Friday, June 28, 2024

A day for flying.

 

It's windy. A shaggy dog is more than enjoying himself on the beach. He understands this is a day for flying.


The dog also tries lying on his back in the water , chasing seagulls and barking at the wind surfers. He does his best to remind his owner that she has a ball in her pocket that needs to be thrown. His sister trots along quietly behind and does her best to ignore him.

The lady with the Pomeranian and the professor with two black labradors ask what we thought about last nights American debate.  A shrug of the shoulders seems to be the most apt response.


On the village green the cows exude contentment. Long lush grass, blue skies and a breeze. What's not to like ?


One girl, with a very fine coat, wanders over to see us.


We try to take a shortcut past the music centre but a look from a groundsman tells us that we run the risk of being run over by some radio controlled tracked vehicle. We retreat.


Yesterday evening a talk by an author on drinking water. Seems that Big Spring, Texas is the first town in the US to rely totally on 'toilet to tap' water or ' shower to flowers' as those with a more delicate constitution  would have it : https://www.texasstandard.org/stories/how-big-spring-fights-the-effects-of-drought-with-its-toilet-to-tap-water-system/ . Big Springs 'Big Spring' has dried up which means that recycling waste water has become a necessity. " Soon the water that reaches your lips will have been through literally hundreds of kidneys ". This is a development that even  rain drenched Scotland might have to face as successive governments have failed to invest in our Victorian era water pipes. These have now become very 'leaky '.  The great thing about living in a university town is you can learn a little about a lot of esoteric subjects.

This is getting rave reviews in large part due to Tilda Swinton :https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zbsk4okRUds

As this piece shows Europeans are waking up to the fact that America is about to have an election :https://dgap.org/en/research/publications/us-presidential-election-2024-two-outcomes-one-set-challenges

How is this even humanly possible ? :https://x.com/Africa_Archives/status/1805568394613109021


10 comments:

The Life of Riley said...

During my first week in London in 1989 on my big OE (Kiwi term for overseas experience) I learnt London tap water contained water recycled via toilets at least three times! One of my first purchases in the UK was a water filter, however, that didn't stop limescale building up inside my electric jug, which was something I had never seen before. Previously I had enjoyed many years drinking water in NZ straight from the tap. From the talk you went to, it sounds like water is now recyled even more these days!

WFT Nobby said...

Love today's flying shaggy dog and bucolic cattle pictures.
As for water, one unheralded benefit of moving from London to Aberdeen was the complete absence of limescale in NE Scotland's tap water. So much time saved not having to clean the taps!
Cheers, Gail (currently back in limescale territory - Nottingham).

Linda said...

We're already facing the "refiltered" water process on Speyside, the heart of Scotland's malt whisky output. We actually have a water shortage here, despite constant rain this year. Gail in Aberdeen might be perturbed to know that limescale is making an appearance 50 miles to the west of her...

Travel said...

"Play like someone left the gate open" - enjoy the day.

Lisa in France said...

This watery post is either well- or ill-timed, I can't decide. We are already working on leaks in the roof over the dining room and over the garage, as well as a pipe-break in the cellar system that is supposed to deal with rainwater. And then yesterday, I found a pool of water on the floor outside my husband's office, and we found another leaky pipe in that wall. Our house seems generally to have been well-maintained, but the amount of rain we've had this year has overwhelmed its defenses. At least we are not in the drought area. And at least I did not get up at 3 a.m. to watch the debate.

rottrover said...

Yes, we are having an election here in the US. It's kind of a big, very scary thing. It's one reason why beautiful photos of happy dogs flying on the beach is so important. They remind your American readers what is truly important :)

Jake of Florida said...

As one who did watch from start to finish, knot in stomach tightening as evening wore painfully on.

Stephanie said...

I agree with both rottrover and Jake.

Allison said...

Biden's performance was dreadful. His color was bad, he was swaying, hoarse voice, and no projection. This was not the same man who did the State of the Union Address. The former guy looked good and healthy due to his makeup and stood there and lied without being challenged by the moderators. At one point he took credit for lowering the price of insulin, which was done by this administration. So, robust liar, vs person who tells the truth; who will win out?

Jim Davis said...

I agree with rottrover, Jake, and Stephanie.