Squash

This rather grainy photo was taken with my Blackberry this morning. I had heard that the squash courts had been demolished - we hadn't heard anything from Arbor Court, but I thought I would check anyway, and I was horrified to see contractors there and the exterior cladding already removed:

On the face of it, this is a poor start to community relations for the new owners. They knew why we had been trying to organise a meeting for the last 2 months and had stalled us on the basis that they wanted to wait until Charlie Anderson arrived here from Canada and had a proper look at the hotel – which he has done over the last couple of weeks. They could at least have waited until they met us before starting demolition, but they obviously decided that they wanted to make it a fait accompli before we could present our case.

I have been in touch with the hotel manager, Peter Ferguson – who, we now understand is only there on a temporary basis for 3 months – and have arranged to meet him on Monday. I am making no comment to the local press at this time, although I have alerted them to check it out for themselves. There is another rumour going around that they are preparing to put in new sports facilities - let's wait and see what they say next week.

So - St Andrews Bay for me this afternoon - on another windy day. I can't remember the last time I was there and it wasn't windy. Still, it might keep the rain away!

Another short blog

Just to keep things ticking along, a quick posting today following yesterday's marathon effort - more words and pictures in that one than some people have posted in total in the last 2 months - no names, no pack drill, but she's busy sorting out the painter who's at our house with the unenviable task of doing up Ross' room - plus a few others.

Belated 55th birthday to Barry on Saturday and to Kieran, who was 20 on Sunday.

I think my cold/congestion is finally easing. I actually went to Bannatyne's at lunchtime today - not to do any real exercise - a couple of slow lengths, that's all - but to go to the steam room and try to clear my head and chest a bit.

Tomorrow is the first of 4 sessions at the dentist in the next couple of weeks. I've got 2 appointments with the hygienist - one each to clear out a couple of "pockets"; plus another 2 with the dentist to fix the 2 bits of tooth I lost over the summer. She wanted to crown one of them, but I've asked her to try a filling and a pin first of all to see if this will work or not.

Guess what? I must have put in 2 separate requests to Interval to find Kelly and Craig a timeshare swap - another one came through this morning - same place, same week, and right next door to each other! Duh! Anyone want a week's timeshare in Adelaide in January?

Fringe diary

Pictorial reporting of our weekend in Edinburgh. We drove down with Colin and Johanne and went straight to our first show - Me, Mum and Dusty Springfield - a one woman show in a small, intimate setting - her Mum's ashes were on the table and she was talking to the urn about how she was the b.....d love child of Tom Jones. It took us a while to figure out that she was talking about tribute acts - her Mum was "Dusty Springfield" and her alleged father was "Tom Jones"!

We then went back to check in at our oh so healthy and worthy B & B - McRae's Organic B & B, where we stayed last year. It's actually quite nice - the owners are a youngish Irish couple. A stroll up Broughton St and in for a couple of beers at the Cask & Barrel, then we headed up to the Assembly Hall on the Mound again. Here's Jo and I on the way up with the backdrop of the very impressive former HQ of the Bank of Scotland for the last few centuries - now sadly just part of Lloyds Bank:


The show we saw was Alistair McGowan - he really was terrific in front of a live audience in a small venue. His voices were spot on and he managed to morph from one voice in to another virtually seamlessly. Even a famous TV impressionist like him can suffer from stage fright however - he lost the plot at one stage, but, like the true professional he is, he managed to smooth it over and get back on track very quickly. We were hanging around in the quadrangle outside after the show and I spotted a guy in a white flat cap - it was Alistair McGowan himself on the way to another show. It was a coolish evening and, believe me, he needs some insulation up top! Colin appears to be almost stalking him here:

On the way home we passed a chippie with a very tempting offer:

and their coup de grace was a classic piece of Scottish "culture":

On Saturday morning, we walked up to Charlotte Square to the Literary Festival. Coffee, the morning papers and a nice seat in the sunshine, plus a few new books - excellent. We walked through Princes St gardens towards our first show of the day:

passing the Memorial gardens on the way:

The lunchtime show was called Ella, Marlene, Marilyn and Me - an Australian singer in another one woman "play", which was really a vehicle to display her singing talents. She did terrific versions of the three divas - Fitzgerald, Dietrich and Monroe. Great show.

Later on we went to see Paul Merton's Impro Chums, which was basically the TV show Whose Line Is It Anyway, with four of the other stars who appeared there, including Richard Vranch (who also played keyboards), Mike McShane (somewhat overweight, but very funny American), Lee Simpson, and Suki Webster, who just happens to be Paul Merton's current partner - he used to be married to Carolin Quentin, but they divorced in 1998. He then had a relationship with the actress and producer Sarah Parkinson, but she died from breast cancer in 2003. Anyway the show was hilarious - genuine improvisation.

We then went walkabout and happened upon Koi Japanese restaurant (http://www.koiedinburgh.co.uk/) - they had a Teppanyaki table, and as Colin and Johanne had never tried this unique form of dining, we thought we'd give it a go. The chef was very entertaining and, as well as taking this photo with my camera, he took one with his own camera. Maybe we'll be starring on their web site soon?:

Can't remember where I saw this, but I thought our Grandson would like it:

We walked past the castle on the way back, down past the Caledonian Hotel, where Rebus' last novel, Exit Music, was centred. We had a look inside but were disappointed that we couldn't find any suspicious looking Russians in booths (oblique reference if you don't read Ian Rankin). Nonetheless, a photo had to be taken:

Sunday had been forecast to be wet and that was when we were due to be going back to the Foodies at the Fringe, which had been moved from the crowded, but dry, corridors of the Sheraton Hotel to the wilds of Holyrood Park. It was pretty muddy underfoot, but the weather wasn't half as bad as we feared. We went to a cookery demonstration and then the Cairngorm Brewery one, after which we sat outside and listened to Out of the Blue, a young acappella group from Oxford. By coincidence, Dave Williamson had recommended them to us. Here they are doing their version of the Four Seasons' December '63:

A few more stalls were visited and samples consumed, before we headed off up over Arthur's Seat and out west to Balerno. I couldn't resist going back to Cherry Tree Loan and checking out the house we sold in 1983:

Jo didn't like what they had done with "her" front window!