Category: weather

A dull day, a dull head – 17 April 2023

Posted on by Zogman

Woke after a good night’s sleep, but the cough is still there. Thankfully it left the sore throat somewhere during the night and it’s now lost.

We didn’t really have any plans for today other than to go looking for a terracotta strawberry planter, and some strawberries to put in it for Scamp, and a little pot of Lithops (Living Stones) for me. Also, both of us wanted a rosemary bush to replace the one that died during the winter. That meant a visit to Torwood for most if not all of those things.

We did find some of the above, but not all. However, we found other things that we couldn’t have done without. A tray of Antirrhinum aka Snapdragons or as my mum used to call them Map-maps. Much easier names to remember than Antirrhinum. We had lunch in the cafe at Torwood. A quiche and a tipsy cake to share with a coffee and a peppermint tea. Then we were gone.

I’d brought a camera, of course and we stopped at Haggs so that I could get some shots with the new ultra-wide lens. The sky was clearing, but not nearly quick enough, but I got some moody ultra-wide, ultra low level (nearly in the water) shots of the canal. A couple walking along the tow path probably though I was going in for a swim, but thankfully that didn’t happen.

A collapsible pop up rubbish bin for the garden was on our list but we didn’t find it in Torwood, instead, Scamp spotted one in B&Q. Also at B&Q we found a tray of Busy Lizzies for Scamp’s Wanderella planter. Our final purchase was six square blue carpet tiles to replace the dark green ones that I’ve been promising to replace for years. The first dull day, that will be my chance to take out the green and bring in the blue.

Back home and after we’d unpacked everything, it was time to do some basic gardening. For me it was potting up two Teasel plants and chopping up the old rosemary bush. We did get a tiny little rosemary bush at Torwood, but it will be a long while before it grows to big enough to donate some leaves to a lamb casserole. Meanwhile, Scamp was potting things and planting other things and generally being a powerhouse of gardening prowess. Just watching her made me tired and I had to sit down – that’s my excuse!

PoD was that low shot along the Forth & Clyde canal.

Dinner tonight was made by the gardening powerhouse herself and it was Mac ’n’ Cheese! Of course it was delicious.

Tomorrow is supposed to be bright and sunny, so say the weather fairies if you believe them. We’ll see how it turns out.

 

A decision made – 14 April 2023

Posted on by Zogman

Scamp was going out for coffee with her friend from work. I was driving to Larky after I’d had my PSA test done at the health centre.

I’d already made the decision to buy a new lens from a company I’ve used many times in the past, MPB in Brighton. Not a brand new lens, second hand. I’d made the decision the day before, but the day before was the 13th and I thought it would be unlucky to buy it on the 13th, so had left the actual purchase until today.

I’d put the lens in my ‘basket’ on the website, filled in my details and had just completed my two part verification when I got a message to say that the lens had gone! Someone had beaten me to it. I admit, I panicked, thinking I’d been the subject of a scam. How could two people have put the same lens into the basket at the same time? I’d never heard of such a thing. Scamp reminded me that time was ticking away and I’d miss my appointment if I wasn’t careful. Before I went, I checked with the bank to make sure my payment hadn’t gone through. It hadn’t. Slightly relieved, I drove to the health centre.

The nurse who did the blood letting was careful and quick, even better, later when I removed the plaster she’d put on the tiny wee scratch the needle made there was almost nothing to see. Probably the best experience I’ve had, getting my bloods taken, and maybe that calmed me down as much as anything.

When I got back I tried to phone MPB, but the help line wasn’t open on Fridays! I did get through to a European site and the girl I spoke to confirmed that the lens had indeed gone, but seemed as surprised as I was that two people could be trying to buy an article at the same time. Scamp left me to it and went to meet her friend. I checked the website one more time and that particular lens had gone, however there was an almost exactly the same one for a few quid less. With fingers crossed I went through the entire procedure again and it all worked perfectly, just as it had in the past. I was relieved when I got an email from the carrier saying the lens would be delivered the next day. However, I think that may be my last purchase from MPB.

