Category: weather

What a delightful day – 5 January 2023

Posted on by Zogman

 

Yes, that was sarcasm!

Dry early in the morning, but after that the rain came and forgot to leave. Also the rain slid in quite quietly, but got stronger and heavier as the day progressed.

I suggested that we go to The Bothy near Stirling for lunch and Scamp readily agreed. It’s a nice wee cafe/restaurant at the foot of the Ochil Hills. We’d been there before and I had great memories of the Sri Lankan Lamb Curry. Maybe I’d have something different this time.

The place was busy when we arrived and they were handing out buzzers which isn’t really a good sign. We were told a wait time of about fifteen minutes. Half an hour later our buzzer buzzed and we were shown to our table for two. A quick glance at the menu while Scamp was looking for her glasses confirmed my choice. There it was on the menu Sri Lankan Lamb Curry. My day was going to be fine and hang the bad weather. Scamp chose Mac ’n’ Cheese, her second favourite on the menu. We weren’t disappointed.

After our I grabbed a few photos of the Ochils with the rain clouds misting them and a massive flock of geese in the field at the bottom. A panorama made in Lightroom from three of the frames got PoD. I had another try at photo of the Wallace Monument without the irritating electricity lines catching the eye, but it didn’t work, so I went with the geese on the grass at the foot of the hills. Then it was time to drive through Stirling because Scamp wanted to visit Dobbies. However, the shop was doing its Twelfth Night changeover from Christmas to Valentine’s Day, so it was, in a word, shambolic. We drove home.

For a three cylinder car the Micra fought its way through torrential rain and standing water to get us home safely and in good time. We stopped off at Tesco for a bunch of flowers for Scamp (it was Thursday, remember) and to see if the rum tanker had made it through. Flowers were bought, but no sign of the rum yet.

We watched the first episode of The Apprentice tonight, but it was more of an advert for Antigua than the usual contest, but the usual n-hopers were there and one of them got fired.

It’s a windy night tonight, but it might be a dry afternoon tomorrow.

Another day Another walk – 4 January 2023

Posted on by Zogman

A slightly different start to today’s walk, but basically the same route. There are limited variations in this area.

The day started with the usual struggle with Wordle and Spelling Bee, but they weren’t all that difficult today. Just before lunch I got a message from Alex to say that the family were almost all down with what sounded like a Norovirus variant, so we wouldn’t be going for a photo walk this week. Hopefully they will be over it by next week.

After lunch we went for that walk round part of Broadwood Loch and then up the path beside the exercise machines. Then it was back through the underpasses and on the path to home. While Scamp walked home, I went for a circuit of St Mo’s. Instead of the usual circuit I went up through the woods behind the main pond and got some photos of the smaller manmade pond near the motorway. I could see streaks of blue sky through the clouds and waited for a while to see if those streaks would get bigger, but I was disappointed. They just faded away as the sun started to drop to the horizon. I walked straight back to the path through a shallow bog. I am sure I lost the lens hood from the Samsung 18mm lens in that bog in the spring and I was hoping I might catch a glimpse of it in among the grasses, but again I was disappointed. I trudged home thankful for good boots and dry feet. The boots aren’t too clever on ice and slippery leaves, but are (touch wood) waterproof and comfortable giving a good grip on dry ground.

Today was the day we’d agreed to take down the tree.  No matter how careful you are with taking all the ornaments off first,  there’s always one more you find.  Also there are always one or two decorations left on the wall and you don’t notice them until the rest are packed away.  The place always looks really bare once the decorations are packed away and the tree is also in its old cardboard box that Scamp says is more parcel tape than cardboard now.  However a bunch of flowers in a vase will add some colour again.

Dinner tonight was the remainder of the fish pie from yesterday for Scamp and a piece of bacon joint for me. Using up stuff that was near its ‘best before’ date made good sense after the excesses of the last couple of weeks.

Just before 9pm someone knocked the door and there was a bloke with a big parcel that wasn’t due to arrive until tomorrow. It’s been on the road for about a week now and was a bit battered, but secure and everything inside was intact. Prezzies for Scamp, June and me from Hazy and Neil. Scamp got a pair of fancy earrings and a pair of cleverly up-cycled gloves. Mine was a book I was considering buying and a badge with ‘bad words’ on it that brought a smile to my face. My Bergy jacket was getting washed and I’d worn my old, and I mean OLD Bergy today. It has a badge on it and that badge also has ‘bad words’ on it. Needless to say it came from Hazy and Neil, but I think Hazy was the prime mover there. We got a box of high octane boozy chocolates to share. My Mojito had a fair kick to it! I can’t remember what Scamp got, but she could walk after it!

