Cheeky wee day off

I'm really lacking inspiration just now to know what to write in this here little blog.  I sent out a tweet on Twitter asking for inspiration and someone (@oneandonlycarly ) suggested I write about my day because she liked reading about people's days.  So that's what i'm going to do.

Wee Bri (my big wee cousin Brian), anyway Wee Bri phoned on Sunday to tell me his iPhone had broken again.  He'd called up Apple customer services and was told to take the phone to the shop on Wednesday and he'd get it replaced.  So he asked if i wanted to come along.  I said yes and booked the day off when i went into work on Monday.

We set off at 9.30.  He drove us to Larbert where we parked the car and jumped on the train.  We chatted about stuff, you know, family, friends and that, and arrived in Glasgow just after 10.30am.   His appointment at the Apple store wasn't until 11.10 so we mosied down Buchanan Street and headed in to All Saints so I could ogle the clothes.

A quick stop at Starbucks and we headed into Apple and upstairs to the Genius Bar.  Genius!  We waited a little as all the stools were taken at the actual 'bar' and then a girl came across with her iPad and checked Brian 'in' then we were told it'd be another 5 minutes or so.  This was fine as we were to busy watching a guy lead to ladies up the glass staircase, 2 iPad boxes held firmly in the arms, and over to the accessories section where he proceeded to sell them 2 cases for the aforementioned iPads.  Then it was all the way down the back where they were asking all manner of questions and I think (but can't be sure) that he sold them a printer too!!  Next time I turned around one of the ladies was eyeing up a shiny iMac too!  Anyway whilst we were there, in the Apple store for a little over 20 minutes, I counted about 6 iPads being sold with all manner of accessories to go along with them.  Then at the Genius bar, the Geniuses (Genii ?) basically swapped old for new on about 5 iPhones.  People definitely do like Apple products.  I resisted against an iPhone for so long but I'm not one of those I HATE ALL APPLE PRODUCTS people, it was simply that I thought I couldn't afford it.  Then i started topping up my Nokia pay as you go affair with up to £40 a month as the Internet usage was costing a bomb and figured it was easier and cheaper to get an iPhone - obvious really!  Now i have to admit that i probably couldn't change and use anything else.  I just love my iPhone!  There, I said it.

Brian's turn came around and he explained to the guy what happened with the phone, it was plugged into a Macbook and after a few minutes the guy realised it just wasn't going to switch on.  so off he popped to what i can only imagine to be a treasure trove of goodies through the back somewhere down dimly lit corridors only accessed buy a secret code and sliding door, kinda like Indiana Jones, and within a minute he was back with a new iPhone.  Just like that.  Simples.  He plugged it in, activated it, inserted Brian's sim and we were cooking with gas and the new iPhone, all within a 20 minute adventure in the Apple store.

The guy who served us was really pleasant and chatty.  (Is this because he is pleasant and chatty or do they learn that in training?).  I don't know but every time I've been in i haven't felt like i used to feel when i thought i couldn't enter all the trendy shops for fear of sticking out like a sore thumb where i might as well have had a sign above my head saying 'I'm just here browsing because there's no way I can afford to buy any of your products'.  You know the kind of shops I mean?  Designer clothes stores usually.  Where the assistants are plastered in fake tan, fake hair, fake nails earn about £5k less per year than you and yet somehow they make you feel like shit because you aren't wearing the 'right' clothes.  That's how I used to feel when i was younger, when my sister shopped in Cruise [insert your own designer shop name here].  Anyway, I digress, back to Apple, lovely Apple, lovely people in the Apple store.  I did spy the nice Mr Craig Z but he was busy beavering away at the Genius Bar for the MacBooks I didn't like to disturb him.   

Everyone was happy, except me who is still trying to make the awful life-changing decision of whether or not to take the Early Upgrade Offer from O2 and upgrade to the shiny new iPhone4.  These are the decisions that matter, aren't they.

Anyway after all that excitement we headed up to The Butterfly and Pig on Bath Street for a very tasty lunch of burgers.  It was lovely in that wee place.  Quite quirky with nothing that matched and a strange but funnily written menu.  Yum yum I would definitely recommend it.  It was a choice between that or the new Jamie Oliver Italian on George Square but not being an Italian food aficionado we opted for the safer place.  Although on a walk down there to see what it was all about, i realise we should have gone in.  But that'll be for another time.  Anyone wanna come to Jamie's place with me??!!

And now I'm throwing it over to you.  What have you done on cheeky little days off work?

Ange xx

1 Country Park, 2 falls - further adventures on a bike

Part I:

Aside from the wee jaunts around the village on my bike, I have been out on a few rides since my first proper MTB ride with PTC et al.  The first one was on Tuesday 1st June around Mugdock Country Park with Ross, Paul and a few other members of the Glasgow MTB group.  I set off from work early and made my way to Milngavie train station car park via Kilsyth and the all the while with the Campsie's on my right hand side.  It really was a pleasant drive and I'd never been out that way for years and years.  The day had been dull and wet in the morning and I was swithering whether to go or not but by the time I got to the train station car park the sun was out in a blue sky.


