How are you?

I mean, really.

How are you?

On a scale on one to ten, how stressed are you at the moment?

If you’re higher than an average of five then you’re not alone – stress is one of the biggest causes of absence from work in the UK.

There’s nothing like opening the large heavy front door to your very own Scottish castle for the first time, letting the sights, sounds and smells of history excite your senses as you explore every room, snug, secret passageway and staircase.

So you want to come and stay near Edinburgh – congratulations! Great choice – the castle, the Royal Mile, the lush countryside and parks, what’s not to love?

You have the same conversations every year – where shall we go away this year? What shall we do? When shall we pay the deposit? Have you booked the time off work yet? How do we get there? Have you packed your shaver?

By the time you finally arrive at your destination, after a long drive with multiple wrong turns and confusing directions given through gritted teeth, you’re barely speaking to each other.

You’ve been planning it for months: time off work is sorted, the accommodation is booked, the agenda is finalised and everyone is looking forward to their first ever large group holiday together.

But bringing together lots of families and personalities for one single holiday can present challenges. You’ve not lived together before, you all have different agendas, and the annoying habits that seem faintly amusing at Christmas can suddenly become unbearable, making arguments a distinct possibility.

You’ve seen England win the World Cup (a rare feat), the Beatles take the world by storm, Britain join the European Union and you have ushered in a whole new millennium.

What was the best thing about your summer holidays this year?

Travelling in late October, I was lucky enough to get one of those days in the Highlands of Scotland, when everything is crisp and clear, and the horizon goes on for miles.

You’re approaching the big one. Another year older and another cake. Another birthday lunch to think about, plan and prepare.

What can you cook this year that’s a bit different and that everybody will eat?

On the 9th September 2015, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II marked two landmark occasions. Firstly, she travelled by steam train from Edinburgh Waverley to Tweedbank to officially open the newly formed Borders railway network.