Category: Close-up

Oh No! It’s Snow! – 8 March 2023

Posted on by Zogman

Just a scraping at around 9pm tonight, but it was real fluffy snowflakes that were falling for a while.

You’d never have guessed this morning that we’d have snow tonight. That is if you hadn’t looked at the thermometer. It was -3ºc this morning when we woke and the sun was shining brightly from a clear blue sky. Unfortunately, we had both looked at that thermometer and decided to take it easy for a while. There were puzzles to be done and books to be read. I for one was happy to struggle through them, rather than face the cold world outside.

We watched some tree surgeons performing fairly invasive surgery on some trees across the road and wondered when they’d get round to the poor Ash tree outside our window. It’s been failing for a while now, but it’s been there for longer than we’ve been in Cumbersheugh. I remember the three girls who stayed round the corner swinging on its branches when they were wee. They were wild!

Lunch was Scamp’s ‘Just Soup’ and it was fine. Scamp made her usual deprecating noises about the carrots being too tough and I did comment that it might need a bit of salt, but as a lunch it was fine with a slice of bread.

After lunch Scamp was charging round mopping floors, hoovering carpets and moving furniture around while I eventually dragged myself out to St Mo’s to get some photos. There weren’t a lot of interesting shots today. That’s been the way of things lately. I’m finding it hard to generate some interest in things photographic and I’m getting the impression that Alex is finding that too. PoD went to a row of Salmonberry flowers I spotted by the outfall of the pond. I think they may be last year’s blooms, because this years are still in the pods.

Dinner was a main of soup with rice pudding to follow. I think there will be just enough soup for tomorrow’s lunch.

Today was Jamie and Simonne’s anniversary. Congratulations to them both. Nine years ago we were at the wedding in Trinidad. That was a wonderful wedding, as all our family weddings have been.

Tonight we had snow. The weather warnings have been out all week and finally we got our first taste of the white stuff for a while. Not much, but a warning that winter isn’t gone yet.

Tomorrow, if the roads are clear, we’re hoping to go Tea Dancing.

A dull day – 2 March 2023

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Not the weather this time, just me.

Woke up and knew I wasn’t going to have a good day. Now I know what Scamp felt like earlier in the week. Stuffed up nose that morphed into a drippy nose and a really rough throat. I’m going to blame it on breathing everyone’s germs and viruses on the metal tube in the sky coming home from Tenerife. I thought I’d dodged it, but I was just a couple of days behind Scamp, like I have been before.

We both had a vitamin C drink in the morning and that seemed to make us feel a bit better. Maybe just the act of doing something about it dragged us out of the rut.

After a bowl of Scamp’s Leek and Potato soup for lunch I thought I had an idea for a PoD and it worked for me. The cut end of a leek became the picture of the day!

I’m hoping I’m over the worst of this lurgy and will be out and about again as normal, because that was not a fun morning.

Jamie and Simonne, I hope you have a brilliant holiday. Say hello to Jaime for me

Hoping to get out and about in the fresh air tomorrow.

Still recovering from yesterday – 12 February 2023

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It’s Sunday. It’s ok to lounge about on a Sunday.

Basically that’s what we did. We lounged about the living room. We watched Laura Kuenssberg savage another politician and when they’d dragged his bleeding body away, it was lunch time. We had two rolls left over from yesterday’s lunch, so that’s what we had. Scamp had an Omelette on a roll and I had Bacon ’n’ Egg on a roll. Neither of them looked very appetising, but that’s not the point. The point is to use up what’s in the fridge and that’s what we did. Actually mine was really good and I didn’t hear any complaints from Scamp.

In the afternoon Scamp walked down to the shops to get some bits and pieces for tonight’s dinner which was to be Fennel with Cod and Prawns. Another case of using up what’s in the fridge and freezer. Fennel from the fridge, Cod and Prawns from the freezer. Every little helps.

