A place holder for tookiebuntendotcom. My main blog is over at http://tookiebunten.com or http://walkwithtookie.com
Friday, 24 December 2010
Wednesday, 22 December 2010
Tuesday, 21 December 2010
Blog neglect
Realised I haven't posted in a while. Well since Friday and that
hasn't been like me. However I haven't really had a chance. Saturday
was just me and Rowan do not much time for much other than playing,
feeding, changing, playing. Then Sunday came and Rowan started to get
unwell. Monday was a day of cuddling on the couch and today was a day
for the doctor. Basically it's a virus and it'll take 5 to 7 days to
clear. Hopefully normal service will resume, shortly....
Friday, 17 December 2010
Thursday, 16 December 2010
My Public Life on Flickr
Made this with the excellent Pummelvision. A great site, a few clicks and away it goes and makes a movie of your photographs from either Flickr, Tumblr or facebook. The choice is yours but go do it. I find it amazing, 3000 odd photographs whizzing by in less than 3 minutes.
If you've done it post a link in the comments, I would love to see the world through someone else's eyes.
Wednesday, 15 December 2010
Ready for Santa
Well that's it. We're ready for Santa. The tree is up, it's decorated
and has it lights. Can't wait to see @babybunten's face in the
morning. It'll be her first proper Christmas, last year she was only 2
weeks old and sleep through most of it.'Tis the season to be jolly. It
is a wonderful life.
Monday, 13 December 2010
Friday, 10 December 2010
Unknown Swedish Rock Band
This is the second support band from last Saturday. I never caught their name so if you recognise them feel free to let me know in the comments. All I know was that they were mental, had probably watched too much Spinal Tap (maybe Swedish rock is all like this?) and turned up to 11 with as you can tell from the sound quality.
Black Spiders
Taken at the Barrowlands last Saturday. This was the Black Spiders the first support act for Airbourne.
Wednesday, 8 December 2010
It's getting warmer?
Nice bracing start to the day. If wondering why the dashboard is
different? I taking my wife's car the 4x4. She is a teacher and the
schools are closed. I wouldn't be attempt the drive to work in the wee
Suzuki.
Monday, 6 December 2010
Weatherpocalypse more photographs
from the last leg on foot.
The road to nowhere
This has been the view on the journey home for the past 4 hours. It's
only 9 miles from door to door, home to work.
Thursday, 2 December 2010
Wednesday, 1 December 2010
Brrrrr....
That was the temperature when I got home after duelling with other
gladiators on the roads of the weatherpoclypse death race that the
journey to work has become. It's going to get really cold tonight.
Tuesday, 30 November 2010
The end?
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That's it, day 30 done. Managed to get to the enjoy. Really happy
about but most of all I really enjoy vlogging. So watch this space....
Monday, 29 November 2010
A winter wonderland
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More snow fell over night. Making the trek for the bus take a little longer.
Sunday, 28 November 2010
PSU
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Fixed the father-in-laws Dell PC. Hopefully that'll keep it going for
a while and at the very least get him back on the Internet.
Saturday, 27 November 2010
A busy day, a snow day
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I may be confused in this can't remember if I said day 26 or 27 anyway
doesn't matter. Had a busy day moving furniture to accommodate
@babybunten.
Friday, 26 November 2010
Thursday, 25 November 2010
Cauld scratchy beard time
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Wednesday, 24 November 2010
A scabby horse...
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Tuesday, 23 November 2010
Baltic
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Foolishly left my hat in the house and it's Baltic freezing this morning!
Monday, 22 November 2010
A new car
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Sunday, 21 November 2010
A nothing day
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A relaxing chilled out day, where nothing much happened. Except having
to go down to the car for a bag.
Saturday, 20 November 2010
Friday, 19 November 2010
Thursday, 18 November 2010
Just another day
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Just another day nothing exciting just sorting the washing.
Wednesday, 17 November 2010
Timber!
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Getting better at standing everyday now, and getting more and more
mobile. @babybunten is starting to enjoy her freedom.
Tuesday, 16 November 2010
A walk in the dark
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Me bemoaning the fact I have to get public transport for the foreseeable...
Monday, 15 November 2010
Half way?
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Half way. The middle point. Never thought I'd get this far. Tons of
footage but no time to edit.
Sunday, 14 November 2010
I'll stand in my own two feet, well maybe?
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@babybunten trying to stand on her own two feet. All by herself.
Saturday, 13 November 2010
Dan Reed in your front room
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This has been on my phone for a couple of months and I haven't done
anything with it.
band in the 90s? Anyway that's him playing an acoustic set in my mates
front room. Great night.
