Familarisation.

That 'was it or wasn't it ?' terrorist attack at the air base in Gloucestershire leads the morning news broadcast. Before being arrested one of the men  had phoned 999 to alert the authorities to what was going on. This is an unexpected twist to the story. Police are being coy about what happened but it seems the Russians are employing local criminal gangs to cause opportunistic 'mischief'. 

The tournaments 'familiarisation' stages get underway at first light. Despite the early hour there's a small crowd of players waiting, with various degrees of patience, for their allotted tee off times. 

I was surprised by how many visitors showed up to see the golfers and the ' C ' list television celebrities yesterday. Today, despite some passing showers, it looks as if the numbers of onlookers will at least double . What will it be like when the tournament proper starts at the end of the week ?

Parking for most ... but not all .... is a nightmare. Two 'reserved for' signs outside the club house indicate that some have an elevated place in the earthly hierachy . Good weather is forecast. This means crowds. We may opt to stay well clear of town for the next five days. If we do come in it will be at six in the morning. 

The new Captain of the R&A is an Irish woman. The first woman captain in the clubs history. It's only taken them 250 years but they've finally moved into the modern era :https://www.irishgolfdesk.com/news-files/2026/9/25/claire-dowling-drives-in-as-first-woman-to-captain-the-royal-and-ancient  I'm sure some of the crustier members will view this as a sign of the coming apocalypse.

At the other  end of town the students move in herds from one class to the next. 

As a testament to the benefits of higher education a few of the brighter ones have now learnt how to use pedestrian crossings. Most still prefer the kamikaze approach to walking which involves wandering across the road diagonally or darting out from behind parked cars. Kudos to the three young ladies who stopped in the middle of North Street for a wee chat. They ignored the lights turning from red to green and then back again. Local drivers were not impressed but kept their thoughts unvoiced.

Wednesday morning Beethoven :https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cNFPILp1jy0

The weather mystery of the 1840's :https://arstechnica.com/science/2026/09/scientists-solve-1840s-space-weather-mystery/

Where Aristotle taught Alexander :https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/archaeologists-unearth-the-2400-year-old-school-where-aristotle-taught-alexander-to-be-great-180989581/

New Zealand. Some interesting insights :https://www.kvetch.au/p/new-zealand-introduction-part-1

Busy, busy, busy.

The tournament organizers are in luck. The weather forecast predicts blue skies and warm(ish) sunshine. The weather in Scotland in May and September is at its best. The good weather has got the dog owners out. On the beach we say 'Good morning' to the taciturn Chinese chef, the lady with the Pomeranian, Archies owner and the woman with the Briard.

The town is suddenly crowded. I'd forgotten just how many folks turn up for a golf tournament. The university end of the street is solid with teenagers while the other end is buzzing with 'B' and 'C' list celebrities . There are also a smattering of perma-tanned guys who have recently played a round or two with Donald.  There is little interaction between the groups. 

I'd have to say the place is looking at its best. The university gardeners are experts at ensuring the flower beds are in bloom at just the right time.

The tournament has a rather good poster.

It also uses a cardboard Westie as a backup advertising strategy. These have popped up in many shop windows. Neither of us know what Dunhill make. They used to be a tobacco company but have morphed into something else. Adverts for IWC watches and Genesis cars have popped up all around the Old Course. Maybe people actually opt to buy cars at golf tournaments. 

In the evening we pop into town for a pre-dinner libation. We're making maximum use of what daylight is left before the super short winter days arrive. The barman tells us the bar was crowded but the golfers have headed off to a six thirty corporate dinner. All the heaters are on at full blast and blankets have been laid out for patrons who are not used to the 'bite' of a late Scottish September evening. To avoid being scorched we sit as far away from the powerful heaters as it's possible to get. 'It'll be fair heaving when they come back at nine' says the barman with a tone of voice that suggests it will be chaos. Three American gentlemen show up and order beers. They're from Texas . ' What's the best Scotch ale you've got ?' they ask. One has flown into Edinburgh with Delta while the two others have flown American from Philadelphia. They all agree that first class on a 787 doesn't have much leg room. From their conversation we learn that they have sharply partisan views on the respective airlines.  A couple from North Carolina stand and look at the seventeenth tee and say 'Wow' over and over. After four years here this is a response that seems oddly commonplace. 

