Category: Trees

Off to Larky – 25 April 2024

Posted on by Zogman

Driving up to Larky this morning to get my annual eye check.

It was the usual rigmarole, reading from the charts and assessing brightness differences between the green and red panels. The “Is it better with … or without? … With or without?”. Then the hated spot the white light test.The outcome was that I’m slightly more shortsighted than I was last time. I’ve to go back in a week to have some checks on my eye pressure done. It was a new optician who looked as if he’d just finished secondary school, but that’s probably just a sign that I’m getting older!

I’d managed to break my old sunglasses earlier in the week when we were in Sunny Dundee and Scamp encouraged me to “get a DECENT pair”, ie not a pair of Poundshop ones. I bought a pair from Boots and they worked well, They would have been perfect to cut out the glare from the drops the optician had put in my eyes today if I’d brought it with me! The glasses were in my raincoat which was in the house.

I’d driven us up to Larky, but Scamp was driving us out into the countryside because I couldn’t see to drive. We went to Chatelherault for a walk and a bite to eat afterwards. It was a lovely afternoon and warm when we were in the sun and out of the wind. We walked over the Duke’s Bridge to the Cadzow Oaks and sat under one of the ancient trees. Then we walked back to the cafe for a coffee and a scone each.

Scamp had to drive home because I still wasn’t safe to drive. I know she doesn’t like motorway driving, but there wasn’t really any other option today and she managed perfectly well.

Later in the afternoon I walked down to the shops via St Mo’s to get some chicken for tonight’s Paella. It was on the way to St Mo’s that I got today’s PoD which is, I think, some apple blossom from a low branch of a tree.

Back home and after dinner, I managed to work out how to get Lightroom to automatically apply lens correction when importing photos. I realise this will mean nothing to anyone reading this, but it has been bugging me for a couple of weeks now and I was one click away from fixing it last week. However, finally I’ve found the answer until Adobe ‘improve’ the procedure. I’m going to put a link at the bottom of today’s post to remind me!

Watched another two episodes of Death in Paradise – Series 1. One of the best nonsense programmes on BBC. Ok, the accent isn’t quite proper Caribbean and the acting is a bit wooden, but it’s easy, relaxing watching. So much better than the last series.

Tomorrow we’re back to normal again, hopefully. Scamp’s intending to go to FitSteps and I’m maybe going to have a quiet hour reading.

Link: Automatically apply lens correction when importing photos.

 

An early rise – 13 April 2024

Posted on by Zogman

Not an enforced wakening, just neither of us could fall back asleep, so we agreed to have and early breakfast instead.

We were up and dressed just after 8am on a day that seemed to throw everything at us. Rain, hail, sunshine and a strong wind were the main factors in our weather and they cycled throughout the day.

We chose to drive to Stirling to go to Waitrose for ‘The Messages’. Maybe an odd thing to do on a Saturday, but we needed some essentials and we were fed up with Tesco, so Waitrose was probably a better option, besides, they do a good, fairly cheap packet of tea. We had half intended going for a coffee in Stirling, but the opportunity didn’t arise, so after we’d packed all the bags into the car, we just drove home, unloaded them and had lunch.

After lunch, inevitably it was time to empty the wardrobe. I hadn’t realised I had so many pairs of jogging bottoms. ‘Athleisure’ I’m told is the modern description. I knew I could probably hire a stall in The Barras Market to sell all the surplus tee shirts I have and also sweat shirts with stains on the front, but Joggy bottoms? Some of them, possibly all of them, have to go. Once I’d helped Scamp clear out the clothes, I started looking through the old record of work books from a pre 2014 life, knowing they would not be looked at again until the next spring clear out. Instead, I pre-empted that next clear out by getting rid of most of them today.. Not everything that came out of the wardrobe would be finding its way back in. The same would be true of my chest of drawers and various other glory holes in our room. Phase 2 was complete.

