cairistiona's place

My apologies if you left me a message or replied to a post here, as I've managed to commit technical mayhem again and accidentally deleted everything before I could even read them, never mind reply. Despite having been regularly online for the last 25 years, I can still mess up now and then.

So, I finished The Originals, which was okay. The series would have been much stronger if edited more tightly, which would also make the series shorter but quality beats quantity. It seemed to be hampered by a cast of thousands - I kept losing track of who was who, which was not helped by too many of the female actors looking too similar. But it was okay, though hardly original. The werewolf aspect of the series could have been explored a lot more fully, as they really didn't do much beyond exist. I still say Klaus and Elijah were just Lestat and Louis rewritten, though, or maybe I'm just hard to please. Still, the man playing Elijah was easy on the eye.

I've watched the first two seasons of The Strain, which I didn't get into at first but it's grown on me hugely. The basic plot initially relies on Stoker's story of Dracula's arrival in England, the empty ship, etc., which is a tad well-trodden, but then a whole bunch of fresh ideas and new angles unfold, supported by a great cast of actors, strong characters and believable dialogue.

I've also been watching The Shield, which is a fast-paced and gritty police drama that's entertaining, and a spy thriller series called Spooks, which is very good.

Browsing for vintage bargains is a long-time hobby of mine. Consequently my home is full of pretty treasures that I haven't enough room for, but I'll never part with! Earlier this week I came home happily clutching a glass vase hand-painted with delicate flowers. It's just so adorable, and was only  £3 - far too tempting to leave behind! And then I also spotted a ceramic pot with lid, hand-painted, and fell in love with the rich blue and purple tones. I have absolutely no idea what I'm going to use it for yet, but it's been washed, and now it's sitting on my fire surround till I figure out where it's going to live.

YouTube has many "thrifting" videos (as Americans call it; here we say charity shops). Other countries seem to have much better charity shops than we do - much bigger and displayed better, with more choice. I'd say 98% of stuff in British charity shops is junk. The quality isn't what it was, as the better things now get sold online, eBay usually. Car boot sales are better, if you're willing to do the footwork. I never bother looking at clothes in charity shops. They're nearly the price of new stuff in Primark or similar, so why bother buying something that's half worn out already but only a bit cheaper than new? Plus charity shop clothes pong to high heaven more often than not. 

I've another holiday jaunt booked, and I am totally looking forward to that. I've not been to Edinburgh since I was a teenager, and then I was with a family group and we did stereotypical touristy things. It's a mid-week break, before the season gets going properly, to avoid crowds. All I need to do now is plan a proper itinerary, to make the most of my time there. If you've any suggests for any "must see" places, let me know.