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A cold and frosty morning – 17 January 2016

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combo bWell, that’s the way it looked when we got up.  When I say ‘got up’, I really mean got out of bed, looked out the window and went back beneath the warm duvet again.  I’m not sure if it had snowed during the night, but the temperature was hovering around zero, so it might have.  Didn’t do much in the morning apart from clear up the kitchen a bit.

In the afternoon I struggled into my boots and gaiters to take a walk across to St Mo’s.  Lots of deer tracks, but no sign of the actual beasts themselves.  Spent some time watching the coots and ducks sliding across the frozen pond.  Managed to find a puddle hidden under a covering of snow on a layer of grass.  It was deep enough to reach up to my knees and cold enough to take my breath away.  That alone shortened my walk.  No tramping through the trees today, not with frozen tootsies.  Got a few photos of tracks in the snow, but nothing interesting.  There wasn’t really enough directional light to create the shadows you need when photographing snow.  Came home, dried off and stared at a glowing screen 1 for an hour or so.  I don’t suppose I will ever learn.

That about wraps it up for today.  We should have gone to salsa tonight, but the weather station said it would snow and the temperature was dropping from its high of 3ºc and we weren’t really all that bothered.  Hopefully we’ll go to class tomorrow.  Tomorrow is another day.

  1. “Maybe we spend too much time looking at glowing screens.” 22 December 2015 ↩

Snow! – 16 January 2016

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combo bA late start after the late night yesterday.  Couldn’t really decide what to do today and the weather didn’t look as if it was going to be all that good for a scenic drive.  That being so, we settled on a drive in to Glasgow and lunch there. On the way there, the snow started falling and by the time we got to Glasgow it was quite thick.  I’ve got a dream just now about getting an iMac to replace the Macbook Pro.  I asked the Apple rep in John Lewis some questions about it.  Some she couldn’t answer, some she could, but she didn’t inspire confidence in either Scamp or me, but she had a good way of moving ‘weans’ away from the expensive ‘toys’.  We walked out and down through Buchanan Galleries then down Bucky Street to the Apple store which is closing for “remodelling”.  They couldn’t tell me when it would re-open and I found that a bit disconcerting.  What I did find out about iMacs confirmed that not only did the JL rep not know much about the computers, but also she just made up some of the answers.  Why do JL employ supposed ‘reps’ from companies when these people know nothing about the products and sometimes deliberately mislead customers.  It’s not the first time this has happened to me.

I wasn’t feeling all that hungry, so we headed back to the car park, but made a detour to the JL teashop where we had a light lunch.  Luckily, Scamp had found a seat with a good view past the Concert Hall and up Sausageroll Street.  The snow seemed to abate for a while while we were in JL, but by the time we got back to the car park it was back with a vengeance.

Back home I made good on my promise and dug out the old sewing machine.  While it was not exactly the same as the one I’d been using on Thursday, it was close enough to work out the basics.  Tomorrow I’m hoping to get some 3in1 oil and get it lubricated at least and hopefully working.  Bearing in mind that this is a forty odd year old machine, for once I will have to be very gentle.  Let’s hope that tomorrow’s blog is not titled “It’s Broken”.

On the go all day – 15 January 2016

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combo bBusy day, that’s why this entry is a wee bit late.  Up early to get ready for Crawford and Nancy coming for dinner.  Between us we made the soup, the main course which was Scamp’s Chicken in Breadcrumbs Twice 1, made the pudding which was ginger cheesecake and all before lunch.  We went out to Costa Robroyston for lunch 2.  Fleeting snow showers while we were out, but it was icy underfoot.

After lunch, we did some extra shopping, tidied up the living room, hoovered (or Dyson’d to be more exact), cleared and set the table and in the midst of that I even managed a short walk, a very short walk. I had forgotten my boots and normal street shoes are no match for sheet ice. Discretion was the better part of valour and I retraced my steps, but not before I got this shot of Mr Grey’s cousin out on a limb.  One or two shots and then he decided that it was time to leave.  I was quite impressed with the quality of the shots from the Tamron lens today.  It’s easy to see how the acutance is masked by the heavy noise when the ISO is up in the five figure bracket.

The visitors arrived about 7.30pm and we did have an entertaining night as usual.  Unfortunately, our young neighbours were also having an entertaining night and the music finally finished about 2.00am.  I hope it’s a one off.

  1. She didn’t make it twice, it’s just it’s marinated in breadcrumbs with lemon, garlic, parsley and stuff, then coated in breadcrumbs again for cooking. It’s got a fancy Italian name too. ↩
  2. We must be almost on first name terms with the folk that work there. ↩

A bit of culture, sew there – 14 January 2016

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Combo bAnother bright morning, bright but cold.  Since I was going to a sewing machining class, yes, that’s right a sewing machining class in Glasgow tonight and I wanted to see where it was, we decided to drive in to Glasgow.  It was really quite easy to find and it was near Kelvingrove Art Galleries, so it made sense to just stop and smell the roses, or look at the pictures.  It’s ages since we spent any time in the (F)art galleries, many more ages since I took a critical look at the paintings.  I won’t say I learned a lot, but I did see some intersting techniques that I’ll have a go at.  Since we were on quite a tight time schedule we left without listening to all of the organ recital, but it didn’t look as if Bowie was on today’s playlist.

