Category: Apples

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.

Up Early – 18 September 2023

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The new dishwasher was being delivered today.

We got a message yesterday to confirm that the dishwasher would be delivered between 06:35 and 09:05 today. At 06:49 I got a phone call from the delivery guys to say that they’d be arriving in about 10 minutes. The removal of the old dishwasher and the connection of the new one took less than 15 minutes, and that included a short demo and a test of the water feed and the drainage. We were the first delivery for these guys and they’d another 27 to get through today, and today was fairly light day apparently.

With the new machine working we could settle down to breakfast. Then a quick wash of a few cups, plates and cutlery. The big bonus of this washer was the countdown timer. No more having to guess how long it had been on and how long we’d need to wait before the red light went out. The down side ( there’s always a down side, isn’t there) was that the baskets that hold the plates are quite flimsy. Swings and Roundabouts.

Fed, watered and with Wordle and Spelling Bee done, we were looking at a miserable day and no idea what we were going to fill it with. Scamp said we needed Messages and I suggested Stirling, rather than Tesco. That’s where we went.

The further north-east we went the better the weather looked. In fact the woman on the checkout in Waitrose was voicing lyrical about the sun shining and wished us a good day in the sun. We’d parked at Waitrose and walked in to Stirling town. Scamp was looking for a birthday present and I was just looking for lunch. She found what she was looking for and in the same shop I found an Aladdin’s Cave. Three big display shelves filled with old cameras, lenses and projectors, all for sale. Talk about “a wean in a sweetie shop!” I didn’t know where to look first. I did see one standout piece of old glass. It was a Pentax 50mm f2 K mount lens. I didn’t have a K mount adapter to allow it to fit on a Sony camera, but when I was crowing to Alex about this find, he casually mentioned that he had what I was looking for, so I’m hoping to drive over to Motherwell tomorrow to borrow it. It seems that the whole photographic collection belonged to one man. I don’t know what the back story is, but I’m looking forward to finding out.

We filled a trolley in Waitrose and packed all the bags into the boot of the wee Blue car, then drove back through the wild weather to Cumbersheugh. I hadn’t found a PoD today in Stirling, but I thought I’d manage to get some shots down by the Luggie Water and that’s where today’s PoD came from. It’s the old railway bridge over the Luggie. Still carrying the Glasgow bound railway.

Scamp picked the rest of the apples from the James Grieve tree and we now have a fair supply of them in the fridge and in a big stainless steel bowl. I’m not sure what her plans are for them, but I’m sure she will have something organised.

We had a quick dance practise tonight and managed to get through the entire waltz from Kirsty’s class. Hope it stays in my head until Wednesday.

Tomorrow I may drive over to see Alex, but it depends on the weather.

Stay home lunch – 18 May 2023

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What is going on here? We had to make our own lunch today after three days of eating out, we’d almost forgotten how to make lunch!

Luckily we remembered in time. Scamp remembered how to make a speciality omelette whose content must remain a secret. I had Brie, Apple and Honey on Brown Bread. I don’t mind disclosing the ingredients because it’s the way I cut the brie and the way I slice the apple and of course the way I manage to make the ordinary honey become runny honey that make mine special.

After lunch we drove down to Calders to get some flowers to fill a planter that will sit on a corner of the front lawn. She chose some Violas, some Nemesia and a little trio of plants in a pot. The planter is now full and we’d like some rain soon to augment the watering she did after planting everything out. But it was the buds on our Golden Torch rhododendron bush in the back garden that made PoD.

Not only did we have to make our own lunch, but we also had to make our own dinner tonight. It was ‘Easy Fish Risotto’ the one you make in the oven then add Creme Fraiche to lighten it I made. Then we watched Jim Moir painting gannets, a program I’d recorded from Sky Arts. Fred Parker had told me about it and it was actually very good. Painting tips and of course guest artists who got a little bit of air time. Overall, it was worth watching, as is Clive Myrie’s Italian Road Trip on iPlayer. Fifteen episodes of beautiful Italian scenery and away from the tourist traps. Recommended.

The prompt today asked for A Hat or A Cap. I settled on the old wide brimmed hat I wear on holiday when the sun is hot. It’s not the most elegant hat, but it does its job well shielding me from the sun and folds up quite neatly to go into a case. Roll on the time when I need to use it again!

