Category: Close-up

A day of two halves – 25 April 2021

Posted on by Zogman

The first part was the active half, the second was the relaxing part.

The active part was intended to be a walk along the Forth & Clyde canal from Auchinstarry to Twechar and then the return journey with a detour to Queenzieburn then by the railway walkway back to the car. However, both the parking places local to the walk were completely full. That’s one of the disadvantages of this glorious weather we’re enjoying lately. Everyone wants to be out in the fresh air, enjoying the sunshine. A quick reappraisal on the hoof suggested that Colzium Estate in Kilsyth might be an appropriate place for a shorter walk. So that’s what we did.

The parking at Colzium was fairly busy too, but we got parked quite easily. We walked a few of the paths we’d been on before and then found a couple of new ones. The entire estate is criss crossed with paths, some official, but most just short cuts through the trees. Although most of the flowers weren’t fully out yet, we did see some rhododendrons with buds almost ready to burst. Out near an old house in the north of the estate I found some beautiful moss fruiting bodies and they made PoD. We also watched Mrs Duck out with the weans for a swim round the old curling pond which is now almost completely overgrown. All in all we covered about two miles. About half of the distance we’d have managed if we’d gone along the canal, but some poor people have to work for a living and can only get out at weekends. We’re lucky enough to be able to go out anytime we want.

Back home it was the leftovers from yesterday’s curry for lunch and it tasted a lot better than it did last night. That’s often the way with a curry, though. After that we sat on the front step enjoying the sun and the relaxing half of the day. Scamp was reading and I was watching a YouTube video about building a catalog in Capture One and populating it. Sounds terribly dull, but I found out that the program may be a good replacement for the ageing Lightroom. Certainly worth considering.

There was no dance class tonight because only two couples, us included, were available. A good decision, really. It made a change to have a night off.

Tomorrow we are booked to have our next Covid survey and test. Can’t say I’m looking forward to it, but I’ll put up with it. Tesco delivery is due too and then later I’ve got an appointment for my second jag. Busy day tomorrow. No time to enjoy the excitement of the shops opening for the first time since Christmas! There will be other days I’m sure.

Walking in the woods – 24 April 2021

Posted on by Zogman

The woodlands of Coatbridge. Not the first thing that springs to mind when I think of Coatbridge.

Coatbridge used to be a centre for heavy industry with a dirty old dilapidated canal running through it. Now it’s cleaned itself up quite a lot and most of that dirty old canal has been drained or filled in and where that failed, it’s been gentrified. We used to restrict ourselves to a wet walk around the pond whose name is really Lochend Loch. The path was really a conveyer belt with people in both directions, keeping left and stubbornly completing their exercise for the day. It was only recently we discovered the paths into and around the woodland that covers the majority of the park. The forests are a mixture of deciduous and coniferous trees and the paths are wide and winding. Some gentle climbs and some slightly more demanding. All easy walking, really. It’s difficult to get lost with the park being bounded by a railway line, a road and the pond, oops Loch. Wandered round today and chose a new path we hadn’t travelled on before and found a cricket ground. A cricket ground in Coatbridge! Who knew? The walk finished with an ice cream cone which seems to be becoming the icon of this spring’s warm days.

Back home I fashioned the remains of yesterday’s pizza into another shared pizza. It wasn’t quite as memorable as yesterday’s, but it filled a wee space. After that and after a cup of coffee, Scamp seemed determined to tidy things up an I got my shorts and boots on and went for a walk in the woods of St Mo’s. I’d tried a few shots of blossom and horse chestnut flowers in Drumpellier, but I reckoned there was better to be found in St Mo’s. Actually it was the blossom from Coatbridge that got PoD and a little mini tree got second place. None of the chestnut tree pictures got a sniff at the place on Flickr. Maybe once the candelabra flowers open up they will get their place in the sun and on Flickr.

Dinner tonight was a disappointing curry from Bombay Dreams. Pakora was only just warm and my Chicken Tikka Bhoona had too much ghee and too little flavour. Scamp’s seemed to be a bit better. Not their best offering.

