vivdunstan

Just checking for local cinemas near us showing the Doctor Who finale on 31st May (they're screening the last two episodes of the current season together). It's on in the Odeon (just up the road from us, in Douglas) and Cineworld (in Camperdown). And that's just in Dundee. We will be watching it at home. But yup, it's broadcasting in many UK cinemas. Vue too.

My husband’s birds list from his walk today. This is from his usual Saturday walk to the wooded river valley / old railway viaduct very near our home. I post this list every week on Facebook, but thought I'd post it here too today!

28 species seen, 3 species heard (including tawny owl at 12:50!), grey squirrel, bee heard

blackbird
blue tit
bullfinch
chaffinch
coal tit
collared dove
crow
dipper
dunnock
feral pigeon
goldfinch
great tit
grey heron
herring gull
house sparrow
jackdaw
long tailed tit
magpie
mallard
oyster catcher
robin
rook
song thrush
starling
stock dove
wood pigeon
wren
yellowhammer

grey wagtail heard
tawny owl heard
woodpecker heard

grey squirrel
bee heard

Back home from the V&A Dundee now. Really enjoyed the Kimono exhibition. We could turn up any time to get in, with our new joint memberships, and the V&A staff handled that we hadn't got our member cards in the post yet. I came away from the front reception desk with a freshly printed temporary membership card, and they will look into the missing cards (I'm thinking Dundee East postal depot backlogs!). It was incredibly busy when we got into the exhibition, so much queuing needed to get around the different sections. Slightly anxiety inducing for infection phobic us. We dodged a few obviously coughing or sneezing people ... And we skipped some bits that were of less interest. But I saw all the bits I really wanted to see. I was especially interested in the early history and some of the related artefacts on display. Plus kimono pattern books and drawings and paintings from the 18th and 19th centuries. I was agog at those. I only had a few things I struggled to see from my wheelchair because of height/arrangement. More of a problem was navigating around the fellow visitors, who were so engrossed that we'd often have to very clearly alert them to wheelchair coming through. I needed a horn! But we both enjoyed it and are glad we went. And just outside was the Dundee Tapestry exhibition still, which was also attracting lots of visitors, and we were happy to go round it. Bought stuff in the shop after - which is still a bit too much of a squeeze with a wheelchair, though somewhat improved after my feedback a year ago which they acted on. Then coffee and bagels lunch at the kiosk/van outside. Very glad we made it, though I won't be surprised if the same thing happens as last time we went there, and we've picked up an infection (was Covid a year ago). Fingers crossed not though!

P.S. Martin just said he could have done with fewer physical kimonos on display. I also found some of those some of the less interesting elements of the exhibition. But as he said, if you went to a kimono exhibition and didn't see lots of kimonos you would probably be justifiably disappointed! But overall the balance was good.

P.P.S. Have just emailed the V&A Dundee with some feedback on the Kimono exhibition, including how it was much better for me accessibility wise than Tartan, and also to thank them for improvements they have made re accessibility in the shop. Which they did after my feedback a year ago.

Erasing a few old devices (some very old) to take to recycling. Got some really weird error messages on my old iPod touch, when I tried to erase it just now. Turned out I needed to resync the built in clock before it would do that ok! Now wiping. Martin is going to take it with my old Kindle to the recycling centre at Baldovie (we are in Angus, but as Monifieth folk are allowed to use this recycling centre on the eastern edge of Dundee, cos ours was closed by Angus Council). I may have another old iPod touch somewhere ... Plus one more currently in use. And a spare, that I bought on the day Apple cancelled them.

I try to run my devices for an extremely long time. I extended the life of my previous Kindle by buying a replacement battery kit, and fitting it myself, with spudger tool and all. But there comes a time when I need to replace these devices. And at least if they can go to recycling some of the vital parts can be recovered and reused.

Very nippy out there, but there's been a very happy astronomer / space scientist out with camera! It was extremely faint for us earlier tonight, but then we got bright lights shooting up, and a marvellous range of red, green and other colours. Extremely visible with the naked eye. Which is always impressive to see, given we're on the edge of a city, and do have light pollution to contend with.

We've just looked through all 77 he ended up with as the final batch! I loaded them all onto Facebook, and four onto Bluesky and Mastodon. But here are just a couple. He saw *so* many buzzards. And yes, that is a very famous lighthouse glimpsed in the distance, beyond Broughty Castle.

He was out with his camera all day, in mid/west Dundee, while our car had its annual service and MOT check.

Forgot to say we had a fab experience with a seagull at lunch yesterday. We were parked in Costas at Ethiebeaton Park above Monifieth. And a huge seagull suddenly landed on the front bonnet of our car, rocking it as it did. It flapped about, staring inside to see if there might be any hope of food. Then flew off again, the car moving again as it did. Sadly neither of us had a camera ready at the right moment. We were awestruck 🙂

Martin's work company are donating £50,000 to save the Mills Observatory. It's a spinoff company from the University of Dundee. A very successful space technology company. That believe passionately in this historic and well-used custom-built public observatory, and its importance to the people of Dundee and surrounding areas.

Another rare photo post here from me today. Martin was in Broughty Ferry while I slept, taking more things to Oxfams charity shop, as well as getting some keys cut, and picking up freshly made Portuguese custard tarts. Anyway trust him, he took his camera. And among lots of nice shots I think this is the best one. Photographed looking through a metal whale bone sculpture looking towards Dundee - Dundee has a long, and difficult history with whaling. You can even see the RNLI Broughty Ferry lifeboat there ("Elizabeth of Glamis") as well as oil rigs temporarily in being serviced and wind turbines being built. The big hill in the background is Dundee Law, which towers over the city.

Making another rare exception re posting Martin's photos here. These are of the aurora borealis, a couple of hours ago, photographed outside our home in Dundee, Scotland.