When she came back, I went out for a walk in St Mo’s. It was lighter than I thought outside and the reason was the clouds ,that seem always to be there these days, were just that little bit higher. High pressure is in charge according to the weather fairies. Buds were bursting in the trees and I did photograph some, but it was a splash of bright yellow lichen on a park bench that got Pod. In case you’re interested, it was a Xanthoria parietina. The strange thing about it was that the park bench was made entirely from recycled plastic. I wonder where the lichen gets its nutrients from. I know that some lichen have been known to digest plastic, but not this common and garden variety. Unless it’s learning! Thoughts of “The Trouble With Lichen (John Wyndham) spring to mind. Anyway, that was a bright splash of colour that got PoD.

Spoke to Jamie later had heard that Simonne is halfway on her trip to Japan. Stopover in Kuwait and onward and eastward tomorrow. We talked a while about meet-ups in the spring. Where and when are not agreed yet and will need all three parts of the family to agree on dates and place. I meant to tell you Jamie that I’ve signed myself up to Audible today. Two free books for the first month. I’ll let you know how I get on.

Today’s prompt was The Graduate. The Graduate is one of the films I have seen a few times. I liked the music and I liked his sports car. I wasn’t enthralled by the story, but everyone said you had to go and watch it because of ‘the scenes’. I preferred to watch ‘the scenes’ of Dustin Hoffman driving that red Alfa Spider across the bridge and thinking “one day, maybe …”

Tomorrow we’re hoping to go to see Andrew in Falkirk, but we’ll be going in a blue car.

 

A new month, a new challenge, an old friend – 1 February 2023

Posted on by Zogman

Today is the first day of February. White Rabbits (x3), but the first of February also brings the EDIF (Every Day in February) challenge. Let the torture begin.

This month’s prompts are all films. Not such a good topic for me, but that’s what a challenge is all about. Today’s prompt is The Red Shoes. Now I have actually watched this film, or so I’m told by Scamp, so no excuses, I just drew a pair of ballet shoes. But before we get to that, here’s how the day started:

For once, both Scamp and I were bamboozled by today’s Spelling Bee. Wordle was fine and we got the hidden word, but Spelling Bee with its “american” dictionary was a nightmare. Eventually we gave up. If you want to try, here are the letters for today:

N I E Z M T G

The challenge is to rearrange them into a word with at least 7 letters. I put them into an anagram solver and it couldn’t do it. Can you?

I was picking Val up to take him for coffee and a blether today. He’s not been too steady on his feet recently, so we tried out the new Costa which has a drive through. We got parked right next to the front door but although there is a disabled parking and a paved path to the shop entrance, the only lowered pavement for wheelchairs and such can only be accessed from the road! The heavy door couldn’t be opened by someone in a wheelchair. This is a new build. Only about six months old. Don’t they think about disabled access?

Anyway, we had our coffee and a cake each and then it was the old Val I was talking to. We started talking tech! Me talking about running my iMac from a collection of external SSDs and Val talking about having a Raspberry Pi that works better and faster than his Mac Book Air. Two hours flew by. The only down side was the half gallon of full fat milk they put into each of our Flat Whites. Slight exaggeration there, but not much. I drove him home and we agreed to do it again in a month’s time.

The sun was still shining when I dropped him off at his door and I thought I could grab a few shots from up on Fannyside. Of all the photos I took, my favourite was an old fence post with a green mound of moss and its fruiting bodies standing proud against the sky. That was easily the PoD!

Dinner tonight was Fish ’n’ Chips, home made. Lovely bit of fish, although Scamp thought it was slightly overdone. I disagreed.

Back home and just after dinner I got a sketch done of a pair of ballet shoes. Splashed on some red paint, added some ink and that’s the first one done. The challenge has begun.

Tomorrow’s prompt is “You’ve Got Mail” I’ll have to bend the rules a bit to get that one done. Also tomorrow we’ve an appointment with Andrew in Falkirk. We’ll be interested to hear what he has to say.

Writing and Seeing – 23 January 2023

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Being able to write legibly is a skill I’ve never learned properly.

I hadn’t realised how clumsy and untidy my handwriting has become. I write this blog every day and in addition I write emails and messages, but all these communications are done through a computer keyboard, never directly from pen to paper. Over fifty years ago and in a different life, I was taught how to print properly for my job as a draughtsman. For five years I refined my printing style and took advice from the journeymen I worked with (No women then, just men. Live with it!). When I look back at my writing then and compare it to my handwriting now, it’s difficult to see the difference. It’s just the same untidy scrawl. So that is why when I was writing a letter today it took about two hours and countless sheets of paper in the bin and it’s still not finished. Tomorrow I start again with a fresh sheet. Maybe there’s a moral there, or maybe not.

