Category: Driving

Driving everywhere – 3 June 2023

Posted on by Zogman

The dance class for today was cancelled due to too few numbers, so we used the daw wisely by tidying up loose ends.

We drove to The Fort in about 23ºc of heat with the intention of getting a pair of Crocs for me and a pair of shorts for Scamp. Neither of us achieved our goals and we went for lunch at Wagamama to console ourselves. Prawn raisukaree for Scamp and Chicken raisukaree for me (raisukaree = curry) with Ebi Katsu to share (butterflied prawns coated in panko and deep fried)

Fed and watered we next drove to B&Q to get an adapter that would allow the hose to be used from the kitchen tap without the use of a great deal of swearing and fountains of water. I think we got the right adapter this time, but I believe we may be testing tomorrow.

I fancied getting a hat (Hazy, similar to Neil’s) and that meant a trip further into darkest Coatbridge, but with the satnav to help us, we found Go Outdoors. There they had the hat I wanted in a size that fitted but at a price that was a little more than I’d intended paying. However, if you bought a discount card for £5 we got roughly £15 off the price and a further 20% off the remainder. That brought it down to what I’d call a reasonable price!! Pity they didn’t have Crocs!

We drove back to Cumbersheugh, trusting the satnav to get us back to ‘civilisation’ and I finally snagged myself a pair of Crocs to replace my ancient and crumbling pair I bought in Fuerteventura many, many years ago. Just a bit annoyed that I had to pay full price for them! Scamp also managed to get herself a pair of shorts and we drove home slightly emptier of pocket, but with new purchases.

Back home it was still hot, so to cool down I changed into shorts and went for a walk in St Mo’s. Managed to capture my first damselfly of the year, an Emerald. Also photographed a wee fly, looking a bit like a robber fly sitting on a buttercup. The robber fly got PoD. On the way back home I dropped in at the chip shop in Condorrat for a Special Fish Supper to share with Scamp. Sat for a while in the garden reading, watching the birds queue up to get some water from the birdbath.

We watched a fairly interesting Spanish GP tonight, with a few drivers demonstrating their off-road skills, but thankfully no crashes.

Got a message from Jamie to say their new boiler has been installed. Hot and cold running water is a great thing, isn’t it. That and a real shower! We know how you pair feel.

No plans for tomorrow, although we may water the garden, hopefully without flooding the kitchen!

A busy day – 2 June 2023

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Dentist and Optician on the same day, and what a glorious day.

In the morning, Scamp was going to the Dentist hoping she could repair a broken tooth. She could, but it would take some time to complete and cost a bit of money, but that’s always the way, isn’t it? The main thing is that she trusts this dentist. She, the dentist, managed to protect the broken tooth with a temporary support, but it will be about six weeks before she can start the work.

After lunch we drove over to Larky where Scamp had an appointment with the optician. I dropped her off and continued my journey to Millheugh which is really just an extension of Larkhall now, but in the past it was a fishing village on the banks of the Avon Water. It’s a bit untidy and sad looking now, but back in the day Millheugh a working salmon fishery.
I wasn’t looking for salmon today, I wanted to photograph the gully and the bridge which my mum always called the Cauves Know, but others called it the Clove Mill. Two similar sounding names for the same place. I managed to splash about and get a few shots of the narrow Powforth Glen and the waterfall that runs down under the bridge and into the Avon. My favourite made PoD. Then it was time to walk back round to the car. If the water had been just a wee bit lower today I could have walked straight across to the car, but the rocks would have been even slimier then and I’m sure I’d have fallen in.

Picked up Scamp and we drove home in sunshine! She doesn’t need new glasses and according to the optician, she has 20/20 vision now just about a year and a half after her double cataract operation. We sat out in the garden before Scamp made dinner which was Crispy Sea Bass with Lentils. Lovely summer dinner.

We watered the garden with watering cans tonight because quite a lot of the pots were drying out. I’d meant to get a new adapter for the kitchen tap today, but I forgot, so it was watering cans tonight. Hopefully I’ll be able to get the adapter tomorrow.

Ah, tomorrow. It should have been a chance to draw a line under the New Joy’s Waltz, but there weren’t enough couples to get a quorum, so no dancing tomorrow. Not sure what we’re doing, but it looks like it will be warm and dry … again.

Dancin’ with strangers – 1 June 2023

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Today we drove over to Glenburn community centre for the tea dance and there were two strangers there!

