Category: A Walk

Huntigowk – 1 April 2024

Posted on by Zogman

We had to be on our guard today, at least until midday when Huntigowk ended.

I didn’t see any gowks and didn’t end up as one … at least as far as I know. Scamp did get involved in one, though. In her word puzzle on the tablet she had to type the answers in backwards. Quite a clever catch. Wordle had nothing like that, neither did Spelling Bee. Maybe Americans don’t know what a gowk is …!

I did my usual clean up of the computer this morning, only to find out that Lightroom had got itself in a bit of fix with the photo files being in the correct folder, and the catalog being updated, but the files themselves were invisible. It’s still not fixed properly, but I think I may have a solution. Not an elegant solution, but it might work. I’m going to sleep on it and test it tomorrow. I’m just thinking, maybe Americans do Huntigowk after all.

After a couple of lovely warm days, we came down to reality with a bump today. Cloudy with the constant threat of rain. We didn’t bother going out because it appears the weather profile spreads right across Scotland and down into the north of England too. No chance to drive through it into sunshine.

We had a serious look online at a replacement laptop for Scamp’s ageing HP this afternoon. JL wanted serious money and Currys was just a shambles. Eventually found what looks like a reasonably priced laptop with a decent spec on the HP site. We’re maybe going in to Glasgow tomorrow now that the Easter holiday is over (for adults at least), to get a hands-on with the machines in JL or maybe Currys. At least that will give us an idea what we’re getting for our money.

I waxed my boots later and went for a walk which I knew would make them mucky again, but at least I’d know they started out clean. Again it was the second shot I took that became PoD. It’s the view down that lane through the avenue of trees with a couple and their dog. It’s one of my clichés, I know, but I like the composition.

Dinner was pasta with mushrooms, peppers, onion, chicken, spinach and half a tin of tomatoes. A kind of “what have we got in the fridge” pasta, but it worked. Sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn’t.

Tomorrow, as I say we may go laptop hunting.

The beginning of Summer – 31 March 2024

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Allegedly the beginning of British Summer Time. I’ll believe it when I see it.

Having said that, today was a lovely day if you were in the sun and out of the wind. Unluckily for us, we were working in the back garden which is still in the shade and in the canyon the wind whistles through. Today’s task was to clean out the wee plastic greenhouse, clean and de-gunk the things that were going back in and to bundle up the pots and things that were going out. I spent most of the time scrubbing and cleaning the tools and the ‘keeper’ pots. I ended up smelling of Jeyes fluid. But as Scamp said, the greenhouse, which doubles as a shed, was looking a lot better. How long it will stay that way I wouldn’t like to say.

We started just after lunch and were finished much quicker than I’d anticipated. With the changing of the clocks very early this morning we ‘lost’ an hour, but had a lot more light in the early evening. It’s good to see the evenings lengthening, especially if we get some sun too. Scamp was delighted to see that some of her fritillaries in the front garden had flowers. We grew them some years ago, but couldn’t sustain them over the winter. Hopefully we’ll have more luck with these ones. I need to get some stakes cut to help prop up the old apple tree in the back garden. We found some likely pieces of wood today that might be strong enough for the job. Probably two will be enough to take the load, especially once the fruit starts to set.

I took a walk to St Mo’s later in the afternoon and one of the first shots I took got PoD. I thought it was just a big bud on a branch of a tree, but later noticed the telltale sign shaped like a horses hoof that tells you it’s a Horse Chestnut. Quite chuffed to find that there’s a horse chestnut tree nearby. Something to watch out for in a few months. When I was on my way back home I spotted two butterflies, probably Peacocks. Another sign that things are warming up.

Dinner tonight was Chicken Curry made with the leftovers from yesterday’s chicken and a Spice Tailor kit. Quite rich tasting with just enough spice to brighten it up.

Spoke to Jamie and heard that they now have a prospective date for the works to be completed around the middle of April. Glad they’re having a short holiday in the Lakes and using half of the time to go on a map reading course. Sounds interesting and very useful for the pair of adventurers and mountaineers.

Both Scamp and I are feeling better rested now even if we were working in the afternoon. We’re still a bit drained with all that has been going on at the weekend. Hopefully a ‘normal’ week will put us back on track to be ready for summer!

Late night – Early morning – 30 March 2024

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Never a good combination!

It’s not a good combination. Got to bed about 1am this morning after an interesting jam session with Scamp, Nancy and Crawford. Up at our usual time. Showered, dressed and off to dance class.

The bowling club, where we hold our dance class, was having an Easter Egg hunt and some of the children seemed to think they had free rein to charge through the hall. A few sharp words from the dance teachers to the parents made sure it only happened once.