Oxygen and food :https://science20.com/mark_pierce/20260926/why_oxygen_not_time_is_what_makes_much_of_our_food_go_bad-300123

Back in the day we were on the menu :https://www.snexplores.org/article/human-evolution-hunted-prey-predator

A lucky detectorist :https://thedebrief.org/a-metal-detectorist-kept-finding-ancient-coins-in-a-german-field-then-he-hit-a-1900-year-old-jackpot/

More about El Nino :https://www.theclimatebrink.com/p/the-impacts-of-this-years-record

Obscured views.

 Was it the Russians or the Iranians ? Maybe both. This mornings news dominated by the thwarted attack on the USAF base in Gloucestershire.

What is it with some billionaires ?   :https://x.com/remarks/status/2103263514471047390

We set off into town as the sun is rising. The length of these post-equinox days isn't so much getting shorter as draining away. It won't be long before the clocks change and darkness starts to fall around four o'clock. For a while this morning our only companions are the ever busy Gannetts and the first of the geese heading noisily along the coast towards the warmth of the south.

A group of hardy Spanish tourists are walking , at pace, down towards the golf course. Their guide is wearing a pink faux fur jacket and purple shoes. She has the look of a woman who is bored to distraction. There is a new cafe on the floor above the World Golf museum. This is where the guide instructs her charges to take twenty minutes to look around while she heads up the steps, orders a double espresso at an outside table and smokes her first cigarette of the day. It's rare these days to see anyone smoking. 

The bleachers have gone up for the tournament. These handily obscure the view of the 18th tee for some of the inhabitants of the super expensive block of flats.

A dog is sitting waiting patiently for its master outside the barbers. We think the dog must be tied to the bench but it's just sitting there waiting to be reunited. We've never had a dog that would wait patiently or indeed understand what 'wait' means. All our dogs would join Angus in the barbers.

This is the third book by this author 'The Font' has read. 'Great fun' I'm told. It had to be ordered so I'm guessing the target audience is small. It sounds far too  challenging for me.

Angus finishes these books this week. Two very different subjects but both are  well written . 'The World of the Cold War' will probably ( or should )  become a set text for International Relations students.

Dog owners will find nothing surprising in this :https://www.discovermagazine.com/dogs-show-a-surprising-speech-processing-skill-once-thought-unique-to-humans-49727

Improving the neighbourhood :https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sEc1DiD0mDM

There is a farm shop near here that sells ostrich meat :https://markvbarrowjr.substack.com/p/the-many-lives-of-the-florida-ostrich

Our AI course continues to be educational although this required more concentration than I had to offer :https://institute.deepmind.com/essays/artificial-symbiotic-intelligence/

An American rapper appears on German tv :https://x.com/shadysmith219/status/2103207611067986406/video/1

Sunday morning overtime charged at triple or quadruple rates ?

The first television crews are spotted at the village golf course. The Dunhill  tournament starts on Thursday and every hotel within a fifty mile radius is fast filling up :https://www.alfreddunhilllinks.com/

The bakers window has golf themed biscuits and golf themed cupcakes. They will fly off the shelves.

There are some expensive apartments that overlook the 18th tee on the Old Course. This morning a group of men in orange dayglo jackets are working on a displaced window on the top floor. Two men are abseiling down from the roof while a third shouts orders. This much excitement is unusual on a Sunday morning. In fact this much excitement is unusual any day of the week. The pavement outside has been roped off with stripey orange and white tape in case of falling debris. This is a very Scottish health and safety feature. Sunday morning overtime must entail triple hourly rates. 

Diesel now at £1.99 a litre. The farmer has been complaining about the price since May. Then it was £0.50 a litre cheaper. I'll wager it'll be north of £2 tomorrow morning.

The farmer and his wife are dropping off their youngest  in Cambridge today. They set off yesterday morning. It's an eight hour drive but they decided to break the journey half way down so they can enjoy a family dinner together. The farmers wife says 'a final family dinner' but quickly corrects herself. I'd wager there will be tears from her and an emotion obscuring ' we've got to get back the roads are busy ' from the farmer. The lad, it goes without saying, will not notice any of this. He has a life to get on with and new friends to make. There will be urban girls he can impress with his knowledge of brassica harvesting. 

