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….
Fiona rocks up and we go for a paddle. The village and bay is busy and suspecting same up the lochside toward Milarrochy we head up past Inchcailloch.
On to Torrinch where we stop at the far end for break from paddling.
It’s windier and we head back and there’s a fair amount of wake from random boats and stuff. I’m having trouble keeping my board straight and on investigating I’ve lost my main fin. 🙁
That makes paddling home a bit of an ordeal but a ‘side by side’ paddling between us helps a lot. We’re both pretty knackered when we get back.
Back out in the garden I get some more work done then make some stuffed burgers (mozzarella inside!) which I grill on the Ninja Woodfire with a touch of smoke. The mince was too lean to make smash burgers so I decided to try something new and different….it worked 🙂
AFTER a relaxing morning I venture onto the loch for a paddle. It’s pretty busy with lot of speedboats and jetskis but I have a nice paddle up to Milarrochy and back regardless.
Margaret’s away to the village hall to set up for a local place plan community engagement event – I have a quick shower then take a walk to the village hall and join her.
I walk back home and set up a website for my Love Balmaha idea. Photos, e-commerce and a Facebook page. I’ll get more socials set up in due course.
I finally get my settings right to make these….on sale soon…
AFTER coffee and emails/socials etc in bed we get up and I spend some time getting Margaret’s new iPad set up so it will work best for her.
In the office I work on a couple more items for my new local gifts idea. I’m planning to launch a small range of standalone local items that I will slowly – and strategically - add to.
The office is a bit of a mess, partly because I attempted to engrave a big 40oz insulated tumbler a few weeks ago and failed miserably. I have some time today so work on my set up and get it locked in.
Before I do a proper engrave I spend some time messing with my new(-ish) logo and trying out different fonts and text for the logotype. Once I’m happy I get busy and am pretty pleased with the results. I’ll likely get ‘em on sale soon.
The sun’s splitting the sky so I take a wander up the lochside and chat to ranger Louise up at Milarrochy.
Matty’s arrived when I get back and we chill the rest of the evening.
CHILL day today…it’s my birthday. Fucking 61. Mental age about 14. Age in my head 22.
I do minor amounts of work to avoid a backlog and kick off some ideas for coming weeks. Mostly, though, I sit the garden, play guitar and sporadically go onto Facebook a nd ‘like’ all the birthday messages.
Betty comes round for dinner and we have a nice evening and then a relatively early night. Be fucking Ovaltine and early bed soon!
FUNNY – used to be Monday that was my busy guitar lesson/workshop day but it’s kinda moved to Wednesday.
I have an online session first thing and my next student arrives just as the online session is winding up.
There’s about 20 minutes between the next two sessions then I get on with some routine admin stuff.
I have to nip into Glasgow and decide to kill two birds with one stone and get one shopping too. I also wanna pick up an iPad for Margaret. Her 10+ year-old MacBook Air is still going but it’s starting to flag a bit – I’ve replaced my laptop with an iPad Pro and (Logitech) keyboard case and haven’t looked back. And iPad OS26 (still in beta) has brought it even closer to a laptop experience.
I reckon the new ‘basic’ iPad with keyboard/trackpad case would not only be a more productive tool for Margaret being faster and more intuitive to use…but also comes in about 40% of the cost of a new laptop!
She’s not been sold on the idea in past chats so I decide to bite the bullet and sort it out to see if it’ll work for her.
I pick up a Logitech keyboard case with trackpad at the Braehead Apple Store and subsequently an iPad A16 at Costco. Total cost is under £400.
I go about my business in Glasgow, pick up some charcoal at Rightway in Polmadie, Costco and Tesco shopping then home.
Fiona’s coming along for dinner later and we’d planned a paddle beforehand…but her B&B guests haven’t arrived and I’m puggled, so instead start configuring the new iPad for Margaret.
Fiona rocks up at dinner time and we have a nice night of food, wine and chat.
