yara) is Ukrainian, she lives in Kyiv with her son and her cat; she writes and photographs what she sees around her and posts news and thoughts. Konstantin is Russian, but left in 2022 and now lives in Uzbekistan; he gives 30-minute live YouTubes about life and events in Russia followed by open discussions online, and he runs a breakfast club for Ukrainians and Russians in Tashkent.
I’m exaggerating when I say they are my friends. I exchange messages with Yara occasionally and follow her on Twitter, but I’ve never had a reply from Konstantin. But to me they feel like friends. They are both unusual people, have rather special ways of looking at the world, and comment from opposite sides of the war in Ukraine. I think they would agree with one another on many things, both oppose the invasion and the war, and both feel compelled to communicate these things to the world.
I’d like to introduce you to them.
The two best places to look for Yara are on BuyMeACoffee and on Twitter. Click through and read some of her posts. Yara is artistic and expresses herself poetically, what comes through most clearly are her heart and her feelings in the moment. She writes about the war (of course) and she uses imagined dialogues quite often. On Twitter she sometimes tells us how she is feeling, shares photos (most of them very, very good) and makes delightful short videos as she walks around Kyiv. Yara is proud of her city, and rightly so.
Find Konstantin on YouTube (Inside Russia), I recommend his daily live videos. He thinks things through very thoroughly before starting a session, and usually he sets out his points carefully and convincingly. Sometimes his emotions show through a little of course, but logical thinking, business experience, and planning ahead are his strengths. He has a relaxed pace in his livestreams and this can make him seem slow to develop an argument, but it also make it easier to follow the underlying logic.
Yara and Konstantin are two very different people. What they have in common is that through no choice of their own they have been deeply affected by the war – as have their friends, families and neighbours.
Both have had their working lives interrupted, and both have embarked on new and perhaps unexpected projects. Both are worth listening to if you want to better understand this terrible conflict and how it’s disrupting life on both sides.
I’ll say no more about them, they will both speak for themselves.
Under the appalling circumstances of the breach of the Nova Khakovka dam a few days ago, I can’t publish this post without mentioning it. But words fail me. There are none that fit. ‘Tragic’ barely scratches the surface. And if it was a deliberate act, ‘evil’ and ‘heinous’ are utterly inadequate.
Yara and Konstantin have both responded to the breach in their different ways and I’m sure they will mention it again as the details and the terrible after-effects become clearer. The world will not forget this event. If it was due to poor maintenance or improper management (this seems rather unlikely but is conceivable) then Russia must take responsibility because they invaded Ukraine, captured the dam, and were in control at the time of failure. If it was deliberately breached following a political or military order to do so, that is even worse and the world will not forgive those responsible. In time there will be clarity on the cause of the dam failure, currently there is a great deal of circumstantial evidence pointing to a deliberate act on the part of Russia.
Following my recent post on AGI dangers (AGI – Hopeful and less hopeful news) I want to draw attention to a Guardian podcast that I think everyone should listen to.
The podcast discusses whether it may be possible to develop AGI without causing an existential threat to humanity. This is a hugely important issue, we all need to be informed and we should all have an opinion.