By the end of the afternoon the remainder of the storage areas had been emptied, or checked to see if they could simply be moved without emptying. When we were satisfied that we were organised, Scamp went downstairs for a coffee and I put on my walking boots and went for a walk in St Mo’s. It was still a wild day with strong winds and the occasional sharp shower. I went for a walk in the woods, but after seeing how many big strong trees had recently blown down I thought it wasn’t the most sensible place to go for a walk. However, I got a few shots of some Horse Chestnut trees opening up their buds to expose their big leaves and some had the candelabras of flower buds ready to open. One of those shots got PoD.

Back home the oven was on, ready to take a Charlie Bigham Tikka Masala curry we’d bought in Waitrose in the morning. It was a surprisingly filling dinner.

There was nothing worth watching on TV, so Scamp and I sat and read for a while and I had another of the instant whiskey cocktails Jamie and Simonne had given me. Tonight’s offering was Whiskey Sour which is basically Bourbon and Lime Juice over ice. Very refreshing.

Tomorrow we are intending starting Phase 3 of the grand plan, painting the remaining walls.

Huntigowk – 1 April 2024

Posted on by Zogman

We had to be on our guard today, at least until midday when Huntigowk ended.

I didn’t see any gowks and didn’t end up as one … at least as far as I know. Scamp did get involved in one, though. In her word puzzle on the tablet she had to type the answers in backwards. Quite a clever catch. Wordle had nothing like that, neither did Spelling Bee. Maybe Americans don’t know what a gowk is …!

I did my usual clean up of the computer this morning, only to find out that Lightroom had got itself in a bit of fix with the photo files being in the correct folder, and the catalog being updated, but the files themselves were invisible. It’s still not fixed properly, but I think I may have a solution. Not an elegant solution, but it might work. I’m going to sleep on it and test it tomorrow. I’m just thinking, maybe Americans do Huntigowk after all.

After a couple of lovely warm days, we came down to reality with a bump today. Cloudy with the constant threat of rain. We didn’t bother going out because it appears the weather profile spreads right across Scotland and down into the north of England too. No chance to drive through it into sunshine.

We had a serious look online at a replacement laptop for Scamp’s ageing HP this afternoon. JL wanted serious money and Currys was just a shambles. Eventually found what looks like a reasonably priced laptop with a decent spec on the HP site. We’re maybe going in to Glasgow tomorrow now that the Easter holiday is over (for adults at least), to get a hands-on with the machines in JL or maybe Currys. At least that will give us an idea what we’re getting for our money.

I waxed my boots later and went for a walk which I knew would make them mucky again, but at least I’d know they started out clean. Again it was the second shot I took that became PoD. It’s the view down that lane through the avenue of trees with a couple and their dog. It’s one of my clichés, I know, but I like the composition.

Dinner was pasta with mushrooms, peppers, onion, chicken, spinach and half a tin of tomatoes. A kind of “what have we got in the fridge” pasta, but it worked. Sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn’t.

Tomorrow, as I say we may go laptop hunting.

Ah! That’s more like it – 24 February 2024

Posted on by Zogman

Feeling almost normal again. I’m keeping it at that. I’m not ready yet to say I feel human again!

A lazy morning today sitting in the sunshine in the living room. It had been freezing during the night and was still quite cool outside. We talked about what we wanted to do and where to go. Scamp suggested that Glasgow wasn’t really a good idea at weekends and I agreed. Her second suggestion was Chatelherault for a ‘gentle’ walk. That fitted the bill for me, so we gathered together all the things we needed for a walk and drove over to a rather busy carpark near the “Big House”. The house was the hunting lodge of the Duke of Hamilton, but is now a busy and expensive (so I’m told) wedding venue. Since a ‘gentle’ walk was to be the order of the day I suggested walking down past the steel cut out figures of William Wallace, Robert Owen and David Livingstone. Usually a good photo opportunity, if the sun is playing nice, but it wasn’t today.

The path splits after them. One route takes you to the Old Avon Bridge and is quite scenic, but you have a long slog back up the hill again. The other route takes you through the woods, high above the Avon Water and back to the car park again with the option of stopping at the cafe. We chose the second option.