Tomorrow may be the last of the warm spring days and we might go for another walk somewhere interesting and not too far away.

 

Another hot one on the way – 23 April 2021

Posted on by Zogman

Blue sky and sunshine at 8am. Looks like it’s going to be warm again.

It was warm. We drove down to have a wee natter with Isobel in the Village. Scamp had promised her an Astilbe plant. The plant simply wants to take over the entire garden, so it had to be cut back every few years. Strangely, Isobel didn’t have a piece of it in her garden, so good luck to her keeping it in its place. However, if anyone can do it Isobel can. We sat in her little sun trap at the side of her house and chatted away. Before we’d noticed, an hour had passed and it was time for us to go.

Back home, and after lunch, I made a pizza dough and left it to rise while we went for a walk in St Mo’s. One circuit of the pond was enough for Scamp today. She headed off to the shops after that and I went for another circuit. There wasn’t much to see today, but the hawthorn bushes were pushing out their flower buds, not opened yet, but it won’t be long. PoD went to some Cladonia. Sprouting up like upturned trumpets. There are alien landscapes all around us if we take the time to look and to wonder.

Walked down to meet Scamp and walked back up the road with her. Sat in the garden for a while and finished off my first book from Audible (What Abigail Did That Summer). It’s supposed to be a young adult book, but this old adult enjoyed it tremendously. It’s encouraged me to try another one. I think I’ve bought two, years ago, and never started them. I also have another one that was awful and it was probably that experience that put me off audiobooks.

The pizzas I made from the dough were among the best I’ve ever made. Light and fluffy base but not heavy in the middle. I don’t know how I did it, but the remains of the dough are in the fridge, so I just might make a pizza to share tomorrow. As well as finishing off the book in the garden, I also finished off two wee cans of beer (to keep Scamp company with her Pimms!) and then a glass of wine with my pizza. Later in the evening we both had a G ’n’ T. I’m beginning to feel the effects now and maybe it’s time to get to bed before my eyes close.

Hoping for another warm day tomorrow before the weather breaks and the rain comes on Sunday.

 

Almost shorts & tee shirt – 22 April 2021

Posted on by Zogman

Warmest day so far this year.

Spoke to Hazy in the morning and got the lowdown on life down south. The big question of the day was “Has Joey and Jess’s baby arrived yet?” It hadn’t but there were lots of other things to talk about like having a fountain in your birdbath! That’s just showing off.

Drove out to Torwood garden centre for a look around and for grass fertiliser. Also if we just happened to find any interesting looking plants we’d maybe bring them home too. I got some curly kale plants which I much prefer to the black kale I grew last year and some cheap seed potatoes. We also got a couple of mint plants, a potted Ranunculus and the lawn feed.

Back home it was lunch time then we were out in the garden planting stuff. I planted the seed potatoes, or at least three tubers. Put the kale into the greenhouse to harden off while Scamp potted up the mint and dug out what was left of last years mint and repotted it to see if it would come. After that she stated that she was going to sit in the sun with a book. That’s when I decided it was time for a pair of shorts and a walk in the woods.

There wasn’t much to see for the ordinary punter, but if you’ve got a new toy to play with and a macro lens for it, there’s always an interesting subject or two. Today’s subject was a little fly blowing bubbles on a tree. I’ve seen photos of this activity before on various sites and wondered what was going on. It turns out that the fly cools itself by blowing out and sucking in the tiny water droplet. Why it needs to do that in Scotland, in April is beyond me. Granted, I was wearing shorts, but I had a thick hoodie on too. It wasn’t shorts and tee shirt time yet! The bubble blowing fly got PoD.

Scamp watered the garden, both front and back tonight and I’m sure the plants would feel better after that soaking. It also helped wash in the lawn feed and also the rose feed she’d put on the plants this morning. Quite the little gardening duo today.

Tomorrow we may go for a walk somewhere and maybe visit Isobel.

A day of comings and goings – 20 April 2021

Posted on by Zogman

Arrivals and departures.

