Choron sauce and a wowzer of an introduction.

The last day of July. The farmers brassicas are swelling by the day. The recent rain has done them no end of good. It's bright and sunny but there's a hint of autumn in the breeze blowing towards us from the sea. We've recently taken to carrying jackets in the back of the car just in case the weather changes. This practicality is a sure sign the seasons are about to change.

Yesterday we went to Edinburgh to hear a piece of music by an American composer :https://youtu.be/FCW_DaWth2M?t=22 . We'd never heard of the composer before but Edinburgh in festival time has a wealth of unexpected cultural riches just waiting to be mined. This is a last minute decision that takes spur of the moment' to manic levels. We park the car and scramble over the bridge onto the platform as the train appears in the distance.

 

The train is quiet and on time. As it rolls in a lady in a white dress appears on the platform to tell us that next week the train company will be opening  a new lounge in what used to be the waiting room for the overnight sleeper to London. " Do come along. We'd love to see you " she says as if we're long lost friends. She will go far in her marketing career.

As we cross the Forth Bridge a large cruise liner is coming into anchor. It's too tall to get under the bridges so moors out in mid-stream. Tenders are already heading out in readiness to pick up passengers wanting to visit Edinburgh. I wouldn't want to do this in winter when the seas are uncongenial.

Edinburgh is super busy in the run up to the Festival. We go to the concert ( which was good ) and then head to the coffee shop in the Balmoral for lunch. The service is friendly and efficient and the food reasonable. For a hotel brasserie it's also affordable. Angus has gnocchi served with a most un-Italian Choron sauce which he doesn't think he's ever had before but is told he has.

Across the aisle from us on the train we overhear a couple from Oregon (travelling to St Andrews to see if it would be suitable for their daughter) strike up a conversation with a couple from Seattle ( also travelling to St Andrews to see if it would suit their son ). One of the women introduces her husband with the unforgettable line " This is Arthur. He's an audiologist. He started off working on ears in Boise and things kinda took off from there ". As introductions go this is a gem. There are so many questions I'd like to ask Arthur.

Back in town ( the train on the return leg was an hour late and full ) the young gulls continue to look plaintive.

Vanilla :https://www.dw.com/en/how-vanillas-history-is-not-so-vanilla/a-78035296

A Norwegian take on using olive oil :https://www.sciencenorway.no/food-and-health/how-to-use-olive-oil-correctly/2693363

Things you didn't know about Australia :https://ozhistoryandpolitics.substack.com/p/40-interesting-facts-about-australian

Refrigeration :https://warontherocks.com/cogs-of-war/the-king-of-cool-mobile-refrigeration-and-the-remaking-of-global-logistics

An honest appraisal.

A pair of Typhoons sweep low over the coast as we're heading out of the courtyard for our morning walk. The Russian Air Force must be up to something out in the North Sea. Once or twice a month they send a group of bombers from Murmansk on a trip around the top of Norway and down towards the Shetlands. Usually the RAF sends off four of the jets to deal with incursions so I'd guess the Russians can't be cocking much of a snook at us this morning. The local crow population scatters, bad temperedly, in all directions at the sound of the afterburners as the planes climb and turn sharply to the north.

In town the fountain is working again. It must be 50 years ago ( at least ) that it last gurgled away.

Even on a grey morning it is, as my grandfather might have said, a grand sight.

The weather is set to improve later this morning. Down on the beach the lifeguards are getting ready for a busy day. The lifeguards are at that age when everything is done at a fast ' why walk when you can run ?' pace.

Near the wee house in town is a 'lively' student flat that's occupied by four third year students. One of the inhabitants is an Edinburgh lad who, when not playing rugby or golf or charming girls, supposedly works on his Physics degree.  He's got a summer job as a caddie. Today he's out at first light on the Jubilee Course with a group of serious hedge fund managers from Miami. The Floridians smoke cigars ( second time in two days we've seen folks smoking before eight am which we think is unusual ) and studiedly ignore his advice about which clubs to use or where to play the ball. He wanders over to the fence for a wee blether. He's got the monthly rent to pay but doesn't hold out much hope that the tip from this group will be generous. With a 20 year olds no nonsense concision of language he describes them as 'total hackers'. This causes us to laugh out loud. I'd wager they have a very different and rather more elevated view of their golfing skills. We wish the lad well and shout out to the golfers that they are very lucky to have such an expert guide. Perhaps this recommendation will help with the gratuity and the rent ?

Were the 1930's hotter ?:https://www.theclimatebrink.com/p/raw-data-wrong-answers

Thoughts on the English :https://www.edwest.co.uk/p/the-lords-of-the-north

Pope Clements Cafe and Steubenvilles first high class restaurant ? I'd love to know the real story behind this unusual architectural conversion :https://www.collegeofstjoseph.com/reclaim

End of July calm.

