Sunday morning

Disappointing start to the day - the golf pro wasn't answering the phone but I thought I would go along anyway as I assumed we would be playing - albeit on a frozen and full winter course. Of course, it meant getting all togged up - thermals, extra sweaters etc - and I went over to the course only to find the Course Closed signs up.

Ah well, back to the house with the Sunday Times to get ready for a day in front of the box - the Nedbank Challenge from Sun City, then Hibs v Celtic followed by Everton - Villa. Hard times.

We had a takeaway Chinese meal last night - crispy duck was great but one of the main meals we shared was pork. This morning we woke up to the news that all Irish pork in the UK has had to be withdrawn from the UK due to a toxin they have discovered - oh dear.

Saturday

Football at Goals went ok last night - and it wasn't too cold. Our headbang went well - check football (http://bvetsfootballgroup.blogspot.com/) blog for details.

Today has been slow - I had arranged to pick up my car this afternoon - I left it at Dave's last night. Unfortunately, this meant me missing out on a trip to Inverurie - Carole called Jo out on a late mercy mission to babysit.

Friday - busy, busy, busy

Still no snow, but some rain on top of ice on the back roads could be dangerous. No problems on main roads or in Aberdeen.


I thought yesterday would seem like a long day to me, being at home and with no time wasted in the car - but it slipped by fairly quickly. In the evening, we managed to completely catch up with our backlog of Little Dorrits - an intriguing tale and one that's got our resident Poirot/Sherlock foxed for now - if you know the story, don't tell her!


I went to the optician and got the all-clear again on the glaucoma tests - I've been getting annual tests done for years because Mum had glaucoma. All Scots also now get free two year eye tests, so that was also done yesterday. She said she could tweak my prescription a little on my distance (driving) glasses, and she asked again why, as both prescriptions are only minor ones (0.5/0.75 + 1.50 for near), I didn't go for varifocals - I said I'd done that before and didn't like them much, but we'll see - I might try again some time.


Playing footy again tonight - it's normally at the Beach, but it's not available, so it's outdoors at Goals - brrrr! From there, it's straight off to Dave's for a headbang.


Spare a thought for Jo and Mary - their Mum would have been 86 today. I like this photo from our trip to Spain in 1999:

Dawn

John phoned to let me know that Dawn had her knee operation this afternoon - he was heading off to the hospital to see her. She's in the Golden Jubilee hospital, Clydebank - East Wing, Level 2, Room 217 and will probably be there until Monday. Phone number is 0141-951-5000.

Thursday working from home

As I half suspected, having re-arranged everything to work from home today, the snow never arrived - I feel like a cheat!

We watched the final part of Stephen Fry in America last weekend and this one covered the West Coast, including the drive-through tree that we were at a few years ago and the Rogue River, where we went on one of the Hellgate trips last year. Here's a snippet:

Haven't seen Q magazine's 50 best albums of 2008, Gary, but I've just glanced at its sister paper Mojo's one - I think I've only got one of their choice - Beck.

I played football at Banchory last night - mistake. Somebody decided to play with an outdoor ball which whizzed around like a dervish - maybe the youngsters enjoyed it but I certainly didn't. What's wrong with using an indoor ball for indoor football? It was made worse when Stephen Thomson - half my age and twice my size - banged one at me and it caught me full on the side of my face - boy it hurt!

In between work today, I'm preparing for our headbang tomorrow night. The beer has been delivered to Potarch and I'll take the projector and screen out to Dave's later on today - probably when I go for my optician's appointment later on.

Old cliche but, as if to prove the point, Jo said to me last night when she spoke about getting our Xmas tree and wanting me to go with her - "I thought when I retired I would get to spend more time with you?". That was last night - this morning, it's "you're upsetting my routine with you being at home"! Fickle or what?

Preparing for the onslaught

Getting home before 4:30 pm yesterday meant an evening of telly watching. Jo had been saving up the Little Dorrits for me and I finally got round to watching a few episodes. Dickens' tales wander and weave in a slew of characters, many of them eccentrics - and the BBC's production emphasises this trait - good viewing. OK, I'm hooked now - perhaps a few more tonight.

My journey to work was OK this morning but everyone else seems to be complaining about the roads. We've had dire warnings about tonight's weather and I've already cancelled one of our management meetings in the Broch tomorrow. Bring it on - I'll just work from home.