Friday, 12 November 2010
Thursday, 11 November 2010
Confused even more
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If you can hear the sound okay, you'll be able to heara confused me, again. Nothing new there.
Stuck on you?
This little leaf was stuck to my driver's side window. It was with me
all the way from home to work so I thought at the very least it
deserved a photograph and to be shared.
Wednesday, 10 November 2010
Tuesday, 9 November 2010
Monday, 8 November 2010
The Range of the Awful Hand
Photograph courtesy of tigerweet on flickr
This might be a bit presumptuous of me. However I'm going to continue, most people seemed to enjoy my last piece of reminiscing and the retrospective look back at my first munro. With me struggling to get out on the hills of late, I thought I would regale another tale of me in the hills. So get yourself sorted, get some refreshments or at least make sure you've been to the toilet. Strap yourself in this could be as epic as the first one or epic-ier. Like Die Hard II - Die Harder. Well not really but you'll get the idea.
As a litte caveat the languauge may well be a little choice in places, that's just me. If think I'm bad you want to hear my dad. Well where did you think I got it from? Also there is some metrosexual, in touch with my feelings man love going on as well. Deal with it. Get over it or HTFU. There may also be some colloquialism that I'm not in the habit of explaining, feel free to ask. You are now fore warned and therefore fore armed.
When I first moved out from the shadow of my infamous (or famous, just depends on who's telling the story) dad; I come from a small town in deepest darkest Ayrshire, most folk ken the other folk and if your not related they've either seen your face or they've heard your name, it's not quite like Deliverance, banjo battling country as most people conjure up. There's no (much) inbreeding. It's great to be kent even if it's by the extension of someone else. There is a downside you get away with nothing. Nothing.
I was being seduced by the bright lights and the big city. It was different. Exciting even. No hills, green fields and beasts. Not entirely, there's beast but I was talking about the agricultural variety. Well maybe. I wasn't spending much time back in the hinterlands or much time with my family, especially my dad. We used to do a lot together; walking the dogs, fishing, walking, arguing, fighting, walking, arguing, fighting and arguring some more. We're the same. Cut from the same cloth. A spitting image. This apple sitting here typing hasn't fallen far from the tree. We ARE the same but like chalk and cheese. You understand? I would do something exactly as asked/shown but I still couldn't do it right and he fucking showed me.
I suppose this sounds like we didn't get on back them but we did, greatly. There is no man I look up to and admire more than my dad. If I'm lucky enough to be half the man he is, my wee Rowan will have a great dad. Maybe at times I never showed him the respect he was due but he's always been right by me and stood by my desicions. Right or Wrong. Hopefully I've learned.
Now we get on even better. I'm not at home. Strange that, how I have a home of my own but Cumnock is still 'home'? Folk must think I'm loaded, East Kilbride is home. Cumnock is home. He's got two houses. I wish. Home is where you make it and I make it in both these places.
Even when I write I blether. Your patter is like water, Tooks. Onwards.
The whole point was we weren't spending as much time in each others' pocket. More so me in his spending his money. We decided that if all else failed we would always spend the September weekend the gither. We'd go do something. Some beers, some walking or fishing or whatever. That was that and that was law. It has of slipped the last few years but that's fine. I see him and my mum most every other weekend these days.
The September weekend arrived, which weekend it was I'm not sure. Ayrshire has is September holiday the week before Glasgow's which is usually the last full weekend of the month. In the run up there was much back and forth discussion of where and what. My dad has never been for bagging hills, he's not really into the pointy stuff. Much prefering to walk the glens, woods, fields and the coast. Where I like walking on the hills but I'm by no means a bagger. See, the same but different. I've bagged more than I know and can name you even less. It just about being out there for me.
The destination or base camp was to be Newton Stewart in Galloway. In fact we ended up a few miles away on a campsite at Glentrool Village. Just out the side the village. Yes were up for a bit of glamping. My dad is like that, he likes to rough it but not that much. We were directed to a field adjcent to and out the road of the caravans but we had a shower/toilet block, which made dad happy.
Mum had organised the food for the weekend. There was enough to sustain an arctic expedetion. Seriously. There was a cool box stuffed full of perishable gear. It was so full you couldn't have wedged a wafer thin after eight in there. Not a MREs (Meal, Ready-to-Eat) insight for these boys. Tupperware crammed full of home cooked goodies. Mince, Stovies, soup and the rest. Sliced sausage and bacon for breakfast. Full on catered for weekend. No small camping stove for us either, a calor gas twin ring burner with grill and I'm not talking one of those small fits in a rucksack gas canisters. This beauty takes the full on, heats up your caravan for 2 week holiday gas cannister. What's the point of taking the car and not making full use of it. It's your own personal sherpa. Wasn't like I had to load the gear on my back and hike in, dragging arse like a dug with an itchy bum over your best carpet. It was going to be a great weekend.
