The Twelfth Edition of Our Newsletter

Edition 12 Monday 15th June 2020

Welcome to the Twelfth Edition of our Newsletter

I suppose really this is the thirteenth edition but I think last week’s special edition deserves a spot of its own. In this edition we have some photos of John’s birthday celebration and letters from Pat and John on our new letters page. John loved the celebratory newsletter and the album with all your greetings and photos. This is a bumper issue – I will have to start including a contents list! In this issue there are, of course, our regular articles – and a couple of new ones. I would like to say a big thank you to everyone who has contributed to this issue and please don’t forget to send in any articles, jokes, recipes, interesting news or anything you think might be of interest to other members – especially any tips on keeping busy or any community news.

Please send any contributions to Karen: [email protected]

Music in Our Time This is a regular item so if you have a relevant piece of music which reflects either the season , an event or our wonderful land, please email [email protected]

Celebrating The Summer Solstice by Alan Malloy

In a few days time, the longest day of the year will be here: Saturday, June 20th is the Summer Solstice. Dawn will break over Tain at 04.17, with the sun setting 18 hours later at 10.19pm.

In his opera ‘Peter Grimes’, Benjamin Britten skillfully depicts dawn breaking over the sea in the first of four sea interludes. Britten was born in Suffolk and had a strong affinity with its people and places. He returned there to spend the last part of his life in Aldeburgh. The opera reflects the tragic tale of an Aldeburgh fisherman Peter Grimes, and to my ears, is in parts challenging to hear, but there are sections which are more reflective. This first sea interlude, Dawn is one such piece. Britten’s music expressively captures the sun’s rays breaking over a calm sea.

Dawn from Benjamin Britten’s ‘Peter Grimes’ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=692noeACXrs

For many people, the Summer Solstice is a special day. Crowds gather around Stonehenge, with druids and pagans celebrating the day, often in their hundreds. Closer to home, on Orkney, people gathered around the Comet Stone near to the Ring of Brodgar, with modern pagan and Orcadian traditions being celebrated, some people spending the whole night there. All over Europe, one of the traditions on the night of the Summer Solstice is the lighting of bonfires on the tops of hills. This tradition dates all the way back to the Middle Ages. Manuel de Falla wrote his ‘Ritual Fire Dance’ as part of his opera ‘El amor brujo’ (The bewitched love). Originally written for piano, it has also been transcribed for orchestras, which I think is more powerful.

Ritual Fire Dance https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qbx5i4A_XMc

Back to Orkney, the St Magnus Festival is an annual event (apart from this year, due to the pandemic), lasting around a week in late June, celebrating the arts. The festival was founded in 1977 by a group which included Sir Peter Maxwell Davies; ‘Max’ to his friends. Max moved to the Orkney Isles in 1966, where he lived for the rest of his life (He died in 2016). Max was amongst many things, a keen environmentalist. When plans were being considered to open a Uranium ore mine on Orkney, he wrote and performed music to protest. - The ‘Yellow Cake Review’. One of the most famous pieces from this review is ‘Farewell to Stromness’, which depicts the residents from the town of Stromness having to leave their homes as a result of the dangerous Uranium ore contamination. Sadly, I couldn’t find Max playing this music. Simon Mulligan is the pianist here:

‘Farewell to Stromness’ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpJB-XXE9Xg

I also enjoy this music played on the guitar, so it’s included below - played with great expression by Matthew McAllister. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6N_YJhE3vmw

Karen’s Crafty Corner

Please remember to send in your craft ideas!!

Paper Mache Bird

This idea was sent to me by a member of our Craft Group

I had such fun with this - so I made a flock!!

Here are the materials you will need: Corrugated cardboard Template (at the end of this feature for you to print out) Scrap paper torn into strips (newspaper or low grade photocopy paper).

Paper Clips Sticky Tape PVA Glue (or flour & water 50/50 mix) Glue brush Paints (I used acrylic paint but watercolours are fine) Paint brush

Instructions:

Cut out 2 bird bodies and one small square in corrugated card from the template (picture 1).

