9 days to go

A week on Tuesday is when we leave for USA - first stop Chicago and our hotel there is on South Michigan Avenue:

The Blackstone, Autograph Collection:

The suitcases are out and we'll be starting to pack now.

I was right - our neighbour's back and she's immediately on the warpath - one irate tirade on the phone followed by a 2+ page letter. She's away now for a couple of weeks but I've responded to her letter - just to point out that we've actually done the 4 things she previously demanded we do. I've told her we're away from 3rd September. I hope we don't see her until we come back.

Mary, Julie and Leo's brief trip to Banchory went well. I managed to take Leo out for a short ride out to Milton to meet Jo, Mary & Julie for coffee:

Me on my e-bike, of course, and Leo my (analogue) hybrid.

Our dividing wall at the front (with friendly neighbour Paul), which has been there since we bought the house in 1983, is now down:

New foundations now in and they start building the new wall tomorrow.

Our 3 nights in Edinburgh went well, if a little tiring. We stayed at Ross' on Friday night and went out for dinner with him. On Saturday morning, after coffee with Ross across the road at his work at Costa Coffee, we drove in to the city centre, parked our car, went to our first show and then checked in to our apartment just off St Andrew's Square for the next 2 nights.

Barry, Helen and Dawn joined us for our 6th and final show on Sunday evening and then we all went for dinner at Gordon Ramsay's Bread St. Kitchen, courtesy of Helen:

Barry and Helen celebrated Barry's actual big birthday on Thursday in Oban, where their caravan is for the summer:

I had my RSV (respiratory synctial virus) vaccination on Thursday. It's being offered to all those in Scotland between the ages of 75 - 79.

And - surprise, surprise, Johanne insisted that we have our monthly meal at the Derbar in the restaurant. We had thought that she wouldn't be able to make it there any more but Colin, at Johanne's insistence,  somehow managed to prop her up and walk her along the road and down the steps to the restaurant.