As a child growing up in the Scottish Highlands and Islands in the early 1950s, Christmas Day was never as lavish and commercialized as it is today. However, it had its magic when on the morning of the 25th there was a stocking filled with sweets, a tangerine, some dates and an envelope with 10/-… Read more »

Our family is a Celtic mixture of Scottish and Irish Gaelic. As we approach Christmas it is our tradition to gather round the family crib each evening to pray for a minute or so to welcome the Christ Child (An Leanbh Criost) at Christmas by allowing His peace to be at the heart of our… Read more »

I like salads and the various dressings that can be used but my favourite accompaniment is Red Onion Chutney. This is my weakness! The flavour ticks the proverbial taste ‘boxes’ so in our house there are several containers of chutney stored away to ensure no shortage occurs. The building up of any collection is according… Read more »

My wife and I were travelling on the train to Birmingham recently . Opposite us were a young couple aged around twenty, one from Ghana and the other, a South African. We engaged in  conversation and at one stage we talked about musical taste as we are all musicians. I mentioned I had seen Liam… Read more »

Over the past few weeks our house has been ‘upside down’ with a major refit of a bathroom. My office has been cluttered with towels, shampoo bottles and more during the renovation. Yesterday, the work was completed and all the bits of packaging and empty boxes were taken away to the Re-Cycling Centre by the… Read more »

Last week I was in Portugal with my family. We stayed in Alvor, in the Algarve, where there is a small nature reserve. My wish was to see a Hoopoe and indeed the bird did not disappoint even though I spotted it not in the reserve but in a car park nearby. What a beautiful… Read more »

Our main bathroom is being refurbished. Yesterday it was cleared, with wall and floor tiles, bath, sink, toilet and other bits ending up in the skip. Today, the electrician was at work drilling holes, lifting floorboards and making holes in the ceiling for small spot lights. In the end, all will be well with a… Read more »

Today, I was near the main mosque in Leicester and a few yards down the road I came across a small business making naan bread for the restaurants and outlets in Leicester(shire) and before my eyes were thousands of naan breads, and other being rolled out by about a dozen women. They were 15p each… Read more »

My wife and I enjoyed a long walk around the Leicestershire countryside, where at one point we gazed down upon the Trappist Monastery of Mount St Bernard. It was a beautiful sunny day, clear sky and a gentle breeze. The beauty of the scene led us to stand in silence and appreciate to beauty before… Read more »

I have a liking for cacti. There are a good number around the house and outside. I like their variety of size, shape, colour and flowers. One of my favourites, the Astrophytum, has a flower that when it comes out lasts but a day, but the perfume fills the house. Banknotes too have a variety… Read more »