Category: Stirling

Scrambling Plants – 19 October 2026

Posted on by Zogman

We were out fairly early today, taking more unwanted stuff to the Council Tips. If this goes on much longer, we’ll be on first name terms with the men, (it’s only men work at the tip), who tell you where to put your black bag contents. Having said goodbye to today’s lot, we drove over to Stirling, and Waitrose.

We’d promised ourselves that we’d go to Waitrose Soon, but too many things got in the way and Soon just got forgotten. Today we made good on that promise. Monday turned out to be a good day to go to the shops. There weren’t too many shoppers to get in our way and the folk who restock the shelves had done a good job refilling them in time for us to fill our trolleys. With a bulging trolley’s worth of a host of food and a few drinks, we filled the boot of the Blue car.

Scamp reminded me that we had discussed dropping by Majestic Wines on our way home. We hadn’t been in that shop for years and we found that it was an interesting place to go. A host of bottles of every kind of wine were stacked in the shop. We were like two kids in a toy shop. We finally settled on four bottles, that should keep us going for the rest of the week, then, next week we’d do it all again. I think the poor wee Blue car wondered what was happening. First half of Waitrose ended up in the car, then, when it thought we were heading home, the Humans lobbed another case of wine into the boot!

Back home and after a late lunch, Scamp settled herself at the piano and I went for a walk in St Mo’s. It was good to see Scamp playing again. The piano has been too quiet for too long. Good to see it producing music again.

I walked round St Mo’s, and by the time I was going home, the light was failing, it had started out as a dull day and it wasn’t getting any brighter now. At the start of my walk I got a few decent shots of Purple Vetch plants hauling themselves up an old branch and marvelled at their ability to seek out supports to use for climbing. The Purple Vetch made PoD.

Watched the usual trilogy of puzzle games on BBC tonight and I managed to get some of them right for a change. Quite pleased with myself.

No plans for tomorrow yet, but I’m sure something will need done!

A bunch of flowers – 12 November 2025

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Off to see the doc, bright and early.

I was out early, well, early for me. Just before 9am, in the midst of the school run. Spoke to the doc who explained that my bloods results were normal, as were was my PSA test and my Iron levels. I asked her about my painful nether regions and she did a quick exam of my egg shaped ‘dangly bits’ then checked my stomach too and said there was nothing to worry about. I had been worried, I admit, but she seemed sure everything was ok. Possibly the result of a fall I’d had last week, thankfully a fall onto soft, wet, mucky grass. It made a mess of my Rab jacket which I’ll need to wash now, sometime soon. Just to check everything, she gave me a prescription for a week’s supply of something unpronounceable and with far too many letters. Take one, three times a day. I left with a smile on my face.

Back home and after Scamp and I had completed most of the daily puzzles, we drove over to Waitrose in Stirling where Scamp got lots of fish and I got lots of meat and then, basically we bought the whole shop. That’s the way it seemed when we left and piled everything into the wee Blue car. As we were getting in to the car, I’m sure I heard it say “One at a time, please!!” Drove home and picked up the aforementioned prescription. Then we unpacked the car and there was a great sigh from it as I locked its door.

We’ve had problems either with squirrels or magpies, coming into the garden and searching Scamp’s pots for spring bulbs. I think between us we’ve blocked them for now, but magpies and especially squirrels are devious bugg@rs and will find a way in. Just to make it even more interesting, I sprinkled the top of the soil with Cayenne pepper and Hot Chilli pepper. That should tinkle the squirrel’s nose for a while!

Tonight’s dinner was mixed pasta with a tomato sauce and a generous handful of spinach which apparently is great for building up the iron reserves. Popeye swears by it, I’m told.

Today’s PoD was a vase with a selection of flowers. Dried flowers that open out when you put them in water. Quite magical to watch. It took me ages to get it set up the way I wanted it and Scamp was a great help, finding big white boards that had been hidden behind a cupboard.

Tomorrow is Scamp’s turn to visit the doc. This time in Coatbridge.