While I was struggling with pen and paper, Scamp was off meeting her ‘big sister’ for coffee and a long blether. Things were discussed and plans set. Both sisters seem to be reading from the same hymn sheet now and ‘wee sister’ will now be consulted, if she hasn’t already been.

After a lovely crispy ‘well fired’ (ie almost burnt) roll with cold meat, we got a call from Hazy asking how we were. Once we confirmed that we’d tested negative and that we were feeling a bit better, she went on to give us more details about their Spring Break and their Summer Holiday, now booked. Both looked great and reminded us of the family holiday we’d had almost two years ago. We hope the weather is kind to them on both occasions. The accommodation looks fantastic. She has agreed to help me with moving my journal, which is what the blog is written on, to a new version. Not a very big undertaking, but better to get an expert’s advice and Hazy is definitely the expert on these matters.

Later in the afternoon I told Scamp I was going out to get some photos and would have a look in Condorrat for a bottle of Benylin to sooth her cough. She had tried in Boots and they had none in stock. The chemist in Condorrat had one on the shelf. Not the ideal one she wanted, but it was better than nothing. This winter cold is really getting to everyone and everyone seems to have the same symptoms.

On the way back I got some photos in St Mo’s. PoD turned out to be a leaf dangling from a branch with the watery sun shining through it. Sometimes, as photogs, we Look, we Focus and we Capture, but we don’t See. I looked at the light on the leaf and the bokeh behind, but it wasn’t until I had the shot on the computer that I Saw the spider.
In too much of a rush. Not taking time to stand and stare.
Maybe there is moral there too, or maybe not.

No plans for tomorrow, apart from a hand written, legible letter. We’ll see how the day pans out.

An improving picture – 22 January 2023

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Still being cautious about saying we’re on the mend, but I think we are.

It was a dull kind of day, even for a Sunday. Not really a day for going out if you didn’t need to, so we both stayed in to watch Laura Kuenssberg attack MP James Cleverly but the irresistible force met an immovable object in Nicola Sturgeon later in the program. Interesting wordplay between them.

After lunch Scamp decided on Paella for dinner and we had very little paprika in the tin. Something we’re hoping to remedy next month. For today, though, a walk down to the shops would suffice. I walked the long way, going round St Mo’s first. There was nobody about, so it was safe to crouch down behind the litter bin to take some close up shots of some fungi that’s growing out of the side of it. Two sides, actually, one south and one west. Nothing at all on the north or east sides. Something to do with the way the wind blows possibly. I don’t know. Mr Google was stumped by the fungi and thought they were sponges which I must admit they do resemble. Carried on round but saw nothing to compete with the fungi, so one of them, the crunchy looking one became PoD. I imagine the hairs you can see are dog hairs, they certainly are not mine!

Paella was passable but nothing spectacular. We ate about half of it and the rest went in the bin. I didn’t fancy making arancini with it tomorrow, besides I’m wary about reheating rice and chicken.

Spoke to Jamie later and he encouraged us to do a Covid test just to be sure. I’d suggested that to Scamp on Friday when I was feeling worn out, but she was reluctant to do it. I think it was the memory of our own bout of Covid back in the summer and having almost exactly that same feeling. Thankfully we both tested negative tonight. Heard that Simonne will have to go to hospital to have her tonsils removed after they found a possible lump on one. Nothing malignant, and it’s not an emergency, some time in the spring.

It was a warmer day today as opposed to a less cold day. The temperature got up to about 8ºc which is almost tropical for January. Hoping for a similar sort of temperature tomorrow and maybe a chance to get out for a walk together. Scamp may be having coffee with June, but that’s not confirmed yet. It’s a wait and see thing!

Snow, Sleet and Rain – 27 December 2022

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That’s the short list of our weather today in chronological order.