After everyone got their gear and bikes ready we set off on the route.  I have to say my wee bike looked pretty good amongst the ones that were on show.  I'd even go as far as to say it was better than some!  I hung around the back of the group until I found my feet.  Then at a point the group split and I elected to stay on safe ground around the tracks instead of going uphill just yet.  We headed around the track (probably following the WHW route) and then headed up a steep gravelly section.  I managed to get nearly all the way up before getting off to push.  Well it was quite steep!  When we reached the top we waited on the rest of the group to catch up (since they had been off adventuring through the forest).  Then we headed off again, this time the big boys were off to play on a downhill section(?) whilst again me a few others elected to stick to the trails.  We were instructed to meet them at a 'big satellite/aerial' next to a gate(!).  After only about 10 minutes we reached a smallish aerial and a gate... but then decided this wasn't the correct one so we kept going until we came to the correct one.  (At this point I've totally lost all sense of direction and know that we are above Strathblane and could hear kids playing in a park).  We waited about 10 minutes and chatted (mostly about Apple products) and then a phone call came in that the group were stopped as a few had got punctures.  10 minutes later they arrived and we headed through the gate and across the moors.  It was good and the views were great.  Until we came to a wooded area where I got lost.  The guy who was with me headed in front and before I knew it he was gone, quick as a flash.  I decided to head along the track and waited at a little sign in track which pointed towards Car Park, Country house and something else where I had just come from.  A few minutes later he came buzzing along apologising and saying he thought I was behind him!  anyway we rode along and caught back up with the group.  We were nearly back to where we started after one last big downhill.  They all flew down the 'jump' bit and i went down the path, which had stairs, which were made of slippy bark and wood!!!  So you can imagine what happened next...


Yes! I had my first face plant.  It wasn't quite a face-plant as a loss of control.  The upshot is i let the bike go and landed on my hands whilst the pedals dug into the back of my legs.  I got up as quick as i fell and luckily no-one saw.  I rode on and met up with them on the path back.  10 minutes later we were headed back to the car park.  It was a good night.  I headed off back home, slightly achey but happy none-the-less.


It took a few days but after that night i had the biggest bruises on my legs i've ever had.  And two pedal marks of the backs of my thighs.  They're nearly away...  


the now dirty bike

the bruise on my hand


Part II:


Last week I was on a much needed holiday from work and on Wednesday 16th June I headed back to Mugdock Country park with Nicola.  We met up at the train station car park and set off on our merry way in the sunshine.  We headed the now familiar track to the park and headed along the WHW.  I wasn't sure of a few turns but we managed to find our way along the route I'd taken the week before.  This was a good day for it.  We chatted and stopped for drink and sweetie breaks.  We even found this strange hut cabin thing where these two pictures were taken...  A Spiderman up a tree and a very amusing piece of wood sticking out of the ground....   

We headed along the tracks on the same route except we didn't cut through the field and head over the moors, we carried on with the track and arrived at Mugdock visitors centre where we had a toilet break and an ice cream.  A little while later we headed off again, this time downwards.  But not before we had to go slightly up again along a narrow track up a small incline where i was in the wrong gear and tried to change it halfway up and.... aarrghhh...... I fell to my left and into a pile of jaggy nettles.  Ouch ouch...  I lay there and Nicola came to pull me out.  We were laughing about it and i realised I hurt my hand trying to break my fall.  I cold feel that the bike hit me so I expected more bruises but otherwise I was fine.  It was even better that she didn't manage to get a photo of me lying in the nettles.  And do you know this, there wasn't a dock leaf to be found anywhere!!  Typical.

the mark of me in the nettles

me after the fall - photo courtesy of Nicola (@LilacSwizzle)

Once I composed myself we headed back down the track and made it back to Milngavie just after 2pm.  It was a great wee run out on the bikes.  We sat there in the sun with big black clouds in the sky too and chatted and ate lunch from M&S. 


Despite having to visit the hospital for fear of a broken wrist, I can confirm it is only sprained but is still pretty sore.  I've to rest it for a week.  Regardless of that it was a thoroughly grand day out and the first of many adventures to come.


Ange xx   


Here's a link to our route....
http://www.mapmyride.com/route/detail/18510360/ 
 

A change is as good as a rest

So here it is!!  The new blog design.  I decided it was time for a wee change.  A more grown-up look for this blog perhaps.  What do you think?  I wanted something simple and uncluttered.  I've taken off the header picture and as yet am not sure how I feel about that.  I'd appreciate any feedback.

Back in January i did toy with the idea of changing blog services to Wordpress and even SquareSpace but stuck with Blogger.  Then today I saw a link on Twitter that read Blogger had new templates that you could use.  I couldn't wait to try it out so carefully wrote down the colours of all the text etc from the previous blog incarnation and set about changing it.  I totally love the idea of having extra pages too on here - something i have been looking for for a while.  So i now have an About Me page, and Links page and i may add a few more in the next few days.

For now I might go away and tinker some more whilst listening to the constant buzz and din of those god damn vuvuzela horns on the World cup coverage!!

Ange x