Out for a drive – 23 September 2025

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Scamp got the all clear.

I was up and out today driving to Boots Chemist to pick up a five pack of Covid test kits. The cold, flu or dare I whisper it (Covid) wasn’t lifting and the only way we would know what was going on was to do The Test. Thankfully, it was negative and we both breathed a sigh of relief. Now we could venture out without worrying.

I suggested we go to The Smiddy just outside Stirling. It’s a good place to go for lunch. A day in the sunshine, in the country would hopefully brighten up our day even more. It worked. We drove out into the farmland just a couple of miles north of Stirling. We knew the food would be good, and were prepared to be handed a buzzer and told how long the wait for a table would be. But we were wrong. There was no buzzer because there were quite a few empty tables. Mac ’n’ Cheese for Scamp and Shepherd’s Pie for me. Both were declared perfect for a lunch in the country.

The food was good, but the prices in the deli were eye watering, although I did look twice at some nice thick steaks in the butchers department. It was the price of coffee that nearly knocked me off my feet. An almost 50% markup on a bag of coffee is just a bit greedy IMO!

We stopped at Lakeland/Dobbies, (the two are now conjoined, but are separate shops) and I was tempted by a Sage coffee maker with a £100 markdown. I was tempted, but decided I’d spent enough this month.
For once Scamp didn’t go looking in Dobbie’s and we came home with some paper liners for a cake tin.

Back home, Scamp was keen to get some bulbs planted for spring flowering. While she was splitting up some plants, I was handed a trowel and two bags of spring bulbs and was given a 400mm square patch of earth to plant them in. I think I put them all in the ground the right way up, so they won’t be growing down into Australia. I just need to remember where they are planted. It will be a surprise. To finish off our day in the garden, we took down the sweet pea canes and netting, kept the canes and put all the twine and plastic clips in the bin. The canes are now drying off in the front bedroom for next year, all being well.

PoD turned out to be a photo of what looked like a genuine American policy car. A Black and White. It was only when I looked inside the car I noticed the steering wheel was on the right side. Otherwise it just looked the part. Someone spent a lot of time and effort getting this looking just right.

Tomorrow Scamp is intending to go for lunch with the rest of The Witches and I’m hoping to meet Alex for a wander round Glasgow.

In all their finery – 6 September 2025

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The youngsters were up about 6am and busying themselves getting breakfast and choosing what to wear to the wedding.

We pretended we were still sleeping, but knew we were just kidding ourselves. We too got dressed and made sure they had had breakfast and had all the accoutrements you need for going to a wedding. Just to be sure, I went over the basics of the camera again and could see that she was confident with using it. It’s a fair step up from her old Nikon as I’m sure she realised.

Suddenly, the car was packed and they were dressed and ready for a final curtain call at the front door to show off their finery, then they were off to the wilds of North West Scotland where a church was waiting for them.

We didn’t go back to bed. Instead we had breakfast and sat and did what we usually to, ie Wordle, Spelling Bee and Strands … Then we made plans for the day. We’d intended going to Edinburgh, but somehow that got put on the back burner and the burner was turned off. We settled instead for a visit to Stirling. Both of us were still looking for a pair of trainers and possibly a new pair of trousers for me. I’ve been promising myself those trousers for months now, if not years. I didn’t get them, but I saw two pairs of trainers that would work for me and a couple of pairs of trousers that would do the job too. Scamp didn’t get anything either, but did express an interest in a dance skirt. We but all of the above into that same back burner and vowed to come back and look at them.

I did get a book I was interested in and got the bloke in Waterstones to tell me about another one that I’d forgotten the name of. I didn’t have the name, but I recognised the title from his desk display. Unfortunately it wasn’t in stock, but I’ll call back and order it soon. The name was Wild Houses by Colin Barrett.

Lunch was two toasties in Caffè Nero. Both the same, although one was supposed to be a Ham & Brie toast, but it was a Tuna Melt that arrived. Scamp’s order was a Tuna Melt. I suppose I could have had the Tuna Melt magically transformed into the H&B, but I was hungry and in this case the TM would do fine.