We did have a quick practise in the morning just to make sure we could actually do the devious “Outside Spin” where I have to must my right knee to push Scamp round. That could be a dangerous manoeuvre at the best of times, but in a living room and on a carpet it’s a recipe for disaster, except, it seemed to work.

I had hoped that the roadworks that had caused a lot of congestion a fortnight ago would be gone by today, but they were if anything, worse today. We really need to find a way round them. I might have found that way. We need to turn left at the busy roundabout then turn right at the end of that road. This will bring us out past the roadworks. I know this means nothing to you, but hopefully I’ll read this in a fortnight or so’s time and see how clever I was to put this reminder in. Coming from Glenburn to the M77 will be the reverse of going in true Haynes manual fashion. If that too means nothing to you, you’ve never stripped down the front wheel bearing of a Reliant Regal using Haynes Manual.

So, after arriving a good twenty minutes late, we tried a bit of Social Foxtrot and even a Quickstep with ad-lib additions by me which worked some of the time. I’d like to say ‘most’ of the time, but Scamp will read this and say “Oh no they didn’t.” There was a very small class today, only seven couples I think and one of the couples wasn’t from our class. Two asian dancers were in a category above the most of the usual couples and stratospherically higher than us … except when it came to Sequence Dances. That’s where our stepping is just so much better. Dancing in a circle and being able to follow the couple in front (unless it’s John). Never follow John I was told. He never sticks to the sequence and puts everyone who follows him off. I actually felt sorry for the asian couple. Everybody seemed to avoid them. “Who do they think they are? Coming to OUR tea dance?” Scamp went and talked to them, of course, and I was proud of her for doing so.

As usual we left early to avoid the extra busy traffic, but again the roadworks on the other side of the dual carriageway caused problems and we took about an hour to get home.

Back home, I went for a walk round St Mo’s and down to the Shops. Well, it is Thursday with all that entails. I was looking for damselflies beside the pond in St Mo’s, but there were none to be found, just a single dragonfly that was scudding around the pond at high speed looking for a mate, no doubt. Too fast for the kit lens I had on the A7. Instead PoD was a close up shot of a Marsh Horsetail. The Buttercup of the wetlands. Impossible to get rid off, according to my brother. It was sitting in a little bit of sunshine and looked translucent in the light.

Watched the final of Masterchef tonight and thought the person who won was an excellent choice. No spoilers here.

Tomorrow might be a busy day for Scamp. Dentist in the morning and optician in the afternoon is what is planned, hopefully it will work out for her. I have plans for things to photograph in Larky.

Glasgow – 31 May 2023

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Met Alex today for a walk around Glasgow.

We should have been going to Dunfermline, but he called off from that yesterday and suggested Glasgow instead.

It was a rambling walk up Sauchiehall Street and on to Charing Cross, then further on to Park Circus. Lots of photos taken by both of us. I don’t know how many Alex took, but I took 69 shots and rejected a fair amount of them. PoD was a perspective shot of The Beresford which is now divided into private flats after a chequered history of casino, student accommodation, and billet for servicemen during the Second World War.

Lunch was on Alex and in what used to be called the Willow Tearooms. Very posh. I had an open sandwich with smoked salmon. Alex had an Ayrshire Ham and cheese toastie. The american girl who served us couldn’t understand me when I asked for a pot of Ceylon tea. Alex had to repeat it quite slowly as you would for a child. A … pot … of … Ceylon … Orange … Pekoe … Tea. Lovely food, terrible service.

We walked back down to the the Glasgow Concert Hall to find the steps thronging with posh frocks and tight suits. We still haven’t worked out what was going on, but there was a power outage at the time and maybe the fire alarms had sounded, but a lot of kids seemed to be clutching diplomas of some sort. Scamp thinks it might have been a graduation ceremony for one of the posh schools. Maybe she’s right. She usually is.

We said our goodbyes and he walked back to the bus station while I walked down to find the doors to Buchanan Galleries locked with guards only allowing people out, but not in. Possibly something to do with the power outage. I did manage to get in to the Galleries by another route, but the lifts were off in the multistorey carpark and I was on level 6!!

Drove home through chaotic traffic and posh frocks and suits crossing the road without thinking that the cars have right of way sometimes. Glad to get home to fish fingers and spaghetti for dinner.

Today’s final prompt asked for A Coin.
I decided three was better than one and that’s why there are three coins here. All are UK currency. A 10p on the right, a 20p coin in the middle and a little copper 1p on the left. Add them up:
10p + 20p + 1p = 31p on the 31st.
The end of this EDiM.