It was my pal Dan Corbett's 66th birthday yesterday - you all remember him? He left Banchory over a decade ago and now lives in Linlithgow, although we still see him at various golf outings etc. You might remember what he used to look like before the beard came off - this rather grainy one came from 1993:


More recently, at Chicago airport on the way home from Florida:



The one constant, however, is Dan's "lazy" right eye. He told me yesterday that, after all these years, he was in hospital last week to have it sorted. Dan reported "That is the right eyelid that has been more or less closed for up to 60 years. One opthalmic optician had told me that I had probably been uniocular for all that time.

The procedure that the doctor followed was to chop a bit from both eyelids and tie them up a bit higher by shortening the tendon that works each eyelid. It was a terribles 2 hour ordeal but the results are, in a word, spectacular; that is from what I can now see vis-a-vis what I could see a week ago.

I will have the external stitches out this evening and the internal ones will dissolve in time. The photos are quite horrendous and I will not be circulating them; it did look like I had gone a few rounds with a particularly hard-hitting boxer. But I expect there to be an improvement before the end of this year."

So there you go - there's always hope!

Finally booked our flights to Tenerife for the February golf trip - phew!

Start of the week

Routine Monday - although I did squeeze in a game of squash doubles before going home to a lovely stew followed by another helping of conference pears in red wine - lovely!

I also managed to catch up a bit with Lucy's Eastenders recordings - I sent off 3 DVD's for her yesterday - but, with an apology - I'm missing 16th November - what happened then? - did we have a power cut?

I also found a download of Seasick Steve for Kelly - it's called Cheap and according to Wikipedia, it was released in 2004 - it's the first time I've heard him playing with a band (the Level Devils) - usually he's a one man band - although he did have a drummer with him when we saw him at the Music Hall recently.

We're going to have a very quiet Christmas - we knew Scott, Lucy and the boys weren't coming as they're here in March, and we also heard last week that Kelly and Craig couldn't make it, but, on Sunday, Gary told us that they wouldn't be coming over either. Was it something we said? Perhaps we'll pop over to Inverurie for a little while to see them before Jo, Ross and I have our Christmas dinner.

More snow overnight meant I had to change my plans for driving up to the Broch. Instead I went in to our Aberdeen office via the North Deeside Road - avoiding my usual route over the moor to Garlogie. The roads were fine, but the traffic was awful and it took me almost an hour and a half to get here. I'm definitely not hanging around until it gets dark again this afternoon.

Nothing much else on the agenda this week - perhaps another game or two of squash - optician on Thursday, headbang at Dave's on Friday.

I finally got a booking for the annual golf/squash Xmas dinner - usually we go to the Derbar, but there were several requests to change it this time, so I tried, but failed, with the Milton. I did manage to get Franco's (Italian at By-Dee Inn) on Friday 19th December - a great date I thought - until I went home and told Jo and she said whoops - she thought she was going out with the girls that night! Ah well - I'm committed now - numbers are rising as well - 28 at last count.

I'm also edging ever nearer to getting our golf trip to Tenerife sorted out for February. It looks like we're going to leave on Friday Feb 27th - which means I will be back in Banchory for my 60th birthday - but only just! It was pointed out to me last night that I could be in Tenerife 3 times next year - February, March and possibly October as well!

Seasick Steve

Sorry, Kelly - despite being a fan and recently going to see him, I don't have any of his albums. Got a few videos for our headbang, but that's all.

Another superb day today - very cold but bright and windless - see my golf blog for a photo.

Knees

No advice from me about knees, Kelly - I inherited my weak joints from my Dad. Playing football for years didn't help, but the worst was when I ruptured my medial ligament back in 1970 at football training - just after Jo and I met. No keyhole surgery in those days - I was put in plaster - hip to ankle - for 3 months and was unable to go back to work full-time for 6 months. I remember my boss, Duncan Crawford "thoughtfully" brought some work out to our house to keep me occupied during my convalescence!

My first meeting with the future in-laws was on crutches - and it was a year before I played football again. Of course, I retired from football when we got married and Lucy came along, but took it up again when we moved down to London in 1974 - although I didn't do any training then - I only played on a Saturday during the winter.

