Baths and Beards

The Baths – new in 1904 – renewed in 2021

Friday was mainly spent with emails back and forth setting the agenda for our Monday meeting. 

I had expected big news at the Town Hall visit and when that didn’t come I was a bit thrown/down as you could read yesterday. However the sensible response to that visit and meeting with the Council guys is the Council are doing the dull, necessary right things to make the building good to reopen, we have the funds and they are keeping us in the loop. 

Realised another Porty building was looking all shiny and new. On Tuesday I was out walking the Prom because it ended up an absolute beauty of a day I turned behind me and snapped the baths, thinking how grand they looked. It is only a few days later that I realised the baths looked so good because the scaffolding is down!

Porty Baths 2021

This is possibly a bit like when my dad in his 70s grew a beard. It was a nice snowy white beard and he looked good. He kept it for more than two years and was a bit upset that when he shaved it off, nobody noticed – even Mum! Problem was that he just looked like himself again. Rather than notice the lack of beard, we’d all been noticing the beard for two years. 

After yesterday’s wobble (woble?) I find myself returning to a comment put on Porty Central Facebook page way back thanking those who 20 years ago were fighting to prevent these very Porty baths from closing. When feeling disheartened in community work I remembered this wee phrase and I’m motivated again: 

Q: When is the best time to plant a tree?

A: 20 years ago. 

Q: When is the next best time?

A: Today! 

Thanks to, one of our top fans, Maureen Child for a shout out in her inspiring weekly round ups:

The Portobello Central group are brilliant at keeping us up to date on all their hard work and what is involved in taking on our Town Hall. Click here: “

Onwards and upwards!

Jennifer’s blog #77. 

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