Tomorrow Scamp is intending doing her FitBit thing and I think I’ll make an early start on the prompt for tomorrow. Oh yes, and post a card to Murdo who will be 80 on Saturday!

Up far too early – 21 November 2022

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We were both up and on the go by about 8.30am which, for me at least, is far too early.

Today the plumber was coming to fit a new kitchen tap. We were ready by 9am, but he didn’t make an appearance until 11am. By that time Scamp had driven down to The Village to have coffee with Isobel and Isobel had phoned me to ask if Sheila was still at our house. Then she cut me off to say “Oh, she’s just coming in the door.”

It only took the plumber about twenty minutes to swap out the taps. I paid him what he asked for which was really too much for twenty minutes work and the price of a cheap mixer tap. Ok, there were two of them, but one was just there to mop up the water that had dripped out of the old tap. Still, we’ve got a tap now that doesn’t drip … so far and we won’t use that plumber again, but if anyone ask us to recommend a good plumber his name will be mentioned as someone to avoid.

With the main event of the day over, I walked over to the post office in Condorrat to send back a pair of dance trainers that were a size too big. While I was there I managed to get some sliced sausage, black puddings and half a kilo of diced stew at the butchers. Finally I took a trip round St Mo’s to see what was happening there. It was cold. The temperature when I left the house was just over 4ºc but the wind made it feel colder. Bunnet on the head and fingerless Foto Gra4 gloves on the hands.

The pond was really full of water, almost flooding over the path in places, because the channel that’s supposed to drain the excess water down into a soak-away and eventually on to the River Kelvin was blocked. The blockage was caused by the horsetails that grow on the verges of the pond dying off and floating towards the outlet. The council sometime clear them away, but they must be too busy putting up Christmas lights in Motherwell. As I headed home I dialled up the Hive on my phone and set it for a quick half hour boost of 21.5ºc. If you’ve got the technology, use it!

Today’s PoD was what will probably be the last of the low views of the reed beds with the camera held about five centimetres above the water surface. I had a dream last night where I leaned too far and fell in. Dreams do come true, but hopefully not that one!

So in the morning today I’ve spoken to Isobel, paid the plumber, been to the post office and the butchers and taken at least one photo. Scamp came home half an hour after I got back and it was time to investigate the ‘better quality’ of the sliced steak sausage. It was delicious.

I spent most of the afternoon poring over the poor quality photos I’d taken, but eventually decided on one that, with a few dunks in Lightroom and Photoshop became PoD.

Dinner was chicken soup again with croutons this time followed by more cake, stewed apples and cream. Good warming food.

We watched The Big Scottish Book Club with Damian Barr doing a great job of keeping everyone on the right track.

Another early rise tomorrow to go to the docs for 9am. Then, I’m told, we may need ‘some messages’. Such a hard life!

No Fillings Today Mum – 17 October 2022

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Out early to meet the new dentist and let her have a look around my mouth.

Not that early though. It was one of those dull mornings when the sun forgets to get up and shine. My Fitbit demanded that I take 250 steps, so I went for a walk around the block and brought my camera with me. I saw the two rowan berries and thought about how they brightened the morning. That was the seed that sprouted into today’s PoD.

For the first time in ages I brushed my teeth this morning. I thought it was better to make an effort, rather than to present with a mouth that was BER (Beyond Economic Repair). I needn’t have worried, the dentist lady was completely unfazed. She went ahead and filled the tooth that was giving me grief. She also offered to repair a few more teeth that I’d worn down or damaged over Covid. Not right away, though. Not until the middle of next month. Thankfully the bill for the both of these repairs together was much less than that to fix Scamp’s single tooth. I’ve NHS to thank for that. As always, when someone has been inside your mouth, my teeth don’t feel like my own. I’m getting more used to my new ‘bite’, but it might take a few days yet until it becomes mine.