We did a bit of shopping in Waitrose to pay them for allowing us to park in their store for a couple of hours and then we drove home. I went for a walk and came back with a couple of decent photos. PoD turned out to be a Bird’s-foot Trefoil flower, viewed through a chain-link fence. I thought it made a neat frame for the wild flower!

Tomorrow we’re expecting the Photographer and her assistant to return from the North West before going out again with friends later. That’s the plan for now.

The day after – 21 March 2025

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A slow start for today.

I had a heavy cold in the morning and took my time about rising. It had been hanging on me for a while and mixing with others yesterday may have passed it on to some while I probably picked up a variation from others. Whatever, it was a long lie in for me.

After breakfast we all drove over to Cafe Bothy – real name Coffee Bothy, but we’ve always know it as Cafe Bothy, I probably picked up the ‘wrong name’ from Isobel, yes, let’s blame her. Anyway, we were handed a buzzer as usual these days and we wandered round the ‘shop’ amazed at the prices they charged. We didn’t have to wait too long to get a seat and put in our order:

Fish ’n’ Chips for Jackie
Mac ’n’ Cheese for Scamp
Sri Lankan Lamb Curry for me

Service was a bit slow, but the food was good and we weren’t in a hurry.

I had managed to get a photo of the Wallace Monument when we arrived and with a bit of adjustment, that became the PoD. Drove home through gradually increasing density of traffic, but we managed to keep the wheels moving.

Lots of reminiscing tonight, listening to old music tracks I’d found of Scamp’s family singing in Conisborough Road. Ancient technology recorded on a tape recorder I think and transferred through a selection of technology to a memory stick. I wonder where these tracks will finish up and what technology will play them.

Jackie is intending heading back to Skye tomorrow. It’s been great having her. I think the place will feel empty tomorrow.

Good Friends – 8 March 2025

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Crawford & Nancy came visiting today.

Just after the early hour of 10.15am! We’re not used to such early rises, but they did bring cakes!

They were doing what all good friends do, they were showing support. We sat and talked about June, Paul, Shona and Ian. We listened to the antics of their grandkids and made all the right noises. We complained about all our aches and pains and what we could do about them. It was a strange morning, but a welcome one too. Living life in the ’New Normal’. Later in the morning we got a message from Hazy. Asking after Scamp and just making contact. It really is good to have the support of family and friends. Sometimes we just take them for granted and we shouldn’t.

We are still in the Shoe Hunt, so in the afternoon we drove in to Stirling for a change of scenery and also to see if any of the shoe would fit the dainty feet of the princess. They didn’t. We went back to Waitrose where we’d parked and took a basket rather than a trolley. It seemed a logical way to get the shopping we needed without getting too much. It worked, except we still got more than we’d intended and I felt my arms were getting longer with every jar or bottle we put in the basket!

PoD was a photo of a ‘Ghost Sign’ we saw in Stirling. A ghost sign is usually an advertising sign above a shop or building that has been badly damaged by wind and weather. We saw this one over a shop in Stirling. When did you last see a three digit phone number?

We drove home and received an email from Paul with more information about the funeral. We agreed to meet him at his house. He had done a fair bit of work during the week. So far:

  • We now have a date and time to meet the Celebrant.
  • We have the codes for the streaming of the funeral.
  • There have been a lot of problems with getting the death certificate as I outlined a couple of days ago, but it should be in Paul’s hands on Monday or Tuesday.
  • Scamp and Jackie have agreed a tea for after the funeral.
  • The Docherty family are providing the flowers.
  • Music for the Entrance, Reflection and Exit from Daldowie are almost complete.
  • The photos have almost all been scanned, or assembled.

All in all, we are in a better place than we were a few days ago.

No plans for tomorrow yet.

We went shopping – 3 October 2024

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Today we went for the messages, in Waitrose in Stirling.

