Continuity is a greatly underestimated virtue.

Seven bees at work on the lavender beds this morning. Two weeks ago there were hundreds. Yesterday twelve. Tomorrow ?

The autumn winds are blowing from the west at 40 mph. The Gannets ride them sixty or seventy feet into the air before plunging down at right angles into the sea.  One of the young lecturers is out on the village beach with his three and five year olds. They stand and watch these dare devil divers and, when the bobble hatted youngsters are looking in the right direction, clap .

The trickle of incoming teenagers has turned into a flood. The average age of the people you pass in the street has fallen by thirty, possibly forty, years. Some of the incomers look barely old enough to be out on their own. A high proportion appear to be having the time of their lives. Others seem petrified. Most have an air of slight bewilderment. They move around in the safety of groups. Proud parents bustle proprietorially around. Mothers get weepy.  Younger siblings wonder why they've been dragged along. Fathers head to the golf course bars. This is one of lifes great generation unto generation moments.  We see three young couples holding hands in that tentative way that eighteen year olds do. This is reassuring proof that Freshers quickly get their bearings and get down to doing what Freshers always do. Continuity is a greatly underestimated and reassuring virtue.

Wedding time. 1960's era Rolls Royces bedecked with  wedding ribbons are lined up by chapel. Chauffeurs stand around in grey suits. 'The Font' notes three of them wearing pocket squares.  Pipes play. We hear this hymn being sung lustily at the end of a ceremony :https://youtu.be/wD9-djEuEjM?t=194 This is standard fare at polite English weddings but the first time either of us has ever heard it sung in Scotland. Turns out to be an English lad marrying an American girl so I guess it's forgivable allowable. The English guests wear tails, the Americans are evenly split between  suits or kilts. A gentleman from Los Angeles ( presumably a relation of the bride ) enters  into the spirit of things by adopting a Braveheart look complete with a shield. We stand and watch this cultural melee in awe struck silence.

More European accents heard around the place this year which is a sign that things are starting to remedy themselves after the self harm of Brexit. 

Out here the farmer is still waiting for the part to arrive for the all singing all dancing cabbage harvesting machine. Next week the eldest son heads back to Edinburgh and daughter starts law school. Youngest son remains blase about heading south.

11C. A  high of 17C forecast for this afternoon. 'The Font' makes it clear that this is the time to switch on the central heating.

Weekend reading:

Eggs :https://takshashiladispatch.substack.com/p/the-curious-case-of-the-egg

Unusual research from London :https://www.qmul.ac.uk/news/latest-news/2026/science-and-engineering/se/chimpanzees-have-accents-too-study-finds.html

Developments on Saturn :https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-mysterious-decagon-unexpectedly-appeared-around-saturns-south-pole-the-ten-sided-shape-seems-to-be-a-wave-in-the-atmosphere-180989449/

Horrifying and infuriating. What are we doing to the planet ?:https://gizmodo.com/australia-is-evacuating-an-antarctic-base-so-no-one-has-to-watch-thousands-of-seals-die-2000807054

What a sunrise

3 large Gulfstream jets fly low over the courtyard before turning on final approach into Dundee. Labor Day brings with it some big spending Americans determined to make a long weekend of it.

The dawn comes up like thunder.  If I saw the sky looking like this in December I'd know for sure snow was on the way but today the weather is calm and mild.

By the time we've made it down to the beach the sun has risen through the clouds and the light has developed that northern latitude softness.

Christmas pudding appears on the shelves in the supermarket.

Angus isn't the only one who has detected that winter is on the way. Is having Christmas Puddings on sale in early September some kind of record ?

Friday morning Faure :https://youtu.be/7JLRbOalScw

The well travelled fish finger :https://edconway.substack.com/p/the-30000-mile-fish-finger

Alternatives to burning trash:https://www.worksinprogress.news/p/just-bury-your-trash

Weighty but reassuring :https://foreignpolicy.com/2026/08/25/russia-ukraine-war-nuclear-weapons-escalation-putin-defeat

Worth scrolling down to read about the Bayeux tapestry and Winston and Charles  :https://www.edwest.co.uk/p/a-short-pause

Sweeteners :https://www.sciencealert.com/this-new-zero-cal-sugar-is-3500-times-sweeter-than-sucrose-but-doesnt-spike-insulin

The incident.

On the news this morning we learn that the American Vice President has shared his belief that " I'm doing as much of Gods work as possible and if that leads to the end times then I'm ok with that ". A self styled friend of the VP is interviewed. He informs us that 'On matters of immigration JD is more in touch with Catholic doctrine than the Pope'. The interviewer lapses into silence at this point.

Still no sign of the replacement part for the cabbage harvesting machine. The Dutch manufacturer has never known a machine break down so soon after being bought. The inference is that it's the farmers fault . This is making relations between the distributor and the farmer somewhat antagonistic toxic fraught.