Attach the small square of corrugated card to the bird bodies (picture 2)

Bend the paper clips to form two legs and feet picture 3) Glue the two cut birds together at the nose and the tail. Position the two legs slide them into the – corrugated cardboard and glue in place. I used a glue gun but any glue is fine (picture 4)

Dilute the PVA glue with water – 50/50 (picture 5). Glue the strips of paper onto the bird using the diluted PVA glue (pictures 6). Allow the paper mache to completely dry then add another layer (picture 7) When dry decorate your bird! (pictures 8 & 9) 3

1 2 3

4 5 6

7 8 9

Please ignore this page if you are not following the instruction for the paper

Each week we will be publishing a member’s Desert Island Disc choices

This week it’s Alan Malloy’s selection

Do you choose your eight favourite tunes to recall happy memories, family or friends

- or do you choose music which will help you endure this mythical desert island, by lifting your spirits? Ideally, we choose music which both makes us feel happy and brings back strong memories of our ‘nearest and dearest’. I’ve included links to my choices so you can enjoy these too (hopefully).

From Handel’s Messiah: ‘For unto us a Son is born’ I hope you remember that ebullient feeling on a Friday evening when work for the week finishes. This piece of music reminds me of this happy time: Rhoda and I used to sing along to this rousing piece, while preparing our Friday evening meal. There’s nothing like a good sing to lift your spirits too! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MS3vpAWW2Zc

J.S.Bach: Badinerie from Second Orchestral Suite

This is such a fast and joyful piece: you can’t help but feel exhilarated when listening to it. This has happy memories for me as our daughter Claire played the flute, so it reminds me of her. She’s still got the flute, but alas doesn’t play it at the moment… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zcTKhohtJg

Bon Jovi: ‘Its my life’ We’ve always loved Scotland, having visited on so many occasions. The decision to move here was easy, but not without concern. Driving up the A9 on our way to

Ullapool, this song from Bon Jovi played and it crystallised our decision to make the break and move ‘up North’. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vx2u5uUu3DE

Parisienne Walkways - Gary Moore I love France. I’ve been there countless times for many different reasons: family holidays mostly. Claire spent a year at Bordeaux University. We happily visited and enjoyed our trips to restaurants and auberges in the countryside around Bordeaux. This song reminds me of those wonderful times - and while it isn’t French in any way, the guitar playing of Gary Moore is sublime.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=98eIW6CN62k

Alan’s Desert Island Discs continued .....

Asturias by Issac Albeniz I’ve had a love affair with the guitar for decades. I still play (badly), but one of my favourite pieces is It was originally written for the piano, but it sounds so ‘Asturias’. Walter and Meggie are much better on the guitar. John Williams plays this to perfection, while I still struggle to play parts of it recognisably. Siberian Forest cats owned https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDAHl54V0CUby my daughter Claire who lives in Milton Keynes. Walter is ginger in colour What A Beautiful - Oklahoma, Rodgers & Hammerstein ‘Oh Morning’ with black paws, while At the school where I taught, I organised many residentials, which for many students was the highlight of their school careers. Trying to get 40+Meggie teenagers has darker out of markingsbed on a morning is never easy, so to rouse them I used to sing variousand her songs, paws are one of which was this one. white.They are brother and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5APc0z49wg sister, chosen from a litter of six kittens, and are two ‘Tomorrow shall be my dancing day’ - arranged by Johnyears Rutter old. I’ve sung in many choirs; most of them connected with my time at college and later, in school. I sang this Christmas carol with Tain Choral; directed by Lydia Jackson. Thank you Lydia for so skillfully coaching us to sing this,The at timesSiberian frustratingly Forest catdifficult is song. the national cat of Russia https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRitP2EB9QAand their dense triple fur coats are waterproof and

capable of withstanding ‘Ne’er reject a tender lover’ - Handel: Guilio Cesare Handel is my favourite composer and this for me is oneextremely of his most cold enjoyable tunes. Sung by the bass, John Tomlinson, I could warble alongtemperatures to this while watching. for my rescue ship. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ABQ8PC9Zm6U

My favourite song: Unto Us a Child Is Born

My luxury: Chocolate or a guitar? What a difficult decision…got to be a guitar.

Book: Shogun by James Clavell

Letters to the Editor This is a new item in our newsletter and I hope that many members will use it to let me know what features in the newsletter they enjoy and maybe those that they don’t!

John, on his birthday, enjoying reading his Dear Friends special edition newsletter! You can see Thank you all for helping to make my birthday memorable. I more photos of John’s birthday was anticipating rather a quiet birthday, in the present celebration on page 32 circumstances, but you helped to ensure that it was anything but! It was great - and totally unexpected - to see some familiar faces from ERAS U3A, and I'm so glad you managed to come along.

