insignificant ramblings of a 50-something woman
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Building new roads leads to more new roads
Last month I stumbled across an article from 2006 called Induced traffic. Again. And again. And again. It was first observed early last century that building new roads generates new traffic. So 1925, 1937, 1958, 1963, 1968, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1994, 1996, now 2006: for 80 years, every eight years on average, there has been…
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The blunders continue
You might have seen headlines recently about the worst cycling event ever where event planners for the AWPR (the new ring road around Aberdeen for cars only) planned a cycling event in which you cannot take a bike. After much criticism they changed the event and now people can take bikes. However the blunders continue.…
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The Plant Police
Elizabeth (who is 8) and her friend have started a committee at lunchtime called The Plant Police. The aim of this committee – from what I understand – is to protect the plants in the playground from rampaging children. I know what you’re thinking – she’s my mini-me. I almost feel a bit bad: what…
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Gathering llamas with the Queen
We had a fantastic weekend away at Glenshee Ecocamp and the Braemar Gathering. We stayed in a vintage train wagon which has been converted into off-grid accommodation. It was wonderful! Very quiet and peaceful (except for our noisy kids!) and lots of stunning scenery including a starlit sky at night. The kids were not bothered…
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Bike paths for all demonstration on 9th September in Aberdeen
The new bypass for motor vehicles – the AWPR – is set to open soon and I posted recently about the attempts to make up for the absence of cycling provision in the new road by organising a cycling event where you cannot take a bike. After a lot of bad publicity the event was…
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Australian Conservatism’s Existential Crisis
Originally posted on Compromise and Conceit: Recent events in Australian politics suggest to me that Australian conservatism’s ideological conflicts are coming to a boil. For my foreign reader(s), the situation is roughly this: The Liberal party (actually our conservative party) had a contest for the leadership of the party which was ostensibly between a right…
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Ethanol fires
There’s something about having a fire in the house (a planned one of course) that is immensely comforting. All our homes in New Zealand had a working fire and in some of them it was our only source of heating. Our home in Aberdeen had two gas fires which we’ve never used and I’ve missed…
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Almost a quarter Scandinavian
I took a DNA test to discover my genetic origins and apparently I’m 24% Scandinavian. This is a surprise given I don’t have any Scandinavian ancestry. I’m almost 50% English however and probably everyone with English ancestry also has some Scandinavian thanks to the marauding vikings. At least now I know why I like winter…
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The Bridge House Stables
We’re just back from a fantastic weekend away staying at the Bridge House Stables in Perthshire. It’s an old bridge built in 1881 over the River Ardle and now let as two holiday homes. The interior has been tastefully renovated and in keeping with the age of the bridge. Straddling the river means you can…
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Old things
I love old things. We’re doing some exploring this weekend in a beautiful part of Scotland. I love the landscapes in Scotland: the hills, lochs, rivers, and sea. But I also love the history and the architecture. Modern stuff doesn’t really excite me but old stuff inspires and uplifts me. Old things are unique and…
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I think our transport planners are stuck in a 1970s time warp
I’m not sure whether to laugh or cry about this article – Is this the worst cycling event EVER? They’ve built a new ring road exclusively for motor vehicles around Aberdeen which is about to open but somehow they were allowed, in the 21st century, to build it without any provision for cyclists. Indeed cyclists…
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Praise the oat drink
I am loving the Marks and Spencer oat drink. I only just discovered it and it’s delicious! After having consumed soya drink for more than 15 years I’m now an oat drink convert. We’re not supposed to call it milk because the EU ruled that non-diary substitutes cannot be called milk. I’m quite happy about…
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The weekly yield
This is what I picked from my allotment yesterday. There is more I could have picked but didn’t, like kale, swiss chard, spinach, beetroot, and potatoes. The tomatoes are some kind of tiger variety and are meant to look stripy. I’m really happy to get them because a couple of months ago the plants looked…
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I don’t like what you wear but I defend your right to wear it – part 2
If Boris Johnson hadn’t generated a media tornado this week with his burkas resemble letterboxes comment I would not have known that Denmark recently banned people from wearing face veils in public. I find it odd that everyone is focussing on the letterbox comment, which I found funny, rather than the more concerning issue which…
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Broad Street is open to buses
Broad Street is open to buses again after several months of closure while construction work was carried out. I was there yesterday and took some photos of the new design: Can you see what’s wrong with the new design? It’s not clear where the road ends and the pavement begins. There’s no kerb. It’s all…
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Wounded
I hurt my finger. Can’t type very well. It was a can of lentil soup. Those things are sharp! Be careful people.
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Bees and toads
I can only get to the allotment once per week but it changes so much with each visit. My courgettes are cropping in abundance. I’m not sure what to do with them all. I also got my first tomatoes and cucumbers of the season. I have heaps and heaps of kale. More than we could…
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Elizabeth’s signature dish
Elizabeth has been cooking like crazy these holidays. She can read and follow a recipe almost entirely on her own which is impressive for an 8-year-old. One night she made dinner and informed us that this was her “signature dish”. I think she’s watched Zumbo’s Just Desserts a few too many times. On Monday she…
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Inside Hoss
Ben fell off his bike a couple of weeks ago and broke his arm in two places. He’s recovering well and fortunately no cars were involved in the accident or it could have been much worse. He’s unable ride his bike until his arm is better and so when we all went for a cycle…
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The Thistle
Have you ever wondered why the national flower of Scotland is a prickly weed? I find it amusing and endearing that the Scots chose the thistle for their national flower but this week I discovered there’s a story behind it and it’s a good one. Apparently during the 13th century Norway was fighting Scotland for…
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