Meet Mickey!

The girls were successfully retrieved from Edinburgh, although it turns out that Desiree & Kyle and Larry & Denise got delayed in the U.S. due to weather. Larry & Denise stayed in the Milwaukee area, while Kyle & Desiree got all the way to Washington, D.C. before being grounded. Meanwhile, back at the manor, we had discovered the manor house came complete with a border collie. This is Mickey playing football with Joseph. This photo was taken from our bedroom (oh my gosh, what a bedroom!) upstairs. Mickey is an extremely loveable, football-playing border collie. We had many a good time with her over the week. The moment she heard anyone in the front yard, at whatever time of day, she came running and quickly retrieved one of her several footballs. It was her sport, and we obviously were there to play with her. It made me miss my own boder collies, Berecyntia and Cormac, greatly! Wastrel On! (Listening To: Rocky Top by Carbon Leaf (Live))

To the Manor Born

New Milne, in all it's glory. This is our first view of the house taken from just inside the driveway gate. Hard to believe that this was to be our home for the next week. Of course, we were several hours early and unable to "move in" just yet; we still had to make a quick trip to the Edinburgh airport to pick up those three lovely ladies. However, we did speak with Jim (the caretaker/owner) who allowed us to unload our luggage into the foyer so that we would have room for three more passengers plus luggage. Luckily our hired vehicle was large enough to accommodate this. But here it is: our home. Wastrel On! (Listening To: (She's Just) An Old Love Turned Memory by George Jones)

New Milne Drive

Finally, we arrived at New Milne Manor which we have hired for the next 7 days. We left Killiecrankie that morning intending to be the first people at New Milne. Considering we were sharing the manor house with 12 other folks, this could have been a difficult task to accomplish. As it turns out we ended up having to make a dash to the Edinburgh airport to pick up Ginger, Kara & Alison. So, no problems, we were first here. This is our first view of what was to be our home for the next week. What a glorious first impression, and it was only going to get better. Wastrel On! (Listening to: Crosstown Traffic by the Jimi Hendrix Experience)

Killiecrankie Hotel

The Killiecrankie Hotel sits north of Pitlochrie some 25 minutes on a very windy B road. This was an unexpected stop on our journey as we were planning to visit Killiecrankie Hotel next week. However, we found ourselves without lodging quite late in the day. So, my dear wife called up Tim, the proprietor, and asked him if by chance he had room for us. He did, so off we went to Killiecrankie where we spent an absolutely lovely evening in the company of Tim, and three German guests (two of which were in Scotland to learn English in Edinburgh). A charming room, sans air conditioning (as seems to be the norm), greeted us up the stairs, around the corner, down a step (ducking heads as we went to avoid the seriously low ceiling) and around another corner. But well worth the visit and the £105 pounds. If you find yourself in Killiecrankie, stay here. Wastrel On! (Listening to: Everything She Wants by Wham)

Pitlochrie in Bloom

Pitlochrie has recently won the Scotland in Bloom award. Apparently this is a very prestigious happening because they proudly display this fact throughout the town. Additionally, scattered everywhere, are these wonderful "sculptures", mostly Victorian-themed, that double as planters. This Victorian lady is the first of these fine figures that we saw and I couldn't resist the photo opportunity. I wish now that I had photographed Marita Beth next to one so that the size of these wonderful items could be accurately portrayed. Barely a street block could be walked without encountering some Iron Victorian sporting flower pots. Wastrel On. (Listening to: Hurdy Gurdy Man by The Butthole Surfers)