28 September 2010. Fork 'n' fags

28 September 2010, originally uploaded by sleepyduck.

I like what Miliband Jr said about civil liberties today. Actually, I wasn't particularly impressed by what he said (which could be paraphrased as "civil liberties are good"). more by the fact that he mentioned the subject at all. It's all very well for politicians to drone on and on about the economy and crime and immigration and the other tedious things which they think are going to win them votes, but too often they ignore the fundamentals. So, well done for that. Miliband Jr. I am heartened... and cautiously optimistic...

Yesterday, Sandy mentioned that the days are getting colder and shorter. He wasn't lying.

25 September 2010. Cramond

25 September 2010_6, originally uploaded by sleepyduck.

A nice little outing this afternoon.

Sammy and Mummy went on an adventure...

24 September 2010. A rock the size of a loaf of bread

24 September 2010, originally uploaded by sleepyduck.

It rained heavily yesterday. Very heavily. Heavily enough to dislodge a chunk of the Castle Rock, which fell onto Johnston Terrace, causing havoc and consternation. According to the BBC, a witness described the rock as being about the size of "a loaf of bread". For some reason, I found this amusing, though I'm not sure why. I wonder, if the rock had been roughly the same mass but longer and thinner, would the witness have described it as being the size of a baguette? If it had been rounder, would it have been described as being the size of a large haggis? The full BBC report on the incident, complete with a photograph of a loaf-of-bread-sized rock, is here.

The chap on the left is a random tourist. The chap on the right is a random non-tourist.

Imp apologises for not blogging recently. She has been a very busy Imp. Normal service should be resumed soon.

18 September 2010. Cool kid

18 September 2010_1, originally uploaded by sleepyduck.

Coffee with our little friend this afternoon. Well, we had coffee, Mummy had tea, he had juice and we all had cake. As you can see, he has some very cool sunglasses, which made him look much cooler than all the other kids in Costa.

Aside from that, a lazy Saturday :-)

If you look very closely at this one, you can see Mummy reflected in his shades...

17 September 2010. The cyclist wasn't fooled...

17 September 2010, originally uploaded by sleepyduck.

That isn't a fire exit, it's a wall. (You'll have to click through to Flickr and look at the full sized version to read the sign. Sorry.)

No Popery today. But it's the weekend, so hooray for that and happy weekend to all!

I meant to thank Riffs in G for posting a link to "Hocus Pocus" by Focus earlier this week. Progtastic! My favourite has always been "Sylvia", which is more commercial, less prog and therefore easier for me to stomach.

16 September 2010. I shot the Pope...

16 September 2010_25, originally uploaded by sleepyduck.

... but I didn't shoot the Deputy.

I have to say I was surprised at the turnout. I left the office at about the same time as he left Holyrood and I walked round to Lothian Road expecting to have to peer above people's heads. Not at all. The crowd wasn't even one deep, so my colleague Eleanor and I leant on one of the barriers and chatted to each other and to the police for about 15 minutes till the Popemobile came along. Speaking of police officers, I don't think I have ever seen so many in one place, nor do I think I have I seen so many cheery, relaxed Polis. It must have been a nice day out for them, standing around in their newly-laundered fluorescent jackets, controlling a small and very well behaved crowd.

As for the protestors, they were also few in number and very well behaved. They waved their placards and shouted a bit as he passed by, but it was all very genteel as protests go, very Edinburgh.

I was surprised at how small the Pope is. Actually, that was apparent when I saw the pictures of him beside the Queen at Holyrood. He isn't much bigger than her. Something of a mini-Pope. I was also surprised at how quickly the Popemobile was moving. It wasn't exactly burning rubber, but it was moving more briskly than I had expected.

So, did I feel an overwhelming sense of grace? Nope. Did I feel blessed? Nah. But I'd never seen a Pope before and I'll probably never see one again, so it has been an unusual Thursday. There are many more photos on Flickr, if you're interested.

The most important thing about today is that Imp's first day at her new job went well. Hooray for that!

15 September 2010. Look who's here! On a Wednesday!

15 September 2010_1, originally uploaded by sleepyduck.

Imp starts New Job Number 1 tomorrow, so we have the rare treat of being together on a weekday evening. And, assuming all goes well tonight, a weekday morning :-) And another weekday evening. And another weekday morning. She has been preparing for tomorrow, hence the look of concentration.

I'm getting fed up with the Pope stuff, which has been all over the news yesterday and today. I'll be glad when it's over. Evidently, the area beside the Usher Hall has been set aside for protesters, so if I'm lucky I might get some snaps of egg-throwing tomorrow, as well as a glimpse of the Big Fella.

Here's Imp from the other side...

