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My good deed for the day – 6 November 2025

Posted on by Zogman

Just helping out a friend.

Fred’s car was in the garage getting a new clutch, but the garage was over fifteen miles away, so he had asked me to give him a lift to the garage. Actually, Scamp and I were intending to go dancing at an extra Tea Dance that had appeared on the listing. Thankfully Scamp sacrificed her tea dance for me to run Fred to the garage. It didn’t take long to drive there, only about 20 mins, but that would have taken about a good couple of hours travelling on public transport. Sometimes I ask myself if we really need a car or could we manage without one. I think I’ve been given the answer today.

On the way home I stopped off at Haggs and went for a walk along the path beside the Forth & Clyde canal, but the good light promptly disappeared. That didn’t stop me taking a load of photos, though.
I eventually gave up and drove home.

Dinner tonight was Chicken Cacciatore and it was very, very good. Fred phoned me in the afternoon to tell me that he was back home after the garage had lost his keys. It took them about an hour to find them. The paper tag on the keys had been accidentally torn off. He’s not had a great few days.

Scamp and I may go out somewhere for lunch tomorrow. Hope Fred has a better day.

The wind and the rain are still with us – 31 October 2025

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I’d hoped for a dry day after yesterday, but it was not to be.

Instead we had rain. Almost continuous rain all today, the last day of October 2025. I did manage to get out to snap a few flowers in the garden. The winner was three Osteospermum flowers in the garden. One going over, one in full bloom and one that might, just might open to reveal its flower if the rain stops and the sun shines.

Hoping for some better weather in November.

Dentist and Jag – 5 November 2025

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For Scamp, I hasten to add. I’ve had my two jags and am looking forward to a new crown. Will that make me a king?

So Scamp was out in the morning to have her six monthly checkup at the dentist. Conveniently, she was to have her Flu jag later today. However, she asked if it would be possible to have the Flu jag after her checkup and was told that would be easy to arrange. She came back looking pleased with herself.

It was a terrible morning after yesterday’s perfect autumnal day. Drizzly rain in the morning that gradually increased to heavy rain by midday. We needed to get some odds and ends in Tesco. I’d already looked for the Araldite I needed in our local Tesco and Scamp needed some meds, so I headed for the better equipped Town Centre Tesco.

Surprisingly, after lunch the rain decreased and I got out for a walk round St Mo’s with a detour to the shops hoping to get some plasticine to act as a prop while I glued a fridge magnet. I couldn’t get plasticine anywhere, so I had to resort to Blu Tack instead. Hope it holds long enough for the glue to set.

Four tiny feathers look like being the PoD for today. They’ve been hanging on grimly to a grimy kitchen window. Must clean it soon!

Tomorrow I’ve been asked to be Good Samaritan to drive Fred to Stirling to get his car back from the garage.

A morning at the horses – 4 November 2025

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We were up fairly early today and I thought we might take a trip to see the Kelpies.

It was a clear morning. Not too cold and with just the hint of a blue sky. Just the sort of day you’d like to be out in, especially as the parking was free. Not that I object to paying a nominal fee to Falkirk council for parking in Helix park. It seems to be one of the more forward looking councils, unlike the money grabbing North Lanarkshire lot.

For a change, we walked round the canal locks in a clockwise direction. It gave a totally different look to the area. Unfortunately the paths were crowded with yellow jacketed ‘helpers’. Ernest looking people who were filming and interviewing minor stars from TV. Well, they interviewed one weather person, but there were lots of ‘hangers on’ with their clipboards and laptops and printouts. The star attraction, Pudsey Bear arrived and the visitors who came to see the Kelpies went back to what they’d been doing while the the yellow jackets milled around looking important.

We had a coffee and a scone each in the onsite cafe and headed for home. Don’t worry, Duke and Baron, we’ll come back to see you again, soon when the yellow jackets are off being important somewhere else.

Back home, Scamp was planting out some spring bulbs while I went for a walk in Fannyside where I met a man who was looking for Bean Geese which apparently are very rare and overwinter in the hills east of Fannyside. Neither of us saw any and we both went away empty handed.

Watched the final of Bakeoff and weren’t surprised by the winner. A good display.

PoD was a low level reflection in a puddle of one of the Kelpies.

Tomorrow I’m hoping to get out for some more photos.

Blood Thirsty – 3 November 2025

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Out in the morning to give some of my precious blood.

Just a little dribble or two to keep the doc amused and to give her a chance to give me more meds. Spent about half an hour with the phlebotomist discussing the good and the bad aspects of cruising. I think she was just hoping we’d been to some new places to go sailing. I also think she wasn’t really interested in our fairly downmarket ships and destinations.

It was a dull day and we didn’t do much. For the first time in ages I didn’t do a PoD. I left it too late to go out looking for photos and with night closing in quicker these days, I decided I’d leave it to another, hopefully more interesting day tomorrow. I know I could have fudged it, but instead we went dancing in Kirsty’s class and learned a new waltz routine.