Forest fires in France and a surprise Iranian attack on Jordan the lead stories on this mornings news. South of the border the heatwave continues. It's going to be 30C in London. Here todays high will be in the low teens. This means local pre-schoolers and their parents will need to find an alternative to the beach. The  poppies seem to like this chilly weather. Usually they've finished blooming by late July. This year they're still going strong.  We wave at one of the American fathers heading off on his bike to a faculty meeting. He's wearing day-glo orange cycle clips . When was the last time you saw anyone wearing cycle clips ? Earlier in the week we saw a smartly dressed  American youngster ( presumably here for an interview ) wearing sleeve bands. I have a pair that I inherited from my father but I haven't worn them in forty years. Guess cycle clips and sleeve bands are back in fashion. Can't be long before kipper ties join them.

The first two of this mornings foursomes are of the hearty back slapping variety. It's hard to determine whether they're old friends or are strangers overcome by the excitement of the moment.

Two gentlemen are sitting on a bench by the clubhouse. They're both smoking large cigars. They seem to have been here for some time. Both are wearing Titleist baseball caps. I'd reckon a full 50% of visitors sport Titleist headgear. Last year this brand was a rarity. This year its dominant.

The Royal and Ancients gardeners have been busy.

Lots of young gulls around. Their parents seem to leave them to fend for themselves after a few days. Between speeding cars and starvation the mortality rate for young gulls must be at least 30%. Possibly higher.

Clever dog :https://x.com/Ragassa_Hash/status/2081786702830690316

New medicines :https://www.acsh.org/news/2026/07/23/seasick-airsick-theres-new-drug-finally-50235

This doesn't come as a surprise :https://lifespan.io/nyc-woman-dead-after-receiving-a-longevity-infusion/

Playing on the radio as we drive into town :https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0OEWBq_jzuA&list=RD0OEWBq_jzuA&start_radio=1

The British Ambassador in Warsaws daily tweet :https://x.com/MelSimmonsFCDO/status/2081985430380036458

Pilgrims of a sort.

The wild fires in France and Spain dominate the morning news bulletin. It seems that there's been some rain overnight which should hopefully help tamp things down.

We park the car and detour into chapel. One of the organ scholars is an early bird and we sit on a bench listening to him practising  for a weekend wedding. It is a small but much appreciated luxury to be able to sit in an empty building and secretly listen to the Old 100th echoing through the rafters. At this time of the day we have the place to ourselves. Give it an hour and the tour buses from Edinburgh will be disgorging a stream of visitors.

Todays interest is provided by a group of thirty or so Catholic pilgrims who are heading down the street to the cathedral to celebrate a Latin mass. There is a moment or two of concertina like chaos as the front of the procession stops for the traffic lights at the pedestrian crossing while the rear keeps on going.

They are led by a man singing medieval pilgrim songs. These are also in Latin. He has some form of amplification device which pumps up the volume and broadcasts the sound in a radius of at least a hundred yards around them. Five priests, including one in a biretta, direct the procession towards the cathedral. You don't see many birettas in these Presbyterian heartlands.

The pilgrims have a well behaved intensity to them. The cathedral grounds don't open until nine so what they will do until then is something of a mystery.

At the other end of town the golfers are waiting (im)patiently to see if they've been lucky in todays ballot. Two English lads peer through the windows of the R&A. " You need to wear a jacket to get in there " says one to the other in a tone of voice that can best be described as awestruck. The boys are also pilgrims of a sort.

I'm not sure what skill sets this teaches :https://x.com/ChinaNow24/status/2081265509698302250

Stoic philosophy :https://fredericpoag.substack.com/p/a-longing-for-what-never-was

This is becoming a recurrent topic :https://www.mcgill.ca/oss/article/technology-did-you-know-general-science/dogs-speak-breakthrough-or-illusion

How well did you do ? :https://www.buzzfeed.com/lizmrichardson/us-history-elementary-school-quiz

Where does this man get his energy ? The UK and the US in one day ? :https://x.com/ZelenskyyUa/status/2081975587149602856

High summer.

Much of Britain has now gone 40 days without rain. Here, it poured heavily for much of yesterday and there's a solid bank of cloud off to the North West which hints that there's more to come. The farmers will be happy. On our way into town we pass the first field with the crop harvested and the hay all tightly bound. It can only be a matter of days before our village farmers follow suit. We're at that stage of the year when time starts to sprint forwards. 

The lobster fishermen have taken to fishing at night. Maybe the catch is better when the water is colder ? This morning the local boats are all moored in the outer harbour and there's no sign of their owners. In fact there's no sign of anyone.  One of the houses on the quayside has an impractical iron balcony. This has rusted away in the salt laden air and bright orange safety railings have been put up on the cobbles to cordon it off.  Not all architects are practical souls.

