h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I have a theory about 4.44.

Anything before that is "Oh no, is that all the time it is? I've hardly slept at all!"

and anything after that is

"Oh no, there's no way I'll get back to sleep now and I wont have had enough shut eye!"

Mini started barking this morning at 4.57. I'd already been awake a couple of times - once at 1.50, and the other time I didn't look at the clock. Because, following my 4.44 theory, if I knew the time I'd only fret about it, so much better not to check.

It's another frosty morning. The weather yesterday was quite beautiful, almost like a crisp winters day. I took Max for a walk in Victoria Park, which is a lovely green space nestled in the heart of industrial East Belfast. On one side is the Sydenham Bypass, NI's first bit of dual carriageway. On the other are the towering cranes of the Harland and Wolff shipyard, and the old Victorian buildings of Short Brothers. And on one side is the end of the runway for George Best Belfast City airport. The plane spotters were out in force yesterday, what with the MTV awards in town, and a small knot of people with cameras was gathered on the footbridge that connects to the railway halt.

That's interesting. I tend to try and think of 5 am as my cut-off point. Only 16 minutes later, but psychologically much more.

Our weather has been still autumnal rather than wintery - no bite to the air yet, although we have had early frosts. None today - looks like it rained in the night.

We had our first frost here in Dublin this morning. Although officially winter started on the 1st of November, I always feel it doesn't actually arrive until 15th November.

That's the third report of frost today over the British Isles, from you and Gnomon, and from my daughter in the North East of England.

I no longer need to have an alarm clock by my bed. This is one of the joys of my life. I also know that if it's still dark, it's night time - as it gets light here in about ten minutes from pitch black to proper light. I think at the moment this happens about 7.30am, so a reasonable time to think about morning and coffee making.

Is the dog that barked, the one in the crate? That's a real nuisance if she gets into that habit, I suppose.

I confess, I sent the frosts across the Atlantic Sea. I was tired of it already after 8 or 10 days of the stuff. Now if I could do the same with even a fraction of our snow when it arrives ...