I have thoroughly enjoyed this challenge. Some difficult prompts and some easier ones, but no downright EASY ones. That would be no fun at all.

Tomorrow we’re hoping to dance the afternoon away at Glenburn.

In Glasgow – 29 May 2023

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Today we were going in to Glasgow.

It was what I would call “A Roaster”. I don’t know what temperature was reached but it was certainly in the mid to high twenties. We were on a mission though. We had a list of things to buy, or to be more precise, Scamp had a list of things to buy, but this time they were for me:
A pair of Crocs – Failure. Couldn’t get my size in anything other than white. Can you imagine me in a pair of white Crocs? How long would they stay white?
Dubbin for my boots – Success. Even if it was one and a half times the price of my old tin!
A new Concertina Sketch book – Success and I also got a ‘Rigger’ which is a very fine long haired brush for painting fine lines.
A Hat – Failure. The Tiso shop I was in didn’t have the fancy sun hat I was looking for, but it did have a cheaper version. Maybe …

That took us an hour or so of wandering around, then for lunch I suggested going to The Burrell. It was a good idea, but all of Glasgow seemed to be there. A lovely lunch there, although Scamp complained that the scone she had was a bit dry. I had the New York Special which wasn’t dry inside!

Drove back home and began to feel a bit tired, hard to explain. A fifteen minute snooze on the couch turned into a two hour sleep. I think I should have bought that hat and worn it to keep the sun off my rapidly balding head.

Eventually sat outside with Scamp and a bottle of beer.

Dinner was another Scamp salad with Tuna Macaroni, Baby Tomatoes, Grated Carrots and Peaches and a variety of leaves. Quite delicious and to finish a slice of M&S Bramley Apple Pie.

PoD went to a couple sitting in a chair at the end of a corridor at the Burrell.

Today’s prompt was Something Under A Magnifying Glass. I was initially at a loss as to what to draw, then I thought about the distortion a magnifying glass brings and this is the result. I’m not sure if the person holding the glass is being examined, or if they are examining ME!

Tomorrow Scamp is booked for coffee with June and I’m intending taking stuff to the skips.

 

Intense – 27 May 2023

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Drove through some fairly heavy traffic to get to dance class and it was hard work, the driving and the class!

The traffic was heavier than normal for a Saturday morning, but we managed to pass the slower traffic and ended up in Brookfield earlier than I anticipated. The class started with a Foxtrot. We’d expected Joy’s Waltz v2 and had practised it last night, but after a few dummy runs, our foxtrot was decent enough. No fancy rise and fall, just the basic routine but smoother than it sometimes is. It took me a while to fall into the order of the steps, but by the end we were looking quite good, and able to finish the routine and start again without stopping.

That foxtrot took us and the teachers a lot longer than they had intended, but the next one, Queen of Hearts Rumba was new to us, well it certainly was new to me. It’s a sequence dance, and after a couple of walk throughs, I was getting it right most of the time.

Third was Joy’s Waltz v2 and that v2 made a big difference. None of that complicated foot entanglement we had two weeks ago. That didn’t mean it was easy. Both of us found that we were turning the wrong way, but with a few helpful shoves from Jane I got the idea of the correct way to go.

A couple of sequence dances to lighten the mood and to bring us up to the end of the class. One, of course to Scamp’s favourite ‘Shivers’, and Stewart’s favourite ‘Green Door’.

The traffic going home is always terrible, but today for some reason it was fairly light and although we went the M74 route, we could almost have made good time crossing the Kingston Bridge instead.

I went out for an hour when we came home, but didn’t get anything startling. PoD turned out to be a buttercup flower which I liked.

The prompt for today was Your Favourite Game. Mine was Wordle

For the past year or so, since Scamp found this addictive game on a friend’s page on Facebook, we have struggled to complete it every day.
Like all good games, it’s the simplicity that makes it addictive. Six tries to find the hidden five letter word with minimal clues.

One of the best things about it is that you can only play one game a day, so you have to make the most of it, but it doesn’t take up all your day. Unlike Angry Birds which is my second favourite.

One of the worst things about it is that you need an internet connection to play it. That means if you are flying or on holiday in some remote place you can’t complete the game and if you can’t complete it, you lose all the points you’ve gained. That is maddening!

Dinner tonight came from Bombay Dreams and it was a shade poorer than is usual from them. Scamp had her usual Mushroom Paneer and I ordered a Special Handhi. I’m not sure that’s what I got, because there was no mention of a tomato sauce in the menu and there were none of the onions that were advertised. However the bread was good, Tandoor Roti. Best bread we’ve had from there.