AFTER breakfast I spend some time working with Margaret on our bookings system which has lain dormant since the pandemic!
The first booking system I built was on FileMaker…then Apple brought out Bento which was easier to synchronise and more user friendly so I rebuilt for that.
For some reason Apple discontinued Bento and the only thing we could find that had similar functionality was an app called TapForms. It worked but was clunky and awkward to work with.
When I was booking the last USA tour pre-Covid I discovered AirTable and found it pretty good but then Covid hit and Margaret never really used it and it fell into the background. Now we wanna start using it again.
It’s lunchtime before I go out for my first paddle in a month or more ‘cos of a combination of an elbow injury and shite weather.
I do a livestream from the water then back home for a shower, lunch, then I get the smoker on…time’s tight to get the beef short ribs done so I decide to try the electric smoker instead of the kamado.
Late afternoon one of my guitar students rocks up for a session. We’re not long done when an alert on my phone tells me the ribs are almost done.
Later on when we eat we’re happily surprise that the meat is just as good as when done on the kamado. Seems some things still fare better on charcoal, but some stuff comes out just fine on the electric jobbie….
SIX-thirty and the kids are jumping all over me. Jeez! On the plus side it gets me up to put the sourdough in the oven nice and early!
After breakfast I hit the studio for an online guitar lesson and Maggie and Joel bring their dog, Rosie, for Freya to look after for a few hours.
Next I have a custom pewter pin to finish off and get ready for sending out.
I spend the first part of the afternoon editing up the ‘burrito’ video I shot yesterday morning so I can spin it into tonight’s Wildcats’ livestream on Facebook.
When I come to export the finished video there’s an issue referencing the original media files which takes me an age to sort.
There’s some updates to run on the Quad Cortex which I leave running when Catriona comes to pick up the kids then I get busy worth some prep for the livestream which, unusually, goes pretty much to plan with no technical clusterfucks!
I DECIDE to film the breakfast burrito process which I'll edit later on and spin into tomorrow (Monday) night's Wildcats' livestream on Facebook.
Once we've eaten I go out to the office and cast a spurtle pin – one of the recipients of the fi9lm premier batch has lost hers and asked if I could make a replacement.
There's also an order in from the 'States for a couple of acrylic Loch Lomond keyrings so I get them made up and ready for the post to pick up.
Next job is some livestreams of Still Friends which we get done before Catriona rocks up with the kids...we're looking after Freya and Aaron tonight and tomorrow.
I have a batch of pizza dough all ready to go so we all sit outside and eat pizza before Catriona heads back to Doune.
After the kids are in bed I get a little work done then we chill and watch Bill and Dorothy's livestream.
Mushroom and ricotta ravioli with brown butter and crispy sage. From scratch.
RELEASE day for the new single, Still Friends, so lots of posting round my socials and other ‘release day’ promo before breakfast.
Then it’s into the studio to create artwork for my social media covers and update my website landing page.
Once that’s all out the way I sort a takedown notice for the last release with my digital aggregator – all part of the Spotify ‘waterfall’ release strategy.
The next single, MacPherson’s Lament, doesn’t drop ’til 26 September so there’s no immediate panic but I start prep by creating a lyric file ready to upload when I get onto it next week.
In the office I do some more work on my new prototype gift ideas then our pal Sheena drops in with her new spaniel pup, Floss.
I’m back in the studio when Betty comes by for a coffee so I take a break and join her and Margaret.
After some more work for my pal Kevin I make some mushroom and ricotta filling for tonight’s ravioli…then a batch of pasta dough.
The ravioli – whoch I toss in some brown butter and sage –turns out pretty good… 🙂
MARGARET’S off to Doune early to look after Freya…she’ll take a drive into Glasgow for some shopping so I make up a list and plan for the next week or so.
I mess about designing a local gift idea then start making some prototypes.
Looking ahead to the new year, I need to get tickets on sale for a show at Komedia, Brighton on 7 March…I get the show listed, ticket toting sorted and all related stuff.
