Category: Witches

Another broken bus – 15 December 2024

Posted on by Zogman

Usually the blog is written from my perspective, but the majority of today’s is written about Scamp and the Witches visit to Manchester.

Yesterday the witches had a fairly faultless run down to Manchester and by all reports were impressed with the Trafford centre. Today they were heading back to Manchester from their overnight stay in Chorley or nearby there to go to the Christmas Markets. Around 3pm I got the message that they were leaving Manchester and would phone at Gretna.

I got a message to tell me they were leaving Gretna with an ETA of 7.20pm at Hamilton bus station where I’d agreed to pick them up. Two minutes later I got the message that the extremely high winds had blown the windscreen wiper off the bus and they’d need to get someone to fix it or get a replacement bus. Long story short, two hours late, I picked up the four and dropped them off at Jeanette’s house and we drove home.

I’d made a fairly large pot of Minestrone soup for a late lunch and it was used for dinner while the sorry tale unravelled. I’m not saying Scamp is a jinx, although she did, but this is the second bus journey that has come to grief with a broken bus she has been on!

My own day had been a case of taking some odds and ends to the skips in the afternoon. The winds hadn’t been as wild then, so I carried on to Fannyside and got some photos of “The Girls”, the hardy sheep that don’t seem to notice the wind and the rain as long as there’s food in their basket. Went for a walk along to a farm, got some photos of Cladonia lichen that grows well there, apparently a sign of clean air. On the way back I saw a fast flying bird land on a telegraph pole and grabbed a few photos of it. When I came home I found that it was a Kestrel. Unmistakeable with the narrow wings and the chestnut coloured back.

PoD was that picture of “The Girls”, looking as if they were posing for a photo.

Hoping to have a less stressful day tomorrow.

 

 

Another cold one – 17 January 2024

Posted on by Zogman

 

Temperature this morning was -7ºc when breakfast was being served – in bed.

I downloaded a To Do app last week and am beginning to use it. I had three tasks for today and took great delight in ticking them off one by one. I even added another couple to the list and ticked them off. How long it will last, I don’t know. Probably until they start asking me for a subscription and start removing parts of it or adding adverts. That’s when it will get the heave.

The first task was to post my calendars to some folk. I actually really like the photo on the front page, but it’s more than halfway through the first month and the poor folk will only get this one for half the time it deserves. Unless, of course, they get crafty with a pair of scissors! I’m not saying what the picture is, but it’s not alcoholic, that’s all I’m telling you. I only did five this year. One for me one for Alex and one each for three lucky people. I strengthened the calendars with some corrugated cardboard, so they should arrive intact. I also spent ages working out how to mail merge my database of “Where Was It Took in 2023” into a Word document, eventually giving up and using first Scamp’s computer and then my old Tosh to do the job. Mickeysoft make some clever office apps, but they don’t give a toss about whether they work on a Mac or not. Anyway, I digress – as usual. At least one of you recipients didn’t get a copy of WWIT2023, so if it’s you and you really want to find out what was taken where, email me and I’ll send you a PDF of the script.

I walked over to Condorrat and posted all three off to their recipients. Then walked down to St Mo’s with the shiny new lens on the A7iii and let it take some photos for me. I think it was 35 photos in total today and about 5 of them ended on the cutting room floor. Not bad odds. Everywhere was white. Not snow, just frost. Best of a bad lot was one of a St John’s Wort flower well covered in frost. Despite being well wrapped up, I was beginning to feel the cold on my face and any other bits of exposed flesh, like my hands. I did have a pair of cycling gloves with me, but they are a bit cumbersome to wear when you’re operating a camera. I was glad to get in to the warm house and heat up some soup for lunch. Scamp was away to a birthday bash at Castlecary Hotel, so she wouldn’t be needing any, I thought.

Next task was to order some coffee. I still get it from The Bean Shop in Perth and get it delivered to me. It’s the sensible way to get it. £3 for DPD to deliver it and about twice that in petrol costs to drive there and buy it. DPD are pretty good at delivering it within the one hour time slot they state. I also ordered a new UV filter for the new lens. The old one I had was ages old and showing its age with a handful of scratches. However it was protecting the lens for now at least.

As it turned out, Scamp’s lunch date hadn’t been all that good. Two of the group, Scamp included weren’t impressed with the quality of the food which is a a pity as it was always a good restaurant. But, as we know, things change.
So it was Mince ’n’ Tatties for my dinner, cooked by my good self and Fish Fingers ’n’ Tatties for Scamp.