I had an hour or two before I needed to get my threads and needles ready, so I went for a walk through St Mo’s.  Saw a deer in the distance, but that was it as far as the wildlife was concerned.  Even Mr Grey was absent.  Got some pics of frozen and snow covered toadstools.  We don’t often get toadstools in January, so this is another sign of the mild weather of the last few weeks.  Temperature is dipping quite drastically now though.  Frosted cars in the morning and the grit lorry making its rounds tonight.

Speaking about tonight, I drove into Glasgow to go to the Sew Macho class.  Couldn’t find the actual studio at first.  Luckily there were other dressmaking hopefuls there too and one of them knew where we needed to go.  Only four in the class and I, of course, was the oldest by far.  It was a really, really interesting introduction to the mysteries of the sewing machine.  When I was at school I wasn’t allowed to take Home Economics  – boys did Woodwork or Metalwork and girls did Cookery or Sewing and never the twain would meet.  I’d played about with Scamp’s sewing machine forty odd years ago, but apart from making strings of little ducks and little dogs, I didn’t do anything with it.  I was always scared I’d punch a hole in my finger with the needle, or I’d break the needle, maybe even both!
Tonight I learned to:

  • Set up the machine.
  • Spool the bobbin with thread and load it.
  • Do Single Stitches
  • Do Zig-zag Stitches
  • Make a Simple Hem
  • Make a Blind Hem
  • Sew in a patch
  • Sew on a button

All taught with good humour and confidence by teacher Jenny.  I even managed to patch an old pair of jeans.  I think I will dig out the old sewing machine and see if I can remember some of the techniques.  You never know, I might even make myself a tee shirt … someday!

A day by the loch – 13 January 2016

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combo bToday we woke to sunshine, just as the weather fairies had predicted, so it was up and out early.  We took ‘pieces‘, that’s sandwiches to you unenlightened ones, and we took a flask and all the makings for a cup of coffee and tea and pointed the car at Loch Lomond.  In particular, we headed for Milarrochy Bay on Loch Lomond to see and photograph the famous Milarrochy Tree.  It’s a tree that once stood on the banks of the loch, but is more usually part submerged a few metres from the shore.  Google “Milarrochy Tree” and you’ll see the tree photographed in every time of the day and on every day of the year.  It’s quite a Scottish icon.  In its way it’s as famous as the waterfall at Buachaille Etive Mor.  Google that too if you like.  We can’t remember the last time we went to this spot, but it must have been at least four cars ago, and maybe longer.  It’s a strange way to count time, I know, but it works for us.

Thankfully when we got to the carpark it was deserted so I could spend as much time as I wanted shooting it with all different lenses and all different settings with both cameras, but not at the same time.  That would be taking things too far.  All in all, I think I took about 90 shots of the tree.  If you think that’s overkill, you’re not a photographer.  After eating our pieces and having our cups of coffee we headed up to Rowardennan and the end of the road, well almost, because the predicted clouds were rolling in from the west and looked as if they had been loading up with snow which they were set on dropping any time soon.  Took some shots of the loch which is quite a boring stretch of water with some foreground interest from some rocks and tried to frame the youth hostel with an overhanging pine tree.

After that it was back home in time for tea, well more coffee actually.  It was great just being out in the daylight watching the play of light on the hills.  The sun had shone all morning but then it got tired and had to rest behind some clouds.

A day to remember.

An improvement at last – 12 January 2016

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IMG_3015- flickr--12The day started with the usual grim wet weather and much darker than it should be even at this time of year. However, throughout the day the clouds lifted and lightened. By four o’ clock we had a lovely sunset. The first this year and the best for a long time before that. That means there will be clear skies tonight and the inevitible drop in temperatures. Snow forecast for dinner time tomorrow. Sounds like fun, but more seasonally appropriate for January.

So what did we get up to today? After what has now become out late we went to Westerwood. Scamp to the gym and me for a swim. After that Scamp had a hairdresser’s appointment and I was preparing for dinner which was to be chicken curry made with a base of curry paste. It was then I realised we didn’t have enough milk and when I went to get it, took a short diversion to grab a shot of the sunset. Smart things smart phones. I thought the curry turned out really well, although the sauce was a bit thick. Scamp thought it was too salty. We both agreed that the flatbreads were excellent.

Hoping for some (whisper it!) sun tomorrow. It’s forecast, but we’ll have to wait and see if the weather fairies are telling the truth or not.

