Wednesday, April 03, 2013


We had a grand time, and I drove us safely there and back.

We prefer to take the motorway to Stirling and then go cross-country. The alternative is to take the horrible M8 motorway to Glasgow. Either way, you eventually drive up the west side of Loch Lomond for a long time, and then over the Rest and be Thankful to Loch Fyne.

Coming back, our way, is a bit hard on the nerves. One doesn’t have to drive into Stirling. One just negotiates a series of roundabouts, four I think, connecting the cross-country road to the motorway to Edinburgh. At the last two of those roundabouts, one must bravely choose the exit marked “M9 Perth”. “M9” is fine; “Perth” is in the wrong direction.

Last year I couldn’t bring myself to do it, and wound up toiling through Stirling for half-an-hour. This week I was stouter of heart, and fared better. Somebody ought to tell them.

Here I am on the evening of Good Friday, wearing a lovely cosy snood which Joe’s girlfriend’s mother knit for me -- Joe had just delivered it when the picture was taken. Hellie put the picture up on Facebook. I am surprised that I look so bemused so early in the evening. (Cider, you're right, Meg.) The red face will be due, I think, to the fact that the kitchen was very warm, for the sake of the ducks.



They are Khaki Campbells, a breed famous for egg-laying. If you look them up you will find that the breed is so-called because they are khaki-coloured, but Alexander and Ketki believe that theirs will be white.  They are bigger than I expected, the size of six-week kittens at least, and growing prodigiously fast.


Hellie and her boyfriend Matt, with duck:




Here is the Relax, not on Lizzie, the youngest, but her elder sister Hellie, who is the slighter of the two. It looks good, I think, and I will send it off as soon as it has been tidied and blocked. Will I then knit another for myself, the right size?



I gave the Microsoft Surface to Joe, who turned out for some reason to have nothing of his own in the computer line. Lizzie – the American Studies student who is going off to Kansas for a year’s study very soon now – has a perfectly serviceable Toshiba laptop. Joe was clearly delighted; a very happy ending to the story.



Alexander cuts his sons’ hair himself. We pressed him into service to give his father the onceover, with very happy results.




And as for actual knitting, not much. I am nearly finished with the first of the green Zauberball socks for Greek Helen. She will be here in a fortnight. We’ll all go to Strathardle.  Can I polish off the second sock by then?

8 comments:

  1. Great pictures. The sweater looks lovely and very stylish. Glad you had a great time and that you are back safe and sound.
    Ron in Mexico

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  2. Anonymous1:36 PM

    I hope you can make a successful Relax for yourself - the sweater looks really excellent on Hellie.
    Also glad to hear the weekend was such fun.
    LisaRR

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  3. I am so happy that you had a successful visit to Loch Fyne. Hopefully it made up for the last holiday visit there at Christmas!

    The Relax is beautiful, and if you knit another one that would mean you could order some more Madelinetosh. And how nice that you were the recipient of some hand knitting!

    I loved all the pictures!

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  4. No one ever gives me anything hand knit! Lucky you. Is the cowl/snood Hellie is wearing done by you? Relax looks as if it were made just for her. I have to say, on my one trip to the UK the roundabouts frightened me. On more than one occasion I went around two or three times before making it into the correct exit.

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  5. Anonymous3:17 PM

    Thank you for sharing your lovely weekend's pictures with us. I agree with all - what a great job on the Relax!

    I had a white duck as a pet in my girlhood...that duck had bright orange feet and beak. We now live on a lake and share it with about 50 mallard ducks...they have black beaks and feet. However, I had never seen a duck with pale beige beak and feet. I must Google the breed and see what they become as grown-ups.

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  6. In case you want pictures of duck eggs, another blog I follow just posted about them-
    http://twomenandalittlefarm.blogspot.com/2013/04/a-dozen-duck-eggs.html

    Since it's said that they lay one a day I suspect they're either Khaki or Indian Runner eggs.

    Love the pictures and the updates!

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  7. Glad you like the snood, if the weather was anything like we had on the Isle of Wight you would certainly need to wear it day and night.
    I will have to have mine surgically removed if the weather ever warms up!

    Love the hair cut.... Brilliant!!

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  8. I'm happy to hear you had a lovely time at Loch Fyne and all went well with the passing on of the things-that-don't-quite-fit.

    Roundabouts are getting introduced to some of our neighborhoods here and it's taking some people a bit of doing to figure out the right way to go. We have one here in Portland that has a lovely statue of Joan of Arc (recently gold plated) in the center. She's had all sorts of things adorning her over the years, like Santa hats, scarves, and Halloween costumes, but the park gnomes have let it be known it's greatly frowned upon.

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