Today I shall be Mainly...

[Stanley]

Cooking knocked the shed off the agenda yesterday. I must screw myself up and be more decisive!

[Sue]

Oh we had fun yesterday. Erin wanted to cook as usual but not the buns which she never eats anyway because she doesn’t like sweet stuff. No she wanted to make pasta. The other day she helped Claire make a cheese and onion pastie. So we set too with the pasta. There was flour everywhere but she insisted on kneading the dough after it came out of the food mixer and then turning the handle of the pasta maker. She loved it, especially assembling the wooden tree to dry the prepared pasta. She then washed up and in true 5 year old fashion drenched both herself and the kitchen floor. Whilst being creative she announced. She liked cooking and wants to be a chef! It was a fun way to soend a very wet Saturday afternoon.

Talking of rain the plants in the garden have doubled in size overnight and everything looks clean and fresh.

We are driving as far as Stirling today , then up to Loch Ness tomorrow. The forecast for the week is good.

[Stanley]

What a lovely and responsible way to rear kids! They are very lucky and will never forget!
Bit of shed and reading..... Wonderful how the day melts away!
The day has already partially melted away because I needed to have a cooking session and prepare two meals. No escaping it of course, I support my own sky and don't rely on someone doing the cooking and cleaning for me.....

[Sue]

Beautiful day at Loch Ness, clear blue skies and 18 degrees. One more day of the same then a turn for the worse I think.

[Marilyn]

It was my day to do a deep Autumnal clean of the bedrooms...vacuuming mattresses, airing woollen under blankets, putting electric blankets on the beds, changing pillow protectors, vaccuming under the beds etc before making up the beds all fresh. Pulled out bedside cupboards and got to the dust in all corners.
Phew...I am due a good lie down now...the most intense morning my back has had for months!
Sustained two injuries to the same finger - got it caught when changing heads on the vaccum and have a deep purple squash injury to the fingertip. Then ripped the nail almost completely off struggling with the elastic of the woollen under blanket. (That hurt!) I've trimmed it right back, sprayed the nail bed with plastic skin and applied a thick bandaid.
I might have to go off on Compo...

[Stanley]

Did you say hello to my favourite bridge?

Making an elevating wedge for the cannon.

[Marilyn]

They are so cute, Stanley.

[Stanley]

Thanks Love, I think so as well. It's due to my affection for stuff like this that my house looks like a museum!
I shan't be in the shed long this morning, all I have to do is treat the wood of the wedge and then I shall get down to what I know I must address, writing articles for the BET. If it rains this will help, I always write better in bad weather!

[Sue]

Where is the bridge Stanley.

We went walking in Glen Affric yesterday, warm but cloudy. To day we are driving over to Skye as the forecast there is for the best of the weather. This evening we are out for a meal as it is our wedding anniversary. 48 years! There is a very nice restaurant next door but one to our little cottage accommodation so no driving needed.

[Wendyf]

Congratulations Sue & Bob! Sounds like a good way to spend your wedding anniversary. Can you still get a ferry across to Skye or does all traffic go over the bridge?
Hope you are midge free up there.

[Stanley]

It's about half way along the loch and was one of Telford's early bridges. It's always puzzled me why it doesn't figure in any of the histories I have seen. I've just searched for it on the web and can't find a sausage!
Much later, I've had this problem before and I suspect the problem is that I have got the location wrong, it may be on Loch Lochy... I am going to go for this in a different way, I need help!
On another matter, this pic says everything about where I am at the moment. The bridge has spoiled the BET article plan....



The cannon is history....

[Stanley]

Re ferry to Skye. The service Mallaig to Armadale still sails I think as part of the Small Isles service.

[Stanley]

Got it!



I was wrong on several counts. It is not a Telford bridge but is by an engineer called Dredge and it is at Bridge of Oich.



Here it is today, it's been refurbished and now is used as a footbridge. I shall go back and alter all my filenames!



My pic taken in 1991 when I found it.

[Big Kev]

This evening we are out for a meal as it is our wedding anniversary. 48 years!

Congratulations, we're 10 years behind you today.

[PanBiker]

Yes, congratulations Sue and Bob, 43 for us this year.

[Sue]

Congratulations Sue & Bob! Sounds like a good way to spend your wedding anniversary. Can you still get a ferry across to Skye or does all traffic go over the bridge?
Hope you are midge free up there.

