Category: Dancing

Alyth, Dragons and Dancin’ – 8 June 2026

Posted on by Zogman

Jamie and Simonne went off this morning to meet up with their friends in Alyth we went dancing in Kirsty’s class at night.

After Jamie and Simonne left, we drove to Tesco and did our usual Monday shop. There were quite a few heavy showers throughout the day, but we managed a walk over to St Mo’s. That’s where I saw the first Dragonfly of the year, a Four-Spotted Chaser. Four-Spotted because of the four spots on the wings of the insect. That made PoD.

In the evening we went to Kirsty’s dance class. That’s where we learned the Dalshannon Swing, a fairly simple, but fast dance the lady herself had devised.
We also learned the correct way to dance Rumba One, finding out that we’d been doing the ‘Fencing’ part completely wrong. Other than that, I think Scamp sat all evening working through old movies that now run on new technology. Now, I wonder where that DVD camera went. Maybe I could get it going again and that would mean I could …….. On second thoughts, probably better not!

Tomorrow we await the return of the walkers.

A scorcher! – 25 May 2026

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In the global stakes they don’t stand a chance, but today’s temperatures of 24ºc are impressive for Scotland.

We had a lazy start to the day, but we really must get some work done to the house. I thInk I need to sand down the back door and repaint it. The window sills also need a fresh coat of paint, front and back. The cupboard at the front of the house could do with a lick of paint too. I think that will be a good start. The carpets need to be cleaned and that seems to be where Scamp thinks we should start … hopefully tomorrow.

We watched a fairly interesting Canadian GP with a lot of mechanical failures catching drivers out. I almost felt sorry for George Russell. After his car ground to a halt at the side of the road, he threw his headrest away in disgust and that earned him an extra penalty! Not St George’s day. This new F1 rule book is catching a lot of drivers out and causing no end of misery for the ‘Old Team’. Good to see!

After the race was done, Scamp and I went for a walk down to the shops to get some essentials for lunch and for dinner later. That was when I began to feel the effect of the 24ºc and wondered how Hazy was surviving “Dahn Sarf”. Hope it wasn’t too hot for you.

After lunch and before dinner, we drove to the Town Centre for a sequence dance class. I can’t for the life of me remember its name, but we knew it well enough to dance the whole routine without listening to the teacher. That didn’t mean that we just ignored her, and we actually learned some of the finer details like the hold we should be using. Good work, Kirsty.

Back home there was just enough light to capture a bunch of Aquilegia flowers backlit by the sun. That made an easy PoD.

So tomorrow we’re intending getting the carpet cleaner out and do a ‘Scrub a dub dub’ on the living room carpet!

Off to Brookfield for a dance class – 23May2026

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This may possibly be the last dance class for a whole month. The teachers are off on two different cruises. I won’t say I am disappointed, but I’m not.

We got a great surprise when we headed over to Brookfield and were allowed to travel faster than 40mph. The 40mph ban had been lifted and we were driving at normal motorway speeds. Even better, the roads were only partly full. We usually watch for one of the big ‘out of town’ parking areas to whizz past on the left, only half full. Today it was almost totally full. Finally we reached Brookfield, about fifteen minutes quicker than usual. That’s the difference the 40mph ban makes.

Today was a high energy dance class. It started with the Electric Slide which only about fifty percent of of the class seemed comfortable with. I was just lost – thinking it was The House of Bamboo with different music. Then we were into the ‘meat’ of today’s class with “Celia’s American Smooth Waltz”. Every time I start this dance, I think I’ve got it sorted in my head, then it falls to pieces. Today if took me a couple of rounds of the floor before I managed to join all the units together correctly.

A couple of sequence dances came next to give us a bit of relaxation, then it was time for another of Stewart and Jane’s less complicated dances and we finally ended up with another exhausting sequence dance that left most of the senior dancers gasping for breath.

We walked out of the hall into sunshine. It was such a beautiful day. We drove home in very light traffic for a Saturday. We even had enough time to go to M&S for some messages.

After lunch, Scamp wanted to work in the garden and I wanted to go out to St Mo’s in the hope of finding a damselfly ,,, and there it was, a Common Blue damselfly. It was very agitated and kept flying away. Eventually it settled down and I got a clear, if distant, view of the insect. The first damselfly this year for me! That became the PoD.

Tomorrow I have no plans.

Three days that were a blur – 18 May 2026

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On Friday we drove to Perth in the early afternoon to park the car for a few days while we sauntered off to do some serious dancing. Three days dancing, in the oldest, creakiest hotel in Perth. We’d been there before many times, and knew what it was like, but we chose to ignore the surroundings and just dance.

Saturday was a repeat of Friday with more dancing, but with the addition of posh dresses for the ladies and Evening Suits for the men in the evening. Still the same madness with the addition of a ‘new’ dance to learn and practise. Towards the end of Saturday it began to feel like “They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?” A 1969 film about a disparate group of individuals desperate to win a Depression-era dance marathon. The only differences between it and us was that there was no prize and we could leave whenever we wanted and go to bed.

Sunday morning was my least favourite, the one hour dance class, where everyone is enthusiastic to begin with, but, as the hour ticks away, people drift away and say their goodbyes. It’s a bit sad.