The topic of this mornings sermon in chapel is a question we're all asking.

Down by the Royal and Ancient clubhouse visitors are watching the last of the stands being put up. One local dog is keen to talk to an enchanting visitor.

So starts a quiet Sunday in a small town on the North Sea that is preparing for an explosive influx of golfers. The aisles in Marks and Spencers this morning busy with floppy haired young Scandinavian golfers buying sandwiches. When you're 19 and struggling to get on the tournament rankings life is hard. Some players fly in on private jets others count every penny and fly standby on Ryan Air.

Should you eat Sushi on a Monday ? :https://counteroffer.substack.com/p/true-or-false-dont-eat-sushi-on-mondays

Beaches with killer flies. Bostonians will understand this map :https://x.com/jeffisrael25/status/2102934536539746500

Highly superior autobiographical memories :https://www.sciencealert.com/teen-discovered-with-a-memory-more-powerful-than-99-9-of-the-population

Americas best communicator. Little - almost invisible - gestures are important. A fellow Presbyterian in France points out the reassuring ' I know you're petrified but don't worry ' grasp of the elbow of the man in the black track suit at the 1:39:14 mark :https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BCxddPHi56g

Sunrise, flowers and a prayer.

Decidedly cooler now. Not quite scarf weather but we're getting there. Climbing up from the harbour we both note that the sunrises are getting more spectacular as we head further into autumn. This mornings gold and salmon pink light show doesn't disappoint.

The tide far out today. It's a good couple of minutes fast walk from the dunes down to the waters edge. The usual band of labradors and goldens ( and their owners ) are already charging in and out of the surf. It takes more than a chilly start to the day to dent their enthusiasm. 

Friday sees 'The Font' going to a concert in the small 14th century chapel hidden behind the cathedral. A group of four enthusiastic students are performing. Ten minutes before its due to start and the place is packed with genteel townsfolk and boisterous youngsters. Small choirs and very old chapels bring an intimacy to the music that you don't find in larger venues.  'The Font' thinks 'If ye love me' written in turbulent times might possibly be the single most beautiful piece of English music . It's certainly one of the most magical :https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yHe2FDlHHa8

Someone has  spent some time on the floral decorations. One of those little civic actions that goes unrecognized but is done out of  a mixture of love, duty and tradition. Tulips in late September are a rarity.

Before the concert starts a prayer is offered up for the people of Ukraine. Perhaps people in small countries with large powerful neighbours are more attuned to the importance of quiet acts of support. 'The Font' delphically hopes that future generations will consider our prayers to have been enough.

So starts a quiet Saturday in a small town on the North Sea.

Where the super El-Nino will hit hardest :https://gizmodo.com/new-map-reveals-where-this-super-el-nino-will-hit-hardest-and-its-not-pretty-2000816783

The importance of sleep :https://www.sciencealert.com/one-critical-factor-predicts-longevity-better-than-diet-or-exercise-study-reveals

Latin Americans in decline :https://x.com/jesusferna7026/status/2102768454935748701?s=61

The first primal scream of the new semester.

Archie, the arthritic black labrador, does his level best to ignore a student who has decided to head into the North Sea for a pre-breakfast dip. The student hurtles past Archie and then screams as the icy water hits him like a jolt of ten thousand volts.  It's not long before the young man beats a rapid repeat and stands, dripping, on the sand. This gives him time to regret the fact he's not brought a towel. Spur of the moment dips have post dip consequences. Archie looks back briefly but continues his leisurely plod along the sand. Life lesson #1 for students :  it's called the North Sea for a reason.

In an interesting insight into animal psychology 'Ethel' is the only one of 27 sheep that will interface with humans. All the others scuttle away if anyone comes within an inch of their fence.

The strawberry lady thinks there may be two more weeks before she shuts up shop for another year. The berries are getting markedly smaller but have a late season sweetness that sets them apart.

'That' book has arrived in the towns bookstores and is already being sold at half price. In both bookstores demand has been minimal.

