Farewells

Goodbye to the Commonwealth Games - they were great, much better than I expected! I'm pleased that Davie enjoyed being a Clydesider so much, it was a really good experience for him. It was a positive, happy time for the whole city and we rounded it off by attending the Closing Ceremony at Hampden. The occasion was suitably celebratory; Lulu set the tone with "Shout" and my favourite part of the evening had to be Deacon Blue singing "Dignity". We all sang along; as a long time council worker (which teachers are of course) the words of the song mean a lot to me. And while we sang a procession of council vans, school buses, fire engine, police cars drove round the track - it made me feel strangely proud! The star of the evening was Kylie and she was brilliant, but if I was being picky I would have preferred her set to be a bit shorter so that we could have had more Scottish music. James however was very happy and would have liked even more Kylie! The evening ended with Dougie McLean singing Caledonia and then the crowd singing Auld Lang Syne. A fitting ending to the games.
Goodbye to the summer holidays - I may not officially start back until Monday but I have been working part of last week and all of this week. I applied for this job so I can't really complain. I can however reflect on my future plans.
And most importantly, goodbye to Ally. Tomorrow he is flying to Oslo. It's a wonderful opportunity for him to spend a year studying abroad but I will miss him very much. It will not be the same in the house without his dry sense of humour and earnest political speeches! He's a good boy. However luckily we will see him in a few weeks, because we have booked 3 nights in Oslo at the September weekend.

The fastest man in the world

There have been many balmy evenings at Hampden during the Commonwealth Games but this wasn't one of them! Luckily it was only a ten minute walk for Jamie, Ally, Davie and me from Kings Park Station to the stadium so we didn't get too wet despite the heavy rain and streets that were rapidly turning into rivers. It rained on and off all evening. Our seats at the stadium were excellent, low down near the pitch opposite the main stand, so we were close to the action. As we sat down the song "Why does it always rain on me?" by Travis was played and the crowd all joined in! It was all finals this evening so it was very exciting. Also, there were lots of events going on e.g. javelin, running, pole vaulting and long jump all at the same time which meant that there was plenty to watch. I had thought there would be lots of boring gaps between events and had brought my Kindle to read, but there was no need.
There were lots of medal ceremonies too; each one was heralded by a piper. One of the better known medal presenters (to me anyway, because most were senior sports officials) was expectant father (but already a veteran of a couple of successful paternity suits) Prince Albert of Monaco.
The last event was the one we were all waiting for; the men's 100m relay which had Usain Bolt running for Jamaica. After a rousing rendition of "I will walk 500 miles" the crowd fell silent and the race began. It really was amazing - so fast - and Bolt (and team) came up with the goods and won the Gold.  The Jamaicans came celebrating along past the crowd so we got a good view from our seats; Usain Bolt is very good looking.
So that's what it's like to watch athletics. It was a good evening and of course it was great to see the fastest man in the world running but that's probably enough athletics for me for a while.

Forest of Ae

It's the second last week of the holidays but I have been spending quite a lot of time at work preparing for the start of term, and next week will be much the same. However, because it's still the holidays I can come and go as I please, so it has been quite pleasant. I have also socialised a bit and done some walking and shopping.
On Friday I met up with the Duke of Edinburgh Gold Group because I was check pointing the first day of their Qualifying Expedition. We went down to the Forest of Ae in Dumfriesshire which was rather lovely. I saw lots of cyclists and dog walkers, and the Gold group navigated through the woods very well - woods can be tricky because you can't see any landmarks but they made good speed. When they had set up their tents in a very midgy clearing beside a river I set off back to civilisation, picking up fish suppers for tea on the way!
Today James and I took Ally into Tiso to get some winter boots that he will need in Oslo. Ally is one of the most ungreedy people I know and never asks us for anything if he can help it, so he was rather overwhelmed and thanked us in a gruff but heartfelt manner.
The rain is lashing on the roof of the extension just now; slightly worrying because we will be leaving shortly to watch the Commonwealth Games Athletics finals at Hampden!

Looking for little green men

On Saturday the weather was great so we went for a nice long walk around Glasgow, and enjoyed the festival atmosphere that the Commonwealth Games have brought to the city. James commented that everyone in Glasgow seems to have been given a "nice pill" with complete strangers chatting and being helpful to each other. Not that people in the city are usually horrible, it's just that the Games seem to have given everyone a wee boost.
I have downloaded an app with all the "Clydes" that are scattered around Glasgow; little statues of the personified thistle that is the mascot of the Commonwealth Games. Each one is differently decorated, and we enjoyed finding them and posing for a photo opportunity beside each one. Our meandering route took us from Central Station along the Clyde Walkway and across the Squinty Bridge to the Science Centre where we had lunch outside. We also watched the flotilla of 250 ships of all different shapes and sizes, festooned with flags, coming down the river and mooring at Pacific Quay. It was a magnificent sight; the sailors were all shouting to the crowd who cheered back. Then we recrossed the river and headed up to the West End to the Botanic Gardens, bagging "Clydes" on our way. By the end of the day we had notched up 10 out of the 25 *  It was a really pleasant day, especially as Jamie and Davie came with us (Ally was still on holiday) and we all chatted as we walked along. Davie was on a late shift at the Emirates Arena so he went there by train after lunch, then Jamie left to go to Rugby 7s later. So it was just James and me who had afternoon coffee at the Art Galleries before heading home for a curry.