There's a group of Japanese teenagers standing outside the front door of the wee house in town filming a group of flustered American retirees who are shouting and arguing. A woman is calling a man in the drivers seat of a mini van 'dumb as a box of rocks' while a man in the back of the van is loudly telling the driver to 'get out of here '. A gentleman from San Bernardino has attempted a U turn and misjudged both his speed and  the length of the Mercedes . He's hit the back of the little BMW and lost two hub caps in the process. Under stress he's pressed all the buttons on the Mercs dashboard and now the satellite emergency location system is emitting a klaxon like noise not unlike that you hear in movies involving the melt down of  a nuclear reactor. 

I introduce myself as the BMW's owner. 'Oh' he says in a tone of voice that makes it clear that Angus is the last person he wants to see. The conversation starts with ' I'm not used to driving on the wrong side of the road ' before sharing, with a surprising degree of candour, his thoughts about driving overseas. His wife, who is still shouting, finds their rental agreement. I phone the  company in Edinburgh who ask me to send through some photos. Five minutes later they're back on the phone saying they'll pay for the repairs and provide us with a rental car in the interim. A  replacement van for the Mercedes driver will be arranged. The drivers wife finally calms down. I reassure them that the damage is superficial, that they don't need to report it to the Police and that they should just go back to their hotel and relax. They are surprised all the paper work has been taken care of. The drivers view on 'overseas' driving regulations remains unchanged.

This morning the insurers body shop was on the phone at seven asking for more photos and for some dates when they can work on the car. " Looks like cracks in at least four body panels so better allow five or six days " says a man who seems to enjoy his work. The insurance companies have been efficient and easy to work with. Who would ever have expected that ?  

Thought for the day :https://iai.tv/articles/penroses-theory-of-consciousness-supported-by-new-quantum-evidence-auid-3667

A Canadian oddity :https://www.sciencealert.com/a-mysterious-island-has-emerged-in-a-canadian-lake

A trip to a demolition Derby :https://www.commonreader.co.uk/p/smash-bang-and-civilization

A glut of cherry tomatoes.

The weather proving to be very Scottish. Bright sunshine one minute, desultory wind and rain the next. The last of our visitors has gone so today will be spent with the cleaning ladies getting the wee house in town ready for the new Texan tenants who may, or may not, be arriving tomorrow.

More and more youngsters showing up in the cafes. Not yet a flood ( that will come on Saturday and Sunday with the arrival of the Freshers ) but definitely a strong trickle of fresh faces appearing. Everyone seems happy.

Twelve hardy bees on the lavender beds this morning. Above us flocks of honking geese continue to fly over on their way south. There's not as many of them this year but this is based on observation not scientific foundation. The starlings are now turning their attention to this seasons rose hips which seem particularly lustrous.

The souvenir shop windows offer visitors four major options:

1) Loch Ness monsters ( sometimes mixed up with green non-aquatic dinosaurs ) 

2) Smiling Highland Cows .

3) Westies ( or any dog that is white and fluffy ) and Scotties wearing a tartan bunnet and a badge with the word 'Mac' printed on it. 

4) 'Plaid' Golf club covers for golfers wishing to demonstrate to their fellow country club members that they've been to ( but not necessarily played ) the home of golf.

There is also a fifth option which is any ( or all of the above ) printed on a mug.

Scotland is a veritable super power in the trinket market. I'd wager that 90% of these products are made in Chengdu and the other 10% in Bangladesh. 

This morning the cheesemonger has gone overboard with its offering of exotic cherry tomatoes. It seems that the heatwave on the continent has impaired the output of large tomatoes ( anything above 35C and their yield plummets as the plants self regulate and drop their flowers to save water ) but boosted the small tomato crop. The things you learn on a start of day walk.

Overheard outside the music centre some Chinese music :https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kCthiLvVh7A

Scroll through to get the full experience. Our ancestors would marvel at our good luck :https://ordinaryabundance.com/

How long before a series based on this appears on Netflix ? :https://www.science.org/content/blog-post/alleged-dimethylmercury-incident

For anyone who has ever visited East Anglia its hard to believe there was a time when it wasn't flat :https://gizmodo.com/scientists-discover-a-hidden-supervolcano-buried-beneath-england-2000805057

Stonehenge :https://www.bbc.co.uk/culture/article/20260828-the-startling-1960s-theory-that-stonehenge-was-a-prehistoric-computer

Excitement

Razor clams stretching along the beach in  a strip ten metres wide and at least a mile long. Why the sea should throw them onto the sand in such large numbers is yet another of those mysteries that challenge the minds of early morning beach walkers. Dogs love the 'crunching' sound their paws make when they walk over them.

A very famous professional golfer out on the  links this morning. A man with his spaniel tries to take a surreptitious photograph.

