Despite the multiple issues of the last day or two I make it to Tampere!
I’M AWAKE a few times during the night – I think it’s when the nurses come to change my drips etc. The vomitting and pain has gone. The opiate injection seems to have done a good job!
AT 7am a doctor comes to check me out and tells me I can be discharged. They call me a cab and I’m taken to the apart-hotel in Tikkurila – about 10k out of Helsinki. Margaret meets me at the door and we make a plan.
A late checkout of 1pm lets us get the train into Helsinki airport and collect the guitars, gear, bags etc from Finnair. Easy peasy – the staff have been amazing throughout.
We’re back in Tikkurila by 10am, set an alarm for just after midday and go to sleep.
At 1.30pm we jump on a train to Tampere and I doze most of the 2-½ our journey. Once there it’s a ten minute walk to Paapan Kapakka. We load in and have space to chill while we wait for Ismo.
After soundcheck we go to a local pizza place. Margaret and Ismo eat – I have a glass of coke. I effectively haven’t eaten anything since Sunday morning. Hope I can get through the show!
As it turns out the show goes well…a marathon stint for both Ismo and I who alternate half-hour sets for the duration.
We’re loaded out by 1am and then Ismo drives an hour-and-a-half to Lahti and drops us at the apartment in the centre of town.
MIRACULOUSLY feeling a lot better when I wake up. Phew. I don’t feel much like eating but mange some fruit and overnight oats.
Then it’s straight to the studio to prep and pack the gear. All stuff that would have normally been done yesterday…along with a rehearsal of some songs at least.
There’s a bunch of other stuff to catch up on while Margaret finishes off some of the other packing then we hit the road to the airport.
We are good time and I pick a salad while Margaret has a more adventurous meal before we wait at the gate. I start to feel a bit ‘not right’ before we board but there’s no way I’m giving up now.
Come take off, though, I can’t hold it anymore and fill a number of spew bags…Margaret buzzes and attendant who brings more and moves us to the vacant back row on the plane. Things go from bad to worse and it’s a pretty traumatic two-and-a-half hours.
I was aware of an announcement from the flight deck asking if there’s a doctor on board. Turns out there is and the flight staff are amazing. I get checked over, an injection in my arse and an ambulance is arranged to meet us at the plane. Fuck sake.
I’ve lost it a bit when we land but seems fire and rescue got me off the plane where border patrol, police and medics met us before were transferred to an ambulance on the tarmac. I’m hooked up to various machines, given IV fentanyl and we’re sped off to the hospital.
The fentanyl didn’t seem to work much. But there’s no waiting around at the hospital. Transferred to a bed, drips, bloods, doctor all within (I think) half an hour. Margaret has our hand luggage – Finnair is taking care of the guitars and checked bags – and the staff organised a cab to take her to our hotel. I think it’s around 1am.
Shortly after the nurse comes back with more IV anti-nausea and gives me an injection of some kind of opioid – half an hour later I’ve drifted off.
FIRST job of the day it to make up set lists for the Finland and Estonia dates.
Next on the list Is a bunch of stuff for my pal Kevin in prep for his new single which lands on 15 May – with being away the next fortnight I wanna make sure we have our ducks in a row.
In the office there’s a bunch of guitar pins to be finished off for the merch case. Cutting it fine time-wise but they’ll be ready just in time!
We go to the local pub for dinner with Betty and have a lovely evening until...I get that feeling…the pre-cursor to the mystery vomitting thing. I excuse myself and head home, closely followed by Margaret.
We debate if I should use the injections I have and decide there’s nothing to lose. I jab myself but fifteen minutes later I’m being sick. I can give myself another injection in an hour if I’m not better. I have the second injection. Doesn’t help. And so it begins…this is not good timing,
MAIN job for today is to try a test cut of the audio point info board using a router and circle guide on a piece of scrap wood.
Not s straightforward, of course, as it should be. First, the bit of chipboard needs cut to side and the clamps I need are nowhere to be seen in the ‘recently tidied’ shed. It’s great Margaret tidies the shed every so often…the problem is the things that need to be access quickly sometimes end up out of sight requiring the shed to be blurry emptied to find them. Also, things that go together like the jigsaw, its accessory tools and blades are separated and ‘tidied’ giving rise to the same problem.
It takes an hour to find the stuff I need and 30 seconds to make the cut.
Cutting the circular hole with the router is easier than I excepted but there’s some irregularities in the geometry of the audio point that I need to accommodate and that’s not quite some straightforward meaning I have to re-think my design idea. I get there eventually. The real info board is gonna have to wait tho’.
I’d hoped for a walk. But I have some urgent video and web stuff to do for my pal Kevin…then new promo videos with an additional show need to be edited up for the Estonia section of the tour.
Suddenly it’s after 9pm and Margaret’s calling me for dinner….
AFTER breakfast with Fred we sit and chat a while then I drive her back home.
There’s some bits and bobs of shopping to pick up on the way back. After a late lunch and getting my emails, socials, this blog and stuff done I’m feeling a bit under the weather.
I had sore throat last night and now I’m all blocked up, sneezing and fading fast so I take a nap on the couch. For four hours!
As a result I get next to no work done. Ah well, there’s always tomorrow…
STILL not feeling right but there’s brass guitar pins to be made. My first attempt at using the brass jig I made fails. Not because of the jig but because of a stupid setup mistake that I don’t spot until the job’s nearly finished running.
I make amends then start again and things look a bit better.
In the afternoon Margaret goes to get some shopping in Glasgow and bring my cousin Fred back for the night. She had to give up driving because of eyesight issues a few years ago.
I have a young guitar student at the studio where we have a good session and I even have time for a quick walk and some fresh air before tidying the house a bit and setting the dinner table before Margaret and Fred get here.
FEELING a lot better this morning and even want to eat something. Overnight oats and fruit it is.
Margaret takes Matty and the kids for a swim and I reluctantly get on with my accounts and tax return.
They all have lunch out and I hang out a little with the kids when they come back. Matty takes them back to Catriona’s late afternoon and we have the place to ourselves for the first time since Friday.
In the studio I get my tax return submitted. Phew. Good to get that out the way.
Next job it to start making a jig for embossing brass guitar pins. This is a fiddly and time-consuming job, but if I manage to pull it off it’ll save loads of time in the future.
MARGARET’S turn to be sick now…but by morning she’s feeling a little better. I’m not feeling 100% but get up and do some work.
I decide to go for a swim and see if that perks me up a bit. It does and I feel fine after…until I get home.
Hoping I’m not gonna get sick but stomach cramps, aching all over and a temperature don’t feel too promising.I go for a lie down. Then it’s the skits. Uh-oh. Luckily the vomitting doesn’t follow but I’m in no shape for a guitar student coming later….I get Maragret to message my student apologizing and saying I’ll be in touch to re-arrange asap.Probably a good idea to cancel tomorrow morning’s lesson too – my student has an operation scheduled soon and is probably better staying away from a house full of sickness bugs even if I am feeling better in the morning.
I sleep,doze, toss and turn. Matty’s still here and we’ve got the kids comign again for the night…but I’m ‘oot the game’…
THE KIDS have us awake early. When I go to the toilet there’s a hell of a mess everywhere…I ask the kids if they’ve been unwell? Nope. After Freya being sick yesterday afternoon seems it was Matty’s turn to be sick during the night.
Catriona and Will arrive just after 9am to pick up the kids and everyone goes back to bed except me. I have some breakfast then embark on my accounts. It’s my financial year end and I wanna be ready for all the ‘making tax digital’ changes coming…so best I get my stuff in order and my 2025/6 tax return submitted ASAP.
Margaret’s heating up some soup for lunch when I get back to the house. No sign of Matty who’s holed up in the spare room. Apparently feeling a lot better but knackered.
I get back to my accounts and make some progress then go out a walk up the lochside and do some promos for tonight’s Wildcats’ livestream on Facebook.
Back home I pack up some merch that have come in over the weekend then hit the studio and prepare for tonight’s livestream.
EASTER Sunday…and I’m up at 6am to get the smoker on for the pork belly. Once everything’s sorted I go back to bed and set a timer to go check the wood pellets and give the three slabs of pork belly a spritz with apple cider vinegar – an hourly exercise to help the bark form and keep things humid in the smoker.
A message form Catriona tells us she and Will haven;t been well overnight so won’t be coming – Matty’s on his way down form Dundee and will pick the kids up ‘en route and if she’s feeling better Catriona will come and pick them up later.
After breakfast I make a Carolina-style vinegar BBQ sauce and tend the pork while making another ‘fossil’ for the kids to find during their Easter egg hunt.
Mattey arrives with the kids early afternoon and despite the rain we have a fun time with the egg hunt and take Aaron to the bay…Freya’s not keen to come and when we get back we find out why. She’s been sick.Projectile vomitted all over the bed in the spare room. Margaret strips everything and gets the washing machine on then we have smoked pork belly, coleslaw and potato salad for lunch.
Mikey and Les leave late afternoon and we chill with Matty and the kids. Catriona’s not coming for the kids so they’re staying over – Margaret gets them ready for bed and I make some pasta for dinner then we watch Bill and Dorothy's livestream.
AFTER breakfast Margaret heads off to the village and I prep three big slabs of pork belly for tomorrow. I cut and trim as necessary, score the fat cap, slather in mustard then add a rub – my mix of freshly cracked black pepper, sea salt and garlic granules.
Then it goes in the fridge to be retrieved at 6am tomorrow (Sunday) morning when I fire up the smoker. We're having a family day with an Eater egg hunt for the kids and aim to eat around 4pm. The pork belly generally takes a little over eight hours and is best to let rest for an hour, so if all goes to plan it'll work out.
Margaret's not long back when Les rolls up – she's staying tonight, as is Mikey – both go home after the family day tomorrow (Sunday)...everyone else is coming just for the day but we'll have Matty 'til Wednesday.
I'm doing grilled flank steak tonight so make up my marinade which'll go in a ziplock bag with the steak – but not 'til an hour or so before grilling. Over-marinading can make the meat mushy.
We have a chilled afternoon and I take some time out to make some 'fossils' – deep embossing trilobites and ammonites in bits of broken slate – for the kids to find along with the chocolate eggs tomorrow.