Your gifts were also really appreciated. I was astounded and touched by all the photos and messages from members, and to be on the front page of the Special Edition Newsletter was truly special. I always enjoy the newsletter, and I found this one particularly interesting because of the way every feature highlighted the differences, and showed the progression, from the 1920s to the 2020s.

Thank you all, for everything - even the big red notice board!

Here's hoping we will be able to meet with each other soon.

John (Webster)

Karen, Dear Karen Just a word from me to thank you - and Franca, I think the Letters to the Editor is a good idea. I Rhoda and Alan - for all you did to help make enjoy (and am often very moved by) many of the articles so much, particularly animal-related and John's 100th birthday special. It was a wonderful, jokes and many of the useful ones (Alan's for happy occasion, and John was genuinely amazed by example). This week, I particularly enjoyed Ruth's 'all the fuss'. The Covid19 birthday bash will go down poem about her old cat having gone through that as one of the best yet, and your part in it is much experience myself - very eloquent. I am always in appreciated. You worked like Trojans to get envy of the use of the language by many everything done and then put the icing on the cake contributors - I used to have a good vocabulary and have always loved the English language and all by coming along to represent all our U3A friends and its vagaries though now I can barely finish a present your gifts. Both the 'hard copy' of the sentence. Anyway, carry on the brilliant work. Newsletter and the Birthday Album will be treasured, I can assure you. Regards, Morley (Meinertz) I may say, our family - not just the immediate family, And another quick comment from Morley – but relatives in Canada and Australia also - were greatly impressed by it all. They think the Newsletter I was very moved and quite involved by the is fantastic, and so do we, so please don't stop when lovely touching and descriptive recording of all this is over - let it be part of the new 'Normal' Helen’s sighting of the Deer swimming across to Cromarty. I didn’t know they swam and was it 8 Thank you, every one of you. lost and trying to get home or what ??? Pat (Webster) Memories of Lyon’s Corner

House by Carol Bevan

Hello Karen and Team Thank you so much for compiling this wonderful U3A Special for our John. I bet he was delighted! You are such a talented lot and I think you covered every aspect to evoke the memories!! When I saw the photo of Lyon's Corner House, I remember my birthday treat was being taken there and downstairs in the basement, they had an enormous restaurant decorated with palms and a trio played music whilst you ate. It was called "The Salad Bar" and you could eat as much as you liked! It was all fresh vegetables on the menu. I only ate dried vegetables in London, mashed potato made from potato powder, omelettes made from egg powder and cabbage made from dehydrated cabbage! Only when I was put on the train at St. Pancras for Aberdeen to stay with my great aunt and uncle on their farm, did I eat fresh vegetables. They sent me into their vegetable garden to pick the peas and little carrots for the broth. I used to sit there, with the colander and shell the peas and pull the carrots until my aunt called me in. I ate more than I dropped into the colander! My aunt dropped the vegetables into the big pot with the leg of lamb and the tatties. I remember we ate the meat and the tatties. Then barley and lots of lovely parsley and seasoning was added to the broth and we enjoyed that! My Mum knew what she was doing when she sent me to Scotland for six weeks every year. All homemade jams and cakes, fresh air and loads of exercise. No need for my daily dose of cod liver oil and Virol in Scotland! I do remember at school, when we were lined up for various medical inspections, that over half the class were very thin and had rickets. When I was older and learnt about vitamins and good diets, I realised just what my mother had achieved for me.

During the war, she had been told to leave her job in Selfridges by her mother, and escort her pregnant young sister out of the London Blitz, to safety in Scotland, to that same aunt and uncle on their farm where I stayed many years later. My mother then joined the Land Army Girls on a big farm near Lossiemouth. Just a little tale of mine, but I think my parents would be pleased I have come full circle and enjoying the fresh air, clean water and beautiful countryside that they so loved and enjoyed!

Thank you once again for a truly wonderful Newsletter. Best wishes to all Carol (Bevan)

Pets Page

This week’s Pets - Walter & Meggie

by Rhoda Malloy

Walter has a voracious appetite and has to be fed in a different room to Meggie, or else he will wolf down his meal and immediately start on hers! Meggie is the playful one who loves to chase feathers and ping pong balls, while Walter watches from a window sill wondering when he will be called for his next bowl of food. They are such beautiful creatures, so agile in their movements - the height of gracefulness. Watching them play and stalk each other is mesmerising. Their presence in a room creates a real sense of calm and relaxation that is until they decide to have a mad half hour, during which they fly around the furniture and leap up onto cupboards and shelves in their exuberance.