Here’s another view of a holiday destination instead. If you look directly below the cable car on the right, you’ll see the almost complete Sagrada Familia.

Tomorrow it will be a better day.

Another lovely Sunny Sunday – 2 November 2025

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The clocks went back an hour and for an hour after we got up, all the digital clocks and watches were frantically trying to keep up with what was happening. The analog clocks on the other hand were just taking things in their stride. After all, who cares if you’re an hour too early or an hour too late. Live life like and Italian and go with the flow. It may take me a few days to find all the clocks that need changing. I’ve just realised there’s another one that I’ve forgotten!

More autumnal weather. St Mo’s is just a small pond lined with rushes and some trees, but when the sun is fairly low in the late afternoon, those rushes and trees really shine for an hour or so, but not much longer than that. If you add in some dark clouds blowing past, you get a good tonal contrast That’s the story behind today’s PoD.

Scamp had been baking while I was out taking photos and there were two sultana cakes just out of the oven, smelling delicious when I came home. Our dinner tonight was a Greggs Chicken Bake with potatoes and veg, followed by a slice of Sultana Cake and Custard. What’s not to like!

Spoke to Jamie in the evening and he retold his mum about Ori’s resettlement in Canada and where Simonne was going this week.

Tomorrow we’re hoping for another day of reflections in St Mo’s pond.

White Rabbits (x3) – 1 November 2025

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As usual on Saturday we went dancing at Brookfield.

Today’s lesson was a Slow Foxtrot. After a few dummy runs, following the teacher in a fairly busy class, we actually worked our way through the routine with out a mistake. I was amazed, Scamp was impressed and Jane, the teacher was delighted. I don’t know what stars were aligned, but as far as I was concerned, they were the right ones!

With the at least one dance under our belt, we went into an, as yet unnamed, Cha Cha that we almost managed to get right. Finally we added on a White City Waltz and that completed a fairly satisfactory first lesson in a long while.

Driving home was a bit of a nightmare. Heavy rain and cars everywhere and I chose the wrong lane to be in. If I’d stuck to the Kingston Bridge route I’d have been home in half the time, but I didn’t, I chose the longer M74/M73, You places your bets and you takes your chances!

PoD was a low view of some dried up flowers with some golden light on a tree in the background. Still got that lovely autumn light.

Tomorrow we may go out for a walk.

Another wild day – 30 October 2025

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We drove to Glenburn for a tea dance and a party. The tea dance had more than its usual plate of cakes and biscuits. The party was to celebrate Stewart’s Big Birthday. I hope he enjoys it and has many more.

Just the usual tea dance folk dancing to the same tunes, but nobody was complaining, we certainly weren’t. Lots of opportunities to sit and talk, especially at tea time and nobody was bothered if you made the occasional slip up on your chassé or lead with the incorrect foot. It was a get together, plain and simple.

We left early as usual to avoid the schools coming out and the beginning of the homeward journey of the office workers. Heavy rain made the journey longer than we’d expected, but arrived home in a reasonable time.

With the weather and the nights getting dark earlier, I had no real chance to get any photos today, so my little Caganer, a small ceramic figurine of a person in a pooping position, which is considered a symbol of good luck in Barcelona agreed to take its place. It reminded me of my “… I think he’s doing the toilet …” joke. A story for another day.

Hoping for some better weather tomorrow.

Stravaigin – 29 October 2025

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Stravaigin is a Scots word that means to roam, wander or travel through, often casually or aimlessly. That’s Alex and me every second Wednesday or Thursday.

This week it was a Wednesday. It suited Alex and it suited me. We met in Buchanan Street bus station in Glasgow, went for a coffee a Nero and planned our day after I’d bored him rigid with my tales of travels in about a dozen different places in the western Mediterranean. Next stop was through St Enoch’s square and down to the Clyde Walkway to photograph some graffiti.

By then the rain was threatening and we decided it was about time for lunch which would be in Paesano, the best pizza restaurant in Glasgow, or anywhere else for that matter.

After that we went over to the GOMA. Alex likes it, but I can take it or leave it. I can’t see the art in this exhibition. Also, there doesn’t seem to be any rotation of the sketches or paintings. Surely there is more interesting stuff hidden away down in the vaults.

From the GOMA we went for a coffee in Nero before we went our separate ways. Just managed to miss the bus, but that meant I was one of the first on the next one, which arrived on time. Amazing!

PoD was a close up of one of the chain link girders that support the suspension bridge across the River Clyde.

No real plans for tomorrow. We’ll see what turns up.

A change in the weather – 28 October 2025

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A much stormier looking day.

Another walk around St Mo’s. Making the most of the late afternoon light. I used the 10-18mm ultra-wide lens. The combination of the ultra-wide on the Sony A7c gives really wild looking sky and ground. Of course I did a bit of toning and also some colour changes just to make it look a bit wilder than it really was.

The weather started out well, but soon it deteriorated and then the rain came. That put an end to today’s walk.

Meeting Alex for a photo walk tomorrow. Hopefully be able to show off some photos from our travels.