Secret Victory

Another hot, sunny, beautiful summer day! In the morning I had coffee at Hilary’s; we sat outside in the shade in her lovely garden and had an excellent chat. And from there I went straight over to House for an Art Lover where I had lunch with Philippa. Although there are outside tables we actually chose to sit inside because it was cooler! We had a good catch up, it will be really nice when she and Steven move back permanently to Scotland. Back home I jumped into my ice bath to cool down; Tom did the most ridiculous double take when he came round the corner of the house and saw me in it! Flora and Tom are enjoying the warm weather and they love the French windows being open so that they can stroll in and out of the house without using the cat flap. They also love us spending so much time in the garden and keep us company. 

Jamie arrived home from his conference and we met Davie and Chanel at the Rowantree Inn where we had pies and chips before the quiz. Lee wasn’t there so there was a substitute quizmaster who was nice but not as personable as Lee. There were some tricky questions but we still managed to come second equal. Or so we thought - when Chanel added up our answer sheet we actually had two more points than had been counted so we were the rightful winners! However we decided not to challenge the result because we didn’t want to make a fuss, so we enjoyed our victory privately! 

Hot Weather

I’m in my hammock and the temperature is a balmy 25 degrees. This does not compare to the 43 degrees that Jennifer has been experiencing in Lot et Garonne! I’m in the shade of a tree and there is the tiniest of breezes to stir the air; it’s just perfect. I’m reading the latest Dordogne mystery “Murder in Springtime” - not the most challenging read but very pleasant. Will Bruno the town policeman ever find the right woman? 
Jamie is at his Paediatric conference and Kerry is on the train to Liverpool to see her 94 year old Gran and her Dad Kevin who is also in the UK. Kevin visits his Mum every summer, and sadly one of his brothers died last week. 
Yesterday, when Jamie was at his conference, Kerry and I drove over to the Burrell Collection in the morning. We had a stroll around and looked at some of the art and miscellaneous artefacts and then had coffee and cheese scones in the cafe and chatted. Kerry liked the building and its leafy surroundings, and I was telling her about the controversy over cost when it was built over forty years ago. Then we continued into town where I discovered that Kerry is an expert shopper; she knew exactly which clothes shops she wanted to visit and made a few purchases. We had a light and tasty lunch in Brown’s in George Square, and when Jamie had finished his day at the conference I headed home and they stayed on in town for a drink. In the evening Marjory, Forrest and Jenny came round to see Kerry and Jamie; Davie and Chanel came to join us and we spent a very pleasant evening sitting outside on the patio and chatting. 
I must get back to my book and then I’m going to get into my ice bath to cool down! 

Ice bath and Barbecue

It was an absolutely glorious day today and we spent almost all of it outside. 
James plugged in my ice bath and I filled it using the garden hose; it was such a pleasure to sit up to my neck in cold water. It was about 15 degrees straight from the tap, but the refrigeration unit had lowered the temperature to about 5 degrees by the evening. The minimum is 3 deg C. It’s really great how effectively it cools you down, something that I find difficult to achieve in hot weather. As a result I felt nice and refreshed after my dip, and although I warmed up again I felt invigorated.
Jamie and Kerry shopped for and prepared a barbecue and Chris and Dave came round to join us. What pleasant and interesting young men they are; Chris was talking about his three wee children and life on the farm, and Dave was telling us about his life and plans. The barbecue was a great success with delicious salads to accompany the meat; Kerry’s potato salad is the best in the world. After dinner James and I excused ourselves so that the young folk could chat amongst themselves. 

The Kiwis have landed!

Kerry and Jamie have arrived on their visit from New Zealand and it is truly delightful to see them. We made them a nice dinner on Friday using Ullapool hot smoked salmon with hasselback potatoes and stir-fried mixed greens, and we sat and chatted all evening. It was so exciting to see them and yet in a way it felt as if we had seen them yesterday, probably because we are in close touch with them by phone and message. 

A few days ago I got a phone call from Lanarkshire vaccination Centre to invite James and myself for a Hep A booster. When we got our Hep A vaccinations last year I think that a booster was mentioned, but I had forgotten. The lady on the phone told me that if we got the booster we would be covered for the next 25 years. So I made an appointment and on Friday morning and after breakfast with Kerry and Jamie, who were going to spend a day in the west end, James and I set off to Muirhead health centre where we quickly got our (surprisingly painful) injections. 

