Saturday 28/04/07

Weather remains sunny and bright. Get up rather later than Jim, who is taking my suggestion to go to Ness and back again – by return of service. He manages to get his camera fixed. How? He gets new batteries for it. I go to the shop for the essentials. An earthquake is reported from Kent, where the town of Folkestone is worst hit. Chimneys came crashing down and people ran into the road. Epicentre was in the sea off New Romney. The quake was felt as far away as Deal, but also in London, Surrey, East Sussex and Suffolk. It measured 4.3 on the Richter scale. Largest quakes in the area happened in 1382 and 1580, with a magnitude of 5.8. I apply the pressure hose to the backyard, but first we rescue 20 or 30 worms which had taken up residence under tarpaulins. Mud and moss quickly give way to high pressure water and things brighten up considerably. Frank and Linda are clearing out their caravan, which has been taking up residence in the backyard since the autumn. David is reported to be in hospital with a suspected pulmonary embolism. We go to see him after supper (clam salad). Last night, Dixie brought a bag with snapping shells along. David is even more out of breath than usual. A VQ-scan is not possible until Monday – bit dicey in my mind.