Bits and Pieces

April 26, 2009
(I started to write this blog on April 9th, lost track, and am just now publishing).

Good grief. I am just hopeless at finding the time to keep up with my blog..!! This is totally why I am crap at keeping a journal. I actually have a whole shelf filled with journals, all of which start out so full of promise and good intentions (and we know where that paved road goes, don't we..??), then peter out sometime around Spring. I haven't managed to complete a whole journal year since I was a kid with my diary. Sigh. Oh well, I'm doing pretty good with this blog if you consider I'm writing a couple times per month.

I took some really cool photos this month. We had the worst start of April here in Cramond. There's this bizarre Scottish weather thing called haar (not as in hardy har har, for sure..!!). It is the most ferocious, icy fog you can possibly imagine. It's not normal fog, it's something off the Arctic, combined with a wind chill that is unbelievably cold and bitter...a misery. Just before the haar settled in (for over a week), we had a wonderful, warm sunny better-than-Summer day and I couldn't resist taking a few photos of this phenomenon. The very next day the contrast couldn't have been more stark, so I took my camera when we went walking with Ozzy on the first of the haar days...and here are the photos.

This is one of my favorite trees along the route where we walk Ozzy. It's at the top of a hill, with a wonderful view of the Forth. On a good day you can see from Bass Rock down the coast, to the Forth Bridge up the river. I love this tree. It reminds me of a childhood tree that I used to climb to read my books, above and away from everything.


And this was the next day. Same location, same time of day, and check out that haar. Honestly, if I could send the cold through this blog, you would freeze to your chair. It was a completely bone-chilling week.





Here the Almond River flows into the Forth, and the Cramond Boat Club has just put out their boats for the season (first weekend in April). We've just walked along the river, and are starting the long trek along the promenade to the large hill where the above tree lives.




And, the haar sinks down to envelop everything in it's path. Alan and I decided it was actually colder that week than at the height of the frigid Winter. There's something about the haar that just permeates into your body like nothing else. Brrrrrrr...





Now, we're almost into May, the haar is gone and we've actually had some good days. Alan has spent a great deal of time working in the garden, and has done a brilliant job of getting everything looking just beautiful. I've taken a real leap of faith and planted all the pots around the house. I know for Scotland it's pretty early, but I just can't wait sometimes.

I got a new greenhouse this year, which is twice as big as my old ratty one, so have potted 3 tomato plants and have them happily growing in their new house. I'm trying a mini-plot of corn this year in my raised bed, and though the packet of seeds said it was a variety suitable for rainy Summers, I haven't seen them sprout yet and it's been 2 weeks already. If the rule of thumb is "knee high by the 4th of July" I could be in trouble..!!

Here's another cool thing: I have a bonsai tree...!! We went to Dobbie's last week (my favorite garden center on the planet), where they were having a really good sale on plants, and as I was meandering in their specialty area I found this wonderful selection of bonsai. I have always wanted to have one of these little trees, so we picked out the one we liked the best, and lo and behold, here it is:



Is that cool, or what..?? Isn't that twisty trunk just amazing..?? It's, of course, much more beautiful in person as you can't quite see all the tiny little leaves in this photo. I just love it and am learning all kinds of things about trimming and watering and root cutting, etc.

It turns out Derek (across the street neighbor) has several bonsai trees so I went over to see them, and ask some questions from an expert. He has one in particular that looks exactly like a Hobbit tree, with a thick gnarly trunk and everything. Scott (brother-in-law) has one that my sister bought him years ago, and I've always loved it. So, now I have joined the ranks of the bonsai fanatics, and I'm thrilled...!! This tree is a Chinese Lacebark Elm and apparently (as I'm just learning), the weirder and more "barky" the trunk, the cooler the tree.

That's about all for the moment. It's time for Ozzy's afternoon walk, then BBQ ribs for dinner. I'm really going to try to be more on top of this blog, though famous last words, I know. Ah well, twice a month is better than none...right...??

March Book Review

I seem to be in a genre reading zone right now. I do this: get interested in a certain type of story, and have to read any books I can find on the same theme. I will discover an author who writes thrillers, or crime stories, or historical tomes, and the next thing, I have to read anything I can get my hands on relating to that subject.

So, in light of that, I'm still stuck on the immortal thing. I'm starting to think my fascination is because I'm getting older and NOT immortal. Still, I have been totally absorbed into a whole branch of literature--previously unread by me--that has to do with immortality. I think this all started when I read Twilight last Fall, and so far, the addiction hasn't abated. Ah well, I'm having a good time reading stuff I'm not familiar with (though after many weeks of immortals, I'm becoming very familiar with this genre..!!).

Alexander McCall Smith

Tea Time for the Traditionally Built
Now, having said the above, I will drop anything and everything to read the latest book in The No.1 Ladies Detective Agency series. Mma Ramotswe is again solving cases, as only she can: with wisdom, love and a belief in the goodness of the human spirit. I so love these books.

Two sidebars here:

I was working at the Cramond Kirk Jumble Sale last month having a great time, as always. There was a woman working with me who had to leave a bit early because she was on her way to the National Library in Edinburgh to meet with "Sandy" McCall for a luncheon and book reading on his new book (Tea Time...). I'm pretty sure I turned deep green with envy. Not only because she called him Sandy (Scottish derivative for Alexander, implying a very first name basis acquaintance), but because she was going to this event in the first place...!! I flat out told her I was soooo jealous and half hoped (as one of his best and devoted fans) that she would invite me along with her. Sadly, no such luck. Still, I talked to someone who knows him and that's probably as close as I'll ever get to this most brilliant author.

The other sidebar is the new BBC television show, based on the books, which is now showing on Sunday nights. It is, without doubt, one of the best adaptations of print to film. It's filmed in Botswana (where all the books are based), with local actors, scenery and atmosphere. It's one of those serendipitous moments for a reader when a book truly comes to life. The producers/director have dramatized the stories exactly, making this an absolutely wonderful TV series. Alan and I drop everything at 9:00pm every Sunday to watch. I told Alan after last Sunday's show, that he could realistically say he's read the books, the series is so accurately portrayed.

J.R. Ward

Black Dagger Brotherhood series
These six books involve the members of a secret group, the Black Dagger Brotherhood, who (what else) are immortals fighting against all the nefarious bad guys, protecting us lowly and clueless humans. Each book covers the history and current life of a brother. There's lots of adventure, angst, the bonding of warrior brothers and some good scary stuff in these stories. I love the writing style and incredible imagination of this author.

Gena Showalter

Lords of the Underworld series
So far there are three books in this series, with more to come. The theme in Showalter's take on immortals comes from Greek mythology, with a large dollop of imagination thrown in for good measure. The basic premise here is that a band of men, working in Olympus for the gods, opens Pandora's box, releasing all the badness into the world. For punishment, these guys are banished to Earth and forced to endure their crimes for eternity, while helping out humanity whenever they can. One suffers constant pain, one gets murdered every night to be resurrected each morning, one is Death and has to ferry people to either Heaven or Hell, one can't touch anyone or anything because he is Disease, etc. It's a good series as you come to understand the torment each guy suffers, and their regret over their actions through the millenia. I particularly enjoy these stories because of the mythological background.

So. There are my books for March. It was a very interesting bunch of stories, and once again, I don't know what I would do if I didn't read. The only thing worth watching on the telly is The No.1 Ladies Detective Agency, so I thank my lucky stars I have books.