Month: December 2016

Goodbye 2016 – 31 December 2016

Posted on by Zogman

Today we didn’t want to be bumbling around the house all day, so made a frail excuse and headed in to Glasgow on the bus.  From there we got the subway to the west end, to be more exact Kelvin Hall station and went for lunch at Usha’s where food is served in tapas style.  It used to be totally vegetarian, but now it feeds the carnivore too.  I’m not going to have you salivating by repeating all our choices, but Scamp’s favourite was Aloo Gobi and mine was Patina Ghosht.

By the time we came out, it was bucketing down.  It was teeming.  We walked up Byres Road and while Scamp went to Waitrose – our frail reason for coming – I wandered round Waterstones.  It was there I found my PoD.  Hazy and I have been following Chris Riddell on Facebook for some time and this looked like an original.  After getting the shot, I met up with Scamp and we walked across the road to Oran Mor and had a drink and a chance to get warm.  Oran Mor is an old church that has been converted into a pub.  It’s pretty old-fashioned inside with sanded floor boards and dark furnishings and it suited us perfectly today because it was warm with good beer and wine.  Unfortunately, we had to get home today, so we restricted our drinking to one pint of Deuchars for Scamp and a large glass of Shiraz for me 😉

Outside the rain was still falling, so we decided to cut our west end visit short and get the subway home.  When we got to the platform and the train arrived, it was absolutely ram-jam-full of Rangers supporters, all of them with very long faces.  Today was the annual Old Firm match between bitter rivals Rangers and Celtic, and it didn’t take a genius to work out who had won.  It must have been the quietest subway journey I’ve had.  Every single one of the supporters was locked into his or her own little world, and it was colder in that world than the weather outside.

Got the bus home and that was the end of the Glasgow trips for 2016.

Now to the questions:

Best thing I’ve done this year?
Without doubt, it must be completing Inktober  Not only did it make me sketch, but it made me sketch outside and that was a big challenge for me.

Best ‘Toy off the Rack’.
It must be the Linx 10.1″ 2-in-1 tablet/laptop.  Very portable but very powerful too.

Worst thing I’ve done?
Technology again, but it’s installing El Capitan on the Mac.  It’s the ‘Windows Vista’ of the Mac OS.  The operating system that just didn’t operate.  Wish I’d stuck to Mountain Lion.

Challenges for next year

  • Sketch more.
  • Paint again.
  • Gym and Swim at least once a week.
  • Talk to more people.
  • Smile more!

Let’s see how it pans out.

The trick is to not let on – 30 December 2016

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Today, in total secrecy we slipped out of the house just before 10am and drove under leaden skies to Croy station.  There we boarded a train headed for … Embra.  The trick is to not let on.  That way you actually get to Scotland’s second city without any interference.

We had coffee in our usual Cafe Nero in Lothian Road and gazed out on light clouds with bits of blue sky.  Scamp took pity on a Big Issue seller and bought her a coffee.  A random act of kindness.  We should all do that more often.

We had intended walking through Princes Street Gardens, but they were locked and guarded by security staff.  I suppose that’s to be expected with the amount of work having to be done for the Hogmanay celebrations tomorrow.  That said, we went back the way we’d come and walked up the Grassmarket and from there on to Princes Street.  We had thought about going to JL, but it’s too depressing going into a shop in a building that’s being demolished.  A story of the irresistible force and the (literally) immovable object.  This is what happens when people don’t speak to one another.

Edinburgh was jumping!  It was almost as busy as when the Festival is in full swing.  I’d hate to think what it would be like tomorrow.  There were so many barricades around Princes Street, I said to Scamp it looked like a war zone.  Probably that’s what it will be just before The Bells tomorrow night.

We walked along Rose Street and on to Whighams for lunch.  Breaded Haddock, chips and peas for Scamp and Pheasant, Bacon and Leek Pie with roast potatoes and roast vegetables for me.  I even risked a half pint of Deuchars.  Another very decent lunch.

This being a weekday, we had to travel off-peak, so had to get the train home by 4pm or it would turn into a pumpkin or something.  That meant we had to forego a shot on the big wheel or vertical chair-o-planes and head for the train home.  Such a pity 😉  When we got back to Croy the grey clouds were still there, maybe a bit lighter grey, but that was probably because they’d dumped some of their rain on Cumbersheugh.

Wind is getting up again tonight and it looks like rain for tomorrow.  Don’t have anything planned.