PoD was a shot of a branch with two pine cones on it, sitting on a mossy stone. It was taken in the woods at St Mo’s. 11,359 steps today!! First time I’ve broken the 10,000 this year.

Tomorrow we may be going to a garden centre, it being Thursday. We may have a spot of lunch too.

Dull and Wet – 3 January 2023

Posted on by Zogman

Yesterday was cold, today was just miserable.

Dull and wet. That sums up today. After our counter-clockwise walk yesterday, neither of us really wanted to go much past the door today. However, to prevent us starving we did have to drive to Tesco to get the bare essentials. The ‘Bare’ essentials means No Alcohol. New Year is past and Christmas is only a vague memory, so that means back to working week abstinence. I can’t say I’m delighted, but it does make sense.

I swear there was more water on the inside of the car windscreen than on the outside. Apparently it’s because modern cars are so well sealed that the water we give off in our breath and sweat condenses on the cold glass and that’s what causes wet windscreens inside the car. I’m not so sure I believe that, but if it’s true someone must live in the headlight housing of the car, because it mists up too, quite often. Thankfully Nissan has installed a heavy duty blower to get rid of the last remnants of moisture once we’ve wiped up the worst of the water and it was used with a vengeance today.

After lunch and in the rain, I went out into the garden wearing a raincoat to keep me dry and with a towel wrapped round the A7iii to keep it dry and I snapped a few photos in the back garden. My favourite subject is the hanging basket at the back door. It’s falling apart and covered in moss, but there are always a wide variety of leaves and almost dead strawberry plants to photograph in it. It created the PoD although it was an untidy looking subject.

Early in the evening a mist descended, and looked like it might be quite photogenic, but by then it was far too dark for even the most intrepid photographer to venture down the dark lanes of Cumbersheugh and that includes me. Instead, Scamp and I made a Salmon and Prawn Pie in a Pan. Of course, Scamp did most of the work and I just helped chop some tomatoes, but those tomatoes allowed me to claim my share of the glory if it worked. It did work. Lovely crunchy Filo pastry, slices of salmon and juicy tomatoes with some couscous to soak up the juices. Jamie Oliver isn’t as stupid as he looks! We may try some more recipes from his vastly overpriced book.

Entertainment on the TV was Paddington 2 which was a delight. That’s our kind of film, I think. No complicated plot lines to follow and everything turns out fine in the end. I hope I’m not spoiling the film by giving away the ending! If I am, just ignore this paragraph.

Tomorrow looks a bit drier than today, not that that would be difficult. We may go out for a walk if it is.

A walk in the cold – 2 January 2023

Posted on by Zogman

It was a bit cool this morning. We were definitely in the sub zero realm.

It was a good morning for a walk, so we got booted up and went for a walk. It was not only cold, but frosty and just a wee bit slippery. I stuck to wearing boots, but Scamp wore her Yaktrax for that extra bit of security. We walked round the machines in a counter-clockwise direction! That’s the opposite direction to our normal walk. It was a bit worrying for a while, but once we calmed down the unusual walk was quite enjoyable.

I got a few photos, but nothing really worthwhile, so while Scamp walked home, I went for a circuit of St Mo’s and got a few more photos. My favourite, and PoD was a view looking down through the trees to the boardwalk. I know I’ve taken it before, but it just looked so pretty!

Later, after dinner, we had a free and frank discussion that led to the creation of a toilet calendar. It’s not really a calendar because it doesn’t have any dates in it. It doesn’t have cherries or apples in it either. It’s just twelve photos, six from each of us and each with a month. If I get it printed off, it will hang in the downstairs toilet. If you hang it in the toilet, everyone who comes into the house gets a chance to see it.

It was a very cold day today, but hopefully it will thaw a bit tomorrow, but it looks like we’ll be getting a lot of rain tomorrow, so probably not a walk, clockwise or otherwise.

Happy New Year – 1 January 2023

Posted on by Zogman

A new day, a new year, but the weather remains the same.

