Bleurgh!

Just when I thought that I was on the mend, the virus doubles back and wallops me from behind.

Catching up

Back at work to-day; spent the day catching up. If I'd been off any longer, I'm not sure that it would have been worth going back - I'd never have caught up!

Rain

It's been raining for most of to-day. The visiting cat was especially grateful this morning for some warmth, and to be in the dry. I reckon that I'll be at work to-morrow, although I felt dizzy while walking the aisles at the local store.

The dreaded lurgy

This is where I'm glad that I didn't sign up for Blog 365. I've been laid low, presumably by the same bug which caused our son to be off school for two days. I'm more or less back on my feet now, although I have to move slowly, otherwise I feel as if I'm about to keel over.

A convoy

A convoy
Originally uploaded by Glaswegian

There's a bus theme running through my 365 Days photos on flickr, so I thought that I could appropriately post an old picture (I took) of a couple of 26's. Last year's panto (in the Brunton Theatre - just behind me when I took this photo) included a brilliant gag referring to the hearts on these buses (you can just see part of one in the top left hand corner of the picture). I'm not sure that I can capture the humour - you had to be there ...

I don't know what to do

But right now, I guess that I should go to bed, and try to get some sleep.

Performance

The chap I share an office with is a musician; as I tried to get back down to earth this afternoon we talked about performance - the enabling adrenalin rush - I was saying that to give this morning's presentation I had to become a different person. Which is OK, provided that I can find the space now to put myself back together again. It doesn't help that my wife and I were up half last night cleaning up after our son, who was sick.

Up to high doh

To-morrow I have to give a presentation at work; I'm anxious; I don't know how it will go. It's difficult to think about anything else.

Oh, yes we did

The last performance of the season - panto at the Kings Theatre, Edinburgh. It's not often that pantomime packs an emotional punch, but this one did. You know the rules - the handsome guy gets the girl - well, not this time - the clown got the girl (and the circus). I'm trying not to spoil it for you, so I'm not telling you the title. So there!

There seems to be a world shortage of sonic screwdrivers

At least, neither Toys R Us nor Woolworths had any; in the end, we settled for a Judoon trooper figure.

Yes, Karin, it's that time of year when winter seems to be going on and on for ever; I'm longing for the first snowdrop; and hoping again that you're feeling better.

I don't seem to be winning

Even a boxer gets a rest between rounds. But come Friday, and I just exchange one fight for another.

Defensive

I've been thinking about the various references in this blog, direct and indirect, to the imbibing of alcoholic drinks. I do drink wine, beer, and whisky (not all at once). I try to keep my consumption within the recommended guidelines. Sometimes I drink enough to feel 'euphoric'.

I know that for some people, alcohol has to be avoided. And that some people disapprove of the drinking of alcoholic drinks. And that alcohol is implicated in some bad behaviour. And that it is dangerous to drive when under the influence of alcohol.

All that I ask, gentle reader, is, please do not be offended by these references. I do not think of myself as a problem drinker, but that is my perspective. Incidentally, I am writing to-day under the influence of nothing stronger than a mug of tea.

Slainthe!

Wir gettin new windaes

An' new doors! Ah've signed ma name on the dotted line.

We dinna have a lum. The phrase 'lang mae yer lum reek', basically, means 'long may your chimney smoke' - I guess it just means - 'may you prosper'.

But 'dubs' is a word I hadn't come across. Scots Online says that it means 'mud', which is fun. I can guess what 'fou as a puggie' might mean - perhaps not entirely suitable for homework - but, sadly, occasionally an accurate description of this blogger - well, possibly a slight exaggeration ...

The mither tongue

Our daughter has had to compose 10 sentences using Scots words (as homework). I've been having fun, since my mother is a Highlander, I was brought up near Glasgow, and my dad was from London, so dialectically I'm a bit of a mixture.

Lang mae yer lum reek!

Between

Welcome, Ginger Blue, and thank you for commenting.

My wife and I argued, yesterday. It's always hard to recover, to acknowledge that we have differences, and that we have to work through them.

Compensation

This afternoon, I gave blood, and now I'm drinking a glass of wine; they're both red stuff, so it makes sense, doesn't it?

Another busy day

But no time to describe it ...

It was windy, last night

It was windy, last night
Originally uploaded by Glaswegian

The picture says it all ...

The visiting cat

There is a cat which has got into the habit of coming to our door, mewing for food and shelter. Generally, we allow him to come in, give him some scraps to eat, and let him find somewhere comfortable to curl up for a while. But we haven't allowed him to stay the night. It tends to be me who evicts him. We think that he has an owner, so I reckon that the best thing to do is to entice him out with something to eat around the middle of the evening, so if he does decide to go home there will be somebody who can let him in.

It was getting late this evening, and the cat was still in the house. Nobody else seemed to be concerned; I was too tired to do anything subtle, so I picked up the cat and carried him out the back door. His piteous miaow nearly broke my heart, but I didn't let him back into the house. When I opened the door about ten minutes later, he was gone.

I really don't know what to do. I can't believe that he is a genuine stray. So I suppose that my head is now telling me that I did the right thing, but my heart isn't so sure.

First day back at work

Unfortunately, this was one of those days where I ended up with considerably more work to do at the end than I had at the beginning.

Black dog

Back to work, to-morrow; feeling utterly, utterly despondent.

A crazy outing this afternoon - to the beach (well, the sun was shining) - but the picnic came to an abrupt end when our son was clearly suffering in the cold.

Don't blog when drunk

So I'm not blogging ...

A sudden thought

The children and I went swimming this afternoon, unexpectedly. I was thinking that it would be good to do something active - especially with the aim of tiring out our son, who might be more willing then to go to bed when the time comes. Well, it's tired me out ...

Out of the depths

Short, dark days. Always being responsible for children. Unclear about the future. But grateful for mercies, such as the heat in the house being on, although the boiler needs a replacement part.

It could have been worse

As we drove to my mother's to-day, the car started to make an expensive sounding noise. I was thinking that we'd have to leave the car with my mum, and find an alternative means of getting home, but, miraculously, when I took the car for a test drive after lunch, there was no sign of the ominous noise. PTL.

A drab New Year's Day

Of course, staying up until one o'clock this morning probably didn't help; and the rain hasn't stopped; but we meant to get out somewhere, and we didn't.