11th November

Not quite tomorrow, I know but it's the best I could do!

I don't know how the time has past so quickly but here we are... it's Wednesday.

Yesterday was - walking to the new Raemoir Garden Centre with Anne and meeting Johanne up there for a mosey around and a coffee.

What do I think?

Well it's a lot bigger ...

While we were there we bumped into Sadie Wilson.
She has a little chalet beside her house which she rents out and she told us that the family that have just left blocked her septic tank and she had to get someone to come and fix it...

Listen to this:
According to Sadie, the man who fixed it said it was because the mother washed every stitch of clothing and every towel used by every member of the family every day with biological washing powder.
The biological soap powder had killed off all the bacteria in the tank!

"Did you know," said Sadie, "that they didn't have to dig up my septic tank and replace the dead sheep?"

Yes, you read that correctly. That's what she said!!

"Oh, I can see you aren't country folk," laughed Sadie! "Didn't you know that's how septic tanks used to work..."

Aaaagh!

The photo below has nothing to do with the story I've just written but I do like pictures when I'm reading! Don't you?
This is a 'television stare'!
Induced by Peppa Pig!

Friday 6th November

Just for you, Gary!
I do appreciate your writing - it makes me laugh - so here is my unworthy enrty just to let you know, I care! :)

To catch up, I'd better 'let you know' how my visit to the Tor na Coille went.
Well, the meal was very enjoyable, the food tasted good and the choices were varied and not quite your run of the mill - an example? Well Johanne for a starter had 'Cullin Skink risotto'!

We all agreed that it was good enough to go back and the service was friendly and helpful.
My only criticism would be the coffee. Think wet cereal packets.

I have to go now, will return tomorrow!

Thursday 22nd October

It's getting dark now and it's still raining... I've just checked.

It's rained all day, all last night and all day yesterday.
I think it rained on Tuesday night too but I amn't quite sure.

The wee girl on the television weather forecast said that it would rain tomorrow too but the good news is it won't rain all the time.

I swear Ross is doing a rain dance down in his room!
You see, he agreed to help me empty the rubbish out of the garage and help me take it to the tip... when the rain stops!!

Talking of Ross, his advert went into the Piper today.
'Banchory Techies' will fix your computer for you!

A lady did call and he is going to see her tonight. That's the good news.

The not so good news - with the weather trying to drown us all - is the fact that she lives in Logie Coldstone - that's about 20 miles from here - I checked on AA routes!

I've suggested he brushes his hair before he goes but I got the impression, all he heard was, "Blah, blah, blah, blah."

We woke this morning to the radio telling us that there were weather warnings out for the North East (the west coast is dry, by the way) and that 'this road' and 'that road' were closed or only passable with care.

Ian, never daunted, made it to Fraserburgh... I got a text to let me know.

Changing the subject, it's sausages for tea tonight with mashed potatoes and cabbage... last night I tried a new recipe sweet and sour root vegetables with couscous...

I don't think I'll bother to make it again - it didn't live up to its promise, bit boring really - hence the oldy but goldy tonight!

Now tomorrow night, Johanne, Anne and I are going to eat at the Tor na Coille.
I'll let you know how it goes!

Monday 5th

D'you know that 1949, just like this year, had an Indian summer?
How do I know?

It was Aunt Mary's 60th birthday on Saturday and in the course of our wee, birthday, phonecall chat - she told me that Grannie Lottie had told her!

October 3rd, the year Mary was born, was hot and sunny!

Mary said, "Mum told me the sun kept right on shining till the end of October and then one morning when she threw back the bedroom curtains she discovered it was raining. A big sadness welled up inside her as she watched the rain run down the panes of glass and she began to cry!"

Poor Grannie Lottie - I think she had a wee touch of the 'baby blues'!

This Photo of Grannie Lottie and Granda Bill was taken the year before the window episode.

... I don't think our Indian Summer is going to last as long. It's only the beginning of October and the other day, I felt the change here ... a definite nip in the air!

... and today, I threw back the bedroom curtains and ... no it wasn't raining!! There was frost on the tops of the cars and Ian (caught unprepared) was busy using a CD case to scrape his windscreen!


The apples are still hanging onto their little tree in the garden.


They've developed wee rosy cheeks, though, since I took this photo last week!!
D'you think this mornings frost gave them a little nip?
Should I bring them in?
I tasted one the other day and although it wasn't as sweet as I would have liked, it was edible... which makes a change from previous years - the apples off my tree have always tasted like dry cabbages!

