When Petrol Was The Future

Once upon a time petrol pumps were found on high streets or main streets. A fledgling roadside amenity. Perched on the pavements like drinking fountains, easily accessible for the odd vehicle that might pull up for a refill. The local iron monger or blacksmith might own the set up and sell fuel in between other more lucrative bits of business. Ordinary people didn't really own cars or much else back then either. It was the age of the famous moustache too. I'm sure that there are photos or records of black limos with small boys running alongside them looking for a hidden horse. A world long gone. One with no real health, safety or fire prevention regulations ... we don't want that again.

Every so often you'll see dead electrical switches like this on odd walls, mostly in rural locations, the rusty pumps and storage systems long gone. Petrol and diesel were not the dirty words they are today. We know better now but we don't really because it's all someone else's fault and we're as much the victims and part of the cash/taxation fodder as the third world crude oil workers who's products are cleaned up and sold on to us. Sad to say, interesting but ultimately ugly and over weight EVs shipped over from China don't really do it either. You know they'll be unsupported tech junk in seven years. We just might need a better solution.

Lost in Kinloch Rannoch

We took a wee break off and into the bright Perthshire amber of autumn's passing. The four seasons in a single day magic still happens. Rain, sleet, hail, snow and sunshine passing before us in a single afternoon. Nearby Schiehallion getting a white top as did the further away peaks of Glencoe. Hotel breakfasts, big glasses of wine, comfy beds and all manner of people determined to run marathon distances. The long and winding roads to there and back again made good driving, all reasonably well maintained as if to prove that an independent Perthshire might be a viable thing - even if it's run by a small Conservative majority in the council (?).

And on the subject of independence, the untimely death of AS surprised us on Saturday night. History will not be kind to him, the media, the current SNP lineup and the establishment's own mechanical grindings will see to that. What ever narrow side of things you inhabit never forget the long screwdriver of colonialism's inbred injustice and the power of privilege will always have their sway in this country (other countries are also available for this). Thirty nine years spent in the thick of it, via the military, taught me that, but thankfully I remained a successful misfit and am still able to enjoy this land for what it is (whatever that might be). If I hadn't taken the Queen's shiny Shilling I'd write a book about it all.

 

Nice Artwork

The band "Five Card Draw" has two gigs in the St Andrews area this weekend. One of my grandsons is part of the line up. He's on drums for these dates as far as I know. I like the arty poster for the gig on the 12th. Nice work whoever put it together. I understand that their set will mostly consist of a mixture of genres but mainly jazz/funk, whatever that is these days. Hope it goes well for them.

Evaporation

After the October rains, out comes the sun and despite it's feeble seasonal warmth the steamy late morning evaporation begins. As chunks of the fallen rain return heavenwards, presumably to fall again elsewhere. Almost poetic isn't it? Pearly dew drops start glinting and become exaggerated and visible on the nasturtiums and you become aware that there's a few brief moments of a slow golden peace taking place. Even some of the tougher bees have returned (not pictured as they're the very busy bees, zig-zaging and camera shy) to enjoy the bright morning rays. 

Heat Seeking Snickers

If you leave your Snickers on top of a 100w amp head during a gig* this is what it looks like afterwards. Happily I can report that though melted and fairly distorted by the heat, the Snickers still tasted fine - the next day.

*Leith Dockers, 5th Oct. Unplanned and somewhat unrehearsed power trio line up that could have gone badly wrong but thankfully went rather well. Nice and loud too.

Complex Simplicity Part Two

Even as I slept the complex simplicity concept continued to morph and evolve by generating hundreds of seemingly simple images that still retained their potential for complex and varied overtones. Their meaning so far remains unclear. Some kind of digital cry for help perhaps? I captured a few (as above) but decided to release the rest into the wild so that their transformative breeding plan can continue without the obvious hindrance and contamination of any further human input. My work is done.

Emergency Leith Docker's Slot

We're back, perhaps slightly blurry around the edges but that's to be expected. Another evening of live, common and curious covers that you can dance to, sing along to, drink relatively cheaply to and if you want just talk quietly amongst yourselves to. Whatever you do you'll be captivated as we do our very best to entertain you on October 5th. 8pm at the famous Leith Docker's Club, somewhere in downtown/uptown Edinburgh. 

Complex Simplicity

Complex simplicity: Just when you think that AI artwork isn't really giving you anything new or not obvious, along comes something, some images, that are quite unexpected. There's no recognizable evolutionary path here, no route map. Just something that doesn't quite fit with any prescribed description or instruction. 

"Out of the blue and into the black. You pay for this but they give you that."  The old growler NY. 

McGuinness's

Random Fife history moment: Currently known as the Coastal Inn, previously the Boat, before that McGuinness's -  a pub in Cellardyke on John Street. Old names tend to stick so I still think of it as McGuinness's. It's set into the narrow rows of tightly packed cottages and houses that hug the Fife coast, born of sweet and bitter memories from fishing's glory days, world wide seafaring and military service. My granny's house was a few doors away to the right of this photo so I've early memories of the pub as it was 60 years ago or thereabouts. It was a no frills drinking shop and only men used it in those days. Now it's remodeled as a small pub that does food and B&B in a colourful corner of The East Neuk.