First arrival was along thin cardboard box addressed to Scamp. The postman didn’t want to damage it by pushing it through the letterbox, so I took it from him at the door. It was the April delivery of flowers for Scamp. Part of her birthday prezzy from JIC and Sim. Just like last time the flowers looked dry and wilted but this time we had more faith in the clever preparation and packaging. Scamp also knew how to feed them and water them after the surprise of the last bunch. This one was a mix of Asters, Snapdragons (which my mum called Map Maps), Stock, Solidago and Bupleurum. The last two, we had never heard of before. They were all immediately trimmed, watered and fed and are standing proud in their place between the piano and the display cabinet. One very happy lady is Scamp!

Next visitor was the DPD man to pick up my box of lenses and a camera. Handed over the box, he stuck on a ticket and gave me the other half of the ticket as a receipt. They’re now on their way to Brighton.

Half an hour later the third visitor was a lady bearing another box, this time for me. On the strength of the offer from MPB I’d bought myself another camera. Not ‘YET’ another camera, JIC. One went out today and one came in. The camera mountain remains at the same height. This is the updated version of the camera which was travelling to Brighton. An amazing box of tricks it is too. It can do summersaults while juggling three balls and walking on a tightrope. I’m still working my way through the user’s manual, wishing it came as an audio book! By the way, I’m about two thirds of the way through What Abagail Did That Summer by Ben Aaronovitch. It’s read by Shvorne Marks. I’m getting to like the idea of someone telling me a story!

As well as all that, Scamp had been for a walk to Condorrat to post a birthday card. I’d dusted half the surfaces in the living room, taking great care to place all the Bus Stop Ladies back in their respective places and giving the wee green snake that hold my brushes a gentle rub over too. I’d also been for a walk in St Mo’s and got today’s PoD on the way back – taken with the new toy, of course.  I think it’s a Berberis thunbergii.  The leaves are beautiful in autumn. When I got back, Scamp had just finished clearing out the spice rack and had found jars in there dating back to 2005! Quite a lot of jars went in the bin today, as you can imagine.

Dinner tonight was a Scamp speciality, a prawn stir-fry. Nothing fancy, just things from the fridge and freezer that should be used up. That’s the best kind of meal. It was lovely.

We had a run through of the Bossa Nova tonight to ensure that I don’t make a complete fool of myself on Sunday. Although I wouldn’t say it was the smoothest practise we’ve had, it is beginning to flow a bit better now. Counting seems to help me. Just as long as I don’t do it out loud!

Tomorrow may be a better day than today which started wet and just became dull after that with the threat of more rain if we didn’t behave. If it’s good tomorrow we may go for a walk somewhere other than Cumbersheugh.

The Fish Van – 19 April 2021

Posted on by Zogman

The fish van was coming today.

Actually it was the DPD van that was arriving today within a one hour slot around midday. It arrived and a lady delivered a big expanded polystyrene box which Scamp quickly opened and decanted the Haddock, Cod, Crab, Scallops and Smoked Haddock into the freezer while I played with the packets of dry ice they had been packed in. It’s amazing stuff and although I’ve seen it in stage shows and such, this was the first time I got to touch it. It was cold! Of course, once you read the warnings on the packet, you learn not to touch it with bare hands. But where’s the fun in reading instructions when you can be playing with the stuff. I got some amazing effects from dropping hot water on to the little pieces that were all that were left in the bags after their overnight journey from down in the depths of England. Little spheres of water would levitate above the solid CO₂ for long enough to photograph. I even got a CO₂ bubble to form with the gas swirling inside. Unfortunately it didn’t last long enough to get a photo. We must buy some more fish soon so I can be prepared this time and create some more special effects. Who knew science could be so much fun … as long as you read the instructions and warnings first!