We started with the Valentino Jive which seems to have nothing to do with Rudolph and even less to do with Jiving! Never mind, it got us all on the floor and moving. Next we went into the Spring Waltz with the “Spitfire Arms” we learned about last week and with the addition of CBM (Contra Body Movement) which basically means when your foot goes in one direction, your body turns in the opposite direction. We thought the Spitfire was difficult, but a quick explanation this morning simplified it. We are still wondering how to do the CBM. It looks so simple and obvious when the teachers are demonstrating it, but it’s not so simple or obvious when we tried to dance it. However we struggled on and have almost mastered the Spitfire now.

To break up the tension from CBM and Spitfires, we danced a couple of tracks of sequence dances, then we were into Jive. Jiving is fairly easy and the individual parts are quite easy to pick up. It’s the putting together of those individual parts that’s the difficult bit. I admit, I was lost after a while and couldn’t even remember the routines we learned last week and there were only two of them!
A couple of tracks of Tina Tango finished off our dance class for the day.

While we were driving home we passed a sign on the M8 that told us it was 10min to the Kingston Bridge. Usually it’s at least 15min. Could that mean we could shave about 10min off the homeward journey if we risked the M8/M80 instead of the M74/M73? Worth a try. For the first time in a long time we crossed the Kingston Bridge at an amazing 50mph and were back home with 15mins to spare. Fantastic! And all because everyone else was heading in the opposite direction, going to the west coast. Hundreds of them in a gigantic traffic jam while we tootled along at a pleasant pace.

After lunch I went out for a walk in St Mo’s and got today’s PoD which is a scruffy looking catkin. Not brilliant, but it ticks a box. It was very cloudy today with the occasional heavy shower. While I was out, Scamp was busy planting her new birthday azelea.

Dinner was roast chicken with roast veg and potatoes. Ate it while we watched Gardener’s World whilst almost falling asleep. Late night last night, an exhausting dance class, physically and mentally today then the realisation that we’d lose an hour’s sleep as we enter British Summer Time tomorrow meant an early bed for both of us. That’s where I’m off to now.

Tomorrow is earmarked for recovery.

Grangemouth – 26 March 2024

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We were heading for Grangemouth today to another garden centre.

Tried to drive the sensible way which was past the garden centre on the motorway and take the next exit. Found I was in the wrong lane and had to drive a mile or so down the road before I could turn at a roundabout and head back then took the correct lane and was driving to the garden centre but was stopped in an enormously long queue at roadworks. Gave up and went back towards the Kelpies and found an other queue for the same roadworks, from the other side. This one was managed and we got through to the garden centre easily. What a fankle!

We found so many new-to-us plants, I thought we’d have to hire a trailer to get them all home. Also found an interesting looking pre-cut and drilled wooden raised bed that might just replace the old rotten wooden one that’s over 10 years old now and falling apart. Still not sure it will fit into the space I’ve got, but thinking about it. Tape measure is coming out tomorrow.

Scamp found lots of plants she liked, but restricted herself to a pot for the new azalea and a bag of ericaceous composts to fill the pot with. I got a clever potato pot. Just to make it clear, it was the design of the pot that was clever, not the actual potatoes, although they might be too! I got a bag of seed potatoes that are now chitting on the back bedroom window sill. My last purchase was a delicate little Orchid. (Possibly tomorrow’s PoD, all being well).

While Scamp wandered round a clothes shop called Klass I paid for and lugged the garden acquisitions to the car, then had a look round the Fruit and Veg stall that is an adjoins the garden centre and found a focaccia loaf for £2. Last one on the stall and added it and a bag of Spanish apples to what was already making the wee blue car groan on its wheels. We got a few more things and then drove home. This time I didn’t take any wrong turnings or get stuck in roadworks. I just drove home!

I took a camera over to St Mo’s to see what it would find and the result, and PoD, was the first shot I took. It’s a bunch of apple blossom flowers I saw in St Mo’s.

Dinner tonight was soup. I made it and although it was a bit bland in colour and taste, it filled a wee space, as did the focaccia. Definitely not as good as my home baked one, but a good substitute. We’ll look for it next time.

A short practise tonight of the Foxtrot for Kirsty’s class tomorrow and I think we’re now ready to test it out. Might need an extra half hour practise tomorrow morning.

Tomorrow Scamp is out for tea in a wee tea shop in Condorrat with the Witches and I’m on my own for a while. I have no plans at present.

Rain – 25 March 2024

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Today was the opposite of yesterday. I think it rained from morning to night. If it didn’t, then it certainly felt like it did.

We finally got round to putting the cases into the loft again to let them sleep until our next adventure needs them to carry our load to some exciting place. Not exactly sure when or where that will be, yet. Hopefully it will be somewhere. Plans were made over dinner yesterday that may come to fruition.

