January 2008

Up with the…well, not the lark. Starling, maybe, or stray pigeon, as I was in the centre of Glasgow. In a hotel, I might add, not in a shop doorway. Thence to Queen Street Station for the train back to Aberdeen, having hotfooted it last night down to the Dear Green Place for urgent consultations…

In Aberdeen, after a hectic day which began with a strange train to Keith. It pulled out of Aberdeen station at 08.22, full, and then after Dyce I was the only person on board. Train I ride, goes to God knows where….I don’t know and I don’t care…or perhaps it was a Mystery Train…anyway. It…

These pictures were taken at the Eshaness cliffs on Friday morning, after a night of sustained 80 mph winds, gusting much higher. The electricity failed sometime overnight and remained off, with one brief respite of an hour, until 21.00 yesterday. The previous day, lightning struck the telephone exchange at Hillswick, frying my ISDN connection, which…

Have a listen…if you dare!http://www.vulomedia.com/audio/audiofiles/61945citroenad.mp3

I am very grateful to Carol for forwarding this. Though I have my doubts if these saucissons were ever actually on sale ‘in Ireland’ as she suggests. And it’s only fair to say that Ainsley’s instant Cupasoup clones are absolutely brilliant. Well, quite good anyway. If you’re very cold.

Gosh, those new Macs are LOVELY! Macbook Air? FABULOUS. Just like I thought my Macbook was gorgeous when I bought it 18 months ago. Now it is stained, dirty and cracked where the magnetic closure catches rest, subject to major battery problems and I am certain it is meant to be like that. To make…

It must have been, I don’t know, 1972 that Rory Gallagher played in the Caledonian Hotel in Ayr. I was still at school in Troon and, having been bought the Taste album by my Uncle John, was a huge fan. I pined to go to that gig. But at 16 and with my highly religious…

Two of the best videos ever made, to some of the most astonishing music…

Two pictures from a few days of exquisite winter weather…the first at 4.15pm on Friday, preparing to cycle home from The Radiocroft. The second taken from the new museum in Lerwick on Saturday. It all ended, meteorologically, on Sunday, with a truly horrible day of vicious wind, darkness and icy rain, during which I did…

Thrilled to hear last night that our neighbour and friend Hazel Minn will not be deported to Burma…she and her adopted sons Simon and Vincent have been given permission for permanent residence in this country. It has been a five year battle, and all tribute to Shetland and Orkney MP Alistair Carmichael for his unstinting…