Monday, November 22, 2010

Happy Birthday


A lot of people say they like driving.  I like the ability to drive.  Knowing that when my daughter is at a concert at night I can fetch her at 10 pm, despite the rain and the cold, and know she is safe.


Or I can take my car to go to a city centre church when my own church is up for sale.






Or I can go here and there, coincidentally looking for my daily blip.




All of which is a suggestion of why, despite my blog being five years old today, it barely gets any attention from me.  But I am glad I've got it.

Tuesday, November 09, 2010

It's in the post



The Philatelic Bureau used to be based at the main Waterloo Place Post Office in Edinburgh, at the end of Princes Street.  That was in the days when a car could drive along Princes Street and trams were in the past.  It was easy to go to the Post Office and buy the latest "pretty" stamps.  I used to enjoy First Day Covers and collected them for years.

Then the Waterloo Place PO was sold (allegedly too cheaply) and the Philatelic Bureau moved,  I had given Jonathan the Classic Album Covers stamps in hope but he put them up on his wall as too beautiful to use.  So I bit the bullet and ordered some from the Philatelic Bureau (it's the cost of post and packaging I don't like!) and browsed through their catalogue.  I like writing letters and I do enjoy putting an interesting stamp on the envelope.  It's rare that I receive a pretty one back, mind you, so many folk like the self-adhesive boring ones.  But I can dream.  And when the price of stamps goes up again next year I'll probably have a few in hand.

Today's word in NaNoJouMo is nicely appropriate.  One of the best ways of forging a friendship is by letter writing, and blog commenting isn't far behind.  There's no virtue, though, in saying that, at this moment, Dawn is linking to my blog and I face with equanimity the fact that I may be late for my next meeting.  But maybe all these references are too esoteric!

Sunday, November 07, 2010

Saturday interlude


I like windows! 

The top of CEMC

I was going to a talk this afternoon in Nicolson Square but I went into town earlier with Alice.  I enjoyed wandering around St Andrews Square with my camera.

















The Portrait Gallery
I was wondering how long this name will survive

Desolation on the north side


The Royal Bank of Scotland! 

 

Thursday, November 04, 2010

Earth Tongues















I took my blipfoto of these toadstools first thing this morning, not realising it was going to rain all day again.  I came home from work (and a little ball dress reconnoitring with Alice) in the dark so no more outdoor photography.

I don't really know much about mycology but Google took me to two interesting keys to help me to track down my toadstool and discover they are Geoglossum I think.  Earth tongue is very descriptive when you see a mass of them from the window, but they look different close up.


 


The word for today was quarter.  Perhaps I could say I've spent a quarter of my day on or around my computer.  Definitely not a waste of time: I've learnt a lot about toadstools, found out about  Stephen Leacock because of this blip and discussed various houses near my mother's house (where I grew up) while referring to Google Street View.  I do like the internet!

Wednesday, November 03, 2010

Which wash day?

 "They that wash on Monday
Have all the week to dry;
They that wash on Tuesday
Are not so much awry;
They that wash on Wednesday
Are not so much to blame;
They that wash on Thursday,
Wash for shame;
They that wash on Friday,
Wash in need;
And they that wash on Saturday,
Oh ! they are sluts indeed."


I have a friend who took early retirement and became the househusband.  He told me what he did on which day.  I was surprised when he said he washed the towels on Thursdays.














Now, I will admit that, when I was a little girl, wash day was Monday, but that was when washing machines had to be watched and the spinning done in a separate machine.


Nowadays a sunny, blowy day just begs for the towels to be washed.  By good fortune there was no rain today.















Laura Ingalls Wilder explained which chore should happen on which day:

 "Wash on Monday,
Iron on Tuesday,
Mend on Wednesday,
Churn on Thursday,
Clean on Friday,
Bake on Saturday,
Rest on Sunday."

I don't imagine she would approve of my waiting for a blue moon!

Tuesday, November 02, 2010

After a storm

Yesterday evening the rain started and was soon horizontal in the fierce wind.










This morning the rain stopped after Alice went to school and the sun came out. 


I thought it would be worthwhile putting out the washing
.





























But the rain returned before I came back after coffee with two friends.  So I made the wrong choice of clothes line!

Monday, November 01, 2010

More photographs

I have become hooked on Blipfoto and it's fun each day to choose a single photo.  However, some days the decision is hard.  Here are two of today's possibilities, from Mary's garden.


It was a gorgeous sunny morning, but it began to rain after 3 and the evening was stormy, with very heavy rain and much wind.  This didn't affect us as Monday night means University Challenge and Only Connect.  Of course tea carefully coincided with Pointless.

I'm toying with doing NaNoJouMo.  In which case inceptionwould apply to the beginning of my love affair with daily photography and blipfoto.