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Listening to the radio about folk worrying about their incomes right now. Apparently everything is on the table - universal basic income, a temporary workers credit payment, abolishing the 5 week wait for universal credit...could end up being a decent chance to change the welfare system.

Bog roll sold out in all supermarkets and the like in Linlithgow and Polmont.

The wife wishes it was just the affected area

Update from me - gabapentin is working! I have had no pain for a few months now. They say at the pain clinic that this won't last but in the meantime I am enjoying not feeling like I am being stabbed in the nuts all day long. Downside - I gained about a stone and a half. Known side effect.

Exactly what I said to my son when we watched it.

I mentioned in another thread a few seasons back about Caesar, my favourite deluded dude. The new season so far seems good. The wee photographer - jings! He reminds me of the guy from the DMV on the Blacklist. Darcy is back this season (sigh). She keeps asking why folk don't love her - watch the show, woman, and you'll see!

Big meeting today between the minister and uni chiefs. The upshot is that exams will be cancelled, postponed or converted to online. Teaching will go online. if you are a student, keep an eye on your emails next week.

As a former civil servant I can tell you that I went to many a meeting or event with ministers - admittedly not the FM - where there was nametags and a sign in book that I got waved through for. My face was known so I was just let in. I think such a book has no real value either way.

Just saw an advert for cargurus.com. I am half convinced that the woman in the centre at the end who asks "Am I getting a good deal?" Is the bongo actress Holly Kiss.

I wouldn't read too much in to the headlines just yet. The prosecution is still making its case so the headlines will all have this slant. Then it'll be the defence's go and the headlines will reflect that.

This cannot be stated enough. This man was toxic to the electorate on so many levels.

Been on a wee binge so I'll go through them here: Like Lions Brian Panowich. Many years since I read a whole book in a single day, but I did with this one. Thoroughly enjoyable. It is a sequel to Bull Mountain which I've not read but I didn't need to. Set in Northern Georgia, about families of outlaws and the local sheriff. Very enjoyable Sword of Kings Bernard Cornwell. Latest The Last Kingdom book. These don't seem to run out of steam for me, enjoyable adventure yarn with the usual Cornwell stuff - a big baddie, big battles, hiding out, and a fantastic visualisation of early 'Englaland' A book of Bones John Connolly. Unlike the above, the Charlie Parker series has well and truly run out of steam. Parker and co hunt a baddie, find him, kill him - same as the last few books. This is a rela shame as the first 7-8 books in this series were absolutely fantastic, and I'd recommend these any day. A Million Tears and The Tears of War and Peace both by Paul Henke. Enjoyable saga about a powerful family's origins from the mines of South Wales in the 1890s to running a business and political empire in the early 1920s. My dad gave me these and I enjoyed them a lot - think, if you are between Wilbur Smith books, this is a good alternative. Not as good perhaps (nobody beats Wilbur!) but a lot of fun nonetheless.

The old Co-Op in Alloa also. A wee story here...I visited this site before it's demolition. Not much to look at here but it was massive, at this end a 3 storey department store selling TVs, fridges and so on. Then it turned into a supermarket at the far end, and a clothes section at the other. The store had a weird Y shape to it. This facade isn't great - the one onto Drysdale street is fantastic though. Anyway, they demolished this site from the far end towards this, expecting the facade you see here to fall backwards into the rubble. Then the guys noticed that it was tilting forwards (i.e. into the street you see here) and could have caused some problems! Urgent propping up was needed before the effectively pushed the facade back.

My old school (Alloa Academy) getting the heave ho.

To clarify - Priti Patel is a wid, in the full knowledge the the entire time she would be berating me for my poor performance.