Food – Page 199 – My Photo Blog

Forty Three Years Ago – 17 February 2016

Posted on February 17, 2016 by Zogman

Forty three years ago today the weather was much the same. There was snow on the ground and it was cold. Two young folk, one 22 and one just 18 repeated their vows and became man and wife. How their lives have changed.

Today we took it easy. We had intended going to Edinburgh, but it being the middle of the week and with the prospect of more snow on the way, we decided to cut our losses and go to Glasgow instead. Rather than suffer the long bus journey through the wilds of Moodiesburn and Muirhead, I offered to drive. We eventually got parked in the third carpark we tried, despite the electronic signs telling us that there were spaces in the other two (they lied). Walked down through town me looking at a couple of cameras on the way, but still undecided which or even if I’d buy if it came down to it. Just like a girl can never have enough shoes, a photog can never have enough cameras. Decided on Browns for lunch and were mightily disappointed in the lack of flavour from both our meals. It’s feels like they have a reputation now, so they don’t have to try so hard. I think we’ll try somewhere else next time, but it’s a shame when it was a celebration meal and we rejected a few good restaurants before opting for Browns. Maybe it’s something to do with the name “Browns”: ordinary, nondescript, boring. Sort of sums it up really.

Went from there to the Art Store and picked up a couple of small Pink Pig sketch books and a wonderful bargain of a watercolour box reduced from £79 to £25!! Unfortunately, as I guessed, the Art Store is closing for good at the end of the month. According to one of the assistants, “the company is kaput”. Short term bargains for artists, but long term loss for art in Glasgow. They will be sadly missed.

After we came home, the weather brightened up and I managed an hour in St Mo’s just walking in the snow taking shots mainly with the 9mm. Some of the results are above. No plans for tomorrow, it all depends on the weather.

Exercise, Fuel and Pink Pigs – 16 February 2016

Posted on February 16, 2016 by Zogman

Today we did it. We got up and went out to find some exercise. To be honest, it was such a terrible day, the gym sounded like a good move. I may regret it tomorrow, but for today, it felt good to do some honest exercise.

All that exercise needs food to fuel it, so we went directly to Muirhead where the award winning butcher has his shop. Jic, we may have found a Scottish butcher that’s the equal of Chapman’s. Bought a fair load of meat and Scamp bought some fish. Even better, she got a haggis pie for lunch and I got a bridie. As I said at the start, exercise needs fuel. The fuel tasted fine. Almost as good as petrol does to a Crojian (probably only understood if you were brought up in Cumbersheugh)! After our low calorie lunch, we didn’t do much. The rain had been torrential when we left the gym this morning and it wasn’t getting any better as the day progressed. For a while I tinkered with that Nexus I was trying to do CPR on a week or so ago, but still no luck. What I did find was a fairly probable sounding explanation from a supposed IT specialist on a Nexus forum. Long story short, it’s a hardware issue that can’t be fixed at home. It would, of course, cost more than the value of a new Nexus to repair it. This time it goes into its pink folder and that goes into its poly bag and it goes back to its owner marked BER (Beyond Economic Repair).

Couldn’t get out to get a photo today, so I’d decided early on that today was a still life. Then, look, I even managed to include some architecture. Not real architecture, but straight out of my imagination. Last week I’d passed the Art Store in Glasgow and noticed the 50% off sale. I wasn’t greedy (for once) only getting a couple of Pink Pig sketch pads. I really like the texture of the paper and Fred has introduced me to A4 pads. The combination of good paper and large pads are good to draw and paint on. Hence today’s picture.

Had intended going to Embra tomorrow, but judging by the weather forecast, that may be postponed. We’ll see in the morning.

By the way, Happy Anniversary to Hazy & N D’Ag.