We drove home through some really heavy rain showers, but arrived in a dry Cumbersheugh after three long days.

Today was a day of rest after a fashion, but we also had a consultation with a solicitor to finalise some details of legal issues. I think we were both happy with the end result.

Back home I went for a walk in St Mo’s and got a couple of decent photos. My favourite, and PoD, was a pair of delicate looking Aquilegia plants resting against a wall. The previous three days worth of PoDs are available for perusal in the usual place.

Tomorrow I’m hoping we will have a real rest day!

Dancin’ – 14 May 2026

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Looking for windscreen wipers unsuccessfully this morning.

I was out fairly early and drove over to Halfords for a pair of much needed windscreen wipers. “Yes sir, we have that size in stock”. First problem was that their tablet that allows you to check the wipers if you know your reg number wasn’t working. That meant I had to work through all the wiper boxes only to find that one I needed was empty. “Ah, I think we have one in the back shop.” He didn’t. His boss appeared and looked at the empty rack and then tried raking through the boxes on either side of it to no avail. “We do have this stainless steel version. It’s blah blah blah …” I asked him what the price difference was and he said with a smile “It’s twice the price of the one you’re looking for, but it’s stainless steel.” I didn’t buy it, nor did I buy the other two blades they did have. Moral: Don’t buy from Halfords!

Drove home and had just enough time for a banana sandwich before driving to Glenburn for a very empty looking Tea Dance hoping it wouldn’t rain! Apparently, some of the regulars were on child minding duty and some were on holiday. A few folk did trickle in after the first dance was called and eventually the floor filled up. Stewart played his usual selection of merry melodies and Scamp and I managed to struggle through the sequence dances. We left a bit early to avoid the worst of the queues from schools finishing and also from office workers leaving early.

I had intended going out for a walk after we got home, but those scattered showers the weather fairies keep talking about were upon us again, so today’s PoD was a Rhododendron called “Golden Torch” from the garden, an old favourite.

Don’t know what we’re doing tomorrow. Maybe looking for windscreen wipers (not Stainless Steel ones!)

 

Dentist – 11 May 2026

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I had an appointment with the dentist this morning.

Thankfully it was a painless one. One gentle scrub with the dental grinding wheel to take the roughness off one of my front teeth and I was done until nearly the end of the year. No fillings today mum!

Back in time for lunch, then an almighty struggle with MacOS and Microsoft to transfer half a dozen photos from Mac to a Microsoft computer. Eventually I managed it by copying the Mac OS file on to an old SD card formatted to MS-DOS (FAT32) the lowest version that works with Mac OS and Microsoft. Why do different operating systems have to be so bloody minded.
The files copied easily to the SD card and transferred to the Microsoft computer.

I went out for a walk after that. Just one circuit of St Mo’s, but failed to find anything interesting for PoD. That went to a photo from the garden of a Dodecathon ‘Shooting Star’. A beautiful short lived flower whose origin is in the US, but which grows well in the UK and comes back every year (So far!).

We were dancing in Kirsty’s class this evening, our first time in about three weeks. Tonight it was Foxtrot which she had chopped into three parts. We managed to complete part one tonight with the possibility of more next week.

We’ve some family business tomorrow, but other than that, our dance card if empty.

Panic Stations! – 9 May 2026

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The car was the problem today. Two tyres looking scuffed and a bit sad.

Shona was ready to go back to her house. She had ordered a taxi which was useful because I didn’t trust one of my badly worn front tyres. I drove to Kwik Fit one of the few garages open today in the town and booked the car in for a repair. Thankfully I got a slot at 12.30pm. That meant I had to tell Scamp to cancel today’s dance class which I’m sure was a big disappointment to her, but I felt I needed to get the tyre problem solved. If it had been a fifteen minute drive to the class it was doable, but a forty five minute drive was a different prospect.

Drove back to the house and struggled with Wordle to take my mind off the vehicle problems. Time dragged, but I made use of that time by photographing a heart-shaped moth hanging upside down on our front window, that became PoD. I guessed that might be my only free slot today, and I was right. Just after midday I drove the Blue car down to the garage and waited there for a diagnose of the problem. The near-side tyre, I already knew was a goner. The off-side one was slightly better, but not by much, so I agreed with the mechanic’s estimate of two front tyres and an alignment check. After an hour and a half the car was on the road after it got two new tyres and a pass on the alignment after some adjustments. It felt better to drive right away, but that might just have been relief that I had a car again that I was confident wouldn’t fall apart on me.

Came home for a late lunch and relaxed a bit. Then Scamp wanted to get dressed for our invitation to Moira’s birthday party and of course I went too. She did look great in her new dress and I totally forgot to tell her. What an idiot I am at times. It was a great afternoon and I took my camera to record some of the carry on that was happening. Sat talking to Moira’s husband, comparing album covers and books we were reading and watching the ladies (The Witches) dancing in the Silent Disco. I listened to the ‘music’, but I’m not a dancer as anyone will tell you. Lots of stories told. Lots more were manufactured on the day. I was glad I was driving and didn’t have the temptation to drink. Once glass of 0.0 % cider and absolutely delicious strawberry tarts followed by slices of pizza with a lot of blethering was the order of the day.