It's 9pm by the time I light the charcoal. Mikey's still not arrived by the time we eat so we have dinner and I keep some back for Mikey when he gets here.
LOTS on ‘the list’ for today but the imminent arrival of Storm Dave has thrown up an opportunity to make some online content. Time is of the essence.
After breakfast I hit the studio and make up a quick video to post round my socials. Quick? Well, as usual I mess around with it for a while so it takes longer than it should!
There’s a lull in the rain so I start digging a hole for another fence post in the front garden. Rocks and roots – as well as general inaccessibility to the spot where I want the post makes it kinda difficult and I’m not sure the hole’s deep enough for the postcrete to hold the post. We’ll see.
Try as I might I can’t find the decking screws I thought I had in the shed. There’s a builder supplies place between here and Balloch so I drive over and grab a box of big fuck-off screws.
Of course the rain’s back on when I get home so next phase/s of fence repair gonna have to wait!
Great to get a paddle - and the aqua drone seems to work pretty good
THERE’S some good fortune that early this morning isn’t windy and the sun’s out – it means not only do I get out for a paddle but I get to test the HOVERAir Aqua drone that arrived yesterday after nearly a year’s wait.
I backed the aqua project on Indiegogo when it was launched and shipping was scheduled for October-December. Needless to say things fell behind and shipping only just started in the last couple of weeks. Now it’s here.
The drone seems to work pretty well but I don’t have time to check when I get back – a quick shower and breakfast before my pal Kevin arrives. We chat over a few coffees and come up with a plan for the release of his next single, Tell Me. Coming 15 May.
Kevin heads off early afternoon and I check out the drone video from earlier and edit some clips together with some talking head I recorded on my phone. Still haven’t worked out how to record audio with the drone footage.
Next job is to repair the front garden fence. I’ve already marked where the new posts need to go so it’s a case of digging the holes, breaking through rock and postcrete-ing them in. Luckily Margaret’s back with the shopping and can hold the post in place while I screw some temporary supports in before postcrete-ing.
CANNAE believe it’s April already. The last few months seem to have gone by in a flash.
Seems Wednesday is my new sourdough day, so up early to get it in the oven, baked and cooled ready for breakfast before my 9am online guitar session.
Then I have a couple of show indents to record for my upcoming radio show on Rock.scot ready for launch at the end of the month.
We find time to go for a swim then a late lunch before my double-header kids arrive for their joint guitar lesson.
There’s quite a few things on my to-do list. I start by emailing the FInland and Estonia folks on my email list with info on the upcoming shows. Next, similar targeted messages via Bandsintown then I make up vertical, square and wide promo videos for both Estonia and Finland.
I post the vertical ones as reels round my socials and prep the rest for social ad campaigns then head back to the house to prepare dinner. Betty’s coming along for dinner.
UP AND organised early to get the daily admin, socials and email sorted before my pal Tom arrives to go over the play out system for the new radio show launching at the end of April.
We have a coffee and catch up then hit the studio.It’s good to get an in-depth understanding of the web-based play out system so I can get properly familiar with everything before my first show. We also do some screen and video recording – not just as an aide memoire for myself, but also for some of the other presenters.
It’s mid-afternoon by the time we finish up then I see if I can edit up some of the video resources. There’s some frame rate and sync issues, but I manage to sort the majority of it out and make a start.
I don’t feel much like it, but I make myself go a walk up the lochside. Despite my tiredness I enjoy the walk and get back in time for a visit from tom to chat over some community trust stuff with Margaret. Nice to see him briefly before I go back to the video editing….
WE’RE all up at a reasonable time as I wanna have some time to work on guitar stuff with Davie.
He’s been a long time online slide guitar student – and also came to the residential workshop last year – but we’ve been doing a coupla things that are best worked on in person.
After spending some time int he studio we go back to te house, have a coffee then he and Jane hit the road.
I have some stuff to get done before a 3pm double-lesson online with a new student in Spain.
The online session goes well then I get a start editing some video to spin into tonight’s WIldcats’ livestream on Facebook. I’ve left it all a bit late but I get there and the livestream goes fine 🙂
The rain stops long enough to take Jane and Davie a walk up the lochside.
AFTER breakfast I get the smoker going for tonight’s pork belly. Our pal’s Davie and Jane are coming for the night.
I also make a batch of Japanese BBQ sauce – we’ll have the pork belly win rice bowls with green beans as Jane is celiac and can’t eat gluten/wheat. Making the sauce I realise that there’s soy sauce in it which has wheat extract, so after the main batch I make a smaller amount of the same but using liquid aminos instead of soy sauce.
Mid-afternoon we’re all tidied and ready when they arrive. We chat over tea and coffee while the wind and rain howl outside. Later on the rain stops and things brighten enough to take our guests a wader up the lochside. It’s still really windy tho’!
Back home we chat and stuff until the pork is ready then I prepare dinner.
We have a grand night of food, drinks and chat – Davie is one of my long-time online guitar students (they’re based down in the borders) and Jane’s into a lot of outdoor stuff so there’s plenty to talk about.
UP EARLY to go to a climate action network meeting in Killearn. Margaret’s going in her role as secretary of the local community trust – I’m going as a director for the local community hydro scheme.
There’s a few folks I know there and we have a an interesting and informative morning with a brunch break mid-morning.
Back home we have another breakfast masquerading as lunch then I take a walk to Betty’s with a mock up of the audio point info panel I’ve been working on.
When I get back Catriona and the kids have arrived and we hag out for a couple of hours.
I have a new oline guitar student in Spain to book in for in a double session – I set it up on Zoom and fire off the meeting link. And my invoice.
I have a short nap on the couch then mix up some mince, peppers and a multitude of other ingredients (including ground coffee and baking powder!) to make tonight’s Dubai tacos – an unusual thing that I can only describe as a weird taco-cum-smashburger. They turn out great!
MARGARET’S off to dermatology appointment and, after breakfast, I have some West Highland Way Gifts’ merch to send out.
We have pals coming to stay on Sunday and I’m gonna smoke some pork belly…there’s a whole pork belly in the fridge outside which I cut into manageable slabs, trim up and put a couple of bits aside for Sunday. I vacuum pack the other slabs and put them in the freezer.
In studio I carry on trying to develop a fingerpicking guitar tune I’ve been putting together.
There’s a bit of video to be filmed – just worth my phone – and I realise that my lav mics are all mini jack or lightning connectors, not USB-C as on my new phone. Dammit. I don’t have any money and I can’t justify spending a fortune so after a bit of research and to-it ad fro-ing between possibilities take a punt on an old version of DJI’s wireless mic mini.
I finish off some draft artwork for an info panel to fit around the local audio point and make a mini mockup/model of how it could look.
The it’s time to go to Helensburgh for dinner qt our pals Alastair and Karen. Normally we stay over but we have n early event tomorrow (Saturday) and I’m aff the drink so we’re home soon after midnight having had a grand evening catching up over a lovely meal.
A LOT more social media and email stuff this morning..and some West Highland Way Gifts’ orders.
There’s an email in with a potential show booking – Margaret follows up and it looks like there’s be a nice Scottish show end of August. Watch this space!
We drive to the village for a swim and get back home in time for a late lunch.
I have a couple fo in person guitar students in the afternoon. Both go good then Margaret has a local community trust meeting…I chill and play some guitar 🙂
UP EARLY to get the sourdough in the oven then a morning of guitar lessons – first an online session then in-person – before I get busy with some merch production.
There’s a bunch of one-off ‘comes in many colours’ brass guitar pendants – while there’s a few of them, each has a unique colour pattern in the hexagonal inlays. It’s a fiddly job and takes a lot of time and attention.
We head into Glasgow late afternoon for a publishing event at the Scottish Music Centre then pick up some shopping and head for home.
WE’RE UP early (again!) – Margaret’s off to Edinburgh to meet Les and get her hair done…and I have an 8am start for my ‘speeding awareness’ course via Zoom. It’s three hours long and there’s a bunch of other folks on the session…some interesting stuff but the ‘tutor’ is trying to hard to be a comedy act and starts to get on my tits a bit.
Anyway, once done I get busy with emails and the routine stuff then get an Etsy merch order packed and in the post. There’s a few other merch items I need to finish off too.
After lunch I venture out for a wander through the wood. Crap weather and not long before it starts pishing rain.
I’m back in good time for a guitar student arrives then I prepare the magret duck breasts and marinade the meat for tonight’s brouchettes, Betty’s coming for dinner.
Having been premiered to the Wildcats’ last nights the Soul of a Man video goes live on Facebook, YouTube at 6pm. Hopefully it’ll get some traction. My evening guitar student arrives just before 6pm so I guess I’ll have to wait ‘til later to find out.
Once done I get the grill and charcoal prepped outside, set the table and sort some other dinner stuff.
It’s 7.45pm when Margaret gets back – she’s also picked up a load of shopping in Edinburgh which we get put away before Betty arrives.
MARGARET has an early appointment with the audiologist so I’m up at a decent time and manage to get some work done before an online session with one of my guitar students.
An Etsy order came in for a pewter guitar pin that I don’t have in stock which means I need to get busy casting and stuff. I make an extra while I’m at it and get them all sanded and finished ready for an epoxy inlay.
After lunch I prep the epoxy then set some pins on the back of the wee guitar so I can get it I the post tomorrow (Tuesday). Next, some video stuff for my pal Duncan then my afternoon guitar students arrives.
I SPEND the morning in the office working on a stone engraved with a fossil. The end result is poor – I think the stone/rock isn’t the right type. I’ll look for some alternatives next time I take a walk up the lochside.
We’re running short on brass guitar pendants and pins so I start a wee production line to run while we go off to Doune to see Catriona – it’s her birthday today (46!) and we have a gift to drop off.
Leaving the office I almost stand on a toad. It’s that time of year when we get loads of frogs and toads 🙂
We spend a nice couple of hours out int he garden with everyone at Catriona’s then go into Stirling to pick up some shopping.
A surprise visit to Betty to play a couple of her favourite songs
AFTER spending most of the morning dealing with emails and socials while drinking coffee in bed. I was up early to get some dough ready for rolls and I onto the oven…but it’s good to let them cool a bit before breakfast.
