Family Gathering in Bridge of Allan

We left Bridge of Allan just after 8am this morning and were home by about 2:40pm. For our last night in Bridge of Allan yesterday, Kirsty had invited some relatively nearby family members to some drinks and nibbles.

Dunblane and Deanston Distillery

Today was our last day visiting Kirsty and David in Bridge of Allan and we left David to go to a photography workshop in Stirling and Kirsty to prepare for an evening family get together while we took a trip to Dunblane.

Stirling Castle and Sherrifmuir Battle site.

Today was our third day visiting Kirsty and David in Scotland and they took us out to visit Stirling Castle.

Weekend Quick Cryptic 106 - Solution

Phil Jordan, Sawbill and I are continuing to produce our series of Quick Cryptic crosswords. We take turns, publishing one a fortnight, and this week it's  my turn. 

You can find a link to the crossword here and the answers below.  Feel free to leave any comments or questions here as you would do on  TfTT .  You can find an index to the complete series of crosswords here. 

Weekend Quick Cryptic 106 by Johninterred - The City? Great! You said when?

This time it is my turn to provide the fortnightly Weekend Quick Cryptic crossword, Number 106 in the series, entitled "The City? Great! You said when?", which is itself a cryptic clue (answer 6 letters) for the theme.

You can try and solve the crossword interactively here on MyCrossword or here on crossword.info. As usual you can download a PDF to print which you can find here. Alternatively you can copy and print the image below. The title gives a clue to the theme, which shouldn't be hard to spot. Comments and queries are welcome with the solution post (which also gives tips on some of the clues).  I will react to any comments or queries there as soon as I can. You can find an index to the complete series of crosswords here. 

Callander, Doune Castle and Allanwater Brewhouse

Today was out second day visiting Kirsty and David in Scotland and they took us out to visit Callander and Doune Castle.

Bridge of Allan

Today we travelled north to visit Kirsty and David in Bridge of Allan for a few days.

Family Pub Meal

Laura, Laurence, Sarah and William are going kayaking together today, so yesterday Dawn and I took Sarah across to Bedford, and we all went out for a meal at The Park.

More Sausage Rolls

Dawn bought some ready-rolled puff pastry and sausages the other day to persuade me to make some more sausage rolls.  Would they taste as good as last time?

Visit to Bourne and Stamford

Yesterday, while Dawn stayed at home and boiler installation was completed, I took Sarah to Bourne for a company meeting at Point74, for whom she works remotely.

New boiler

When we got our annual gas boiler service done recently we were reminded that it was 30 years old and if it fails the chances are it couldn't be repaired as the spare parts aren't available any more. So we agreed to get a quote for replacing it. Having replaced our kitchen and utility room, I thought it would good to get a new boiler as well. And here it is. It should be 20% more efficient than the old one. Nice job. Thank-you British Gas. 

Sunday Dinner with Sarah

 

We have Sarah visiting for a few days. She has a company meeting in Bourne tis week so is going to work from here Monday, Tuesday and Friday. She is the first of the family (or anybody else) to visit and see the new kitchen and we had a roast pork dinner to celebrate. The new kitchen is now declared open!

Times for The Times Summer Gathering

After we had such fun with a summer get-together last year, attended by some TimesforTheTimes old hands, bloggers and commenters, we thought we would have another one. Read about last year’s here.

Weekend Quick Cryptic 105 - Solution

Phil Jordan, Sawbill and I are continuing to produce our series of Quick Cryptic crosswords. We take turns, publishing one a fortnight, and this week it's  Phil's turn. 

You can find a link to the crossword here and the answers below. Feel free to leave any comments or questions here as you would do on TfTT. You can find an index to the complete series of crosswords here. 

Weekend Quick Cryptic 105 by Sawbill

This time it is Sawbill's turn to provide the fortnightly Weekend Quick Cryptic crossword, Number 105 in the series.

Norton Walk to Langham Hall Gardens

Today we walked from Norton to Langham and back to visit Langham Walled Garden.

Thursford Steam Museum Visit

Today we went on U3A Bury St Edmunds organised coach trip After visiting Little Walsingham and the Anglican Shrine of Our Lady there in the morning (see here), in the afternoon we visited Thursford Steam Museum.

Walsingham Visit

Today we went on U3A Bury St Edmunds organised coach trip. In the morning we visited Little Walsingham and the Anglican Shrine of Our Lady there.

Self-Storage Emptied

When we embarked on our kitchen replacement, we knew we were going to have clear everything out of the kitchen. Although we could put some things (like the kitchen chairs) in other parts of the house, we needed to put a lot of stuff in the garage.

St Edmund Way Part 7 - Nayland to Manningtree

Today we completed the St Edmund Way with our much postponed 7th stage, from Nayland to Manningtree.

Richard Rogan - RIP

I got some shocking news yesterday, confirmed today, that Richard Rogan, The Times crossword editor, died at the weekend following a heart attack a week earlier. Update 6-June - His obituary in The Times today can be found here.

Ickworth House Walk

It was such a lovely day today that Dawn and I just had to go for a walk before lunch... along with everyone else!

St Michaels Singers Singing Day

Today we had a St. Michaels Singers singing day in Old in Northamptonshire.