Category: St Mo’s

Wild Weather – 9 August 2024

Posted on by Zogman

We woke to high winds with gusts in excess of 45mph. Wild weather.

Scamp was out to FitSteps in the morning. Wild winds couldn’t stop her doing her keep-fit exercises. I stayed home to read and to challenge myself with Wordle and Spelling Bee. After that my whole day turned. I just felt deflated and had no wish to do anything. I don’t know what caused it. It wasn’t my “Black Monkey” feeling, I was just totally fed up, and nothing Scamp did when she came home could lift me out of the hole I was in. Even worse, I couldn’t lift myself out either.

Eventually after lunch she Scamp she was going to walk to the shops and invited me to join her. I did exactly that and we walked and talked as we fought our way against the gale. On the way back, as sometimes happens she sent me on a walk round St Mo’s while she carried the messages back home.

I did feel a bit better when I got home although I had a sore back and a bit of a headache, but after a couple of hours snoozing on the sofa, I woke to sunshine, internal sunshine at least. The ‘ennui’ if that was what it was had gone. Maybe my snoring had frightened it away or maybe the Black Monkey had stayed in St Mo’s to pester someone else. I don’t know. All I can say is that I was much happier than I had been this morning and glad to be back home again.

While I was in St Mo’s I got a PoD which was, as you can see, a bee busy collecting pollen from some pink Knapweed flowers With those 45mph gusts today I wasn’t expecting to see many insects, but a bee’s gotta do what a bee’s gotta do, I suppose.

Dinner was Coconut Curry with Haddock. It’s one of the dishes Jamie & Simonne made during the holiday. Another thing that probably helped brighten my day with is cheerful colour scheme and spicy flavours. I recommend it to you once the recipe gets to Neil to be included in the Foodies Book.

The wind outside has eventually died down and we have peace in the garden for a while. Hoping to go dancing tomorrow, all being well.

White Rabbits (x3) – 1 August 2024

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The first day of August and it had been raining during the night.

We haven’t had much rain during the second half of July, so it was a relief to see raindrops on roses this morning. It meant we didn’t need to water the garden today, but the clouds were the textureless milky white that we see so often.

While I was making breakfast this morning I spotted a wee pale yellow bird in the garden picking off the aphids from some of the plants. I managed five photos of it before it flew off and it looks like it was a Willow Warbler, but I’m not sure. I think one or two of them visited the garden about this time last year. Must check.

Scamp was off in the morning to meet Isobel for coffee. I stayed home to filter out the rejected photos and once I was sure I had ONLY the rejections, delete them permanently. Next task was to save the remaining July photos to an external drive for safe keeping. Then pack up those July photos and move them to a storage folder on the computer, before building a new folder for the incoming August lot! Actually it sounds a lot but it’s fairly easily done as long as you stick to the routine.

After lunch and when Scamp returned, she got down on her kneeling stool and finished off the weeding in between the bricks that edge the front grass. I grabbed the A7 and the new Tamron lens and went for a walk round St Mo’s then extended my walk to go to M&S for Thursday Things – flowers was the request today. We had been going to have paella for dinner, but instead Scamp opted for Fish Fingers, Egg and Spaghetti. Much easier and quicker. Maybe paella tomorrow.

It was another warm, bright day after the milky white clouds had been chased away, but it doesn’t look set to last. Rain is on the way according to the weather fairies. Well, the gardens need it.

PoD was a very bright red Common Darter dragonfly taken in St Mo’s.

Scamp has FitSteps booked in for tomorrow morning and I’m trying to work out why the A7 doesn’t do the latest tricks that the A6500 can do. They are almost the same vintage and actually the A7 has significantly more bells and whistle that the A6500. I’m sure it’s a switch somewhere that’s set and shouldn’t be, but which one?

Editing blogs – 30 July 2024

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Scamp was out this morning to have a blether and a coffee with her sister.