After all that I drove to Larky and picked up my new reading glasses, then drove back home again after buying a four cheeses loaf for Scamp at the Co-op. A 50 mile round trip might seem a long way for a pair of glasses, but we both trust Simpson to look after our eyes, and Scamp will be next to get an appointment.

Scamp was home by the time I came back and I explained what I’d done and that it was all resolved.

A walk in St Mo’s to stretch my legs and calm my nerves and PoD went to a bunch of Cowslips. Another sign that Spring is here.

A wee glass of wine later to celebrate? Maybe that’s not the correct word for drawing a line under a difficult day.

Tomorrow I’ll be waiting for the email from DPD to say when the lens will come.

It rained – 10 April 2023

Posted on by Zogman

As predicted by the weather fairies, Monday morning was wet.

Instead of sitting at home, Jamie drove us to a garden centre fairly nearby. I really think this was a trial for Scamp because, while Jamie and Simonne were loading plants into the boot of the car, Scamp had to accept that live plants wouldn’t survive a five hour plus rail journey with two changes on what was going to be busy trains. We had lunch in a wee cafe at the garden centre and Scamp did get some seeds to take back. Not quite the same as live plants, but the consolation prize.

In the afternoon the clouds lifted, the skies cleared and the sun shone, so we all went for a walk. Much the same route as my walk yesterday, but much longer and covering different areas of the nearby countryside. With my ultra-wide angle lens on the A7 I got some quite excellent landscape shots and some pretty shots of daffodils in the churchyard of the church next door to the house. The landscape got PoD.

Unfortunately we were going home tomorrow, so after dinner we were packing bags and taking more last photos. Then Jamie came in to the living room and said “There’s a kestrel in the front garden.” My cameras were packed away, but I did manage to get two fairly decent shots of the young bird before it flew off on those narrow wings.

We watched the final episode of the strange South African film and were left wondering what to think about the even stranger ending. I won’t say any more, just in case you ever watch it.

Tomorrow we make the trek up north.

Rain, Rain, Go Away – 5 April 2023

Posted on by Zogman

It rained today. In fact it rained all day and it’s still raining.

We had Easter cards to write and then post, which was good, because we were going to Tesco anyway and could post them there. It was just a bit of light shopping, bread, a bag of rolls and a carton of milk. Oh yes, and two bottles of wine plus two cans of G&T. Like I said, light shopping. Just for a change, Scamp drove us there and back.

Back home and after lunch we started throwing things into bags. Counting in the socks and underwear then adding another one or two for luck. It looked like the rain was getting a bit lighter and there was just the chance of some sunshine too, but it was just a ruse by the weather fairies. The rain strengthened and the sunshine went to some other boys and girls. I’d thought of taking some indoor ‘flower’ shots, but risked it with a few shots of Scamp’s Helebores that sit by the back steps. Their full name is Heleborus Orientalis Lenten Rose. The ‘Lenten’ part is to signify that their flowering period roughly covers Lent.

Dinner was paella which I thought was nice and dry, but Scamp thought it was just too dry. We never can agree on food and cooking. However it tasted fine and used up some chicken thighs that had been languishing in the freezer for a long time.

In the evening I threw more things into a big red bag and I’ve just remembered I have to add the Gorilla Pod.

I think that’s us about done. Early rise tomorrow. Hope the rain has stopped by then!

Out on the moor – 4 April 2023

Posted on by Zogman

Scamp was off having lunch with Mags today. I was going to Fannyside Moor.

Scamp had a lunch booked with Mags at Wetherspoons. She had other things to do, (unspecified) and as you can only park for 3 hours anywhere in Cumbersheugh, I offered her a lift, with the added benefit that I’d pick her up once she was finished. I dropped her at the restaurant and drove off to the council tip to ditch some old garden things and a load of cardboard. After that, I was free.

I drove up to Fannyside Moor hoping for some decent light. I’d just parked when the light appeared and lit up the landscape down as far as the old ruined farm at Jawhill. Unfortunately I didn’t get a chance to get the camera out of the car before the light was gone. I took a walk along the road, but that light didn’t come back. I did get some photos of a couple of fence posts covered in lichen, then walked back to the car to photograph some sheep huddled together because it was a really cold west wind. Such a change from yesterday’s balmy weather with hardly a breath of wind. That photo eventually made PoD after a fair bit of editing and re-editing. Drove home after that and tea and toast for lunch. Nothing like Scamp’s lunch of Fish & Chips which she described as “mmmm lovely”. Some of us just have to make do with what we have.

