Lightning stops play

I'm writing this update camped out in a friend's office while awaiting our new router...last Friday afternoon during a spectacular thunderstorm, lightning struck a telegraph pole in Culm Davy, knocking out all our land lines and blowing up everyone's routers! Luckily no-one was on the phone at the time and the telephones were fixed fairly quickly - just as well in an area with limited mobile signal! - but we're still awaiting our new router. Our neighbours at http://kittowcattle.co.uk/ had a spare router so are back online and have become the IT hub of the hamlet while the rest of us are struggling! Many thanks to Dave and Sarah for lending us some office space to stay in touch with our guests this week.

I've been to another superb workshop this morning via the Blackdown Hills Business Association with Cosmic IT. Entitled The Future of Business, it gave us an eye-opening introduction to technologies which will soon be available, and made us all realise that we need to keep abreast of all these developments to ensure our businesses remain competitive in today's world. From image (as opposed to text or voice) searching to Augmented Reality apps enabling us all to see beyond our own eyes, it was fascinating but also slightly daunting! The cornerstone of all this wizardry, of course, is good broadband connection and speed - which we in rural Devon tend to struggle to obtain. One option is satellite broadband which is something that we're hoping to explore with the help of Cosmic IT at some point in future.

No-one could have predicted last week's lightning strike, but hopefully it won't strike twice here in Culm Davy and normal service will be resumed very soon. Please telephone with any urgent queries on 01823 681605 or send an email, which generally comes through to my mobile as long as it's on the windowsill! The leaves are finally coming out now and the whole area is looking lush and green - with the bluebells at their best, it's a welcome sight after the storms of the past week!

We still have some availability in June and September, although the summer holidays are fully booked I'm afraid. If you're considering a break, please get in touch and ask about last minute deals, or see our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Luggs-Barn-Devon/143513745697324

A beautiful rainbow after a less damaging storm the other week!