It had been another beautiful morning with blue skies and bright sun as predicted by the weather fairies last night. By the time Scamp had put all the fish away and I’d finished playing experimenting, the clouds were encroaching on Cumbersheugh, also as predicted by the weather fairies. Scamp walked down to the shops in the morning while I removed the rear number plate which had been hanging on by one ‘Sticky Fixer’ for months.  I cleaned up the plate and the space on the car where it was to go and replaced it with three new stickies.  After that I took my trusty Sony with its heavy, but excellent quality macro lens for a walk in St Mo’s. Found a few things, but best shot of the day by far was the spider defending its territory on the boardwalk. That got PoD. If you view the bigger version on Flickr you’ll see that there’s a reflection of me in the spider’s large eyes.

Dinner tonight was supposed to be Spaghetti all’Amatriciana but it turned out more like a rather hot veggie chilli. Too much chilli flakes I fear. Scamp said she didn’t know how it tasted at first because her mouth was on fire. After a while it calmed down and she said it tasted ok, just too hot. Just a pinch of the fiery flakes next time, then.

Watched another Line of Duty tonight and it posed more questions than it answered. Who did what to whom and why didn’t anyone notice a gun battle? Or was that last week?

Spent an hour tonight checking that everything was packed in safely in the big box, then sealed it up and addressed it. DPD person will arrive tomorrow to take it away to give to some lucky girls and boys who, I hope will get as much enjoyment out of it as I did once they fork out some money to MPB. Hopefully the man at MPB will give me some money too for being so kind as to send him my camera and lenses.

Tomorrow doesn’t look as good as today, but that doesn’t matter really because the DPD pick up will be somewhere in the range 9am to 6pm. Hopefully we’re not waiting around for all of those nine hours! I’m sure there will be lots of other things to do.

 

 

Spring Cleaning – 15 April 2021

Posted on by Zogman

We had some things that either weren’t working or were surplus to requirements. We took them on a one way trip to the skips.

Scamp had been collecting bags of broken and tired looking things that were lying around the house or garden. Thankfully I was excluded from the collection although the description seemed to fit me quite well. We gathered them all up and took them to the skips. Drove back via the garden centre where we got a parsley plant, some violas and a couple of packets of seeds with compost to plant them in. Real compost this time with real soil in it, not just the dust and fibres that we dump from the hoover.

Back home and after lunch Scamp started to clear out the bin shed which, just to confuse things doesn’t have any bins in it now. Now we have wheely bins four of them that clog up the front door. Thanks for that NLC. Just what you want at your front door, four smelly bins. Anyway, I was called in to supervise the operation and ensure that all the stuff she had earmarked for the next skip deposit really was rubbish. We came to an agreement on almost all of the garden accessories. I held on to a bag or two of cement, but that was really just so she wouldn’t get things all her own way and so I could use them as bargaining chips in later discussions.

Next task for Scamp was to plant the violas and between us we completed an in depth investigation on the Gypsophila which then became a post mortem. Neither of us could find any life in the plant. However, on reading some trustworthy reports on the Interweb, it appear that the plant dies back in autumn and it is recommended that it is cut right back in spring. That’s exactly what we did today! It may live to flower again in the summer.

I went for a walk in St Mo’s in the late afternoon just to grab some photos. Instead of the Sony I took the little light Panasonic GX 80 and one lens. Today’s PoD shows that it’s perfectly capable of producing good photos from its small sensor.

We watched the first of the Sewing Bee tonight and I have to agree with Hazy that cats were never meant to wear coats. I think the same about dogs. Real ‘dugs’ have a thick coat that protects them from the cold. To some eyes they may seem ‘cute’ in their little knitted woollen jackets, but they don’t need them! The contestants were the usual mix of crazies, fanatics and chancers. Haven’t picked a likely winner yet, but if my choice of winner of the Landscape Artist of the Year (Canada) is anything to go by, it’s stick a (sewing machine) needle in a name and that is the likely winner, or that’s the one who will go out first.

Tomorrow we are exercising our legal right to travel anywhere in the length and breadth of Scotland. We think we know where we’re going. Tune in tomorrow to see if we made it!

A Scottish Day – 10 April 2021

Posted on by Zogman

In other words, four seasons in one day.