There wasn’t much to do today after the cases had gone we had a bit more space, especially in my room. I planted some chilli seeds Scamp had bought me. The seeds came with a big metal pot and two bags of compost. They weren’t exactly pulling out the stops with the seed allocation. Six seeds in the packet. I arranged five of them into a pentagon with the final one taking up position in the centre. (I like to be accurate with these things.) I watered them and sat them on the bookcase in the back bedroom. According to the instructions, they were to be placed in a bright place but not in direct sun. The north facing window should be ideal. Good luck little chillies.

In the afternoon, Scamp brought out her mighty steam iron and got to work ironing everything she could lay her hands on. I took that as my cue to off for a walk in the rain, with the possibility of getting some photos. I’d taken a couple earlier just as bankers in the rain. They were Bellis flowers. What we used to call “Wee Daisies” before we got all technical and Latin. I did find a couple of worthwhile shots and one of them got into Flickr, but it was the Bellis that made PoD.

Dinner tonight was another “what’s in the fridge” pasta creation. It turned out quite well, but we both agreed that it cooled down really quickly.

Watched the semi-final of Mastermind and the first semi of University Challenge. I got a few questions correct, as did Scamp.

Hoping to go and get ericaceous (acidic) compost tomorrow to pot up Scamp’s new azalea.

 

 

 

Happy Birthday Scamp – 24 March 2024

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Scamp’s Birthday today.

A lazy morning for both of us. Lots of prezzies opened and lots of smiles. Hazy phoned in the morning and I gave them space to talk while I tidied up downstairs.

After lunch Scamp wanted to get her new plants into pots and distributed round the garden. I took a camera for a walk in St Mo’s. Not a lot to be seen, but I did get some photos of a bunch of dandelions sitting on a wall and with a fence to give them some extra support.

Scamp had requested that dinner should be, Chicken & Pea Traybake, to give it its proper name, The same meal we had on Thursday. I was chef, of course, but the real cook was the oven because it did all the hard work. Dessert was Viennetta. All washed down with a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc from Jamie and Simonne’s Christmas parcel.

Spoke to Jamie later in the day and heard that the main works seem to be finished and now the push seems to be on to get the plastering completed. The hope being that when that is finished, they can move back it full time.

We watched the final episode of this season’s Death in Paradise. The story was dragged out even more than it usually is. Lots of old faces returning for this finale. Maybe this is, as one critic wrote, the Death of Death in Paradise. We can but hope.

I think Scamp enjoyed her birthday. I really hope she did.

Tomorrow we may tidy up some loose ends.

Stirling in the rain – 20 March 2024

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Met Alex today to go for a wander through Stirling.

Picked Alex up at the train station and we drove through the rain to Stirling and parked at the multi-storey carpark in the town. Alex had had a haircut in the morning. Number 2 on top and a Number 1/2 on the back. Very brave when it’s only the middle of March, but who am I to say. Then he left his hat in the car. Not so clever, so first stop was M&S for a cheap bunnet. Then it was coffee time in Nero and plans were laid.

We walked up King Street in the rain and then on to Baker Street and Broad Street with its canons still guarding the road to the castle. On the way we found a flowering cherry tree that had dropped some of its flower on the metal metal seating in a park, and that’s where today’s PoD came from.

We got as far as Mar’s Wark, a townhouse from the 1500s and decided the rain was on for the day and started to head back down the hill. About halfway down the rain lessened and by the time we were down in the shopping precinct, it had stopped. Too late to go back and anyway, plans had been altered to give us a place to go for lunch.

We drove out along the St Andrews road to Coffee Bothy and had lunch. I knew, when I saw the amount of mayonnaise on my Cajun Chicken sandwich that I was going to suffer for it later, and I did. I didn’t even enjoy the food today which is really strange.

We drove back through much lighter traffic than I thought we’d have, and manage to get Alex back in time for his 4:37 train home. We agreed that we hadn’t seen the best of Stirling today and vowed to come back on a DRY day. It was really annoying driving back into the makings of a good sunset, after such a disappointing day, weather-wise.

Later Scamp and I drove up to the British Legion for our midweek dance class. Only two of us tonight, which meant there was nowhere to hide. It wasn’t my best dance class. I made countless mistakes, despite Kirsty and Scamp trying their hardest to ease me in to it. It just wasn’t working for me.

Hoping to go to a tea dance tomorrow. You can’t say I’m not a glutton for punishment!

Admiring my handiwork – 19 March 2024

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Surprisingly, no aches and pains, no pulled muscles either from yesterday’s tentative return to home decorating.

In fact, we drove up to the local B&Q to see if they had the paint we’re intending to use in the front bedroom. They didn’t have it in stock. It wasn’t a great surprise, they never have what you need in this store. Scamp agreed and said that you don’t see crowds of people shopping for anything in this store. It’s usually joiners and builders we see in this B&Q. I’m guessing they get a good trade discount, paid for through the full price the general public have to fork out. I’m amazed it’s still in business.