I get the brisket I rubbed yesterday out the fridge one onto the smoker. Only a small piece of meat so shouldn’t take more than eight hours.
Margaret is on a mission to tidy the shed and some of the garden stuff…I hit the studio to finish editing the Soul of a Man video we shot on Thursday, nipping back to the garden to spritz the brisket every hour or so. I can monitor pit and meat temperatures on my phone so I don’t have to babysit the smoker.
Once the video work is done I leave the final files to render and go for a walk through the woods.
When I get back the video is done. I take it to show Margaret the results of her filming and check the brisket. It’s reached 165 farenheit so time to wrap then back in the smoker ‘til it reaches 203 degrees internal.
A bunch of folks, including our pal Jeanetta, are going to Betty’s for dinner tonight. Jeanetta contacted me last week to see if I could drop by for a surprise visit after dinner and play a couple of songs for Betty after dinner. Probably around 9pm.
The brisket reaches temperature round 8.30pm and should ideally rest for at least an hour…I get a message from Jeanetta saying they’ve finished eating and ready for my surprise visit. Margaret and I grab a guitar and banjo and wander along.
I’m a little worried as if feels a bit weird and I’m not exactly ‘the singing telegram’ but all goes to plan and we have a grand hour or so with a couple of tunes and a drink with the party 🙂
The brisket is well and truly rested by the time we get home and we enjoy it worth some BBQ I made earlier, veg and mash.
THERE’S some promo to be done for the upcoming Finland and Estonia shows then I try and work out why the video footage we filmed yesterday is out of sync with the main audio track.
Looks like something's been automatically ‘conformed’ during import to the FInal Cut project so I clear everything out and start again. Sorted.
The gimbal – a DJI RS4 Mini – wasn’t playing ball yesterday so spend some time re-balancing and updating firmware etc. I think I can rescue some of the footage tho’ and add various trackers and stuff to some of the clips to try and make the shots more consistent.
It’s another nice day and I take advantage by taking a wander up the lochside then get some pizza dough out the freezer to defrost for tonight.
There’s a letter in from Cumbria police following up my speeding notice. Caught doing 47mph in a temporary 40mph zone on the motorway at 1.30am on the way back form the Huddersfield show a few weeks ago. There’s an option to book (and pay for!) a speed awareness course rather than a £100 fine and three points. I do some online research and find I can attend he course online and the cheapest place is Hartlepool at £83. I book onto Tuesday’s three-hour course. Ah well, saved £17 and the points.
Back in the studio, the trackers and other adjustments have done their processing and I spend the next few hours trying to pull together a rough edit of Soul of a Man. It’s gonna need a considerable amount of ‘styling’ and colour grading, but it might turn out usable. At worst it’ll let us see if my ‘break all the rules’ approach of a long shot cut with extreme close-ups might work.
Eventually I get back to the house and fire up the pizza oven. The pizzas ain’t my best effort tho’ – partly, I think down to the last batch of dough I made which was a departure from my usual approaches.
WE HAVE an extremely long lie…apart from sleeping through all our alarm, we make coffee and I deal with all my emails and socials before we get up.
It’s a nice day and I suggest we try out some filming for a video idea I have. Margaret always agrees with some trepidation – she’s not very confident with the camera or gimbal and I can be a bit impatient. Don’t mean to be but sometimes I can’t contain myself!
First I need to spread the word about the Glasgow show with my pal Charlie Parr at the end of May. I repost the promoter’s post announcing the show (despite the fact that he’s billed me as Dave ‘Acari’….grrrr….!!!) and get something out to my mail list.
Rather than use the location I have in kind we decide to use the wooded area behind the studio and spend a few hours trying to get some footage in the can.
There’s not time to do much with the footage before it’s time to head off to Gartmore for dinner with our pals Duncan and Irene where have a grand evening catching up.
SOURDOUGH today so I’m up early to get the oven on. I’m baked, cooled and breakfasted before my first guitar student of the day – a 9am online session.
Dawn, my regular Wednesday morning student, arrives just as I’m finishing the online session and we spooned some times working on varying rhythm/strum patterns with a song.
There’s a few bits and bobs to sort out in the studio then I manage to get out for a paddle…first time in five or six weeks. It’s been windy and choppy every day for ages. I do a wee livestream while I’m out on the water.
Back home a shower and a late lunch before my afternoon kiddies arrive for their lesson. I’m puggled afterwards – despite feeling fine earlier, I’ve started to feel very again and have a nap.
A Messenger note comes in asking if I’m available to open a show for our pal Charlie Parr at Cottiers in Glasgow at the end of May. Of course! Charlies been a great pal for more than 15 years and we’ve played loads a shows together in the USA and Ireland…he’s always been championing for me to be on the bill at his Scottish shows but somewhere along the line – maybe promoter, agent or tour manager – has been bombed. He’s insisted this time and it’s happening 🙂
We should be able to announce the show tomorrow (Thursday) afternoon….
WE NEED some shopping and I have a photo that I created for Betty that needs printed…I send it to Asda’s Max Spielmann photo service, make up a shopping list and off we go into town.
I’m still full of lurgy and sleep while Margaret drives then wander round Asda ina bit of dwam.
In the studio I mess more with tabbing out guitar stuff using the MIDI pickup. Still a bit of a mess, but promising.
I have a guitar student at the house late afternoon then I have a nap, go back to the studio and get some more stuff done before we wander along to Betty’s for dinner.
MY USUAL Monday routine of getting sourdough in the oven is deviated as we’re having overnight oats today and tomorrow…so the bread baking will be on Wednesday this week.
I manage to get a fair bit of work done before an 11am session with an online guitar student. There’s some computer updates and stuff to run so once I get them set up I head off to the village for a swim.
After lunch I spend some time in the studio working on ways to tab out guitar music with a MIDI pickup then do some more video editing – vertical versions of the stuff I plan to spin into tonight's Wildcats’ livestream for reels later in the week and, while I have time, another song ready for next week.
The livestream goes smoothly with none of the technical issues that plagues last week’s episode then it’s back to he house for dinner.
RIGHT on form the kids have us awake early…I’m feeling like the lurgy hasn’t just not gone away, but is back 🙁
Matty goes out for a run and we have breakfast – he gets back just as Catriona arrives to pick up the kids. We all hang out for a while then everyone goes their separate ways.
I finish off a wee pewter heart pendant I started making for Margaret ages ago then hit the studio and edit up some video from Aldershot and Brighton ready for tomorrow (Monday) night’s Wildcats’ livestream.
WE’RE not long finished breakfast when Matty arrives…he’s picked up the kids at Catriona's and everyone’s here for the day/night.
Once I get the pork belly on the smoker for tonight’s tacos I get busy with merch production in the office and guitar stuff in the studio.
The others have all gone for a swim and when they get back I take a wander up the lochside and enjoy the walk listening to a podcast.
By the time the kids are ready for bed the pork belly is done – an eight hour smoke on the pellet smoker – but needs to rest for an hour before I slice it.
WE SLEEP through our alarms which is kinda weird as we weren’t late last night. Seems this lurgy is still lurking 🙁
I chase up an online order from last week that’s not been delivered – or charged – and find the company isn’t fulfilling orders in the UK, despite being a UK based company! They’ve cancelled the order and I find a similar product on Amazon. Not an important purchase, but annoying nonetheless as I like to try and support the more independent retailers.
The merch case is low on brass guitar pendants and pins. Before I make more, I start designing a jig for the engraving/embossing as getting things lined up properly is a bit of a pain and involves a lot of trial and error getting it right…and made worse having to do same for every on I make.
Making a brass jig – I can’t 3D print it as the embossment and engraving processes create a list of heat…so any kind of plastic, wood etc is a no-go – is gonna take a lot of time and effort, but if I invest the time now out could make things much simpler and faster in the future.
The postie delivers some air drying clay that I wanna use to create custom holders for drilling and finishing small cast items. I make up a test for a wee heart pendant I started making a ages ago but abandoned as I couldn’t hold it in place – or at the right angle for drilling.
A slap of rindless, boneless prior belly I took out the freezer has defrosted. I trim it up, score the fat cap and, using a mustard binder, add a salt, pepper and garlic rub. It goes in the fridge for smoking tomorrow…and destined for tomorrow night’s tacos.
We nip along to our pal Anna’s a couple of villages away – she’s invited us for dinner. It’s been ages since we had a catch up and we have a grand evening.
LAST night I noticed that some pages on my (this!) website haven’t translated properly to a new editing system. Nothing to do with my web host migration, this is an old issue that I hadn’t spotted. The promoters’ are and discography pages are gobbledygook!
I spend most of the morning sorting them out and packing up soem merch orders then we go for a quick swim before lunch.
Been missing getting out for a paddle…it’s been consistently windy for the last month, Hopefully calmer days will come soon.
My afternoon guitar student arrives at the studio while I’m messing with the guitar and we have a good session. Some of the kids coming for lessons are doing amazing!
I’m revisiting ways to try and tab out – tab, or tablature, is a way of notating guitar music – some of my songs…not just for some fo my guitar students, but also with a view to creating some digital (and maybe even physical) songbooks or some of my albums. My old midi guitar pickup gave up the ghost a few years ago and I was never completely happy with it. There’s a cheaper, improved version available now so I decide to give it a bash. Watch this space.
In the studio I have another bash at navigating the system for the radio show I’ll be presenting from end April. Not sure if there’s some permissions missing from my account or I’m missing something but I can’t build my music library and start getting my head round it all.
UP EARLY to get this week’s sourdough in the oven…a little later in the week than usual. It’s all baked, cooled and ready to eat in good time before my 9am online guitar session.
Dawn, my regular Wednesday morning in-person guitar student, rolls up just I finish the online lesson and we have a good session.
Voru Blues Club in Estonia has requested a short promo video for the show on 24 April. While I could just use my phone and knock something out I decide to try and do something a bit slicker which involves camera, lighting, green screen, a dash to the bay to film some ‘background, video and, eventually, some editing. Worth it tho’!
Before I know it my ‘double dunt’ – a two-at-once lesson for a sister and brother (aged eight and six respectively) – arrives.
Margaret and I both still have some lurgy hanging around and after the lesson I’m feeling wiped..and need a nap!
