Walking

It's been such a mild autumn - lovely (but not really how things should be). We went for a walk in the Botanics to enjoy the colours. 

It was a bit late, really - there were a lot of leaves on the ground. 

But still, it was beautiful. I always feel better among plants. We're lucky having the Botanics a short drive away - though on this occasion we took the bus. 

Here's my favourite tree, the bald cypress. 

Look at its wonderful, ferny leaves, just turning red.

Actually, going on Saturday was possibly a mistake. We live quite near the rugby grounds, and there was an international match on. We took the bus to avoid struggling through the traffic on the way home, but the bus was crowded with chaps in kilts going to the match. Ah well. 

On Monday we visited our friends in the west of Scotland. It was a wonderfully still, sunny day. 

We walked past Barr Castle, built in the 15th century, now a ruin. We have a lot of castles. 

So lovely, walking with old friends. B and I have known one another since we went to school at age 5 and her husband for 55 years or so. 

Right, must get on. I'm writing this while listening to Bach's cantata number 150, which is joyous and which I'm supposed to know for choir tonight. I more or less know it but there are a few tricky bits (uppy downy in unexpected ways. Bach was quite a chap). And I have other things to do (far too many, but on the other hand, one can rest in the grave. Not yet, though, I hope.)

 

The good the bad and the minimalisation

It's been a busy - but nice - week. Daughter 2 and Smallest Granddaughter (actually, she's really tall for her age, which is 9) came up on Thursday for the celebration of my brother and sister-in-law's golden wedding. Daughter 2 and I discussed possible sashing for her Christmas quilt. 

Then my brother, sister-in-law, niece, nephew and nephew's lovely fiancee arrived on Friday and we all went for lunch in the Royal Scots Club on Saturday. It has a nice staircase. 

My grandfather, who was in the Royal Scots during World War 1, was a member here, and we used to come for Christmas lunch. 

Memories...

We came home and had cake, decorated by Smallest Granddaughter. More is more. We had a limited selection of (coloured) white chocolate letters, and the top of the cake wasn't very big, so it says: 

HAPPY

50TH

ANNIVE

RSARY

GOLDEN

DAY

Considering that both Daughter 2 and her little one are dyslexic, I call this a triumph. 

Unlike the driving of the lady who didn't notice our car approaching yesterday, pulled out from her parking place at the side of the road into our lane and scraped us. Ah well. No one was hurt. 

And I had just dropped off this wooden garage to a friend, for her grandsons. This week's minimalisation!
 

Not a moment to spare...

I don't have a lot to report. I've been working hard, piecing a Christmas quilt for Daughter 2. It still needs sashing and borders, not to mention being actually made into a quilt. I'm slightly running out of time - Christmas waits for no woman. Oh, I've just noticed that one of these panels is missing a bottom strip. Will sort that tomorrow. 

This was the inspiration. Can't remember where I saw it. 

At the same time - well, not the same time, but on the same days - I've been quilting a quilt for Mr L,  made out of his old shirts. 

And the choir of which I'm chair takes up quite a lot of time. On Sunday we had our AGM, and there was a certain amount of complication about getting some new people on the committee. So that was a lot of work in various ways. And now I need to get some new committee members up to speed. However, I've only got another year of being chair, so the end is in sight. 

Altogether there hasn't been much spare time, or any time to tidy up the garden for the winter. Hey ho. 

 Not much minimalising this week, but it's something: a roll of elderly sticky-backed plastic which appeared out of a cupboard, and some spoons for feeding babies with sloshy food. Don't need them any more, alas. Little and often, that's the way to minimalise. Or so I tell myself. 

And now I must go and do my Duolingo. I've been polishing up my French and German for about three years now, and added Scottish Gaelic about six months ago. I did know a tiny bit of Gaelic already, having done some in an evening class with my dad in 1972, and ironically that tiny bit is still with me, whereas the bit I'm trying to learn is much harder. Older brain! The worst thing is the spelling. The Gaelic for "I'm learning" is "Tha mi ag ionnsachadh". "Tha mi" means "I am". That's the easy bit!

Trees and flowers

This week's decluttering was easy: Son's cricket bat from school, palmed off on him when he came for a couple of days with the children, and...

the reins that we used to put on our grandchildren when we took them for a walk. I don't think our 15, 13, 10, 9 or 7-year-olds would really fit them now, but my newish-granny friend wants them. Done!

Saturday was a perfect autumn day and we went with our chums to Dalkeith, to walk round the Palace grounds. We got the bus past the oldest house in Portobello, dating from the 17th century

and enjoyed the beach views. 

The grounds of Dalkeith Palace are extensive and are now a public park. The Palace was the seat of the Dukes of Buccleuch (pronounced Buck-loo) from 1642 till 1916. The original castle was demolished, and replaced by the current building on the same site between 1701 and 1711. 

There are many very old trees, planted by the dukes, or rather by their gardeners. 

These come from all over the world. Money no object. 

There's the palace. 

It was all very pretty. 

Here's George, our television gardener friend, beside a tree that's believed to be 1000 years old. It still looks pretty healthy. We had a lovely day. 

In London, Smallest Granddaughter makes Saxon brooches for homework. I think her architect mum may have had a hand in the designs. 

And, though we've had a few light frosts, the garden blooms on. For now. 

A number of things

We went to an exhibition at the Botanics last week about earth - I can't quite remember the relevance of the above, but I do remember that it's cut paper work - lots of (are they?) seed heads, very intricately cut out. What patience!

And this is a shade chart of various colours of soil found in Scotland. The bottom right one is just a Scottish flag, not unusual sky-blue earth 

And then we walked around in lovely autumn weather

and admired

the shapes and colours of nature. 

Another day we walked along the river to the gallery

(across the bridge and up the steps) to see an exhibition of the paintings of Gwen John. 

They were good, but she did somewhat specialise in painting gloomy women. 

We didn't particularly want to take any of them home with us. 

In London, Smallest Granddaughter had a 9th birthday party with a Hallowe'en theme. 

Here, Big Grandson helped bake biscuits (look at the size of him!)

and I met a friend for coffee in Saughton Park and enjoyed the flowers. No frost yet. 

This street tree is always at its best at this time of year. 

 

And last Saturday we had dinner with friends who have a baby grandson and who kindly accepted all these outgrown things, and thus dealt with Minimalising Monday for this week. 

My gradual decluttering has been going on since May. Surely we should notice a difference soon...? 

Son and family have been here for a couple of days, which was lovely. This is a race track. Small Grandson is just out of sight, preparing for the descent. 

 

Random musings while listening to Bach

Daughter 2, in London, bought these fabrics to make a Christmas tree skirt. 

Coincidentally, I bought one of the same fabrics for her Christmas quilt. We're basically the same person, though she has many talents that I do not have. 

This is Big Grandson doing work experience as required by the school, in his mother's office. How can he be that grown-up? He's a lanky 6-footer. About yesterday, it seems to me, he was learning to walk. 

I'm having fun with fabrics. How accurately am I going to sew these 2 and a half inch squares together? Hmm. Time will tell. I'm also quilting Mr L's shirt quilt. I like having two quilts on the go, one to cut out and the other to sew when I'm watching television. I'm not a fan of doing nothing for long periods. 

Today's charity shop victim. I've had it since Mr Life's mother died in 1992 and had forgotten all about it. I came across it while looking for something to get rid of. It looks less mouldy in real life, but I think we can survive without it. I might polish it before disposing of it. (I will.)

I'm typing this while listening to Bach's Cantata number 150. It's lovely, but not particularly easy. I think I'd better concentrate.