Curry – 7 February 2016

Posted on February 7, 2016 by Zogman

I had to drive in to Glasgow today to go to a curry making afternoon at Cafe India in the city. It was a really interesting two and a half hours which started with making pakora – Potato, Spinach and Chicken varieties. After we sampled them, we moved on to mains. I made the Lamb Lazees (pronounced Layzee) which was really rich and a little bit creamy. I think I’d he hard put to make it myself, but it was an experience discovering just how quick these dishes are to make. Granted the meat was all pre-cooked, but one woman was vegetarian and she made a standard vegetable curry in the same time as the rest of us, which was about 10 minutes. Next was a demonstration of making nan bread and chapatis. We didn’t get a chance to make our own, probably on health and safety grounds as the tandoor oven operates at 300ºc! Finally we had a sit down lunch where we got to eat the fruits of our labours. I’ve told Scamp that the next time she sees this offer, she should go and then we can compare notes.

We should have gone to the Sunday Social today, but I couldn’t be bothered and Scamp was feeling the after-effects of yesterday’s late night at Kul’s surprise birthday party at Gusto in Bothwell Street in Glasgow. Table should have been ready for 7.45pm, but the restaurant were running late. Finally got our mains at just after 10.00pm. I don’t think we’ll be back there again. My main was good – roast chicken, but the meat was finished before they brought the potatoes and veg. Totally disorganized and not cheap either. So, we agreed to forego salsa but did have a practise at the bachata steps we learned last week.

Only got one shot today in a dull rainy Glasgow. It wasn’t raining in Cowcaddens underground where I got today’s PoD. It should have been the full view across both tunnels, but I was rushing and didn’t notice the camera strap obscuring the left hand tunnel. One of the problems of the 9mm lens is the remarkable field of view. Sometimes it’s too big a field.

Saw a couple of lovely paintings in the restaurant (top right) and tried to copy one tonight. Not totally successfully, but an interesting diversion from my usual “style“. Yet another work in progress.

Deep and Crisp and Even – 30 January 2016

Posted on January 30, 2016 by Zogman

It snowed during the night. When we woke it was bright white sunshine that was coming in the windows. Such a nice difference. Yes, I knew it was going to cloud over and there was the chance that we’d have more snow during the day, but for a while it was sunny.

Had a relaxed start to the day, no need to rush on a Saturday now. Let the workers do the rushing to make the most of their weekend. Us retirees can take our time. Finished the book I was reading “Strange Loyalties” by Wm McIlvanney. It was a bit of struggle finishing it, rather like wading through treacle at times, but good use of language. Full review on Goodreads (3/5 stars).

Luckily we had planned on a bus journey to Glasgow because I didn’t fancy driving anywhere today with blizzards forecast for everywhere in Scotland. As it happened, we didn’t see any blizzards, but there was a bit of snow as we were driven in to the great metropolis that is Glasgow.

This being our anniversary, or the anniversary of the day we met, we went for lunch. Today’s choice was Charcoals. I had Rara Gosht and Scamp had Chicken Dopiaza. They were both lovely – not cheap, but lovely. We wandered round ‘The Toon’ for a while and then came home on the bus.

By the time we got back most of the snow had gone. It was a great day.

Today’s PoD, in fact the only one worth talking about, was taken outside the Apple building which is being ‘modernised’. A nice bit of business acumen there.

One day this weary winter will be gone – 28 January 2016

Posted on January 28, 2016 by Zogman

Title comes from a Loudon Wainwright song and it sums up my feelings quite succinctly. Another still life as evidence of the darkness outside from dawn to dusk. Dusk being about 5 minutes after dawn. After that, total darkness reigns.

Today we went to 1 Devonshire Gardens for lunch. It was a retirement present from the Malleys for Sheila. This was a full dress occasion – suit, shirt and tie. I even got shaved. It was worth it. Food was really excellent. Service was excellent too, just what you’d expect in a place like this. Because we knew that “drink would be taken”, we went on the bus, in fact buses because we got the bus from the centre of town to the restaurant. That was a first for us, travelling IN Glasgow by bus, but it was a necessity today because it was a 20 minute walk from the subway station and it was raining.

After our delicious lunch we went back in to the centre of town to pick up my beautiful artwork from Sunday’s class in Cass Art. It’s still sitting in the bag until I have the courage to look at it again. I’m only glad that I didn’t buy the paint they were pushing at the class.

