Monthly Archives: August 2016

Interestingly, this year’s Day 17 looks a lot like last year’s  – there must be some odd karma on the universe. We started the day with the previously mentioned GF sliced sausage from the butcher in Bridge of Allan as part of our final fry up in the flat. Then the serious packing commenced. My large case filled with everything we knew we wouldn’t need for the next few days and Frank’s case with everything we thought we would.

Then came the round of farewells. First to see how mum was doing. We got to the home and she was up and about and all in a tizzy about something that had her charging about with her walker. We got things sorted and headed out for a nice lunch at The Birds and Bees, another favorite from our last trip. Mum enjoyed her steak pie and even managed to drink some cider!

We took her back and said our goodbyes there before doing the same in Bridge of Allan and Braehead. Next stop: Grangemouth and the Scottish Athletics Under 17 championships where we said hellos to my family who were there to cheer on youngest son. We had a we wait before the final event and time to catch up and blether before Michael claimed a bronze medal in the 400 meter event.

Then to head back west to Barassie for the gourmet dinner and epic bevy. Because it was late and the weather was not conducive to grilling, we “settled” for monkfish and Parma ham, expertly cooked with only one scalded hand sacrificed as part of the process. This year’s conversation menu was as wide ranging as ever: multilingualism, pan sexuality and non binary gender identity, travel woes, the political state of several countries, Netflix series, the spirit versus wording of the Second Amendment, and the possibility of replacing Freddy Mercury.

Finally after several bottles of wine and buckets of tears of laughter, it was off to bed in the wee hours having only managed 5,683 steps during the course of the day.

Another grey and misty morning made it easy for me to decide that running with a cold was not in the books.  We got ready and headed to the nursing home to pick mum up at 10am as promised.  She was much brighter and ready for an outing so into town we went.  We stopped at a teashop, The Bluebell Tearoom, where they do gluten free very well.  Unfortunately, no gluten free scones today but I did get carrot cake and we all enjoyed tea. Then for a wander through the town and the Thistle Center before taking mum back to the home.

Then it was time for a late lunch.  I was meeting a  friend that I had shared a flat with (could it be?) 30 years ago.  We hadn’t seen each other in a few years and her now 16-year-old son joined us.  It was a fabulous time catching up and chatting.

Back out into the constant misty rain to pick up a few last minute items before spending the afternoon getting started on our packing.  It’s hard to believe that things are drawing to a close but we do have one last stop this weekend before heading home.  Of course we don’t need most of the things we brought with us as this point so we spend some time sorting, washing, and packing up.

Then off again into the rain for the walk to Cambusbarron and a night with friends for the annual “box of curry” – a tradition started years ago when the kids still traveled with us.  We enjoyed lots of drinks, conversation, and curry before the night was through.  Then it was out into the now dry, mild, night for the wander home. It doesn’t seem much to write about but it was a very enjoyable day despite the weather. And a productive one – 20, 189 soggy steps achieved.

Today was our day to do a little exploration since we knew that we wouldn’t be seeing Helen until teatime.  So we got ourselves sorted and headed east out the A720 to see lies east of Edinburgh.

We stopped in Haddington first – advertised as a “historic market town” – and had a wee wander about the shops.  I stopped into the chemist to see about getting something for my cough as my cold has now moved into my chest (hence there was no run for me this morning).  I got some Robitussin and possible the oddest suggestion ever:  Vicks vaporub on your feet with socks on to prevent your cough keeping you up at night.  Weird but I’ll try anything once.  We also picked up a few books for Frank and for friends back home.  Then the trek east continued.

To Dunbar.  We picked it off the map somewhat arbitrarily but it is a nice seaside town.  Not with nice seaside weather today as the rain moved in and got steadier as we wandered about.  We found a tea shop for lunch (baked potato with coronation chicken – yum!) and a cup of tea and then off to explore the harbor.  The remains of the castle aren’t particularly impressive until you understand the history of the place.  There’s been a fortress of somekind there since the reign of Malcom Canmore in the 11th century. The defeated Edward fled there after losing the Battle of Bannock burn and Mary Queen of  Scots took refuge there twice.

