August already!

Yesterday it rained - boy did it rain! I have rarely seen such a relentless and determined downpour. Water was flowing over the slates of the building opposite so fast that the guttering just could not cope, and there was a solid waterfall pouring down onto the pavement below. And, if the rain was so heavy on the roof opposite, it must be just as heavy on the loch facing roof of the gallery, and the corresponding flow of water must be putting the corresponding guttering to the test there also - and where would the excess rain go? You got it - straight down the wall, down the cellar door and down the two steps into the cellar ... I heard it before I saw it, there was the pleasant sound of a small stream rushing along an uneven surface. And there was indeed a stream rushing along, two in fact, flowing around the absorbent materials I had laid as a barrier to just this sort of event. The quantity of water had overtaken my ministrations and was spreading over the floor at a rapid rate.

Have I ever expounded the virtues of old telephone directories as stackable and absorbent flood defences? Much better than sandbags, I find, just as long as you remember to rip the covers off beforehand.

What a mess - but slight damage as I was able to move most things quickly enough. Just as well I had not joined Elisabet in Sweden, where plans for her Mother's 90th birthday celebrations are coming on apace (they need to - the birthday is on Wednesday).

When not soaking wet, this has been an interesting week; not insignificant in all of its happenings was the discovery of an unexpected visitor to The Line website. It would be very easy to forget oneself when writing like this, and to lay bare that which was best kept silent. There is a temptation to use a blog as a means of getting something out of the system, or to try out an arguement or theory - and that is all perfectly good and constructive as long as the 'delete' button is functioning and one remembers to hit it before signing out.

Yes, I am still trying to work out what, exactly, a blog is for.

In acknowledgement of all of this, I will just say - it was good to see you again, and I am pleased you liked the site. And no, I do not propose using the blog to pass coded messages, now or ever!