Yesterday.

Was a much better day than today.

Grey Heron.

Buzzard.

And this delightful Hare.

I had my lunch at the Lighthouse Museum.


Today, however, lashings of rain, wind and cooooooold.


Most of the day spent, morning at Art Group, this afternoon down the shed ruining a painting.

Wish it were yesterday.


No!  There is always tomorrow, just need to bring the trees and flowers to life that are growing inside this ruin of a house.


Ha!

A Night to Remember.

So how do you switch on the light in a lighthouse?  You press a switch, just the same as in your own home.

And the bulb is lit.  

But then all the fins/lenses do amazing things (my name is not Stevenson, so I do not know how this works) and sends out that light 15 miles out to sea.

Kinnaird Head Lighthouse, Fraserburgh, the site of the first ever lighthouse established by the Northern Lighthouse Board in 1787.  Now the Museum of Scottish Lighthouses.

Shines it's light once more.

Along with a Beacon to celebrate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee.

What a fantastic evening.  We arrived at 9p.m. and were given a guided tour.

Above, the fog horn. (If its so foggy you cant see the light, then you have to listen, really hard.)

The Wynd Tower ( its at the end of the Wynd - path, road, whatever, you fall into the sea.)  The Lairds daughter some years back took a fancy for someone who the Laird did not think appropriate and she was locked up in here.  To escape she leapt out the window, to her death, so they paint the rocks below red in memory of her, every year.  Isnt that nice of them?

Ooop the bloody tower, which you will all be proud of me as I went up it twice and only had to sit down, three (33) times.  Into where the spare lighthouse keeper lived.  The ones who were not spare, and lived there all the time, had dinky little cottages for their wife and children on the ground.  Presumably by the time he had been up and down here a few times he would have no time or breath for any hanky panky with the permanent keepers wives.

But then he could smoke and didnt need a fire extinguisher.

This is me listening intently (which I will never do again, if thats the sort of face I pull) as to why they needed all these weird tools to light a lighthouse with.

At some point in the evening we were all checked out by the Lifeboat but we were fine.

Up on the roof ( have to point out that the lighthouse is built on top of a castle, so actually the castle roof,  just left of the lighthouse) the wine and canapes were coming out.  So I was fine, despite another odd grimace.  Presumably talking to someone who was taller than 5 foot.  Which I am.

The sun set.

And the moon rose.

I managed to get to the car , I forgot to mention how bloody cold it was outside, but it was.  We actually missed the on the ground celebrations which consisted of some fire throwers.  I was so cold that the DP was concerned I would throw myself onto the flames, (possibly hoping),   but this night was one I shall remember, and I never felt the need of a crown.

If you go down to the shed today...

You're sure of a big surprise...  I do not just paint, chill out, watch birds, drink wine, I also....

Sew!

Huge remnant purchased from my friend Marina before she went off to the UAE to drive up and down sand dunes.   Cut up, measured and sewn.

Made a throw for our bed.

A bit Bollywood.

But as we have Cait Sith spending most of his time on our bed.  Who sheds hair, dust, mud, onto the glamorous throw, quilted and way too big to fit into the washing machine, and had refused to be vacuumed any more, it was time for a replacement.

The replacement is just one layer, will therefore fit into the washing machine, and as it is so thin can remain on the bed when we want to sleep in it.  We always removed the heavier throw, which then rather defeated the object of him not muckying our actual bedding.


So glad he approves.

Diamond Jubilee.

The British at their best.  


Pouring rain.  But we can do a pageant fit for a Queen.


On a boat, middle of the Thames, singing God Save the Queen.

Its all happening here.

Outside the shed window baby greenfinches and chaffinches all begging to be fed and learning how to pick up their own take away.  Above them is a bird feeder and adult birds come and select a sunflower seed and shower the babies beneath.  All the other birds have babies as can be witnessed by their frantic search under the verandah for insects and blackbirds for worms (not under the verandah, now dont be silly.)

The 'wildflower' meadow is growing apace.  Wild flowers consist of buttercups, dandelions and daisies so far and rye grass.  Hmm.  The drying green (where you hang up your washing, weather permitting), has been mowed so I dont get me feet too wet.