I'm a bit sad at this point because I remember we didn't have a camera and nethier of us had camera phones. In fact I don't think anyone had a camera phone back in those dark ages. However for some bizarre reason we had a video camcorder thing. It was huge, thinking back now it was fucking huge, it was breeze block big but probably small for the time. There was so much footage from around the campsite and absolutely hilarious commentery of me collecting water from the spicket. When I first seen the footage back, my thoughts were Geez-oh! But everyone that watched was rolling about laughing. It's a shame there was no Youtubez back then. This too is all now lost after my parents house was broken into and the camcorder stolen. Bastards. Maybe it's a good thing I'm writing this?
I was excited as outside of Ayrshire, for me Galloway is the next best place. I've done as much walking here as I have anywhere. To me it is, was Lord of the Rings country long before Peter 'The Hobbit' Jackson had a wet dream about and idea about a film. If you've read any Tolkien you'll know what I'm talking about. The place is wild, as wild as anything you'll find up north in the highlands. Wilder than a hairy arsed blue painted Pict chasing a smooth skin sun tanned Roman back south of the wall. Yes it is that wild. Galloway is one of the least populated Shires in all the country. There has been times when we've had the place to ourselves . It's beautiful on a fine day but it can be a brutal slog on wet day. Don't kid yourself when I said it's wild I mean it's wild. Most of the time you will have the place to yourself or whoever your with.
Even the places names you can imagine in Tolkien's novels. The Dungeon Hills, Rhinns of Kells (one of the finest ridge walks in all the lands, in my humble opinion), Corserine, Mount Doom, Black Craig, Emyn Muil, Murder Hole, Moria, The Rig of The Jarkness, Mindolluin, Loch Neldricken, Mullwharchar, Neive of the Spit to name a lot and of course the Range of the Awful Hand, Shalloch on Minnoch, Trafessock, Kirriereoch, Merrick and Benyellary. My favourites.
As it was early afternoon by the time the green Vango dome was planted, secured in a spot not too far from the facilities block and far enough away from the other 2 tents in the field. It was a good spot. Ideal some would say. Perfect. Sometimes you wonder why some people pitch where they pitch?
We fattened oorsels at the alter of the coolbox. Filled our full and decided to tackle the high stuff the next day. But a walk was indeed in order as we need to shift some of the gluttony on. The fatted calf and the Bull. We jumped in the motor and drove up to the car park at Loch Trool and Bruce's Stone. Unlike his cave, which there are many. We parked and took the short walk to the stone.
The stone commerates 1307 when Robert Bruce won a minor engangement during the Scottish Wars of Independence. This led to, to later in that year, a more comprehensive win at his first major battle in the middle of Ayrshire at Drumclog or Loudon Hill which ever you prefer. However it wasn't till Bannockburn in 1314, did he finally have the decisive victory. If at first you don't succeed, try try and try again. So lengend goes. 7 years that's a lot of caves and watching a lot of spiders. Maybe. Think I best end the history lesson before I really bore everyone. Too late?
After reading the inscription we wandered on. I'm not implying it in the aimless fashion but in the sense of the speed of a wander. It's slow. Like I stated in my other post. I'm short so I don't walk fast. I don't have a swinging gate. Simple science. That and the fact that I take my height from my dad. Though I'm taller. The same but different. On we went. There is a cracking shortish walk round the loch. Short in the that it takes about 3 hours. Not very up and down. They weather was fine and dry. It was good to be out walking with my dad. Trying hard to ignore the baited hooks. We like to rib each other. "Ony fuckin' hawfwit wid ken better" or "yir jist gettin' a len o' that", "it's no fur keeps sir", "'member it just a len o'"is the usual lines after one of us has bitten. 'Member once bitten, twice shy.
Like I said it's a fine walk. The mix of terrain and views is great. Glentrool or Loch Trool is a great stepping off point, a great starting point for exploring the wilds of Galloway. There is much in this area. Especially if your a wild camper.
It was getting late as we returned to the car. This calf was no longer fat, looking at the Bull though, I wasn't too sure but dinner was on the cards, well in the cool box at any rate. Real stovies. It was time for to fire up the twin ring burner. Get the jet engines blazing and cooking up a storm.
To be continued.......
Sunday, 7 November 2010
Feeling better
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Saturday, 6 November 2010
Sick note
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Sorry for the crapness of this vlomo but at a great night/day. Managed
to catch the bug the @babybunten had earlier in the week. Things can
only get better. Hopefully by tomorrow.