Now we are getting ready to batten down the hatches before Storm Gertrude arrives with its 80mph wind gusts.

A grey day, lemonade scones and a still life – 26 January 2016

Posted on January 26, 2016January 26, 2016 by Zogman

Another uninteresting day with nothing much to recommend it. Windy and wet with occasional chances for the sun to burst through for a few minutes. Driving rain from the south for a change. It washes the windows if nothing else. Every time the I decided to take a walk and get some photos in the bright spells, the rain would start again. Scamp and I went to the gym instead and did a bit of exercising, but as she had a lunch appointment, we didn’t get a chance for a swim.

Did a bit of painting, but left it unfinished again. Made some lemonade scones. Simple recipe:

2 cups self-raising flour
1 pinch salt
150 ml double cream
150 ml lemonade

Makes roughly 12 scones and they are as light as a feather. Even Scamp agrees, it must be so.

Today’s photo is physalis ¹ . It was produced using a combination of different technologies. The camera was mounted on a tripod, an old Bilora that I bought second hand for a couple of quid in a house clearing about forty years ago. The other technology was the brand new Pixel remote trigger. Old and new technologies managed to produce a good image when used together. Hoping for good weather tomorrow, but more snow forecast. We’ll see.

Just keep repeating “Physalis, Physalis, Physalis”. Then when someone asks you what they are, you don’t blurt out “SYPHILIS!” as someone I was sitting next to at a restaurant did. A conversation stopper. ↩

A grey day – 20 January 2016

Posted on January 20, 2016January 20, 2016 by Zogman

Grey start to the day with mist and the inevitible rain. We had hoped to go out somewhere scenic today as we did last week, but it wasn’t looking like a scenic kind of day. Finally settled on going to the Forge Market in Glasgow. Not very scenic, but it does have a Clarks shoe shop and there are few of them in the countryside. After trying this and that, leather and suede, black and brown, boots and shoes – you get the message, I settled on a pair of brown leather shoes and almost as my debit card was cooling in my wallet changed my mind. That’s about par for the course for me. I’ve got 28 days to cool my heels, or my feet to be more precise, before I have to accept or reject the shoes.

When we came out we tried to get a table at Cotton House, but were too late. They closed at 2.00 and it was just about 1.00 at the time. We were in Glasgow and they were in Bonnybridge – a bridge too far.

After getting lost a couple of times trying to get back on the motorway, Scamp suggested we go to The Fort in Easterhouse. I always did think they needed a fort in Easterhouse, but not one with high fashion shops, just a portcullis and a drawbridge. Had lunch at Wagamama. I had my usual of Ramen, Pork Ramen to be precise and Scamp had Teriyaki Chicken which was quite nice.

Walked along to Hobby Craft after lunch and got myself a daylight light bulb. Fred gave me one a month or so ago and although it was quite good, it was a bit weak and not as blue as daylight should be. The one I got today is much better. It’s a long life spiral bulb 20W which equates to 95W and has a mired value of 6500k which sounds like a perfect daylight level. I’ll give it a try over the next few days. Maybe it would disperse the grey light we are living with at the moment.

An improvement at last – 12 January 2016

Posted on January 12, 2016 by Zogman

The day started with the usual grim wet weather and much darker than it should be even at this time of year. However, throughout the day the clouds lifted and lightened. By four o’ clock we had a lovely sunset. The first this year and the best for a long time before that. That means there will be clear skies tonight and the inevitible drop in temperatures. Snow forecast for dinner time tomorrow. Sounds like fun, but more seasonally appropriate for January.

So what did we get up to today? After what has now become out late we went to Westerwood. Scamp to the gym and me for a swim. After that Scamp had a hairdresser’s appointment and I was preparing for dinner which was to be chicken curry made with a base of curry paste. It was then I realised we didn’t have enough milk and when I went to get it, took a short diversion to grab a shot of the sunset. Smart things smart phones. I thought the curry turned out really well, although the sauce was a bit thick. Scamp thought it was too salty. We both agreed that the flatbreads were excellent.