It was still below zero when I was making breakfast. I did toy with the idea of getting dressed and going out to take some photos, but that was as far as it got. I decided instead to go back to bed after I’d set the iMac to do a backup. I browsed the Audible site to see what books were available and more importantly, after a warning from JIC and Hazy, listening to the readers. Some of them were terrible and were rejected immediately. I under the “Valley Girl” description Hazy. I think I’ve settled on one, but I’ll have another listen tomorrow.

It took the sun quite some time to raise the temperature above the zero mark. There was frost on the roofs of the cars and it stayed for quite a while in the shadow areas of the back garden. We weren’t all that bothered about rushing out, because we were waiting (im)patiently for the post. Eventually he arrived and yes, he had a parcel in his hand. Inside was a little snake shaped paint brush holder. I’d been meaning to make one of these since I saw a tutor using a brush holder in a video I’d been following. His was just a piece of wood with slots cut to hold the brushes, but this was shaped like a little green snake hand painted by the look of it. A brilliant prezzy Hazy, even if the Royal Mail were hoping to keep it for themselves. Thankfully they relented and handed it to me. It will go into the painting room as soon as I get the table cleared. At present it’s a propagating table for my Aquilegia flowers.

Eventually, after lunch we did go out for a walk in  the sun. Once round the pond at St Mo’s for Scamp then she exited in the general direction of the shops, while I went into the wooded area looking for interesting photos. That’s where I found today’s PoD. It’s another horse chestnut bud, but this is from a bigger tree than the last one and is a bit closer to opening into full leaf. Such beautiful detail in the veins of the leaves.  When I  got home we had a snow shower which looked as if it might lie, but it soon went off and the lying snow melted away,

Dinner tonight was a Chinese stir-fry made by Scamp. I don’t have the skill to work fast enough to make a stir-fry without burning it.

I messed around with two of the front runners to replace Lightroom, but neither of them offer much of an advantage over Lightroom, so I suppose I’ll just keep it running for a while, maybe using the free cut down version of Capture One if I need it.

We had a quick dance practise tonight and although we made a decent attempt at the Rumba, Tango and Waltz, our Salsa skills are decidedly rusty now and maybe we’ll be feeling the effects of that more energetic dance tomorrow.

No plans for tomorrow, other than doing the Tesco order! Such fun.

 

Baking – 7 April 2021

Posted on by Zogman

Today I was making Cheese & Garlic Tear and Share.

First thing to do today was make the dough.

Kneading, for some reason is good for increasing your step count. I think it’s the constant rhythmic movement of the wrist when kneading the dough that makes the Fitbit think you’re walking, when you’re actually standing on the spot. Ten minutes of kneading for the dough then an hour and a bit of rest for the dough and the baker. That gave me enough time to get the majority of today’s Sudoku done.

By lunchtime it looked as if the dough was about to burst out of its clingfilm covered bowl, but I let it stay there until I’d finished my French Toast or Eggy Bread to some. Scamp was off to meet Veronica and go for a walk with her round Broadwood Loch. I was keeping up my virtual step count with an extra bit of kneading. The next bit was a bit dull. The big ball of dough had to be divided into 24 equal balls and each one was to be filled with some mozzarella. Actually it was quite relaxing once I got into the zone. Packed twelve of my cheese stuffed balls into two round tins, left one to rise and put the other one in the fridge for tomorrow. Baked the tin of doughballs that had now risen and merged together after drizzling them with melted butter, garlic and parsley. This is definitely not a low calorie bread. The bread looked exactly like the picture in the recipe. I was impressed. So was Scamp. The only thing wrong with it was that the cheese I’d so carefully hidden in the balls, had disappeared. Maybe tomorrow’s will be better. Still it was a tasty tear and share. Thanks again JIC and Sim.

Just as it was coming out of the oven, Scamp appeared. I guessed I’d have time for a photo expedition to St Mo’s, so with a newly cleaned sensor and a single lens I went off to seek some subjects. There wasn’t much directional light and you know how much I like Light! I did however find today’s PoD on my weary plod home. It’s a Horse Chestnut bud recognisable by the scar just beneath the smaller buds. Seen from the front it looks like a horses hoof print with little nail holes too. Hence the name Horse Chestnut.