There had been a sprinkling of rain today during the morning and afternoon, but nothing serious. We may water the garden tomorrow. Apart from that, no plans.

Going Home – 21 May 2023

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Like I said yesterday, today there was a sad wee hour long dance class. I’d much rather have joined the ones who left after breakfast.

But there was music and a much less crowded dance floor, so room to breathe and dance without getting elbowed off the floor, so we danced for that hour then said our goodbyes.

Paid our £16 odd for the parking and drove home on another sunny day. Not a lot you can say about heading south for an hour.

PoD was a shot of a pansy I took on a quick wander around the garden.

Today’s prompt was for a paper bag.  There is a movement for less plastic and more recyclable materials. I understand the need to re-use and recycle, but in a country with more than its fair share of rainy days, paper bags are impractical.
This is a sketch of a brown paper store bag made completely from paper, including the handles. On a wet day, would you rather carry your new suit or new dress home in it or in a plastic bag? I’m afraid I’d choose the plastic bag. Better protection, and it’s re-useable. There is a place for both, I believe, if used sensibly.

We had to make our own dinner tonight. No dining in the breakfast room or with the other dancers at their tables. Just us and a baked fish risotto.

Tomorrow I believe Scamp will want to do some gardening and I will be writing up these blogs!

A Busy Morning – 19 May 2023

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Bags to pack, Cards to post, Sketches to do and Photos to take

Strangely for me, all the above were achieved in a morning!

This afternoon we drove up to Perth to the old dilapidated Salutation Hotel which started taking paying guests in the year 1699 and is still taking guests to this day. Inside it’s an overheated maze with a wheezy old lift that struggles to carry folk up to the third floor and that’s where we were going. We had a corner room, not open, airy outside corner room, but a tight oddly shaped internal corner with a view into a compactor where the day’s rubbish and all sorts was compressed in a skip. Delightful. I won’t mention the shower which wasn’t so much a shower as a warm drizzle. There, I said I wasn’t going to mention it, but I did. I will not speak of it again.

We had plenty of time for a walk round Perth which was looking at its best today. An almost totally calm and still River Tay gave perfect reflections and one of them became PoD. We walked through the park beside the river on a beautiful spring day. On the way back Scamp went browsing in M&S and found what might have been a new dress, only to discover when we returned to the room that it was the wrong size and would need to go back tomorrow.

Dinner tonight was served in the breakfast room. Last November it had been a slightly shambolic buffet in the ballroom. Today’s was a better arrangement and the food was ok, just ok. Dancing started around 7.30pm and continued until midnight, but we had had enough by 11.30. One of the good things about having the dance in an old hotel is that the walls and floor seem to be a lot thicker and sound deadening than in newer establishments. In our room there was not a whisper coming from Stewart’s sound system, or maybe we were just so tired by then that we didn’t notice.

The prompt today asked for Sports Equipment.
I’m not really a sporting person these days. Maybe a couple of days cycling a year but nothing more energetic. There was a time I liked a game of badminton, but that was many years ago. I almost reached the point of the owner of this racket, but not quite.

More dancing, much more dancing planned for tomorrow night, plus the dreaded Joy’s Waltz with its Overturned Spin Turn.

A day in Japan – 17 May 2023

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Scamp was out early this morning to get her hair cut.

When she came back I was just finishing hanging out the washing. It was a lovely morning again and we discussing where to go when Scamp said she fancied going to the Japanese Garden near Dollar. I tidied up the things I was messing about with on the computer and off we went.

Scamp had bought the tickets online before we left, so we knew we’d get in, but we had to squeeze into one of the last three spaces in the overflow carpark. Then it was just a case of picking up a map and walking round the pond. We’d been before back in October last year and had seen the place in its autumn colours. We were hoping to see it in its spring regalia, but we were disappointed. A few of the azaleas were flowering in bright yellows and one or two rhododendrons were also flowering but everything else was green. It seems like it’s not just us who are running about a month late this year.

On the map we’d been given there was a mysterious number that would apparently unlock a gate. We looked where we thought the gate should be, but it wasn’t there. Finally we found it at the other end of the garden. There was a keypad on the gatepost and when we punched in the mysterious number the gate opened to allow us into the woodland walk. For the most part the walk was through woods, as you’d expect, but we could see a children’s adventure playground at the top of a hill, but ignored it and walked on. That’s where we found the ‘village’.

