Spring promised in the garden today.

Back in beautiful Embra after meeting my boy for a meal and a cheeky old fashioned in Champagne Central in GlasVegas

UK Special Constables! If you’re working have a safe shift, and all of you a happy and fulfilling New Year. Here’s a challenge for the New Year, nominate a colleague for an award! We were sadly thin on the ground in the new years honours, let’s change that by getting nominating! t.co/dawt6TuSkN

So enjoying #DuvetKnowItsChristmas and such a worthy cause. Stirring many good memories of Christmases away from home, and of accommodating unfeasibly large numbers of nieces and nephews in times past! Thanks so much @rhodri.biz

I am so looking forward to a large Negroni when I get in, and while enjoying it also indulging in my guilty pleasure, the Strictly final. Going to be an epic combo.

Busy first aid shift with St Andrews at Hibs / Ross County today. Very sad life story for one of them, after our initial care we handed over to SAS, due to the serious nature of the incident, who transported to the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary for tests and observation.

Great mysteries of our time. The effort spent to bag dog poo to then leave it behind. Why?

I heard Pat McFadden on @BBCr4today this morning respond to tne police chiefs who are complaining about their funding. #TestAndLearn is at the heart of new tech IT, and the approach that has delivered the astonishing success of SpaceX when applied to engineering. www.gov.uk/government/n...

The Sycamore Gap trial starts on Monday 9th December at Newcastle Crown Court. There’s still an enormous amount of anger, sadness and bewilderment about this crime. Hopefully the trail will shed light on what actually happened…

Is 1630 on a Sunday an acceptable time to have a cocktail?

Well I can recommend Aldi deep filled mince pies this year. If I could find them on here I’d tag them 😁 It’s beginning to taste a lot like Christmas over here!!

My labour of love - lots more to come. Working on a podcast series to support it with deep dives on themes and incidents inquestsandinquiries.com

Probably little chance that we’ll get to it today given the assisted dying debate, but good to see my Association of Special Constabulary Officers colleagues championing the employment rights of specials. We will get there.

Why is it that planned big changes in life’s routine, moving house, changing job, new hobbies, new family members, that sort of thing, things that you want to do properly without distractions, always seem to trigger the washing machine going on the blink.

A bit of an emotionally challenging day today. Feeling blessed to have so many supportive people in my close circle and in my wider friendship circle too.

Another long serving special in BTP tells me he’s resigned. The new regime removing specials from senior roles has diminished the organisation and the volunteering experience. Ma’am D’Orsi has always had a difficult relationship with specials. She has diminished BTP as a result.

Hey Bluesky, welcome to the winter joy that is the Scottish Gritter Tracker! www.traffic.gov.scot/gritter-trac...

Me living in Scotland and everyone down south has snow.

Certainly have their place and invaluable…but as you say through your own experiences they aren’t always valued! The drop off from 15k down to 6k should tell you there’s problems…I just don’t know how the 3k target in this plan will be achieved with things going in reverse when it comes to SC’s 🤷🏻

Hunkered down for a quiet night in before early start for a 12 hr day shift in my rural beat tomorrow.

I have a feeling this weekend’s rural shifts will be interesting!

I'm totally OK with being called woke. It just means that I'm showing off my green flags. Happy to follow others with green flags. #woke

Oooh! Another mention of Special Constables by the policing minister! Dare I hope these continued mentions will translate into a grown up debate and some positive action regarding special? www.theyworkforyou.com/debates/?id=...

Elon Musk’s generative AI chatbot, Grok, turns on him, labelling him “one of the most significant spreaders of misinformation on X”.

Doing a bit of a review of my volunteering commitments. Exciting times in two organisations I volunteer with, interesting future plans in both, but one I’ve loved for 6 years now looks like it ultimately has poor prospects. Going to have to think hard about what I want and what’s on offer.

Some much needed mindfulness today. It’s been a busy week and it’s only Tuesday!

Yep

Edinburgh looks just amazing tonight under the full moon

I did a thing.

I saw some new data today, a simple little chart that has a sad and sobering message. Something close to my and many other folks’ heart is withering away. There is huge untapped potential that is vanishing, unrealised.

I miss the Goose Fair, very many years since I last went.

Bat watching. Just two his year, we had four pups and the parents this time last year. Tough for wildlife just now I think. Sadly lost another blackbird to a sparrowhawk yesterday, two magpies were giving it a good mobbing at the time but it kept hold and made off.

@beakerrick.bsky.social hey!

Having moved over from The Other Place I must say this a like a fresh clean start. Enjoying browsing around.

Ripe Comice pear and Colston Bassett Stilton cheese. Probably the best taste combo in the world!