Sagas of the Vass Family

By C atherine Vass

I married into the Vass dynasty! My husband’s Christian name is Nicholas (known to most as Nick or Big Man) and the name can be traced back to at least the 1400s. Naturally our son is Nicholas too but there it ends because he has two daughters. Another Vass family in Shandwick have generations of men christened Nicholas. Nick told me he had no relatives but on my first visit to Shandwick I found this to be very untrue. He had aunts, uncles, cousins, second cousins etc and I had to navigate my way round and try to identify who “belonged” to whom. The grandfather Nicholas who died in 1953 had been a widower for some years and by all accounts he was a character. He lived in the house where we now stay. I think a rota of relatives kept an eye on him. A cousin told me that in 1939 as a young girl she had been up at her grandfather’s in Shandwick when the news of the sinking of the Royal Oak at Scapa Flow began to circulate. She said it was a beautiful, quiet evening but the shock was dreadful. Over 800 men died. One cousin survived along with two other sailors from the Seaboard villages but three Vass men died, two were from Shandwick. In 1971 when I first visited there was a local shop in Shandwick owned by an elderly brother and sister, Hughie and Dinah Ross. Hughie was a very educated man and spoke, read and wrote Shandwick Gaelic. There used to be a Hilton Gaelic too. They went under a bye name of 'Beeldan'. Bye names were used to identify which family a person belonged to. The two Vass families using the Christian name Nicholas in Shandwick were the Nicholas Kennedy Vasses and Nicholas Nican Vasses (our family). Hughie had some memorable stories about Nick’s grandfather who is also the great grandfather of an esteemed U3A member! He and Hughie were cousins I think. The Bronze Age fort which was excavated recently at Easter Rarichie farm on Nigg Hill is known in the Vass family as the Fairy Hill. The grandfather was reputed to have had an illicit still around that area, but he died before revealing where it was. Ten years later a cow grazing on the fort fell through the roof of the well disguised mini distillery. The grandfather had been a seaman and always wore a skipper’s cap. Legend has it that he used to poach rabbits on Nigg Hill and was constantly one step ahead of gamekeepers or water bailiffs. The first cliff you come to walking from Shandwick is known as The Nose. Hughie told me that to evade a gamekeeper grandfather swam round The Nose and back to Shandwick with his ferret under his hat.

Sagas of the Vass Family Continued

We returned to the family house in 1994 and had it rebuilt. What had been a single fisherman’s cottage had morphed over the years into two semidetached houses. The house next door had been empty for years. A young family bought it with a view to modernising it. However the document search uncovered a problem, they did not have title to the original part of their house, and the Vass family still owned the title. It transpired that grandfather had sold the end of the house to a friend who needed somewhere to live. Apparently it was sold for one shilling and grandfather acquired the new nickname of Bobbity. We relinquished the title to allow them to get finance to modernise and laughed at the story. The preceding tales cannot be substantiated apart from the title deeds but I think the source was very reliable. Hughie was certainly a great story teller and a very generous man. He used to come over to my mother-in-law for Sunday lunch and if we were up on holiday he would settle by the fire and entertain us with local knowledge. He took us up to Croick Church to read the window etchings of the tenants cleared from Glencalvie. He thought some of the family had been among the dispossessed. It is a haunting place. He said they used to get belted at Hilton Primary School if they were caught speaking in Gaelic. Times were harsh then. My husband’s father travelled the world. He worked on a sheep farm in Australia, was a teamster in Manitoba, worked in the steel mills in Pittsburgh and returned from Canada via the Trans Siberian railway. He returned to the UK to join the navy for WW2 and was stationed on minesweepers protecting the Russian convoys. He was based in Belfast and met my mother-in- law. My husband had an uncle Andrew who was killed at Flanders in 1914 and we have visited his memorial at Le Touret in northern France. There is another young Vass man from Beauly commemorated there and another on the Mennen gate in Ypres. Another uncle, David was awarded the British Empire Medal for service on the Russian convoys. He was sunk twice. He was picked up by a German boat and struck a deal that if he showed the crew how to use their new electric winches they would put him ashore in a neutral country, which they did, Norway. He died in 1950’s. He would probably be diagnosed with PTSD now. The Vass family are hardy and my daughter is continuing the tradition. She is a frontline in the COVID pandemic as an anaesthetist working in critical care looking after the sickest people.

