Tell you a secret: I slept in today. We are having overseas visitors at the moment. I love showing off Glasgow to friends and family - we live in such a beautiful area and there are many places to see and explore. However, I am still working full-time on top of playing tourist guide, so I am feeling both scattered a tired.
Sleeping in today was much needed. Instead of my usual Wednesday routine, I have just done a few loads of laundry, done some work in front of the computer and the rest of today will be spent working up swatches. Today is a slow day and all the better for it.
One of our visitors is a keen knitter who had long wanted to see a working woollen mill. So, on Sunday we took them to New Lanark which is a nearby UNESCO Heritage Site: a restored cotton mill and a social history gem. With yarn.
New Lanark was bathed in sunshine - which was a first for me - and they also hosted a Victorian Fair. The Fair played host to all the usual suspects: a school band with a mean fiddler, an ice cream vendor, a Punch & Judy booth, a stall selling homebaked goods, a young girl playing an Irish Harp, face-painting and so forth. Dave indulged in some falconry and I may have bought some yarn..
We saw a few interesting vehicles - such as this steam automobile/locomotive (I am not quite sure how to categorise this thing!)..
.. and the first Penny-farthing I have ever seen in the wild. Strangely enough, I saw my second-ever Penny-farthing the very next day rushing up the hill two streets down from my home. Go figure.
We did a bit of hiking too - along the Falls of Clyde. For some reason we've never made it as far as the Corra Linn (linn is Scots for waterfalls) although it is just a 20 minute walk from the New Lanark village. There was a bit of climbing involved, though, and my calves were killing me the next day. Corra Linnwas not in full flow - but it is still an impressive sight. The water falls some 90 feet and the waterfall is surrounded by steep cliffs and beautiful woodlands. Next time I'll wear better footwear and we'll bring a packed lunch.
Yarn, eh? I was going to be a good girl but I found a 4000 yrds cone of fingering weight yarn in a gorgeous olive green (cue shocked gasps from the gallery) for just £10. How could I resist?
Maybe if I had known that I'd be subjected to very rare Hunters of Brora yarn at my knitting group just a few days later.. but that is a story for another day..