We watched the weather report on BBC and tomorrow looks just as cold as today, if not colder. I’m booked to meet Alex in Glasgow. We were going to go to Paisley, but if the weather is so bad, we may, at Scamp’s suggestion, take the subway up to Kelvinbridge and have lunch in the Paesano there, then spend the afternoon in the warmth of the Botanic Gardens greenhouses!

 

 

 

 

Pills off the doctor – 2 September 2022

Posted on by Zogman

Scamp had an appointment at the doctor’s surgery today.

The problems she’d been having with dizziness and not hearing properly were diagnosed as an ear infection. A course of antibiotics would solve that, said the nurse.

After lunch I took her prescription over to the chemist in Condorrat and brought back a box of pills. By which time, Scamp was waiting for Jeanette who was driving her to Moira’s for a Witches Day Out. After she left, I checked my bike tyres which I’d inflated to the normal 35psi and thankfully they were still holding that pressure. I was going looking for brambles while the ladies sipped their G&Ts. It took me ages to find my cycling shorts, my helmet my cycling shoes and track mitts. Then I had to manoeuvre the Dewdrop out of its hiding place in the “Wee Room” and down the stairs. A squirt of WD40 and we were ready to go.

The first part of the journey to my favourite bramble site was fairly easy, because it was basically downhill. I did stop to take some photos of scarecrows in the barley fields where they were busy cutting the grain. One of the scarecrow pictures made PoD. After that, it was the uphill stretch and finally on to the off-road section. Cycling on a road is no fun any more. I don’t mind going on paths and towpaths, but jousting with lorries and boy racers is no fun on a bike.

In the hour and a bit I’d allotted myself, I managed to pick just over 550g of black, juicy brambles. Sometimes it’s a struggle to find juicy ones and I know that Scamp will rightly chuck out the dried up fruit. Today it was a delight. Then once I’d arranged camera, extra lens and bag of brambles into my sling bag, I was off home. It was uphill all the way and it was a slog. I managed the climb without stopping, but this was no fun at all. This is what happens when you think you’re keeping fairly fit, then try cycling a route you’ve travelled on the same bike for years, and find yourself struggling. I either need to get out more and use the bike, or I get rid of it. It’s a difficult decision.

A cup or two of Pan Gallactic Gargle Blaster and a shower (but not at the same time) worked wonders and I began to feel human again, or as near to it as I can manage. I was just working through my dozen or so photos when Scamp arrived home. It seemed like they had a relaxing day, and although mine hadn’t been relaxing, it was certainly successful.

We had planned to go shopping in Glasgow tomorrow, but Celtic are at home to Rangers and that sometimes isn’t much fun. Weather looks rough too. We may go somewhere else and have lunch.

Off the leash – 14 July 2022

Posted on by Zogman

Scamp was going for coffee with the Witches. I was left on my own for a few hours.

Spent most of the morning writing a reply to two of Alex’s recent emails. I’d berated him for promising photos and delivering a description of what was in them, but not the photos themselves. He made up for that omission by sending me two emails worth of recent photos. Quite impressive photos too. Anyway, I used my time this morning wisely and sent him a few of my photos and the story of my week so far, which you, my readers already knew! That and a bit of jiggery pokery on Photoshop and Lightroom took up most of the morning. I did have a notion to do a bit of painting, but never quite got round to it. “Not getting round to it” is an art in itself I think.

While Scamp was out, a lady came to the door with a beautiful bouquet of flowers, addressed to both of us. I was quite taken aback and couldn’t guess who could have sent it. Then I though of Isobel and her run in the country. I left the bouquet for Scamp to unwrap, and sure enough the card with the flowers had a message from Isobel. A lovely surprise.

When Scamp had recovered from the surprise and arranged the flowers in two vases, I decided it was time for a walk, so I retraced my steps from yesterday and walked down to the shops by the long way through the long grass behind St Mo’s school. I found some interesting shapes in the seed heads of the Flag Irises that have now all gone over, but the PoD was a tiny little fly on a hogweed flowerhead. A really tiny thing that must have measured about 3mm long. While I was photographing the Iris seed heads, a cleg landed on my lens hood. Just to be sociable, I squashed it. The swelling on my wrist from yesterday’s attack has now disappeared although it was quite red this morning.

Watched the final episode of Slow Horses tonight. Sadly that’s it finished until season 2 arrives some time later this year. Although I’ve read all the books, I’ve still enjoyed the story of The Hub and Slough House. It’s not often a TV version of a book stays so close to the original.

No real plans for tomorrow, although we may get a chance to walk down to Broadwood Farm for a carvery lunch and a glass of something alcoholic.