The florist is displaying something truly horrendous in her window. Is it a vase ?

The mechanical cobbler in the shoe repair shop window is still dressed for the World Cup.

Sandcastle competitions a reminder that more innocent summer holiday pastimes are still thriving in this part of the world. We stop for a chat with a neighbour who has returned from holiday. He reminds us that in five weeks time a new influx of students are expected.

The busiest day ever for air travel :https://x.com/US_Stormwatch/status/2081092816944717872

Were people brighter in those days ? :https://x.com/pietergaricano/status/2080582758670151704

Unusual sighting :https://x.com/BlacklionCTA/status/2080046882206695606

I  thought this was AI generated but am told it's real :https://x.com/BulwarkOnline/status/2080842799050547275

Some thoughts from Yale :https://news.yale.edu/2026/07/23/study-uncovers-lost-golden-age-languages

Drizzle

Some light drizzly rain this morning. The farmer will be pleased as will the fire service. There's been a blaze in the dry heather up on the hills by Aviemore. The village is getting ready for something called The Rat Race being run the 100 miles between Edinburgh and Glamis Castles:https://www.ratrace.com/rr100-edinburgh-to-glamis-2026-eei/#eei-overview  We know little about it but professional looking orange signs have appeared by the doocot pointing runners down to the field where the cows are. A table dispensing Barley Water has been put up in front of the potato barns. There is a general feeling of expectancy amongst the villagers who are unsure whether to expect tens or hundreds of visitors. The scout hut in the next village down the coast has been turned into an overnight pit stop with warm food and a doctor on duty for those intent on doing the full 100 miles. It's all very professional.

Down where the golf courses meet the sea the groundskeepers have planted a wild flower meadow. It attracts swarms of bees and flocks of butterflies. It also looks good so can be counted a great success.

Sanderlings charging in and out of the incoming waves. They are the most comical of all waders.

This mornings rain gives the air a decidedly autumnal accent. We do our 10,000  steps and then head off to the warmth of Starbucks.

A late delivery of birthday chocolates by the courier who has moved into the cottage by the Y junction. It still seems odd to have a delivery first thing on a Sunday morning. These chocolates come from a maker in the Highlands. They are as well wrapped as chocolates can be.

They are very French in their presentation.

They are also very Scottish in design.

A little poem with a big heart: https://substack.com/@joysullivan/note/c-295880282

Excitement in Greenland :https://x.com/OJoelsen/status/2081013859695956350

Why electronics are about to get more expensive :https://www.chinatalk.media/p/the-chemistry-of-chips

What German children do during their summer holidays :https://www.cato.org/blog/friday-feature-mini-cities

I fund this on Youtube but am still none the wiser about what to expect :https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNQJtZQOXe4

No heat here.

200,000 people in South West France and Spain now being evacuated from the path of forest fires. The old mayor of the French village phones for a wee chat. He says it's been 42C for the last three days with a sleep interrupting low of 30C at night. Everyone is praying for rain. The owners of the castle are having air conditioning installed in every room. From the old mayors tone of voice I can safely assume he thinks having aircon in every room is extravagant. Relations between the recently elected town councillors, we discover, is not good. The last meeting of the council ended with the new mayor and the very new mayor using 'indecorous' terms to describe each other. The hot weather is not helping.

Out here on the coast the weather is being very Scottish. There was a wee bit of rain overnight. This was enough to freshen up the plants in the garden but not enough to keep the farmer and his potato plants happy. Today a high of 20C and low of 14C is forecast.

A display in Starbucks tells us this is a dog town par excellence . Pots of cream are very much in evidence.

£6.80 for a kilo of peas a reminder that life isn't getting any cheaper. The peas were harvested this morning so I guess you pay up for freshness.

The second session of the summer school for teenagers is underway. A young gull looks plaintively at the front door of the youngsters dorm. The wee thing has quickly understood that where there are human teenagers there's pizza crust.

Another young gull glares at us from atop the rubbish bins. Gulls appear to be the very worst of parents. They seem to abandon their offspring as soon as they can. The roads are sadly covered in the remnants of chicks run over by speeding cars.

The calves on the village green are growing by the day.

This used to be one of Europes great natural wonders but this year it's been too hot ? : https://www.umbriatourism.it/en/w/la-fioritura-di-castelluccio-di-norcia-2

Flying :https://theconversation.com/why-air-travel-can-be-so-hard-on-the-body-281924

Not as dumb as we thought ? :https://www.yahoo.com/news/science/articles/neanderthals-may-just-smart-modern-104500617.html

Robots :https://x.com/UnitreeRobotics/status/2080549171661295907