Back home I started to make a Focaccia, a bread that has more oil in it than Saudi Arabia, or at least that’s what it feels like. Water and oil mixed into the flour, salt and yeast. Once that’s been kneaded, more water is needed and the whole sloppy mess has to prove for an hour or so. Then it gets slopped into a tray and a second mixture of oil, dried rosemary and garlic is poured on top and holes are poked into the dough to encourage the oil to seep into the mixture. It’s left to rise again and then it’s baked in the oven. We’re not finished with the oil yet, though. More oil is drizzled on top and salt flakes are added to give a salty crunch. Unfortunately, maybe I used the wrong kind of oil maybe I should have used 20W-30 instead of 10W-40 or maybe I didn’t bake the focaccia for long enough, or maybe it should have been at a higher temperature. Anyway it ended up doughy and almost inedible. I’ll try again in a couple of days, once the oil tanker comes round and refills the tank.

That kind of limited what we were having for dinner, but yesterday’s celeriac soup and the remains of Scamp’s crumble supplemented with an apple sauce from our own apples was plenty to fill a wee space.

The prompt for today was “Salty”. I chose the ‘Salt Pig’ I was using today. It’s an unglazed terracotta pot that holds sea salt or rock salt. I needed that kind of salt to crumble on the top of the focaccia and since the salt pig was sitting in front of me when I was waiting for the bread to cool, it was an obvious subject with a link to the prompt. Initial sketch done with the fountain pen upside down (you’ll understand this, Hazy) to get fine lines, then the same pen held normally to get the thick lines. A final wash with a brush and clear water to give a bit of shading. Quite pleased, but only quite. Could do better.

Tomorrow we may be visiting another country for an hour or so if the weather is nice.

 

Just a lazy Sunday – 18 September 2022

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Didn’t even manage to get my Eight Active Hours or my 10,000 steps.

A lazy morning, completing our Wordle puzzles (I got 3 today, Scamp got a little more). Then we struggled to make the greatest number of words from the seven letters you’re allowed in Spelling Bee. Scamp beat me. These little puzzles have become a daily challenge and a matter of some competition.

I went for a walk in the afternoon after lunch. The sun didn’t come out to see me, though. It kept attempting to break through the clouds and I could see sunbeams over to the west, but they never came near us. It didn’t stop me taking photos. PoD went to a little yellow spider dangling on its web.

While I was out, Scamp was splitting up plants and repotting them, taking cuttings of others and pruning. She is so good at propagation. I’d guess that most, if not all of those cuttings ‘take’ by next year. Before I went out, I got the smelly job of turning over the compost in the bin. It’s now a lot less smelly, but I was for a while.

Dinner tonight was Just Soup then Trout Fillets with cabbage and potatoes. Apple and Rhubarb Crumble (our rhubarb and our apples) to end a Sunday dinner.

Spoke to Jamie later and got a fair bit of information about phones. Yes, the phone may be on the back burner, but it’s still there. Thanks for that Jamie. I did have a look on the Samsung website tonight.

There are no plans for tomorrow as yet.

Going for the messages – 12 September 2022

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Just the run of the mill shopping run.

Scamp accepts that Tesco deliveries are a lifesaver at times, but prefers to see what she’s buying, and I have to agree with her. We did a fairly big shop and while we were going round I bumped into Fred and had a wee blether with him. He gave his apologies for not being able to get to the “Beer in the Toon” tomorrow and I understand the pressures he’s facing with his and his wife’s health. Hopefully some day soon we’ll be able to have that beer.

After we’d got through the tills and paid for the messages we trundled them to the car and found that there was nowhere to put them in the back seat because the bag of bottles we took for a trip to Tesco last week were still there taking up space. After a few grumps from me followed by an icy silence, Scamp drove straight to the council skips and we dumped the bottles into the overflowing plastic skips. One job done.

Back home lunch was a roll filled with cheese for me and one filled with Dairylea for Scamp. Honestly I didn’t think they made those Dairylea triangles any more, but it looks like they do. A second roll filled with jam became the lunchtime dessert.

After that we just lounged about for a while doing nothing in particular. Then I took the camera out for a walk in St Mo’s and got today’s PoD which was a little furry hoverfly sitting on a Scabious flower. Nice bit of sunshine on the background created some lovely patterns from the leaves of the bushes. While I was out, Scamp was picking the remainder of the James Grieve apples and beginning to prune the tree into a better shape. I had one of those home grown apples after dinner and it was a bit sharp, but perfectly edible.