Starman – 11 January 2016

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combo bIt’s not often I do this, but today I feel I need to mention the passing of David Bowie. I didn’t like everything he did, some of it was just too avant-garde. Like the French composer Pierre Boulez who died last week, Bowie could be just a little left field. However, I will forever remember being a nineteen year old three chord wonder, well maybe four chord, playing and singing Space Oddity with Crawfy, Joanne and Jeff at Ayr youth hostel. I couldn’t do the chord changes as quickly as Bowie and I couldn’t do half of his chords anyway. When it got to the part where the rocket takes off, you were supposed to play some weird feedback stuff, but we all just shouted “Space Craft Liftoff Music”, because that’s what it said in the sheet music. I still have that sheet music somewhere. Pity we don’t have Bowie too. Somebody on the radio said that he was the rock star you didn’t think would ever die. I kind of understand that.

The big white ball that we sometimes see in the sky in summer was almost visible today. The sky was definitely lighter the clouds were a little higher and there was just the hint of shadows on the ground. With this in mind, I thought instead of going for a swim today, I’d walk in the sun. I should have known. When I got to Auchinstarry the first spits of rain were hitting the windscreen. I sat out the first two showers and then decided that as some old farmer lady on the telly last night said “We have waterproof skin”. I would add, “… and Goretex jackets”. So I walked along the railway and took some photos in the rain. The sky was still lighter than it’s been and the rain was light on the way out, so there was some colour around. Hoping for better days soon. Oh, by the way, the top photo is not pine tree on a hillside, it’s moss on an old fencepost.

A little bit of colour – 10 January 2015

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combo bThere wasn’t much light today and it was raining. It was one of those days when you just wanted to roll over and pull up the duvet. I rolled over and pulled up the duvet.

After lunch, I was determined to find some colour in this drab landscape. The rain had turned to snow, well, sleet really, but that didn’t put me off. I’d found a long lost pair of snow gaiters and intended trying them out. To be honest, there wasn’t much snow lying, but the gaiters would keep some of the mud off my jeans. Or so I hoped. Actually, they worked quite well and I’m glad I found them.

Mr Grey was available for a couple of shots before he got fed up posing and flew off. Other than that and the ubiquitous swans, there wasn’t much moving at St Mo’s today. Can’t say I blame them. I got a few shots of some water dripping from dried up weeds (how do the weeds stay dry in this weather?) before I stuck the Oly back in the camera bag and headed for home. If you look closely, there is some colour in the shots, just not a lot.

Grey – 9 January 2016

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IMG_3005-Edit- flickr--9I am thoroughly fed up with this grey weather. It’s a bit like watching films of pre-war life. Everything is in black and white with shades of grey. It must have been hellish living in those times when there was no colour. The earliest I can remember is growing up in the mid to late ’50s and most things then were in shades of grey too. I think it was around the mid ’60s that the world started to have colour injected into it. Even today in the 21st century we don’t have all that much colour here in Scotland. I didn’t realise this until a couple of years ago when we went to Trinidad and then Tobago. They’ve got colour, real colour. Seas that are blue, not grey. Skies that are blue, not grey. Sand that’s white and yellow, not grey. Are you getting the picture here? We do a good grey in Scotland and today we were overdosing in it. Dull.

We had hoped to go to the Cotton Club for lunch, but the earliest table they could give us was 4pm which was a bit late for lunch, but it gives you an idea just how popular this place is. Our second choice was Vecchia Bologna and that was where we ate this afternoon. Pea and pancetta soup to start and then Scamp had her usual spaghetti dello chef and I had polpette with vegetables (no pasta!). The lunch was as good as it ever is in this restaurant. Strangely it was not at all busy, but we were told that it was very busy in the evening which I could believe.

That was the brightener of the day. By the time we left Bridge of Allan, the grey that had lifted slightly as we had our lunch had returned. When we got nearer home, the Cumbernauld Cloud had descended in an attempt to blur out the ugliness that is Cumbersheugh.

I’d seen an article about 3D printing a lego ‘selfie’ in the Telegraph on-line and wondered if I could replicate it at least in 2D. It didn’t take long with Potatoshop to create a little Mini MeMan. In Colour!

Arty Farty – 8 January 2016

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combo b5No procrastination today. Up, showered, grabbed my camera bag and drove to the station. Got my ticket and then realised I’d left the camera bag in the car, 200m away in the carpark. I didn’t have time to go back to get it, so carried on regardless. I did have my camera with me, in an emergency it would do the job. I was heading for the Arthur Melville exhibition in Edinburgh (AKA Embra). The exhibition was very impressive, such enormous watercolours. Some of the paintings had really subtle colours and others, full of luscious, deep, rich colours. I think what impressed me most was the lack of pencil outlines in the paintings. As well as the watercolours, the almost abstract oils were impressive, but it was the watercolours that won the day. While I was there, I visited the Turner Watercolour exhibition. It’s a show that goes on every January in Embra. Well worth going to both these shows.

The Princes Street gardens were full of workers taking down the Christmas attractions. With the amount of water that has poured from the skies recently being churned up by lorries, cranes and low-loaders it’s hard to believe that the grass will grow again, but I’m sure it will.

Spotted an interesting sign in Waverley Station. What’s so special about Coatbridge that means it gets its own weather forecast?

Icy start to the day and some bright sunshine, but then later the Tupperware box returned. Snow forecast for tomorrow.