It was obvious when the snow started that we weren’t going to get that walk today. What we did do instead was rearrange the kitchen and some of the cupboards. We were trying to make space for New Stuff and also use it as an excuse to get rid of old stuff. However, it was unlikely that the council skips would be open today, because today was a Substitute Bank Holiday for Christmas Day. Does that mean that Christmas Day gets a holiday to itself today? I don’t know, but as it came up only on my Samsung calendar, I’m not going to lose any sleep over it. Anyway, I collected some unused or broken small electrical items and they are now sitting in an IKEA bag in the back bedroom. I’m hoping to take them away later in the week.

I did make a loaf in the morning, but it didn’t turn out very well. Oven too low? Yeast too old? I’m not sure, but we’ll try toasting it tomorrow and if that doesn’t improve it, the remainder goes in the bin. I also braved the rain and took some photos in the garden. Abstract images for a change. Today’s PoD is a macro shot of the pea netting after it’s been messed about with in various apps!

It really was a dull day today. It started getting dark just after midday, but to keep our minds off it, Scamp launched into her ‘tidy the kitchen’ project. I’m sure it’s something to do with New Year. My mum, and her mum too were fanatical about having the house tidy for New Year. It was considered bad luck to allow the new year in to a dirty or untidy house. I’m sure it’s in the Scottish genes to continue this tradition. My part in the process was cleaning the extractor fan filter above the cooker. It’s a filthy job and it took me quite a while to get it looking decent and a new filter fitted. It’s done now, but I reckon it may need checked in about six months.

In the evening, we watched the first two episodes of The Crow Road, a Scottish mystery drama by Iain Banks from 1996. It was strange seeing these younger versions of folk who have aged a bit since it was filmed and also remember some who are no longer with us. Hoping to watch the final two episodes on iPlayer tomorrow.

That was a dull day but we got stuff done. We also had a practise at the Quickstep and Foxtrot, just to keep them fresh in our heads.

Tomorrow we may go for a walk, but it all depends on the weather.

 

Shopping – 23 December 2022

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Not once, but twice we went shopping today and still we don’t have absolutely everything.

The world is going crazy this year. Never have I seen anything like the shopping madness I’ve seen this week. Admittedly, the last two years have not been ‘normal’ and this year almost feels like we’re making up for lost time, but this year, the amount of food I see in trolleys astounds me. I almost felt we were being mean when we picked up a shopping basket instead of a trolley when we went to M&S this morning. One of the good things about being able to walk to the shops is that the amount you buy is limited by the amount you can comfortably carry. We bought only what we needed. If you drive to the supermarket you are not so limited in what you transport back to the house.

After lunch I set out to go for a walk to St Mo’s and got a PoD which was a bunch of Cladonia lichen growing on a mossy stone among the pine needles. One in the bag, I walked to Condorrat I was going to get a steak from the butcher for my Christmas dinner on Sunday. The butcher isn’t part of a chain, and he’s local. I can see what the meat is like because it’s in a chiller display, not ready packaged on a shelf. As I was walking back I realised we hadn’t got a pizza for tonight’s dinner. Always pizza on a Friday. I phoned Scamp and we met up at St Mo’s school and walked down to the shops for the second time today. We came home with bags of stuff. I’ll admit we bought more than we needed, but not a boot load.

That was about it for the day. A relaxing day with a couple of walks to keep the wheels turning. Scamp is feeling better today, so hopefully her course of antibiotics is working for her.

Tomorrow we may go out to get milk, because even with two trips to the shops we still forgot things!

Living in the frozen wastes – 14 December 2022

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The frozen wastes of Cumbersheugh.

Despite the freezing temperatures I did go for a walk in the morning, but before that there was the car to defrost. It didn’t take long to defrost the windscreen, the rear screen and the wing mirrors. Two buttons and about ten minutes max and they were clear. It was the side windows that took the time. The ice on them resolutely refused to budge until the sun came up far enough to reach them. After that it was a simple nudge with the old plastic scraper and the ice was gone.

