Tuesday 16 April 2013

INDY: IN THE DRIVING SEAT

Alastair took this photo of Indy recently.  He is now 21 months old.  His last eye examination for any signs of further cancer had encouraging results: nothing was found.  The doctors are now going to space out the examinations to every 2 months instead of every month.  Good news!


So here we have our budding Alpha male in the driving seat!... and a nod to Grandpa Dave whose Facebook quip I borrowed!



Monday 15 April 2013

CLYDE CRUISING CLUB 'TIDELINES' - THE NEW TECHNOLOGY


The yachting organisation for whom I produce a 12 page newsletter entitled Tidelines is called the Clyde Cruising Club and is based in the west of Scotland. It is not a conventional yacht club with a clubhouse but rather it is a big organisation that run a variety of big and not-so-big events, are involved with  young dinghy sailors as well as handicapped sailors,  and lastly produce publications for yachtsmen.

Here is a screen shot of the front page of the April issue. (It comes out 3 times a year.)


The on-line version is below.  It opens in a third party website, i.e. a website for magzines. A grey box should appear with the field EXPAND in the centre.  Click on that to read the 12 pages.

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The Clyde Cruising Club home page is here and this publication appears under the heading INFORMATION. It can be reached directly by clicking  here.   

Yes, a hard copy is still available for folk to read but this the web version.

Does this work? Will it be used? Probably by the younger generation only ... which is fine ... and it is a start!

Wednesday 10 April 2013

JULIETTE GRECO: JE SUIS COMME JE SUIS

A most excellent programme on BBC Radio 4 is this one on a French "chanteuse".  This lady, born in 1927 and still alive, has a dusky, 2 am singing voice  and lived in Paris among the writers, artists and musicians in St Germain des PrĂ©s in the days when it was rich with intellectual and creative activity.


The radio programme is on iPlayer here: click on this link


 The BBC blurb states that

"Juliette Greco emerged in post-war Parisian society as an embodiment of the bohemian ideas and ideals that gripped the Left Bank.

A shy girl from the provinces, she had been part of the Resistance, before pursuing a career as singer and actress. Jean-Paul Sartre described her voice as containing "a million poems". Miles Davis famously fell for her, but wouldn't marry her, saying he "loved her too much to make her unhappy"!"


The programme was presented by a music journalist, Laura Barton who, as the blurb states:

"has always been drawn to what Greco represents - that voice, her black-clad kohl-eyed image - and presents a sequence of sketches, impressions, portraits of the octogenarian singer."

The contributions are from Ginette Vincendeau, Philip Sweeney, Pascal Grierson (presenter of French Radio based in London) and others. 

It was produced by Alan Hall. and is a Falling Tree production for BBC Radio 4.

The discussion was not just about this woman and her singing but also about the nature of French chanson style. Excellent contributions and observations.  Even if there were no clips of Greco's voice the programme was worth it for that on its own!

THE WORDS TRANSLATED

JE SUIS COMME JE SUIS

I am as I am.
It's the way I am made.
When I want to laugh
I laugh right out loud.
I love him who loves me
And it isn't my fault.
If it isn't always the same him
That I love every time
I am as I am.
What more do you want?
What do you want of me?

I am made to please
And I can't change a thing.
My heels are too high.
My waist too arched.
My breasts much too hard.
And my eyes too dark
And then what is more
What can that be to you?

I am as I am.
I please who I please.
What can that be to you?
What has happened to me?
Yes I've loved someone.
Yes someone has loved me
Like children love each other.
Just know how to love
Love to love.
Why ask me questions?
I am there to please you
And I can't change a thing.


Vienna, 2009 [Wikipedia]

Tuesday 9 April 2013

INDY UPDATE

Good news this week: Indy went for his regular checkup today with his eye doctor and got the all clear. That's 6 months cancer free! 

Checkups will now be every two months instead of every month now.

For the full story of our wee grandson in Vancouver click on the Two Bright Eyes baby photo on the right-hand side bar. 



This is Alastair and Indy recently.  Indy will be 2 years old in August. 

As one of the comments posted on Alastair's Facebook page stated: "Who says men can't multi-task?" 


Tuesday 2 April 2013

INVERNESS VISIT


We've been away in the North-east of Scotland gathering material for the Clyde Cruising Club's Sailing Directions for this area.

To that end we have been taking photos of the harbours and marinas in order to update the information in this book for yachtsmen sailing through these waters.


The weather was just wonderful the whole time we were there. This is the Moray Firth where yachts that have, perhaps, crossed the North Sea from Norway, will come into the entrance to the Caledonian Canal.  Indeed there was one yacht there who had come from Denmark and was heading through the canal to the west coast.


Meanwhile while driving from place to place I stopped to visit anything that caught my eye.  Here is doorway of the Parish Church at Avoch.


In the evening it was back to base with Louise and Andrew. Louise's garden was showing signs of early spring colour.


Early morning in Helmsdale.  The sun is shining on the North Sea.