By the way, don't try sending me messages on Bluesky. Ironically I am too old to faff around with their age vetification thing, so I can't see messages here. Email me? Or comment on a post? Or try Mastadon - I think that still works

Rewatching some old historical dramas, and being boggled by how much the modern narrative on Henry VIII focuses on his sex life as his sole motivation. Whereas "A man for all seasons says Wolsey fell primarily because he was trying to become pope ( which he was)

My son is 30. How did that happen? #IHaveABusPass

Slightly sad to be taking down the decorations. Holidays seem to have flown by.

Bliadhna Mhath Ùr! Happy New Year. We had a few people round for drinks, then went out to see the fireworks. There were some new ones that had looked like creepy hands, which was weird and cool. Two of the 4 kids managed to stay awake for them.

I'm adding crisps to my list of things not to put in orders of shopping for delivery. Three multipacks put at the bottom of the tray under tins and bottles... sigh... I long ago gave up on ordering any fresh produce because they kept sending short dated stuff.

Hopefully nobody wants to send me messages through Bluesky? It's currently demanding age verification, which sounds like a trick to get hold of ID. I can be reached on Discord, Whatsapp, text and email.

Taking the kids to IKEA so that R can tidy the flat. Oldest demolished a portion of meatballs, and now they're playing with the toy kitchen. I have coffee

Lisbon is like the 1970s : really salty food and the waiter argued with me when I tried to order a beer.

I still buy my kids (and their partners) advent calendars. Grandchild (aged 4) : "Where's mine?" Me: "Your Mum and Dad buy yours." Grandchild: "Cool"... then negotiates with parents for going to the shops this weekend to choose one. Husband: "Where's mine?" Me: "Ask your Mum."

You're drunk Bus Stop. Go home... :-)

Can we extend the firework ban to include not selling eggs to teenagers in October? ... have just got up early on a Sunday morning to clean eggs off the windows of a disabled person's flat.

I have a terrible pain in all the diodes down my left hand side. ... pulled the muscles by coughing.

Taking down my hood in the rain to show the nervous woman ahead of me on the path that I'm not a bloke... Sigh. I also slowed my pace to create a bit of distance when I realised she was looking back nervously and speeding up herself

The Commissioner for human rights for the Council of Europe warns that Britain’s treatment of trans people could breach the ECHR

Signs that I may be a Goth : Xmas shopping in the Halloween section.

Okay, so in the unlikely event that I was ever hanging up a union flag, I would have no idea which was supposed to be the top, but the Lion Rampant really ought to be obvious

I have applied for my bus pass. With the usual bad language caused by stupid online systems that don't really work with a desktop computer. Hopefully that's sorted out and I never have to reapply

Guess where we are?

The chip shops here close at 9pm on Friday. #NoLongerInACity

Fireworks in daylight, apparently

Ready for the demo at noon

I'm a poster girl...

This weekend I am babysitting at a LARP event. Having finished babysitting the grandkids, I am now babysitting the fire while everyone else is off fighting

Older grandchild (4) just wrote their name for the first time in a Fathers' Day card for Grandpa

Bus took a wrong turn... oops. It then did a 3 point turn on Lothian Road...

Exhibition at Portrait Gallery on James VI had quite a few accessories on display. And it wasn't even us who set the alarm off by trying to get close enough to see obscure details on portraits.

First Aid training today. Very useful, but I definitely need a drink. Fortunately AJ and Feorag are prepared to help out.

Stressful morning going to politely ask for a TERF sticker that a friend had spotted to be removed from a local pub. I was a bag of nerves but barman was actually fine about it when I asked. Still a bit adrenaline jittery, but massively relieved it was so easy in the end

Art shop at Tollcross

There are compensations for early mornings.

Enjoying the urban greenery

So apparently our police force don't know that chalk is very easy to brush or wash off surfaces...

We'll be at the demo for about the first half hour. Family stuff booked for 2pm. I'll bring trans ribbons to hand out.

I have had 500 postcards printed to send to various politicians and organisations who are being, or might become idiot transphobes. Anyone willing to send any do let me know and I will give you some. Collect from Bruntsfield or I can drop off in central locations.

Oh this is awesome!! :-D

Allan is absolutely right. This should be unacceptable in a free society. Freedom of assembly and freedom of protest are both integral to democracy.

Feast cooked and eaten pretty much on schedule with no last minute crises in the kitchen. We were tidied up and out by 11.30.

This Sunday Eleanor and I are doing a William McGonagall memorial walk for the 200th anniversary of his birth. All ticket money will go to LGBT Youth www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/william-mc...

Of all the lives taken by US gun laws, I really didn't expect my 23 year old great neice to be one. Accidental discharge of a firearm on holiday. RIP little Lucy.

If you donate to Edinburgh Women's Aid you may want to redirect your donations to organisations who will help all women instead.

Early mornings for filming do have their compensation.

So why does HMRC (UK tax office) employ people who can't handle decimal points? This is the second time I have had to appeal a tax demand on the basis that they think I earned ten times what I actually did.

Wondering what the current situation with increasing boycotts of bourbon will mean for whisky production. ... hopefully lots of unusual cask finishes in the next few years

Doing various health and safety courses at work. #HealthAndSafetyChampion Did you know you should hoover your smoke detector twice a year?

Early signs of my Goth tendencies included my favorite verse of We Three Kings when I was 7 being the one about myrrh.

Today I am painting the ceiling. And moving dustsheets and ladders as I go.

I was theoretically aware that some padron peppers (a common tapas) can be like chilli rather than bell pepper. Today was my first actual encounter with the experience... obviously after I had taken a large bite without due care and attention... :-)

Is there a filter on here that will let me just see friends own posts, not the stuff people re-share? "Following" doesn't seem to work.

Drinking sherry in Madrid. Previously I have mainly encountered it in the context of whisky casks, but it turns out the stuff in the cask before the whisky goes in is also very nice. :-)