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Dancin’ ( or trying to) – 14 September 2024

Posted on by Zogman

We drove over to Brookfield for the first dance class in ages.

The first dance in the unheated Brookfield Hall was a sequence dance, the Melody Foxtrot. Two tracks to start with and an extra one for Peter and Gillian because they were late. Would they do an extra track for us or for Leslie & Gordon? Maybe not, but Peter and Gillian are friends of the teachers. Petty? Me? Oh yes, but if your face don’t fit here you don’t get privileges.

First dance was the Butterfly Jive. I’ve never really sorted this one out in my head. Too many things coming at you too quickly. Scamp seems ok with it, it’s just me who’s too slow.

The tempo slowed down for the next dance which was the Four Seasons Waltz which I thought I was dancing correctly, but Scamp kept telling me I was wrong. For once, I was sure I was right because muscle memory was telling me to do one thing and Scamp was telling me something else. Eventually, after calling the adjudicator, Jane, I was proven right. It’s nice to be right … sometimes. We’d danced this waltz on Thursday and most of it was encoded in my head, I just couldn’t play it back with confidence, but Scamp could. I can usually rely on her to keep me right.

The third ‘real’ dance was a Quickstep which may have a name, but I can’t remember it. It’s quite quick, but again, muscle memory came to my rescue and the entire first section just flowed perfectly. The next section we hadn’t practised, but struggled through. It might need some homework to get the footwork fitting in perfectly, but it was much better than I anticipated.

The torture finished with a Sally Anne Cha-Cha which is just a bit of noisy fun with hand claps and shouts of “OI!”. Then we left for a quick trip into Glasgow, or so I thought.

I was heading to WEX to drop off a lens I was selling. It should have been easy, but the sat nav had found a new way that didn’t allow for roadworks or diversions. After a good half hour of going the wrong way, we eventually found the carpark and dropped off the lens at the shop. We dropped in at Nevisport where we’d had a good chat last week with one of the sales guys. Not so today. Almost none of last week’s stock was there. It had been replaces with “SALES” stock. None of which was what I was looking for. We left to have a decent cup of coffee in Waterstones and drove home empty handed. Stopped at M&S in Cumbersheugh to get some fruit then went home.

In the fading light I got today’s PoD which was a James Grieve apple on our apple tree, viewed through a LensBaby distortion lens.

Dinner was a very spicy chicken curry with an ice lolly each to cool us down. Not a bad day as far as weather was concerned, but tomorrow looks better. We’ll see.

Autumn colours – 13 September 2024

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Two leaves, one yellow and one red. They sort of went together.

It was a cold morning, about 5ºc when we woke and the temperature didn’t rise much. I spent the morning getting things organised while Scamp was off at her FitSteps class. I’d intended sealing up a leak in the downstairs sink, but the silicon I was intending using was solid and the only other one I had didn’t look as if it would ever solidify again. I thought I’d get a new tube in B&Q, but we were going to visit Isobel first.

Isobel didn’t look well, but she is being looked after by a succession of health visitors and nurses who seem to be satisfied with her progress. Scamp had brought her tablet with photos of the Jersey wedding and that kept her interested even if she didn’t know that side of the family at all. I suppose a wedding is a wedding no matter who it is that’s getting married. That’s the other think I’d intended doing, putting some of my photos of the wedding on Facebook. Maybe I’ll have time tomorrow. After a cup of coffee, a blether and a catch-up, we headed home, via Tesco.
Isobel had been complaining that she used to get chicken sausages in Tesco, but they don’t seem to sell them now. I found them in our miniature Tesco. Must ask her if these are the ones she was looking for.

Back home and after the sausage sandwiches, we more or less frittered away most of the afternoon. I did get out for a walk in St Mo’s and got a PoD of a couple of colourful leaves. For the first time in ages I was wrapped up in my winter Berghaus and for a while I did need it.

Hopefully going to dance class tomorrow.

Dancin’ – 12 September 2024

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This was the first tea dance in ages, at least, it felt like ages!

A very small group today, spread thinly around the hall. About ten couples in total which is most unusual for a tea dance. But we danced. That was what we came for and we were going to get our money’s worth. We were sitting with Leslie and Gordon who don’t usually get to the tea dances because of Grandparent Duties. But other that them, it was ’Weel Kent Faces’ at the rest of the tables. The usual suspects, you could say.

The dance started with a waltz as usual and to my surprise I could remember most of the steps. We danced to two tracks with occasional ‘brain fade’, but nobody seemed to notice. Then it was in to the usual routine with the Ballroom Jive, then sequence dances. The afternoon really did seem to fly in and we took part in most of the dances.