12 September 2010. Hocus pocus

12 September 2010, originally uploaded by sleepyduck.

There seem to be a few theories as to the etymology of the phrase "hocus pocus". My favourite is that it's a corruption of the Latin "hoc est corpus" - "this is the body (of Christ)" - which was originally used to mock the magic of transubstantiation and was subsequently extended to apply to all kinds of magic.

The special event to which the above sign refers is the visit of an old German bloke called Ratzinger, who is something of an expert in hocus pocus. I am a Catholic by birth and an atheist by choice, and I shall keep my opinion of the Catholic church to myself. Nevertheless, the procession is due to pass quite close to the office where I work, so I shall probably take my big lens with me and see if I can shoot one of the most powerful men in the world.

When I was young, a friend remarked on my resemblance to the man who shot the Pope. Some years later, it was said that I resembled Salman Rushdie. Either way, it would seem that I have the countenance of someone who upsets religious leaders. I'm not unhappy about that.

Of course, the really special event on Thursday is that Imp starts the first of her new jobs :-)

08 September 2010. Shenanigans

08 September 2010, originally uploaded by sleepyduck.

That's one of my favourite words. Etymology unknown, according to the various online sources I've looked at.

It has been brought to my attention by a friend (who will remain nameless, as I wouldn't want to get anyone into any trouble) that there have been shenanigans over at another site (which will also remain nameless). Evidently, a disgruntled former participant at the aforementioned nameless site has set up some kind of automated thingummybob which loads certain pages again and again, thereby distorting the popularity ratings of honourable, law-abiding current participants of the aforementioned nameless site.

Shenanigans indeed.

But fear not - apparently the perpetrator has been identified and steps have been taken to ensure that the wrath of innocent, approval-seeking amateur photographers all over the world will be brought to bear upon him or her. Phew!

(If anyone from the aforementioned etc is reading this, I apologise for finding it amusing, but I do enjoy a good melodrama. I know that the manipulation of statistics by automated thingummybobs is frowned upon by internet people, but I don't really understand why - so I just find it funny. Others find fat people funny. Or foreigners. De gustibus non est disputandum.)

Speaking of which, it's almost a year since I ceased to be a participant in the aforementioned. Time flies when you're not worrying about being attacked by members of a community whose overriding principle is "be nice to each other".

While I'm in apologetic mode, I apologise for posting another picture of the Usher Hall extension. I just liked the shadows.

Speaking of the Shadows...

07 September 2010. West End Village

07 September 2010_1, originally uploaded by sleepyduck.

In England, a village is a collection of pretty thatched cottages around a village green with a pub where people look at you funny if they don't know you.

In Scotland, a village is a row of derelict houses which used to be inhabited by people who used to work at the factory which used to be down the road.

In Edinburgh, West End Village is marketing-speak for William Street and Stafford Street.

Here's a woman in a pretty pink coat...

06 September 2010. The mild cigar from Benson & Hedges

06 September 2010, originally uploaded by sleepyduck.

This sticker is, appropriately, on a waste pipe next to the stage door of the Lyceum Theatre.

Such is the power of advertising that whenever I see "Hamlet" I think "The mild cigar from Benson & Hedges" first and "Prince of Denmark" second. The I get nostalgic about the days when they used to advertise tobacco products on TV. Like this...

04 September 2010. Gormley man and not-Gormley boy

04 September 2010_3, originally uploaded by sleepyduck.

Today, a trip to the Gallery of Modern Art with our favourite wee boy. Sammy made friends with Gormley man number 1 and enjoyed the Henry Moore climbing frames...





Gormley man number 2 is out of reach for Sammy but not for dogs



And here are a couple more for good measure

03 September 2010. Lamp-post, ashtray, blonde

03 September 2010, originally uploaded by sleepyduck.

Happy weekend everyone!

02 September 2010

02 September 2010, originally uploaded by sleepyduck.

Yesterday, a derelict old school. Today, another old school, not derelict. In the distance is Fettes College, attended by Tony Blair and loads of other posh folk. To the left is Waitrose, which is where I buy my groceries and stuff.

01 September 2010. No progress

01 September 2010, originally uploaded by sleepyduck.

I walk past this building every day on the way to work and every day on the way back. I have been walking past this building every day on the way to work and every day on the way back for about 13 years now. Twice a day x 5 days a week x 47 working weeks x 13 years means that I've walked past this building about 6,000 times.

Originally it was a school. By the time I started walking past it on the way to work and on the way back it was being used as Council offices. Then it was bought by the property developers. There was a brief flurry of activity. Then nothing. I shall keep taking photographs of it occasionally. Here's how (a bit of) it looked 18 months ago: