Day Trip - Oban

Though Glencoe was our base of operations, hubby also planned some day trips.  The first was to Oban, a fishing village on the west coast.  It is about 1.5 hours south from Glencoe, but we took our time, driving along in the drenching rain.  Again, this is the view from our room.  Takes one's breath away.

 It was a wet, grey day, which we thoroughly enjoyed.  Such a change from drought-stricken California!  There were boats on the lochs, though this may have been a sea water inlet.  It was hard to tell, there's so much water.

 "Keep an eye out for Castle Stalker."  I didn't know what it was, but it is a privately owned castle, that was used in  Monty Python's Holy Grail movie.  There is a delightful cafe up the hill, that takes full advantage of their location.  "Stop by for castle view."  And truly, it is the best place to get a photo of the castle.  Their cappuccino was good, too!

We asked the waitress for suggestions of things to do or see in Oban, which was our destination.  She suggested that we stop at Dunstaffnage Castle, if the weather permitted, and if we had time.  "It's lovely, though not as kept up as some of them."  It was perfect!

 We were left to our own devices, to wander and explore the ruins.  This was the castle inhabited by the MacDonalds, who were later slain by the Campbells.  (Did I mention that our Inn had a sign at the desk?  "No Hawkers or Campbells"  There's still some anti-Campbell sentiment in Glencoe.)  The Stone of Scone (a stone associated with Scottish coronations) was kept here for centuries.

The rock work fascinates me.  Just look at it!  The detail and design is so intricate, and here is stands, hundreds of years after it was first erected.  Sure, some of it has tumbled down, but much of it hasn't.

 

 The lookout could see anyone approaching by sea, from the safety of the castle walls.

 Once back on the road, we saw a sign that said, "Police accident."  One hundred yards later, there was a red car, in a tree.  The police do not clear accident sites, other than to remove them from the road.  It is the owner's responsibility to retrieve their car.  We were told that sometimes the cars stay there for weeks.  When that happens, pranksters will start stacking traffic cones on the cars, and they become a source of roadside entertainment.

One of the things that first caught my eye when we got to Oban was the roof lines.  (Is that the proper word?)  My husband pointed out the multiple chimneys.  Each room on each floor that has a fireplace has its own chimney.  I don't think we saw any structures with a single chimney.  SO different from home!

 Oban is a fishing village, built around a harbor.  I have pictures of sailboats and a huge tanker, and a giant ferry, and, of course, fishing boats.  I have more pictures than I know what to do with.

 Above the town is this structure called McCaig's Tower/McCaig's Folly.  (I think it depends upon whether or not you approve of it.)  You can see the boats in the foreground, the original village, the newer homes and the tower looking down on it all.  Everywhere I turned, I had to take pictures.

 The people were as interesting to watch as the buildings and skylines.  Behind me is the Fishmonger's stand.  This gentleman pulled up and dropped off some baskets of crabs, before pulling off to talk to the younger chap.

They were also having kayak races the day we were here.  I loved this child, already at home on the beach, with his slicker and galoshes. 

Oban was a delightful place to visit, and we left in time to reach Glencoe before sunset.

Such a lovely day, and so filled with rain!  Tomorrow:   Loch Ness

The Highlands

We left Edinburgh, rented a car, and headed to the Highlands, specifically to Glencoe.  Its claim to fame is that this was where the Campbells massacred the MacDonalds, way back when.  It's a rough and rugged country, and spectacularly beautiful.  The drive was around 3 hours, and lots of fun.  "Stay left!"  Remember to stay left!

Just outside Edinburgh, we passed this massive sculpture called "The Kelpies." This photo doesn't give you an idea of their size, rearing above the M9.  They appeared out of nowhere.  Now that's what I call Art!  (Notice the raindrops on the windshield.)

 It was more common to see things like this hay truck, waiting to pull onto the road.  The hay is rolled into smallish bales, which are then wrapped with plastic and stacked like toys.  It rained every day.  SO nice!

 Trees lined the roadside, and logging was common.  I'm not sure what was going on with these trees, but we saw several stands of trees that looked just like this.  Perhaps they are planted too close together for the lower branches to thrive?

 But as with all conscientious logging, new trees are planted, as replacements.  We saw new trees everywhere.

 The landscape changed dramatically, when we reached the Highlands.  Mountains jut up from the earth, covered with green and dripping with water.

 Along their bases, are train tracks and trestles, that look like they've been there forever.

 This is one of my favorite photos.  It's got my husband, in the car, and me with my camera...he did all the driving, I took about 3000 pictures.  :)

When we were almost there, we stopped at a viewpoint.  wow.

 When we finally arrived, we were rewarded with this double rainbow.

And a good Scottish dinner, of steak and ale "stew" with a pastry lid.  yum!

It was a trip to remember, and I'm working on that, as diligently as possible.  It was wonderful! 

