Friends and castles.

We got this awesome two-bedroom flat, and nobody came to visit us until December. Come April, we'll be downsizing, so you missed your chance, folks! Still, February has been loaded with friends from home, and it's been really fun. We're currently on our third guest this month, with four and five arriving on Monday evening, and it's not even the Ides of February. Fun times.

Yesterday, Claire and I went to the Castle. If your city has a castle and you don't appreciate its might and awesomeness, then you need to break into the jaded façade you've grown. Castles are fantabulous, and I never get sick of seeing Edinburgh Castle.

It sits upon a mighty volcano (how a pre-geology world could tell that this particular volcano was extinct is a feat as mysterious to me as how they placed the first cornerstone on a precarious cliff made of petrified lava), and overlooks Edinburgh from all angles. I first visited it in 1998, and again in 2002, and 2008. It took me until January to return, at which point we purchased a year-long membership (for the price of about two visits). With all these visitors, I figured we'd be making a few treks up that volcano and into the chambers of Mary, Queen of Scots.

Claire has been a super-fun and super-tolerant visitor, and she's listened to my history-nerd ramblings and non-stop spouting of interesting facts without complaint. In fact, she actually seems to enjoy them, although she was a theater major, so it's hard to tell.

Oh, if you're reading this in Scotland, maybe you'd like to come to my Valentine's Day gig? It'll be a couple of sets with friends at the Leith Folk Club (the Victoria Park House Hotel 221 Ferry Road Edinburgh, Lothian EH6 4NN) starting at 8:00. I'll be playing mostly original stuff, with a few fun covers thrown in there, I think. I've also got a whole UK Tour to announce next week, covering many cities I've never played before. I'm back!

The castle photo above is courtesy of the Edinburgh Castle website.

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