All about me!

This is a new feature – hopefully a regular one! So please send in your answers to these questions!! This week it’s the turn of Morley Meinertz.

Not a lot of people know this but I was very good at – Hockey (goal keeping) but was kicked off the team because I would not go to practices.

My nickname is –– ‘Cumberland gap’ – Not exactly a nickname but so called as I had a big gap between my two front teeth (which the dentist tried to cure by tying a rubber band round them - extremely painful).

My best friend is – Other than my mother, Marion (from school) and still, even though she is in Australia.

The bravest thing I've ever done is – Catch a mouse (like Karen brought in by the cat).

My favourite TV programme is –– ‘4 in a Bed’ or ‘Come dine with me’ (only with guests who know what a dinner party is).

My perfect evening is - Eating and drinking with friends (a dinner party).

The best thing my parents taught me was – A taste for all the finer things in life.

My greatest weakness is – Clothes.

If I could pass any law I would – Not so much pass a new law but enforcing and upholding of current laws.

The shop I can't walk past is -. Any clothes shop.

The most expensive thing I've ever splashed out on is – – Having the gap in my teeth fixed by cosmetic dentistry.

The worst job I've ever had is – Secretarial temping for large building contractor’s office. . My perfect Sunday is – Lovely, leisurely, big cooked breakfast then arguing with all the political programmes.

My favourite place in Britain is – North coast of Scotland.

My last holiday was – Madeira.

I'm currently reading – – Lady Chatterley’s lover

The best day of my life was – The day I retired

If I had three wishes, they would be - 1) To stop cruelty

2) To destroy the world-wide attitude of white supremacy

3) To stop the poaching of wild animals

Would you like to share your answers to these questions? Send in your responses to: [email protected] 13

A Brief History of Hector Malloy by Rhoda Malloy Episode Twelve

When we first considered buying a puppy, our outlook was entirely positive. Apart from surviving the trials and tribulations of puppyhood, we saw no clouds on the horizon, just wonderful walks ahead with a loyal, obedient canine companion, who would love and protect us selflessly in return for our diligent care and his board and lodgings. Needless to say, over the years our views have changed somewhat! Regarding the protection matter, Hector is about as useful as a chocolate teapot. Heaven forbid, if we were ever to encounter a mad, axe-wielding psychopath during one of our walks through the local forest, we would probably be best saving time by simply proffering our necks on a suitable rock, secure in the knowledge that Hector’s only concern would be whether or not the assailant had a tasty morsel in his pocket. Any visitors to the house are greeted enthusiastically by him, smothered in licks and encouraged to stroke and pet him as much as they like. He never warns us of a stranger's presence by barking. His sole intention is to welcome, ever hopeful of receiving a treat. He has never been known to growl or snarl at anyone - he doesn’t have an aggressive bone in his body. Last week we had a delivery from Amazon and it was a driver that Hector recognised. He was very keen to greet him as he remembered that this particular man kept a stash of dog biscuits in his glove compartment. Before we could stop him, Hector had jumped into the van and was happily munching on a Bonio in the passenger's seat! So not only has he failed in his guarding duties, he is frighteningly vulnerable to being stolen. Ironically, we have ended up having to ‘guard’ him! Before Hector's arrival, we had understandably never given much thought to canine health issues, naively believing that our pup would develop into a robust dog who would sail through life unaffected by the vast number of doggy ailments that we have unfortunately become all too familiar with. Nor did we ever envisage financing our vet’s colossal and ever-expanding retirement fund, surely capable by now of purchasing Richard Branson's Necker Island. Apart from his sensitive stomach problems, we discovered quite early on that Hector was allergic to pollen. The result of this was repeated outbreaks of conjunctivitis which would strike at any time of year, but especially during Springtime. Typically one or both of his eyes would become red and irritable, causing him to rub them with his front legs until they became bloodshot and painful. Lucy the vet prescribed eye drops for the first outbreak when Hector was very young. She skilfully demonstrated how to administer them and off we went, clutching the box. How difficult could it be? We soon found out! Trying to do this ourselves was an absolute nightmare. Three times a day we would decide who was going to clamp his writhing body between their knees and who was going to have a go at eye drop target practice. A large bag of roast chicken scraps was required for each of these sessions, as was the patience of Job. No sooner had he clapped eyes on the medicine bottle - that was it! He would twist his neck this way and that, burrow his head into the clamper's armpit, while the person with the frustrating task of squirting the medicine into his eyes would succeed only in soaking various parts of Hector's head and the clamper's lap in antibiotic fluid.

