The central heating boiler breaks down . 'The Font' is in the shower when it happens. The water temperature drops - suddenly. Angus is called. Getting a heating engineer on a Saturday morning is well nigh impossible. Thankfully, a friend at the the University knows a man who knows a man who shows up 30 minutes after I get through. The man is the sort of Scot who is 'not a ray of sunshine'. He is also extremely, borderline clinically, taciturn. He works on the boiler for much of the morning emitting half whispered guttural deprecations as he does so . He grunts with irritation when he arrives and grunts with irritation when he goes. ' Who serviced this boiler ? ' he asks in a tone of voice that suggests a crime has been committed. The good news is that he leaves with the heating gurgling happily away. In the two and a half hours he's here his face remains unburdened by even a hint of a smile. As he gets into his van he says ' You were lucky to get me. Young people don't want to work weekends'. I'm betting the bill, when it arrives, will be equivalent to the GDP of a small African country. He is thanked profusely. A good boiler repair man, taciturn or not, is worth his weight in gold.

After a walk on the beach Sophie and Angus have a leisurely stroll back into town. How quiet it seems after last weeks excitement. The wee cafe that had briefly turned into a pizzeria ( together with Chianti bottles on the tables ) has reverted to being a wee cafe. It's not fully open yet. The staff are busy cleaning the window ledges. ' You can't believe how much dust they left' says the owners daughter. Despite the dust and the fact the power has been cut off ( due to a Netflix induced mishap in the kitchen ) Sophie gets a sliver of shortbread.
A miniature Schnauzer has been drinking from the dog bowl at the student cafe. Sophie sniffs it and decides to give it a pass. Sophie is very particular about water. She ignores the water bowls at home much preferring water from a puddle. A bowl that has already been used by a Schnauzer is beyond the pale.