We are midge free here, it was worse by the Loch near Stirling on Sunday. We went across by the bridge but there was a ferry running further south. My hay fever was bad near Stirling too as the hazel was still in flower and not leaf. Its ok here, where there are thousands of bluebells next to flowering gorse, stunning colour combination.

On our way we went passed the site of the Battle of Glen Shiels. Amazing that such a battle could have been fought there.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Glen_Shiel

[Stanley]

Best sea cruise and cheapest is to do the Small Isles Ferry round trip from Mallaig. That was the ferry to the south.
Today I shall be exercising my democratic right and fighting the Tories.....

[Marilyn]

I spent this afternoon cutting out a pattern and setting up the machine ready to sew tomorrow. I took my time with the cutting out as I am altering the pattern slightly. I'm looking forward to getting stuck in tomorrow...after I have dropped the car off for a service.

[Sue]

I spent this afternoon cutting out a pattern and setting up the machine ready to sew tomorrow. I took my time with the cutting out as I am altering the pattern slightly. I'm looking forward to getting stuck in tomorrow...after I have dropped the car off for a service.

So pleased to hear this Marilyn. Hope the back holds up and not too many aches from sitting at the machine.

We are walking local today. We are about 1.5 miles from the Lake shore through woods, and there is another 5 mile round trip to some waterfalls.

[Sue]

Just found this Stanley. We are contemplating

https://britishwalks.org/Trails/GreatGl ... gustus.php


We did a postal vote before we left. I think council elections should reflect local issues and not national ones. A problem for Rochdale where the Labour run council is not liked. I am neither a Tory nor Labour voter, I changed my allegiance once and regretted it. Our area has councillors who never even bother canvassing so local issues rarely get addressed or discussed. I once , many years ago, commented to one about the state of Rochdale town centre. He agreed and said he never went in, what sort of answer is that.

[Stanley]

That walk looks good and yes, that's my Dredge bridge!
I got fairly close to politics in Rochdale when I was doing Ellenroad. I had to be apolitical of course but enjoyed the occasional laughs it gave me. The Tory Councillor who announced that the Trust was insolvent in the local paper and rapidly did a reverse ferret when I pointed out that he'd seen all the financial reports and if what he said was true (It wasn't actually) he and the other directors weren't protected by the charitable trust and they would be liable for the shortfall. Then there was Allen Brett having a knock down fight in the front garden of a house he was canvassing when a rival candidate turned up..... Those were the days.
(Remember the furore when they named the Council Office Building after Nelson Mandela? Is it still called that?)
Here in Barlick I have cast my votes and done my shopping. Now for some serious writing!

[Marilyn]

Thanks Sue, I should be fine. Only remnants of numbness in my foot/heel/calf now. No pain. No back pain. I should be ok.
I won't rush things though and just enjoy the process. It has been a while since sewing brain cells were challenged. The fabric is a bit "slippy" but I didn't realise it until cutting.

[Sue]

Remember the furore when they named the Council Office Building after Nelson Mandela? Is it still called that?)..........Stanley it became known as THE BLACK BOX.


It had all sorts of problems and was known to have sick building syndrome. Ie the workers suffered incredible migraines and such. It has been demolished. The new council offices were built about 5 years ago as part of the new centre development. It incorporates the library and has won awards for its architecture and environmental aspects.

https://www.gillespies.co.uk/news/rochd ... best-award
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Number_One_Riverside

Personally I think the town centre is OK and the developments are good considering we are a satellite to Manchester now, but there are many who do nothing but moan and want the good old days back. The photos of the good old days are not my idea of pleasure! They are however of great historical interest but I wouldn’t want to live there now.

It is raining today, we went for a walk in the bluebell woods this morning and got rather wet so I think it will be the distillery this afternoon. Tomorrow we are doing a Loch Ness cruise so will visit your bridge on the way back to Stirling on Saturday. We have 7 hours in which to enjoy the drive and scenery before we are due at our overnight stay, so we plan on cutting down past your little bridge and having a short walk then

[Wendyf]

I had the usual pleasant walk down to Kelbrook and back to cast my vote. It was at least 5 degrees warmer down there than it is up here!

[Sue]

Its about 6-7 degrees here!