I retired again by the time I was 30, but I started off the Veterans 5-a-side group in Banchory a decade later in 1988 as I was approaching my 40th birthday. By this time, I was playing squash regularly and I also took up running - taking part in some great events like the Great North Run, the Great Scots Run, Aberdeen Half Marathon and lots of other events.

It was a couple of years later that I really started having problems with my right knee - the one that had been operated on when I was 21. It was during one of my frequent visits to the hospital that I discovered the real reason for the pain and the fact that I've never been able to fully straighten my right leg - the surgeon who had operated on me in 1970 hadn't noticed that my cruciate ligament had also come away. If I could have remembered who he was I would have sued him!

The road running was not a good idea in retrospect - I wish I had taken to cycling to keep fit instead. But Kelly, you're made of sterner stuff - you certainly don't have the Stewart legs so shouldn't have the same joint problems I've always had. The only piece of advice I would offer is not to take too much notice of your GP - not unless he or she is into sports. Best to see a medic who specialises in sports injuries. I certainly know that everytime I ask a doctor for advice on injuries, their usual riposte is simply "how old are you?", as if to say you shouldn't be doing this at your age!

Woodend Barn

Great evening last night at Woodend Barn - Beth Nielsen Chapman is such a natural performer - and a great songwriter too. She was able to create a wonderful atmosphere - not only when singing, but also the way she chatted in between.

The support act (http://www.emilysmith.org/) was very good in a traditional Scots folk style, but there was a huge step up in class when Beth got on stage. There's lots of her stuff on You Tube - but this is a snippet of the end of one of her best known songs - I Find Your Love:

Francis even got a mention - Beth is staying at Shannaburn this weekend. Fiona and Beth met up at Celtic Connections in Glasgow a couple of years and have kept in touch since. Fiona made her cameo appearance which she prefaced with the story of how she went to Ellis Island and was struck by the tales of the many Scots emigrants to USA who turned up with all their possessions in a trunk - or "kist" - the germ of a new song, which Beth finished off and they both sang beautifully last night:

As well as the Kilgours, the McWhinnies and Sharps were also there last night and we went back to John and Joan's for coffee and a look at their huge new conservatory/extension.

It's another stunning day today - but freezing cold. I've got the thermals on for the trip to Pittodrie this afternoon with Ross and Gary - looks like a good day for football. Jo has gone down to Ballater for an Advent festival/celebration with Anne, Johanne and Myra.

Songs featuring London are pretty easy, aren't they? There's lots of them - some a bit better known than Gary's include Streets of London (Ralph McTell), Werewolves of London (Warren Zevon), Waterloo Sunset (Kinks) and London Calling (Clash) - the latter group also had lots of other songs featuring London boroughs - Brixton, Hammersmith etc.

Friday frustrations

Well, I didn't go to the KGV meeting last night after all - I just stayed home and vegetated - catching up with some of my Sky + recordings and transferring them to my laptop for next Friday's headbang - talking of which, our host Dave may have a problem with making it back up from Reading in time. He suggested changing it to Saturday night - but I didn't think that would go down very well!!!! Let's hope he can make it on Friday.

I sat through a good live concert from a small club in Memphis while Jo was having a bath. It was on Sky Arts HD and the quality was excellent - you really got the feeling you were there as Elvis Costello and the Imposters ran through their act.

Our golf group continues to frustrate - they keep changing their minds. I thought the dates for the spring trip were finally settled yesterday, but today it's all change again! Well, at least it looks like the revised dates will suit me a bit better - out on 27th February - but I'm not booking anything yet until I get absolute confirmation from the rest.

Fiona Kennedy (Clark) will definitely be making a cameo appearance on stage with Beth Nielsen Chapman tonight - looking forward to it, although I hear Beth's "got religion" - I just hope she doesn't overdo the sanctity.

I think we're all either mentally challenged or there really aren't many modern songs with Scottish place names in the title - but here's one I'd never heard of before - Glasgow Star - Eddi Reader - check http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=oE_1npcLIbk. There's also, of course, the execrable Mull of Kintyre by Wings.