I’d almost finished the re-editing of the sheep photo when my phone rang once and stopped, then the house phone (old tech, but reliable) rang. It was Scamp asking for a run home because she’d forgotten her bus pass. I didn’t mind at all because it gave me a reason to turn the computer off.

I went for a walk in St Mo’s late in the afternoon, but I took completely the wrong set of lenses. I don’t know what I was thinking. Unless I was thinking how good I was to get an “Explore” which is a First Prize from Flickr for the Horse Chestnut bud from the other day. That’s the second one this year.

I think that was about the end of our galavanting for the day. Dinner for me was Baked Potato and a portion of stew from the freezer. Scamp added to her lunch with a baked potato. We watched another episode of Death in Paradise, series 1 tonight and although we’d seen it before, it was better than the last series, series 10..

Tomorrow is going to be busy shopping, cards to post and arrangements to be made.

Out for a walk – 3 April 2023

Posted on by Zogman

We said it it was a good day, we’d go for a walk and we did.

I’d like to say that we were up early and out walking, but in reality it was nearer 11am before we got on the road. We drove to Chatelherault just outside Hamilton and left for a walk to the Green Bridge. It’s still a bridge, but as I’ve mentioned before in these pages, it’s not been green for a long time. We started off looking over the Duke’s Bridge to Cadzow Castle where some of the trees have been chopped down and the view of the castle is improved, even if there is only part of one wall remaining intact. There were actually people working on the site which was good to see, but I’ve no idea what they were doing. “Making it safe” was Scamp’s guess and that could be the case. We walked over the Duke’s Bridge that crosses the Avon water and then the climb started.

We took the easier route round the south side of the castle but the workmen had disappeared for their lunch. We headed left after the initial climb and walked past the ancient Cadzow Oaks which probably date from the 1400s. They are absolutely huge chunks of wood and could have been where Tolkien got the idea for Ents if he’d ever been to Scotland.

Further on, with blue sky above us, birds singing in the trees and the occasional fluffy cloud passing overhead it was an ideal day for a walk in the countryside. Newborn baby lambs in the field beside the path added to the picture, but oh, we’re not as fit as we used to be and after an hour and a bit of following the wandering path we were beginning to tire of the up hill and down dale route of the path. After we checked our progress on the phone and found that we weren’t even near the half way point, we decided to cut our losses and head back the way we had come. There wasn’t another path anyway! Next time we’ll walk the route in a clockwise direction, with options for alternative shortcuts back. Next time! There will be a next time.

But this time we still had to navigate the up hill and down dale switchback path. Although we had the benefit of being almost at the path’s highest point when we turned back, so we were heading downhill all the way to the Visitor Centre.

The information page on Chatelherault says the Oaks Café has “healthy snacks and tasty treats on the menu suit all culinary requirements.” I don’t think the person who wrote that had been in the Oaks Café. I asked for Peppermint tea for Scamp, but after having a look at the packets the server’s reply was a Larky “Nane!” So it was a latte then. My Americano was perfect, I have no complaints there, but I looked in vain for the “tasty treats” Instead there were anaemic sponge cakes with white icing, and various dull looking slabs of pastry. Maybe the “tasty treats” had all been sold or maybe there were “Nane”. At least the coffee was good.

We drove back home and Scamp went out to work in the garden in the sunshine. I dumped the photos on the computer and found that half of them were out of focus. Of the ones that were left, I chose a view of Cadzow Castle to be PoD.

It was a good day. We both really need to get up and go out earlier and more often to get back into shape, especially if dancing is going to be limited for the next month.

Tomorrow Scamp is booked for lunch with Mags and I’m at a loose end. I’ll find something to do, I’m sure

Gardening – 2 April 2023

Posted on by Zogman

An hour in the garden for me. More for Scamp.

