this and that with a sprinkle of rain

Glasgow is going to be in the headlines over the next couple of weeks, if you watch the news are reporting from COP26, you might get a glimpse of this vibrant city. Maybe you are even visiting? Let me know if you do, I can make you a coffee if you don't mind the mess.

Richard and I have been taking turns stripping lining paper from our bedroom wall. The house was previously owned by a self-taught DIY enthusiast and we prepared for surprises. We have one socket in the house that is live but not connected to any circuits. Not sure where the electricity is coming from, maybe thin air. The paper stripping was hard work but it is done now. A much more satisfying job actually than my paid work. It will be good to have another room fully refurbished from the original walls up.

Pippin, our tortoise shell cat is getting ready for here thyroid radiation treatment on Monday. She is of course completely unaware of this. We piled together some lesser loved and damaged blankets for her to sleep on and transfer some home smells onto. She'll be at the hospital kennels for two weeks until she is no longer radioactive. We thought some cosy blankets would be appreciated but as we won't get them back, no fancy quilts for her hospital stay.

I am in a sock knitting phase. A woman needs plenty of knitted socks in winter. I just finished an antique rose coloured plain sock, knitted as a warm-up. I have two balls of yarn that are calling out to me to be knitted up next, a spring lawn green solid and a fiery orange/pink/red variegated yarn. 

Book group is happening again! I am quite excited to see friends and have a chat. I am not sure how much book talk there will be, too much to catch up. We were reading The Heart's Invisible Furies by John Boyne. I really enjoyed this.

I booked a gown to receive my Teaching Excellence Award during Winter Graduations. A new world was revealed to me. If there is one thing British do well, it is pomp. I will be wearing a gown from my PhD awarding University in Switzerland. Who even knew there were Swiss university graduation gowns! I was not wearing one at my own two graduations and I don't remember anyone else wearing one either (but I am old and my memory sketchy). I hope the gown is clean and doesn't smell of mothballs and sweat of the previous wearer.

I had my final blood test as a Novavax vaccine trial participant. Novavax has finally filed for approval in the UK. I have a prescription for a deployed vaccine because I may need to travel for work before Novavax is approved where I might travel to... it is so bloody complicated. I'll be super boosted. Meanwhile, Sam has to travel to Glasgow to get his second second jag (not a typo). He had his first jag here in Scotland, the second one in England where he now lives. Both countries insist he is not fully vaccinated because the two arms of the NHS are not connected electronically and he can't get a vaccine certificate. Must not start ranting. Must not start ranting. Must not start ranting.

James asked to go to Tesco to buy one of those abominable supermarket halloween costumes. While there, I thought I'd buy a bottle of nice Fentyman's pink lemonade for book group and promptly dropped it. Luckily I scan and pack on the go so the bottle was contained in a fabric tote with other bits and bobs. The lemonade went everywhere but the glass was neatly contained in the bag. The other groceries and my beautiful felted purse where wet and sticky. We didn't find a costume either. James went as himself to his Scout halloween party. He does have a might black eye and looks scary without dressing up.

I also took James running shoe shopping. He is in the adult size range, which fills me with despair because the shoes cost almost as much as a weekly grocery shop. He also needed cross country spikes but it felt too painful to buy these new, too. There may be some his size in the club spares box. Spikes don't wear out so much because kids don't wear them much much. On the way home we stopped at the local zero waste shop to refill shampoo and conditioner bottles. It was my first visit and I loved it. I'll go back with dry food containers soon. Kidney beans on tap, how exciting. 

If the rains continue, we might need cross country spikes for our daily dog walks. Or maybe a boat. I am waiting for the worst of the rain to pass to go for my Sunday jog. This Sunday is my favourite Sunday of the year. I love it when the clocks turn back and I am finally getting that hour back I lost back in March. I know, silly but I try to enjoy the little wins every day brings. 

In other news, I posted two photographs on Instagram this week. This brings me to the grand total of 28 posts since 2016. I might post more because it encourages me to look around more and take photos of this beautiful (currently drab and dreich) world around me. 

Thanks for visiting on this wet Sunday morning.