 

Off the leash – 24 January 2022

Posted on by Zogman

Scamp was heading out for lunch with the rest of the Witches. I was given free run of the house.

After she was picked up by Jeanette I did think of driving out somewhere to get a few landscape photos, but the sky was that moody overall grey and without some directional light I’d be struggling to make a landscape look interesting, so I chose to wait for a while. I thought about starting a painting, but couldn’t decide what to paint. These dull days make it difficult to find an interest in anything. I did for one foolish moment toy with the idea of clearing up the back room, but one look at the enormity of the task was enough to disabuse me of that task. Instead, I had lunch. Beans on sourdough toast. Earlier I’d picked up Jamie’s transatlantic plane on Flightradar 24 and lunchtime gave me a chance to check his position. He was about halfway across the Atlantic as I was scraping the last of my beans from the plate.

I’d a letter to finish off and once I’d done that, it looked like the sky was brightening up with a bit of movement in the clouds, so I got my boots on and the camera sorted and went out for a walk in St Mo’s. The woods were looking bare. Bare trees, dried up grass and not a lot happening. I did try to grab a few shots of lichen and moss and also a few late season fungi, but nothing new. Nothing exciting or interesting. The most interesting was a leaf spread over a fallen log and worn almost transparent by the elements. That might look good reduced to monochrome. I walked further than I’ve gone for ages, across the boggy grassland almost beside the slip road from the motorway, but the landscapes were all the same. I’d taken them all in the past. However, when I came out of the woods the sky was definitely clearing and Jamie was heading south towards the eastern edge of Canada at about 38,000ft.

Heading back towards home I got a decent shot along the length of the boardwalk with the 18mm lens sporting its washed and clean lens hood. Also I took two shots looking towards the breaking sky over the pond. Both were taken in portrait format, one to make the most of the sky and the other to show the silted up edge of the pond. I intended to join them together in Photoshop. That was it for the photography and it looked like Jamie was now even higher at 40,000ft and crossing the border into the US. I hoped he was actually on that plane and had managed to get up for that 4am taxi!

Scamp was home by the time I got back and we compared our day. It would seem that the Railway Inn is worth a visit some time judging by the praise it was getting from Scamp. It would be good to start going out to eat again, now that the restrictions are being relaxed. We might even get to go back to salsa with a bit of luck!

Scamp’s lunch was Macaroni with Chips. My dinner was Tagliatelle with a meat Ragu. More in the pan for tomorrow or to go in the freezer to be discovered some hungry day.

I watched as the Airbus turned on its dogleg to final and landed in a place I’ve never been and am never likely to see with my own eyes. I hope you get to read this Jamie and aren’t too bored with all the photography talk. Enjoy your visit to the Big Apple.

The PoD is the two part picture, assembled and manicured in Photoshop then finished off in Lightroom. The others I took today are on Flickr.

We have no plans yet for tomorrow. Sometimes that’s the best way.

 

Off the leash – 17 December 2021

Posted on by Zogman

Scamp was out at a Witches Christmas lunch at Moira’s. Do witches ‘do’ Christmas? Isn’t that an oxymoron? Or am I just showing off now? Answers on a postcard please.

That was after a rather fractious morning. I thought we were going to Torwood and Scamp thought we were going to Calders. After a dodgy manoeuvre crossing lanes in a thankfully fairly quiet motorway and a great deal of swearing on my part and silence on Scamp’s we did arrive safely at Calders. Later I apologised and agreed that she was right (as always).

Then, heading home empty handed, Calders not having the plant she was looking for, we dropped in at Tesco, looking for a box big enough to pack some (a lot of ) Christmas prezzies. Again I returned empty handed. No packing boxes big enough for our needs. We tried M&S, but still no packing boxes. Finally I tried Iceland and asked one of the assistants if they had any empty cardboard boxes. She asked how big and I made the usual accurate dimensions by holding my hand, palms facing and moved them from about 300mm to about 1m apart. Yes, about that size. She returned with a box nearly big enough to fit my car in. Yes, I said, that would do nicely. Thanked the young lady and we drove home with the box, now folded down, still taking up all the space in the back of the car.

After we’d bundled the box out of the car we had just enough time for a coffee before we headed off to Dunnipace to Moira’s house. As we were heading east, the sky was lightening and there was blue sky out there. After I dropped Scamp off at the lunch / party, I headed further east, asking the sat nav to give me directions to Kincardine in the Kingdom of Fife. It found it without any problem and soon I was driving over the Kincardine Bridge and parking.