So, it was in and out again as quick as possible today and then on to Tesco for the weekly shop. No problem with the general public there. Tuesdays are usually busy and the shelves are usually full. We avoid Mondays when the bakery department seem to take the day off en masse.

Back home and after lunch I had a quick discussion with my brother on WhatsApp about where we’d go this week. I put up a good case for Stirling which has architecture and the occasional grand church which he likes and what can be gorgeous view along the carse to the Lomond hills which suits me.

With that settled I went out for a walk in St Mo’s, but I could just have returned home after a five minutes walk because I found today’s PoD not a hundred metres from our front door. Just a wee daisy that had made its home in a crack in the pavement next to an inspection plug for the wireless cable. A shot in the bag is always a great thing.

Wandered round St Mo’s anyway since the photowalk is not just about taking photos, but also about keeping moving, getting some exercise and increasing my daily step count.

When I got home, I was just going through today’s 17 photos when Scamp started cheering. I thought we’d won the lottery before I remembered we had just torn up Saturday’s failed chance to become a millionaire. No, it was the early arrival of Laura & (Big)Ross’s baby girl and John & Marion’s first grandchild. Three weeks early. Good luck to them all.

Dinner tonight was Paella a family favourite that I hadn’t made for months, and it showed. A bit soggy, but apart from that it was fine. It filled a space as we say.

Tomorrow Alex and I are off to terrorise Stirling. Scamp has nothing planned apart from cleaning and ironing.

Just another Sunday – 17 March 2024

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A dull day with some rain and some sun. If you hit it right, it was good and if not you got wet. I, for once hit it right.

Scamp was desperate to get stuff cleared out in the garden. She cut down the Hydrangea because there were new shoots starting to appear at ground level and she wanted to encourage the growth. Next on the chopping list was the Penstemon which got a quick haircut because it was getting untidy and needed the crop.

I was more adventurous and went for a walk through the woods down by the main road and found some cherry blossom on the trees. I thought I was going too early, but it turned out I was almost too late as the petals from the flowers were covering the ground. I did get some photos, but I was kicking myself that I hadn’t taken the LensBaby 35 because the distortion it produces works well with blossom. Maybe tomorrow. Startled two deer on my walk too, but they saw me long before I saw them. PoD turned out to be a Larch Pineapple with a raindrop right on top!

Spoke to Jamie later in the day and heard about the progress on the house. It seems to be going well, despite the best efforts of English Heritage. Good to hear that the roof is now on and it’s mainly the internal plastering that need finishing.

No real plans for tomorrow. Well, I have a secret plan and Scamp is out for coffee with Isobel.

 

 

Foxtrotting – 16 March 2024

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We drove over to Brookfield hoping for a new start in the ballroom dance class, but were pleasantly surprised by the appearance of an old friend or two.

The dance that was chosen to get us on our feet and started was Mambo Marina. A very old favourite that we learned a long, long while ago. It was buried deep in my memory and the first dance was a bit of a struggle, but after the second track most of the wrinkles were ironed out and it flowed like it should … almost.

Next was the Foxtrot, the old foxtrot we’d learned yonks ago. At first, like the MM it was a bit of a blur, but gradually with help from Scamp the figures fitted together and even the Continuous Hover Cross which was my nemesis in dances gone by was recovered from muscle memory and we went through with hardly a mistake by track three or five!

The Mayfair Quickstep was next. Two tracks to dust off the cobwebs of this well known and oft dance sequence and we were almost two thirds of the way through the class. Jive was next on the agenda and it was a refresher course on figures we’d already dances and which were fairly fresh in our memories as they were similar to some of the jive routines from many years ago.

To finish off, we were invited to dance any Waltz. We started on the Spring Waltz, but fumbled our way through it before we changed to Kirsty’s Waltz Nioli. It’s shorter and simpler and we did manage to finish it and then restart it again.

That was it for the ballroom class. Drove back home feeling that we’d accomplished something today.

After lunch I went for a walk in St Mo’s and just as I left the house, the rain started. I was concentrating on getting some photos of the Larch Pineapples I saw the other day. I found them and although the light was a bit low, so was the wind and that allowed me to get some sharper photos. One of them made PoD.

Dinner came courtesy of Golden Bowl and it was delicious. Lovely and fresh for both of us. Mine being a Special Chow Mein and Scamp’s was her usual Chicken Chop Suey and Fried Rice. Amazingly it was still light and about 5.15 when I went to collect the food.

That was about it for today apart from trying to send some photos to Alex and them bouncing back to me. Similar to my previous Google problem, but not the same. I’ll worry about it tomorrow … or the next day.

No plans for tomorrow apart from worrying about things that cannot be fixed.