Lovely morning ....

5th August 2025 (Tuesday)    08.45 .... We have a 'bright and breezy' morning (not as breezy

as it was yesterday) a perfect morning for pottering about.   Although there's an touch of autumn in the early morning air it should be warm in the afternoon.... albeit with a cooling breeze.   My main objective today is to make an overdue appointment to have my hair cut! 

17.00  I feel much better now that I've had a haircut;  in fact I feel almost playful.   There was at queue at Barnett's the Baker, so, though I took a photo of Lorraine's (the Hairdresser) I didn't use it because of the queue.   I'll get one when the villages are quiet.

Anyway I had my haircut then came home by way of Balbuthie and Kinneuchar.   Balbuthie Farm 'making hay while the sun shines' so I stopped and got a batch of action photies.   Further on I came across a field of cattle with calves, so stopped and got a batch of 'pastoral' photos.

Back at Ivy I sorted out the photographs then had a light lunch.  I'm having sausages and mash for denner hence the light lunch.  

20.00    Apart from getting my hair cut I've had a busy sort of day doing things around Ivy.... including trying to do a bit of gardening.   Oh... the apples must have had a good hold on the tree because, as far as I can see, it looks like only a dozen or so have fallen.  Having said that apples are firmly attached to the tree until it's time to fall!   I'll get a few Eve's puddings this year after all.

23.00    Watching the tractor  working the hay made me think back to watching my Dad and his workmates doing the same job ....with Clydesdale.  Farms employed a big number of workers in the 'good old days':  and the same fields are done in  a fraction of the time by two men with modern tractors and machinery.   The Cottar house's of yesteryear have been converted for storage, sold off, or modernised and turned into holiday lets (Air B n B).    Going from horse to tractor was what lead to the demise of what were called 'ferm touns' (farm towns) in the North East Scotland.    It the old days farms were small communities of workers and their families... hence the 'ferm toun'.    

The "East Toun (o' Tarland)" was where my Dad was working when he married my mother (1937) and
moved to Balbegno Castle Home Farm.   The "East Toun" has the same name only it's spelt "East Town" now.  When I took my Dad up there (in the 1970's) the sign at the bottom of the farm road was spelt "East Toun".   In those days most Aberdeenshire folk spoke 'Doric'.   With a changing population,  and modern teaching, Doric speaking  is rare among the young folk now.    Sadly, young folk of today are more likely to speak (and sing) with a mid Atlantic accent.  


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