Point it North…

Coming back from the Lake District I had plenty of time for pondering – no radio, no CD player. I like the Lake District, but it isn’t Scotland. It might seem like an obvious and ridiculous thing to say but Scotland is a country like no other, it just feels different. I was happy to point my bonnet northwards and very happy to see the sign welcoming me back. I felt at home again.

Forcan Ridge

The Forcan Ridge and The Saddle – what a great day’s walking and scrambling. The stags were bellowing through the mist, rutting away like teenagers at a school disco. The weather was very wet at parts of our descent. There were hard sections, there were easy sections. The resultant two day leg ache emphasises that overall it was a taxing but rewarding walk.

Check out the review on Walk Highlands
It’s walks like these that makes the beer taster better!

Surfers Against Sewage

As ever, I am pleased to show my support for Surfers Against Sewage. I am pleased to be able to display my membership sticker in such a sexy way too!

Surfers against Sewage have been campaigning for years now to get beaches cleaned up, pollution dealt with and generally doing their bit to make the sea a nicer place for all users around the country. Take action my friends.

Olfactory Recall…

or rather the way a smell can bring back a memory.
I find it incredible that the slightest hint of a familiar smell can trigger a picture or an emotion in your mind.
Yesterday I was sitting, working at the computer with a mind full of Photoshop and the internet when I got the merest hint of a smell. Instantly my mind emptied of Photoshop, the internet and everything else except the clearest picture of my grandmother.

In a flash I was in her house in Campbeltown, which always smelt of fresh air and soap. I was in the front room looking out over Campbeltown Loch in all seasons at once. The image was so out of the blue and so vivid that I nearly cried out in fright. Writing this now, a day later, I’m still spooked by the experience.

It is reassuring that a person does live on, carried on in memories and stories.
For Margaret McInnes Webb, a wonderful lady…

Faulty Basil90

Superior road holding – I know I should flip the photo round, but when I did I liked the picture less.

This is my Defender 90, aka Basil. I bought him back in July and finally got him back yesterday after a lot of work. So much stuff was done on the chassis, brakes and suspension that it is classed as a rebuild.

It is worth it. He’s blue, battered and needs things done to him, but a Land Rover like this has been my dream car for 20 years. It’s great to be able to grab hold of a dream!

Run Like The Wind

Next May I will be running 26 miles for Peace One Day. I will be mapping my progress on the blog. Stay tuned.

Cloth or Glory?

Forgive me Strummer, for I have sinned.
I’ve finally had to admit defeat on my old Clash t-shirt. It has served me very well, together we have seen lots of good times, but sadly no more. It got chewed up by a washing machine a few years ago but I’ve never been able to part with it before now.

It’s time to let go.

However I now have the coolest duster in the western hemisphere.

Peace and Wind

The UN International Day of Peace
21st September 2009

Is it too much to hope that on one day each year no-one will be killed in an act of war? Is it too much to hope that on one day each year we will say no to violence? Be a part of the peace process on 21 September. Surely if we can manage one day, we can manage a second day and so it begins.

A day of global ceasefire and non-violence: Peace Day.

Peace is Tough. I’m in.

Experimentum Mundi

This is what goes on when you take 16 guys who know their way about proper craftsmanship then add a conductor, a percussionist and a narrator.
Good scenes as seen last night at the Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh.

Tools like chisels, knife sharpeners and sandpaper become musical instruments; eggs crack, sparks and stone chips fly; mortar gets mixed, barrels get made and a symphony somehow gets built. The percussionist rattles about his range of ‘proper instruments’ making his noises, gurning out funny faces and kind of stitching it all together. The conductor seems to hold the needle though, animatedly leading the artisans.

10:10 – Standing By

Come on then… DO YOUR BIT

“Please join 10:10 today. By committing to cut your emissions by 10% in 2010, you will join thousands of individuals, schools, hospitals, businesses and organisations all actively helping to combat climate change by making simple changes to their lifestyles, homes and workplaces.”