Today Jackie and I took Finn and Noah to Glasgow Green where there were lots of children's activities based around the Commonwealth Games. It was great, like a sports day without the competition. One of the most popular activities was to try to beat Usain Bolt's time in the 100 metres, running along a track while being measured by a timer. Finn didn't quite manage it but I was impressed at how hard he tried and how convinced he was that he would beat Usain! It was a beautiful sunny afternoon.

* and we bagged 2 more on Sunday!

Clydesider Davie

I am very proud of Davie, who is on his third day of being a Clydesider - a volunteer at the Commonwealth Games. The first two days he had to be at the Emirates Stadium (where he is based) for 6 a.m. On Thursday he got up at about 4.30 a.m. and caught a bus. He was on duty at the badminton all day directing people to their seats and saw David Cameron, although he didn't recognise him until someone pointed him out! He wears a smart red and grey uniform with a man bag which contains his official towel, umbrella and water bottle. He also has a very large official pass on a lanyard. When he got home he was exhausted and fell asleep before tea, which was a delicious barbecue.
Perhaps inevitably Davie slept in on his second morning so I threw on my clothes at 6 a.m. and gave him a lift to the stadium. There was hardly any traffic and by following James' advice to go along London Road I was able to drop him right there, so he was only 20 minutes late and anyway he tells me that the volunteers don't actually start until nearly 7 so he didn't miss anything. He spent most of the day just outside the stadium directing people which door they should go in. He really enjoyed this and came home full of the joys, he loved helping people and told us that he chatted to them as well because he wanted to make their experience as enjoyable as possible. This made my heart just about burst with pride. He had also been getting to know the other volunteers during their breaks and has made a couple of friends. Apparently Sir Chris Hoy was stopped at the door because he didn't have a correct pass - but he was very good natured about it and the situation was sorted out quickly!
I'm so pleased that he is enjoying being part of it all so much.

The Height of Summer

This is it! It is proper hot weather and I am in my hammock in the garden, up beside Jack's wee grave which feels quite companionable. I have done some pottering around the house but have now decided to blog and then read my book for a while, because how often do you get the chance to read outside in Scotland? Despite feeling slightly uneasy at my lack of productive activity, I am loving this time. The washing is drying fast on the line, moving in a very gentle breeze. There are butterflies flitting about, and the pears are ripening on the branches above me. Over the last few days of hot weather I have been doing errands in the morning and then relaxing in the afternoons. I have been out for lunch with Davie. To my surprise and pleasure a few of my (unforgivably neglected by me) friends have popped in to see me, probably having seen my car in the drive, and we have chatted and drunk cool drinks in the garden. It was fun.
Inspired by this I have fired off a couple of texts to other friends. This is what I never find time to do in term time, not even at the weekends nowadays. I just work and then try to rest. No wonder I was so exhausted in February, I really need to get my work / life balance sorted out.

Bring on the Commonwealth Games

I have seen the Red Arrows displays at many air shows over the years, but this evening was the first time that I have seen them fly past my house!
This was of course part of the Opening Ceremony of the Commonwealth Games. It was great fun watching the finished product on television after seeing the rehearsal on Monday, and I thought it was very good. When we saw on the screen that the Red Arrows were approaching Glasgow, we hurried through to the front of the house just in time to see them fly past the lounge window on their way to Parkhead.
I enjoyed all of the entertainment; the opening song and dance number was a but cringe-making (I wasn't kidding yesterday about John Barrowman and the dancing Tunnocks Tea Cakes!) but it was also cheerful and tongue-in-cheek. Rod Stewart appeared to have almost completely lost his voice but I thought that Amy McDonald and Nicola Benedetti were particularly excellent. I thought it was sad but appropriate that the Malaysian flag was carried round at half mast, and that there was a minute's silence for the victims of flight MH17 last week.
The most hilarious but agonising moment was when the president of the Commonwealth Games committee struggled to open up the baton to retrieve the Queen's message which was stashed inside it. After a couple of minutes which probably seemed like hours to him, with Sir Chris Hoy trying to help and the Queen looking on, he managed to open it and looked very relieved.
By the way, I thought that the controversial Scottish team uniform looked great; it was meant to be bold and eye-catching and I think it worked.