After 40 winks I hit the studio and get all my PRS live performance returns submitted then look out some local pix for a pal before Betty arrives to join us for dinner.
MARGARET gets a call from Catriona first going to ask if she can go and look after Aaron…she has a hairdresser appointment and Aaron’s off school ‘cos he was sick during the night. So off she goes.
After breakfast I hit the office and make a wedding gift for Barbara and Thorsten. We missed their wedding as we were in Brighton on Saturday.
I start organizing some PRS live performance returns then have some lunch…then a wander up the lochside. First time I’ve been a decent walk in ages.
I’m home in time for my afternoon guitar student then get busy with the PRS returns before heading to the village hall for a community hydro society meeting.
NO SOURDOUGH to go in the oven as we weren’t back in time yesterday for the dough to be made. Instead, Margaret prepped some overnight oats.
After a weekly session with one of my online guitar students I get some stuff together for the folks behind the Rock.Scot radio station – I’ll be presenting an alt.blues show when it goes live on FM, DAB and online towards the end of next month (April).
We’re both still suffering with the remains of the lurgy so go for a swim and visit to the steam room and sauna in the hope it might help.
After lunch I get busy editing some video from last week’s gigs to spin into tonight’s Wildcats’ livestream on Facebook, taking a break for my late afternoon guitar students.
Suddenly it’s 8pm and time to go live…all goes to plan after I sort out some sound issues then it’s back home for some dinner.
Playing to a small. It perfectly-formed crowd at Komedia, Brighton.
THE lurgy’s still lurking around us both when we wake up…not as bad as it’s been tho’.
We have a lazy morning at the Premier Inn. I edit some video clips and share videos, posts and links round socials as my ‘day of show’ promo for tonight’s gig at Komedia in Brighton.
It’s only 60 or 70 miles to Brighton and we take the on-motorway route which allows us to stop at a nice wee pub for lunch. Our first proper meal since Wednesday, The travelling and schedule has made it difficult to have anything other than sandwiches, snacks and stuff.
After checking in to out Travelodge and short drive into Brighton we load in and soundcheck. It’s a nice venue – but an expensive hire for a self promo show – and engineer Steve is good and helpful. Despite good local and regional press and a heap of both organic and paid socials ticket sales have been slow both via my own Eventbrite ticket and venue box office. Nevertheless, the small crowd, none of whom have seen me before, is appreciative and enthusiastic and we have a grand evening.
NEITHER of us wake up before 10am….and still full of lurgy. Jeez. Tonight’s show ain’t gonna be easy!
At lease we have a completely chilled day and I spend some of it Fiona tuning my (this!) website on it’s new server.
Turns out the West End Centre is just five minutes’ drive from our hotel and we’re greeted by Corrina who welcomes us with coffee while we await sound engineer Julie and lighting tech Allan.
Set up is a breeze and the folks here couldn’t b nicer or more efficient.
We’re pleasantly surprised by both ticket sales and walk ups and despite feeling crap I think I manage to pull off a decent performance. Certainly the feedback form the audience indicates all’s good 🙂
After a stop off for some supplies at the supermarket close by the hotel we’re back and settled before midnight.
AN EARLY start to get the gear and merch sorted and the car packed for our trip south.
The first show is tomorrow (Friday) but it’s a fair drive to Aldershot and we’re both full of the lurgy so better to get there tonight and be able to relax a bit tomorrow.
Before we leave I see my website migration to the new host is complete so I change the DNS (domain name servers) and hope the propagation goes quick and there’s minimum downtime.
Our journey is uneventful and we swap driving duties more often than usual as we’re both feeling shit. Halfway to Aldershot I see the website stuff is all sorted….yay – looks like weeks’ of messing about coulda been avoided if I’d just bitten the bullet and done this first!
There’s a supermarket beside our Premier Inn and we pick up some supplies and get checked in by 10.30pm. Been a long day…
FIRST, a 9am session with one of my online guitar students….then, just as I finish, an in-person guitar student arrives.
Once the morning lessons are all out the way I decide to try and move my website (davearcari.com) to a new hosting company to see if that helps my no/slow loading. I’m hoping it will decrease the load on the current server and allow all my other websites to ‘breathe’ and, if there’s a problem with the davearcari.com website maybe I’ll have enough server resources to do soem proper troubleshooting etc.
I start the migration process. It may take some time!
There’s video reels and other stuff to post round my socials to try and keep building traction for the Aldershot and Brighton shows on Friday and Saturday respectively then I make up set lists and prep some other stuff for the trip. We’re heading south tomorrow (Thursday).
I have two young guitar students for lesson late afternoon then we head to Doune to see Catriona and the kids – it’s Aaron’s sixth birthday. We have a grand couple of hours with them all – Carolyn, Joe and Karl are there too – then head for a late dinner.
DEFFO got the lurgy. Margaret had a restless night and although I slept OK I’ve woken up feeling shit.
Once the daily routine stuff is out the way I spend some more time back on the web server issues that are dragging things down. Today’s tasks are trying to Fiona some ways to reduce the load on the server.
Still feeling crap and decide to head out for a swim,,,and maybe a stint in the steam room and sauna will help. I enjoy the ‘me time’ but still don’t feel any better when I get home for a late lunch.
There’s some merch needing sorted in the office the the first of two in-person guitar students arrives.
By 7pm I’m done with the guitar lessons and get out to the office to finish off the merch..then into the studio tp set up for Fiona and her pal Mhairi coming to record some fiddle music for Barbara and Thorsten’s wedding on Saturday.
The session goes fine and by 10pm I’m back in the house for dinner…then an early night.
I’M STILL pretty burst – beginning to think we’ve got some kind of lurgy in addition to being knackered.
My online guitar session is a little earlier today as I have a meeting about presenting a blues show on a new radio station at 11am.
I head into Glasgow, have an interesting and productive meeting and it looks likes the new station will begin broadcasting on DAB, FM and online at the end of April.
Lunch is ready when I get back home then I get busy with mailing lists and other online stuff to promote this weekend’s gigs in Aldershot and Brighton.
Next tidy up some gear in the studio and start working on some video clips for tonight’s Wildcats’ livestream on Facebook before my afternoon guitar student rocks up.
Then it’s back to the studio for video editing and livestream prep…then the livestream….
Our French visitors – Mireille and Isabelle missing!
I’M UP at 7am to get the smoker going and three slabs of pork belly in the pit…then back to bed for a couple of hours.
We have breakfast then Jon and Maggi pack up and head off. I unload the gear we brought back last night then Margaret and I go back to the hall for the rest of the stuff.
The pork belly is all doing good on the smoker and we have time to chill for a while before prepping the rest of the food for our French pals – and Betty – who’re coming around 5pm.
We have a fantastic evening and manage to get to bed by midnight. Knackered.
UP EARLY to get the pork belly trimmed and rubbed ready for the smoker tomorrow – then we get the guitars, sound gear and cameras along to the hall. Glad we sorted the stage blacks, backdrop and most of the lighting yesterday.
While I set up the sound Margaret nips to the post office and stops at the pharmacy to pick up my prescription – pre-filled syringes with some stuff that, we hope, might help alleviate the mystery vomitting thing when it starts next.
We manage to get everything set up and soundchecked in tiem to get back to the house by 3pm. Our pals James and Alison are passing by and had asked if were gonna be around for a quick catch up…we ave a coffee and a blether then head back to the hall to in time for JonZip – my guest for tonight’s show – and Maggi arriving.
There’s a few merch-related things and some ambient lighting to sort then I get Jon soundchecked before going back to the house for an early dinner.
We’re back at the hall just after 7pm and have everything ready by the time doors open at 7.30pm. A full house by the time Jon takes the stage for a half-hour opening set then it’s my turn. I’m not exactly match fit – I’ll blame the hospital visits – but still have a grand time…and overall we have an excellent night.
A bit of a tidy up and we’re back at the house before midnight. Pizzas, drinks and chat ‘til 3am…think I’ll be sore in the morning – and glad to be off the drink ‘cos I need to get the smoker on the go before 8am for our French guests’ dinner….
ONCE I get all the routine stuff out the way I drive to the village for a swim. Need to get back into some kind of exercise routine…all these hospital stays and gigs have disrupted things a bit.
I stop at the chemist on the way back to see if the auto injectors prescribed by the doc have arrived. They haven’t. Tomorrow hopefully.
After lunch we go to the village hall and hang the blacks and backdrop so we can get a good start setting up tomorrow (Saturday) for the fundraiser show. Margaret has to get some stuff in Milngavie so I walk home and enjoy the fresh air.
In the studio I start re-stringing guitars, putting stuff on charge and changing batteries.
We have a group of eight pals coming from France for the show and they arrive at their B&B just after 8pm…they eat at the local pub and once they’re finished we wander down and join them for a drink.
SOMETHING weird has been happening with my phone. All connectivity has slowed right down and not resolved despite rebooting, resetting network setting etc etc. It’s driving me nuts.
I have an online meeting with PRS (Performing Rights’ Society) folks about the prototype performance reporting system I’ve been helping test.
There’s not much time after the session before another meeting – this time with Help Musicians’ about branding and social media stuff.
A late afternoon guitar student arrives at the studio with his dad and we have a good session. For some reason, though, my phone is no longer accepting tap to pay card payments in any of the apps I use. Same thing happened the other day but the card was accepted no problem on Margaret's phone (same apps/user accounts). Grrrrr….
All the phone hassle prompts me to go on line and order a new iPhone. No thinking about it, no fancying about. Just did it. Margaret and I were both on 12s and I sorted Margaret with a new 17 a month or so ago. She’s been really happy with it but I thought I could sit it out until maybe the 18 comes in the autumn but I just don’t have it in me to deal with phone hassles on top of all the websites/hosting issues at the mo’.
I jump in the car and drive to Braehead to pick up the new phone.
I HAVE a session with an online guitar student first thing then we head into Glasgow for my appointment at the eye hospital.
Margaret drops me at Gartnavel and goes to get some shopping. We need a pork belly from Costco and a fair bit of pother shopping. Margaret’s cooking dinner at Betty’s for six of us tonight – and we have eight French folks coming for Saturday’s show that we need to entertain on Sunday. Oh, and Jonzip and Maggi are here for the show and staying over Saturday night.