New Year’s Day is one of those days that promises a lot and delivers very little. It sounds as if it’s one big party from start to finish, but for most folk it’s not. It’s a day off work for those lucky enough to be employed, but a day off work in the dullest time of the year isn’t a bundle of fun, really. Christmas is all bright lights and having fun, but NYD is a bit of a let down, I’ve always felt. Maybe it’s just me.

We went for a very quick walk round St Mo’s pond. Scamp wanted to try out the GPS on her new watch and yes! It worked!! It also gave us an excuse to be out in the fresh air. Bumped into Susan Greenshields in the park with her two dogs. We said hello and repeated the HappyNewYear speech everyone does on the 1st, as usual without a happy smile on our faces. It was a rushed conversation because we’d just been sent the Zoom link by Hazy who was hosting today again.

Back home it was boots off, jackets off and get the laptop set up. Scamp doing the ‘techy’ things today. Actually this was the high point of the day. Just like being there. Everyone talking over each other and it was good to see that both Neil and Jamie were looking a lot better than on Christmas Day when both were definitely not at their best. I think we used up almost all the allotted time on Zoom and I felt better after that. Just talking to folk is great sometimes, but talking to them and seeing them is even better.

Dinner tonight was Forestier Paté for starter then Potatoes, Brussel Sprouts and a choice of Salmon Fillet or Ribeye Steak for the main, finishing with Panna Cotta which I managed to make in the morning. It was a bit rubbery I thought, but Scamp said it was fine. Two more in the fridge for tomorrow.

I spent most of the rest of the day wrestling with Lightroom while Scamp read. Most of the swearing has abated now and I think Lightroom and I have declared a truce. Battle may resume tomorrow if it doesn’t play nice. However, we now have a photo calendar on the wall using Hazy’s wonderful idea of using a clipboard. Hopefully calendars will be printed this week … or maybe next.

PoD was a grab shot of a bloke walking his dog down that lane. The path that keeps giving.

Thank you, H, J, N & S for the Zoom meeting, it brightened our day.

Tomorrow looks better than today, but I’m not sure yet if it’s just a weather fairies’ ruse! Only time will tell.

The end of a long year – 31 December 2022

Posted on by Zogman

At last we got a dry day!

To celebrate we went for a walk. A long walk round Broadwood Loch. Not the most interesting place for photos, but that didn’t stop me from taking some. I don’t think I’ve seen the loch looking so still. One wee moorhen paddling smoothly across the waters almost made PoD.

After lunch Scamp walked down to the shops and I went for another walk in St Mo’s this time. There I got today’s PoD which is a sycamore key caught in a whin bush. I just liked it and that’s why it got the last PoD of 2022.

I walked over to Condorrat later to get a Special Fish Supper for me and a Small Fish Supper with two Pickled Onions for Scamp. If you don’t know what a Special Fish is, imagine a haddock fillet dipped in breadcrumbs and deep fried x 2 and you have a rough idea. Just the thing for the last Saturday in 2022.

I’m not going to go over the good bits and the bad bits of 2022, because it’s not over yet. Maybe tomorrow.

Speaking about tomorrow, we have no plans. Probably because it’s snowing right now.

Happy New Year when it comes.

Standing water – 30 December 2022

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Scamp was going to have coffee with Shona today.

I drove Scamp up to Costa in the town centre. What should have been a quick journey turned out to be a bit fraught. I thought I’d be smart and take the shortcut through Condorrat. Alas the sign saying No Road On Right had fallen down. I hadn’t noticed it at the time, but once on to the closed road there was nowhere to go but back again. Still stuck on the idea that this was a shortcut, I carried on round the Condorrat ring road. Then I was stuck in a queue because the road was flooded almost right across the road and cars were taking turns to drive through it. We did eventually get through the flooded stretch, but it was deeper than I’d first thought.

I came home the normal way and went to get my meds, then went next door to Tesco and got some fish because I was making a fish risotto for dinner. I also got a vanilla pod to use for Sunday’s dessert. Almost six quid for one vanilla pod? Somebody’s having a joke here. The reason the road was flooded this morning was because it had rained incessantly through the night, but when I came out of Tesco the sky was clear and the sun was shining. Where did all the rain go? Not a cloud to be seen!

I drove home, dumped the stuff and grabbed my camera bag and went over to St Mo’s. Of course, as soon as I left the house the sun disappeared and the first spots of rain appeared. Undeterred I carried on and got some photos of the flooded pond. Not the most interesting photos and by this time the white cloud had covered the sky, so there was no texture from that either. Still, I had a photo or five and an hour ago I didn’t think I was going to get any.