Dinner tonight was Carbonara made the proper Italian way without cream, but with an extra egg yolk instead. It worked well.

That was about it for a cool day that was beginning to look like autumn was just around the corner.

Tomorrow I’m intending to head in to Glasgow and Samp is out to lunch with Mags.

Runnin’ – 11 September 2022

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Keeping up the theme of the last couple of days with the trailing apostrophe.

We weren’t actually doing any running ourselves, but today was the Cumbersheugh 10K and we were going to Broadwood Stadium to cheer on the runners.

It was a beautiful sunny morning and I didn’t mind foregoing my morning coffee for a walk down to Broadwood. We didn’t know when the 10K would start, but there were a lot of fit looking folk there already in a multitude of colours of lycra and all wearing running shoes that probably cost as much as one of my cameras. For the first time in my life I got to walk on the hallowed turf (well, astroturf actually ) of Broadwood Football Park. It was mobbed. We thought it was busy outside the stadium, but it was double or triple that inside, nearly all weans. But where there is a wean, there are usually at least two adults. Parents, Grannies, Granpas, Uncles etc. All cheering the weans on in the races. There were a variety of running styles being demonstrated, but thankfully none of under-teenagers was wearing tracksuits or lycra, that was reserved for the parents, grannies etc.

We watched the weans running races and getting their medals, but then there was almost an hour’s wait for the main event, the 10K. Thankfully, Scamp had brought a zip lock bag for us to fill with ripe brambles. The rain and the warm weather had meant that most of the brambles were just a bit too soft, but we managed to find enough to add to some of our apples to make a decent apple and bramble pie. Then we went for a walk round the exercise machines. We spoke to a woman who commended us on ‘foraging’, rather than just buying brambles in M&S. We agreed and finished our walk in time to find a good place for me to photograph the 10K.  The first man out the blocks was PoD.

What you never get to experience when you watch a group of runners on the TV is the breeze they create as they pass. I remember, years ago waiting for the peloton to pass in Ireland when the Tour de France started from there and being taken aback by the wind they generated as the body of riders displaced the air they were travelling through. It was the same today, although in a slightly smaller scale.

Once the pack had passed and the walkers tagged on behind, we walked over the dam and sat on a seat to watch for them returning, but they never did. Instead they came back by a totally different route. We couldn’t be bothered waiting and lunch was calling, so we walked back home. The closer we got to home, the heavier the clouds were looking. Scamp had washing hanging out, so we were on guard.

After lunch, Scamp made the Apple and Bramble Pie and just as she was finishing, she called through to me to take the washing in, because the rain was starting. It was a good call, because it wasn’t a passing shower, it just got heavier. The washing was safely gathered in by then and dessert was ready for the oven, as was the Fish Pie from M&S.

That fish pie was delicious, although I’m blaming it for a bit of heartburn tonight. The pie was also excellent with just enough sharpness and sugar in the apples and the lovely bramble juice too.

Spoke to Jamie later and heard about the visit from Yves and Simonne’s cousin.  We heard about Tennents Super Lager and the lack of serviettes.

On the phone question, I’ve decided to put it on the back burner for now.  Not literally, although sometimes I think that might be a possible solution.  It’s working.  It does what I need.  It’s sometimes cantakerous and does things its way, but then, so am I. It may not stay on that virtual back burner for long, but it’s there for now.

Tomorrow we have no plans.   We need a few days without plans.

 

Posh Lunch – 16 April 2022

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Another sunny day and we were being taken for lunch.

Wandered round the garden in the morning then Jamie drove us to Bury St Edmonds for lunch at Maison Bleu and what a lunch. Here goes!