Sights of Edinburgh

This picture was taken on the day we arrived.  Husband is standing in front of the Edinburgh Castle.  The blue bleachers over his shoulder are a tiny indication of the stadium set up for the Tattoo.  We spent a few hours exploring the castle, then ate dinner and walked back up the hill to watch the Tattoo.

 The Edinburgh Military Tattoo is an amazing experience.  I had no idea what to expect, other than the most pipers in one place that I would ever see.  In addition, there were guest performers, including The Citadel, and The USAF Precision Honor Guard Drill Team.  It was spectacular, and impossible to get great photos of.

 The Grand Finale included a tribute to Battle Over Britain, with outstanding fireworks, launched from the castle.  oooh.  aaah.  If you ever have the opportunity to go to Edinburgh during the Tattoo, make sure you get tickets and attend.  It was very affordable, and one of the most memorable parts of our trip.

 The Fringe Festival was also in full swing, but I'm not much into that.  Street performers were everywhere.  This fellow made incredible music with this instrument.  It doesn't look like much, but WOW.  He was good!

 Ever seen a life-sized balloon animal Ninja Turtle?  I have.

And I think that's about it for this installment.  We spent the first night in Edinburgh, then rented a car, and headed for the Highlands.  Stay tuned, for more on Scotland.

Far, Far Away

On August 25, my husband and I drove to San Francisco.  On the 26th, we boarded a plane, and on the 27th - which coincidentally was his birthday - we stepped off our plane into Wonderland.  I mean Scotland.

But if you are from Central California, where the air is brown, the dirt is brown, and the grass and trees are dying, well, Scotland just blows the senses.  Wet, green, cool, wet...did I say wet?  It was a 180 from what we have come back to.  And with the Rough Fire still burning aggressively, well, the air today  is chewable, and we're being warned not to breathe it.  Like I said, Scotland was a Wonderland.

I have about 3000 pictures, and it's hard to know what to share and what to keep to myself.  I mean, really, you DO want to see a pretty, green place, don't you?  I've posted a few pics on Facebook, but mostly I've kept them to myself.  Each day I look at about 200 or so.  They bring a smile to my face.

We stayed until we had to board a plane on Sept 5, back to SFO, and now, back to home.  It's a memory that's quickly fading in the hustle bustle of home life.  But I'll share a story with you, if you're not already bored.

We retraced many of our steps from a family trip taken in 1996.  One of the places that we visited was Linlithgow Palace, in Linlithgow.  A story I've often told, is of the patchwork shop that I spotted as we were running up the hill to catch our train.  They had closed 5 minutes before we ran by.  It was the only patchwork shop I'd seen on that trip.

This time, we again traveled to Linlithgow.  On our way to the palace, I stopped to admire the architecture of a particularly intriguing building.  When I walked to the front of it, it was the very same patchwork shop from 19 years ago.

 Look at that!  A quilt store!

 We went inside, and I found some tartan-printed cotton yardage.  (Or is it metre-age?  They sell it by the metre.)

 It is a cute little shop, and under new ownership (compared to 1996).

 My husband was pleased to buy fabric for me.  (He'd almost left me behind at the train station, with my tickets in his pocket...but I'm not supposed to talk about that.)

Fabric in hand, we walked to the palace.

Palaces are where the monarchs live.  Castles are defensive structures.  There are no cannons in Linlithgow.  I'll probably get this wrong, but I think it was the birthplace of Mary, Queen of Scots.  My husband is the Scot-o-phile, and can quote dates and names for just about everything.  Me, I prefer poking around, exploring, and enjoying how it is now.

I'll leave you with this last castle picture.  Do you recognize it?  Think, think hard.  Doesn't it look familiar?  Didn't you see it in a movie once?  Weren't there Frenchmen in it?

It's Castle Stalker, a privately owned residence that played a memorable part of Monty Python and the Holy Grail.  I really got a kick out of it.  Hubby was excited about seeing it, I looked at it and said, "That's it?!!"  But when he gave me the Monty Python connection, I started laughing, and this is one of my favorite memories of that particular day.  Can't you just imagine the cow in the trebuchet?

And with that, I'd better hit "publish."  Hope you enjoyed the narrative!

Nuts to You

So far the water is holding out.  I'm not sure if you can tell, but it's very sandy.  We now have streaks of sand, running through the orchard.  We're about 20' from the bottom of our well.  Good thing we're to turn off the water in three days.  Then, it's time to prep, because it's almost harvest time.

 This year's crop is bountiful, plentiful, loaded with nuts, nuts, and more nuts.

 Look at all of those nuts!

The downside of a large crop (our first) is the constantly breaking branches.  Or maybe I should say limbs.  Huge, big, decades old limbs, that are LOADED with food, all are creaking and cracking with the weight.

Today we were told that most of our phone line issues are related to those nut-loaded limbs.  The power company comes out every year, to trim the branches away from the power line.  But the phone line?  It's hanging about 4' lower, and now has sagging limbs pulling it down.  We have a few options.  We can cut the limbs (which we'll probably have to do anyway), but if we do that, we'll lose that many more nuts.  Or we can ask/beg/grovel and try to get them to restring the line.  Or, we can see if we can get them to bury the line.  The repairman told me if we choose option 3, we'll have to pay for it.  yikes.