The noticeboard explained that last year’s storm ‘Arwen’ had felled or damaged a lot of the trees in the garden but that even the damage led to new beginnings. It was scamp who say the first tree stump with a heavy rope wrapped around the top and a variety of mosses and little trees growing in it. Then she saw the houses. Taller stumps topped off with roofs and with windows and doors added. Loads of these tree houses making something new from Arwen’s destruction a nice bit of creative thinking.

We wanted to have a coffee and a bite to eat, but the cafe was understaffed and there was a half hour wait before they’d be taking orders, so we left.

Scamp suggested we go to The Bothy for lunch instead. It was a great idea, but everyone of the townships we drove through had 20mph signs on entry. Why? There was no-one on the streets? We reached the cafe and after a bit of a wait we did get lunch with a cafetière of good coffee for me and peppermint tea for Scamp. Happy, we drove home.

Neither of us fancied dinner tonight and just to finish off the day I washed the car. I know it will be covered in seagull crap tomorrow, but I washed it today.

PoD was a view through one bridge to another in the Japanese Garden.

The prompt for today was A Pencil Case. This is my go-everywhere pencil case. Unfortunately, today it has no pencil in it, but the prompt only asked for the case! So I fulfilled the brief. The case does contain a pencil sharpener just in the unlikely event that a pencil jumps into the case and needs sharpening. This is the slimmed down version of the real pencil case which holds so many odds and ends that I have difficulty zipping it up.

No plans for tomorrow. It all depends on the weather.

Out to lunch – 15 May 2023

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We got the text just after 9am. Ben went to school!

That meant we were on track to take Ben’s mum, Shona to lunch. Picked her up just before midday and drove by the backroads to The Stables because it was such a lovely day. Shona was adamant that this was her treat. In fact this was her contribution to our Golden Wedding anniversary. When she told us that, how could we refuse. Scamp and Shona had a Fish Finger Sandwich each. Big chunks of fish in batter in a panini, with a cup of chips each. I had the meat eater’s version which was a slice of fillet steak cooked rare and also served on a panini and also with a cup of chips. Both lunch meals were delicious.

After lunch we went for a walk along the towpath of the Forth & Clyde canal which runs past the front of the restaurant. We walked for about a mile in the general direction of Glasgow before we turned back. Loads to see today. Butterflies all along the path, Peacock, Orange Tip and Cabbage Whites, mainly. Bluebells growing under the trees and a big Aquilegia growing wild in the hedgerow. Loads of people out on bikes making the most of an unexpectedly good day. There was even a canal boat chugging sedately heading for Glasgow, probably. It was the Yarrow Seagull and it got PoD with Scamp and Shona getting in on the photo too.

We dropped Shona off at her house and we drove home via Tesco. Back home, Scamp swithered, whether to cut the front grass or not. Eventually she decide she would and I was enlisted to lift the flower pots out of the way of the mower and replace them when she was finished.

Some of the roses needed a last trim before the flower buds appear and that was my job. I also pruned the Forsythia now that the flowers had gone over and before the leaves come fully out. My final job was to tie back the pink fluffy plant in the back garden. I can never remember its name. I know there are two of them, slightly different from each other but both are planted beside each other. The one I was working with today is really tall and although I’m sure it can stand up for itself, a bamboo stake and a couple of fairly loose cable ties wouldn’t do any harm to give it a little more support in today’s gusty breeze.

Today’s prompt asked for “Artwork you love”. Scamp and I both love the massive Kelpies. The 30m (100ft) high artwork was created by Scottish sculptor Andy Scott. They stand in Helix Park in Falkirk at the eastern end of the Forth & Clyde canal. They are made from steel and each one weighs over 300 tonnes. They were modelled on real Clydesdale horses Duke and Baron.

We’d ordered a pair of slipper shoes for Scamp at a fair discount last Friday. They were supposed to be delivered today, but the postcode was wrong. A mix up at the ordering stage. My fault for not checking properly. However when we got home the parcel was there waiting for us. One of the benefits of having the same postman all the time is that they get to know the names and addresses and don’t rely too much on postcodes.  And while I’m on the subject of shoes.  A big thank you to Scamp for sneakily getting my favourite black and white dance shoes soled and heeled for me.  I’ve been meaning to do it myself, I even bought Evostick glue to do it, but just never got round to doing it.  Sometimes you have to get the expert to do it properly, so thank you again, Scamp.

Tomorrow, unbelievably we’re hoping to go out for lunch again with Crawford & Nancy.