There were a family in front of us who were with a man in a motorised wheelchair. He seemed to be making heavy weather of the first climb up through a muddy path. By the time we caught up with them he was stuck fast between two exposed tree roots. Couldn’t go forward and couldn’t go back. We offered to help them, but the woman who I reckon was the his daughter said thanks but they’d manage. They seemed to thing that if they got past the tree roots everything would be fine from there. The wheelchair looked really new, but if he kept trying forward and reverse he was going to flatten his battery. Eventually the woman said “NO! WE’RE GOING BACK!” I thought at that point the boss had spoken. In retrospect, it was the correct decision.

We said Good Luck and walked on. It was heavy going for a while climbing up through puddles, burns and mud, then the path firmed up and dried up too. We carried on and a couple coming from the opposite direction told us it was pretty muddy the way we were going. We thanked them, and noticed that they were wearing ordinary town shoes. Just near the end of the path we discovered what they were talking about. The path dropped away in a steep slope that was almost pure mud. The centre 400mm or so was fairly dry and navigable. How the bloke would have kept control of the wheelchair in that I hate to think. Anyway, the worst was behind us.

We got to the cafe and Scamp grabbed a table while I stood in a queue for 20 mins or more but got two scones with jam and clotted cream and two coffees. The last two scones at that. Paid for them and for a pot of marmalade I’d picked up we enjoyed our lunch.
Note to self: The coffee in the Cafe is excellent. This is not Costa coffee!! It’s safe to drink.

Drove home and parked, then walked down to the shops to get a couple of small pizzas for dinner.

PoD was a view looking up the hill at The Big House as Alex calls it with a heavy sky behind it. Partly processed in Lightroom, partly in ON1. I’ve decided it has its uses.

Today’s prompt was Ruby.
I thought a Ruby ring was the easiest and simplest thing to draw. Simplest, yes. Easiest? Nothing to do with reflections and refractions is ever going to be easy, but this is my answer anyway.

Felt so much better after that walk in the woods. They say that walking in pine woods is good for the respiration. Perhaps it is. Perhaps I was just happy to be outside in the air again.

No plans for tomorrow, but maybe Sea Bass for dinner!

A slow awakening, then Samba – 13 January 2024

Posted on by Zogman

It was a slow climb out of the depths of sleep to the reality of morning.

It certainly took me a long time to clear my head enough to realise that it was morning. Too much to eat and too much to drink. I’m usually careful when I know I’m going to be driving in the morning the next day, but I’d so enjoyed the company last night that I’d kind of overindulged.

Once I was showered and dressed I felt better and we drove in to Brookfield in good time. Beautiful blue skies with white fluffy clouds all the way. First dance was a Blue Angel Rumba which I’m coming to terms with. Next was what, before we joined this class, was called the Christmas Waltz, but which has now been renamed the Spring Waltz. Again, I was a lost soul to start with, but I’ve grown to realise it’s not as complicated as I thought, even if it does have a Back Corté. Whatever that is.

Next was the Samba. I used to hate the Cha-Cha until I realised I could dance it fairly competently. Now the Samba is my most hated dance. It doesn’t help when one of the teachers seems to be more critical than is really necessary when ‘helping’ us. She really needs to remember that we are giving her money each week to be taught, not to be criticised for everything we do. Not the most friendly person I’ve ever met. Maybe I just have a thing about some dance teachers. Anyway, I much prefer anything in the Cha-Cha to the Hopalong Cassidy ‘Voltas’ that seem to delight everyone in the Samba. I honestly do not see myself ever dancing this in public!

Drove home under blue skies and white fluffy clouds again, just the same as yesterday and spent the early afternoon clearing up the living room and the kitchen. I went for a walk to St Mo’s later for some photos with the intention of coming home with a loaf. I actually came home with a bit more than that, but with a potential PoD or two.

In M&S I bumped (almost literally) into a former colleague who is now deputy head in Glasgow and commiserated with her because her school is being inspected soon. Right now the big news is the Post Office postmasters and mistresses who have been accused of stealing money. It wasn’t really stolen, it was a dodgy computer program called Horizon that went ‘ape’ for a while. But when I heard about those folk being accused of what amounted to theft by the investigators, I remembered how I felt when the HMI (Her Majesty’s Inspectors) came to interrogate us. These people should be ashamed of themselves.