Hoping for some (whisper it!) sun tomorrow. It’s forecast, but we’ll have to wait and see if the weather fairies are telling the truth or not.

Grey – 9 January 2016

Posted on January 9, 2016January 9, 2016 by Zogman

I am thoroughly fed up with this grey weather. It’s a bit like watching films of pre-war life. Everything is in black and white with shades of grey. It must have been hellish living in those times when there was no colour. The earliest I can remember is growing up in the mid to late ’50s and most things then were in shades of grey too. I think it was around the mid ’60s that the world started to have colour injected into it. Even today in the 21st century we don’t have all that much colour here in Scotland. I didn’t realise this until a couple of years ago when we went to Trinidad and then Tobago. They’ve got colour, real colour. Seas that are blue, not grey. Skies that are blue, not grey. Sand that’s white and yellow, not grey. Are you getting the picture here? We do a good grey in Scotland and today we were overdosing in it. Dull.

We had hoped to go to the Cotton Club for lunch, but the earliest table they could give us was 4pm which was a bit late for lunch, but it gives you an idea just how popular this place is. Our second choice was Vecchia Bologna and that was where we ate this afternoon. Pea and pancetta soup to start and then Scamp had her usual spaghetti dello chef and I had polpette with vegetables (no pasta!). The lunch was as good as it ever is in this restaurant. Strangely it was not at all busy, but we were told that it was very busy in the evening which I could believe.

That was the brightener of the day. By the time we left Bridge of Allan, the grey that had lifted slightly as we had our lunch had returned. When we got nearer home, the Cumbernauld Cloud had descended in an attempt to blur out the ugliness that is Cumbersheugh.

I’d seen an article about 3D printing a lego ‘selfie’ in the Telegraph on-line and wondered if I could replicate it at least in 2D. It didn’t take long with Potatoshop to create a little Mini MeMan. In Colour!

A new year, a new curry shop – 2 January 2016

Posted on January 2, 2016January 7, 2016 by Zogman

Another late rise today. This is becoming a habit. I’d say we were missing the best part of the day, but that wouldn’t be correct. The light level this morning when we woke was a definite ISO 10000 and that would have been with f1.8 @ 1/30th (that means really, really dull to non-photogs). Tonight’s big film was The Dark Knight. We can beat that. We have The Dark Day … every day. Enough of this repartee.

Just to get out of the house, we decided on a trip to Stirling … for a curry. Rather than go to what had been out favourite curry shop, Mr Singh’s, I thought it would be a good idea to try out a new one, well, new to us. I didn’t know what it was called, but I knew where it was. It turned out to be the ‘Spice Garden’ and it was good, very good. The only let down was that their Irn Bru came from a bar nozzle with not nearly enough gas. I can forgive that if the food is good, and it was. We’ll be back.

On the way back, I wanted to get a POD. I intended it to be Stirling Castle, but from the standard tourist viewpoint, the view was not as commanding as I hoped it would be. Well, what do you expect from the Council created parking place. I turned 180º and liked the view up the carse. A ‘carse’, which my spellchecker thinks is a the plural of ‘car’ is “low-lying land beside a river” and the Carse of Stirling can be beautiful on a good day. Today wasn’t beautiful, but the carse was doing it’s level best, so I took its photo. Then I grabbed my tripod and walked across to see if Stirling Castle looked any better from the other side of the road. It didn’t, but the mound at the old cemetery did look good and there were lots of people happily standing on it to make it look quite dramatic. I imagine they thought they looked dramatic too. I took a few shots just to make them think they were dramatic and important.

When I got home, the carse photo was easy to process. The dramatic rock took a little longer. Because the shots were taken with the same focal length, aperture and shutter settings, it was easy to sandwich two of them in Potatoshop with the empty rock on top and the dramatic person beneath. Then all I did was change the opacity of the top shot to allow the ‘ghost’ underneath to show through. Simple! I’ll do the Stirling Castle shot another day. I’ve just remembered where to take it from and it’s’ not the Council approved tourist place either. Well, it wouldn’t be, would it?