Although working I am a permanent student, poor health when I was younger meant I could not follow everyone into university until I already had a family, so I have had to do a lot of juggling to keep up with everything! I love studying and learning new things. My favourite occupation is sitting outside at night watching the stars.( The cats sit with me for company). I have a small telescope which I bought with some prize money a few years ago - I had never been able to afford one, and it was such a great thrill to be able to see the 4 biggest moons of Jupiter for real, even though only as tiny moving stars. Being outside looking at the stars makes me feel a true part of the universe, and puts my small life into perspective. Cats, the environment, ecology, all wildlife. I like doing crochet, especially making toys for babies and chunky jumpers for the family, and cushion covers. I spin wool from my own sheep and use that to crochet with too. I also like doing embroidery , using it to decorate plain clothes, such as skirts, trousers, dresses, to make them distinctive from anyone else's. I like gardening, the biggest challenge is to find long-flowering plants which the slugs and snails don't like as I don't want to hurt them in order to have nice plants!

And I love listening to music, especially ethnic, like Indian, Japanese, and many other cultures. I very much enjoy classical music, the more powerful and moving the better. I don't like sport much, except for one thing - Sumo! I just love the way the wrestlers are so powerful yet so polite, an example to us all.