Astronomy Tuesday

The Trifid nebula, in Sagittarius, named for the three dark lanes of dust in the center.

My brain, in search of the familiar, has decided that it looks like a giant pansy.

Sunday bird blogging

A great tit, with an unusually pale belly, in the gardens at Cawdor Castle.

Saturday reflections

Autumnal reflections to mark the shift in season. This is one of the little streams the river in Inverness is carved into by the Ness islands.

Trees aren't turning here yet, but this was the week the summer finally lost its grip and a coat in the mornings started to feel like a comfort rather than a precaution.

Astronomy Tuesday

Back in real life -- New York, work, Astronomy Tuesday.

Here's another stunning look at Pluto.

The poetry of place names

A bus in Edinburgh. I love these names: Oxgangs, Marchmont. I can't help believing that Monday morning would be easier if it involved traveling from Meadowbank to Hunter's Tryst.

Sunday bird blogging

The picture is a little blurry, but here's another robin, this one in Southend.

Vaults and columns and music stands

Banners

Burns window

There was only good plain Presbyterian glass in St Giles until the late 19th century when stained glass started to be used.

This window is actually from 1985 -- it's a very modern, abstract tribute to the poet Robert Burns.

St Giles details

Some of the beautiful detail on the exterior of the cathedral.

The main church is 14th century, but it's been embellished in a way that John Knox would most likely not approve of, an astonishingly lovely blend of schools and styles.

St Giles

The High Kirk of Edinburgh, commonly referred to as St Giles' Cathedral, on the Royal Mile. That spiky steeple in the shape of a crown is a perfect encapsulation of Edinburgh architecture, and is fitting for a church that is basically the St Peter's of Presbyterianism, where John Knox used to preach his sermons denouncing that Popish whore down the street at Holyrood, Mary Queen of Scots.

Geometries

Scaffolding on the Royal Mile in Edinburgh. They're clearly going to be building something else behind that old facade, but for now the combination of old stone and blue sky is wonderful.