It was a lovely morning so we then headed to nearby Drumpellier Park for a stroll around and a coffee in the little visitor centre. The weekly Park Run had just finished and there were lots of people walking around the park. On the water there were lots of ducks and ducklings and a few swans standing on the banks of the pond. As we walked past the swans, James suddenly stopped and turned round to have a stern word with one of them, who had just taken a sneaky peck at him, although it hadn’t made contact. The swan seemed a bit taken aback at the confrontation but showed no remorse. It reminded me of Tom, who occasionally likes to stick a clawed paw out when you walk past him, just to show that he could scratch you if he wanted to! 

In the evening Davie and Chanel came round with a curry and we sat indoors to eat it but with the French windows wide open. It was a convivial and very happy evening. 

Lots of Pickleball

Yesterday I went over to Scotstoun Sports Centre to play Pickleball. James headed up to Ullapool to climb a Corbett so I took the train to Scotstounhill and then walked fifteen minutes. It’s a while since I have taken the train so far along this route so I enjoyed seeing all the stations like Hyndland Jordanhill. The sports centre is about fifteen minutes walk from the station and I arrived in good time. I got very very hot during the session, but enjoyed it. When I got home I sat out in the garden with the cats. Jennifer is experiencing 34 degrees heat in the Dordogne and it’s only about 20 degrees here but it still felt lovely and warm. 

Today I played more Pickleball in Cambuslang. It was warm at the tennis courts but lovely to be in the fresh air. There were only four of us today and we had a great time. Marjory really is a very good player, she can reach all sorts of shots and return them to the right place. Back home u had lunch and then set off to Queen Street station where I caught the 15.07 to Inverness. I had upgraded myself to 1st Class because it was only £8 more, and the carriage was almost empty. It was a very relaxing three and a half hour journey, with complimentary coffee and biscuits. James had been climbing yet another Corbett (he now has only 28 to go) and he met me at the station. We had a quick meal at a nearby Wetherspoons before I drove back to Ullapool because James was feeling dehydrated and headachy after his hill-walking. It was nice to be back in the cottage but we both missed the cats. 

Beethoven and Sparks

We went to a couple of very contrasting concerts this weekend. I. Saturday evening we went to Beethoven’s 9th Symphony at the Royal Concert Hall; it was the RSNO’s season finale. It was excellent, such great music and so full of energy. I saw that Fiona was singing with the RSNO choir, it’s great that she is back singing because she loves it so much. 
And last night we went to see Sparks at Kelvingrove Bandstand. We were so lucky with the weather, it was so warm and sunny that I had to take off both my jacket and my fleece, which I was wearing in case it got chilly. Sparks got a rapturous reception from the crowd which was well deserved because they gave us a great show. I think that they were a bit puzzled that it was still daylight after 10 p.m. because they asked the crowd “Does it ever get dark here?” 

Scotland scores in the World Cup

We did not stay up last night to watch Scotland’s first game in the football World Cup because it didn’t start until 2 a.m. and we didn’t fancy a 4 a.m. bedtime. Lots of people did watch it though, including our dear son Davie, who was very tired today! Scotland won against Haiti 1-0 which was a good start. There were Scotland flags everywhere today; on house windows, cars and lamp posts. James and I went to Troon for a sunny walk along the beach and brunch at the Venice Cafe. 

Meanwhile Jamie and Kerry have arrived in the UK for their three week visit, and are spending the weekend with Ally and Cat In London, before heading to Ireland to visit Louise and then Ayrshire to visit Chris and Stacey and their three wee children. We will see them when they arrive in Glasgow next Friday.

On Wednesday we had lunch at Christine and Gerry’s in Dunlop. It was a sunny day and after our tasty lunch we sat in their gorgeous conservatory to have coffee. It was really nice to catch up with them. Then in the evening we met up with Davie and Chanel at the Rowantree Inn for pies and the quiz night. They were both looking well and were full of the joys. We came a respectable third in the quiz.