Still not quite gone...

We're nearly organised. The house is clean and tidy, the beds are made up for the visitors, the instructions are completed, there are various informative yellow sticky notes attached to various things and we're more or less packed. You have to take a lot of socks for 18 days away. The fridge is fairly empty; there's room in the freezer for the catsitters' food; the last of the washing is done; and I think all the bins and wastepaper baskets are empty. 

I've thrown away all the flowers even though there were a few days' life in them yet - apart from this orchid sprig, which I broke from a plant by mistake a few weeks ago while trying to attach it to a stake. It's lasted amazingly well and still looks fresh, so I hadn't the heart to bin it. 

Son-in-Law 1 brought the little ones round for a final play and cuddle and meal, which was lovely. Can't believe I'm not going to see them again till the 24th. What was I thinking? 

Luckily the other grandparents are coming to stay with them tomorrow and Nanny is staying for a whole week, which will be lovely for all concerned. Have fun, Nanny and Gramps!

By the time we return, Scotland will have had a referendum for independence from the UK. The idea of living in an independent Scotland has a romantic appeal and it would be nice to feel more at the centre of things than we do - living up here, a long way from the south and its London-centric views. But the horrible news of the suffering caused by nationalism and sectarianism makes separation seem (to me) not a good idea at all. So friends are going to proxy-vote for us, against independence. The polls suggest that it's going to be quite close so presumably there will be a lot of unhappy people, whatever the result. The heart sinks somewhat even for Scotland, let alone the other places in the world which are torn apart by such enmity. 

Well, I'm off to finish packing. Thank you for all your good wishes, bloggy friends. I hope that railway line keeps steady as we cross it.