I stayed at home to edit and publish a week’s blog posts. They were shorter than normal posts, but I still had to go through the rigmarole of writing it in Day One (that’s what I’m doing now). Then logging in to my webspace and dumping the text in the correct place, before I sourced the photo that went with the text and posted it in the right place. After that I’d only another seven or eight to do. It gets a bit tedious, but it’s not all doom and gloom. I can look back a year and see what I was talking about then. I can search the blog for bits and pieces of my life that I’ve forgotten about. Occasionally I do feel I should just chuck it in, but as Scamp keeps reminding me, I’d regret it. But there should be an easier way to synchronise the writing with the posting.

I had just finished the last posting when Scamp returned from her extended blether with June. Both of them had lots to say and stories to tell, and you know what gossips, sisters are.

After lunch we drove to The Fort for Scamp to return a pair of sandals that looked good, felt good but not really good enough to splash the cash on. Luckily she’d only worn them inside.

Later in the afternoon I took the A7 with a macro lens and the Tamron zoom for a walk in St Mo’s. The Tamron got a bit of use, but the handy wee 50mm macro won the day, capturing not only the PoD of a snail snuggled into the leaves of an unknown plant, but also a closeup of a wee black fly that Google Images could not agree on the name for.

I watered the garden and the bloke next door’s too. We take turn about at watering the front gardens. Everything looked and felt dry. Such a strange thing about Scotland. Scamp may water the back garden tomorrow.

I’m hoping to meet my brother tomorrow and then we’ll drive over to Chatelherault for a walk and a blether.

 

Getting things done – 29 July 2024

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Another bright morning and the grass, front and back was needing cut. My job was moving the flower pots, about ten of them, out onto the path while Scamp did the actual cutting, then moving them back again. I helped with cleaning the mower once the difficult stuff was done, but Scamp has her own method for this and it’s not a good idea to try to do it any other way.

Lunch was next, and it was so memorable, I haven’t a clue what it was! Oh yes, it was a piece ’n’ ham that came all the way from Sedbergh.

I walked over to St Mo’s again in the hope that there would be some activity round the ponds, but there was none and I came home almost empty handed, although I did find a wee purple vetch flower willing to pose for me and it became PoD.

I actually spent most of the afternoon writing up a week’s blog posts ready for posting tomorrow. It was a bit of a slog, but it’s almost done now.

An early bed because my two weeks long struggle with The Ministry of Time is over. I finished it tonight. An interesting concept, but too much padding. I’m not sure I’d recommend it to anyone.

Tomorrow Scamp is meeting June for coffee and a blether and I’m intending to post the blog.

Back in the old routine – 28 July 2024

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This morning we did the Tesco run. After lunch I went for a walk in St Mo’s and it felt like we’d never been away. PoD was a damselfly with a bit of sparkle in its wings.

Dinner was Bacon, Cabbage and Potatoes. One of those fallback meals which remind you that you’re home.

Spoke to Jamie later in the day and found we didn’t have much to say. Everything was alright at their end an it was the same at our end. Just like it says at the top of this blog.

Back in the old routine.

Finding space – 18 July 2024

Posted on by Zogman

It started in the morning when Scamp said that the blog wasn’t loading. An hour and a few quid later it was fixed.

<Technospeak>
Long story short, the problem with the blog appeared to be a lack of storage space on the Namecheap server. When I tried last night to install a WordPress update. It stalled and glitched upgrade, but more than that, it appeared to damage something. After an hour on a help-chat line I upgraded my 20GB of storage to 50GB. That should keep the wheels turning for a while.
That took care of the morning, but of course, I was now on a different server with a different address and I had to change the host name in all my email addresses. Not an onerous task.
</Technospeak>

Once I was back in again and the emails were working, Scamp suggested a walk to the shops would be good, so that’s what we did. As has almost been traditional after a walk to the shops, I carried the bag halfway home and Scamp carried it the rest while I went for a walk around St Mo’s. After about four years using the Sony A7 camera series I’d found another tweak that while not exactly guaranteeing a sharp, in focus shot every time, at least gives you a fighting chance. No need to explain it to you, but let’s just say it works. That’s what I was using today to get the PoD of a Crane Fly or a Jenny Long Legs to give it its proper Scottish name!

Back home Scamp made a prawn stir fry and it was really delicious. Meanwhile I bagged the stew and let it rest in the fridge.

