Category: Journal
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The Nightingale Hospitals and snow at Drum Castle
We are in tier 4 covid restrictions here as is most of the UK as the sick in hospital reach record numbers. At the start of the pandemic the government was following its pandemic playbook which had been written in the years/decades leading up to 2020 but specifically for a flu pandemic. The plan included…
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Christmas 2020
Many people saw their Christmas plans scuppered this year thanks to the dreadful plague. We were meant to be in the Highlands today but had to cancel our trip last week. It hasn’t all been bad though. Christmas arrived on Christmas Eve this year with snow in Aberdeen and also a Brexit deal at last.…
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Lebkuchen for lunch
I dreamt last night that it snowed and in my dream I woke up and looked out the window to see Santa skiing down a nearby hill. I got up – still in my dream – and had breakfast but by the time I’d finished eating all the snow had melted. When I really did…
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Aberdeen Art Gallery and the BP Portrait Award
I took the opportunity to visit the Aberdeen Art Gallery today. I still haven’t been since it reopened to the public late last year after 4 years of redevelopment and £34.6 million. It will shut tomorrow afternoon for Christmas and then remain closed for as long as we remain in Tier 4, so I thought…
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My awesome bike and veggie Chinese takeaway
The best thing about these dark days is how awesome my bike looks. If you’re looking for a good Christmas present for someone who likes to eat a lot of plants then I recommend The Veggie Chinese Takeaway Cookbook. Who doesn’t like Chinese takeaway? I made the hoisin sauce today then used it in one…
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Lorry queues, supermarket queues, food production, and Christmas dinner
Victoria helped me wrap some presents today. Actually, she was a right nuisance and ended up tearing the paper. I went to the shops early this morning to beat the rush but still there was a long queue outside the food court at Marks & Spencer. I decided not to go in. I’m not a…
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Still not testing enough and vintage clothes
They’ve back-tracked on the Christmas relaxation of restrictions and instead of allowing three households to mix from the 23rd to the 27th December they can meet on the 25th December only. Not only that but from the 26th December all of Scotland will be in Tier 4 lockdown which is back to what we had…
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Two countries and their Christmas strategies, the 5-mile boundary, and Manifesto
One of my coworkers lives in Italy and he told me they’re going into lockdown from December 24th – 27th and then again from December 31st – January 3rd. This is the opposite of what’s happening in the UK where everyone is in lockdown now but we’re free to meet other households from the 23rd…
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Abedeen in tier 3 for Christmas
For the second time this year we’ve had to cancel a holiday due to covid. We were due to go to the highlands on Monday for 6 days to self-catering holiday accommodation but they’re moving Aberdeen into tier 3 on Friday at 6pm which effectively puts a fence around the city for everyone living here.…
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What’s Rachel been up to lately?
I’ve had less time to write lately. I’ve been trying to do four jobs – my paid full-time job as a product manager for Creative Force, my role as campaigns secretary for the Aberdeen Cycle Forum, my work for Aberdeen Climate Action on their websites, and a new project I’ve taken on to help address…
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Winter wonderland, Braemar
After last Sunday’s disappointing walk in Tullos Wood we went further afield today for a walk in Braemar. The recent snowfall in the highlands has created a winter wonderland and we were gifted a beautifully sunny day. The last part of the drive from Crathie to Braemar is always lovely but today the mist over…
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Street lego art
I was walking around central Aberdeen today and found this crumbly building that had been patched up with lego bricks. Those colored bits are lego. Here’s another photo, zoomed in. There are even some lego doors and windows there. It’s very clever. Just around the corner from the lego is the Aberdeen market and the…
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O Christmas tree
We put our Christmas tree up last weekend. It’s the same timber tree we use every year that we bought in the UK several years ago. Unfortunately the company appears to have gone out of business now but we love our tree. The lights are up in the city centre and they’re very pretty, especially…
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I planted four trees today
As part of Giving Tuesday my company encouraged us all to plant a native tree during our work day – they paid for the trees. I was a bit cheeky and bought four trees because the Woodland Trust sell packs of four for a very reasonable price. I got the bee-friendly garden mix. The trees…
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Prince Albert’s Cairn
I love Sundays. This is the one day of the week when none of us is working and there are no extracurricular activities to take children to. We like to spend our Sundays walking in the hills somewhere in Aberdeenshire and perhaps because there’s a bit of royal mania with the latest release of The…
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New hairdos
You never know these days when there’ll be another lockdown and all the hair salons will close. With this in mind I decided to take drastic measures and have several hair cuts all in one go today just in case the salons have to shut again for several months. I think I lost a couple…
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Christmas Fair at Crathes Castle
We went to the Exclusively Highlands Christmas Fair at Crathes Castle today. It’s a food and craft market that runs every year in the weeks leading up to Christmas at different locations around Scotland, usually castles. They sell only stuff that’s made in Scotland which especially appeals to me so we go every year. This…
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Thank you, America
The world is heaving a collective sigh of relief today. Thank you, America, for electing Joe Biden to be the next president of the United States. We shouldn’t forget, however, that some 70 million Americans voted for Trump. As Peter Singer writes in Has America Lost its Soul? those 70 million people voted for someone…
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In the paper, cat news, a kilt in a cargo bike, Foodstory, and zombies
I’m in The Scottish Daily Record today in an article about the state of cycling in Scotland. This is in response to the tragic death of a young woman in Edinburgh this week. It’s a good article that got a full double page spread and my photo spans from top to bottom of the paper!…
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Engine idling, butt flashing, and balance training
I’m the most hated parent at Highland Dance. I asked another two motorists today to switch their engines off. They both did and were very good about it but I know how much people dislike being told what to do even if when it’s done politely. I had to do it though because the man…
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