GOOGLE DOODLE 'N' ALL THAT JAZZ

Yesterday, May 8th, Google made an outstanding Google Doodle.  It is a tribute to a man in the film industry who make the bit of the movie which takes to do with the titles at the beginning of the film. His name is  Saul Bass. He is 93 years old.



This short video creates the Google logo in the style of of Bass using the following movies'  introductory title sequences:

Psycho
The Man with the Golden Arm
Spartacus
West Side Story
Vertigo
North by Northwest
Anatomy of a Murder
Ocean's 11
Around the World in Eighty Days

As you watch the Google Doodle you will recognise the film artwork as they are done in the order above.

I can't decide if I like the film references  (I can recognize them all!) or the theme music which is Dave Brubeck's Unsquare Dance.

Love it!

THE KINGDOM OF MACBRAYNE

If you live on the west coast of Scotland you know about MacBrayne's.  This is ferry boat operator who plies the water of, not just the Clyde, but all of the islands.  They are a monopoly and have been around for 106 years.

Portree, Skye, 2007

Everyone has stories about using these ferries: some good, some not. The fact remains they are simply part of the the landscape, or should that be seascape?... on the Scottish west coast.

To that end, I bought Iain a book of their history for his birthday this past week.

It is published by Birlinn and details are available on their website here. As they say in their blurb, the book "tells the story of David MacBrayne, his ships and his company, his predecessors, rivals and successors.  It explores the world of the early steamships, their successes and failures, as well as their contribution to the ever-changing social fabric of the Highlands and Islands.  Emigrants, tourists, ordinary travellers and crew members, from engineers to pursers, speak of the ships and their impact on their world. "

The title comes from a common ditty that describes them:

The earth belongs unto the Lord

And all that it contains

Except the Western Islands

And the Kingdom of MacBrayne's

Apparently it is a parody of the opening verse of Metrical Psalm 24. It seems this version a misquote but that 's the way I've always known it.

The Arran ferry at Ardrossan pier

Their official name is Caledonian MacBrayne but are always referred to as CalMac,. Their website is here.

CalMac ferry heading out of Ullapool to Stornoway, Lewis.  Photo taken from Jessie's front window on May 18, 2013 at 6 pm.

MOSSHEAD PRIMARY 1: TED'S MUSEUM VISIT

It was Alastair's turn to show us around his school room and look at his work in Primary One at Mosshead School in Bearsden. The theme was museum visit to see Teddy Bears.

After assembly we were taken on a tour by the 5 year old museum guides.

Here are Grandpa and Alastair looking at his worksheet.

The project work is on the board.  The stories about the museum visit are expressed in one sentence with a coloured drawing to illustrate.  Here Alastair is talking about an elephant.

On display were the childrens' own bears they had brought in for the project. This bear caught my eye from across the room.  It has been nearly 40 years since I had seen him!  This Teddy was given to Mairi by Iain's mother when she was born but had been played with by Alastair.  I looked at the duffle coat and recognized the buttons but do not recall sewing it ... which I clearly did as I can tell by the zig-zag stitching and hand sewing in not-quite-matching thread!

I liked the concept of 4 different levels of "vocies" in the room. I am going to adopt that policy in the house the next time things get a bit boisterous!

* * * * * * *

 Post script:  

THE MALE MIND

One day after school Alastair was in the house and said to me: "I like Lego. Will you get me some for Christmas?"  So I said (knowing he can now print and sound out words) "Why don't you write 'LEGO' on a piece of paper for me so I won't forget?"

So off he went to the kitchen table where the paper and pencil were.  This is the result "Batman" (the "b X a t m a n" means the second letter was an error and is crossed out ... fair enough).

 

Now I looked at this and thought ... What IS it about the male mind? You ask them to do one thing and they go off and do something completely different.

And here we have the 3rd generation ... Hey ho .....  plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose!

INDY: IN THE DRIVING SEAT

Alastair took this photo of Indy recently.  He is now 21 months old.  His last eye examination for any signs of further cancer had encouraging results: nothing was found.  The doctors are now going to space out the examinations to every 2 months instead of every month.  Good news!

So here we have our budding Alpha male in the driving seat!... and a nod to Grandpa Dave whose Facebook quip I borrowed!