A walk up the lochside then into the office to work on my local gift protoypes.
Before Margaret gets back I prep all the stuff for tonight’s chicken fajitas…
Still Friends – available on my Bandcamp page before general release on all streaming services on Friday…
A BUSY start to the day with a Zoom guitar student immediately followed by an in-person lesson.
There’s an order in for three Loch Lomond key rings – they’re made of black acrylic with an iridescent inlay and I’m not sure I have the materials.
After digging about a bit I find enough to get the order made and start knocking them together then get them in the post box.
I realised I haven’t made a vertical version of the official Still Friends video so get busy on that…then some more bits and bobs of video stuff for Kevin McD.
Our pal David drops by and helps me finish off the garage door repair. I replaced the mechanism and lock last week but neither of us could work out why the holes int eh steel frame were so off. My drill bit wouldn’t;t go through so David drills and cuts. Job done.
There’s only time for a short walk before I light a chimney-full of charcoal and cook our smash burgers.
For some reason I decide to try my hand at making ciambella. Success!
AFTER breakfast I have an urge to I try my hand at making ciambella – a kinda Italian cake flavoured with vanilla and lemon zest. My aunt Maria used to make it when I was a kid and it was one of my favourites.
I get the mix in the oven then venture outside to try and tidy up some of the wind damage. It’s still pretty blowy, tho’ – and it looks like it’s gonna be that way for at least a few more days.
In the studio I get some more promo done for Friday’s release of Still Friends (the single) then do some prep for a young guitar student coming later on.
Once out the oven and cooled, the ciambella is pretty good. The texture is a little ‘rough’ but it tastes good.
After the guitar lesson I spot a message from my pal Kevin asking if I’llbe available for a chat later on. He has a new single coming soon and needs some help.
We FaceTime and chat through some ideas and I put together a wee plan based around vertical video clips and socials.
I have a wander up the loch side. It’s still windy but not cold and I enjoy the fresh air.
Back home I make some pasta dough then do some video work for Kevin while it rests..then it’s pasta with tomatoes, garlic and basil for dinner.
AFTER a wee bit of a lie in I head to the studio for a session with a Zoom guitar student.
Next job it prepping Still Friends – the single coming on Friday – for Bandcamp so I can share in my WIldcats’ livestream later. It’s live on my Bandcamp page now.
The forecast wind is really picking up now and because of the leaves on the trees, bushes etc, it’s having a pretty devastating effect. We brave the elements and try and anchor down the fruit cage with paracord and same with the wee PVC greenhouse thing that houses my tomatillo plants.
Sadly two of the three have succumbed to the wind and despite being inside the greenhouse thing are broken beyond repair. There was gonna be a bumper crop but only two or three fruits have reached full-size/ripeness 🙁
Back in the studio I edit up video footage from both Upton Blues Festival and the ‘gig in the garden’ for tonight’s livestream and subsequent social content.
At livestream time we still have power, thank goodness…I was expecting the usual wind-induced power cuts…and the livestream all goes to plan.
THE KIDS have everyone up early and we have bacon and sausage rolls at Matty's while we wait for the rain to pass.
As soon as it;s dry we make our way to the 'den' for the Turriff Show – the biggest annual event of its type in the local and regional calendar. As well as farm animals, machinery and the like, there's stuff for all the family.
The kids have a whale of a time and we also catch some live music and a motorcycle stunt rider. There's loads of food trucks around and the 'ghillies meal' – venison burger with brie and redcurrant jelly –I choose for lunch is amazing.
It's after 6pm when we get back to Matty's, say cheerio to everyone and drive back down the road stopping in Dundee for some shopping bits. Been a grand weekend.
THE KIDS, of course, have us up at the crack of dawn – no bad thing as we wanna get on the road from Doune to Turriff via Dundee early doors.