Friday, 5 November 2010
Thursday, 4 November 2010
Thursday is better
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Thursday is better, no kick in the baws. All is well and getting better.
Wednesday, 3 November 2010
Wednesday is a kick in the baws!
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Well if Tuesday was cool, Wednesday was a kick in baws. Eye infections
and a sick baby.
Tuesday, 2 November 2010
How's my driving?
Check the message on the right hand back door of the van. Made me
chuckle. Don't worry I wasn't driving sitting stationary at a set of
traffic lights.
Tuesday is cool
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Tuesday is cool, I'm not at work. Got a couple of things to do but that's it.
Monday, 1 November 2010
Monday is Friday
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This may just be my first vlog. Be nice I'm new to this. Trying to be
part of VLOMO10 on vlog a day for the whole of November and this is my
first shaky start.
Thursday, 28 October 2010
Duck Vader
Duck Vader is all lit up for Princess Leia Duck.
Having great fun in the bath with @babybunten and our Star Wars ducksWednesday, 27 October 2010
CAMRA
Well it's official. I drink real beer. I'm now a fully signed up
member of CAMRA. A membership card, handbook and a whole host of beer
tokens for my efforts. Looking forward to using them in a pub near
you? The beers are on me, well maybe...
Sunday, 24 October 2010
A morning moon
The sun is up and the moon is still high in the sky and as big and
bright as it was last except this morning I'm back in Lanarkshire.
Saturday, 23 October 2010
A Ayrshire Moon
A Ayrshire moon, it's bright a huge tonight but not that the iPhone
camera can do it justice.
Having a tightner
Having a beer at Stair Inn before dinner. Don't be fooled by the
glass. It's not a Houston ale from Paisley but an Amber Ale from
Strathaven, in the middle of Ayrshire. Bizarre but it worked for me.
Cracking pint, so much so I had a couple.
Magic Mushrooms
I always wonder especially at this time of year, what mushrooms are
edible. I see loads. A free bounty of food but I don't know if they're
edible or not? Seems such a waste to walk by them if the are.
wouldn't want to learn the hard way!
Running the dogs
Out running the dogs back in the land of my fathers. Three springer
spaniels; Clyde, Tammy, Breagh.
Thursday, 21 October 2010
Don't look back in anger? Or my 1st munro
BE WARNED THIS IS EPIC!
Not epic in the sense of Beowulf or Lord of the Rings but just EPIC in size. It's probably the longest post I've ever written and the longest thing I've written since I was pupil in higher english. I will also warn of some choice language. If you don't like sweery words don't read on.
I'm in the mood for reminiscing, don't know why. It's not normally like me. Not normally like me to do it here. It may be that I have been regaling this tale at some point to the poor @PhilOutdoors. I say may because the last time I was in Phil's presence a pretty few beers had been drank in the land of my fathers', the 'shire of my birth and the county of my youth.
I'm unsure as to what was talked about on that last meeting it was getting a little fuzzy towards the end (A recurring theme). However it probably doesn't really matter other than it's at the front of my head rather than locked away in the dark spaces of my brain.
The story and the reason for this post, it's probably nothing of interest to anyone but myself, to put it down for prosperity. It's the tale of my first munro, my first hill of the highlands. My first.
The photograph is a give away to those that know. The mighty majestic guardian of Glencoe. Buachaille Etive Mor, 'THE' Buachaille and on that day my nemesis. Goliath versus David. Not so much for it's awe inspiring massiveness. It is massive, lets not kid ourselves, it's a hulk of hill. Or the fact that it is a big climb, 3353ft if I remember correctly. It was more to do with the condition I was in.
Tuesday, 19 October 2010
Sunday, 17 October 2010
Wednesday, 13 October 2010
As the leaves lie thick & no so even
It's that time of year again and the leaves are starting to lie thick
an uneven. It's my favourite time of the year. Just before it turns. I
love the colours and the crispness in the air.
Tuesday, 12 October 2010
Testing out the new posterous app
Monday, 11 October 2010
Days Out - Ayrshire Beer Festival
I had high hopes for this, not the festival itself but the post. I was going to grab hundreds of photographs, maybe even some audioboos but I failed for a couple of reasons. I forgot to charge up the iPhone, major mistake no way it was going to last a full day grabbing photographs and taking notes. The other reason the company and the beers were too good and I was talking too much. Brilliant beer festival. Well next year then.
One thing I'll give you, best beer for me by a long way was Rambler's Ruin from Breconshire. Great beer. If you can get some, get a few.