I walked home and just as I got in, my phone rang. Scamp’s bus from the town centre hadn’t appeared. I drove up to the town centre and picked her up. I made sure I came home the long, but unfolded way.

After lunch which was yesterday’s soup with croutons, or fried bread if you prefer, I settled down to write to Peter Hayward who I used to work beside. I’d only just got started when two cards dropped through the letter box. One for Scamp and one for me from Peter. After reading it I felt even worse for not writing sooner. But the letter was finished and in with the belated Christmas card then I walked over and found I’d just missed today’s collection. Never mind, it wouldn’t have been going anywhere until Monday or Tuesday anyway. After dropping it in the post box I felt a lot happier.

Back home again I started the dinner. It was Leek and Haddock with Cabbage. The cabbage wasn’t really meant to go in the risotto, but it was languishing in the chiller drawer of the fridge and it seemed a shame no to use it. Apparently that was a really good risotto. I don’t know what I did differently, but I too liked it.

The photo you see here as PoD has a more interesting sky than when the shot was taken. I don’t consider that cheating because I took the photo of the sky months ago and just got an app to insert it, and its reflection into the picture. By the way, its title was Porcupine, because that’s what I thought of when I first saw this big clump of reeds!

Tomorrow there’s talk that it may, just may, be dry. If that’s the case we might go for a walk. Drumpellier has been mentioned.

Glasgow in the rain … and sun – 29 December 2022

Posted on by Zogman

Four seasons in one day? Why stop at four? Scotland can deliver four seasons in as many seconds, but it doesn’t always choose to do so.

We drove up to Tesco today, then headed in to Glasgow and the sun was shining … for a while. Then the rain came. After that the sun came out and dried up all the rain just like in Incy Wincy Spider. We got parked on level 4 of Buchanan Galleries and walked down Buchanan Street. It was raining again and the rain continued all the way down Bucky Street. I spotted a potential PoD outside the Apple shop with its resident sandwich board hopeful. Almost did a “Bad Thing” when I accidentally unscrewed the lens on the A7. Luckily none of the wet stuff got into the lens or the camera. Locked it securely on and continued taking photos as if nothing had happened. Dropped in at Tiso to get some waterproofer for our Bergy jackets which are absorbing more water than they are shrugging off. Thankfully the Goretex is doing its job properly and that water shall not pass!

First stop was Argento to get the Nominations charm she should have got from Santa. Thanks to a helpful sales assistant we got it, and another one she’d bought before Christmas, installed into the bracelet in the shop.

We walked further down the road, but there was a fire alarm in Frazer’s department store and the place had been evacuated which meant that there were people everywhere, almost blocking the pedestrian precinct. We were ready to go home, so we walked along Argyle Street and up Queen Street. Had a browse in Cass Art, but I don’t need any materials, I just need to take time to produce some paintings or drawings.

The carnival was still in almost full flow in George Square and I got a photo I had missed when Alex and I had visited a few weeks ago. It was a trio of carousel horses, but have a look on Flickr and check the names. Can you still get away with that? Apparently you can. Show folk are obviously not as PC as some!

Scamp had a voucher to use up in JL, so she treated us both to tea and a cake. I ordered coffee instead of tea. I’m not sure what I got, but it wasn’t my kind of coffee. The cakes were just lovely. Scamp’s was and Orange Grove and mine was a Red Velvet. That was our high calorie lunch.

I’d been looking at a ‘returned’ pair of binoculars before Christmas. JL doesn’t do ‘used’, or heaven forbid, ‘second hand’ items. Luckily they were still there. I tried them out in the shop and they were just what as good as they looked. I took them. Scamp demanded that she pay for them as they were a late Christmas present for me. I started to argue, but a wagged finger told me to just say “thank you”, which I did.

We drove home via Curry’s in Coatbridge because I wanted photo paper. I found the paper I wanted and bought two boxes because they would come in handy. I got a surprise at the till because there was money off if you bought two! Bingo!

Back home I had one more thing to buy, a bottle of Dark Matter rum. A spicy hot rum. Unfortunately Tesco weren’t stocking it, but what I noticed was a bottle of Langs Banana Rum. It had been discontinued many years ago and I thought it was dead and gone forever. I sampled some tonight and although it’s more a banana flavour than a rum distilled with actual bananas, there is a hint of the old rum there.

