Menokreatikkul; Saturday Stitches

Bringing you a 'guest video' today... One thing that is moving at a rapid pace in the world is AI substitution. The writing world is littered (particularly on the biggest platform you can think of) with absolute pulp created to grab your hard-earned and, quite likely, scraped from authentic authors' works. I admit that I had been spotting a few things when looking at crochet patterns that had me wondering... and then along came this delightful wee presentation on that very subject. You don't have to sit through the entire parrot part (you'll understand when you get there), but the first seven minutes or so are definitely worth listening to, as are the closing comments... but the parrot bit is fun if you are keen on understanding the frustrations.

Menoturals; Chalk And Cheese

It's that wonderful time of the month when LLB's NF meets up with this blog's FFF... sharing nature a wee bit differently.

Yesterday, I told you that I drove Mac1 down to Biggar Museum for a visit. En route, we stopped for lunch at the Errington Barn. The main eatery was very full, so we opted for the little side hut with a more limited menu, but golly, it was good. Sissy went for the farm egg bap with their Corra Linn cheese, and I had the goat's cheese and honey drizzle crepe. Slurperoonies!!! Needless to say, I also purchased a slice of the Lanark Blue (made from sheep's milk) and an Elrick Log (made with goat's milk).

Hard to tell from that photo, but those rounds are eight or nine inches in diameter, and nearly as deep! That blue cheese is nothing short of heavenly, and the goat's cheese, divine. 

At the museum, I mentioned that there was an introductory section that fitted into the NF part of things quite well...

Yes, a fabulous collection of rock specimens with lots of info and - happy YAMster - a handle it and name it section.

Always a keen amateur, you might guess that I was also channelling my 'inner Gail'! I couldn't help but think that she might have been reasonably impressed with this small but excellent presentation. If you biggify the next one, although I downsize my photos for publication, you should still be able to read the relevant dates. (Despite my post title, there's no chalk here... but grant me a little licence!)

Both my sister and I loved this delightful museum - small but perfectly formed!

Nature was having a rage outside, though. I told you yesterday that the rains arrived when we did... and they forgot to stop. When it came time to leave, those twenty yards to the van proved to be as drenching as standing under the shower on full power. I drove as close as I could to the bus stop for Mac1 to dash to the shelter, then tried to get to the overnight stop I had planned ... but it was further down the hill, and it was flooded! The roads were under a foot of water, and the traffic was tragic. I decided to head back up the hill to Carnwath, where I could get the van charged and knew there would be no risk of waking up to wet feet. The drive was hair-raising, a 20mph task, so heavily washed was most of the road. 

When I did get settled, I could not be bothered cooking, so had a plate with oatcakes, beetroot, some of the fresh broad beans I'd picked at Little Sparta, and some of that gorgeous cheese. 

I lingered in Lanark for about ten days, then headed back to Dunoon for August. There was still some excellent weather to come, but as we crossed on the ferry, we were met with this...

Menoogling; Art And History

On the 19th of July, I took Mac1 in The Grey down to the town of Biggar. This is not very far from where Little Sparta is, and in the town's museum, there was one room dedicated to some fine art pieces in which the collaborations between Ian Hamilton Finlay and other artists, notably through the medium of print and ceramics, were displayed. Needless to say, my sister had a strong part to play in that set-up. She wanted me to see it, but also needed to attend to one or two minor details. Apart from that, she also wanted to look around the main body of the museum, which I was more than happy to do also. 

I have been discovering that a lot of the wee local museums in this Bonny Land are kept going by community pride, mainly volunteers, and with some flair. Some of them manage to obtain funds from the area councils, and/or things like the Lottery Fund and donations. 

I will say that we were immensely glad to obtain a parking spot only 20 yards from the door (not a given, for Biggar is a very busy market town), because as we arrived, the heavens opened. Monsoon-style evacuation. Perfect museum visiting weather.

It is not a large establishment, but it has been very thoughtfully laid out. On entering beyond the exhibition space, one is met first with the geology... come back tomorrow for that little bit, as it will cover my Nature Friday/FFF spot.

Image screen captured from Biggar Museum Website

Beyond the rocks is a section showing all the finds from archaeological sites in the Lanarkshire area. What was great fun was the touchy-feely bits. Replica items left out to pick and get a feel for the tools. I confess I was so engrossed with the exhibits that I didn't get any photos of that bit. Thus, I grabbed the screenshot above to show a little of the quality and variety of beads, metal works, and weaponry points, ranging in size from head-sized axes to finger-nail-sized arrowheads. There were many amazing diorama models created by a local man, recreating the various settlements and fortifications of the early inhabitants, as well as the Roman groundworks and later fortifications, which recognised the strategic location of Biggar. 

Then there was the section dedicated to the exiled Polish soldiers, a great many of whom were barracked and trained in the area. Also, quite a few local lads had been out in the Crimean conflict. There was some interesting needlework related to that...

A little difficult to photograph as they were behind glass and there was a great deal of light reflection. The works were also huge, and there wasn't really enough space to stand back from them. The council did well preserving these - and, consequently, the memory of Menzies Moffat and his skill.

There was a whole section of the museum set up as a 'street', with shops to enter and get nostalgic about.

The telephone exchange was fun... yes, one could play with it! There was a section set up to link with a receiver in the shop over the 'street' and another in the cobbler's... so one needed three people to go through the full connection process. And what about that thumping great printing press??! 

There was a four-poster in the Covenanter's section that would suit me fine... known as the Levingstoun bed, someone famous slept in it - but I failed to take proper note!

To round off today's post, have fun reading this notice. Caeser was a busy boy!!!