What is that…?

Any guesses? This week we've had some unbelievable weather, temperatures down to -12C, rarely above freezing even at midday. On Tuesday and Wednesday there was this wonderful hoar frost (which I called rime but no one else knew what I was talking about!) This is actually the frost on some chicken wire, taken before the camera packed up working because it was so cold.

And then on Thursday it all changed and now it's warm and mild with a +10 temperature at 10.30 last night!

The woodstove has done a brilliant job of keeping everyone warm enough to type and the Weekly edition is now printing and all being well will be with you on Monday by post or for online readers it's there already. It is a bit smaller than last week at 14 sides containing 104 new paid posts of which 56 came direct to CJS.

And finally as they say, the blogger-in-chief is having some time off next week so please check the main CJS news release page.

CJS Weekly Special Edition: volunteer work.

Published in full today, all twenty three pages of it. Packed full of fascinating and informative articles about being a volunteer and the value of volunteering to the participant and the organisation. Lots of organisations looking for volunteers both in general for specific posts. So log on and have a read.

CJS Special Edition, Monthly and Weekly publications.

It's been a busy old week, with a monster CJS Monthly on Tuesday, 11 pages long making it one of the largest for quite a while. This was the first time we used the new mailing system and sent a large proportion electronically but it seems to have worked quite well.

Then we've been working on putting together the latest quarterly Special Edition which this time features volunteer work and again it's the largest we've produced at 23 pages long. And last but not least today is CJS Weekly deadline and guess what? Yes, that right it's another huge one at 16 pages long plus a further three for the March training calendar. This week's edition contains 114 new paid posts of which 71 (that's 2/3rds) came direct to CJS. It's going to a mighty thump when this little lot lands on your doormat on Monday morning!

What a week

Friday travails: TB had to leave her car at the field with her horses (a couple of miles from the CJS office) and walk home, 50 minutes of hard trudge through the soggy snow. AW tried to get home but managed 200 yards in 20 minutes! But family with a large 4x4 were able to make it through and take her home up the dale. However, we're happy to report to damages to property or more importantly people. The dogs all thought the snow was wonderful, their people were not so pleased at all the soggy pawprints. Friday night it all froze solid but by Sunday there was hardly anything left. Monday arrived and you'd never know it had snowed at all. And now (Friday afternoon) the sun in shining, it's warm and spring like, most peculiar!

Despite the vagaries of the weather CJS has trundled on and right now copies of CJS Weekly are dropping off the printers, this week is 12 sides long with 93 new paid posts of which 63 came direct to CJS.

You may be aware that postage rates are changing yet again come April, this will push the cost of producing and posting CJS Weekly beyond your subscription fee (yes, our profit margins really are so small). So we're looking at ways to reduce the cost and this week we're experimenting with folding your copies to fit a C5 (half A4) envelope which should make them RM letter size rather than large letter with an analogous postage decrease. If it's possible without giving the staff RSI we maybe able to stave off a huge subs increase, if it's not possible we'll have to stick with flats (C4, big envelopes) and charge you all a lot more – sorry. Keep your fingers crossed it works.

Black-out.

The power has just about gone it’s been on, off, on again for the last four hours – the poor computers can’t cope, thank goodness for battery powered laptops! But that means no server. And no broadband (routers don’t work!) but bits of wire do so temporarily back on steam driven dial up.
Apologies for the poor communications this afternoon, we hope to be back to normal on Monday. But here’s the good news, so far the printers haven’t been too badly affected and we hope to get all copies of CJS Weekly out as usual, assuming the postie can get in tomorrow. Keep your fingers crossed.

Quick, quick...

It's snowing, wet sticky snow is coming in horizontally and being plastered to everything including the power cables. The electricity keeps flickering, we've had three complete power losses so far and broadband is not exactly reliable. So we're working as fast as we can to get all the vital things done before the power goes for good (although we have everything crossed that it doesn't). We have managed to get the Weekly to press, it's 15 sides long containing 111 new paid posts of which 67 came direct to CJS. We've also caught up with the backlog of volunteer posts too. On the good news side the woodstove is keeping us lovely and warm and can boil a kettle (slowly) so there will still be coffee. Now where did I put my skis? And has anyone seen a Labrador recently? Or perhaps that moving snowdrift under the birdfeeders might turn out to be one…!