Crochet Audrey 2, Christmas tree, and Daniel is taller than me

Dione holding her crochet Audrey 2 and wearing an Audrey 2 tshirt.

Another weekend disappears. Daniel told me last week that he didn't want to go anywhere for the next couple of weekends as he's studying for exams. He's so studious but then I was the same. He's taller than me now by nearly 2cm. We measured today. That happened very quickly. He's shooting up at a… Continue reading Crochet Audrey 2, Christmas tree, and Daniel is taller than me

Scottish wildcat

Today we think we saw a Scottish wildcat. This is another very elusive creature whose population has been decimated over the past couple of hundred years. It is critically endangered and although it once roamed all of the UK it is now found only in northern and eastern Scotland. If it is a Scottish wildcat… Continue reading Scottish wildcat

Christmas 2021

Christmas in the Scottish Highlands is turning out to be one of the best Christmases we've had. I even saw a pine marten for the first time ever. These are very elusive creatures whose numbers have dwindled over the past couple of centuries due to hunting for their fur, habitat loss, and predation control. I… Continue reading Christmas 2021

My awesome bike and veggie Chinese takeaway

The best thing about these dark days is how awesome my bike looks. https://videopress.com/v/d5vI6fFI?preloadContent=metadata 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… Continue reading My awesome bike and veggie Chinese takeaway

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… Continue reading Lorry queues, supermarket queues, food production, and Christmas dinner

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… Continue reading O Christmas tree

‘Tis the season to stuff your face with lots of yummy food

Every Christmas I make lebkuchen which is German for ginger bread except that it doesn't contain any ginger. I'm a bit slow making it this year because I've been making panforteĀ - I've made three batches of it so far and probably eaten most of it myself because the kids don't like it. I had to… Continue reading ‘Tis the season to stuff your face with lots of yummy food

A merry vegan atheist Christmas

Things that make me happy: A green landscape. Old furniture. Victorian buildings. Snow. A good pale ale. Vegan food. Music. My family. I got all these things for Christmas except for number 4: snow. However snow and a green landscape are mutually exclusive so I'll accept that I can't have both. How does a vegan… Continue reading A merry vegan atheist Christmas

Be kind to living things

I've haven't written much lately because I've been busy. Everyone is busy, I know. All the snow has melted here but it hung around for a long time. Usually when we get snow it's all gone within a couple of days. The chances of a white Christmas now are very remote. It looks like we'll… Continue reading Be kind to living things

Ice-skating at the Christmas markets

Sometimes life feels like Groundhog Day. Has it really been a year since we went ice-skating at the Christmas markets? We went again today and it felt like we just did this yesterday but it has been a full year. I love ice-skating. What I like most is the physical activity without all the sweating.… Continue reading Ice-skating at the Christmas markets