Last night I roasted some tomatoes and red peppers with a couple of small onions. Today I made soup from the veg, all by myself … well, almost. With helpful suggestions from Scamp and also following the soup recipe from the Instant Pot, I made a pot of Tomato and Red Pepper soup. It’s a bit thinner than my last batch, but a lot easier.

PoD turned out to be the bloke with the advertising sigh outside the Apple Store in Buchanan Street. He looked totally ‘drookit’.

Tomorrow Scamp is intending going for coffee with Shona, but I might pass on that. I’ve a letter I need to write. One I should have written a year ago.

Shopping and old tech – 28 December 2022

Posted on by Zogman

We took the took the blue car out for a short run today to Tesco.

I hadn’t really noticed how dull and dark it was until I saw that the automatic headlights had turned on. It was just after 11am.

We had intended getting Scamp’s meds, but the queue at the chemist told us it would be a good idea to come back another day. We bought milk and bread and porridge oats. Real Scotts Porridge Oats. These new fangled big flakes of oats that don’t break down when you cook them are more bother than they’re worth. Back to real porridge tomorrow.

We had thought about going for a walk today, but the drizzly rain just got heavier and heavier until it was pointless going out just to get wet. There was no enjoyment in that, so we each had a roll ’n’ banana for lunch and dreamed of better days.

Dinner tonight was paella which turned out really good for once then settled down to watch a film that Scamp had recorded called The Good Liar. An enjoyable story with just enough twists and turns in it to make it worth watching without being confusing. I commend it to you.

PoD was the poor wee flower on the poor wee poinsettia plant we’ve had in the living room and now in the kitchen. We’ve kept it cool, kept it warm, kept it dry and finally soaked the roots in water. Nothing seems to help it. Scamp has tried everything imaginable to perk it up, but I think it’s beyond recovery now. It must have been going over when we bought it from M&S. The motto is buy your poinsettias from Tesco like we usually do, not from M&S.

I took the PoD with an old Olympus E-PL5 camera and a neat Panasonic 30mm lens. It’s a really old camera now as is the lens, but as you can see it produces good images still.

Tomorrow we may go out somewhere just to say we’ve been out and hopefully in between the rain showers there will be the hint of a blue sky. No promises though.

 

 

Snow, Sleet and Rain – 27 December 2022

Posted on by Zogman

That’s the short list of our weather today in chronological order.

It was obvious when the snow started that we weren’t going to get that walk today. What we did do instead was rearrange the kitchen and some of the cupboards. We were trying to make space for New Stuff and also use it as an excuse to get rid of old stuff. However, it was unlikely that the council skips would be open today, because today was a Substitute Bank Holiday for Christmas Day. Does that mean that Christmas Day gets a holiday to itself today? I don’t know, but as it came up only on my Samsung calendar, I’m not going to lose any sleep over it. Anyway, I collected some unused or broken small electrical items and they are now sitting in an IKEA bag in the back bedroom. I’m hoping to take them away later in the week.

I did make a loaf in the morning, but it didn’t turn out very well. Oven too low? Yeast too old? I’m not sure, but we’ll try toasting it tomorrow and if that doesn’t improve it, the remainder goes in the bin. I also braved the rain and took some photos in the garden. Abstract images for a change. Today’s PoD is a macro shot of the pea netting after it’s been messed about with in various apps!

It really was a dull day today. It started getting dark just after midday, but to keep our minds off it, Scamp launched into her ‘tidy the kitchen’ project. I’m sure it’s something to do with New Year. My mum, and her mum too were fanatical about having the house tidy for New Year. It was considered bad luck to allow the new year in to a dirty or untidy house. I’m sure it’s in the Scottish genes to continue this tradition. My part in the process was cleaning the extractor fan filter above the cooker. It’s a filthy job and it took me quite a while to get it looking decent and a new filter fitted. It’s done now, but I reckon it may need checked in about six months.

In the evening, we watched the first two episodes of The Crow Road, a Scottish mystery drama by Iain Banks from 1996. It was strange seeing these younger versions of folk who have aged a bit since it was filmed and also remember some who are no longer with us. Hoping to watch the final two episodes on iPlayer tomorrow.

That was a dull day but we got stuff done. We also had a practise at the Quickstep and Foxtrot, just to keep them fresh in our heads.

Tomorrow we may go for a walk, but it all depends on the weather.