The coastline is pretty dramatic – especially for those of us that don’t regularly see a coastline.  We climbed up and down things and then headed back into town for a visit to some galleries. I now have a lovely wee tree made by an artist in Aberdeen to add to the “forest” in my kitchen.

But alas, the clock was ticking for our family dinner date so we started heading back home.  We considered making a quick stop in Musselburgh because it’s there but the traffic trying to get into the town center was crazy so we abandoned that idea and hit the road again.

We were meant to collect Helen at 5 o’clock to go out for a special meal with my niece who recently turned 21  but she was very out of sorts so we decided to leave her be and have a lovely meal with the youngest Cannon brother and family at the Torbrex Inn.  Since we didn’t have to worry about hauling the wheelchair around, we parked the car and walked the half a mile or so to the restaurant so Frank could have a pint and not worry about driving.  He also had his share of a bottle of Bordeaux. 🙂

After dinner we thought we’d wander into Stirling to see what was up and stopped at No. 2 Baker Street for a pint.  The night was mild and dry so we could sit outside and watch people go by.  And the people we saw were all either tourists or very drunk people who’s accents were indistinguishable.  How times have changed! I don’t know what the more sober locals do on a Wednesday night but I know it isn’t having a pint downtown anymore. So we toddled home for a cup of tea before an early bed – which managed to bring our step count for the day to 16,077.

Another  bright dry morning encouraged another run to start the day and continue with the pretense that I’m not getting sick. This time around the castle.

We picked Helen up after breakfast and thought we’d try a different outing: a distillery tour! Off to the Glengoyne distillery we went as the dry morning succumbed to the ever lurking rain clouds. Unfortunately though the website we consulted said it was handicapped accessible, we found that most of the tour involved stairs so it wasn’t really going to work for us. Back in the car to get something to eat and we found ourselves at The Forth Inn in Aberfoyle surrounded by English and Italian tourists – the latter sporting newly acquired “Scotland” sweatshirts, proclaiming their inability to pack for a Scottish summer.

Lunch was fine but nothing spectacular- although Mum seriously attacked her haggis and cheese panini!

The traveling about had really worn her out so it was back to the home and into bed. We decided on a similar plan of action and opted for a wee kip ourselves (translation: nap).

Then it was off to the family house in the hill for a family gathering of Cannons and other important relatives. (See Jean? I told you I would say nice things 😉)

Twelve of us gathered for a large Indian carry out and the enjoyment of many beverages. While the matriarch wasn’t there and the wayward university student joined us quite late, it was a fabulous and fun evening. My inability to pretend that I felt fine meant that by midnight I was done and it was time to rest up for tomorrow. We barely cracked the 10k step mark (10,979) – hopefully I’ll be fit enough to improve on that.

We often wonder what it would be like to live here – maybe when we retire – and I suspect that it might be something very much like today.  The bright sky and dry conditions were definite signs that a run was in order so I off I went on a 4 mile loop through the town. Then Frank made bacon and egg sandwiches for breakfast. We showered, tidied up, and headed out for a day of visiting.

First to the nursing home to retrieve mum then off to the shops in Tillicoultry to pick up a rain jacket I had seen in the town but  they didn’t have my size.  We stopped in the Marks and Spencer outlet to find a cardigan to replace the one I lost in Helsinki.  Then we drove all around the wee towns (Dollar, Alva, Alloa) avoiding road works and looking for a tea room to have a sandwich and a cup of tea.  We couldn’t see any that appealed – or could handle the wheelchair – so back to Bridge of Allan and a nice bar lunch at the Westerton Arms. Baked potatoes for the ladies (mine with prawns and Helen’s with cheese and coleslaw) and Frank had the first haggis of the trip.  No drinks though:  Helen wanted to warm up with a cup of tea and with Scotland’s lower limit for drunk driving, Frank was abstaining so I did too.  Gave me an excuse to order and Irn Bru – another first this trip!