I have a Zoom interview at 2pm with a journalist in Sussex ahead of next weekend’s Brighton show but Margaret’s ‘running a little late’ (!!!!) with the shopping and doesn’t pick me up ‘til nearly an hour after I’m done…and leaving no chance of getting home in time for the interview.
As 2pm approached we park up just outside Milngavie with what appears to be a decent mobile data signal and I do the interview…first part is OK with just a few freezes, but the journalist also wants to record a section of video and the signal just isn’t stable enough. He has another meeting at 3pm so we agree on a 2.45pm return and Margaret boots it home just in time. I get into the studio and the video section of the interview goes flawlessly. Phew!
I have an in person guitar student later in the afternoon then hit the studio to try and sort some social ads for the upcoming shows before we go along to Betty’s.
We’re there half an hour before Fiona, Barbara and Thorsten to get things going in the kitchen and we have a grand night.
I’M STILL not 100% but not feeling too bad when I wake up. Mikey heads off into Glasgow then Margaret jumps int he car to go to a community organisation event in Crieff hosted by DTAS.
She’s only just left when my guitar student arrives and we have a good session.
Tickets are (extremely) slow for the Brighton show a week on Saturday so top priority is to get a news release together and contact the local/regional media. I strike lucky and manage to speak to journos on two of the main papers and set up a Zoom interview for tomorrow (Wednesday) afternoon.
Having made promo key rings to put out as giveaways at the last few shows I’m keen to maintain the goodwill generated. I suspect quite a few folks at the hall fundraiser gig on Saturday will have been at a recent show and hence already have key rings so I 3D print a jig to engrave aluminum bottle opener key rings for this Saturday.
I’m not long back in the studio after lunch when the doc calls – a planned phone appointment. It was set up when I was discharged from Forth Valley Hospital a fortnight ago to discuss options to try and get this mystery vomitting thing under control….or at least try and head it off at the pass when it looks like it’s gonna start. Twenty-odd years of it is really getting us down. I’ve had cameras up and down, every test known to human kind and spoken with doctors and consultants in numerous UK hospitals, not to mention in Finland and the USA!
More recently there has been mention of abdominal migraine and some kind of pre-loaded injection that might help. Of course, we won’t know until it gets put to the test….
Anyway, I didn’t expect another hospital episode so soon so I fully prepped for my chat! The doc agrees that the best next step it to try the injections so will prescribe the necessary.
There’s a load of stuff needing done for the community hydro society and once that’s out the way I have to test a new system PRS is developing to allow artists to register their live performances. I’m one of a handful of testers on the pilot.
Next on my list is getting a news release out to radio with promo links for the forthcoming Going to See the King EP along with Info on the Aldershot and Brighton gigs that co-incide with the release.
Once done I edit up a short 20-second teaser video about the EP to start spreading round my socials then go back to the house for dinner.
FInal job of the night is engraving a big batch of bottle opener keyrings….
I WAKE up briefly a few times during the night…then about 7.30am I wake again as the nurse changes my drip. I get her to disconnect me for a minute so I can go to the toilet.
Soon after another doc comes to see how I’m doing and ask a few questions. One of mai. Issues around all this is that different health board areas can’t access my records form other areas…or the doc…so everyone we see has to get the full story, background etc.
There’s word of another scan and maybe even an endoscope (urrrgh). I’m feeling well enough to check my phone and realise that even if I do get out today it’s unlikely I’ll be home in time –or feel like – doing my usual Monday night WIldcats’ livestream on Facebook.
I do a wee livestream from my bed explaining and then go back to sleep. I doze on and off all morning then find there’s a change of plan and I’m not needing scan after all. So I’m allowed to try eating something.
I have soup and a sandwich and it stays down. Things are looking a little brighter.
Margaret arrives mid-afternoon and the nurse takes out my cannula so I can get washed and dressed then we have a chat with the doc before heading homeward.
I sleep most of the way in the car and try and catch up on a few bits and bobs when we get home. Turns out Mikey’s coming to stay tonight which isn’t the most convenient but never mind. I have a shower then a little bit of chicken and a couple of wee potato’s and some brocolli then go to bed.
Mid-afternoon apparently – still out of it and hooked up to various IV stuff….
ANY hopes of the vomitting being a one-off quickly disappear and by 2am Margaret’s called NHS111. Not sure how long it is, but an ambulance is at the door pretty quick.
As usual I’ll not quite with by this time but I rember getting cannulas in and IV stuff before the ambulance whips me to Ninewells.
I’m not on good shape, but attention is pretty prompt and poor Margaret sits by my bedside all night watching me spew, moan and writhe about. I’m moved to a single room in the acute ward around 8am, still not any better, but getting he best attention.
Margaret sit it out and explains to three or four docs and specialists that come round in between IV changes, bloods and other stuff. I think it about 6pm when I have a final huge spew of brown stuff and manage to fall asleep for the best part of an hour.
I feel a lot better. Still fucked, but a lot better when I wake and Margaret feels she can leave me for the night and heads back to Jane and Angus’s for the night.
I manage a few sips of water, seem to have stopped spewing and conk out….
WE WEREN’T late last night but the last few days and overnight drive back after the last gig have left us pretty knackered…so a long lie feels justified!
Breakfast is more like brunch then I head to the studio to tidy all the gear that’s just been dumped after the gigs and downloads the video footage from the trip.
One of the things on my to-do list is to make up a teaser video for the forthcoming Blind Willie Johnson tribute EP…if I can get my shit together and get pre-release stuff out it might help generate some radio play to help promote the gigs down south. Tight for time tho’!
I manage to get some wee snippets filmed before we have to leave for Dundee…we’re staying with our pals Jane and Angus, and Tricia and Ged are joining us there for dinner.
We have a wonderful evening and great meal…then, just after midnight, I start to feel a bit unwell. Sure enough, a few minutes later I’m being sick and it begins again….
Nice to get a front page teaser and page three feature…
WE ROLL up home just after 4am and head straight to bed. I wake up after 10am – Margaret’s already up and getting ready for her 11am meeting with the roads folks from the council.
After breakfast, still frustrated with my websites’ downtime and slow loading I get on an online chat with the hosting company. I’m told my memory and resource usage is at its limit and that’s the problem. I don’t agree – none of my websites are particularly resource-hungry and I don’t get huge amounts of traffic. Plus, I’ve been monitoring the usage and it seems to fluctuate between what I would expect and running high….with no apparent reason which makes me think there’s some malware causing the problem.
Anyway, bottom line is they suggest upgrading my hosting package…at a cost of over £500 a year. Fuck off.
I have no time right now but I think it’s time to find a new host. Particularly since they forced me to upgrade to the latest version of PHP or incur a charge for supporting ‘an old version’ (interestingly, not any deprecated version!).
More pressing matters involve spreading the word about upcoming shows. Helpfully, the Stirling Observer has a page three feature and front page teaser which I use as content and post round my socials, local groups and WhatApp.
I can’t rely too much on traditional press etc for the Aldershot and Brighton shows the following week tho’, so after creating cover images for all my socials, YouTube and so on I set up an video ad and manage to get it all up and running before it’s time to head to the pub to meet Betty and some of her family for dinner.
Ace time playing at Smile for Huddersfield Blues Club
THE HOTEL WiFi is shit so I don’t manage to get any proper work done before we leave.
It’s not a long drive to Huddersfield but when we get there we spend a good couple hours trying to find somewhere with parking that we can get a late lunch. None of the retail parks have anywhere other than Costa which is generally overpriced and not much good for anything other than coffee and cake.
We find a Sainsbury’s but it’s cafe is a poorly stocked Costa then try a few other places that pop up. They’re either closing, closed or not there at all. A cafe at Dunelm also turns out to be shot and they don’t have any hot food left. It’s not even 4pm FFS!
No other option but to try and find a car parked in the ‘town centre’. Most are closed down and the whole caper is a boot depressing. And frustrating. A small Sainsbury’s has a car park so we abandon ship (car!) and proceed ion foot finally finding a place to eat that turns out pretty good.
We retrieve the car, go back to a retail parks and have a wee sleep then find the venue and load in.
Our pal Pat – who runs the blues club – is waiting and we get all set up and soundchecked no bother.
By showtime the place is packed and I pull of a decent show. Well, judging by the response and feedback after 🙂
We’re packed and in the car by 11.30pm and start the long drive home. Normally we’d have stayed over, but Margaret has a meeting at 11am that he couldn’t shift…
LOTS to try and get through before we hit the road south tomorrow (Wednesday) morning.
In the office I print postcards promoting sign up to email list and start a batch of giveaway keyrings. We threw a few round the tables at the Gartmore show last month and they went down a storm. We’ll put a few out at this week’s shows in SHeffield and Huddersfield.
Next job is Spotify canvases and pitching for the forthcoming Blind Willie Johnson tribute EP which lands on 6 March. I’m a little behind the curve, but not out of time yet.
One done `I put together a news release for the local village hall fundraiser on 28 February then we have lunch and go for a quick swim, sauna and session in the steam room.
Back home the first of this afternoon’s two in-person guitar students arrives, then the second….then an online student before we wander along to Betty’s for dinner.
Mikey’s been working in Glasgow and is staying with us tonight – he’s not here yet, so he’ll meet us there.
We have a grand evening then home and straight to bed. An early start to get all the gear packed and on the road to Sheffield by 10am. That’s the plan anyway….
A BREAK in the usual Monday routine as I didn’t make my sourdough yesterday…so it’s overnight oats for breakfast. I’ll make the sourdough later today.
There’s some stuff to do in the village after a session with one of my online guitar students. I jump in the car with Margaret then I walk back home. First exercise since last week’s hospital visit. I take some ‘walk and talk’ video and edit/post as a news update on my socials when I get back.
In the studio I carry on with the web server debacle then go back to the house for a guitar lesson with one of my young in-person students.
Back to the studio to get some promo done for upcoming shows then prep for this week’s Wildcats’ livestream on Facebook…
A RELATIVELY long lie for when the kids are staying…it’s almost 8am when they come through and start jumping all over me.
After a shower and breakfast I escape to the studio to carry on the web server nightmare. Still in the midst of security and malware scans, file checks and edits for the eight sites on my server.
Maggi and Joel drop by for a coffee and bring their wee dog Rosie for the kids to play with.