While I was looking for a photo of Mum to go with Mary's trip down Memory Lane, I came across this photo of Luca taken straight after his laser treatment. You wouldn't believe it if you saw him now!
By the way, that's not crusted spots that you can see on his top lip, it's apple puree!

Salt Lake City...2 months after

We parked our car in the Visitor's Centre. That's it behind Ian.
Very impressive, don't you think - as Tourist Information Centres go - I am thinking just now of Banchory's wee poky hole!

But the reason I included it was to get you to look past it - to the mountains in the background. (Sorry about the quality of the photo - I'm no expert - I haven't yet worked out why some of my photos come out really well and others, well... don't)
That is my memory of Salt Lake City.
Reminded me a bit of the road north past Stirling... very flat but with the mountains rising steeply all around in the distance.

I think the light is different in the two places, too.
Utah is very bright - white light.
Scotland's light is more yellow. We are talking of course about when the sun shines - that was assumed - come on - we all know it rains a lot!

Here's Ian sitting in Temple Square.
It was really beautiful...
very colourful, full of flowers and fountains and very grand architecture!
Anyway, we reckoned Walt Disney had been here before he built Disney World in Florida because there are definitely similarities!

We ate lunch at 'Squatters Brewery'.
Nice lunch and good beer.
Most people sit inside in the air conditioning but Ian says we have to make the most of the heat because it's in limited supply at home.
It was fine - we sat under the misters (and my hair went fuzzy).


Now these photos you are coming up to were taken in the State Capital building (we did the tour).
Make them bigger and look closely.

In the photo immediately below, look at the picture straight ahead in the mural.
What do you see?
Uhuh. People with farming tools, fields and seagulls.
It's the story of the seagulls!!
Remember... they saved the settlers from starvation by eating the swarms of locust that would have eaten their crops.

Now look at the dome below... what do you see?
Exactly! Seagulls.
I rest my case - the story in my primary 4 reading book was true!

However, we never found a statue of a seagull and I asked the guide if she knew of one, but she didn't.
:) She, however, went home happy, I think, knowing that a story from her past was known by a wee wuman from a country thousands of miles away!

A good day!

Some photos of Park City

This is where we were based when we went to Utah. Park City.

I loved it!
It was miner's who built the old town and I think that was at the time of the gold rush.
Now of course it's main industry is tourism - winter sports in particular.
But the summer visitors are well looked after for, too and there is no shortage of things to do in the summer either... like eating!! (one of my favourite occupations)
In the week we were there, we didn't manage to eat at all the restaurants we would have liked to try!

So saying, their was plenty to do if you were of a more active frame of mind...
Ian, however, was stuck with me - not the most active person in the world, so we didn't really get up to much.

We took a trip on the free bus up to Silver Lake Village one day, and before we had a beer at one of the lodges, we took a walk along some of the forest tracks at the bottom of the ski slopes and very pleasant it was too!




But even in this haven of beauty and tranquility there lurked... nature in the raw.
Remember Lake Utah in Utah?
"Hurry up and take the photo!!" Ian shouted as the flies attacked!

:) We were fine till he got off the path to check out the view from a little mound, nearby.

The Uinta Mountain trip

It was a lovely drive!
And when you finally come down the other side you are in Wyoming.
I didn't realise till we got up into the hills that it was bear country!!



Nor did I actually see any bears but I did see signs telling me they were there but read the bottom line on the poster - that's laying it on the line for you!!

Anyway, very pretty, it was.

And here are some shots which I was sure would prove it when I took them but now that I look at them, they really don't do the area justice!




The photo below was taken at Mirror Lake which nestled in a little valley high up in the hills.
I remember the loos in the carpark at the side of the lake very well... they were dry (shock - horror!!)
A toilet sitting atop a great deep hole!
Scary stuff for a townie like me... imagine what could have happened - no don't - it doesn't bear thinking about!

That's the toilet block behind Ian.
I guess flushing toilets was asking a bit much up in the wilds!

This is what you call a 'double take' photo. :)


The first town we hit was called Evanston...


and lo and behold... there was a beer festival on!
What a pip! (I just love this phrase!!)
Luca will recognise the phrase and so might his mummy and daddy and possibly his Grandma Liz? Does anyone else?

I photographed the booklet that listed all the beers that were on offer,



then I photographed Ian drinking them...


and lastly, I photographed Ian in the brewery where we ate lunch.



Ian had me photograph the brewing tanks which are to his right on the level below but you don't want to see them.