We drove to Waitrose in Stirling for the run and to get some messages. Not a lot said Scamp. About an hour later we returned to the car with three bags full (a bit like Baa Baa Black Sheep!). We’d intended to go into Stirling for a coffee, but instead Scamp wanted to go home, so that’s what we did.

Scamp is very organised and today as we unpacked the bags in the kitchen, she built three piles of messages. One pile for those that were going into the cupboard upstairs. Another pile for those that were going into the fridge and a final pile for the items that were going into the freezer. You see what I mean? Organised.
I have to admit, it did make storing a lot easier. One day I’ll be organised like Scamp. Ha Ha, No Chance!

Later in what was now mid afternoon I took the A7 out for a walk with me and took just over thirty photos. I only meant to take about twenty, but I’m guessing my finger kept finding the shutter button on the camera and because I was using Silent Shutter Mode, I didn’t hear myself taking photos as I was walking. It wasn’t until I got home and downloaded the photos that I found the dozen or so blurred photos of leaves, the path I was walking on and some beautiful concentric circles. I have no idea where I got that last one. PoD was an actual shot that I knowingly took. It’s a view through the trees and along the boardwalk at St Mo’s. The light shining through the trees is real, not faked for once.

Today’s prompt for Inktober was ‘Boots’ and I drew my old comfortable walking boots. A fair amount of folk are still pretending to sketch, but are really using AI of one kind or another to produce a sketch. I tried it myself today and created a much better version of the Discovery space shuttle than I could ever draw and if I hadn’t known it was created in Photoshop using AI, I’d have thought it was drawn.

Today we had a Charlie Bigham Lasagne for dinner. It was lovely!

As promised, I had a rummage around the computer folders and found the last two sketches. One of a rocket ship and one of a pair of boots. I hope you can tell which is which.

Tomorrow I’m hoping to drop off the blue car for its annual service in Glasgow while Scamp will have to get the bus to FitSteps.

Out for a drive – 15 July 2024

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It was actually intended as a drive to Stirling to buy some ingredients for next week, but then it got a bit out of hand.

Scamp wanted to get some rose food for her beloved roses. They have worked hard since spring, producing a continuous show of flowers. Now the plants need a little help with some nutrients to extend their flowering period. She was sure we could get the rose food in Dobbies at Stirling. When we got to the turn off to Dobbies, every other gardener seemed to want to go their too, but it was impossible to cross the road in to the garden centre because of a long, long line of cars, all going in the opposite direction. We decided to move on to task 2

Task 2 would be easy. We’d just drive to The Smiddy, a cafe/restaurant near Blair Drummond Safari Park where we could hopefully get some venison and definitely get some coffee. Unfortunately they had no venison and wouldn’t have any until next week sometime. They did have the coffee, but only the pre-ground variety. Not what I was looking for. Since it was heading for lunch time and the cafe was quiet, we had a coffee and a scone each and I bought two skinny bottles of Old Engine Oil, a lovely black stout that only rarely makes an appearance on shelves. I managed a couple of shots of the Gargunnock Hills with a beautiful sky.

Back on the road again and got parked at Dobbies this time. They didn’t have the rose food, nor the lawn feed that Scamp remembered she also needed. We did get other things, though, so our journey was not in vain.

Back in the saddle and on to Waitrose where they did have the venison. Hooray! One of the ingredients bought and ticked off. As usual we bought one or two other things too, just to make the stop worth its while. I also got PoD which was the Wallace Monument at Stirling with a nice bit of sun on it.

I suggested we go from there to Klondyke Garden Centre where they just might have the plant food. Hooray No 2! They had both foods. Not exactly what she wanted but a reasonable substitute. We were back on the road and on the way home. What had started as a beautiful hot morning had degenerated into a cloudy and muggy day. Thank goodness for air-con!