After lunch Margaret takes the kids swimming and I go back to the studio. In between the computer stuff I make up a set list for this week’s upcoming shows and run through a few songs.
Catriona comes for the kids late afternoon so I take a break for a coffee then back to it….
WE HAVE a fairly relaxed morning then I hit the studio – more web server scans and investigations to be done.
Catriona arrives to drop the kids off – they're staying the night to give her a break – and Margaret takes them to feed the ducks. I have a couple of new kids (aged six and eight!) starting guitar lessons who show up with their dad and three-year-old sister. Chaos!
Once done I go back to the studio and carry on the laborious web server jobs, doting back to the house and kids in between times.
I SLEEP late and get a decent rest….still not feeling 100% tho’. I decide to take things easy.
Eventually I get my ass out of bed and have shower. My (this!) blog is needing done as I’ve missed the last few days due to server/website issues then the hospital incident.
There’s a West Highland Way Gifts’ order to be shipped – I finished making it on Tuesday for shipping on Wednesday but that obviously didn’t happen. Not feeling much like it, but I go out to the office to sort it and also make a Valentine’s card for Margret.
There’s still untold issues with the web server and all my sites. I do a little more investigation then give up and take it easy.
I WAKE around 6am in the hospital and feel quite a lot better. Not good, but better. Then go back to sleep.
Next thing I know is the nurse coming to check blood pressure, temperature etc and replace one of the drips.
When breakfast comes I feel well enough to have a slice of dry toast and a glass of water…and it all strays down.
The doc stops by for a chat and is just as flummoxed as everyone else has been over the last 20 years. Apparently there was mention yesterday about trying an anti-migraine drug that can sometimes be effective dealing with cyclical vomitting syndrome. This has been mentioned in the passing before…but my symptoms ad personal profile don’t the norm for cyclical committing thing.
We chat about it but agree that there’s not much point in trying it if I’ve stopped being/trying to be sick and feeling a lot better...but the doc says he’ll note it in my discharge notes. I’ll arrange an appointment with the doc to discuss further in due course.
Meantime, when the drip’s done he’s happy for me to get picked up. Margaret arrives and I have a sandwich and wee tub of ice cream, get my cannulas out and off we go.
Back home I go straight to bed and sleep until evening. I’m still feeling poorly but have a sandwich and one of the phosphate replacement drinks then try and reorganise the three guitar sessions Margaret had to cancel yesterday.
I’M SICK all night and by 10am or so we submit and Margaret calls the doctor. We thought we’d try to wait it out but things are getting worse rather than better.
The doc agrees I need the hospital and arranges for us to go direct to the CAU at Forth Valley Hospital and we get in the car for the hour-long drive.
Within half an hour of getting there I’m triaged and on a bed…a lot better than out past seven or eight hours waiting in A&E for something that’s neither an accident nor an emergency.
I’m fucked though, and despite all the IV stuff things don’t improve much as the day goes by. Poor Margaret’s with me the whole time and I suspect it’s worse having to watch me going through all this than actually go through it as I’m largely away with the fairies.
I have a high temperature to boot and have to be given IV paracetamol - not sure if it helps, but I think Margaret leaves about 11pm and I don’t remember much after that.
MAIN job today is to top and tail promo videos for all upcoming shows – and make up a posting schedule as well as work out some kind of advertising campaign for each on my socials.
There’s also some more news releases to be sent out and other bits and bobs for next weeks shows in Sheffield and Huddersfield.
After a session with an afternoon guitar student I start prepping chicken enchiladas for tonight’s dinner…Betty’s coming round and it’s one for her favourites.
We have a nice evening but just after I finish eating I get ‘that feeling’…ten minutes later I’m sick and things ain’t looking (or feeling) good. I’m sick every half hour and, true to form, starting to lose the plot.
We decide to try and wait it out and see if I’m any better int he morning…I’m pretty distressed and no sleep…
Ground-breaking at the Balmaha affordable housing site…a historic moment and the result of over 30 years’ effort
THE USUAL Monday sourdough routine is followed by breakfast before I hit the studio for a session with one of my online guitar students.
As soon as I’m done I grab the camera and head into the village to take some photos of Margaret signing the agreements for the community-owned key worker housing that forms part of Balmaha’s affordable housing project. The signing complete, we move to the site for the official ground-breaking.
This is a historic moment for the village since the need for affordable housing was highlighted by the community, and championed by our pal the late Joe Twaddle, more than 30 year ago.
As secretary of East Loch Lomond Community Trust, Margaret took over from Joe when failing health prevented him carrying on and her determination to see the project come to fruition despite some incredible challenges has paid off.
After the groundbreaking there’s a local reception. I hang out for a wee while then go back tot eh studio to sort the photos and get some pix and news on local special media and WhatsApp groups.
My usual Monday afternoon guitar student is on holiday this week but one of her pals, who usually comes later in the week has asked to take her slot….we have a good session then I go back tot eh studio and prep for this evening Wildcats’ livestream on Facebook.
Margaret signs the development agreement for the community trust-owned key worker homes with solicitor Joyce Moss, right.
ANOTHER very long lie…in my defense, I get a fair bit of work done before I get up!
There’s another batch of pizza dough to be sorted out and some prep for my sourdough. Trying to be ahead of the game now I’m outta bed.
I spend the rest of the day, and evening going through the pix form Betty’s party and make up a slideshow she can share with folks as well as a Dropbox folder of lo-res versions of the images.
It’s all done by the time dinner’s ready and we settle down to watch Bill and Dorothy’s livestream from Florida.
AFTER a lazy morning I get back on the case with the website/hosting issues then prep some pizza dough for later.
Laurie – Betty’s granddaughter – pops up to get some paper for some last minute prep and decoration down at the Roastery for Betty’s 80th birthday party tonight.
The website still isn’t playing ball but I need to get some social ads running for the Sheffield and Huddersfield shows so link the ads to the Facebook event rather than a landing page on my website. Hopefully it’ll work, but it means I mis. A few tricks re web visitors and also tracking analytics.
I get the pizza oven on and we have an early dinner before heading out to Betty’ party. I’d promised to take some pix so alternate chatting with folks and snapping. A grand evening….
AFTER breakfast I call the hairdresser to see if I can get a haircut sometime. She has a cancellation this afternoon, so I grab the slot.
Our pal Fiona was 40 a couple days ago and we’re going to the pub tonight with a small group of folks to celebrate. I make a couple of engraved insulated wine cups and we drop them off on our way to the village rather than take them to the pub later.
Margaret has an audiology appointment at the hospital and drops me in the village on the way. I’m a bit early so I drop into the deli for a coffee and a sandwich…and bump into lots of folks and enjoy a chat. Then it’s haircut time.
I’m halfway home when Margaret stops the car and drives me the rest of the way.
I get a little work done then we have some tacos and jump on the bus to the village to join Fiona and the others at the pub.
Smoked beef tacos…with pickled red onion, coriander and crumbled ‘salad cheese’…
ONCE I’M done with my guitar student I deal with a couple of emails then we head to the village to go for a swim.
Then we carry on into Glasgow for shopping – including a lunchtime snack at Costco, Tesco and Waitrose.
I picked up a small piece of beef for tonight’s tacos so as soon as we’re home I get it in the smoker then prep some Mexican pickled red onion.
Our pal Jeanetta is stopping by for some hep with her phone and laptop – we have a coffee, chat and I (think) manage to sort the issue/s.
The meat’s doing OK int he smoker although iut’s gonna be a late dinner. Meantime I make some poolish for pizza dough then wait for the beef to finish then let it rest while I prep the corn tortillas, coriander and cheese. I can’t get Mexican cojita but research threw up feta as an alternative with the preference for the slightly off-kilter supermarket ‘salad cheese’ version. It works!
AFTER an early online session with one of my remote guitar students I get back onto the website/hosting issue.
My next idea is to update Divi – one of the core building blocks on some of my sites – to a new version. It’s still in beta, but promises to be less resource hungry so it’s gotta be worth a try. I get all the sites that use it migrated fine…except this one, which throws up constraint errors in the process. Interestingly when I try to export all the posts from this blog in xml format for my archives the process crashes out. Mmm… yet another rabbit hole to go down. And again I’m out of time…
Today’s priority job is calling round the journals and radio folks in Sheffield, Huddersfield and surrounding Yorkshire before sending them news releases etc. My media database is pretty out of date, not least because of the changing nature (definitely not for the better) of the ‘traditional’ media.
A lot of the local and regional press has either fallen away or been bought over by bigger media organisations, and many of the staffers have been made laid off and it made impossible to reach anyone directly. A lot of radio has gone the same way and a lot of the music blogs that rose so rapidly have declined and/or disappeared even quicker.
Still, I get to chat with a few folks then move onto some social media stuff….then a walk yup the lochside before it’s dark.
THE website/hosting issue is really starting to piss me off. Thankfully it doesn’t seem to have interferred with a bunch of orders come through from folks in my Facebook Wildcats’ group ordering some of the ‘new old solid out stock’ I brought back from NYC and added to the web shop yesterday. I haven’t spread the word beyond the group yet.
Once orders are all packed up and ready to go I get back onto the website stuff and one by one, go through each site deleting any unused plugins and scripts in case they’re adding to the resource usage on the server. It seems to lighten the load a little, but things still aren’t right. I’m out of time for today tho’ and need to move on to other priority stuff…I’ll revisit (again) tomorrow!
Next job is edit promo video for upcoming shows in Yorkshire, Aldershot and Brighton as well as the fundraiser on 28 February for our local village hall. I need widescreen, square and vertical videos for each.
The videos take a while then I write up a news release for the Sheffield and Huddersfield shows coming up in a fortnight.
Betty’s daughter Kirsty and granddaughter Laurie are visiting from the USA and we’ve got to know them well having spent time with them both here and there…so we’ve invited them, along with Betty’s other daughter Shona, for dinner and have a grand night of laughs, food and drink
BACK to my usual Monday morning routine of getting the oven on early for the sourdough – then coffee and emails etc in bed as it bakes closed and open. Then out to cool for an hour.
After a mid morning online guitar session I spend a good few hours trying to work out what is causing the huge slowdown of all the websites. The hosting company says something is causing overload faults but I;m not so sure…this only started happening after a forced upgrade to PHP 8.4.
