Autograph Auction

Desk Day. M and I have had a quick walk up to the top of Maol Ruadh with the dogs.

"I don't want to be in this one, I haven't done my hair"

I appease M's concerns with a quick review on the wee camera monitor. Close subject focus and big aperture blurs everything more than a yard away. This wee Sigma lens attracts a lot of criticism for its performance at large apertures and I suppose they (the critics) have a point. I prefer to think of it as "quirky" and I really enjoy using it. It has that dark in the corners look and even in focus areas at the edges don't pixel peep well beyond F4. However Caley's nose in the centre is okay and that is the blip today.

Down south has even more snow but it is just cold and damp here.

There was great excitement here this morning when I received an unexpected package in the post; a bottle of Grouse Whisky.

Perhaps there is a bit of OCD about me. I don't want to infringe on a fellow blippers internet name.

Explanation:

Every Sunday I do the Sudoku puzzle in the Scotland on Sunday Spectrum magazine. But, I do it on a blank bit of paper so as not to spoil the actual entry which gets posted. M does this for me very neatly and posts it. I have a feeling Bruce may have entered a couple of times too.

The prize, for the winner drawn from a hat, is a bottle of Grouse Whisky which in truth isn't even a favourite.

I have won it on two previous occasions close together a couple of years ago. An amusing, and slightly embarrassing, incident then was that I recall a lovely lady from our village, having read of my second win, approached me (at a Highland gathering, its all coming back to me as I type) to make me aware that she was also a regular entrant of the same competition and she found my near back to back wins quite intriguing given her own lack of success to that point. My goodness I hope she doesn't see this.

This is right up there with our ten pound lottery win a couple of weeks ago. Perhaps I can sell my autograph on ebay now.