I read an interesting article that says if you live somewhere that has  a Gails or  outlets selling Matcha Latte your constituency will likely be Liberal Democrat ( Summary and link here ) :https://www.politicalbetting.com/index.php/archives/2026/09/23/winning-here-lib-dems-and-constituency-betting/

Reading is good for you :https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/from-boosting-mental-health-to-reducing-dementia-risk-heres-why-reading-is-extremely-good-for-you-according-to-science-180989548/

Photo: US Cavalry at the Great Wall fo China :https://picryl.com/media/troop-l-6th-us-cavalry-at-the-great-wall-of-china-near-the-ming-tombs-east-f738cc

Messing with daylight :https://gizmodo.com/something-deep-inside-earth-keeps-messing-with-the-length-of-our-days-2000816070

Not everyone is worried about AI :https://news.gallup.com/poll/714593/optimism-globally-widespread-despite-uneven.aspx

Dents in the bodywork

Three and a bit weeks ago a tourist drove into the back of the little BMW in his Mercedes van. Yesterday, the repair shop came to pick up the car. They've rescheduled five times ( strange how you remember these things ) so we're delighted that they show up on the sixth attempt. 'It'll probably be ready in a week or so' says an ill shaven young man in blue dungarees before adding the even vaguer qualifier ' but nae promises '. Garage workers worldwide are masters of imprecision.  A Ford Kuga has been 'loaned' to us as a replacement vehicle. It has myriad dents in the bodywork which I carefully photograph just in case there's any misunderstandings about what state it 's been delivered in. The Ford is not as sporty as the BMW and has a high driving position not unlike a tractor.

There was a time when Scottish rain would politely announce its arrival with a few gentle moments of drizzle before morphing into the main act. These days it's dry one minute and whoosh! you're in a power shower the next. Yesterday  started off  clear and bright and then without so much as beg your pardon moved into a full on monsoon. We even had thunder and lightning.

This morning the floral display outside the small hotel looks vibrant after three solid hours of rain. At the Old Course three American gentlemen spend a full five minutes unembarrassedly limbering up before teeing off. A group of Spanish tourists watch them. We are now past peak golf ( that was Labor Day ) and there's no queue of impatient golfers telling the balletic trio to get on with it. The stands continue to go up ahead of the Dunhill tournament and what looks like a medium sized medieval tent village has appeared by the starters hut.

Some students are sitting in a circle on the lawn outside the International Relations Department. This is a strangely old fashioned scene. Some lecturer, presumably a Scot, must have thought it a good idea to move outside and benefit from the fresh air while they still can. I've got to an age in life where I wonder if the grass is still rheumatically damp from the prior days rainfall .

The first year students enthusiasm for walking together between lectures hasn't waned. We meet a large group heading towards us as we head back to the car. Young women lead the way while the males follow meekly behind. They look like a Roman legion on the march. The students continue to find cars and anyone over the advanced age of 30 completely invisible. We step aside to let them pass.  Youngsters wearing those large pilots headphones unconcernedly wander off the pavement and into the path of oncoming traffic. This kamakaze spirit forces us to drive through town 'super cautiously'. 18 mph is our preferred speed although the Ford has spongey brakes so 15 might be more advisable.

Scottish Gannet photo wins prize of the year :https://edition.cnn.com/travel/bird-photographer-of-the-year-2026-winning-images-c2e-spc?Date=20260922&Profile=CNN

Back to wind power :https://gcaptain.com/the-return-of-sail-power-cargo-ships-are-turning-back-to-the-wind/

Learning from the French :https://www.kqed.org/science/2002033/heres-what-california-is-learning-from-solar-panels-built-over-irrigation-canals

Caffeine addicts  :https://www.popsci.com/health/morning-coffee-bad-sleep/

How will they make money ? AI is getting ( much ) cheaper :https://epoch.ai/publications/the-plunging-price-of-thought

Incoming storm.

Piers Morgan, a man I'd never thought would be mentioned in this blog, has brought some excitement to the spat between the King and Charles Spencer. It seems Mr.Morgan has been misquoted and has demanded, and been given, an apology. On the breakfast bulletin we hear the phrase ' Diana was a phenomenon and the most famous woman in the world '. This clarification is presumably designed for under 30 year olds who might not know who she is. It's all very Downton Abbey. It seems the Earls new book is not selling well. The public , in their collective wisdom, have decided he has an axe to grind. Harry has now announced that he and Megan are going to produce a film about his late mother. The phrase bread and circuses springs to mind.