Dinner tonight was fish ’n’ chips. Fish on a Wednesday is a tradition in the house and tonight was no exception. Scamp has cleverly found a way to reduce the smell of the cooking oil, by lighting a scented candle in the kitchen. It works wonders.

We had a quick practise of the three dances we know and without a word of lie, we hardly put a foot wrong.  Why does it all go to pot when we’re dancing in (virtual) class on Sunday?  It must be the pressure of dancing for the teachers and knowing they are watching.

Watched Line of Duty tonight and am still looking for the User’s Manual to explain exactly what is going on!

A parcel seemed to arrive today but seems to have been spirited away. Also spirited away is the Fairy Garden. In my St Mo’s walk today I wondered if it had been vandalised, but no. Every single piece of the garden had disappeared, including the stars hanging from the trees, all the little doors and even the washing had been taken in! All gone back to fairyland I presume.

Must get this blog posted and get to bed. No plans for tomorrow, other than breakfast in bed.

 

 

Another cold day – 6 April 2021

Posted on by Zogman

What has happened to spring this year? We seem to be back in winter.

Another lovely day … as long as you were in the house with the heating on. Once you stepped out, you found out what the Arctic feels like. Of course, I speak from experience. We both stepped out, but only as far as the car. We drove up to Tesco and while Scamp waited in the queue for the chemist to get her meds, I wandered round Tesco picking up the makings of lunch and dinner. Then it was a drive home through a snowstorm. I kid you not, this weather has only got worse since Donald Trump was chucked out of the White House. Bring back DT, Make Weather Great Again.

After lunch we agreed that we should go out again, but this time we’d be walking. Twice round St Mo’s pond without a photo being taken. Then to lengthen the walk we followed the path down in the general direction of the shops, but turned left before we got there. Walked down to the underpass that would take us to Broadwood Loch, but again turned left and went back up to the house. While Scamp was admiring a Magnolia bush, I was looking at some yellow flowers nearby. I took some photos, but they didn’t make PoD.

After a coffee and while Scamp was reading, I went for a walk in St Mo’s. Yes, it was cold, but not too cold, especially if you were out of the wind and in the sun, which I was for a while taking photos of Larch flowers, the aptly named Larch Pineapples. I named them that, you won’t find that description in Wikipedia. Even they didn’t make the grade for PoD.

I walked across what is usually a swampy mess past a small pond. Today with my new waterproof boots on, it wasn’t really all that wet, but it did give me a chance to test the grip from the Vibram soles, and they did get a bit wet. I felt better. They now looked ‘lived in’. Found my little ladybird still sleeping away the cold weather in its little crevice in the ash tree and grabbed the best photos yet of the insect.

<Technospeak>
Back home I squirted all the photos into Lightroom and decided the ladybird and the larch pineapple were the best of the bunch, so I used a new processing app on the iMac to do an auto adjust of the two shots. The results were interesting. The larch pineapple was worse after its dunking in the auto adjust bath. Highlights blown out colour just not right. The ladybird looked a lot better after its magic processing. I can’t explain it. It must be something to do with the basic colours of the subject and the browns and oranges of the ladybird pic work well with the algorithm for tuning the adjustments. Finally decided that the ladybird got PoD and used the new Capture One processing, but processed the larch pineapple with Lightroom.
</Technospeak>

Watched a BBC 2 programme we’d recorded last week about a Scottish painter James Morrison who painted wonderful landscapes from the North East of Scotland. Beautiful enormous watercolours and oils. If you have the time and inclination, watch “Eye of the Storm” on iPlayer. Quite stunning work and a great old man who died soon after the film was made, aged 88 I think. I have to thank Fred for telling me about it.

Tomorrow, Scamp is hoping to go for a walk with Veronica and I’m hoping to bake something interesting for her to come back to.