We hadn’t got to bed until about 1am yesterday and our ‘little nightcap’ worked well, so we didn’t wake until well past breakfast time. By the time I was stumbling out of bed it was getting nearer lunchtime than breakfast. We both avoided the news in the morning, not wanting to know the result of the Australian GP which we’d watch while having lunch at midday. Instead, we solved Wordle and Spelling Bee.

Scamp described the end of the F1 GP as “Carnage” and she was right. “Shambles” is another word to describe it. Two restarts after the race had been ‘red flagged’ which means that the cars had to return to the pit lane to allow the debris of two big crashes to be cleared up. It was a bit over cautious on the part of the race officials. It could all have been handled much better in our opinion under a ‘Safety Car’. In the end it was a carnage and a shambles that did nothing but take away from what could have been a good race. Questions will be asked of the officials before the next race in Baku in four weeks time. Could this be connected in any way with the fact that the dance class is also off for about four weeks? Just asking.

With lunch past and the entertainment finished for the day, Scamp was looking to the garden to see what she could cut down, chop up or repot. I was called out on the pretext that my opinion was needed on what to keep and what to chop. I was also asked what I was going to do about the raised bed. I muttered something about taking down the pea frame and sloped off to charge the power drill that I’d need to remove the rusted screws. Actually, once I’d removed the six rusted screws with the power screwdriver, the fate of the raised bed was resolved when part of the back wall of the bed came clean away with the pea frame. The whole thing needs to be taken apart before it comes apart of its own volition. But that was a task for another day. Instead I took the pea frame apart, retained the uprights to become apple tree supports and chucked everything else in the bin. Then went to prepare my dinner which would be slow cooked lamb shoulder shank, done in the Instant Pot. Then I gathered my lenses for today’s expedition to St Mo’s.

It was actually quite mild today, much warmer than yesterday and with no wind, that warmth was getting through.

PoD was an update on the Horse Chestnut bud from a week ago today.

Tomorrow if the weather is as predicted, reasonably sunny, we may go for a walk.

The last day in March – 31 March 2023

Posted on by Zogman

And so March draws to a close with another dull, cold day.

Scamp went out to FitSteps in the morning and I didn’t do all that much. Come to think of it we didn’t do much in the afternoon either! After some discussion we opted to go to Tesco for our shopping. We could have gone to Waitrose in Stirling, but it seemed pointless to travel the extra distance for a slightly wider choice of groceries and since neither of us was all that bothered, we chose the closer to home option. You know it makes sense!

Back home we had a late lunch and then with Scamp settled on the sofa, I put my old Bergy jacket on and took the A7 with the 50mm macro out to see what I could find in St Mo’s. A little Salmonberry flower caught my eye and its image was promptly sucked into the camera and on to the SD card. I got some gritty looking lichen photos too and they got even more grungy in Lightroom. Both images are now on Flickr, but the Salmonberry flower got PoD.

We’d got a Charlie Bigham curry & rice from Tesco in the afternoon and that became tonight’s dinner. Spicy without being too hot, it was bolstered by some home made flatbreads which went well with it. We ate it while watching Series 1 – Episode 1 of Death in Paradise on iPlayer. Neither of us could remember watching this episode, but it was head and shoulders better than the drivel that’s being foisted on us these days in Series 10. Plus, the music is so much better in the original.

Another practise of the quickstep for tomorrow’s class and that was the day done, well, almost done, because the blog isn’t finished yet.

Tomorrow is Dancing Day. Class in the morning, back home for lunch and maybe dinner then out again to the monthly dance. Ok, that’s it done now. The blog is finished.

Coffee with John – 28 March 2023

Posted on by Zogman

Scamp was out for coffee with Isobel. I went over to John’s for coffee too.

Scamp was intending to meet Isobel for coffee at their usual haunt that is the Costa near TJ Hughes. Isobel caused confusion by phoning me to ask where Scamp was. When I told her, she should be at Costa by then. That’s when I got worried. Was the car giving trouble? Had she broken down somewhere? I phoned her and she replied that she was in Costa as agreed, but couldn’t see Isobel. Another call to Isobel cleared things up. She was at the other Costa (we’ve got two Costas in the Antonine Centre! Lucky us) at the other end of the centre. Long story short, they met up at the Costa near Tesco. Phew!