No sooner do I start to cut the lavender than the bees reappear. Lavender cutting has been paused.

A small warship at anchor in the bay this morning. It's not very big so I'm guessing its something to do with fishery protection. The cloud is building up inland and rain and storms are promised for later today. The rain is expected to be heavy. This will be welcome - the ground is absolutely parched. The farmer has delayed the rest of the cabbage harvest until after the storm has blown through. The Range Rover is being taken to the car wash today in readiness for the drive down to Cambridge this weekend with the youngest son. For the local famers a journey down to England by car is quite an event, doubly so when the last of the brood is onboard.

The Cabbage Whites which were here in huge numbers have been replaced by Peacocks. They flit around us as we head down the track to the shore.  This late bout of warm weather seems to be doing great things for the local insect life.

The fountain in town gurgles happily away. When the wind is channeled down the shopping street the water in the fountain gets blown onto the cobble stones behind. Unwary or unsuspecting pedestrians be warned. You may get drenched.

Whoever knew there was such a thing as a 'Baby Passport Specialist '?

Passing the cheesemonger we pop in for some Wensleydale and Red Leicester.

So starts another day in the life of a small Scottish university town .

On the beach this morning a rather grand wheaten Scottie :https://a-z-animals.com/blog/scottish-terrier-colors-rarest-to-most-common/

Would you ?:https://bigthinkmedia.substack.com/p/inside-the-emerging-world-of-anesthesia-078

And to think there are those worried that students use AI :https://www.thedartmouth.com/article/2026/09/schnell-ai-writing#google_vignette

Danish food :https://theconversation.com/how-a-traditional-nordic-way-of-eating-could-help-you-live-longer-282282

A two heron morning.

The weather continues to be sunny and bright. After a bitterly cold start yesterday  turned out to be positively balmy. More of the same is forecast for today. You just know there are first year students texting their parents to say " The  climate here's wonderful and  not nearly as cold or wet as we feared ". Give it time.

The last of the bees have gone and the lavender is now completely bee free. The plants have got leggy so tomorrow I shall cut them way back before the autumn winds roll in. Overhead the geese continue to head south west in flocks of fifty or sixty. Earlier in the year they flew over low. Now they're flying at a much greater height and with greater urgency. The starlings have suddenly returned ( where did they go ?) and perch in squabbling lines along the telephone wires that run alongside the track to the potato barns. The farmers wife is at that schizoid stage where the last of her offspring is about to leave home. Half of her wants to celebrate, the other half can't believe he's going. This morning she's heading down to the sea in her one piece bathing suit with a towel slung over her shoulder. The dogs follow on behind.

Down by the harbour we see a heron sunbathing by the lock gates. It ignores  passing humans with what can best be described as lugubrious disdain.

Up the hill by the old cannon there's another one. On the rocks below it hundreds of tiny eider ducks are learning to swim. They have remarkable buoyancy and bob around on the swell like feathered corks under the watchful eye of their mothers. This is one of those annual rites of passage that make us laugh. Some days, as Rilke said,  ' begin as a meal and end as a feast '.

The university administration building open and busy. Over the weekend they got good news on the UK rankings. The decision to have kept a cap on numbers while everyone else expanded has proven to be a good one.

Happy chickens :https://www.acsh.org/news/2026/09/18/free-range-paradox-high-cost-happy-chickens-50330

Medicine is improving :https://reason.com/2026/09/19/7-cool-advances-in-biosciences/

Fringe activity :https://www.lrt.lt/en/news-in-english/19/3055161/could-latin-become-europe-s-common-language-a-young-group-thinks-it-can

Were they expecting a wall ?

It's true. Only idiots take the train on a Sunday. Our scheduled service to Aberdeen  was cancelled  and we took a later 'express' that got stuck behind a commuter train into Edinburgh. We progressed north at a snails pace. Thankfully, there was a fast ScotRail heading north twenty minutes after we got to Waverley. In the end our three and a half hour journey took just under six. 