A Thursday that feels like Friday – 29 December 2016

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Because Christmas fell on a Sunday this year, the entire week has been one day out.  Well, that’s my excuse anyway.  Today was Thursday but it felt like Friday.

Scamp was away in the morning taking her sister to a Costa for a coffee.  I got the sewing machine out and swore at it for a while then repaired the pocket of an old pair of jeans, then swore at it a bit more before patching the pockets of another two pairs of jeans.  I finished off the process by swearing at it a bit more.  It doesn’t really owe us anything as it was bought over 40 years ago.  It cost about £25 in those pre-millennium times.

In the afternoon we drove in to Glasgow.  For a change we thought we’d park in the Concert Hall carpark.  We always get parked there in the basement.  Not today.  Basement was full and we had to go all the way to the roof to get a space.  It’s ages since we had to go all the way up there.  Brilliant view.  That’s where today’s PoD came from.

I was in Glasgow to get my hair cut and Scamp was going shopping.  However, it was standing room only in the barbers, so I decided to wait until next year to get my hair cut.  We wandered round John Lewis looking for bargains – there were none.  Then through Buchanan Galleries but there were no bargains there either, or if there were, they were well hidden, so we went for lunch in JL.  Had another look at new sewing machines, but they didn’t have the one I wanted – out of stock, but in stock in Embra.  Apparently this one just works, you don’t have to swear at it.  I wasn’t sure I’d like that.  It’s the swearing that makes it interesting you see.

Back home I made the decision and bought the machine from the Embra store.  It will come in five working days, but with New Year a few days away, there’s no telling how far that ’five working days’ will extend to.  Now I’m beginning to wonder if I’ve made the right decision.  Will I like a sewing machine that you don’t have to swear at?  I’ll find out in ’five working days’, and I’ll let you know.  Effin’ sewing machines!

Scamp was out again tonight to a ‘Gems’ meeting (For ’meeting’ read ’drinking session’) and she had not actually been to the house before, which made it interesting for me as I was doing the driving.  We got to the street and then she admitted that she wasn’t absolutely sure of the house number either.  Honestly, you couldn’t write this stuff, although, I suppose you could.  Well, I could because I’m writing it now, but you know what I mean.  Eventually after a couple of dead ends, we found the house and the car was decanted.

Not sure what we’re doing tomorrow.

An Old Friend Returns – 28 December 2016

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Today we drove in to Glasgow, but not for shopping.  We went down Glasgow Green for a walk.  A walk down The Green is usually a Sunday pursuit, but today was dry and open, so we chose to do our Sunday walk on a Wednesday – just for a change.

There were a few folk out walking off the Xmas excesses.  Some folk had even taken to the water to do some serious rowing.  There were even some like me who were out taking photos.  It was a fine day for it with low sun and some clouds to make the sky that bit more interesting.  A most enjoyable walk, but the best was yet to come.

We always use to complete our walk with a coffee and a roll ’n’ sausage (for me) and a peppermint tea and toast (Scamp) in the Wintergarden of the People’s Palace.  Until, that is, the day when a glass panel fell from the roof of the Wintergarden some time in July.  Since then the Wintergarden has been closed.  Today it was open again and it was quite full of families too.  Even better, they had fresh rolls, fresh bread and fresh sausages.  The coffee was real.  Not like yesterday’s brown water, this was coffee.  Brilliant!

After my Sunday lunch I usually go for a walk round the plants because these are plants you only get to see in a large, enormous glasshouse like this.  Today was no exception.  It looks like the gardens section of Glasgow Council has taken the opportunity to remodel the gardens while it was closed and the difference is quite dramatic.  It take it all back Glasgow Council.  You’ve done a great job here.

We needed some milk when we got back, so rather than drive to Tesco, Scamp decided to walk to the local M&S to get some and I came along for the walk.  On the way back, I carried on with my walk round St Mo’s while Scamp went home.  I managed to get my first decent shots of a couple of deer in a long while.  I could see the animals grazing quite contentedly upwind from me through the cover of some pine trees and I was able to get the camera set, focused and ready before I quietly broke cover and got the first few shots.  Then they sensed something and their heads came up.  I stayed stock still for a few minutes still taking a few more shots before they went back to grazing.  My next step broke a twig and that was all the warning they needed.  They were off, running and jumping.  I hammered off about 10 shots in motor-wind mode before they were lost in the bushes.  That was it for photography today.  Happy, I went home.