It wasn’t the brightest of days. Still clammy but with a bit of a breeze, which made it more pleasant.  Maybe a couple of notches down from the unpleasant heat we’ve been having recently.

After the blog problem from the morning, I’ve been feeling washed out today and I’m hoping to get to bed before midnight. I expect you understood most of that jargon Hazy and I’m equally sure you passed it by Jamie.

Scamp is intending to go to FitSteps tomorrow while I stay home and do some tidying up.

 

Cooking, Grass Cutting and Rumba – 17 July 2024

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We spoke to Hazy in the morning. She told us she’d had her hair cut but we wouldn’t see it until Saturday when she and Neil are coming up. She’s like that, Hazel! I still remember being in the car with her, going to the church on her wedding day and her making poor Neil wait! Bride’s perogative, I believe. I have a long memory Hazy!

I did some shopping after we’d finished our call and took my “I’m away for the Messages” bag. Just my meds, some fruit for Scamp and a loaf.

After lunch I started to clear the top of the sofa in my room. It hasn’t seen the light of day for months now, probably since about March. So, it really did need a good clear out. A lot of stuff went in the bin because tomorrow is bin day and theres no going back after the bin is tipped into the bin men’s lorry. The sofa looks so bare now, but tomorrow it will be filled again with other stuff.

While I was doing that, Scamp was doing ‘grass hoovering’ in the front and back gardens. It looks a lot tidier now, but we’re due rain overnight and that will just encourage more growth. It’s a never ending cycle.

Later in the afternoon I made some stew for next week’s dinner. Not made on the hob this time, mainly done in the Le Creuset which allows the oven to do most of the work.

With the stew happily bubbling away, I went for a walk in St Mo’s and got the PoD. It was warm and still a bit close feeling today. The photo’s another one of a geranium this time with  with a little fly as a photobomber. I think every photo I took today had an insect of one variety or another in it, hogging the limelight.

We went dancing tonight and learned the first part of Kirsty’s new Rumba routine. As with all the best routines, it started off simply and then progressed to the more complicated bits. Next week she’ll be adding in even more intricate figures like the Hockey Stick and the Fan, but by then we’ll have forgotten what we learned tonight!

No real plans for tomorrow other than finishing the stew.

Driving again – 16 July 2024

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After yesterday’s driving extravaganza the last thing I wanted to do was drive today.

So I got in the car about 10am and drove to Falkirk. To the Ironworks Business Park. Nobody was about, so I phoned the bloke I spoke to yesterday. He said I was at the right place and he’d be with me in 10 minutes. He was as good as his word and he apologised for not speaking properly but he’d been to the dentist and one side of his jaw wasn’t behaving properly. Know that feeling? I do too!

I was there to get some coffee and he took my order and gave me a large discount for having come all the way from Cumbersheugh. I even got a free bag to carry the coffee home. I’ve since tested the coffee and found it just as good as I thought it would be.

Drove home and had a piece ’n’ banana for my lunch and Scamp copied me! I was just making the sandwich when I saw a magpie sitting on a branch of the rowan tree in the back garden. Usually I chase them off, but this one looked a bit sad, so instead I grabbed my camera with the zoom lens and got half a dozen shots through the back window. It’s always good to have a few in the bag.

I’d been worrying about the front tyres on my car, so I drove down to Jim Dickson’s garage in the village where ‘Young’ Jim pronounced them good for a few hundred miles yet. That set my mind at rest.

Back home I took the A6500 and the 70-180mm and went for a walk in the sunshine to St Mo’s. I got a few shots of insects and plants, but nothing outstanding. It was quite a muggy afternoon with hardly a breath of wind.

Dinner was pasta and tomato sauce with a whole bunch of basil leaves that I’ve been growing on the window sill. It was quite delicious, even if say so myself.

It’s just passed 9.30pm as I’m writing this and there is a lovely sunset building. After such an overcast, close afternoon it’s good to see a bit of sunshine.

No plans for tomorrow, but I might make a start on some stew.

Return of the damsels – 14 July 2024

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One of those days with a white sky above the Campsie Fells but with low clouds lying in the valley. It happens a lot here it’s temperature inversion I think.