Will gets back from night shift just after 7am And we manage to get the cr packed with stuff and the kids to meet Catriona and Mikey in Dundee for a breakfast rendezvous. I wanna get Mikey’s new iPhone sorted for him.
We say cheerio to Mikey, head north and get to Matty’s in Turriff early afternoon.
It’s a beautiful sunny day. We take the kids to a nearby play park then rake a drive to Banff where we have a really good meal sitting outside at the Banff Springs Hotel.
Next, a wee drive further to Port Soy where the kids paddle in the sea and jump the waves, then ice cream, then back to Turriff.
WE HAVE a lazy start to the morning drinking coffee and dealing with emails and socials.
I have a couple of gifts I made for pals that I wanna get parcelled up and ready for the post office then hit the studio to start tackling my accounts.
After lunch I’m back on it and make some progress before we leave for Doune. We’re staying at Catriona’s and looking after the kids tonight then going to meet Catriona in Dundee in the morning before we all drive up to Turriff to see Matty.
Margaret stays in the house with Aaron and I take Freya to Fred the ducks.
Back at the house Margaret orders some Chinese food then puts the kids to bed while I go to Dunblane to pick up the grub.
MARGARET’s off to Edinburgh to meet Lesley for hair-dos…and I have a 9am online guitar student.
There’s a couple of items to be designed and made in the office. While the first one is ‘processing’ I get busy with some stuff for the local hydro society.
I take some time to sit down with a guitar and run through some songs…and mess with some ideas for some new ones.
There’s time for a walk in the sunshine before my in-person guitar student arrives then we sit outside and have some pizza for dinner.
MY 9am online guitar session has been moved to tomorrow (Thursday) so I have a little time before Dawn arrives for her lesson at 9.30am.
By the time I’ve got all the adminy stuff out the way it’s time to join a Help Musicians’ ‘insiders’ forum session where. Few of us give Help Musicians’ staff an insight into various aspects fo the music industry and discuss various topics.
An occasional in-person guitar student rocks up – he’s keen to explore some acoustic stuff and we spend a good hour-and-a-half covering a range of ideas.
The new lock for the garage door has been sitting siting to get fitted for weeks – the old one is attached to the struts with rivets and I’d been unsure how to remove them. A quick search on YouTube reveals some tricks of the trade and amazingly I get them removed without a hitch…and the new lock in place.
Betty joins us for dinner and we have a grand evening chatting, eating and a few glasses of red.
AFTER uploading the three videos I edited yesterday to my YouTube channel for scheduled release over the week I get busy with some more promo for the release of Still Friends – the fourth single and title track of the upcoming album on 8 August.
Most of the work has already been done with just a. few bits and bobs and loose ends to tie up...including a video canvas and pitch to Spotify.
An online 'working with promoters, agents and venues' workshop is next but really doesn't bring anything new to the table...although at least it validates our approach. ironically I follow that up by doing some work on our housekeeping budget!
THE USUAL Monday morning routine is broken as I didn't make my sourdough yesterday...but resumes with my regular Monday morning Zoom guitar student.
It's dry and slightly breezy. which means I can get the gazebos from Saturday's garden gig out from under the smoker shelter and let them dry properly before putting them away.
In the office I have some graphic work to do – a special gift I wanna make someone and also some t-shirt ideas to be knocked up.
After lunch it's onto video edits for tonight's Wildcats' livestream and subsequent sharing on YouTube and my socials.
Once my afternoon guitar student has left I manage a little bit of a walk then it's back to the studio for the weekly Wildcats' livestream.
WE HAVE a relaxed breakfast and morning then Bill and Dorothy hit the road just after midday.
MIkey really needs a new phone so we spend a while looking at options and his budget then manage to strike a deal with EE that ticks all the boxes. There’s a lot of waiting to get through on the phone but it’s well worth the effort.
After Mikey goes we have a nap then I take the carful of gear back to the studio where I spend a couple of hours trying to troubleshoot the Quad Cortex. I do a couple of factory resets, check the firmware and trawl the online forums and help. No joy.