I strike a couple of possible causes off the list then resolve to check out potential memory issues – but that’ll have to wait ‘til tomorrow as my late afternoon guitar student is due any minute.
After the lesson I hit the studio and edit some video to spin into tonight’s Wildcats’ livestream on Facebook…then set about other prep….
AFTER breakfast I cut a mount to frame up something for Betty then take it along to her…along the way I bump into Michelle McManus and her family and have a quick chat. Haven’t seen her in ages.
Back home I prep the smoker and a huge slab of pork belly, get it all going then inflate the paddle board.
Once the temperature in the pit has stabilized I get the pork in and go for a wee paddle on the loch.
I work on a one-off bi of merch in the office then have a nap while the pork finishes off in the smoker. It takes a while so we have a late dinner – the pork turns out amusing and we enjoy it with rice, beans and a homemade Japanese BBQ sauce…
AFTER breakfast and chat at Billy and Dorothy’s we hook up with Mikey and go to his flat in Dundee where I install and set up a security camera for him.
Next stop, KFC then we drop into Perthshire Caravans to check out the camper vans and stuff but there’s nothing inspiring to see.
Onward to Doune where we stop off to see Catriona and the kids and drop off a birthday present for WIl’s big day tomorrow.
WE HAVE a bit of a late rise after a late night (erm..early morning!) then I go to the studio and pack a guitar for this evening.
Early afternoon we head to Bill and Dorothy’s ‘holiday home’ at Invergowrie just outside Dundee. We’re going to a special show Bill’s organised tonight – he’s invited me to play a few songs – and staying over.
We have an early dinner then make our way into the town and the Clep Bar where everything’s already set up for Bill and a splendid roster of musical pals are playing a kinda memorial show for some of the resident musicians who’ve passed on over the last few years. Quite humbled to have been invited to play too.
We have a grand night full of fun and colorful characters then have a nightcap before bed…another 3am job….
I manage to get the generator back up and running at the hydro scheme
FIRST job of the day is designing and ordering a new backdrop – a necessity now that I’ve updated my logo.
I go to the same supplier we used last time and go for a slightly wider format. A bit more expensive, but worth it.
An email comes back saying the order is processing and the backdrop has gone into production so I hit the studio to run through some songs – we’re off to Bill’s gig in Dundee tomorrow (Friday) and he’s asked me to plays a few songs.
There’s some other work to do too then an email comes in from the backdrop folks asking for an extra £30-odd for ‘Highlands and Islands’ delivery. Erm…we’re only 20 miles outside Glasgow and definitely not in ‘the Highlands’!
I call the company and explain and they respond by saying it’s down to their courier. I explain that we’ve never been classed as Highlands and Islands…and the last backdrop I ordered from them didn’t attract this ridiculous surcharge. I tell them to put the order on hold and I’ll send them some other potential delivery addresses to see of they fall within the courier’s ‘normal’ delivery area.
I send off some alternative addresses and awaiting a reply…when it comes in the company has decided that they don’t need me to pay extra and the order proceeds.
Duncan and Irene are coming for dinner later – the starter is Vietnamese summer rolls which are a bit of a faff so I get onto it early. The rolls made, I move onto the dipping sauce then spot an email from one of my fellow directors of the local hydro scheme…last night’s power cut has taken down the computer and it looks like the generator’s stopped.
No one else has replied so I volunteer to drive to the village, hike across the fields and see if I can get things back up and running. Mission accomplished 🙂
The unexpected task has eaten a up any spare time so I’ve only just finished the prep for our main course when Duncan and Irene rock up.
Amazingly the 3D printer picked up where it left off after a two hour power cut
WEDNESDAY. That means three back to back guitar sessions – one in-person sandwiched between two online lessons.
During the third one I get a message from the school saying they don’t need me today. I coulda done with the dish but there’s a lot needing done so it’s not the end of the world.
Margaret needs an iPad stand and orders one online – I revise I could maybe 3D printer one to use until it arrives. I find one on Bambu Makerworld and set it to print. Might take a while. U there’s no huge hurry.
So instead of school, I hit Glasgow for a load of shopping which gives us a bit of breathing space tomorrow by freeing us up on another busy day.
Margaret’s off to a community trust meeting when I get back and she’s only away ten minutes when the power goes off. No big deal, I ’spose – then I remember the 3D printer in the office which has (had!) almost finished the iPad stand. I power it off in case there’s a surge when the electricity comes back on.
I’m amazed when the power is restored and I switch the 3D printer back on it gives me the option to continue. It does!
Meantime, Margaret’s back and I make some pasta dough and smoke a salmon fillet for dinner…
I do some test filming for narrative for a new ‘intro’ video…
I’VE ARRANGED a 10am photoshoot outside the village hall with community hydro scheme grant awardees.
I’m frustrated that there’s three no-shows and call-offs but we get some good shots of the group of folks who have bothered to show up. Blotted copy books and so on 😉
Back home I pick a couple of shots, tidy them up and put them aside for when I have to time write up a news release.
There’s a new video ad to be made for the upcoming Met Theatre show in Bury. Once that’s done and scheduled for publication I get some more stuff done for Black Bull Gartmore’s wire music season.
The ‘intro to Dave Arcari’ video could do with an update and refresh so when I go a walk up the lochside I take the wee DJI Neo drone and film a little bit of ‘walking and talking’ to see how it could look. If it has promise we’ll try similar with a proper camera and gimbal.
I’m home in time to take a trip to the dump in Balfron. Out bins are all full since I cleared out the office a couple weeks ago.
Smash burgers for dinner – there’s some extra patties defrosted so I invite Betty along to join us…
MY WEEKLY sourdough routine seems to make Mondays come round awful quick!
Once the routine stuff is out the way I head to the studio for a session with one of my online guitar students.
Next job is promo stuff and ticketing for the Black Bull Gartmore’s winter music season. Once I have artwork finished and all the assets ready I send them off and start setting up the ticketing.
After lunch I nip out for a walk while the going’s good and get back just in time for my afternoon guitar student arriving.
I need to make a new set of videos for social media ads for the upcoming show at The Met in Bury(27 September)…then prep for my Wildcats livestream on Facebook.
QUITE a lot on today’s to-do list. After breakfast I pack up some merch orders that were waiting for the embroidered beanies, print postage and book a collection.
It boils ma piss that the post office close all the local post offices (nearest to us is now 12 miles away – a 24-mile round trip!) – and then have the audacity to charge for the postie to collect when they’re at the door anyway. Moreover we have to work out the postage ourselves and print the labels etc and pay for the privilege. Anyway…
There’s ameeting with a local group hoping to buy the recently closed church from Church of Scotland so we head along to get an update on the project. I’d planned to walk there and back but it’s pissing rain…and I don’t really have the time.
When we get back I spend some time on artwork and promo stuff for the Black Bull in Gartmore’s upcoming winter music season.
WE have a leisurely breakfast and morning with Alastair and Karen then they hit the road.
I have some stuff to do for the Black Bull Gartmore’s upcoming music season and spend some time in the studio getting some graphic ideas together an collating the artist info and photos.
Louise from The Unique Company messages to see if I’m around to drop off an order of embroidered beanies. She pops up and we have a blether. The hats are amazing 🙂
We’re both knackered and have a nap on the couch then I get stuff ready for tonight’s pizzas and ball up the dough I made the other day putting the extras in the freezer.
As well as the free-plus-postage stuff there’s the additional items most folks have ordered…and some of them need made. There’s also orders for embroidered beanies which I won’t have until tomorrow.
I make up some leather hat patches and print up various mugs then get the orders packed up and postage printed.
The other orders will need to wait for the embroidered beanies or other ‘blanks’ I’m waiting on.
Alastair and Karen are coming from the night and I wanna have as much food prep done as possible, starting with the Vietnamese rice paper wrapped summer rolls. It’s a bit of a fanny dance as the vermicelli noodles are cooked in coconut water with some bashed lemongrass stalks and then Wolle’s into the rice paper ‘wrappers’ with iceberg lettuce, prawns, coriander, mint and chives.
Once they’re done I make up the dipping sauce then move into the marinade for the salmon.
I have time for a very quick walk and am just back and shutting the studio when Alastair and Karen arrive. Next thing we know it’s nearly 3am….
WIPED this morning for some reason…so a bit a of late breakfast.
There’s a load of merch orders to be sorted out – all the ‘free-plus-postage’ stuff has been snapped up and most folks have ordered additional stuff.
There’s also been a bunch of orders from the same person – based overseas – and even more ‘failed orders’. It seems a wee bit suspicious to me. I don’t wanna blow out the orders – or take an undue amount of time to fulfil them – out in case they are genuine….but I don’t wanna send stuff out if someone’s being scammed. Dilemma.
I think I’ll sit tight and see what I think in a few days and consider refunding the orders…or look at what other actions might be best.
After lunch I have a couple folks coming from the Black Bull in Gartmore for a meeting. We’ve just finished when my late afternoon guitar student rocks up with his mum.
A BUSY day of guitar stuff today kicks off with an online session and then straight on to an in-person lesson.
A local pal needs help with some t-shirts and stuff so I bet that done then, after an early lunch, head off to the school in Balloch for my first music session of the academic year.
Back home I get a ‘free-plus-postage’ clearance sale set up in my online store. With the implementation of my revamped logo looming I wanna get rid of some odd bits of merch with the ‘old’ logo and this is a good way to do it.
By the tie Betty arrives for dinner I’ve managed to get everything live and fire out a few emails.
I close off the Wildcats’ livestream with Big River…complete with a clusterfuck 😉
SEPTEMBER already. Jeez. My right eye seems to recovering OK from Friday’s cataract op – still a few weeks before I can go for a paddle or ‘exert’ myself tho’.
After my Monday morning sourdough routine I get some admin out the way, have breakfast then hit the studio for a session with one of my online guitar students.
Next, onto radio promo for the next single – MacPherson’s Lament –which drops on 26 September.
That keeps me busy ‘til Violet arrives with her mum for her weekly guitar lesson.
Having had pretty much zero exercise or fresh air since Friday’s procedure I’m keen to get a walk. As soon as I step out the door it starts pouring so instead I do some prep for tonight’s Wildcats’ livestream on Facebook.