Episode Twelve of Hector continued......

How did Lucy manage it? Despite intensive training from her, we failed miserably every time.

She was quick, her actions so deft and accurate that Hector remained unaware of. what was happening and the drops reached their target. We persevered, but were unable to get sufficient medicine into his eyes to clear up the condition, so Lucy suggested we try a cream instead. We were slightly more successful with this method, but had to wear overalls to prevent our clothes being smeared with the greasy lotion as Hector wriggled and squirmed in protest. Following a walk in the forest one afternoon when he was around two years of age, he began rubbing one of his eyes furiously. Our hearts sank. Surely not another bout of conjunctivitis? It seemed worse than normal. He could not stop rubbing at his eye and we had no ointment left in his medicine cupboard. Once again we made an appointment with Lucy for the following morning, by which time Hector was frantic and was obviously being driven mad by the itching. On examining him, Lucy was perplexed. She did not believe the problem was conjunctivitis, but she could clearly see the discomfort Hector was in. After a very close inspection, it dawned on her what had happened and she told us she believed he had a tick at the back of his eye. We were horrified. We had no idea how on earth she was going to remove it. Amazingly, without either of us holding him, she managed to get one of her long and beautifully painted nails into the side of his eye and miraculously levered it out, completely spherical and engorged with Hector's blood. We were disgusted by this hideous little creature, which rolled like a grotesque ball across the surgery floor. What a relief! I wanted to fling my arms around her neck, but managed to control myself. Lucy warned us to check Hector over every time he walked through the forest and encouraged us to purchase several packs of ‘Tick Twisters’ in case of further unfortunate encounters with these vile, disease-carrying beasties. From that day on, Hector was subjected to a thorough examination of his entire anatomy every evening before bed. Gradually he learnt to lie still and allow us to inspect those areas of his under carriage that were prone to tick attack. We became tuned in to spotting them in all their colours and sizes, and as time went on, we grew quite adept at removing and disposing of them. One afternoon when Alan had taken the car to be serviced, I was endeavouring to weed a flowerbed with Hector intent on running off with the trowel, when I grabbed hold of him and thought I felt something suspicious on his tummy. Quickly locating the tick removers, I lay him on the grass to investigate. There it was! Pale against his dark coat. Choosing the largest twister, I set to work, trying from various angles to lever it off without success. No matter how I tried, it wouldn’t budge. Eventually our next door neighbour and owner of three Labradors who had been observing the proceedings curiously from her kitchen window, came over to inquire what was going on. By this time I was beside myself with frustration at my failure to remove this tick and relieved that someone else might be more successful than me. “Where exactly is it?”, she asked. “There!”, I shouted, pointing to the offending creature in exasperation. She regarded me with amusement in her eyes and said quietly, “Rhoda, that’s one of his nipples!” To say I was mortified would be the understatement of the decade!

Hector aged 2 at Loch Shin

From our Chairperson, Franca Newsletter Prattle

Hello All

As ever I hope this finds you well and coping with lockdown. This week I am sparing a thought for those of our members who are shielding as the Government have told them that their isolation is to continue for some time yet. At least they are now getting to go out for a little while on their own but it must be so hard especially for those who live alone. Our best wishes are with all of you who are in this category and remember we are here for you. Just drop me an email.

Take care all

Franca

I Have Been There by Jean Cheyne It has been a long dreary winter with endless trips to hospital. Confrontation with ill health has not been on my agenda. It came as devastation to me as I had enjoyed good health without a need for medication in 70 years. I will forever be grateful to those who have the precious skills and ability to help me in my time of need. The skill of surgery and the brilliance of medical technology in this day and age has to be admired and treasured by us all.

So you know where I have been as I travelled a weary and worrying journey over several months. Now I am somewhere else.

The dreary Winter followed by a long cold Spring gives way to Summer. Summer is here and I am recovered.

We set sail from Arisaig. It is such joy to be at the helm with the breeze on my face and the warmth of the sun seeping into my bones. I am here at last doing what I love. A tear trickles down my cheek. I am a very fortunate person.

