Alberto's Hutte

31st January 2018 (Wednesday) ...... Travelling home;   next update from Ivy. 21.30      Oh my word ....  Bonnie Scotland is cauld!     The journey  from Sunny Sussex back to Fife was  slightly frustrating.    Janice took us (‘JB’ me) down to Uckfield station in time to catch an earlier train than we had intended.     Even so by the time Aberdeen train - "Lincolnshire Echo",  Kings Cross Station London. we left Crowborough, it was ‘standing room only’.     Crowborough was only the third of ten stops, not including Uckfield (start station) and London Bridge (where this service terminates);  so you can guess how tightly packed the train was by the time we reached the penultimate stop East Croydon.      Actually more people left the train here (East Croydon) than got on it.     From London Bridge, we had to travel, by Underground  (Northern Line), to Kings X .    We arrived at Northern Line gates to find a huge crowd of people being slowly filtered through the gates

30th January 2018 (Tuesday) ..... 09.30   We have a ‘bright and sunny’ Sussex this morning, after an early morning frost;   a lovely start to the day.    Already 'JB' at Pevensey Castle. the heavy rime is lifting with the warmth of the sun.    There are little balls of cotton wool clouds beginning to bumble over from the Northwest....a bonnie Spring like morning. In a wee while I shall go downtown to have a cuppa, and say cheerio to Lee-Ann and the ‘Troops’ at ‘The Centre’:   tomorrow at this time ‘JB’ and I will be at Kings X, waiting for the 10.00 Aberdeen train.   It, the aforementioned train, is scheduled to arrive in Kirkcaldy at 15.04. 22.00     John and I went to Pevensey and Beachy Head this afternoon;  it’s the first time we’ve been able to get to Beachy Head on a decent day.    The first time we went we drove into low cloud.... and nigh on zero visibility.   Today I was able to get a good batch of both Pevensey Castle and Beachy Head photos.    This has mad

29th January 2018 (Monday) .... 13.30    It’s been overcast all morning, but warm (12c).    I’ve been downtown, done a wee bit shopping and had a cuppa.    I thought I’d set myself up for ‘the hill’, but oh my word .... that hill, Uckfield High Street, was hard work today.   The weather forecast is not good for the afternoon;   a band of rain is forecast to arrive in 77 minutes. 21.00    The rain arrived five minutes early;  they certainly do accurate, daily weather forecasts, down here.    I assume that there will be a lot of automatic weather stations dotted around the Southeast.    The sky has cleared, and we have the chance of frost in the morning. My packing is near enough finished;   with two boxes to be posted tomorrow.    They should arrive at Ivy, possibly on Friday, but more likely Monday.     All that remains is the suitcase and rucksack..... and... they should be a manageable weight.

28th January 2018 (Sunday) ...12.00     we have an overcast and still ... a sort of nondescript kind of day:   a good day for unwinding.     We’re going to the Julie and Michael. Blackboy’s in a few minutes, so I’d best go and get myself ready for action. 21.00    Jings, the Blackboy’s Inn is always busy, and I can understand why:  the food is excellent, and the folk friendly.    We had a ‘Bar Lunch’ today, ... I had roast chicken, followed by ice cream....the ‘Troops’ had something different;   Barrie and Michael had sirloin, and Janice a beef casserole.   Good food and loads of it. Back at “No1” I packed my two boxes, and most of the suitcase, so I am more or less ready to travel.    I also watched parts of an old fantasy film.... ‘Journey to the Centre of the Earth’:  I say ‘parts of’, because I kept falling asleep.   Obviously, not a very Janice and Jackie. interesting film. This has been a lazy day so I’ll have to wander downtown tomorrow for some exercise,

27th January 2018 (Saturday) .... 16.00   We had sunshine first thing this morning, but the weather has deteriorated, and we now have rain;  not a day for doing Michael, and Mario the Piper. things outside.     In fact not a day for me doing much inside either ..... I’ve spent most of the day sleeping.      Growing old requires much sleep I’m finding out.    It’s ‘The Blackboy’s’ Burns Supper tonight, and I’m wondering if I should give it a miss:  that said it’s the Burn’s Supper that I have been looking forward too.   This will need some serious thought.  I woke up very suddenly after my siesta this lunch time;   right in the middle of a dream about Craw’s Nest days.    Everybody was there, and  the‘party’ was breaking up.    I decided to give Elizabeth (my boss) a hug, but first I thought I’d better brush my hair:  after said brushing, I looked round to find that everyone had gone!    That's the price of vanity!     Where do those dreams come from? John, Jackie and Ja