The rain eases a little so I grab a waterproof and get a bit of a walk before the livestream….
Post cataract op – not quite the pirate look I was hoping for!
WE’RE UP early and no time for breakfast before we head to Vale of Leven hospital day surgery to check in for my cataract op.
There’s five folks ahead of me so I have to wait a good couple hours before I’m taken – but the nurses are good craic.
The procedure itself only takes about 20 minutes and whilst it was a bit freaky it was pain-free and not traumatic in any way. The doc and all the theatre folks were very pleasant and efficient.
I’m having a cup of coffee and a couple biscuits whilst getting my post-op care instruction when Margaret comes to collect me.
Back home I swallow some paracetamol, have something to eat then have a sleep.
I’ve to keep the plastic eye thing on ‘til tomorrow and start my rigid regime of drops. A little more complex than the usual to minimise the potential for a uveitis flare up.
I’M STILL knackered when I wake up…no idea why…too much to do to laze about tho’.
Top of today’s list is to make a Spotify canvas – a short vertical looping video that displays when a track is played – for the upcoming MacPherson’s Lament release (26 September).
Once the canvas is uploaded I pitch the song to Spotify’;s editorial playlists.
I take a break and try and learn a little more about 3D sculpting and modelling on the iPad then get back onto promo stuff for the single.
Once the news release is written I add links for private streaming/download previews and also a link to an assets folder with .mp3 and .wav versions of the track, cover art, the news release and a lo-res preview version of the official video.
The rain’s off so I go for a walk, stopping in at Betty’s to help out with a couple wee things.
After dinner I try and have an early night. Eye surgery – cataract – at 8.30am in the morning….
THREE guitar students back to back this morning. The first online, next in-person then back online.
I have an hour or so to get through my routine stuff before an online insiders’ forum with Help Musicians then a late lunch.
My pal Duncan calls to see if I’d be available for a meeting at the Black Bull in Gartmore at 5pm to throw in one ideas for promotion of the venue’s winter music season. I’m playing their January show.
I get some more stuff done before it’s tie to head to Gartmore. When I get back home I write up my proposal then smoke some salmon for tonight’s pasta. Betty’s coming for dinner….
The obligatory ‘Benchy’ first 3D print test. It worked!
THERE’S some email accounts to be sorted for the local community trust which then need to be configured on various devices.
Then it’s back on to the office clear out and tidy. Sometimes you wish you hadn’t started something…
A message comes in from a pal whose website I revamped a while back. They can’t get logged in and want to drop by with their laptop.
I can’t find any problem and we get logged in successfully so helpfully problem solved. We’re just done when David arrives so I can set up his ‘treasurer’ email on his phone.
In the office I get to point where there’s a clean space for the 3D printer – a Bambu Labs 1 Mini – which has been waiting patiently in its box for a week.
The build and set up is pretty straightforward then I successfully mange to print the obligatory test ‘Benchy’. Everything seems to be working fine 🙂
An initial attempt to see if Still Friends could work on guitar…mmm…maybe needs a little work!
USUAL early start to get the sourdough in the oven and breakfast out the way before a session with my regular Monday morning Zoom guitar student.
I’m not lying finished when I get a call from the eye hospital…there’s been a cancellation and I can get my cataract op on Friday! Yippee. I was concerned that it would come before a gig/s and I’d have to play a mild mannered sit down show to avoid any ‘exersion’.
Main task of the day is editing the video for the next single from the album, MacPherson’s Lament. It doesn’t drop ‘til 26 September but I can’t start the advance press/radio/media promo until the video is finished.
I’m pretty much done when my afternoon guitar student arrives it’s her mum then I start prep for to night’s Wildcats’ livestream on Facebook.
There’s even time for a walk up the lochside before the livestream.
All goes fine when I go live and I take a notion to try playing Still Friends on the guitar rather than banjo…it kinda works…
Community picnic on Inchailloch with Louise and Ileana
UP EARLY to get everything ready for the community picnic Margaret has organised on behalf of the local community trust.
Boat rides have been arranged from the boatyard to take folks to the near side of Inchcailloch but the ‘picnic’ is at Port Bawn at the far end of the island.
David F has offered to take a boat over with all the food, charcoal, drinks and other supplies and ferry over the folks that would struggle with the walk over the island.
I go on the paddle board and am first on the scene closely followed by Margaret and the first boatful of folks who’ve walked over from the ferry stop.
It’s not long before David arrives and we help his passengers alight and carry all the stuff to the beach.
The weather is perfect and everything goes great other than David and Jamie getting a ticking off from the Park folks for mooring their boats.
I paddle back and amn’t long out the shower when Margaret, our pal Tom and his kids arrive with ice cream which we enjoy in the garden before they head off.
I do a little more work tidying the office then make dinner and chill.
MARGARET’s birthday today. We have breakfast then she has to go into Glasgow for extra shopping…and not for us either.
It’s the community picnic on Inchcailloch tomorrow (Sunday) and despite having put out a last call for numbers on Thursday there’s been umpteen people popping up and asking if they can come.
The boat bookings can no doubt be amended accordingly, but there’s now not enough burgers and other food for the number of folks!
I need to make room in the office for the 3D printer that’s been sitting in its box untouched all week. The place is a bit of a shitshow anyway so I bite the bullet.
First job is to flush out the cooling system and laser tune on the CO2 laser. A time-consuming and fiddly job that’s probably a year overdue. Then I need to clan the mirrors and lens, clean everything out and oil the rails.
With that job out the way I start pulling the place apart and chucking as much as I can in the bin.
Other stuff gets put in plastic tubs to go in the attic and other materials cut to go in the filing cabinet etc….and so it goes...
I get the back of it broken and hopefully get finished by the end of tomorrow.
AFTER breakfast I get the Love Balmaha insulated cups in the online store and spread the word at a local level.
Next job is to create another version of the video ad for my upcoming show at The Met in Bury (27 September). The existing ad ‘expired’ last week and had been running a while so I thought I’d run another with a different song behind it.
I’m out of Dave Arcari postcards which we use for upcoming gig listings and also put into online orders so I knock up some artwork using the revamped logotype and get an order off to the printer.
We’ve been dragging our heels a bit with the idea of embroidered shirts/hoodies and I haven’t got back to the folks that we spoke to a few weeks ago. I create a mockup to work out size and email it over so we can start getting quotes/budget/plan together.
Eventually I free up some time and go for a wander up the lochside, stopping in at our pal Liz’s on the way back to pick up Margaret and stopping for a quick drink,
THERE’S an order for some Love Balmaha tote bags so after breakfast I get busy printing them up in the office.
Annoyingly I fuck up a couple of them and throw them on the ‘botched jobs’ pile. It’s amazing how many things can go wrong or adversely affect a seemingly simple process!
Big job today, though, is finishing my tax return which – for various reasons – is frying my brain. A long call to HMRC is really helpful tho’ and puts me on the right track.
I take a break when one of my guitar students rocks up for a lesson then get back on the tax return…and get it finished and submitted, Phew!
Back in the office I parcel up a. Big vinyl order to go to Finland then prototype a Love Balmaha insulated cup. Works out nice.
Betty’s coming for dinner and has arrived when I get back to the house and make some chicken fajitas.
AFTER an early online lesson with one of my guitar students I get back on my accounts.
Actually, the ‘accounts’ part is largely done, there’s a bunch of other stuff on the tax return that I can’t quite get my head around. I look out some files and try and bring some order to my mess.
After lunch we head into Glasgow and Margaret’s drops me at the eye hospital and goes to the supermarket. I’ve an eye assessment for a (not too long in the, I hope) future cataract op.
Once I’m done I walk along Great Western Road and meet Margaret then we head to Costco for supplies for Sunday’s community picnic on the island.
It’s nearly 8pm when we get home and I make some smash burgers on the Ninja Woodfire for the first time. I realized that it was time-consuming – and unnecessarily wasteful – lighting a chimney full of charcoal and using the grill, especially when a big griddle plate on the top eliminates any fallout/benefits of using charcoal.
I found a flat plate for the Woodfire and ordered last week. It works a treat 🙂
WE’RE off for a day in Edinburgh today finishing up with Miriam Margolyes’ Fringe show. A joint birthday treat instead of buying each other presents…my birthday was last week and Margaret’s is on Saturday.
Rather than drive all the way and contend with traffic jams and parking we’ve decided to use our old folks’ bus passes and get the bus from the Park & Ride at Stirling. Free parking, free bus…what’s not to like?!?
The whole process goes to plan and the electric bus is comfy and efficient.
We alight at Haymarket and wander to Vietnam House restaurant for lunch. We share summer spring rolls then Margaret enjoys Co’m Su’o’n – grilled pork loin marinated with lemongrass, garlic and shallots served with salad and steamed rice. With an egg on top!
I have seafood Xao Sa O’t – squid, prawns and mussels stir fired with lemongrass and chilli. Delicious!
Next we have a wander about, stop off for a drink then make our way to Edinburgh International Conference Centre where Margaret has an Aperol spritz and I have a coffee before joining the huge queue to get into the ‘room’ for the show – more like a 1500-seater theatre with comfy seats and great sound. Could be an awesome venue for an acoustic-ish kinda show/festival.
Margolyes is good – my only annoyance was needing a piss and not being able to go during her 70-minute show.
Then it’s back to the bus, a drive home from Stirling and an early-ish night.
THE DAY starts off with a session with one of my regular online guitar students…then I get the next single – MacPherson’s Lament – delivered to my aggregator (digital distributor) ready for release on Friday 26 September.
Next job is to move on with my accounts. Yeuch. Determined not to be leaving my tax return ‘til the last minute this year and get things back on track.
Mid-afternoon I take a bus to the village, pick up my prescription at the pharmacy and walk back home in the sunshine. Listening to some podcast on BBC Sounds.
After a little more work on my accounts I start the edit on the official video for MacPherson’s Lament. It becomes clear I ain’t gettting anywhere close even to a first cut for tonight’s Wildcats’ livestream on Facebook so I scour some backup drives for some bits and bobs of archive video to spin into the livestream instead.
The livestream goes fine and Margaret’s got dinner ready when I get back to the house shortly after 9pm….