Tomorrow is booked solid for Scamp, so I’m free to do as I please.  I may get my hair cut, ‘cos it’s a ‘Pure Afro’ as we say in this house!

A Day in the Trossachs – 27 December 2016

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After the last two days, we decided to get out and about today and that is what we did.  We agreed on Loch Lubnaig as the destination.

It was a pleasant drive along from Stirling to Callander and on to the loch itself.  We’d decided to park at the big car park.  We were pretty sure the cafe wouldn’t be open, but when we got there, we found the car park was locked up too.  Barrier down and padlocked.  What pinhead in the quango that owns this car park decided it would be a good idea to lock up it up during the Christmas holidays?  Don’t they want to encourage tourism?  Probably not.  So, having been baulked by our first attempt, we went back to the smaller parking place, where you are also expected to pay to park 366 days a year and what do you get for your £1.40 per two hours?  Well, you get a hard standing and … Well, that’s it really.  No toilets. No cafe.  No shelters.  You do get picnic benches and BBQ holders.  Unfortunately, we didn’t have a BBQ, or a picnic, or £1.40.  Actually we did have the £1.40, but that had been pre-allocated for parking at the big car park which does have all the aforementioned facilities.  We were rebels!  We didn’t pay the parking fee.  So, Mr Car Park, “I don’t want to park with you no more, you empty-headed animal food trough wiper! I fart in your general direction! Your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elderberries!”

I took some photos of the hills around Lubnaig from CP2 and then we drove down to the hedonism of Callander itself.  This time we did pay for parking, like good little tourists.  The River Teith was just about bursting its banks with all the rain that’s fallen in  the last few days and the car park is right down next to the river, but Callander isn’t a very big (or interesting) place, so I didn’t reckon we’d be there long enough to get flooded.  We walked down one side of the main street.  At first I thought everything was closed.  I was half right.  All the shops were closed, it was the cafes and tea shops that were open.  We eventually chose a dingy little cafe.  All we wanted was a coffee and a bowl of soup or a sandwich.  I finally settled for an Award Winning Pie (which was actually very good!) and Scamp had a vastly overpriced bowl of soup.  We also had two cups of brown water.  At first I thought it was just straight out of the river, but then I realised that the river water was darker than this stuff.  It was meant to be Americano, but I think they were cutting corners and just steeping the beans in the cup without grinding them first.  I can honestly say it was the worst cup of ‘coffee’ I’ve ever tasted.  Even Starbucks would be better than that.  No, wait, that’s taking things a bit too far.  At least I could drink this dishwater.  It didn’t taste of anything but nobody asked my name so they could write it on the cup.  I don’t think they do that any more in Starbucks for obvious reasons.  “Hugh Jars.   Your americano’s ready!”

Got some pics of Goosanders on the river and of some neat yarnbombing going on in the town before waving goodbye to great pies and boggin’ coffee and heading for home.  On the way we stopped off to see David Stirling the hardest man in Stirlingshire.  His statue stands on a wee hill overlooking the snowy hills of Perthshire.  Then it was back to motorway driving all the way home.

That was a beautiful day and I think Scamp enjoyed it as much as me.

Tomorrow?  No plans as yet.

A wild night – 26 December 2016

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Howling wind and rain battering against the window all night it seemed.  Wildly high temperature too.  Almost too hot to sleep.  There really is something wrong with the weather this year.  I’m not a firm believer in Climate Change, but I’m willing to admit that this just is not the weather we are used to having in Scotland in December.  Whether it’s El Niño or the Jet Stream or melting polar ice caps, I don’t know.  I taught Woodwork and Graphics, not Geography, but I know when something isn’t working properly.  Maybe Theresa May will fix it.  There’s as much chance of that as there is of her arguing a profitable exit from the EU, but that’s enough of politics.

The wild winds and heavy rain persisted through the morning, but by afternoon the dry spells were outlasting the wet ones and the temperature was returning to the seasonal normal, so I got my boots on and headed for St Mo’s to get some photos … and some exercise.  Much needed exercise.  I had to shelter for a while under a tree form some heavy rain, but I didn’t mind that because I could see that it was only a shower and there was blue sky behind it.

Other than the swans and some ducks, I saw no other wildlife, and very few of the human variety.  I could hear a motorbike engine coming from the old BMX track, so I presume some wean got a mini scrambler bike for Xmas.

