Journal

I’m testing out the Eleventy Image plugin. Here’s a post with an image which, if all goes well, will be converted by the plugin from source jpeg into lightweight avif and webp formats and the underlying code transformed from a basic img element into comprehensive modern HTML image syntax.

Glad I accepted the invite from Jason and Tom to attend their in-store event. After some free beer and pizza, Luke introduced Jordan from Tough Luck, an Instagram account spotlighting up-and-coming youth culture photographers. He interviewed Glasgow photographer Selina Paton (@glesgaonfilm). I ended up sat next to Selina’s Dad for that part!

A book entitled Tough Luck: You out tonight? is out now on Velocity Press. I got a lovely sense of enthusiasm for clubs and club culture from the guests, and enjoyed their analogy about film versus digital photography being a bit like vinyl versus digital audio – it’s just different and you can’t recreate the feel retrospectively.

That was a productive and fun weekend.

On Friday, Clair was meeting her mum and cousin in town so this was my quiet night in. I settled down to watch episode 4 of the The Penguin and ordered fish tikka from Kebabish – banging).

On Saturday my friend Mick called to give me the shock news that our mutual friend, Kerso (Graham) had passed away. I’ve known Kerso for around 26 years, since I worked in Bomba records. He was a force of nature, a generous soul, a good guy. I and all his friends loved him.

Ethan assembles numerous technology articles, some of which are enthusiastic about generative AI and LLMs while others highlight political, social and health impacts and risks.

I now see why people love this part of the world. The dramatic coastline, beautiful deep blue Med, stunning buildings and balconies, incredible food scene, culture and history and buzz of activity… I could go on!

Here’s a list of some noteworthy things we did and places we visited on this amazing holiday.

Mick had been saying for a couple of years that I should join him, sister Jenny and brother-in-law Barry on one of their jaunts to the annual Spirit of Alba festival at Kirkintilloch Town Hall. I’d always felt it’d be a nice opportunity for us to hang out (with the added bonus of whisky tasting) so yesterday I took him up on the offer.

Last time I was at Kirky town hall was probably for a disco as a teenager and I must say the venue and surrounding area are looking nice after recent work. It’s cool that my hometown has a whisky festival given its historic role in whisky’s global story – see Rita Cowan and the Japanese brand Nikka for more. It’s also quite the turnaround given Kirky was a dry town til the 70s.

I got home from Friday morning’s dog walk to find some records in the post. I’d recently deleted my Discogs wants-list having realised twenty years too late that it is far too addictive, and as a last hurrah had earmarked a last few key wants. One of those was The Blue Nile’s Tinseltown in the rain – a slice of Scottish pop perfection on Linn records – and I enjoyed a brief listen before heading back out.

On this morning’s park walk with Rudy, he had an anxious bark at a passing dog. I was caught in the crossfire and got a wee bite to the leg. Now, a while back that would have been unremarkable – he’s had long-term lead anxiety which appears aggressive and has given me some cuts and bruises. But, we’ve worked hard on it and he’s been doing brilliantly, so it was a surprise and a disappointment.

But since my initial reaction, I’ve come to realise a couple of things and wanted to reflect on them here so that I can understand them and progress.

Firstly, a word on how it felt. The small bite itself ain’t much fun but I think what’s sorer is that I love that wee guy and put a lot into him and it feels like a harsh return. I also feel disappointed in myself for allowing it to happen. Okay, it feels good to have noted that!

On reflection I think I can be a bit less hard on both of us. While I’m really confident these behaviours will continue to become rarer, they’ll occasionally happen… and that’s okay. I’m happy that me and my dog-pal are both doing our best!

With that said, I have some good ideas about why this particular one happened and how to improve things.

Recently I’ve been particularly vigilant when Rudy passes the first other dog on the walk. And I’d been sure to give him a small pre-emptive lead and vocal correction when he shows too much interest. Importantly that’s before it has a chance to develop further. This comes from the training we did and has been working really well. It also serves a dual-purpose by setting the tone for the rest of the walk. I realise I had forgotten to pay particular attention on that first doggy drive-by and now know I can fix things by incorporating it again.

I also realise I was distracted – a work issue was preying on my mind. Slightly different territory here, but the lesson is for me to literally say aloud “I’m annoyed at this thing and I realise I’ve let it frustrate me and hog my concentration even outside of work. That’s pointless and I’m gonna let it go.”. I did that today and immediately felt better and more relaxed. Not only will that help with my concentration, I’m also pretty sure that “calm Laurence” is gonna promote “calm Rudy”.

The last realisation is that during his best behaviour he’s been sleeping elsewhere but last night I gave in to the puppy-dog eyes and let him sleep on our bed. Time to stop that one. It’s not just that i get a better sleep minus the furry hot water bottle. Importantly, when he sleeps and relaxes on his own (in his own space) it’s better for his all-round confidence and behaviour.

It was helpful to reflect on that. I’ve been enjoying a lot of blissful, peaceful walks with the wee guy recently and long may they continue.

I’ve reached the halfway point of short summer working weeks and long weekends, and they’ve been great so far. I began this long weekend with lunch at the Broadcroft Hotel in Kirkintilloch for my parents’ emerald anniversary. My Uncle Liam was there too and we all really enjoyed it.