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mtbcI have been somewhat tied to the flat through having ordered some initial supplies from Amazon, etc. thus expecting deliveries. However, Sunday seemed it may be unusually free of such, so I headed out into Aberdeen. As it turned out, after I returned home, the Amazon Prime van visited me anyway, with hand sanitizer. (In my move, I chose not to try to bring or ship flammable fluids!)
On today's expedition, I took a look at the high school for my youngest stepson, the route from the flat seems easily walked. I also avoided an annoying bicyclist who was running a red light. I like bicycling, I just hate many bicyclists. When I do ride, I pretend that I am a little motorcycle and that works well, except of course I also availed myself of the segregated routes around Boston when they afforded useful passage. Aberdeen looks somewhat safely bikable to me, Dundee felt more like Cambridge, England, where idiot car drivers made the risk seem uncomfortably high. Our flat came with a key to a bicycle shed that I have yet to locate, not wanting to wander the area trying the key on random outbuildings.
On the initial portion of my walk, not only did the bicyclist annoy me but also Google Maps. I went fairly far off course because, it appears, Maps had trouble determining my location and it was only quite some interactions later that a helpful prompt popped up about turning on location services. Later, I reversed part of that segment in order to walk it more sanely that time. After that initial disappointment, I navigated more by occasional glances at its map, rather than by leaving it turned on. I've complained here before about the apparent obsolescence of decent street atlases; personally I favour the Philip's range and blame satnav. I have now managed to buy an old, used street atlas on eBay; I would rather study such to learn the city. I understand that good regional street maps are less popular but I remain surprised and disappointed at how thoroughly out of print they became.
A principal objective was to check out the central retail shopping. I have now identified and explored three large shopping centres (indoor malls) and peered at streets thereabouts. The Trinity Centre is more my kind of place, with the basic downmarket stores like Primark. Bon Accord is more upmarket, with Marks & Spencer, and a sausage roll vendor that is not Greggs. Union Square is for the fancy people and has places I've never visited myself like, er, Nando's. Overall, the city centre seems reachable, useful, and welcoming.
A secondary objective was the obtaining of freezer bags. Unlike most of the frozen fish I bought in the US, the fish I have here does not have individually wrapped fillets, I have no good bag clips, I figured best to put an opened fish bag into a large resealable freezer bag. I happened upon a couple of Sainsbury's Local and picked up such at one. It is nice being back in a country where retail shops include tax in marked prices. Rather nearer my flat is a retail area with a large Sainsbury's that I had expected to move on to (and perhaps try its cafe, if present and open) but I can now leave that until I run out of some consumable, probably perishable, good, like milk or produce or whatever. Dundee is instead full of Tesco rather than Sainsbury's. Also, I saw a Barclays here, I don't recall Dundee having one.
In terms of using up perishables, after I got home I improvised a simple meal by slicing mushrooms and tomatoes, making a mushroom omelette, then putting the tomato and some Cheddar on top and grilling it.
Having been reassured by the apparent walkability of Aberdeen, I couldn't help but again reflect on buying a car. I again settled on
My legs and feet were a little sore after my walk. I certainly need the exercise, I don't know if walking enough will stop the soreness from developing. I wonder how useful my leisurely walk is as exercise: given that I am breathing easily throughout, it is hardly like using the cross-trainer and may not elevate my heart rate by much. As an interim measure, I could run, the weather's temperate here, except for that my workout stuff will remain en route for many weeks yet. I also wonder if my years-old shoes are adequate or if part of the issue is that I ought to replace them with new walking shoes that have been competently fitted.
On today's expedition, I took a look at the high school for my youngest stepson, the route from the flat seems easily walked. I also avoided an annoying bicyclist who was running a red light. I like bicycling, I just hate many bicyclists. When I do ride, I pretend that I am a little motorcycle and that works well, except of course I also availed myself of the segregated routes around Boston when they afforded useful passage. Aberdeen looks somewhat safely bikable to me, Dundee felt more like Cambridge, England, where idiot car drivers made the risk seem uncomfortably high. Our flat came with a key to a bicycle shed that I have yet to locate, not wanting to wander the area trying the key on random outbuildings.
On the initial portion of my walk, not only did the bicyclist annoy me but also Google Maps. I went fairly far off course because, it appears, Maps had trouble determining my location and it was only quite some interactions later that a helpful prompt popped up about turning on location services. Later, I reversed part of that segment in order to walk it more sanely that time. After that initial disappointment, I navigated more by occasional glances at its map, rather than by leaving it turned on. I've complained here before about the apparent obsolescence of decent street atlases; personally I favour the Philip's range and blame satnav. I have now managed to buy an old, used street atlas on eBay; I would rather study such to learn the city. I understand that good regional street maps are less popular but I remain surprised and disappointed at how thoroughly out of print they became.
A principal objective was to check out the central retail shopping. I have now identified and explored three large shopping centres (indoor malls) and peered at streets thereabouts. The Trinity Centre is more my kind of place, with the basic downmarket stores like Primark. Bon Accord is more upmarket, with Marks & Spencer, and a sausage roll vendor that is not Greggs. Union Square is for the fancy people and has places I've never visited myself like, er, Nando's. Overall, the city centre seems reachable, useful, and welcoming.
A secondary objective was the obtaining of freezer bags. Unlike most of the frozen fish I bought in the US, the fish I have here does not have individually wrapped fillets, I have no good bag clips, I figured best to put an opened fish bag into a large resealable freezer bag. I happened upon a couple of Sainsbury's Local and picked up such at one. It is nice being back in a country where retail shops include tax in marked prices. Rather nearer my flat is a retail area with a large Sainsbury's that I had expected to move on to (and perhaps try its cafe, if present and open) but I can now leave that until I run out of some consumable, probably perishable, good, like milk or produce or whatever. Dundee is instead full of Tesco rather than Sainsbury's. Also, I saw a Barclays here, I don't recall Dundee having one.
In terms of using up perishables, after I got home I improvised a simple meal by slicing mushrooms and tomatoes, making a mushroom omelette, then putting the tomato and some Cheddar on top and grilling it.
Having been reassured by the apparent walkability of Aberdeen, I couldn't help but again reflect on buying a car. I again settled on
yesfor simple reasons: my kids live elsewhere, my extended family further, new family will want to explore, and I still consider the land to be stalked by plague, which makes the X7 Coastrider and other such public transit a dangerous habit. A complication is the expense, it being very much the time to buy an efficient hybrid, and a newer one probably being worth it given technology advances; ordinarily, as with my previous Kia, I'd buy something older and less progressive. In my walk around the city centre earlier, I noticed only one other mask wearer, though also I just heard that a friend in England has caught SARS-CoV-2 again so perhaps my caution remains appropriate, especially given the rise in case rates in Scotland. (And, bah, I think the blustery day blew away my backup disposable mask, I need a better solution for carrying the spare.)
My legs and feet were a little sore after my walk. I certainly need the exercise, I don't know if walking enough will stop the soreness from developing. I wonder how useful my leisurely walk is as exercise: given that I am breathing easily throughout, it is hardly like using the cross-trainer and may not elevate my heart rate by much. As an interim measure, I could run, the weather's temperate here, except for that my workout stuff will remain en route for many weeks yet. I also wonder if my years-old shoes are adequate or if part of the issue is that I ought to replace them with new walking shoes that have been competently fitted.
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Date: 2022-06-27 09:58 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2022-06-27 10:09 am (UTC)