Believe it or not, it appears that the UK place with the most songs mentioning it is Birmingham - although many of them refer to other Birminghams - Alabama etc. A lot of them I've never heard of:

Paint Me A Birmingham - Tracy Lawrence

Birmingham - Amanda Marshall

Boulder To Birmingham - Emmylou Harris

Birmingham - Randy Newman

Bethlehem In Birmingham - Toby Keith

When Jesus Left Birmingham - John Mellencamp

Postmarked Birmingham - Blackhawk

Sparrows Over Birmingham - Josh Rouse

Halfway Back to Birmingham - Mark Chesnutt

Hello Birmingham - Ani Difranco

Birmingham - Drive-By Truckers

Atlanta & Birmingham - Deana Carter

Breakfast In Birmingham - David Lee Murphy

So my lists are morphing in to quizzes - if I said London (including places in London), how many can you get?

Booked at last

It's finally done - read your e-mails. We travel Friday-Friday. Now get your holidays booked. Kelly and Craig still to sort out their travel plans and, of course, likewise Lesinas with their transatlantic trip - they will be coming to Banchory some time round about 20th March (Jo's birthday), I think - then fly out from Aberdeen to Tenerife with us, return from there, then head back to USA again.

Of course, it could be that Kelly and Craig might also come to Scotland for all or part of that first week? One way flights to Tenerife from Aberdeen are £139.99 on 27th March.

Well, that's one lot sorted out - believe it or not, you lot are a lot easier to deal with than our golf group! We're looking at next year's spring and summer trips, which, ironically, could both also be to Tenerife. We had our 10th anniversary of our Iberian Cup (on tour) trip recently - to Florida of all places - but it will most likely be back to known pastures next year - Tenerife is the favourite, but Marrakech is favoured by quite a few. This is on a line of latitude with Tenerife and also, believe it or not, Orlando! Perhaps the terrible events overnight in Mumbai will deter a few from travelling to Muslim Morocco however. Incidentally, Michael Clark was due to fly out to India tomorrow with our sales manager on a Food For Britain exploratory trip - naturally, they've cancelled now - they also need to go to Thailand soon, but Bangkok airport isn't exactly a place to head to either just now!

The early spring golf outing, which was in Cape Town this year, will also be the 10th anniversary of our "Desert Classic" - and it looks like being Tenerife as well. We usually go late February, but there are some logistical problems for the rest of the group and they're trying to put it off until 13th March now - this would mean me going out, coming back for a week, then going out again on 27th March! I'm trying to get them to change their minds and we're hoping to have another chat about it this evening.

I'm supposed to be attending a meeting of the KGV development group tonight - they're keen on building squash courts there too, but their time scale is even longer than the Laird's Hill of Banchory project. Don't know if it's worth my while or not. Besides which, I feel tired and sore after playing 5-a-side at the school last night. I've been nursing a lower abdomen pain for a few weeks - Jo thinks it may be a hernia - and it's tender again today.

Tomorrow night, we're going to Woodend Barn to see Beth Nielsen Chapman (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beth_Nielsen_Chapman). By coincidence, Francis Clark walked in to the office on Monday and said to me "where exactly is this Woodend Barn?". I asked him why, and he said there this was this girl staying with them this weekend and they were going to see her sing. It transpires that Fiona ("Kennedy") knows her quite well and they've even written a song together - maybe Fiona will make a cameo appearance herself on stage tomorrow?

Come on - songs with Scottish place names!

Friday flights?

Final, final call! Flyglobespan flights on Friday 27th March cost £259.98 (incl taxes) for everyone (including children). This is a little better than I said earlier. Please confirm asap that I can go ahead with this.

Edinburgh

So - it looks like we are going for the Sunday - Sunday flights then? Kelly's comment about Craig having to see when he could get his holidays gave me temporary collywobbles - especially as I've now booked and paid for the villa! I presume Kelly meant they didn't know how much additional time Craig could get off? I take it as read that both Kelly and Craig will manage to be in Tenerife for at least as long as we are all there?

I went down to a dinner in Edinburgh last night. It was held in the grand surroundings of the Signet Room library - see link below for details. The speaker had a name like a second rate porn star, but he was actually very interesting:

I got the train down and back and stayed at the King James hotel overnight - a lot easier than driving up and down and haring back in the small hours of the morning.

I'm disappointed that nobody has come up with any suggestions for my last list of modern songs featuring Scottish places. I thought that Jo, in particular, would have suggested the Proclaimers "Sunshine on Leith" at least - not to mention their very first record "Letter from America", which listed a number of Scottish towns - remember "Lochaber no more, Methil no more, Irvine no more, Linwood no more, Bathgate no more" etc? Come on you lot - you can do better!