26th January 2018 (Friday) .... 10.30   We have a nice morning, though it has turned cloudier in the past hour.     I don’t have a ‘plan’ so far today, but I might go for a daunder, probably downtown, later.    I’m looking forward going to “The Forester’s” for dinner tonight;   good food and a nice blether is always relaxing.   I The Forester's, Framfield. know I’m not travelling until Wednesday, but I start to get ‘uptight’ ..... probably as soon as I know when I’m travelling.    Must ‘go’ .... “slight flap on” .... I need a cuppa. 23.30     Janice, Janette, Michael have just got back from the Forester’s where we had partaken of Dinner.    The girls had normal food;  Michael and I had Cock-a-Leekie soup, then Haggis with trimmings.    One of the trimmings was gravy:  gravy with a distinctive flavour.   I don’t know the recipe for this gravy, but I would keep it out of North Korean hands;   the moon was well within reach if this was used as rocket fuel.   We finished off w

25th January 2018 (Thursday) .... the 259th Anniversary of the birth of Scotland’s Robert Burns. She asked why wedding rings are made of gold, I ventured thus to instruct her. Love and lightning are the same, On earth they glance, from heaven they came, Love is the soul’s electric flame;   and gold it’s best conductor. 10.30     It’s ‘Sunny Sussex’ this morning, ... oh ... there are a few clouds bumbling over from the West, but nothing to bother about.    I’ll go downtown for a morning walk and 'His' (the grey squirrel) tree. a cuppa .... I’m going to have chocolate with all the trimmings this morning... and a toasted T-cake. The local squirrel (grey) has just seen off an interloper that ventured onto his patch.     There’s a big tree in the middle of a bit of grass space;  that’s his tree, and the grass space around it is ‘his’.     Anyway, all in calm again ... the intruder is a fast runner! 20.00     This has been a ‘spring like’ day, and I did enj

24th January 2018 (Wednesday) .... 11.00   Now this is what I call a weather forecast .... Uckfield Weather ; “rain starting in 9 minutes”.    And it was near There's something wrong with this! enough spot on... light rain began to strike the window 7 minutes later!     It’s now raining (properly) ... and windy, as per forecast .... but not cold, the temperature is 12c, and that is with a brisk (wet) wind. I went downtown early to avoid the rain;  did the ‘hole in the wall’ (the machine I used is being removed in April), bought toothpaste, and had a cuppa in ’The Centre’, with Ruth.    I didn’t stop long because I knew the weather forecast was not ‘good’.    The weather has been a bit ‘iffy’ this holiday;  a lot of wet days. 19.00    The rain cleared away and I was able to wander up to the local corner shop to buy the ingredients needed to make cranachan .... raspberries, double cream, oatmeal and honey....  the other important ingredient we had loads of;  three tablesp

23rd  January 2018 (Tuesday) .... 11.00     John and I picked the right day to go to Winchelsea;  yesterday was ‘sunny and dry’, today we have ‘foggy and The back of some Eastbourne beach huts.  It was raining. damp’ .... not a day for going out anywhere.    It isn’t cold .... just bleak looking.   I have plenty to keep me going from yesterday’s trip;  with much I want to look up:  I love history.    Winchelsea is only a small place, but a classic example of English history, and why the town is where it is... and ...with the town  being small,  it is easy to see the “whole picture”.... or what remains of the whole picture. 22.00     ‘JB’ was going down to Eastbourne in the afternoon so I went along for the ‘run’ .... he was only going to ASDA’s for some shopping, but, with the weather being grey and miserable I thought I’d take the chance of grabbing  a few ‘wet look’ photos from the car.    Not that I need more of those, but the hope was, that the weather might be brighter on

22nd January 2018 (Monday) .... 10.30    “Sunny Sussex” it is this morning, though there are clouds are over the South Downs..... but they are Winchelsea town sign. disappearing slowly towards the southeast.     It’s going to be a lovely day.... ‘sunny and warm’, could be a good day for doing things later.   I appear to be i/c at the moment .... so I’m going to have a cuppa.     23.55   I have, over the years found that Sussex is full of amazing surprises, and Winchelsea... pronounced Win – Chelsea ... is definitely one of them.    Today ‘JB’ and I visited Winchelsea;  not the biggest of places ....oh, while I remember it’s a town, not a village .... but huge in history. The Winchelsea that we visited today is in fact the second town of the name;  the first having been lost to the sea in 1287.   Which is why today’s Winchelsea is perched on top of a hill.   Winchelsea was such an important seaport that, when the first Winchelsea was lost, King Edward the First lost no time

21st January 2018 (Sunday) .... Hmmmmm ... we have “bleak Sussex” this morning;   foggy and wetness ....  a grand morning for staying ‘in’, drinking tea!    I’m looking forward to going to Geoff and Pauline’s for Sunday lunch;  this is an absolutely perfect day for nice food and blethering.    The weather is set to start improving later on today, with warm air coming in from the Atlantic;   tomorrow we could have ‘sunny spells’.    ‘JB’ is off tomorrow and Tuesday, so we might be able to Geoff, Pauline and 'The Boy'. go for a run in the car, and have lunch somewhere. 20.00     Geoff and Pauline live in Horam, a village 12 miles east of Uckfield. Unfortunately with the weather being as it was I didn’t see much of the village, but it is on the edge of Ashdown Forest, and I imagine it would be a bonnie place to wander round.  Pauline, who is an excellent cook, had prepared a lamb roast for lunch, and it was ‘out of this world’.     This was followed by a scrumptious trif

