Stepping out

I've had a busy day, and done many steps (at least by my (lockdown) standards). First thing this morning, I walked up Leith Walk and onto Calton Hill, and then back down Easter Road, taking lots of photographs on the way. Well, this is the last Sunday of 'proper lockdown', so it needed memorialising. I wasn't that early, so the absence of more than a very small handful of people on Calton Hill makes you realise that a lot of the people up there on a 'normal' day must be a tourist.

Anyway, onwards... walking down Easter Road, I realised that the Manna House has gone... and googling it, I realised that happened in December 2019. That's a shame.

I picked up some groceries in the supermarket (because there wasn't a queue!), and then headed home. And baked! Yes, I baked. This is what lockdown has done to me. It was just a plain Victoria Sponge, but to be honest I haven't made a cake for about 25 years, so this was quite something for me. It was very slightly overbaked, a bit biscuity on edges. But delicious. I may need more practice.

Anyway, we presented it to our friend S, whose birthday zoom we joined in mid afternoon. Sadly, a large chunk had already disappeared by then, and more has gone now. Well, there's no point keeping it to go dry, is there?

I had another zoom later - lockdown literature - with good chats with the girls, only interrupted by Mr A bursting in to inform anyone who wanted to know that a certain Prime Minister was more interested in protecting his advisor that he is in protecting the public. And then after dinner (which was an excellent warm salad with pigeon breast (which arrived in yesterday's box)), I watched Phillippe Sands and Stephen Fry in conversation at Hay over The Ratline. Not as good as yesterday's event with Maggie O'Farrell, but diverting none the less.