August Wrap Up

So loads has happened since my last post, the Edinburgh Fringe festival has started, we went down to Rebellion for the Punk Festival, and we had our 4 year anniversary (still sounds mental saying that). 

I haven't been to as many things as I would have liked to this year so far, I'm missing my days out buddy, but it feels like August is just whizzing by this year. The shop has been so busy with tourists that I am mostly so tired after work, it feels like a lot of effort to do anything. But I have succeeded in seeing two things including one that Dixon even agreed to see.  Firstly I saw Paul Foot with Gail and the Nick Helm with Gail and Dixon. Paul Foot was more mental that expected, but still hilarious, I would say you might want to have seen him on things before seeing him all by himself. But Nick Helm was excellent! So much fun.

Rebellion was really really good again this year, especially when I thought there wasn't that many bands that I wanted to see compared to last year. I would have to say that Thursday was the best day for me even with SNFU, DOA, and NOFX on the Sunday Cyanide Pills and Morning Glory where brilliant, and I got a wee photo with Ezra which as you can see I was pretty excited. I defintitely got the piss taken all weekend for that one, but it made my day so I don't care. I would have photos for NOFX and DOA but unfortunately my phone was stolen at the end of the NOFX concert so this is all I have what I sent to friends and things taken on other peoples phones. But what can you do.

So even ending on a down note, it is still one of the best times so I can't complain too much.

And then it was our anniversary, I can't believe it has already been four years, four years and I already ran out of things that I can buy Dixon as a present, so we decided to just do small things and go out for a dinner and a movie. Someone did not stick to that, someone replaced my phone for me, I was so surprised, he is really too good to me. Not only that but got me flowers and chocolates too. 

We did still go for dinner, it was amazing, we went to David Bann's again, and they did magical things with food. I tried many cocktails and new things this time for starters mains and desserts. I am pretty sure the dessert, Raspberry Jelly with Mint Sorbet and Amaretto Figs was the best thing I have ever eaten, and Dixon couldn't complain about the Budvar either, he doesn't really do dessert. And we topped the evening off with Guardians of the Galaxy, which I thought was excellent, and Dixon had a nice nap. We maybe shouldn't have eaten so much.

I've also done a bit of drawing, but I'll talk about that later.

Watercolour

Last weekend (so this was stuck as a draft for the past two weeks, I though I posted it so hopefully it all makes sense still. So rather than last weekend thing around July 22?) was a rather productive weekend, drawing wise and house wise. We had loft insulation put in last week and so we had everything that was in our attic down in the spare room and living room. So first things first, we went through all of the boxes, its amazing how much stuff accumulates up there in a year! I was amazing how much stuff we were able to get through. Then Gordon and I took the extra things away to the dump/recycling center, and Dixon got ready for his weekly skate.

So after putting the remaining boxes into the spare room temporarily, I got down to the important bits, drawing. Which I was extremely productive for the day, even though I managed to watch 2 movies and facetime with my sister for at least an hour, not to mention copious texting with progress pictures along the way, with Camille and Caryn.

I am doing a wee series of paintings, of which I have two painted and one drawn, and I am really liking them so far. I am using India Ink which I haven't used before and I am painting all of my lines, which I have tried before, but it wasn't as successful, it was a bit messy. But I am really liking the ink, it behaves a lot like the watercolours I am used to but it is a lot of fun. Each of the paintings will be places I feel are a bit like my home, so one is Canada, one is Scotland and the last is the Netherlands, so one for where I am from, one for where I am and one for where I have never been. (The scanner cropped the edges a little bit, there is a nice white border around each)

Also a wee bit about the house, we picked a wallpaper we can agree on for the spare room, which is exciting! So I really want to make a start on the spare room and get the finished.

Sitting Ducks at the Portrait Gallery

Hold on for a ton of pictures, Gail and I went to the Scottish National Portrait Gallery, for John Byrne's new exhibition, Sitting Ducks. I have seen some of his work before in featured in What do Artists do all Day, the series and a bit in the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum in Galsgow that Hayley and I went to in the Spring. Anyway, I really liked his stuff and wanted to check out more of it. So it was a lovely day yto be in the Galleries, its a bit grey and muggy out, so I had a brilliant day out with Gail, with some tea and scones after a bit of shopping. So I am pretty tuckered out now, what with my wee cold, so enjoy.

 I haven't really been to the Portrait Gallery too much before and the main body of the building is gorgeous so be prepared as you scroll past a few of John Byrne's paintings to be drowned in a lot of those.

I really tried to get a good photo/video of this next bit, but it is only ok, its Mary Queen of Scots and a skull, depending on where you view it from.

Neil Gaiman at Usher Hall

I found out a month or so ago, that Neil Gaiman was coming to Edinburgh, to read a story, and I knew I would regret it if I didn't go. See Neil Gaiman came to the Edinburgh Fringe two years ago, and I didn't go, because no one I knew over here knew who he was and they didn't want to spend that kind of money on someone they didn't know.  I should have gone by myself, but I am a bit of a shitebag, and didn't, so this time around, I asked Dixon. I know still a shitebag, I probably could have gone alone, but he was really nice  and agreed to go with me.

It was one of the best things I have ever been too, he not only read the short story without a break but performed two songs in which he sang and read two other short stories. Both of which are brilliant, one for the amazing Ray Bradbury, The Man Who Forgot Ray Bradbury, and the other for the series of short stories he did monthly, and this was Octobers. you can download a pdf of them from here. And the amazing FourPlay String Quartet played throughout, with the fantastic illustraions from Eddie Campbell shown on the big screen for The Truth is a Cave in the Black Mountains, which were perfect for the tone.

And it was such a nice warm night when it was over as well, Dixon and I walked home! It was a brilliant day all around.

I was a little bit proud of how my hair came out.

The beautiful Usher Hall

And the beautiful walk home.

So if this ever makes it to Neil Gaiman, I want to say thank you for an amazing night and thank you for all of your stories.