Friday 30 October 2020
Clootie Dumpling
Wednesday 28 October 2020
Grandma’s recipes
Tuesday 27 October 2020
Reverse! Reverse!
At the Rutherglen end of Kings Park Avenue about ten days ago, I saw an incident unfolding as I waited at the traffic lights before turning right. There was a car across at the other side of Mill Street which had crashed into a pedestrian light so hard that the pole was bent right down. There was a police car and a police van in attendance, and what particularly caught my eye was a tight circle of about five police officers facing inwards. As I watched, they all bent and then stood up again, having lifted a man in the centre of their circle to his feet. His hands were already handcuffed behind his back, and as the lights changed and I drove off I saw him being marched smartly towards the police van. Naturally I mentioned this to James, Ally, Davie and Cat at dinner time but then thought no more of it.
However the next day Ally showed me a short video film and asked if it was of the same man that I had seen being arrested. I recognised him immediately by the clothes he was wearing. The video had been filmed before either the police or I arrived at the scene. A passer by must have filmed it right after the crash. The driver was leaning on the bonnet of the car, trying fruitlessly to push it backwards away from the traffic light, and he was shouting to his friend who was still inside the car, “Reverse! Reverse!”
The voice of the passer by can be heard off camera, advising him that “The wheel’s aff mate! The engine’s smashed! You’re f***ed!” while the driver (clearly under the influence of drink or drugs, which was presumably why he was arrested later) keeps exhorting his passenger again and again to “Reverse! Reverse!”
Ally explained to me that the video clip had gone viral on the internet with the title “Glasgow Bampots reverse reverse” and apparently during its brief moment of fame it was then used on a football website in a spoof commentary about a Celtic match!
Friday 23 October 2020
Sunny in Dundee
Today we drove to Dundee to transport all of David’s stuff to his new flat. We borrowed Ally’s car as well, and I drove that while James and Davie went through in our car. Davie’s flat is lovely; very spacious and in really good condition. It’s in a quiet street with hardly any traffic and it’s very near to the city centre, with lots of cafés and restaurants close by. The weather was much better than at home with a beautiful blue sky.
When we set off back home I noticed a man walking along beside the river dressed in a Spider-Man costume which I thought was very funny. I drove along listening to my audiobook and enjoying the good weather, but somehow I managed to miss the turn off towards Glasgow at Perth. When I realised my mistake I followed signs to Stirling along the A91. It was a pleasant drive through many villages such as Yetts o’Muckhart and Dollar and Tillicoultry, but of course it was much slower than the motorway and I got home more than half an hour later than I should have been!
After dinner David suggested that we watch the new Borat film which was released today. He also made popcorn with his kernels which had now dried enough, and they were delicious with a little butter. The film was very funny and also very cringey. It lacked the novelty and therefore the sheer shock factor of the first film, but it addressed current events, such as Covid and Trump, and the actress who played his daughter was very good. It was an excellent evening.
Monday 19 October 2020
Another Fall
Last week I was walking from my shed at the top of the garden back down to the house, when I suddenly slipped and fell. It’s that time of year when the leaves are lying on the ground and the paths are damp and mossy. It didn’t occur to me to be careful and I was taken by surprise when my left foot shot forward, bringing me down rather painfully onto the stone of the path. To make matters worse, my right knee (aka my “bad” knee) folded under me. Since breaking it in a motorbike accident forty years ago, it doesn’t quite bend fully. Well, it was forced to bend fully when I fell, and it was excruciating! I gingerly unfolded my leg but didn’t try to stand up straight away because I was terrified about how badly it might be hurt. Instead I burst into tears and sobbed for several minutes, which was actually quite de-stressing!
I then slowly got up and found that there was good news and bad news. The good news was that my leg could bear my weight normally, and the bad news was that my knee was sore and creaking and crunching, and a week later it’s still quite bad. I should be grateful to my knee for the forty years it has lasted since the accident, and I hope that it keeps going for a while yet.
Sunday 18 October 2020
David’s 25th Birthday
Friday 16 October 2020
My 2000th Blog Post
This is my 2000th blog post. When I wrote my first blog post in March 2011, nine and a half years ago, I had no idea that I would still be blogging today. A quick calculation on my phone calculator tells me that I have averaged about 210 posts per year.
Last night I played a lively session of “Who am I?” with Davie, Ally and Cat, after consuming a hearty meal followed by delicious pancakes made by Cat. It was such a fun evening.
Davie and I went over to Ikea today, where he purchased some items for his new flat, and on Ally’s orders we got more Swedish meatballs and sauce. It was a nice Autumn day for a wee road trip and we had a good chat. Back home James picked the last of the redcurrants with which we will attempt to make some more jelly. Will our jelly luck continue?
Thursday 15 October 2020
Tagine and photo project
Monday 12 October 2020
Quince Jelly
Sunday 11 October 2020
Goodbye to No. 7
Saturday 10 October 2020
Versace
Wednesday 7 October 2020
Tightening the rules
Nicola Sturgeon announced today that, because hospital admissions are going up again, new Covid restrictions are to be implemented in Scotland, starting on Friday and then for the next two weeks. Pubs and restaurants are now going to be open only from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m. however in the central belt (that’s us when we are in Glasgow rather than Ullapool) the restrictions are tighter. Pubs and restaurants are not to be open at all for the two week period. This doesn’t make a huge difference to us personally but will be very hard on the hospitality industry. I suppose the reason for this particular change is that too much mingling must have been happening inside and outside pubs, especially at closing time. There are a few other changes such as indoor sports being stopped again, but I’m actually quite relieved that it isn’t even worse.
In much less important news, James and I have finally finished watching the second season of Succession. I was a bit disappointed in the last episode, having expected a more dramatic ending. Strangely enough James, who didn’t warm to Succession at all, thought that it ended well. Although I think he was also just quite glad that it had ended!
Sunday 4 October 2020
Rainy night in Ullapool
Saturday 3 October 2020
Turnberry Hotelier tests positive for coronavirus
This was the headline of the Ayr Advertiser today! It of course refers to President Donald Trump contracting Covid-19. I am no fan of Trump but I genuinely wish him well and hope that he makes a good recovery. He has been taken to hospital but his doctors say that he is getting on ok.
Meanwhile it was a rainy day in Glasgow, but I went for a walk anyway while listening to an audiobook, all the way to Starbucks at Kingsgate where I had coffee and a blueberry muffin before heading home; a respectable distance of 10 km. Cat and I (and of course Flora) had a girls’ afternoon while Ally and Davie played computer games. We lit a lemon scented Carthusia candle, kept cosy under fleecy blankets, ate chocolate, and watched a French film. Flora of course didn’t eat chocolate and kept looking out sadly at the rain. Cat and I have notched up a good number of French films over the past few years, we both enjoy the language and the distinctive French atmosphere. Today we watched Truffaut’s homage to the film industry; La Nuit Americaine. I watched it many years ago but had forgotten many of the details, it was good to watch it again.