Birthday

It is here. Age. Young age, making me feel old. There are many cliched adjectives I could use but generally, I can't believe my little baby, my first born, the tiny little scrunched up bundle of warm skin is now sixteen.

It is SED's birthday today and suddenly I am back in the maternity unit, awkwardly holding a tiny little baby - well, not so tiny. She was 7lb 14oz. She's grown a bit since then :-) She is beautiful. Tonight I'm, off home to make her a special dinner, put candles on the cake and perhaps later when she's in bed browse through the old photograph albums to wallow in a few happy memories.
Red Writer on 06.29.04 @ 05:12 PM gmt [link]

The longest two hours

Friday was gearing up to be busy. Awake at 5am because SO was off to Leeds on an early train for a meeting. Work was busy with the organisation for one of my staff's retiral presentation and the checking of paperwork for a big meeting on Monday. Kids were at prizegiving on their last day of term.

It was always going to be a bit fraught. End of term always is for me between work and school and home (SED's birthday is at the end of June). There are always clashes of arrangements. Something always has to give and no-one is every happy. Especially me, because I can never get my cape on straight enough to do everything I want/need/have to do. But I hadn't bargained for SO phoning to tell me he wasn't feeling well and asking to be picked up at the same time I was meant to be involved in the presentation. Suddenly life took on a slightly different perspective.....read more if you are interested.
Red Writer on 06.28.04 @ 11:03 PM gmt [more..]

Liberties

Why is it that some days you are made so acutely aware of how much people take advantage of your good nature? Ah well, one day....... as they say, what goes around comes around.
Red Writer on 06.24.04 @ 02:52 PM gmt [link]

Concert

Picture this......

A day in September....well, June really but a good old Scottish June, disguised as a dreich, wet and wild day.

Red Writer on 06.24.04 @ 08:57 AM gmt [more..]

Girl With a Rucksack

I have tried to find a photo of Kenny Hunter’s new sculpture, Girl With A Rucksack but I can't find one anywhere. I'm dying to see it. I like the ambiguity that he doesn't know whether the girl is coming or going.
Red Writer on 06.23.04 @ 08:52 AM gmt [link]

Climbing

This would be a really good photographic exhibition to see. And I sympathise with his wife.... "It was on the summit of Glen Coe’s Meall Dearg in September 1901 that he claimed the title of the first Munroist, kissing the cairn and then his wife." disfunctional priorities .... a universal thing, they come with the Y chromosone.
Red Writer on 06.22.04 @ 03:05 PM gmt [link]

Longest Day

Yesterday was summer solstice and therefore the longest day. Having worked for ten hours it felt like it. Today it is bright and sunny and feels like a day for making new beginnings happen. Perhaps I'm going to stop trying to do the things people expect from me and do more of the things I think would be good for me.
Red Writer on 06.22.04 @ 08:46 AM gmt [link]

Beth Nielson Chapman at the Queen's Hall Edinburgh

Last night I went to hear BNC at the Queen's Hall. It was a fantastic concert. She was supported by the extremely talented Darden Smith.
Red Writer on 06.20.04 @ 09:51 PM gmt [more..]

ECA Degree Show

It was the preview of Edinburgh College of Art's Degree Show last night and yours truly managed to get an invite...
Red Writer on 06.19.04 @ 01:53 PM gmt [more..]

Posting Ideas

I have been meaning to post but just haven't found the time this week. A few of the things you have been spared reading about are:
Politics
Scottish Opera
Bob Dylan's honorary degree
Art College
But perhaps I'll get back to them over the weekend.

Red Writer on 06.17.04 @ 09:13 AM gmt [link]

Bemused

Why is it, that when you expect friends to understand stuff, they really really don't. Kind of makes you feel you should never have bothered doesn't it?
Red Writer on 06.14.04 @ 03:33 PM gmt [link]

Ray Charles 1930 - 2004

It is always sad when someone who has been a huge musical influence dies. Sadly, Ray Charles died yesterday at the age of 73. There are many tributes to him on the web from China to Seattle but I was rather taken aback to find that the official site has not noted his passing yet. In this age of fingertip reporting, there is an expectation that information is updated and available immediately. When I thought about it, I realised that the last thing on the mind of those close to him, or those who felt close to him, would be to update a web page. And there is something strangely comforting to read about him as if he is still with us. Listen to a few clips from the early years here and here
Red Writer on 06.11.04 @ 09:09 AM gmt [link]

Hopper at the Tate Modern

Thanks to Dio for telling me about the Hopper exhibition. Now I have to think about coinciding my holiday flights with a trip to the Tate Modern. I knew there would be a good reason to have flights from London :-)
Red Writer on 06.09.04 @ 08:48 AM gmt [link]

Transit of Venus

Venus is my ruling planet. Today's transit of Venus is something I'd love to see, so I've brought the binnoculars in (to do the thing reflecting it onto a bit of paper, not to burn my eyeballs out!). But it's cloudy here so may not get a chance - might have to watch the video instead.
Red Writer on 06.08.04 @ 08:56 AM gmt [link]

Camomile

mood: Sleepy

I ate a camomile bar this morning - I can barely keep my eyes open now. This is awful. I feel like someone's drugged me? Surely one little bar can't have that effect? Someone Wake me up.....WAKE ME UP..please.
Red Writer on 06.07.04 @ 02:34 PM gmt [link]

Meall nan Tarmachan

It could be anywhere, but it is infact the top of Meall nan Tarmachan (1044m/3425ft - near Ben Lawers) at approx 11am today. It's so frustrating that the weathermen got it wrong, especially when I was in the mood to walk much further (now that I have two walking poles). I really wanted to do the circular walk around the ridge above the cliffs of Cam Chreag to Meall Garbh, Beinn nan Eachan and Creag na Caillich.

Red Writer on 06.06.04 @ 09:04 PM gmt [more..]

Disk Golf

I am ashamed to say I have never heard of Disk Golf But this weekend sees the (BDGA 2004 Tour) at Leckmelm Estate, Ullapool on Saturday 5th June & Sunday 6th June 2004. It sounds like a lot of fun and would make a good distraction from hearing about Jack and his D-Day snub...
Red Writer on 06.04.04 @ 10:03 AM gmt [more..]

Fell Asleep

I missed the programme I have waited for days to watch! How could I? (Overwhelming tiredness and several glasses of wine probably contributed). I had planned to watch the programme about Edward Hopper last night but somewhere, half way through Big Brother I got myself more comfortable on the sofa (lay down) and that was it, eyes closed and I was dead to the world. I had taped it for SED so I can watch it tonight but it's still irritating that my body refused to let me stay awake long enough to see something I'd planned to watch since Sunday.
Red Writer on 06.03.04 @ 08:50 AM gmt [link]

Scotsman and Orange Short Story Award

Congratulations to Rob McClure Smith who has just won the Scotsman and Orange Short Story Award.
Red Writer on 06.02.04 @ 08:52 AM gmt [link]

Delusions

mood: Extremely Sad

Sometimes you feel you think you have got the world sussed and then someone says something which makes you realise you are deluding yourself. Life is never what you think it is and the people you feel should be the most important in your life sometimes end up being the ones who inadvertantly cause the most hurt. All it took was one little question "What difference does that make?" she said. Well, actually it makes a huge difference to me but I should be grown up enough now to realise that no-one else is ever going to understand that.
Red Writer on 06.02.04 @ 08:49 AM gmt [link]