A little disheartened I email Neural DSP support and send a video clip showing the problem….
Bill opens up this year’s summer ‘gig in the garden’
WE’RE UP reasonably early and after breakfast venture outside to raise the gazebos for this afternoon’s ’gig in the garden’.
Margaret and Dorothy start getting the seating and stuff sorted out while Bill plays some guitar and I start bringing over my gear and the PA etc.
Everything goes pretty well to plan and I get Bill sound checked…but when I plug my guitar in there’s a problem. My Quad Cortex is goosed. I try various power options in case it’s a voltage issue but nothing works so I end up having to DI my guitars into the PA. Not great, but at least it makes a noise!
The event is advertised as 2.30pm gate for a 3pm start but of course folks start rolling up early…some as much as an hour which kinda stresses me out as any time I’d made up by being organised and making sure everything was well prepped in advance has been consumed with the Quad Cortex issue.
Regardless, we manage to stay on track and the garden’s full of folks when Bill kick things off at 3pm.
We take turns to play a few songs each and then do a couple together at the end – and apart from a few showers the weather’s pretty much on our side.
By the time everyone’s gone and we’re tidied up it’s nearly 8pm and Margaret gets dinner sorted. Mikey had been going to camp up the loch side but at nearly 30 quid to pitch a wee tent for the night we decided he couch was a better option.
After a few hours shovelling stones…the new ‘outdoor toilet area is ready for tomorrow’s (Saturday) garden concert…
AFTER breakfast I get straight to clearing the secluded back corner of our garden that we use as a (men’s) outdoor toiler area during garden gigs.
It’s a muddy, messy space with lots of old plant pots, garden bits and bobs…and the log splitter. I get bitten to death by midges!
Once cleared I put down some weed barrier then it’s a case of shovelling and barrowing the pile of gravel from our side door to the ‘toilet area’. I’m knackered pretty quick!
Margaret comes and helps spread the gravel and we put down a couple of slabs then the archway thing Margaret bought to put up a shower curtain for privacy.
Next job is getting the gazebos out and part erected then I make some sugo and pasta dough for tonight’s dinner.
I’m not long done when Bill and Dorthy arrive and we have a grand evening of chat, food and drinks…’til after 2am…
THE KIDS have us awake at the crack of dawn and I get some sourdough in the oven.
Just as well we’re up and around early as Margaret gets a message from AO saying they’ll be delivering our fridge freezer in 15 minutes.
After breakfast I get on with some work and Margret takes the kids to feed the ducks and a wee walk to see Betty.
Willie and Craig roll up in a wee tipper with a load of gravel from our pal Sandy and dump it at the side door. We’re gonna try and level out the wee area at the side of the office that we use as a (men’s) toilet area when we host garden gigs.
I take a walk to the next village to pick up some local hydro stuff from Julie then it’s time to get the kids in the car and drop them at Carolyn and Steve’s in Buchlyvie on our way to Gartmore for dinner at Duncan and Irene’s.
NO LONG lie today as I have a 9am online session with one of my guitar students.
The new fridge/freezer is due to be delivered tomorrow. After emptying the freezer into bags and taking it to Betty’s garage I clear a route out the merch store and office and we move it outside. Although the fridge stopped working, the freezer was still going.
There’s some bits and bobs to be done around a Brighton show at Komedia in March then I get busy with some other design work – need new shirts and a new backdrop soon.
I’m heading out for a walk up the lochside when Will drops off the kids for the night. When I get back my walk, Margaret has a meeting at the village hall so I have the kids for a couple hours. We feed the ducks and go for a walk, then I dig the old Wii out the studio and set it up in the house for Aaron to play.
WE HAVE A bit of a long lie then start the unpacking and putting away. Not just the music stuff, but all the camping gear too.
It’s not raining so I get the sleeping pad unfurled and out to make sure there’s no dampness and then spread the tent out – it was pretty wet when we packed up on Sunday morning. There’s a light breeze which helps things dry off pretty quick then we get it all repacked and put away.