Once the day had warmed up and we’d solved Wordle and Spelling Bee, it was almost lunchtime. Scamp made Shakshuka which is eggs poached in tomatoes and spices. It was very nice, too. I think I could probably stretch to cooking that.

The big story of the day was the shooting of Donald Trump. Just a flesh wound, thankfully and the assailant was brought down in a hail of bullets which seems to be the American way of dealing with these things. Still, I suppose they had to avoid the bloodbath that could so easily have happened.
On a lighter note, I was wondering if one of the security guards really did shout Donald, Duck!

We watched Laura Kuenssberg’s attempt to get some sense from some Labour Party woman who only wanted to robotically recite the party line ad nauseam. Not a lot of cut and thrust there and I got the feeling that Laura was thankful when that interview finished.

Moving away from politics, and on to more interesting stuff, Scamp was ‘tidying up’ things in the garden later in the afternoon and I took myself off to St Mo’s to see if there was any activity there. Indeed there was. Not only were there butterflies flitting around, but also there was one dragonfly and a few skittish common blue damsels. Two or three days of warm sunshine had brought them out.

When I came back, Scamp and I sat reading for a while, while cooling down with a G&T each. It was quite pleasant until the rain started and forgot to stop. It didn’t get really heavy, but it was persistent.

Dinner tonight came from the freezer and was reheated Carrot & Lentil Curry for Scamp and reheated Chilli con Carne for me. Dessert was half a strawberry trifle shared between us. The remaining half will hopefully be tomorrow’s dessert.

PoD was a Common Blue damselfly sitting on the edge of the boardwalk today. Most of the insects were very nervous and flew off whenever I came too close. This one didn’t. It just sat there soaking up the sun and watching me, intently. It felt like it was sizing me up as its next meal!!

I walked home before it could attack.

England lost in the final of the Euros. That’s a pity, but at least it might “put their gas at a peep” as we say in Scotland, at least what auld guys say in Scotland!

No plans yet for tomorrow. As usual, it all depends on the weather.

 

Beautiful warm day. Was that summer? – 8 July 2024

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In the morning, I started to clear out some to the rubbish in my room. Just junk mainly. That left me some room to store the things I wanted to keep in the racks in the corner. The rubbish bag is full and it’s in the grey bin now. Can’t go back.

I drove up to the town centre later to get my hair cut. It didn’t take long, probably about ten minutes from me opening the door to going back out again. A number 2 cut all over cost me less than a tenner!

I’d parked in Tesco car park, so it seemed a good idea to pay for it with a bag of rolls for lunch. Not as good as the ones they used to bake on the premises, but not bad, if a bit doughy. On the way in I bumped into Lorraine Henderson who I used to work with. It was quite embarrassing, because she obviously had forgotten my name and I had forgotten her’s. She was with a friend who originally came from the Cumbershugh area but was now in the US. Said was on holiday here and said she would come back here ‘in an instant’, and I thought “Aye Right!”

Back home and after lunch, I started making a support for the apple tree. One bough in particular is carrying a heavy load just now and that load is just going to get heavier as the apples swell. The support is a bit rough and ready, but it’s holding for now. I think we might need another one further along the branch just to stop the bough from breaking. That’s for the future. For now it’s a lot better than it was.

When we were finished and sort of tidied up, I drove Scamp up to B&M to get a set of three storage boxes. One was earmarked for holding her dance shoes and another would be for my shoes, although I’ve a plan to chuck out some of the older shoes I’ll never wear again.

The weather was still lovely when we got back, so Scamp read in the garden with a Pimms and I went for a walk in St Mo’s. PoD was a close up of a solitary Soldier Beetle. Unusual to see just one. Usually they are in pairs, busy making more Soldier Beetles! Saw and photographed Common Blue Damselflies too. When I got back to the house I had the final bottle of beer from last year’s box. Only slightly out of date, but tasted fine. Dinner was Tuna Pasta and that was really nice.

Hoping to meet Alex in Glasgow tomorrow to go to the Burrell Collection. Rain predicted!! Scamp says she’s going to do some tidying.