insignificant ramblings of a 50-something woman
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A new fireplace, Ben’s birthday and home-grown produce
Last month we installed a log burner. I know what you’re going to say: “They’re horrible things that pollute the air!” and to that I say I know, I largely agree. But we got the cleanest one on the market, it replaced an old gas fire, and it’s not our main source of heating. It’s…
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A visit from Daniel, 11 years in Aberdeen, recipe for tomato soup
Daniel finally came home for the weekend this weekend, much to the delight of all of us. He said there were no events he particularly wanted to attend in St Andrews, so he came home instead. His halls of residence are very active socially, which has been wonderful for him as he’s made lots of…
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Rainbow salad and weevils in the hamster cage
Friday nights are our salad + roast potatoes night as I make a tabouleh and rainbow salad every week. The rainbow salad is proving so popular that I’ve started making it a couple of times a week and leaving a bowl in the fridge so people can help themselves. Elizabeth in particular loves it. It’s…
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Daniel’s first two weeks at University
We went to visit Daniel in St Andrews yesterday to see how he’s doing. It has been two weeks since he moved down there and he’s got one fresher’s week behind him and now a week of lectures. We couldn’t be happier for him as he’s enjoying it all so much. His accommodation is super…
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Officially vintage
I hit the half-century milestone today which makes me officially vintage. If I last another 50 years I can call myself antique. I wanted to have all my own hair colour back by 50 and while I’m not quite there I think I’m past the temptation to colour it. I’ve accepted the grey and am…
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Daniel goes to St Andrews
We installed Daniel into his living quarters at the halls of residence in St Andrews today and spent the day gathering the necessities including the traditional red gown, worn by students at the university since the 1600s. He looks very smart in it. The gown – we’re calling it a Wizard’s cloak – is not…
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A family walk at Finzean and a visit to the farm shop
We went for a lovely walk in Finzean yesterday with a visit to the Finzean Farm Shop. Finzean is pronounced “Fing-an”. The z replaces an old letter than no longer exists and has an ng sound. Finzean is such a pretty spot to walk as it has a good mix of forest as well as…
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Celebrate Aberdeen and cartwheels at Drum Castle
Yesterday we marched with Aberdeen Cycle Forum in the Celebrate Aberdeen Parade which recognises the many charities and community organisations in our city. It was a fun event with lots thousands turning out to participate or watch the procession. I took Hoss. Today we went for a walk at Drum Castle. And Elizabeth did some…
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Congratulations to Elizabeth!
It’s Elizabeth’s turn to do amazingly well in her iGCSE results which came out today. She totally blitzed it getting straight As: 6 x A* and 1 x A. She was also awarded a Cambridge International Certificate in Education (ICE) distinction. Distinction is the highest level of the ICE program and students must get a…
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Another litter pick
We did a litter pick on Saturday with volunteers from Aberdeen Cycle Forum and collected a huge amount of rubbish along the banks of the River Dee. Some of us were assaulted by stinging nettle and bramble so next year we might do it in winter or early spring before the vegetation returns. It was…
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Six and allotment things
Elizabeth and I went to see Six on Friday night at His Majesty’s Theatre which was completely packed with a full house and queues out the door. Six is a musical about Henry VIII’s six wives who tell their own stories in song, competing for who had it the toughest. I enjoyed it. It was…
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Dead gulls and litter picking during Storm Floris
This week so far I’ve picked 5 dead baby gulls from the road. Two were on Crown Street and another three were on the Raik Road and Poynernook Road ear the intersection of the two. All the roads have speed limits of 30mph or less so I can only assume the motorists were speeding or…
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Cats and The Beyond Broadway Experience
Elizabeth performed in Cats the musical at His Majesty’s Theatre this weekend as part of The Beyond Broadway Experience (BBEXP), an intensive professional show for young talent under 25. Elizabeth has been obsessed with Cats since 2020 so she was ecstatic to have the opportunity to be in it but it was a roller-coaster of…
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A walk in the woods
Another weekend has disappeared and the weekly cycle of work starts again. It’s nice not having to take Elizabeth to her very many extra-curricular activities as most of these stop on the holidays. Instead Elizabeth has been rehearsing everyday for Cats which is on at His Majesty’s Theatre next Friday and Saturday. We can’t wait…
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A second visit to the tall ships
We went back to the tall ships yesterday to have another look as Daniel missed it on Saturday due to a driving lesson. This time we boarded a ship to have a closer look. The queues were all too long on Saturday but on Sunday we found a lovely old Norwegian ship with hardly any…
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Tall Ships Aberdeen 2025
Elizabeth got to perform as part of SC&T (Scottish Culture & Traditions) in The Tall Ships Races 2025 in Aberdeen this morning. She gets lots of opportunities to perform with SC&T and they’re always excellent. Today was no exception. The sound and projection from the stage was particularly good. The only downside was it started…
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Fox family updates
We’ve been continuing to feed a family of foxes in Aberdeen along with some other volunteers after spotting the mother ill with mange a couple of months ago. The mother, Rita, is looking much better after receiving her treatment. We’re confident all her fur will grow back and by winter she’ll be a healthy fox…
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Heat, Drum Castle, Stonehaven Folk Festival, and blackcurrant jam
It has been unusually hot here. I say unusually because we’ve had almost a week of 20C+ days and typically in Aberdeen we’d only have one or two in a row like that before the temperatures drop below 20 again. Yesterday got up to 25C which was very unpleasant for us. Elizabeth in particularly hates…
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Allotment berries
It has been a couple of weeks since I visited the allotment and we’ve had lots of warm weather and rain which was meant it was an overgrown mess. Fortunately I enlisted the help of my family although it’s debatable how helpful Daniel and Elizabeth actually were. Still we managed to tidy it up much…
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Open air theatre at Fyvie Castle
It’s summer which means it must be time for outdoor theatre. We go to see The Three Inch Fools every year now because they’re so funny and it makes for an excellent evening out. Last night we saw The Most Perilous Comedie of Elizabeth I with Fyvie Castle making a dramatic and magnificent backdrop. It’s…
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