Margaret decides to go on a shopping trip into Glasgow and I spend some time in the studio editing a wee reel of clips from Saturday’s set at Uptoon Blues Festival. Margaret managed to capture three or four songs on my phone – I did take the GoPro but stupidly left the memory card in the computer.
I get some much-needed fresh air and exercise with a walk up the lochside then get some prep done for dinner before Margaret gets back with the shopping.
Grand time playing Upton Blues Festival…despite the intense heat
IT’S RAINING when we wake up. I go to the toilet and get our coffee mugs out the car then make us a coffee inside the tent.
We have some croissants and then the rain goes off and we join our fellow campers and pals before taking the gear to load in at the acoustic roots stage. Christine and Tony from Blues in Britain magazine are set up at the entrance and are also helping with everyone’s merch.
I’m not on ‘til evening but enjoying hanging out and catching up with other folks playing and meeting some new folks too.
The backstage area has everything anyone could ask and the place is rammed with folks from the moment it opens.
It’s really, really muggy and warm tho’ – not just in the venue but everywhere – and I struggle with the heat during my set but all goes well and the sound is fantastic. And an amazing crowd. Trevor joins me on my final song, Loch Lomond Home.
There’s another r couple of acts after me – Trevor and his band and then Dom Martin who does a solo acoustic set, We all hang out and it’s great to have the chance to watch (and hear) some great performances.
We get to Upton in time to catch our pal Pat on the Riverside stage…
WE MANAGE to get away just after 8am and take it in turns to drive to Upton with a few stops along the way.
There’s a few delays and jams along the way but we mange to find our camping area just after 4pm, get the tent up and wander down to the riverside stage to catch our pal Pat playing.
After picking up some supplies at a shop in the town we drop off at the tent, stop in at the acoustic roots stage then hit the meadow and have some grub and drink.
Then back to the acoustic stage for the last act and then the tent. We stir with Trev, Emma and Trev’s brother Kev and have a couple glasses of wine then turn in for the night.
I NEED to get the WIldcats’ brass pins finished, packed and sent out today so get busy in the office.
I take a break when a guy from Glasgow comes to check out the camera gear I have for sale and, thankfully, takes it. Good to get rid of it not only to get some dosh, but also because it was taking up space in the studio.
Once the pins are finished I start packing to send off and realize I only have a couple jiffy bags left. Damn. I order some more and then spend some time ,making do with envelopes, bubble wrap and packing tape.
While dealing with that I engrave some bar blade bottle openers to have in the merch bag for the weekend.
Eventually I vacate the office and Margaret gets in to sort the merch. I hit the studio to rehearse then pack the gear and start loading the car ready for an early start in the morning.
As well as merch and music gear, we also need to sort and pack all the camping stuff. Oooffft.
THE COMPUTER is having a meltdown in the studio when I try and set up for an online guitar session. I start it off on my phone and when the computer finally plays ball we switch over.
Dawn arrives for her lesson just as I finish the online session then I have a half hour break before another student on Zoom.
In between times there’s a few orders in for the brass Wildcats’ pins so I nip in and out the office to do some work on them.
After lunch I start a batch of tote bags with the new logo. Is quite laborious but I get through our stock of blank bags then go for a walk up the lochside.
We have dinner at the local pub with Betty then go back to hers for a drink before wandering home.
The brass Wildcats’ pin gets a fair bit of interest 🙂
THE DAY starts with a relatively free diary -– only two major tasks on today’s to-do list.
Disruption doesn’t take long to cast its shadow and I end up having to spend the entire morning sorting out some website related problems. Ah well.
After lunch I get some promo done for Saturday’s appearance at Upton Blues Festival before sorting out the media assets for the imminent Still Friends PR and promo.
I put the limited edition brass Wildcats’ pins on sale in a special Wildcats-only section in my online store.