As usual we left just a little bit early to avoid the school rush an this time we seemed to get it just right. A few spots of rain on the windscreen occasionally on the drive home, but otherwise a bright day as long as you were in the car. Outside it was cold, a measure of what is to come tonight, apparently. Temperatures around 1ºc predicted widely. It’s definitely autumn now.

PoD was a Tiarella flower from the garden with a distorted background courtesy of the LensBaby again.

Tomorrow Scamp is intending going to FitSteps. Afterwards we might visit Isobel who isn’t feeling well just now.

Wandering round Glasgow – 11 September 2024

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I drove in to Glasgow today to meet my brother.

We had planned to visit the Transport Museum, or the Riverside Museum as it’s known these days, but it was a beautiful day and it did seem a shame when we could be wandering round the streets taking photos. Anyway, I never was a fan of the Riverside Museum. The old Transport Museum had character which the new one lacked and why stack loads of cars in a vast space where petrolheads can’t get near them to look inside and remember driving that classic car? Totally pointless. The outside of the new museum is much more interesting than the inside, and the only reason I’d go there.

So, instead we walked down Buchanan Street to take some photos and so that Alex could wander round a guitar shop, looking for a new amp for his guitar. I had an ulterior motive too. I was still looking for that jacket. The waterproof one I’ve been searching for all week. I’m beginning to think it doesn’t exist, but I’ll continue looking Dug wi’ a Burst Ba’ again. I didn’t find it today, but we’d both scratched our individual itches and come away with nothing, but we’d both looked and seen.

I suggested we adjourn to Paesano to see if a pizza each would give us time to think. After lunch we went for a walk round St Enoch’s square to take some photos. For once we both went separate ways and met up again after taking a few shots of different subjects. Then it was a walk down the Clyde Walkway to admire the graffiti, and there was an entire wall that had been covered with artwork since the last time we’d been down there.

Next we took some photos of St Andrews Cathedral and its reflections on the glass walled building next door. By that time the temperature was dropping and I was aware that it was getting towards late afternoon and I was going to dance class later.

We walked back up Buchanan Street before splitting up with Alex heading for the bus and me going for my car. Some good shots today and some good nonsense talked by both of us.

I got back in time to get ready for Kirsty’s dance class. Today it was a reprise of the Rumba she’d turned into a Cha-Cha. I admit, I was lost to begin with, but after a quick run through by Kirsty and Scamp, it began to fall into place again.

PoD went to a photo of the ‘Balloon Man’. He stands in Buchanan Street in Glasgow twisting balloons into the most intricate shapes to the delight of hundreds of children every week. I was lucky, the light was just right today.

Tomorrow Scamp would like to take me to a Tea Dance in Paisley. How could I say no?

 

A busy day – 10 September 2024

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I was meeting Val and John for coffee and a blether today.

Val was the first to arrive and once we’d rearranged the furniture and got the coffees sorted we had a blether, just the two of us. Then John joined us and I went to get his coffee while he and Val had a chin way. They worked in the same school for a few years and knew a lot more folk than I did. After that it was a free for all. I’d forgotten that Val used to work in Jersey and actually had lived just round the corner from the hotel we were staying in. I wish I’d spoken to him before we went away, because he could have told me what other interesting places were available to us.

After a couple of hours Val’s wife joined us and of course the conversation turned to doctors and the lack of them in the surgeries we all attend. It’s a constant complaint that you can’t get to see a doctor these days. Their get-out clause is to get you to photograph that part of your body you want to talk to them about. That’s not the way to run a practice.

When we split up to go our separate ways, I went with John through the Antonine centre and Val and his wife went the other way. John went on to drive home and I got some fruit in Tesco and then drove up to GO Outdoors with a new list of criteria to apply to the jackets there. So far it’s come down to three possible jackets. No real front runners yet.

PoD was grabbed at the back door of the house. Just some Bizzie Lizzies in a hanging basket in the rain. Seemed a good title for a busy day.

Just a Monday – 9 September 2024

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We didn’t do much today. It was a drizzly, grizzly day with very little good light.

It was a day to drive down to Tesco and get the messages. So that’s what we did. Nothing exciting, just shopping, although we now have ice lollies in the freezer. That might brighten an even duller day if such a thing exists.

The miniature sunflowers are doing their level best to shine, so they became PoD. Also we watched University Challenge and we got four right answers between us. Only just being beaten by the worst pair of university no-hopers I’ve ever seen.