When she returned I had a quick cup of coffee and a cold meat sandwich then headed off to see John and hand over two parcels for Marion. We had a coffee and discussed the way the world was going wrong and how we’d have put it right if they’d only asked. It had been raining when I left the house and the clouds were getting lower. In Hamilton the skies were noticeable lighter and the clouds higher, plus it wasn’t raining. You see, that’s what happens when you live in South Lanarkshire. You pay a bit more council tax, but you get better weather. As if to prove this hypothesis, when I was driving home later, the rain started again just as I was leaving the boundaries of Hamilton. It continued to rain for the rest of the day and may be raining now. I rest my case Your Honour!

My camera hadn’t been out of the bag all day, but I still needed a photo for PoD. I turned to flowers, as I usually do in such times, and today’s PoD is a bunch of yellow Alstroemeria with some Sweet William and a bunch of Stocks as supporting actors. All shot on the tabletop with the A7iii + LensBaby Sweet 50 lens to blur out the edges.

Scamp’s turn to make dinner and it was a chicken stir-fry and although it was a bit dry it’s taste made up for that.

No plans for tomorrow. We’ll see what happens, but it might involve a Quickstep practise.

 

Off to the east – 27 March 2023

Posted on by Zogman

Not the Far East, just following the Forth.

It was a lovely day. In fact it was just as the weather fairies had predicted, bright, clear and cold. Just 0.2ºc above zero when Scamp was making the breakfast.

We decided we wouldn’t waste any time, we just drove over to Aberdour in Fife. The last time we’d been there was in January last year and it had been bright, clear and cold then too. After a bit of indecision Scamp remembered the street we needed to go down that would take us to the Silver Sands that Aberdour is famous for. I remembered the big, almost empty car park that those in the know use. We parked there and walked down to the sandy beach.

Scamp had been intending to walk the shore path to Burntisland, but instead we found ourselves following our noses and discovered not one, but two lighthouses, what looked like a gun emplacement from WW1 or WW2 we weren’t sure. The other thing we found was a memorial to Wee Alfy. Not much more information, except a plaque with “In Loving Memory of Wee Alfy 1986-2004” and an engraved picture of a leaping fish. It was on a sturdy table that looked as if it had been used for a barbecue and was built on a concrete and steel frame.

We walked back to the path that would take us to Burntisland. It was a decent path we were on with a plenty of climbs and then slopes down the other side. Well used too by walkers, joggers and cyclists. Everyone out to make the best of this spring day that was warming up nicely. Well, the path would have taken us to Burntisland if we’d had the time, but after walking for about an hour we stopped for a seat and made the decision to go back, because our destination wasn’t getting any nearer. The path was just as interesting on the way back. We were getting hungry by then and waited in the queue to get a table for lunch at the cafe. Scamp had Tuna & Cheese sandwiches and I had a burger. A bacon and cheese burger. It was truly the worst burger I’ve ever had. The meat itself had been reheated a few times before it came to me. The bacon had been fried to within an inch of its life and the cheese. I hate to think to the torture that had been inflicted on that oily orange slab of bubbling something. Take heed, if you are ever in the Sands Cafe, do yourself a favour. Eat one of your shoes rather than risk the burger. Your stomach will thank you for it. The slice of tomato was the best bit and the chips were excellent. We walked back to the car and realised why it might be worth the £2 to park on the lower car park. That is one long, steep and twisty bit of road.

We drove home via Tesco for milk and bread. Then Scamp wanted to do some deadheading that progressed into pruning and then there were plans to be made for the new peony rose we bought. Later, when the gardening work had been completed we used some of the straw that came with a Golden Anniversary rose to stuff a bird feeder and hung it on the tree in the garden. It was Scamp’s idea after I saw a blackbird with a beak full of twigs and leaves, presumably for nest building. Let’s hope some of the birds can use some of that straw.

PoD turned out to be a landscape shot taken on our walk to Burntisland.

Tomorrow Scamp is intending to have coffee with Isobel and as it’s forecast for rain, I may stay home and do that painting I’ve been dreaming about.