On the way home I was watching a big swathe of pink/white cloud stretching up behind a bunch of Scots Pine trees and trying to find the best angle to shoot them from. Finally found it and that became PoD, relegating a photo of the setting sun to “almost a PoD”.

That was about it for today. Dinner was much more restrained than last night and was a pizza with a glass of wine.

Hoping to get out for walk tomorrow.

Dancin’ – 6 January 2024

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Scamp was out first to defrost the car. We were driving to Brookfield for the first dance classs of 2024.

The temperature was hovering around zero when we drove out to Brookfield, but the sun was almost blinding, shining from a bright blue sky. Thankfully we got there without any roadworks apart from the usual 40mph drag through central Glasgow.

First surprise was that the tiny dancers, who usually take ages to leave the hall, had already gone! Maybe someone had complained. I should have asked Jane if it was her. Only four couples ready and waiting to go dancing. Last in were Peter and Gillian who travel almost the same distance as us.

First dance was the Blue Angel Rumba which we’ve almost mastered and was the gentle entry into this years dances. Next was the, new to us, Christmas Waltz. It looked complicated, but taken in bite sized pieces it wasn’t so bad, although there were a few unpronounceable and complicated bits to it. In retrospect, I think we managed not too bad in it, but it will need some practise during the week to cement it into my head. Finally a fast and frantic Samba with Samba Walks, Botafogos and Voltas. Voltas were described by Jane as “Like kids pretending to ride a horse”. A sort of “John Wayne dance step.” Google it and you’ll see what I mean. By then, my little brain was full to bursting and I was glad to change my dance shoes for clumpy black street shoes and drive us home.

Lunch was two bits of bread with a slice of square sausage between them. Scamp had similar with an egg substituting for the square sausage.

I struggled for a while trying to work out what was going wrong with the 2024 catalog on Lightroom. Eventually I gave up and as the sun was still shining I went for a walk in St Mo’s. The road and paths were quite slippery, but the boots coped with it. The sun was low by the time I was walking along the path behind the woods and I got a few decent shots of the trees and the shadows they were casting. One of them became PoD.

Dinner came from a cold walk over to Condorrat to Golden Bowl. As I was coming back I could see the mist lying about a metre above the grass. Quite creepy looking. I tried to photograph it, but failed to get the impression I was looking for.

Later in the evening I tried again and almost managed to repair the damage to the catalog. I gave up and left it until tomorrow when hopefully a night’s sleep will make things clearer

Temperatures around zero predicted for tomorrow. That will decide what we do.

 

That’s more like it! – 26 December 2023

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We woke to a beautiful sunrise, but cold. Just 1ºc.

John next door was struggling to walk down the path because yesterday’s rain had frozen and the pavements were a sheet of ice. Also, he had an infection in his foot and was having to walk with two sticks. I gave him a bit of support down as far as his door. I was worried incase he fell because he’s a big bloke and I wasn’t sure I could have lifted him. However, he got home.

Knowing just how icy it was out there, We weren’t all that happy about going for a walk, but later in the day after tomato soup and croutons for lunch, we risked a walk round St Mo’s. It didn’t feel all that cold, probably because there was no wind. I know Scamp isn’t too impressed with St Mo’s, so I suggested we extend the walk out of the park and down towards the shops, but bypassing them down to the underpass and back home from there. That seemed to be the correct direction and distance for her. Back home it was coffee time for Scamp and cocoa for me.

Tonight I was making dinner and it was Smoked Haddock and Leek Risotto. The leeks in the fridge had seen better days, so I lifted a couple of our ones. Not very thick, but long enough to make up for their lack of girth. The risotto turned out a bit thinner than usual, but passed the taste test with both of us. The addition of a few prawns didn’t do any harm to the mixture either.

I had taken a total of three photos today. That must be worlds worst record for me. And that was on a bright day! PoD was a girl walking her dog along the path I always scour for potential subjects. A bit of Lightroom and Photoshop did wonders to the originally dull photo.

It looks like it’s back to rain again tomorrow. I can’t say I’m surprised, or delighted. We may need some messages some time tomorrow no matter how wet it gets from Storm Gerrit.

Chatelherault – 19 December 2023

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Out on a photo walk with Alex.