Sunday was dull and cold – 8 September 2024

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Nothing really to recommend it, but I decided I wasn’t going out hunting for a jacket that probably doesn’t exist!

Found we’ve got a leak in the sink in the toilet. Not sure where the water is leaking from, but it’s not a lot, so short term answer is probably to seal it with some silicone from a gun. That will do until we can find a plumber or until I can get the parts to fit it myself. Not the best start to the day.

Scamp was pruning and deadheading in the garden and cutting the front grass. I went to St Mo’s and got a fairly sharp shot of a spider repairing its web. PoD went to a wee spider repairing its web. I wonder if it’s any good with repairing leaky sinks?

Spoke to Jamie later and actually we did most of the talking, although he was bragging about getting to actually eat most of his sweetcorn before the squirrels got to it. His wild tomatoes growing in a compost bin are amazing. Well done you, Jamie!

Still looking – 7 September 2024

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After yesterday’s failure to find a suitable rain jacket, today we were venturing into Glasgow to cast my net wider.

First stop was Tiso, but there wasn’t much I was willing to shell out money for, but I did have other possible places, so we went up Sauchiehall Street to the rather posher Nevisport where the bloke who was serving got all technical and explained the difference between all the jackets and also talked a lot of sense. Although the jackets he was selling were expensive, I could understand where my ideas of a waterproof, breathable jacket with lots of pockets was a pipe dream, rather than a practical piece of kit. It looks like I have to be more realistic in my search.

I thanked him and wandered down to Blacks. Once upon a time it was a very well thought of walking and climbing sports shop, in fact we still have a tent and flysheet deep down in a cupboard that we bought in Blacks many years ago. For a while there it was a bit nearer the GO Outdoors type of shop than the Nevisport, but although it is a bit more cut price than quality, it’s moving up in the world again. I saw a few jackets that might just work. I’ve given up on the possibility of lots of pockets, but now want at least a double skin jacket with a decent wire framed hood. Colour is immaterial! We had a look in the smaller Tiso in the centre of town, but they had a very limited range, so we went for lunch.

We went to Wagamama, after the success of Izakaya I wanted to compare it to Wagamama’s version. There was no comparison. Izakaya may have been expensive, but the flavours they put into a bowl of beef stock were miles ahead of the watery taste of Wagamama. So disappointing. Scamp also said her curry was a bit tasteless too, so it my just be that particular shop that’s worth avoiding.

Got the bus home and I went walking in St Mo’s with the A6500 and the 70-180mm zoom lens. It’s a strange combination of the big lens with the small sensor, but it just seems to work. Got a nice PoD of a male damselfly backlit so the head and mouth parts of the insect almost seem translucent.

No Dancing for Scamp – 6 September 2024

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There was no FitSteps class today because the teacher was under the weather. I felt sorry for Scamp, I think she was looking forward to some exercise.

I had an appointment at Monklands hospital for a check-up because I’d had a problem with dizzy spells and with my BP. However, that seems to be fixed now but it’s best to get it checked. It only took a few minutes to stick on the sensors all over my front then to read the results. The girl working the computer didn’t tell me what the results looked like and I didn’t press her. Results in a week I’m told.

From Monklands it’s just a hop and a skip to GO Outdoors. I was looking for a new raincoat, a good one like my blue one used to be. I’d hoped to get one exactly like the blue one, but couldn’t find what I was looking for and went away empty handed.

That was about it for the excitement of the day. The PoD was a close up with a specialised lens called a LensBaby which does a great job of distorting things. The subject was a Switch Ophelia, a colour changing Hydrangea.

Feeling down to earth – 5 September 2024

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Not just physically down to earth, but also emotionally down, because the big adventure was over for now.

Hundreds of photos to wade through. Literally almost 800 photos to grade and work through. It’s great fun taking the photos, but not so much fun culling them and organising them. I addition to which, the month changed half way through the holiday and there were conventions to sort through putting files in order in the right place … Aargh! It’s a nightmare just thinking about it, but it has to be done. I have to remind myself, this is a task I’ve set myself for more than ten years now. Every year it gets harder, but I won’t change it just yet.

Today the cases were opened and the first load of essentials were dumped in the washing machine and then it was switched on.

I went out for a walk in St Mo’s and got today’s PoD which was a Jenny Long Legs. Not to be confused with a Daddy Long Legs which is an arachnid, as you well know.

We had taken the bins out last night and today it was time to drag them back in again. Normality had returned.

Tomorrow, more of the same, probably.