20th January 2018 (Saturday) ....dearie me .... we have one dreich morning in Sussex, and the whole of the South of England for that matter.... not a Fairwarp village pub .... lunchtime. stimulating start to Saturday.    The weather didn’t have much to cheer us up either;  this weather is to be with us for most of the day.     He did impress me in another way though.    “Wee Sconie”, a weather watcher, had sent in picture of Schiehallion, and the weather man ‘Googled’ the name and found out Schiehallion’s place in scientific history:   which most Scots will know.    Schiehallion was selected by Charles Mason (1728 – 1786), an English astronomer, to calculate the mass of the Earth.    The experiment was carried out in 1774 by the Astronomer Royal, Nevil Maskelyne (1732 – 1811), assisted by the mathematician Charles Hutton (1737 – 1832).    Away from the experiment, Schiehallion a beautiful, and  popular, Munro (over 3000 feet);   with easy access, and a relaxing hill walk to the t

19th January 2018 (Friday) .... 11.00     Sussex had a fairly hard frost first thing this morning  ....  everything was covered in a heavy rime;   and car Eastbourne. windscreens had to be scraped.   Since then the sun has risen into a clear blue sky, and the rime has vanished, leaving us with a beautiful, warm, sunny day.    There’s not much wind, so very little wind chill;  I’ll go for a walk after this update. 20.30     The ‘boy’ is contented tonight;   though I haven’t done very much.    I did go for a  walk downtown, and bought a W H Smith ‘POSTbox’, in which I’ll send some stuff home .... I’m trying to lighten the case!    Mind you, the box I bought looked big enough in size roond the edges, but I’ve since found out that it’s not very deep, so won’t contribute that much to making the case lighter.   I’ll check their website to see what sizes are available. Late evening sun on Crail. It was lovely walking today, but there was a sharpness in the air.  The cold spell

18th January 2017 (Thursday) .... 15.00    I was ‘plan-less’ when I tumbled out of bed this morning at 08.00, but Janice, who is excellent at coming up Janice ... in The Pantry Cafe, Newick. with ‘plans’,  said “there’s a new Waitrose Supermarket in Haywards Heath, and I fancy having a look around it, do you want to come with me!”    I thought about it, for a nano second, and said “Yes”.   I had thought about doing the ironing.... but hey ho .... that could wait! One breakfast,...  and 25 minutes later, we set orf for Haywards Heath, on a gorgeous Sussex morning.    It had been windy during the night, but the wind had moderated, and it was, by now, a pleasant Spring like morning. Supermarkets down here in the south are big, but this one, being new and big, is imposing, and roomy,....  with escalator access from the car park to the main Mmmm.... where do I begin? entrance.      We had a good ‘browse’, and bought haggis for our Burns Supper at “No 1”, plus a few other bi

17th January 2018 (Wednesday) .... 09.30     The washing machine is chugging away in the kitchen;   it’s a beautiful drying day and I have a washing going Elie Estate .... photo by Stewart, who had to abandon tree planting! through.    This is ‘sunny Sussex’ at it’s best;   though it is cold in the brisk wind.    My plan is to do the washing, then bake a double batch o’ scones, before going downtown to the Post Office.   I’ll leave the walking until after lunch.    Must ‘go’.... ‘slight flap on’ .... I’m a busy boy this bonnie morning! 14.00    I’ve had a brilliant morning!    I did the washing, (which is nigh on dry so  will get ironed later), baked a double batch of scones, then sat outside on the swing seat had a cuppa .... and scone.    Although it’s breezy, and in fact quite cold when exposed to the wind, it was warm in the lee of the house.     My next cuppa I had sitting in the Love Shack at the bottom of the garden, and fell asleep watching the washing dry:   must reme

16th January 2018 (Tuesday) .... 11.00    Lovely morning in Sussex;   sunny with a brisk wind.   The brisk wind is taking a couple of degrees off the temperature, so it is cool.   Actually, I’m feeling more like myself today .... the first time One of my favourite pictures of the Lady's Tower., Elie. I have felt really good for a couple  of weeks;  however I’m not going to overdo things .... but I will bumble downtown to buy a few postcards, and have a  cuppa,...  and a toasted T- cake.  16.30     Today I met “Addison” .... and she has stolen my heart.... totally!   I was having the above mentioned tea and tea cake, in ‘The Centre’, after a wee shopping session:   sitting at the next door table was Addison, with her Mum (oops .... I forgot to mention that Addison is seven months old) and her Auntie.     She, Addison, was just so cute, smiling as only seven month old babies do.   According to ‘Mum’, she is a bundle of mischievous energy .... already crawling, all over the p