With that done I had time to go for a walk in St Mo’s. It had to be done in the morning because we were booked for a visit to see Margie in the afternoon and I knew we’d be back after the sun had set, so lined jacket, lined walking trousers and a pair of sturdy shoes for a change and I was off to see the frozen world. Actually it was quite pleasant to be out today. The sun was shining from a cloudless blue sky with no sign of yesterday’s fog. I didn’t really like the fog. Like I said yesterday, it seemed to suck all the colour from everything. The frost did the opposite. It seemed to turn up the contrast on everything. Whites looked whiter and blacks looked blacker. I even remembered to old photographer’s maxim. Overexpose by at least one stop when shooting snow scenes. And while this was frost, not snow, the same rule applied. The camera is fooled into making the frost look grey, because that’s what the exposure system is designed to do. The photographer’s job is to make the finished scene look like what he or she saw on the camera screen, or maybe what he wanted to see!

I covered a fair bit of ground, tramping into the wilderness at the back of St Mo’s and the eventual winner of PoD was a cow parsley seed head completely covered in frost. It’s almost black and white, but there are just a few bits of colour there too. I arrived home with just enough time to download the photos, have a plate of soup and a cup of tea before we headed out again in a defrosted car to see Margie. I don’t know what’s wrong with my new phone. Every time I connect it to Spotify it will play one song and then stop. I suspect it’s something to do with bluetooth, but I’m not sure how to fix the problem. What worries me is the amount of folk on the ‘net who are having the same problem with the same line of phones, the Galaxy S22. I did some tweaks and a reset tonight, but I’m not convinced it will make any difference.

Margie was her usual interesting self today with lots of stories to tell. She has such a cheery manner and quite outspoken when she feels the need. Not as fit as she used to be, but doing well for 89.

We got back in plenty of time for the Tesco delivery. Three basket’s worth this time. I pity the poor delivery drivers. It must be no fun lugging those heavy baskets and driving on the sometimes untreated roads. Although, for the first time in a long while, our road has been gritted, or at least the hill has been gritted, which makes a difference.

Fish ’n’ chips for dinner tonight. A lovely bit of cod cooked to perfection as only Scamp can. After dinner we watched The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. We’ve seen it, maybe twice, but this is the first time I can remember seeing the first ten minutes of it, where we meet the characters for the first time. Still a feel-good film. Worth watching again and again.

More cold weather forecast for tomorrow, with the chance of snow tomorrow night or on Friday. We’ll have to wait and see.

I saw the sun today – 4 December 2022

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I did, I saw the sun. I also saw cloudy skies and rain, but for about an hour I saw the sun.

I thought we might get out for a run, maybe over to Cramond for a walk along the esplanade, but it wasn’t to be. The rain came on and scuppered that trip. The longest walk we managed was down to the shops to get some ingredients for dinner and then we walked back. I chose to go further and went round the pond at St Mo’s and a quick foray into the woods. A few photos came from that walk, and PoD was a backlit leaf with lovely golden light and little bubbles of refraction called ‘bokeh’ from the sunlight shining through the water drops that were everywhere. It did rain for a while, but I was too busy to really notice.

Scamp had gone home to start baking her three Christmas cakes. Why three? I think it was because if she made just one big cake, it wouldn’t all get eaten and she’d end up throwing some of it away. The mixture would make three cakes. Two would go upstairs to rest for later and one would be for our Christmas. I could be wrong, but I think that’s the plan. When I got back from my walk, she was just filling the last cake tin and was almost elbows deep in cake mix. My contribution to the cake was finding the parchment cake liners in the bottom of the kitchen cupboard and putting them in the cake tins. Baking was now up to Scamp.

About three hours later, dinner was an old favourite, Smoked Haddock and Leek Risotto. The bake in the oven version. So just after the cakes come out, the risotto was ready to go in. It turned out a bit more watery than usual, but Friday’s Sweet Potato Soup wasn’t and it had some croutons too, cut from a thick slice of my bread, also from Friday. A fairly substantial Sunday dinner, washed down with a glass of shiraz that Crawford and Nancy brought on Friday.

Spoke to Jamie later and heard that they had their new Christmas tree built up and lit. It looked very grand in the living room. Also, Jamie just dropped it into conversation that they had their log burner going to keep the place warm.

No where planned for tomorrow, but if it’s dry we may go to Drumpellier for a walk in the woods.