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Seriously...me and electrical equipment...we dinnae get on at a`. I break things just by looking at them! Just in the past couple o` weeks, we`ve had tae replace the washing machine door...the hinge broke...and the kettle...it died wi` a melodramatic gasp that could hae graced a stage! But noo the oven has also gone, which means we`re having tae use that guid auld standby, the Doric stove, for all the cooking until we get a replacement. Which is fine on bright and breezy days when the wind blows in frae the North...ony other direction though, and we end up wi` dinners that take three times longer than usual tae cook. Mind you though, there is nae denying it, food DOES taste better cooked in the solid fuel stove, far better than ony gas cooker or microwave...I havenae found onything decent that cam` oot o` one o` thae things aside frae reheated chips! Everything else tastes like rubber.

Of course, that could be me cooking....

Life is wyrd. The aulder I get, the more I find the less we need. But folks keep giving me new and shiny gadgets tae use, thinking, I am sure, tae mak` life a wee bitty easier. I appreciate the thocht, surely. But am finding life becomes easier the simpler I keep it.
When the washing machine broke doon, we`d tae resort to washing the clothes in an auld tub using the Glass Queen, which is an auld washing board, wi` a wooden frame and ribbed glass set intae it on which you rub the clothes til the muck moves oot o` them. Then they got rinsed in copious amounts o` clean water and then put through the hand wringer, a thing which looks like a torture instrument, wi` rubber covered rollers. You put the washing in atween the rollers, turned the handle, and oot your clothes come frae the other side o` it, still fairly wet but no` soaking, and awfy flat. Saves time on ironing sheets! :D
And much as I appreciate the convenience o` me automatic washing machine and would no` willingly go back tae doing withoot one, I always mak sure I keep the Glass Queen and the wringer tae hand...just in case.

Me other half also thinks I`m weird tae. He reckons I`m the only wummin tae no` appreciate the usual pretty, expensive, but useless gifts women usually get given by their menfolks. Not for me, expensive perfume, frilly undies or suchlike...he couldnae believe how excited I got when presented wi` the new hoover, or me new set o` cooking pans, or even, dare I say it..thermals....
Aye, yours truly is a strange one indeed...
it comes frae me grandparents, you see....grandad was in the Navy, and was left wi` a lifetimes appreciation o` practicality born o` living in a confined space on board ships. He passed that onto me, that fondness for practical, pared doon, things.
And granny was frae crofting stock and also had an appreciation o` the practical things in life....she couldnae be doing wi` folks gieing her presents that had nae use, and well meaning folks got short shrift frae her for presenting her wi` such things as bunches o` flooers, or jewellery which she never wore...but gie her a casserole dish, or a new mop and bucket, and watch a grin licht up her face.
So I tak after me grandparents, both.

As time goes by, and more and more electrical things break doon, I`m finding there is usually nae need tae replace them. Oh, I still have me automatic washing machine, but when it goes I`ll no` be buying a new one. Me daughter is treating me to a new cooker, even though I told her fine I can manage wi` the auld stove....and when the hoover goes, I`ll just use the auld carpet sweeper I keep in the cloakroom and the carpet beater for the rugs.
One o` the nicer things aboot being a hermit is the ability tae turn me back on the ootside world and all its continuing pressure to buybuybuy, a` the things the adverts convince ye must be essential tae yer life, at a price of course. And though me hame is unconventional, that disane matter a bit...it`s hame. It`s cosy and comfy and works fine the way it is, withoot the modern trappings that seem tae be becoming essentials for ower too mony folks.
See, noo, when you`re a hermit, ye can pick and choose what fits intae your hame. So I choose tae keep the pc, so I can keep in touch wi` friends that are too far away tae visit. And the tv provides some sma` amusement when the wind`s howling ootside, even if said wind does play hell wi` the ariel and the signal is hit and miss. But that`s aboot it really.
A whiles back, we had some friends come tae stay wi` us for a holiday. I was a bitty shocked when it was apparent, nane o` the kids (teens, all) kenned how tae boil an egg or peel tatties for the dinner! Nane o` them had ever had tae learn how tae wash their ain clothes, by hand or by machine! Och, they are fine bairns a`, and their parents are richtly proud o` them, for their academic achievements. But I mind thinking, even academics need tae care for their hames, feed themselves and wear clean clothes!
I`ll be forever grateful tae me mam and grandparents for showing me how tae dae the basics in life....feed and clothe meself and care for me environment. I would hate tae have tae rely on others tae dae that for me!

This morning, we inspected the byres, which often get flooded, after the heavy rains last nicht. They are a` alricht, if a bit soggy. The rain barrels overflowed and ran doon the track tae the pond. So we had some rain last nicht!
But it`s a fine calm enough morning, and as the skies lichten and the day begins, I`m glad tae be a hermit and glad tae keep me life simple.
A fine guid morning tae everybody.