The train we take from York was busy. We got the last two seats. 'The Font' in one carriage, me in another. I sit at a table with three ladies who inform me that 'Things like this wouldn't happen in New York'. The other passengers ( mostly intelligent Americans of a certain age with a few Dutch and Spanish couples thrown into the mix ) took the delay in their stride. A gentleman from Georgia observes that there's a large white horse carved into a hillside just north of York. Everyone by the window takes a photo even though it's in the far distance. I follow suit  :https://getlostmcr.co.uk/trails/kilburn-white-horse-hike  The gentleman from Georgia tells a woman from Utrecht who's sitting across the aisle about the strengths of Jon Ossoff. By the time we get to Durham inhibitions are fraying and it's like travelling with a group of old friends.

We've never been to Alnmouth. From the train the village and harbour look as though they'd be worth visiting. There's supposedly a good restaurant in nearby Alnwick but when Googled it turns out to have one of those fifteen course tasting menus that take five hours to plough through. Why chefs think this is a selling point is beyond me.

Everyone takes a picture of the border as we cross it. Some of the passengers thought it memorable. Others weren't impressed. Perhaps they expected a wall and floodlights and guard dogs ? The unhappy New York ladies discover the buffet car is out of sandwiches. They wonder if they'll get a refund. One lady observes that she'd want at least $25,000 in compensation to cope with all the stress the delay has caused. " It's worse than flying Southwest ".

Back here this morning there's no doubting we're no longer in England. It may be the last day of summer but the wind has an unforgiving bite to it. 'The Font' is wearing five layers this morning. A few hardy dog owners sit outside the coffee shop ignoring the elements and chatting affably to one another. The pavement is dusted with the first of the fallen leaves. 

The light has that watery fragility that signals long nights and short days are on their way. It's now dark by seven thirty. Light and climate play a big part in shaping national identity. In the coffee shop they're playing this. It used to be popular. When was the last time you heard it ? :https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=8jTZDaTVvDc

For the hipsters amongst us an insight into NYC night life. Today being in bed by eleven has an allure that only grows greater with each passing year :https://www.insidehook.com/nightlife/hanging-sza-bc-new-york-hottest-nightclub

Non-fiction book sales collapsing :https://dearheadofmine.substack.com/p/the-nonfiction-book-market-is-collapsing

Thoughts on less peaceful train stations : https://snyder.substack.com/p/a-meditation-on-train-stations

Cognition and lucidity :https://psyche.co/ideas/terminal-lucidity-when-dying-dementia-patients-regain-awareness

Why Europeans are fixated on America :https://www.theatlantic.com/international/2026/09/europe-afd-far-right/688706/

Never travel on a Sunday .

The hotel dog sits at the garden gate and observes us as we head off for our morning 10,000 steps. He watches us go in silence. Hotel dogs can become quite blase about comings and goings. For them it's all part of the job.

We've stayed a bit longer than we originally planned but later today we shall be heading North to Scotland on the 'fast' LNER service. I've always said that anyone who travels by rail on a Sunday, when the train companies repair the tracks, is mad. We'll soon find out if that's true. Let's hope any delays are 'manageable'.

The Minster is quiet. The colder weather means the tourist numbers have thinned down. On top of that Sunday morning visitors are nervous that they might get caught up in a religious service and tend to delay their visits until later. We pretty much have the place to ourselves apart from some quiet American couples who are consulting a well thumbed Pevsner guide. This is the time of the year when those in the know arrive in the UK to enjoy the combination of better pre-equinox weather and off season hotel rates.

The 15th century sculptor who carved the Kings on the altar screen presumably thought he was making them look like old testament prophets. On the far left William the Conqueror certainly looks the part whereas Rufus in the adjacent niche looks out at the world with what seems to be abject boredom. Maybe that's a trait of old testament prophets ?

In a little church facing Bettys tea room a memorial stone to two maiden sisters who each died at the age of 98. They'd lived through the reign of seven successive monarchs. That was considered memorable by the standards of those days. Come to that it would be memorable at any time. If they'd lived a little longer they'd have seen the American colonies opt for independence.

I'd always thought Lowry just did 'factory' pictures. Unusually, this one in York Art Gallery shows his trademark match stick figures milling around the Castle.

The sounds of the Western Isles :https://substack.com/home/post/p-213973149

Scroll down. The B&W photo of the original makes the dogs face much more understandable :https://x.com/Chori__Vegano/status/2100980883633078435

Our local professors weekly update :https://phillipspobrien.substack.com/p/weekend-update-203-a-week-which-demonstrated