I took the Benbo tripod with me. It lives most of its life in the boot of the blue car. Took my Sony A7 too. I knew where I was heading and soon I was set up on a strip of sand by the river with just enough time for half a dozen shots before the tide started lapping around the feet of the tripod. I moved back to the asphalt path and walked round the bridge itself, marvelling at the light and the open space here. Less than half an hour later I was walking back to the car, talking on my phone to Fred who had phoned me for a wee blether. After we’d said our bit and then said our goodbyes, I drove home with enough time for a plate of soup before the Tesco man brought three boxes of messages. I just decanted everything from their crates and left them on the work surface, the cooker lid and anywhere they’d sit safely, then phoned Scamp for an update on the time to pick her up.

Checked the photos and knew right away that they were a good set. Fifty three shots taken, five rejected immediately. That left 48 good sharp shots. That must be a success record for me. Phoned Scamp at 5pm to tell her I was on my way. I always get lost going into Moira’s estate. Today I’d set myself markers and knew where to turn left and when to turn right. For some reason it worked perfectly. Spoke to the witches. Moira as welcoming as ever and Annette pretending she was drunk and convincing nobody. It’s all just a laugh and good friendship. Unfortunately Covid had put an end to the Auld Guys coffee mornings in Costa and beers in The Horseshoe Bar. Maybe they’ll return next year, but I have my doubts. Dinner for me was a rather excellent, but gigantic pizza. Half waiting for me for lunch tomorrow.

The real bad news of the day was that the dance class has failed to generate enough interest from dancers this week and Stewart informed us that it is with regret that tomorrow’s class is cancelled. I hope this is all to do with last minute Christmas shopping and not Covid and it will return stronger in the new year.

PoD was a picture of the Kincardine Bridge with afternoon sunshine lighting it up.

Tomorrow we may go for a walk somewhere scenic and somewhere without shops.

Life in the twilight zone – 26 October 2021

Posted on by Zogman

Not the scary one, just the one where the sun never seems to rise.

Scamp was out early to go to the Post Office in Eastfield which is where she’d been told there was a parcel waiting for her, the one she’d missed yesterday. When she got there the woman in the PO said she didn’t have it or couldn’t find it, but would have another look and would phone her to update her. We didn’t hold out much hope for that happening. We’ve not had a great deal of success with Parcelforce.

Scamp was going out to lunch with the witches later, and I was off the leash. Yesterday I’d a couple of things in mind for today. I was intending to fix a grip on the cooker top and maybe get round to taking up my walking trousers, because they are way too long. If time and weather permitted I thought I might go up to the Carron reservoir to get some photos and some fresh air. One look out the window in the morning put paid to that last idea. Time might have permitted, but the weather certainly wouldn’t. It really looked like the sun had forgotten to rise. The other ideas would be the fallbacks.

When Scamp had left for lunch with Jeanette, I drove down to Wardpark to book Scamp’s car in for MOT. I drove rather than phoned because the sky might have brightened up and I might manage to get some photos, but it didn’t and I didn’t. I just drove home again and started cutting up my walking trousers. It sounds a bit drastic, but it really wasn’t. I had a plan and it involved sewing and cutting and pressing and it worked. The trousers are now a good 40mm shorter than they were and don’t get caught in the heels of my boots. By the time I’d done that and cleared up the back bedroom a bit, because that’s where I draw at night in October and also where I photograph the drawings to go in the blog and on Flickr. Even I get fed up with tripping over cables, although Scamp won’t believe that. I was just finishing and making a late lunch when Scamp reappeared. I hadn’t noticed the time, but two and a half hours had passed since she left.

When I got back from the garage, there was a note to say that a parcel weIt was in the bin store. I wasn’t sure if it was for me or her, but was pretty sure this was the missing one. It was for me, and it was a bottle of the hand wash that I’d been raving about after we left Bombay Cottage last week, or was that the week before? Anyway, here was the very bottle and it was just the same perfume. That was a brilliant surprise! Thank you, Scamp. I’m still not all that clear on the details of the travels of this parcel, but all’s well that ends well.

PoD turned out to be a detail from a vase of flowers that I sat on the worktop in the kitchen, catching what light was available at the time. It needed 20 seconds of exposure to get the shot, but it was worth it.

Sketch prompt was ‘Connect’. Have you ever stopped to count all the different cables and connectors you have? I don’t have the time to do it, but there must be close on a hundred different pieces of wire and plastic that connect something to something else in the house. Then there are all the duplicates and triplicates and … ! These are some of mine.

No plans for tomorrow because the weather fairies are predicting that tomorrow will be episode two of Life In The Twilight Zone