Others are less surreptitious. Play backs up.

Back  in the village the cloud cover is beginning to give way to bright sunshine. It is remarkably warm so, for the moment, all thought of turning on the heating has gone. Still no sign of the spare part for the farmers hugely expensive ( and much prized ) cabbage machine.

There has been great excitement in town. Three Police cars were seen drawn up in a line near the church. It's rare to see one Police car let alone three. People stopped to gawp at the sight. Seems a shop owner had observed someone shoplifting. The paper this morning tells us a woman of 40 and a man of 49 have been  arrested. For the local dog owners this drama is the only topic of conversation.

Elgars calmest piece of music ? Ideal background as we enter the final third of the year :https://youtu.be/IwdeqVmXlHk?t=109

The Nepal disaster - some thoughts :https://rogerpielkejr.substack.com/p/what-actually-caused-the-nepal-disaster

An important election :https://x.com/PedderSophie/status/2093978196064506067

The comments about Copenhagen and Edinburgh halfway through were interesting. The rest is written in a modern style that I just don't get. When did UnConferences become a thing ? :https://benyeoh.substack.com/p/you-dont-know-who-you-need-to-meet

Tajik quality control.

A nip in the air this morning. We remain resolute in our determination not to turn on the heating until mid September. However, that mid September target may be adjusted to 'beginning of '.

The farmer is back to harvest the potatoes in the small triangular field that runs down to the sea. This small plot was 'overlooked' by the boys when they were here on Saturday. It seems that after darkness fell they were keen to head home for their dinner and 'forgot. this corner.

On our morning walk from the courtyard to the shore we stop to see what's going on. A group of cheerful Tajiks sit on a bench in a covered area at the back of the harvester. Here they can check for any damaged potatoes on a conveyor belt linked to a plough at the front of the machine . Approved potatoes then pass onto a hoist that disgorges them into boxes . The whole process busy but efficient. Youngest son races a small electric 4x4 across the field to see how fast it will go. His elder brother cheers him on. The Tajiks laugh.

A rather jazzy tartan kilt on a model in an outfitters window. There is a pashmina in the same tartan next to it. Ideal for couples who wish to their coordinate their outfits. The crimson bow tie does not improve matters. The tout ensemble has something of a popular stage and screen feel to it.

End of the month  music on the radio this morning :https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FS1Xx1whEKc

Egypt travelog :https://chandhana.substack.com/p/notes-on-egypt

If this appeared in anything other than Foreign Policy I'd think it was a joke :https://foreignpolicy.com/2026/08/28/american-oligarchy-geopolitics-dictators-democracy-jared-kushner-trump/?tpcc=fp_weekend

The role of the garage :https://www.coolidgereview.com/articles/garage-silicon-valley

Someone writes something sensible on AI :https://rogermyerson.substack.com/p/potential-challenges-of-artificial

Belonged.

Our excitement this morning is provided by a gull that has found a small washed up flounder in a pocket of water on the beach. The bird cannot believe its good fortune. It chortles with delight.

The colours of the world around us are changing. The sea whiter. The clouds darker. Scotland is settling into winter.

Out here a few weeks ago the village fields were a sea of green and gold waiting to be harvested. Now the colour has gone and the land is wind swept and stubbly and waiting to be ploughed. As recompense russet winter sunrises paint the morning air with an Arctic intensity. 

After a hectic Saturday night the potato harvest is in. Now all that remains is for the cabbages to be cut and packaged. There's still no sign of the replacement part for the farmers state of the art cabbage picking machine but he hopes to start again on Thursday. Next week his youngest son will be heading to Edinburgh with his elder brother so that each can buy a suitably conservative suit for college 'functions'. " The costs are endless " observes their father.

A memorial stone makes us stop and pause. 'JDG belonged here' etched into the paving . 'Belonged' is a powerful word. There's something intense about this use of language. Born here, taught here, studied here, lived here, married here would be expected but 'belonged' carries a different, deeper signifier. We're left wondering who JDG was, what made them feel they had such happy roots in this place, and what, if anything, happened to them. Why should you belong to one spot and not another ? The shortest epitaphs often hide the greatest mysteries.

A lyrical insight into Canada :https://rossboulton1.substack.com/p/my-fellow-americans-canadian-porch

Swords into ploughshares :https://thedebrief.org/the-classified-roots-of-nasas-nancy-grace-roman-space-telescope-how-a-spy-agencys-secret-satellite-became-a-space-observatory/

Safe flying :https://uxmag.com/articles/is-knowledge-management-worth-it

Shopping malls and ugliness:https://www.thenewatlantis.com/publications/you-probably-own-this-7-eleven

Oil:https://www.cfr.org/articles/crude-calculations-why-the-iran-war-hasnt-yet-caused-an-oil-shock