Vera Macdonald

Mary’s still stuck here and is now going by train and boat, the other two are still stuck in Milan and looking at their options, it’s like the end of the world as we know it. Soon there will be no bananas or anything else we ship here from far away. It’ll be interesting to see just how much we do depend on importing by air. Ah well, all right for me to say, brought up on mince and tatties!

As you’re all well informed, you’ll know about the volcanic ash cloud currently over us which has closed all airports, for the second day now, and no clear sign of when planes will fly again. My neice and nephew are stranded in Milan (not a bad place to be stranded) while poor Mary (she from Shetland) is stuck here in Edinburgh. However, there is always a silver lining, she’s had an extra day’s shopping and we went to the cinema to see Tilda Swinton in ‘I am love’, a beautifully made Italian film getting good reviews from the ‘arty’ critics.

I’m off tomorrow to do a retreat in England for 10 days, hoping for some sunshine, so no more news until I get back – and if this weather doesn’t improve I might not come back!

Well, no wonder! It’s the last day of March and we have more snow again. We’ve had enough, although Auntie Bess tells me we had snow on the same date last year, but then we hadn’t had it bad for 3 months continuously last year. Roll on April.

Well I will as soon as I get used to these new intermediate varifocals -they’re meant to be for reading at the bottom and computer at the top but they merge seamlessly between the two. Anyway there’s some hi-tech reason why they cost a fortune. The optician – or optometrist he’s now called – found these in the back of a cupboard. How happy must he have been to find someone to buy pink and green specs – and yet how happy am I to find specs in my favourite colours!

Rhubarb specs

I’m just back from visiting the golden oldies and they’re all well and in good form. I had a noisy train journey back as it was 6pm on Saturday after the football. A well-oiled group of lads sat near me and sang their hearts out from Dundee to Kirkcaldy (which was about as long as I could have stood it). But I did hear a couple of wise cracks:
1. Is that Johnny Cash? Naw, I’m his brother Nae Cash (it’s for Scots speakers this one)
2. Gonna sing that Oasis soup song? Ok,(singing) ‘you gotta roll with it’ – and you gotta think about that one, don’t you?

What can I say? The proof of the gingerbread will be in the eating. Having a friend in for coffee and hoping she won’t faint from shock.

Cool new scales are an inspiration

I’ve had a horrible cold since flying back from Cardiff – is there a conenction perhaps with air quality on the plane? Been feeling miserable but the weather is getting milder so I got out for a wee walk yesterday. Today is my eye test then probably take the prescription to the cheap shop for the actual specs- how busy I am! All this in one day, it’s funny how the tasks fill the time.

That’s Wales to you and me – just spent a week there vbisiting friends in Cardiff, Cymllynfell (bet you can’t pronounce that one) and Swansea. Visited the Welsh Assembly on St David’s Day, 1 March and was lucky enough to meet a visitor guide who had nothing much to do so gave us security passes and took us right in to the business end of the assembly – how lucky were we?

Stunning view upwards from the Assembly

The whole building is stunning, original, unique and definitely Welsh, with lots of slate everywhere and just such attention to detail.

And to think I know the artists!

Here’s the view across Mumbles Bay towards Swansea – from Verdi’s fabby cafe.

Laughter and Mumbles

It was Auntie Margaret’s 98th birthday, and we caught the whole generation together, and that’s 365 years between them. No bad going!

365 years of family