We finally said our thanks and drove home. I think the party might still be going on now, but it doesn’t matter, because we enjoyed ourselves. Thank you Moira and Jim.

We have no plans for tomorrow, but I’d like another strawberry tart!

Dancin’ – 16 April 2026

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Back to Glenburn this afternoon to get some exercise, dancing.

Before that, I went for a walk in St Mo’s just in case I wouldn’t have time to grab any photos before we left for Glenburn and I was quite happy with my little collection of flowers and plants. A fair amount of sun to make things bright and cheerful. I even managed to get my PoD which is a Horse Chestnut candelabra just opening up to expose the flower buds.

I had been allowed 45 minutes to get to St Mo’s, grab my photos and get back in time for a quick lunch and an even quicker change before we made our way over to the outskirts of Paisley. I made it just in time with a few seconds before the cutoff time.

The hall was only about half full when we got to Glenburn, but gradually the cars arrived and the hall ended up almost as busy as it usually is. The usual mix of Ballroom, Jive and Latin in the first half, then in the second half it was almost all sequence. Since the schools were still on holiday, it was safe for us to take advantage and dance for almost all the available time. If we’re running a bit late and the schools are open, our journey home takes much longer with parents ferrying their little darlings home.

Dinner was from M&S and was Scottish salmon all butter en croute. It was remarkably good. I think we may have it again some time

We watched an illuminating episode of Grayson Perry interviewing folk about their adventures with AI in America. It really did make the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. What are these folk thinking about? Do they live in a different universe from us? One woman claimed she had married her AI ‘boy friend’. The more I hear about AI, the less I want to hear.

Note to self: Thursday Prezzy was a box of grapes, which were deemed to be great!

We watched the final of The Apprentice and agreed that the best woman won. There were no men in the final!

Tomorrow I may be meeting Charlie McKillop for a beer or two and a catch up. Steven may be there too.

Garden Flowers and shopping – 13 April 2026

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Too many showers to risk going out anywhere  to take photos.

Instead we drove to Stirling to do some shopping. On the way there, we passed a few warning signs of imminent road closures beginning today. No reason given, but I’m sure it would be “Essential Maintenance”, it always is. Three months of this on the M80 was what we were told we’d have to look forward to. Oh what fun.

When we turned off to go into Stirling town we had to suffer more roadworks. Thankfully we were, going IN to Stirling. The queue on the other side of the road coming out of the town was much, much longer. I think we’ll try to avoid Stirling for a few months.

We got parked in Waitrose car park quite easily for a change and we filled our trolley nearly to overflowing, but not quite. As usual we bought lots more stuff than we really need, but it’s a comfortable place to “go for the messages in”. Our small Tesco doesn’t have a great selection and if we go to the big Tesco at the town centre it’s always mobbed. Anyway, we got what we wanted and drove home by avoiding the Three Way Traffic Signals and instead drove through the outskirts of Stirling, heading roughly north and then joined the southbound carriageway of the M80 and got home in half the time. Wild weather again with heavy rain. It didn’t feel like April at all.

The rain was on and off most of the rest of the day. I did manage to get a few shots when the sun was shining and my favourite was a deep purple Hellebore called Viv Mirabella. It has been flowering all through the winter and into spring without showing any signs of stopping any time soon.

Not much to say about the rest of the day. We went to Stirling. We went for the messages. It rained. There, that about sums up Monday for us.

Dancin’ – 11 April 2026

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Today we drove to Brookfield after I’d spent about £1,000 on half a tank of petrol!

Well, it certainly felt like £1,000 when I was half filling the tank. However, we were passing through the Straits of Glasgow where your speed is limited to 40mph for quite a few miles. We managed to avoid most of the potholes and all of the mines. The 40mph restriction kept the fuel usage fairly low, but I wouldn’t want to drive like that all the way every day.

Again, we weren’t the last folk to arrive at Brookfield, although we were among those who were given the evil eye by the Teachers.

The order of dance was:

House of Bamboo – A 1958 song by Andy Williams. Just a bit of fun.

Britannia Waltz – A waltz made up by the teachers that I haven’t mastered yet.

Tango Sereda – A tango, obviously, that we’ve both almost managed to get working for us.

Quickstep – A quickstep that I don’t think I’ll ever master. It seems to change every week!

Blue Angel Rumba – I’m getting there, but it requires pushes and shoves by Scamp to remind me of the steps.

Sally Ann Cha-Cha – A silly wee dance where the leaders get a chance to shout “O!” at the end of each sequence with the option to high-five anyone nearby.

An energetic morning for all concerned.

As usual there were new roadworks on the way home with neither workmen or vehicles to be seen. Talked a good game but no work being done. Time wasters, all.

I did take a walk in St Mo’s in the late afternoon after Wordle et al had been conquered.

Scamp made dinner tonight, a prawn risotto. Long time since I’ve had it and it was a nice surprise.

Something is still wrong with the SSL in Namecheap. I’ll need to find out what tomorrow. More time wasted.

Off to bed now. No real plans for tomorrow.