Most of todays photos were taken with the old 105mm macro lens on the Nikon.  I forgot to grab my Oly M5 and stick it in my pocket which meant no real landscape shots, but I did like the B&W shot of the runner, just visible bottom right of the frame.  Much better on Flickr.  Speaking of pocket, I DID put one of my Chrissy Prezzies in my pocket.  Scamp got me a pair of Thinsulate gloves and I’d forgotten just how windproof they are.  Great things to stick in your pocket.

Just like I intended, Scamp suggested pasta for dinner, so it was tomato and bacon pasta.  Nicely low cal.  I did have some of the killer pudding from yesterday, but only a couple of spoonfuls and even they were mainly the biscuit and sherry mix with some fruit.

The wind has dropped considerably tonight and it looks like a fairly decent day tomorrow.  If we manage it, we’ll be up and out early and somewhere nice for a walk.  That would be good, and would probably do us the world of good.

Christmas Day Blues – 25 December 2016

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“And so it is Christmas, and what have you done?”  Well, not a lot really.  According to my fitness gizmo I took 2475 steps and walked 1.13 miles, was active for just 20 mins while burning 1790 calories.  In short we stuffed ourselves silly and because of the horizontal rain and 60mph gusts outside we hardly ventured past the door.

Christmas dinner was Rib Eye Steak for me and Trout for Scamp with a starter of Chicken Forestiere for both of us.  Pudding was the killer for me.  It was a Winter Fruits Trifle with Plums, Clementines, Amaretti biscuits soaked in sherry, Caramelised Condensed milk with Mascarpone topped off with Whipped Cream.  I may, just may have burned 1790 calories, but compared to the two helpings of trifle I had it looked like a paltry excuse for exercise.  That was the worst overeating I’ve done in years.

We both enjoyed opening our prezzies, just like a couple of weans, then sat down to a cup of coffee.  Afterwards we spoke  to Hazy and JIC, Hazy by Skype and JIC by phone and both seemed to be having a great time.  But then, they didn’t have two helpings of Winter Fruits Trifle to contend with.

Today’s PoD is a Goldfinch, one of a bunch who now frequent our birdfeeder.  They seem to love the little black sunflower seeds and dine almost exclusively on them.  We don’t see them in the summer, only in the winter.

Heading for bed earlier than usual to try to sleep off this enormous feast.  Hoping for calmer conditions tomorrow and our usual pasta for dinner.

Christmas Eve – 24 December 2016

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For once we stuck to our plan and went in to Glasgow on a freezing cold bus.  Storm Barbara was still lingering around and making its effects felt as the double decker bus wandered across the road, buffeted by her gusts.

In Glasgow, after wandering through John Lewis we headed down Bucky Street then took a left turn to get a pizza in Paesano.  Our pizzas were a bit more rustic than yesterday’s lunch, but equally enjoyable in their own way.  The food was on the table less than 10 minutes after we sat down and it was as good as any pizza I’ve ever tasted and a lot better than many.  Maybe not quite as good as those from Napoli, but that’s only a maybe.

From Paesano we went down to Argyle Street for a coffee in Cafe Nero, then along to St Enoch’s, but the German market was closed.  I’m guessing that it was closed to allow the Polish folk to get home, because we all know there are few Germans in the German markets, as they are all run by Poles.  Hope ‘Pole’ isn’t a derogatory term, because I can’t think of a ‘proper’ name.  Hope it’s not as bad as ‘Scotch’.  I’m not Scotch, I’m Scottish.

With no market to investigate, we headed back up Bucky Street.  I finally got a mini display port to VGA adapter in the accursed Apple shop to try connecting my Mac Book Pro to my old ten year old monitor.  The result wasn’t exactly high fidelity, but it did work and allowed me to test out the possibility of using a desk setup.  Better to try it out for £30 than just dive in to an iMac costing £1400. From the Apple store we walked up through Buchanan Galleries to get the bus home.  A warm bus for a change and it looks like Barbara has kissed us goodbye becaus it was a much less fraught journey home.

Finally got the last copies of my calendar printed earlier tonight, so in the next couple of days they will be punched and clipped together.  After that they can be sent out.

Tomorrow?  Well, I think tomorrow is Christmas Day, so it might snow.  With temperatures in double figures that could be difficult, but we live in hope.

