The Spoons That Are My Ears!

We went to watch the Swansea airshow last Sunday and some interesting aeroplanes and helicopters performed stunts for us over the bay. Adele and I chose a good vantage point on the beach while the aircraft passed directly overhead. My knowledge of planes isn't particularly good but I think the display included a Lancaster, a pair of Spitfires and a Mustang. I might be wrong about that. There were also modern jets, and the Red Arrows put on a good show, but the Eurofighter Typhoon was even more impressive, extremely loud and fast and very maneuverable. That was followed by wingwalkers strapped to the upper wings of what might have been Boeing Stearman biplanes. Again, I'm not sure. The only plane I've ever actually piloted was a Piper Warrior but there's something extra-special about biplanes with open cockpits and radial engines. I want one!

Back to earth, I managed to run 5K last week without pausing, which means I've finally returned to the same level of fitness I had three years ago. So I feel physically and psychologically ready for the 5K charity race later today. I don't expect to do resoundingly well and I doubt I'll finish the course in less than 30 minutes, but my main concern is not to come last. I'll worry more about my timing in next month's race. I'll report on my triumph (or shame) in my next blog post...

Now to writing: I've nearly finished my 493rd story. My earliest surviving story dates from 1989, exactly 20 years ago, so there will be a nice symmetry if I do get to the 500 mark this year. What else? Two new reviews of my books have recently appeared, for The Smell of Telescopes and Engelbrecht Again! Reviews have been rather scarce in the past year or two, so it's nice when they crop up out of nowhere.

Meanwhile, Adele's allotment is looking more amazing than ever and so I have blogged about it here...