I was due to pick Alex up at his house around 11am, but after getting up at about 4.30am to take some paracetamol to numb the pain from toothache, I wasn’t sure I’d be meeting him any time today. However, when the 8.30am alarm chimed out its merry tune there was no sign of toothache.

The early rise and the alarm were because we’d booked the man from Hannah and Howie to come and service the boiler. He was supposed to arrive between 9am and 1pm, and I was glad we’d set the alarm for 8.30, when he knocked on the door at 9.05. It only took him half an hour to do the service and report that nothing needed replaced this time, but maybe we’d need a gasket replaced at the next service, which should be in a year’s time. One thing done.

Scamp asked me to take her up to Tesco to get more messages, so I dropped her off and drove on to Motherwell, had a chat with Carol and Alex and I drove over to Chatelherault on the outskirts of Hamilton. While we were sitting in the car talking, an unusual bird swooped down not far from us. At first I thought it was a Shrike, but Alex though it might be a Jay, and when we got a good look at it, that’s what it was. Not very common this far north, but I think Hazy gets them in her garden.

It was a wild day with sunny skies one minute and torrential rain the next. We walked down past the Three Hard Men, the statues of David Livingston, William Wallace and Robert Owen cut from steel plate. I got a few shots, but wasn’t really struck on any of them. Alex, of course, got a cracker of a shot!

We walked further on to the old Avon Bridge where we saw a Kingfisher about a year ago, but the Avon Water was in spate, or probably more likely just running off a spate, but far too fast flowing for the kingfisher to show today. As we turned to climb the hill that would take us back to the Big House, we felt the first spits of rain. We’d both been watching the clouds rolling in and as there was no shelter, we just had to plod our weary way back through the rain. We got passed by about a dozen cyclists who must have been as wet as us, if not wetter. It was lovely and warm in the cafe though and we got a table without any problem.

I had just been given a tray with our two coffees and two scones when the woman at the till said the system had gone down. She took a note of our order and said she’d let us know when the system was back in business again. After our coffee and scone lunch, we sat and talked a while. People were being served again at the counter and it looked like the rain had stopped and the sun was shining again, so went back and paid for our lunch. The woman seemed surprised that I’d bothered to come back, but maybe it’s just auld guys like me who do that. Anyway, she gave me a wink and gave me a discount for being honest!

Alex suggested a walk to the Cadzow Oaks, the ancient oak trees that surround some earthworks. The oaks have been dated to the mid 15th Century. That kind of ancient. Some of the oldest living trees in Scotland. The earthworks are a mystery. Nobody seems to know their significance, and there is no clue to who built them. The oaks always make me think of the Ents that Tolkien wrote about. We both got a few photos of them, quite a few! One Ent photo made PoD. Then the rain threatened again and we walked back over the Duke’s Bridge to the car. I drove Alex home and we planned another outing between Christmas and New Year, probably to Glasgow if the weather behaves.

Scamp had been busy while I was away. There was mince cooking on the stove and a lovely smell of baked cakes from the oven. They were Dundee Cakes with a lovely mixture of fruit in them, as well as a measure of Black Bottle whisky. I’ve only had one, because although the paracetamol had done its job, I didn’t want to risk another early morning second dose.

Tomorrow, coincidentally, I’ve a dentist’s appointment to repair a broken filling, so I’ll maybe ask the lady dentist if she’ll have a look at my dodgy molar. Scamp is booked for lunch tomorrow at Calders. Hopefully I’ll be able to speak properly when she gets home, if my jag has worn off by then!

Good news – 14 December 2023

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A phone call brightened my day today.

I had a morning phone consultation today giving the results of a “Stool Test”. That’s a euphemism for a ‘poo test’ which is also a euphemism, but I won’t drop down to that level! You know what I mean. I had the test done a just over a week ago because my red blood levels were low and today’s phone call from the doctor was to tell me that everything was normal again, apart from a slightly low iron level  reading, but that can be countered by eating more green veg and the occasional rusty nail. That was good because a Whisky and Drambuie mixture (which is called a Rusty Nail) is my favourite drink of the moment!  But seriously, that was a weight off my mind. Even better, the sun was shining!