Starter
Scamp: A Beetroot Gateau which really did look like a slice of Tipsy Cake.
Jamie & Simonne: Seared Isle of Orkney King Scallop, Chicken Wings, artichoke, Pancetta and Chicken Jus.
Me: Slow braised Beef Cheek, Lettuce Ravioli, Carrot Crisp Kohlrabi with carrot and Curcuma sauce.
Main
Scamp: Isle of Gigha Halibut, celery gel, nori seaweed powder, fish sauce grilled leek and broccoli.
Simonne: Fillet of Aberdeen Angus beef, Maury wine sauce, Celeriac, Roscoff Onion Confit, Béarnaise espuma, and salt fermented celeriac.
Jamie: Roasted Balotine of saddle and leg of Rabbit, reduction sauce, shallot confit, Jerusalem artichoke and chervil.
Me: Roasted haunch of Breckland venison, Tornatore black olive sauce, black potato purée and parsnip.
Dessert
Scamp: Pear with Honeycomb (which I’d have called Puff Candy).
Jamie & Simonne: Opera Gateau.
Me: My dessert was called, simply, Apple. It looked like a shiny red apple, but when you cut into it with a spoon it crunched like an old fashioned candy apple. Inside was an apple mousse.
We washed all the foregoing down with a bottle of wine which Scamp chose but Jamie chose instead to have a bottle of beer.

Really quite an excellent and very posh lunch. Many photos were taken of the food as befits foodies like us and many stories will be told about it in the future, I hope.

We had a gentle walk round the outskirts of the centre of Bury St Edmonds before Jamie drove us home where we sat in the garden and admired the sunset over the church. I found a miner bee digging in the grass at the back of the house. The first time I’ve seen one of those. The insects down south have been an eye opener for me.

PoD was a picture of the church taken when we arrived back at the house after our lunch.

Tomorrow we may be doing some gardening.

Doing the housework – 14 March 2022

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Scamp was off to meet Isobel for coffee and I was staying home to brush the stairs.

I can see why Scamp didn’t want to do the job because all the dust might irritate her recently operated on eyes. There was quite a load of dust, dirt and general detritus lodged in the folds of the stair carpet and she was correct, the best way of tackling it was to get down on my knees and brush it out with a stiff brush. It took a lot longer than I anticipated and eventually I gave up using the shovel to hold all the grit and just brushed it into the middle of each tread, then used the portable Dyson to sook it all up. Then I started on the landing using the same technique, but it was much easier. No need to climb the north face of the Eiger as you scrub. Much easier on the flat. Soon it was all done.  One of the most delightful things today was walking barefoot up the stairs after they had been brushed and Dysoned.  The treads felt so soft and springy, it was worth all that work.

After that, and before Scamp returned, I started collecting the bits and pieces to go in the box with the Sony A7ii camera that was going to MPB. That’s the original Sony I bought in October 2020. It’s going to MPB to help pay for its younger brother who is working very hard for me every day. So many different cables, adapters, chargers and a massive brick of a manual that tells you nothing, but takes a long time to do it. Finally got everything collected and fitted into the box, just as Scamp came home and the rain came on.

After we had lunch and after I’d struggled with today’ Wordle puzzle, I was hoping to go out and find something other than frogs to photograph, but the rain stayed on. All afternoon it stayed on and eventually I put my boots on and went out for a walk. Knowing that I’d find something interesting … and I did. I was walking through a bit of mixed woodland behind St Mo’s park when I found a flower on a tree, then another couple. Not missing an opportunity like that I took a few shots. Then I saw what looked like a whole tree covered in white flowers. I think it’s either apple blossom or wild cherry (Gean) coming out a bit early. After about a dozen different photos I went for a walk down the avenue of trees and found a neat little larch flower with raindrops on it. Took a few photos of that too. That’s when the rain came on. It just got heavier and heavier. By the time I’d reached home I was ‘drookit’.

Scamp suggested Amatriciana which is Tomatoes, Bacon, Pinch of Chilli flakes, Onions and Pecarino cheese. It sounded like a plan and that’s what I made for dinner, served with Spaghetti. Long time since we’ve had that, but I hope it won’t be that long until we have it again.

After dinner while Scamp was reading I finished packing up the camera for the DPD driver to collect tomorrow. Wrote an email to Alex and confirmed Wednesday as a coffee meet-up with some of the Auld Guys.

PoD was a branch of those white Gean flowers that Scamp described as a flight of butterflies. I understand exactly what she means

Tea and coffee incoming tomorrow and cameras outgoing. Other than that, nothing planned, but I’m sure a walk will be squeezed in somewhere, possibly with photos.