My late afternoon guitar student arrives for a session after which I see there’s a few orders in for the Wildcats’ pins. I get busy!
Our pal Tom stops by to chat through some local community stuff. It’s nearly 11pm when he leaves I m,are some steak tacos for a rather late dinner.
Final video clip from my recent show at The Glad Cafe, Glasgow
USUAL Monday early rise to get the sourdough in the oven – more important this week as Mikey found some chanterelles yesterday and we’re gonna have them for breakfast.
The mushrooms on fresh toasted sourdough make for a great breakfast then I get some work done before a mid-morning session with one of my online guitar students.
Before Mikey heads off I create a mock up image of a shed he hopes to put up in his garden in Dundee.
After lunch Margaret goes to get some shopping – we need milk and yogurt amongst other things as our ‘extra’ fridge in the merchant store has finally croaked and most stuff in it has gone off 🙁
She also posts off the customer spurtle earrings, pin and complimentary pendant.
I finish editing the official Still Friends video – the single drops 11 August – so I can give the Wildcats a preview in tonight’s Facebook livestream.
I also edit the last live clip from the recent show at The Glad Cafe to include in the livestream
The livestream goes smoothly and I manage to get out for a quick walk before dinner’s ready 🙂
ANOTHER scortchio day – I get to work finishing the custom spurt order then hit the studio.
Once I get a set list made up for next Saturday's show at Upton Blues Festival I run through some of the songs.
I think I'll just take one steel guitar plus the banjo and acoustasonic as space int eh air is gonna be tight with all the camping stuff.
There's a message from someone on Facebook who, back in February, made an offer on the camera stuff I had for sale then promptly disappeared. I'm naturally cautious they're back in touch and after a few messages and a phone call from his brother-in-law a provisional arrangement has been made for him to come and see the stuff on Thursday afternoon.
Mikey's arrived and is staying the night. I make some fresh pasta with wild garlic and an Italian sausage sugo. Once we've eaten we chill and watch Billy's monthly livestream. they're over form Florida and staying at their 'other' house in Invergowrie for a few months...and coming here in a coupla weeks for the garden gig.
Spurtle earrings and pendant taking shape…still a bit of work to do!
MORE work to be done on the customer spurtle earrings, pendant and pin…I get busy.
In the studio I record some audio clips for a radio show whose host has asked me to pick four influential songs and two of my own and record some intros to each.
It’s another lovely day and I decide to experiment with a GoPro to see if I can livestream from it…my test is to play Walk the Walk in the garden. And it works
I do a little more editing on what will be the official video for Still Friends then we walk along to Barbara and Thortens. They’ve got the grill on and invited us along for dinner.
Fiona joins us and we have a grand evening eating, drinking and chatting outside despite me getting stung on the tongue by a wasp that had got inside my bottle of beer!
Still a bit of finishing to do – and I think I wanna make them a little bigger…
AN email came in last night form one of the stars of the Golden Spurtle film that premiered in Copenhagen a few months ago..she was given one of the spurtle pins I was commissioned to make and she’d like some earrings to match.
After breakfast I get busy and by the time my new Romanian guitar student is online at midday I’ve got some prototype castings done.
After the guitar session I do some work out eh castings to tidy them up a bit. This is the laborious and often difficult part. I think they’re maybe a little on the small side. But send the customer some photos to see if we’re on the right track.
Margaret and Nixie have gone across to the island and aren’t back when I get the bus to the village for a doctor’s appointment. I’ve a painful left elbow and it feels very similar to bursitis I had in the elbow ten years ago. There’s so swelling it ‘heat’ tho’.
The doc reckons it’s not a bursitis and I just need to take it easy and see if it sorts itself out.
I have a nice walk home from the village and we sit int he garden and blether for a while.
Margaret’s made up some pinchos skewers for dinner which I cook outside on the grill….suddenly it’s 1.30am and we all head off to bed.
Just chillin’ – when it gets choppy but the wind’s in your favor why fight it…just go with the flow and take a break!
