Last of the summer wine

'The Font' goes to the Community Council meeting. There is a lengthy discussion as to whether a path should be built to the wild bluebell wood on the shore. Those in favour say a path would enable walkers to more easily access the site. Those who disapprove cite the same argument. A decision is put off until the next meeting. Attendees are told that the local planning authority has approved the extension to the new caravan park despite the fact that it will be built on green belt land where the curlews nest. Economic growth is cited as the reason for the decision. Curlews can't vie with hard cash.

The village a hive of activity this morning. The farmer who owns the fields on top of the bluff is harvesting his wheat. We drive into town through a cloud of chaff.

The first bus load of tourists from Edinburgh have been dropped off outside the cathedral. They mill around waiting for their guide to tell them what to do.

Scots families are already out on the beach. There is something deep in the Scots DNA that knows summer is coming to an end and this is one of the last chances to catch what sun is left. Everyone seems remarkably cheerful.

Tour groups photograph other tour groups outside chapel. A group of Baptists from Akron are told by their guide that this is the very place where the Reformation started and that after preaching John Knox lead a procession of students from here to destroy the Archbishops palace. This is an unusual, fact free ( and Luther free ), take on history but the Akron folk are clearly moved and sing a spontaneous verse of Onward Christian soldiers. Some passing Japanese look at the singing Akronites and wonder whether to clap. Angus is left to wonder a) when it was he last heard 'Onward Christian soldiers' being sung and b) whether the words meet todays standards of political correctness.

More tour groups by the research library. They're standing at the bus stop which causes a little confusion when the Anstruther double decker pulls in. The driver opens the doors to let them get on and a conversation ensues. The driver, discovering they don't intend to board, says something rather unwelcoming and heads off.

A few yards away there are parts of town that remain gloriously quiet and unexplored. The summer schools for foreign teenagers end tomorrow as does the Scottish country dancing gathering. The rugby and Lacrosse 'skill enhancement' courses last another week as does the American Bar Association common law gathering. Then there's a brief pause before two thousand freshers arrive in town. After five in the evening the air has developed a slight 'nip' that makes a sweater a necessity.

Can you get any closer to the water ? A beach side hotel in Cape Town :https://www.tintswalo.com/atlantic

We're older than we thought :https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2025-08-07/stone-tools-sulawesi-million-years-ancient-humans-fossils/105618842

A good advert for decaf :https://www.newsweek.com/coffee-caffeine-drinking-night-behavioral-control-flies-2109573

Old EV batteries could have a new life :https://www.canarymedia.com/articles/long-duration-energy-storage/second-life-ev-grid-batteries-succeed