Just thought you might like some behind the scenes.  While folks wait for this year's crop to hit the store shelves, we're dealing with low water levels, breaking limbs, and even interference on the phone line.  I've said it before, and I'm guessing I'll say it again.  This farming stuff is not for the faint of heart.

Shh! It's a Secret!

I feel like this poor blog has been neglected, but really?  It hasn't been any more neglected than my quilting in general.  Finding time to stitch?  It's just not happening.  I used to MAKE time to stitch, but even this unseasonably cool summer (less that 100, for longer than normal) has not been enough to prompt me to regularly pick up needle and thread.  Thank goodness a friend has forwarded information about this challenge more than once.  Though now that I look at the website, I wonder once again, if I bought the right fabric.   This calls it "American Made," but I'm pretty sure that the bolt end read "Made in USA."  Is it the same stuff?  oh dear.

See, I bought fabric for the challenge several months ago, but never got around to cutting it up.  I needed more colors, so I went shopping.  When I chatted with the clerk, she said, "I don't think we had any of those fabrics cut into fat quarters.  You might have purchased RJR!"  I ran home, got the fat quarters and brought them back to the shop.

 They may be beautiful, but they are also RJR.  oh, dear.  Time for more shopping.  I picked out more than a dozen Made in USA fabrics, and bought a half yard of each.  Then I shlepped them home, tossed them in the washer (yes, they bleed.  Use color-catchers!) and hung them on the line.  Here they are, dried, and waiting for the iron.

I started the little quilt on Thursday morning, and finished the quilting last night.  Today I hope to attach the facing and finish it.  Goals are good.

And that's what I've been up to lately.  I think the quilt will measure around 14" square, so when I say, "I haven't done much," really...I haven't done much.

Maybe I can get something done that I'm actually able to show you.  Goals are good, and all that.  Summer's wasting, and I'm still looking for my motivation.  crazy, that.

Happy Quilting!

Accepted!

My quilt was accepted into the SAQA "Oasis" exhibit in Palm Springs.  If you are attending, you can look for my little sail boat, sailing in the deep blue sea.  :)

My miniature has been shipped to Houston.  The show isn't until late October, but the judging will be done by mid-Sept.  They have quite the time line.

Other than that, I haven't done much that is quilt-related this week.  oh wait.  Yes I did.  I went to a couple of estate sales, and picked up more treasure.  I love this little marble table.  It's the perfect size for an afternoon of lounging by the pool with a book and something cool to drink.  The top is marble, the base is heavy metal.  (Not the radioactive kind.)

 This little rabbit is also metal.  He was so cute, I had to bring him home.

 I found two of these calla lily stepping stones.  They add sparkle to my shade garden.

 I couldn't resist this chair, with the carved roses in the back.  I don't know what I'll do with it, other than stroke the carvings.  yeah, I'm kind of odd like that.

This was my favorite purchase yesterday - if I had a favorite.  I bought too many things, and I've put almost all of them to use already.  It's a giant clamshell.

 I scrubbed it after taking the picture.  I thought you might get an idea of its size, with the pint glass and the 4" tiles.

 Today I bought this utensil sorter for $1.  I wasn't sure what to do with it, until I remembered my box of Masterpiece thread.

 It's not very easy to pick a color when they're stored in the box.  In fact, I never use this thread, because I never remember that I have it available.

 The utensil holder is the perfect size.  Look at that!  It even holds the rest of my Masterpiece thread, that didn't fit in the box.  I'm guessing that I will use it a lot more, now that I can actually see it!  Best dollar I spent today!  :)

And I guess that's about it.  I stitched out a label, and have a dozen more that need to be stitched.  Oh!  And I promised a picture of that old quilt top that is now bound.  I'll have to take that picture tomorrow, and then post it.  Something to look forward to.  Goals are good.  :)

Finished!

whew!  Nothing like a deadline to get one motivated, eh?  It usually works for me, and this one was no exception.  The quilt isn't all that I imagined, but just maybe, it's enough.  Two weeks ago I thought it might have beading and embellishment.  Today?  It's fabric only, and that's final.  for now.

 I didn't hear anything about not allowing images ahead of time.  But once again Blogger strikes.  If you'd like to see the entire quilt, tilt your head 90 degrees.  :(

We were to include an Artist's Statement regarding this "oasis."  Mine read as follows:

My favorite escape is a view of the ocean.  When I consider its vast expanse, my problems sail away as though they are nothing.  God is bigger than my worries, and contemplating the details of His creation does much to soothe my soul.

The entry is now in the hands (computer) of the jury, and I patiently await their decision.  Whatever the jury says, I know that I'm pretty happy with this little piece.  "By the Sea" measures 17.75" x 39.25"  Not quite the 18 x 40" required size, but close enough.

And with that, it's on to the next thing.  Carry on!