Angus is thinking of having a dashcam fitted. Being a university town there is more than a fair share of 'youthful' driving. By 'youthful' driving I mean the sort that ignores road signs and treats speed limits as 'suggestions'. Angus has been onto the Which magazine website and ordered a dashcam . It was supposed to be fitted by the Volvo dealer this morning. Goes without saying that there was a phone call last night to say it hadn't arrived in their service department. So much for same day delivery. We reschedule for next week. ' I'm sure it will be here by then ' says the Volvo man cheerfully.
The heather in the courtyard is enjoying the sunshine. I don't think I've ever seen heather looking this healthy.
The camelias are also out in bloom. Who'd have thought that camelias would survive this close to the North Sea ?
The number of birds on the sea shore increases by the day. This morning we're surrounded by large, aggressive and noisy seagulls. They may be albatrosses. They are completely indifferent to Sophie.
Yesterday we headed down to Edinburgh. to pick up a 1980's era picture by a Scottish artist called 'White dog in Honfleur'. This was the last town we stayed at in France. For our final dinner we went to a rather good restaurant where Sophie ( amazingly and uncharacteristically ) proved to be a paragon of virtue and lay quietly under the table during dinner. Afterwards the staff rewarded her with a trip into the kitchen. She returned ten minutes later with a look that said she'd been to heaven.
The white dog may not look like Sophie but it's the memory of that final night in France that counts.
Today we shall be planting out some tree peonies and some Salvia. Sophie will be practising her herding skills on the indifferent gulls. After an absence of five months the electricians are due to be here to finish off the garden lighting. Not even they could come up with a reason to delay when I sent them a copy of their last e-mail which promised they'd be back ' well before Christmas'.
11 comments:
The heather and Camellias look magnificent - who would have thought so much lushness would flourish so far north?
Sophie, too, looks magnificent - but then she always does - even on a bad hair day!
Not sure about the painting, but can appreciate the sentiment. My late husband always remembered Honfleur - it was where a gull swooped down and pinched his picnic baguette out of his hand, as he was about to take a bite. The wing caught his face and left a nasty bruise.
The white dog picture will be a lovely reminder of that last night in France. A friend and I visited Honfleur on a mad cycling jaunt in the early 90s' I remember stopping at a patisserie in the rain and choosing a cake based on maximising calories so we had energy to complete that day's 80 mile ride!
Cheers, Gail.
PS Camellias are out in force in Aberdeen this year.
That Heather is simply stunning - I’ve certainly not seen it as colourful in New Zealand . . . It must like the climate, and perhaps the salty air? The Volvo dealership seems to trespass upon your good nature frequently Angus! Or was the tyre debacle a different firm? I love the painting, and I think it DOES look like Sophie - there is black as well as white there, and a determined nose - definitely Sophie!
We have dashcams front and back - there are some idiotic drivers out there!
Hari OM
Huh, and as if a mass dash-cam cloud has descended, I have been assessing different models in anticipation of the new van's arrival... here's to safe roads. YAM xx
Model Sophie's herding skills when working with the skilled tradespeople.
We've never thought of a dashcam! The heather is really gorgeous and the camellias look very happy as well.
I agree that dashcams can be a good idea. They should be on all rentals, not so much like Big Brother but more like Dour Driving Instructor, keeping people in check. Lots of tourists (and probably plenty of foreign students in your town) don't know the local rules of the road.
The waves are heather are gorgeous. I have just jotted down a reminder to myself to add heather to my garden this year.
Angus, are the healthy heather and flourishing camellias a testimony to
" someone's" exceptional green thumb? In addition to that someone's cooking skills? How lovely to have the painting to remind you of that special moment of transition from one chapter to the next.
What a perfect piece of art to complement the piece of pottery the villagers gave to you when you left the ROF.
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