First stop today was Tesco for some messages. I also deemed it appropriate to get a bag of Jam Doughnuts. I felt I’d earned it. I bumped into Fred who told me that Val seemed to be on the mend. That cheered me up too.

Back home, after lunch I got started making tonight’s dinner which was Minestrone soup which had lots of green cabbage in it, but no rusty nails. It’s a good workout for the arms, chopping onions, carrots, leeks, cabbage and half a lemon. they are all bunged into a very big pot with some water, salt and pepper. The whole mixture is brought to the boil, then left to simmer for an hour or so.

While it was simmering and Scamp had promised to keep an eye on it, I took a few odds and ends to the skips and tossed them in. I’d half intended to go for a drive to take some photos, but:

A. There was hardly any useful light by then.
B. I had a plan for a photo for later.

With that in mind, I drove home instead.

While I was out, Scamp had been wrapping parcels and filling Jiffy Bags with the contents. All very neatly done. I think I’m going to be taking them to the post office tomorrow, but I’ll keep you posted (Ha, ha ‘posted’ get it?).

For most of the remainder of the afternoon I fought with Microsoft 365 trying to work out what I was doing wrong and what was causing a ‘Trust Error’. Eventually I gave in and went online to Mickysoft chat line and was told it was probably the browser that was causing the error. Sure enough, I changed from Firefox to Chrome and everything went smoothly after that. Well, as smoothly as any Mickysoft program can work.

Just before dinner, Scamp got a garbled message from a woman at British Gas, attempting to explain how they were going to fix the problems with the Smart Meter not connecting to the billing system. It sounded like a load of waffle to me. She even said that if all else fails, they could return us to the old system where we would be have no on-line connection to the company.  A bit of a backward step?  Surely not!!!  This only came about after Scamp contacted the Ombudsman’s office again and asked what BG were doing, because we had had no response from them.  It’s amazing the power you have that you didn’t know you had!

The soup was a bit thick, but tasted remarkably good, given that there is no stock in it, just veg and water, basically. I’ve only just realised that I forgot to add crushed macaroni into the mix for an extra half hours cooking. I think that would have made it even thicker, so leaving it out was a worthwhile accident.

Today’s PoD was the photo I had planned for today. It’s the traditional Fairy Nuff on the tree. She doesn’t get out much, but when she does, she looks really regal.

Tomorrow Scamp is intending going to the final FitSteps class of the year. I might put another layer on my painting, or I might just go to Condorrat to post the parcels.

Disaaaaaaaster Day – 24 November 2023

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Do you know those days when nothing goes right? That was me today.

It started when the phone rang about 9:30. The surgery calling to ask me to get my bloods done (I had them done yesterday). When I told them that, the lady on the other end rambled on about they needed them done again, then proceeded to give me a date on the day I’m supposed to get my results! Eventually she gave in and said the sister could take my bloods then! What? After I’ve had the results, of the bloods I’ve still to get taken? I’m beginning to lose faith in this surgery.

I put it to the back of my head and when Scamp was off to her FitSteps class, I started making the tomato and red pepper soup which was the starter for todays dinner with our friends from Hamilton. Once the soup was simmering I left it and started to wash the inside of the front windows which were really needing done. Halfway through, I accidentally bumped over the water bucket which, thankfully, was only about a quarter full and washed the rug in the living room as well as the windows. Two towels and the hairdryer got rid of most of the wet stuff and the windows were clean!

By then the soup was cooked and I allowed it to cool for a while. I had a cup of coffee to recover then started blitzing the soup, only for a cup full to spray over the cooker.

They do say bad things come in threes. I think I got my three today.

Just to put the morning behind me, I went for a walk over St Mo’s and got today’s PoD which I’ve photographed quite a few times, but it was the shadows stretching out along the path, rather than the trees that made today’s version special.

Dinner went well with Tomato Soup as a starter and Apricot Glazed Chicken and Lentil Traybake for the main followed by Toffee Apple Treat for dessert. Lots of stories told about holidays and folk we know and we eventually got to bed just before 1am. Very late for us.

Tomorrow is forecast to be cold. We only might go out. It depends on how brave we feel.