                                     

Meanwhile, in my part of the garden I have been potting up  Lobelia, Petunias and in this pot, three bean plants and a fuschia.

This planter came with us and continues to flourish with stonecrop et al.

Three hanging baskets ready to be hung.  The one top right is a pot which will 'sit' in the cauldron, outside the kitchen patio door.

The fence troughs are all planted trailing lobelia and pansies.  There are five but I dont have a wide angle lens.

And my first go with oil pastels.

Which I really enjoyed using but obviously have a long way to go.


So not quite happening yet.

Ye'll tak the high road and I'll take the low road.....

 This morning I set off driving up North.  And a bit West, I think.  I had my printed instructions of the route off t'internet.


My first stop was what they call a comfort break (having a wee)  at 

As the only way out of this place was past the tills I felt obliged to purchase something for having had a comfort stop.  I bought some extremely cheap oil pastels, a sketch book and two small canvases.


I then drove through Cornhill, which was having it's Highland Games.

And arrived at my destination of Keith, Morayshire.

Which confusingly is in two bits.

And some of them not that welcoming.

But then I found where I was meant to be.

Boogie Woogie is the most amazing cafe, with scrumptious cakes (bacon sandwiches, fatty breakfasts, which I resisted tho it was hard)  but it also has a wide range of crafted stuff, cards, paintings, unfortunately not all local.  Some amazing handbags, which bank balance would not allow.... (I'll be back when it does.)

But specially today it housed three bloggers, Land of the Big Sky - me. Writing From Scotland - Christine, and The Quiet Home - Tina.  Whose idea of meeting up was all down to the latter  and who very graciously and generously treated us other two.  And we didnt just have coffee, but some of the scrumptious cakes as well.

Being the oldest person present I took the old bones back home whilst the other two hit the shops - back in the other part of Keith.  

 It was really lovely to meet up with two other bloggers who turned out to be as nice as their blogs, knowing so much about them both, their lives, their doings was strange.  But in seconds we were chatting away like old friends, which of course we are.


As one of my daughters said, "Perhaps they will be two teenage boys, " having read all these scare stories re meeting up on the internet.   


Well I was so glad they weren't.  I wouldnt really have known what to do with teenage boys, well, possibly I would - just handed them my mobile phone and pointed out the apps.

My one major purchase was for the Dawn Patroller, who does all the cooking now.  It is a huge apron, which actually drowns him, tho he is not a thin cook.


Then I retraced my steps homewards.  The weather both there and back was glorious.  The roads were virtually empty (oh tourists where are you?) (Reminded self, you are not doing b&b any more).


So - I just have to thank The Quiet Home and Writing From Scotland for giving me such a wonderful day, and I guess Her Maj for all the bunting up in and around the cafe, the 50s music in there, which only me could remember, and now off to take the low road with a glass of red.
Cheers!

A Day Off!

Apart from catching up with the cleaning I had nothing, sweet nothing, to do today.  No meetings, no organising though there is loads still to do - but it can wait.


The weather wasnt kind, showers and chilly breezes.  I had wanted to do some gardening.  Potting on stuff, planting bedding plants into pots and hanging baskets. 

Petunias, 20 for £3.00 in Tescos.  I also got 20 Lobelia for the same.

In the wooden seed tray are three bush fuschias via the 'free' offers in magazines, you just pay postage.  Also two clematis.  All doing well and ready to be potted on.  At the rear on the veranda floor are three black bean plants.  They are on the verandah as the slugs found them.  I always thought slugs did not move along chuckies as they are too sharp, but they flipping well do. (chuckies is stones).

Variety of lettuce leaves, the seeds of which I planted a mere week ago, when we had the heat wave.

Three chillies, Alstroemaria x 2 in bud, bay tree potted on after being shrivelled in the wind it is recovering.

Too late to get cracking the sun came out.  Typical.  So I had a quick whiz to see whats blooming.

Paeonies and a white Aquilegia.

Yellow Welsh poppies self seeded from last year.


The roses are all in bud.  Also seeds I planted last week which are to encourage bees are all coming up.  Shan't know till they are properly up what I have!


So while not gardening as planned I started a picture of a house that will soon be left by some good friends of ours as they head back to England.  This will be the only picture of their house where the walls are crooked and it looks as if the windows are falling out.


Now for a night off.