NOT long finished breakfast and got the day’s routine tasks out the way when Fiona arrives…we’ve planned a paddle for this morning.
It’s a lovely day but we’re not long out the bay when the wind’s starts to pick up a little. When we stop on the beach at Port Bawn on the far end of Inchailloch we notice the wind getting stronger and white horses start to appear.
We decide to head for home and come down the other side of the island. The wind’s is kinda in our favor so after battling a while to stay upright we decided to sit down – or in my case, lie down – and let the wind take us homeward.
The sun’s still shining when we get back tot he house so we sit in the garden and have a coffee before Fiona heads off.
After lunch I get busy with some promo for Friday’s release of Walk the Walk then start the video edit for the next single – Still Friends –which drops 8 August.
FREYA has us awake at 6.30am – which means I get my sourdough in the oven at a decent time!
I’ve managed to get through a fair bit of work before my mid-morning Zoom guitar student.
Joel and Maggi stop by and drop off Rosie for Freya – she’s crazy about dogs – to look after for a few hours.
Margaret takes Freya and Rosie for a walk and a picnic while I get busy int eh studio.There a couple of videos I wanna get edited up which also gives me some extra content for tonight’s Wildcats’ livestream on Facebook.
There’s an order in for another leather bookmarks which I get busy with then Joel and Maggi come to collect Rosie and we have a coffee and a chat. Around the same time Will comes to get Freya.
I have time for a quick wander up the hill before the livestream…then dinner and some telly.
AFTER a lazy morning drinking coffee and dealing with emails and social media we have breakfast then I get busywith stuff.
First job is cleaning the grate from the smoker and some general tidying up outside.
With the release of Walk the Walk coming up on Friday (11 July) there’s another phase of work – website landing pages and a Spotify pre-save, prep for a preview release on Bandcamp, special media banners with links to the pre-save and a vertical edit of the video.
Then I create a teaser reel for all my socials.
Catriona arrives with Freya and we have a coffee then I finish off in the studio.
When the rain stops I take Freya or a walk then drop her at the house and wander a little more on my own.
ONCE the routine stuff’s done I get into the office and finishthe paperweight stands for Will. I bend the acrylic into shape with a heat gun – knowing when they’re reached optimum flexibility before melting is key.
There’s some other stuff I wanna do and need to try and get my head round 3D design tools – specifically Nomad Sculpture on the iPad. It’s complicated and daunting and I don’t; really know where to start.
I try and follow some ‘crash course’ tutorials but, as usual, there are some initial hurdles that go unexplained and make things difficult. Or maybe it’s just me!
The Stirling Observer has run the story and photo I sent from the community hydro society. I use the clipping to create graphic and share it on the hydro’s socials. At the same time I’m reminded that none of my fellow board members ever share or like the posts so I send a reminder round the group email and bump my gums about how the hydro socials need traction and if they can’t like and. Share how can they expect anyone else to do so.
A courier drops off some locking tuners and power pins from music supplier Thomann so I set about fitting out the ‘Frankencaster’ acoustasonic that I put together as a ‘house guitar’.
It’s been a miserable day outside and I’ve not managed to get out for a walk or anything before I light a chimney full of charcoal and prepare the grill for Vietnamese beef.
The leather bookmarks are now on general sale here
THERE’S a bunch of the Conic Hill bookmarks to be finished for various pick ups and online orders that need to go out today. I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the interest in them.
In between finishing stages I finish off some other orders and make progress on others.
I’m only just finished when a customer drops by to pick up a couple of the bookmarks and then I get a call to meet another customer in the village with a whole batch of them.
We need some shopping and I’d planned to go into Glasgow but by the time I have gig posters, album promo packs and various merch orders all packed up with postage labels I’m short of time so take them to Balloch and pick up the essentials.
Back home I finish off the promo work for next week’s release of Walk the Walk then Betty arrives to join us for dinner.
