Democracy

Well I must admit that I was very surprised when I woke up this morning and James told me that Donald Trump looked virtually guaranteed to win the US Election. I pride myself on having an excellent instinct for how an electorate is going to vote, and I was spot on when predicting the outcomes of the Scottish Independence Referendum and the Brexit Referendum. However this time I was wrong; I had thought that Hillary Clinton would scrape through with a very small majority. My excuse is that I clearly don't have my finger on the pulse of America the way I do at home! 

Donald Trump was magnanimous in his victory speech, and Hillary was gracious in her speech of defeat. They both talked of America pulling together, and with that I do agree. Even though I suspect that Donald would have made a tremendous fuss and would have cried foul if he had lost, the fact of the matter is that democracy has taken place and the people have spoken. And that is the way it works. In the recent referendums both the Scottish Nationalists and the pro-Europe campaigners have been breathless with indignation when they lost. They have accused the people who voted the other way from them of being wrong, deluded, immoral, ignorant. What they can't seem to accept is that referendums and elections are democracy in action. I can totally understand how bitterly disappointed many people in the USA must be feeling today. I am no fan of Donald (in fact I have a soft spot for Hillary after reading her autobiography and feel gutted for her) but a democratic election has taken place and there is little point in whining about it - Donald Trump is going to be the 45th President of the USA. 

Revisiting Planet Earth

When I was chatting to David on the phone at the weekend he told me that he and his friends were planning a gathering in his flat on Sunday evening to watch the first in the new David Attenborough television series: Planet Earth 2. I found it very heartwarming and wholesome that these young science students were eagerly anticipating the new series from the venerable broadcaster. So this evening I decided to watch it too. I am never particularly drawn to watch nature programmes for some reason, but when I do watch them I become absolutely fascinated. David Attenborough, aged 90 and sensibly wearing a warm blue down jacket, introduced the programme from a balloon two miles high in the air near Mont Blanc. This week's episode was about wildlife on all sorts of remote and dangerous islands. And indeed it was amazing. There were sex-starved sloths, Komodo dragons wrestling, lemurs leaping, iguanas swimming underwater, and penguins leaping off cliffs to find food. The highlight had to be the terrifying racer snakes chasing baby iguanas across the gritty sand on a volcanic island - it was like something out of a horror movie! 

4DX fun

After a very pleasant and relaxing Saturday, we decided to go to the cinema. We went to see Dr Strange which turned out to be very good, starring Benedict Cumberbatch. It's part of the Marvel franchise but is a good film in its own right. Ally and Cat went to see the fireworks at Glasgow Green and then met us at the Cineworld Bar before the film. We knew that the film was in 3D, and we had our 3D glasses at the ready. However we didn't realise that it was also in "4DX" which includes special chairs with footrests. The chairs vibrate and move around and become especially lively during action scenes when you are thrown around alarmingly! My coffee was spilled several times! There were also extra special effects including things poking into you, wind, rain and even smells! It was all great fun and definitely enhanced the experience! Not that I would wish to have this for every film - but last night we all found it absolutely hilarious and talked about it all the way home. 

Scary Santa Cat

Yesterday I was doing a wee bit of shopping in Tesco when I noticed that they were selling Christmas outfits for pets. Now we don't usually inflict such an indignity on our much loved cats (although James has mentioned that he would love to get a pair of "Puss in Boots" boots for Tom to stride around in!) but I couldn't resist buying a couple of outfits with the thought of a photo opportunity.

I had no idea of the carnage which would ensue! When I got them Alasdair wasted no time in putting the Santa costume on Tom. Tom was not exactly thrilled, but he is such a good-natured cat that he resignedly allowed himself to be photographed, and Cat took some excellent photos. The unexpected thing was Ruby's reaction. She was busy filling her face at her bowl while Ally was dressing up Tom, and when she looked up to see Santa Cat looking at her she totally flipped out! She clearly didn't recognise him at all (even though he was only wearing a Santa hood with a small cloak). Her hackles rose all along her back and her usually small rat-like tail assumed enormous proportions, like a fox's brush! After staring at Santa Cat for a few moments Ruby ran away at speed and exited the house via the cat flap. The problem with this was that Ally had just locked the cat flap in case Tom tried to run off while being dressed up. Normally this effectively prevents the cats from leaving, for example if we are trying to catch them to take them to the vet. However, this time there was a tremendous crashing sound and the cat flap broke clean into two pieces! Ruby must have been going at a tremendous speed. 

All ended well when the Santa costume was removed and Ruby was retrieved from the garden by Ally to spend a peaceful evening indoors. 

Excellent NHS

My sprained ankle, from my fall in New York last month, has been getting more painful again over the last week, and today I was limping noticeably. So after tea (rather nice beef stroganoff made by James) I went up to the hospital to get it checked over. I took my current book with me (Admission by Jean Hanff Korelitz - interesting so far) because I reckoned that I would have to wait for several hours, and I would just relax and read while waiting.

Well I was amazed by the speed and efficiency of the service! No sooner had I switched on my Kindle in the waiting room than I was summoned through to the "minor injuries clinic". Out came the Kindle again, but before I could focus my eyes in the page I was assessed by a nurse, then a doctor, and dispatched to the X Ray department. Minutes later I was trudging back along to the minor injuries clinic, where I again got my Kindle out but was distracted by hearing two doctors discussing my X Ray; "There's something there - I'm not sure" and "How long ago was the injury?" The nurse then appeared back to say that after some discussion they think it is just torn ligaments and that I need to rest the ankle more and elevate it whenever possible. The pain is due to swelling so I need to start taking anti-inflammatories again. Soon I was on my way home, reassured and ready for a cup of tea. I know I was lucky that it was a quiet evening - the waiting times can be very long when it is busy - but credit where credit is due, that was first class treatment from the NHS. 

Folk Singer

James and I went to a concert this evening; Karine Polwart at Paisley Arts Centre. I thought that it was absolutely excellent. I loved all the stories that she told as well as the songs, and her voice is beautiful. I first heard Karine Polwart sing at the Bert Jansch tribute concert earlier this year so I was keen to attend one of her own concerts. I liked the way that the music really stood up for itself, just voice and guitar, and several songs were completely unaccompanied.

James didn't feel the same way, however to be fair to him he did turn up and give it a try!

Sunday lunch and Monday leftovers

And so here we are on the first day of November and according to the weather forecast, after really quite a mild Autumn, much colder weather is coming in from the north over the next few days. 

All is well at Casa Anderson at the moment I'm glad to say. Janet, Peter and Anne came through for lunch on Sunday and it was absolutely great to see them, we had such a laugh. Anne is a lovely young woman and she and Ally exchanged many a tale of travel in foreign lands. Anne has spent a year and a half in New Zealand, and Janet and Peter visited her there earlier this year, so they were able to give us some top tips for the holiday we are planning next summer. We had decided to go for a very traditional roast beef Sunday lunch with all the trimmings and it went down extremely well. I had made far too much of everything, so on Monday evening we had a yummy leftovers meal while we caught up on Poldark.