The Day That Never Dawned – 23 December 2016

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It just seemed to get darker today.  From the time we woke until around 2pm, the clouds seemed to be massing and compacting to the extent that they successfully prevented any light from reaching earth.

When we realised that there was little chance of any decent light and Scamp had been for her physio appointment, we went for lunch to Vecchia Bologna.  We had toyed with the idea of booking a table as it was Christmas Eve Eve, ie. the day before the day before Christmas, but when we got to the restaurant there was only one other couple there.  Admittedly, we were early, arriving just before 1pm.  However, the place soon got busy with a big table arriving halfway through our meal.  It was a Christmas Lunch menu and we made good use of it.  Scamp had:

  • Starter   Tortino mediterraneo di riso with warm grilled vegetables
  • Main      Fillet of Seabass pan cooked, with fresh chopped tomatoes, garlic and basil
  • Dessert  Traditional Christmas pudding served with Warm brandy sauce.

I had:

  • Starter    Scottish smoked salmon with tiger prawns, mixed crispy salad leaves & home made chilli ginger jam
  • Main       Tagliatelle pasta with a ragú of Italian seasoned pork sausage garden peas & cream
  • Dessert   Traditional Italian Tiramisú.

Delicious.

This was our eat-out Christmas Lunch.

After lunch we stopped off at Waitrose on our way home to stock up on the essentials for Sunday that we hadn’t already bought at Tesco.  While we were walking back to the car the sky started to clear and the clouds finally parted to allow some blue sky to shine through all courtesy of Storm Barbara.  I got some shots of the trees behind the carpark, but I must say they were uninspiring and as a result the photo is uninspired.  I just missed a photo of a grey squirrel running across the toes of my shoes!  That would have been a good one to get.

While we drove along the M80 motorway heading due west, we were treated to a beautiful sunset with the sun setting into the clouds just above the horizon.  So clean, so clear it reminded me of the sunsets on the cruise in June, and then it was gone.  So the sun did rise this morning, it was only the clouds that obscured it.  Obscured by Clouds – Pink Floyd.  That could have been the theme song for today.

Notice that all the references to the time of year today sarted with a capital ‘C’, not an ‘X’.  That’s because there was very little or no commercialism attached.

Storm Barbara scooted over us this morning with a few gusty winds and I could feel the sideswipes on the motorway, but for most of the afternoon it was quite calm.  It’s getting windy again tonight as was forecast.  Hoping it’s on its way north east now.

Tomorrow is Christmas Eve.  Hoping to go in to Glasgow on the bus and enjoy a pizza at Paesano.

Glad to hear that N D’Ag was back home and feeling a lot better.  Hope there isn’t any snoring tonight Hazy!

Waiting for Barbara – 22 December 2016

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Yesterday we got a Christmas card from my cousin, Barbara.  I haven’t seen Barbara in years.  Tomorrow we’re going to meet another Barbara – the second storm of the year.  Definitely a different Barbara.  Today we got a taste of Barbara – the storm.

We drove to Currys at Bishopbriggs because they had the printer cartridges for my Canon printer.  I did think about buying a new printer because the Canon, whilst it still works, is getting old, but I’m still not settled on a make or model.  I really only use the printer at Christmas to print my annual calendar.  The rest of the time I just steal a couple of prints from Scamp’s printer.  Once I’ve got the calendar printed and out of the way, I’ll decide on the long term future of the IP4500.

After we came back and had some lunch, I went out in the torrential rain to get some photos.  One great benefit of the 365 is it forces me out to get some photos.  Some days I admit that I use the flowers or weemen to get something to post, but I personally see them as stopgaps at best and failures at worst.  Today I waited until the rain had passed and headed up to the Antonine Wall to get some atmospheric shots of the landscape after the rain.  Unfortunately, because of the gale force winds, the next blash (another Scottish word that describes a sudden downpour perfectly) of rain came battering down as I was setting the camera and tripod down.  However, the lighting was good and the clouds were exactly where I wanted them, so I carried on and got the shots.  There wasn’t much colour in the scene and what was there didn’t add anything, so I reduced both shots to monochrome in Lightroom.  Now I’ve got the camera and lens drying out in the warm living room hoping that there is no moisture in the innards of the lens.

We’d intended to go to Barca tonight, but the weather was against us, so we left it for another, drier day.

Tomorrow?  Let’s see what Barbara brings to the party.