Then we took Helen back to her room to rest up for dinner out later and we went to do more visiting, spending most of the afternoon drinking tea and chatting with other Cannon’s.  Of course, the day wasn’t completely idyllic as I have begun to show signs of coming down with a cold.  Sore throat, post nasal drip, etc.  So off to the chemist to see what can be done.  And the answer is:  rest, drink plenty of non-alcoholic fluids, etc.  All the things you know but don’t want to hear because it gets in the way of your holiday.  So I beefed up my stock of ibuprofen and got ready for the evening’s revelries.

Tonight’s agenda – dinner out at the Old Bridge Inn in Bridge of Allan.  A small party of six, we had a lovely meal, possibly the best roast duck I’ve ever had – before getting Helen to bed, dropping off the rental car, and heading back to the Cannon homestead for a trip to the local pub for drinks: The Tartan Arms where several family members work on occasion.  Thus relieved from any driving responsibilities, we enjoyed several pints and blethered for as many hours with various family and friends who tend to frequent the place.

As we closed in on midnight, it was time to go so we headed out into the cool dry night for the roughly two mile walk back to our flat.  That’s probably the only way we got close to our 10k steps – 9789. We probably didn’t need to stop and pick up some takeout on the way home but we did anyway and enjoyed someone’s version of chicken biriyani while watching Gordon Ramsay tear apart a hotel owner before falling into bed.  I suspect we’ll do it all again tomorrow.

The crazy winds that blew all night began to subside this morning but the grey skies and somewhat blustery air did not scream “get on your running gear” to me.  Add to that the fact that we figured out that we had no soap for the shower and the thought of being cold and sweaty really didn’t appeal.  Oh, and we only had instant coffee.  Frank was having none of that. So off to the shops we trooped – before breakfast or showers! – to get coffee and soap.

Thus adequately equipped, we started our morning routine: showers, tea/coffee, and breakfast.  Bacon rolls!  Well, sandwiches for me on the amazing Genius bread.  Frank struggled with the induction hob cook top which took far longer to fry an egg than it should have but it’s something we can figure out.  The flat is actually quite nice: two bedrooms, two baths, a small kitchen that we are slowly figuring out, parking right out in front with a gate to boot. 

Then off to visit mum.  She had just gotten back to her room in the care home after getting her hair and nails done so we whisked her away to visit Jean and Jimmy for our annual cup of tea.  We visited for a while before deciding that lunch was in order and we headed out to The Highland Gate  – a chain-type pub of which I am normally not very fond but which pleasantly surprised me.  It had a very nice gluten free menu (including the aforementioned Genius bread) and even had a dedicated fryer for the chips!  A lovely lunch was had by all and we made a quick stop at Sainsbury’s so that Jimmy could pick up a set of keys he’d dropped off to be cut.  I thought I’d pick up some sugar since what I grabbed late last night turned out to be a mix of sugar and sweetener (ugh) and in the process of making my way to the till, there was an announcement for everyone to immediately leave the building for an emergency evacuation!  It’s the first time I’ve ever been evacuated from  a grocery store before!

All the excitement really wore mum out so we dropped her off and got her settled in bed and then headed into town.  We had a very important goal:  replace the charity shop cardigan that disappeared in Helsinki.  We hit about half a dozen shops and found a few lovely things but no cardigan (but there is still tomorrow!).  We headed to youngest brother’s house for a quick visit and had a lovely time chatting with everyone – and trying to explain American politics.  Not easy to do without alcohol!  We couldn’t stay long as there was one more brother and family to visit so it was along the road to Bannockburn for a quick visit and make plans for the next day.  It was getting late and we hadn’t yet had dinner so off to Tesco for cheap wine and ready meals.  Because really, what says holiday more than cheap French rose and chicken with bacon, leeks, and cheese sauce?  A cup of tea and some gluten free HobNobs – milk and not dark chocolate but who cares! – and we can put the first day in Scotland in the books.  You can definitely tell we have a car for transport as we were just shy of 10k steps (9,667) today.  Does it count if many of them involved pushing a wheel chair?  Maybe a run is in the cards for tomorrow.