Kindness of Strangers

Well the exams are all over and I am almost back up in Aberdeen. Politics was not too bad: a question on the comparison of powers of the Prime and First Ministers and the other about the Economists’ Democracy Rating positions. I should have done reasonably well in them.

As I write this I am on the train up to Aberdeen but I will not get internet access until I am home, so the post is artificially late! The doors have just shut and we are leaving Arbroath so it is not long to go!

After getting my two ridiculously over-filled holdalls onto the street (in addition to my overfilled back-pack) I was beginning to regret being 100% convinced that I needed EVERYTHING in them! A very kind woman saw my predicament and helpfully offered to take one of the holdalls along to the station a few minutes away. She was an absolute life saver, honestly. I think I would have probably missed my train that was meant to be 30 minutes later but for her but thanks to her taking the other one I actually got there just before the earlier train, giving me more time in Queen Street to get my lunch and find a trolley to put the bags on. In the unlikely event that this said woman is reading this blog, thank you very much indeed, and enjoy your trip to Australia. Do not over-pack like I did!

I am sitting here with my hamsters snuggling up in their small travel case. It is nearly one and a half years since I got my two Roborovskis 8-bit and Byte. They are still going strong, with Byte being a wee bit fatter than 8-bit (I do not know why, they get the same amount of food!) Hopefully they can have a good Christmas and live for a good while longer. They are timid creatures compared with Syrian hamsters but I love them all the same. Word to the wise though is that if a water bottle falls out of its holder they WILL escape through that tiny hole and make their way to the bathroom and hide with their emergency food supply behind the bag of Andrex loo rolls!

I have been informed by someone with a reliable anonymous source that as well as it SNOWING in London (though not staying when it lands, admittedly) it is raining in Aberdeen. This is most disconcerting as it was sunny when I left Glasgow and there have been only sporadic splutters of rain on the way up thus far. It is absolutely typical of Aberdeen though, and it would be when I return. Far from a white Christmas this year, we are destined to get a wet one, and instead of snowball fights, we will be swimming in the streets!

The bank balance has taken a minor hammering in the last couple of weeks while after a period of being quite frugal. Not too bad though, and I am going to see if the newspaper shop at Midstocket has got some work I can do over the holidays. Before I started Uni I had a spell as a paper boy, with a Monday to Saturday morning round and a couple of Sunday morning rounds, which brought in £35 a week. Such moneys would definitely come in handy over the festive period!

That is us nearly arrived in Montrose! We are slowing down as I type... I should probably give dad a buzz when I get to Stonehaven. He is not replied to my texts saying that I was leaving Glasgow and that I had got to Dundee, but he is probably not got his mobile on him... honestly he actually does not get the whole point of a mobile phone! Minor rage.

I am getting all excited for Christmas now. What I am really looking forward to getting a few good meals down me after 3 consecutive days of using baked beans and toast as it was all that was left in the house. Can’t wait to see everybody again, too. Dad said something about us doing a fun musical piece for the Carol and Mince Pies event on Sunday, which should be fun. He also said something about us going to the Boys Brigade’s ten-pin bowling this evening, seeing Bill and Edith down in Laurencekirk tomorrow and then going to Dundee to see a performance of A Christmas Carol, which sounds like it might be enjoyable.

That is really about it. We’re about to arrive at Laurencekirk, and I am reluctant to kill the battery on my laptop, so since there is plenty time to let you know about future events in the coming days, this is where the day’s update ends.

Cheers
Graeme