When we got home, Scamp scattered the rose food and the grass feed in the required places and by then it was time for dinner. After dinner which was burger for me and mushroom and pepper omelette for Scamp (with the half of yesterday’s trifle as dessert)

As I settled down to process today’s photos I noticed I had a message on FB. I’d almost completely missed my old pal Charlie’s birthday, and here was his reply agreeing that him, Steven and me really needed to do a catch-up. I don’t know if my two readers will remember Charlie and Steven, but Charlie was my apprentice many years ago and Steven and I used to drool over motorbikes we knew we could never afford. I’m hoping we’ll all manage a meet-up some time in early August. Charlie is a pensioner now. How in the name of the wee man did that happen???

So, almost all the boxes were ticked today. Only one more to go and I might be able to tick that one tomorrow, all being well.

Birlin’ roon Stirlin’ – 21 June 2024

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It was a dull start to the day with low white cloud.

We had a quick discussion about places to go, but we finally settled on Stirling and a walk up that big hill to the castle. We weren’t driving today, we parked at the station and took the train to Stirling. It was a long walk from Stirling station to the castle, but after a coffee and a cream bun we felt energised enough for it.

With barely a stop to catch our breath, we reached the castle. Scamp wanted to see the Scottish tapestry and I wanted to take some photos from the ramparts. I took the first batch of photos and then we went and visited the hut at the back of the castle where we had watched the ladies weaving the tapestry at least ten years ago. After wandering back along the high ramparts we found our way into the bedchambers of the king and queen and it was in the Queen’s Inner Hall we found the actual tapestries, looking resplendent, hanging on the walls. They were commissioned in 2001 and work began in 2002. The seven tapestries were completed in 2016. They are really worth the entrance fee (and the walk).

All that climbing and walking was making us hungry, so we walked down the hill by a less circuitous route that took us down to the Indian Cottage restaurant in the town. We haven’t been there for years, but the food was just as good as we remembered it. Another wander through the city centre, because Stirling is a city now, and then we walked down to the station just as the rain came on.

Got the train home. Not the busiest train in the world, but I assume it covers its costs. Stopped on the way at Tesco to take on badly needed supplies and by the time we got parked at home the rain was getting heavy.

An enjoyable day. PoD was the view from the Ladies Lookout. Allegedly this is where the ladies of the royal court of Stirling Castle stood to admire the view. So did we!

Dancin’ is planned for tomorrow in Brookfield. Hopefully not too much of the Butterfly Jive!

Stirling in the rain – 20 March 2024

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Met Alex today to go for a wander through Stirling.

Picked Alex up at the train station and we drove through the rain to Stirling and parked at the multi-storey carpark in the town. Alex had had a haircut in the morning. Number 2 on top and a Number 1/2 on the back. Very brave when it’s only the middle of March, but who am I to say. Then he left his hat in the car. Not so clever, so first stop was M&S for a cheap bunnet. Then it was coffee time in Nero and plans were laid.

We walked up King Street in the rain and then on to Baker Street and Broad Street with its canons still guarding the road to the castle. On the way we found a flowering cherry tree that had dropped some of its flower on the metal metal seating in a park, and that’s where today’s PoD came from.

We got as far as Mar’s Wark, a townhouse from the 1500s and decided the rain was on for the day and started to head back down the hill. About halfway down the rain lessened and by the time we were down in the shopping precinct, it had stopped. Too late to go back and anyway, plans had been altered to give us a place to go for lunch.

We drove out along the St Andrews road to Coffee Bothy and had lunch. I knew, when I saw the amount of mayonnaise on my Cajun Chicken sandwich that I was going to suffer for it later, and I did. I didn’t even enjoy the food today which is really strange.

We drove back through much lighter traffic than I thought we’d have, and manage to get Alex back in time for his 4:37 train home. We agreed that we hadn’t seen the best of Stirling today and vowed to come back on a DRY day. It was really annoying driving back into the makings of a good sunset, after such a disappointing day, weather-wise.

Later Scamp and I drove up to the British Legion for our midweek dance class. Only two of us tonight, which meant there was nowhere to hide. It wasn’t my best dance class. I made countless mistakes, despite Kirsty and Scamp trying their hardest to ease me in to it. It just wasn’t working for me.

Hoping to go to a tea dance tomorrow. You can’t say I’m not a glutton for punishment!