Sailing across these magical waters with the sun depicting every crevice and outline of the majestic Cuillins of Skye, is breathtaking on such a glorious day. It seems like a reward. The Sgurr of Eigg nestles below the distant volcanic mountains of Rhum so clearly defined against the azure blue backdrop.

A large skein of Gannets come flying towards me. They are my most favourite of seabirds. They fly so close over the mast then settle on the calm waters off the port hand. Never before have they come so close. It is as if they are saying, “We are so pleased to see you again Jean. We have been waiting for you all summer.” How I love them.

A little beyond, three Great Skuas cluster in a huddle. They are the most evil of birds and I have seen them work in pairs to each catch a wing tip of a gannet in flight, bringing it down into the sea, where it may well drown after regurgitating its precious catch for those brutes of ‘Bonxies’. They are muttering “We had better behave today. Jean is here.” Thank goodness I am here.

Ardnamurchan Lighthouse stands proud on the mainland promontory as we swiftly reach across the sparkling water, leaving the Isle of Muck in the distance. Then a tumble of delight comes rushing through these waters at great speed. A large school of Atlantic Dolphin have changed direction to come and join us. They are leaping for joy all around the yacht, diving under the keel and swimming on the bow wave. This is such an overwhelming welcome. I sit on the bow and weep with joy as I chat to them. They respond with happy smiles and a little wink of the eye! They are treasure. I thank them. This is so healing. I thank them again. It is great to be here.

A few days later after a most therapeutic cruise, I could not believe what happened next. Peter noticed a huge whirlpool just beyond the genoa. We were busy questioning what may have caused this when we were completely overwhelmed by the gigantic massive body of an Orca Whale breaching the water only several feet from the boat. Oh my goodness, are we really seeing this? Did we really see what we have seen? We certainly did - as the magnificent beast once again fully breached in front of our eyes. What a spectacular sight. There is another message here for me. A powerful message. “Revel in the joy of life, Jean. Be happy and content. No more despair. Be at peace with yourself.” A very powerful message. Thank you my friend. We watch the huge dorsal fin surge out across the sea into the far distance.

I take the helm as the navigational channel at Rhu Arisaig opens the passageway to our mooring. Another tear trickles down my cheek. I am a very fortunate person to have been there and to be here. This has been a Heaven Sent Journey for me. THANK YOU © Jean W Cheyne

My Garden Birds by Charles Robb

I have a bird feeder just outside my kitchen patio door and which I can watch from the table. There are 4 seed holders one which contains nuts only.

I have a Lumix compact camera with a 30 x zoom lens, the camera is mounted on a tripod. I have taken many photos. This month I have never seen so many birds at my feeders especially now as there are so many young birds. They are being fed by parents and shown how to get to the feeders to get seed. The goldfinch is one bird I have not seen before but now I have flocks. A flock of goldfinch are called a charm. So I have a charm of goldfinch. Goldfinch

The birds in my garden so far, crows , wood pigeon , collared doves, goldfinch, greenfinch, chaffinch, bullfinch, starlings, blackbirds, house and tree sparrows, siskin, coal and blue tits, wren, robin, and some fiches I am not sure about. Last Sunday I had a visit from a young lesser spotted woodpecker, it now appears to be a regular visitor.

Great Spotted Woodpecker

One or two finch and greenfinch have been ringed. I am trying to get a clear photo of the ring numbers but that is difficult. I feed the birds with nuts, sunflower hearts mixed with nyjer seeds. These I think is why I have a mass of birds. I have to fill up my feeders four or five times a day. I have gone through a 20 kilo bag of sunflower hearts in a month as well as a couple of kilo of nyjer seed and just under 20 kilo of nuts. Every penny has been worth it in the entertainment and activity value.

Green finch - Notice the ring on right foot

Great Spotted Woodpecker Great Tit

I hope you enjoy the photos of some every day visitors to my garden

Just for fun

Edition 11’s ‘Guess the Object’ was, of course, a garden table!

Many thanks to Anne Fenech

Can you guess what this object is? Answer in next week’s newsletter Thanks to Rhoda Malloy for this week’s interesting object

Just for fun

Continued

Here are the answers to the puzzles in Edition 11

Question

During a recent school sports day, four students were competing in the 400 metres hurdles. The official results mysteriously went missing, however, various spectators could remember the following information. Glen was never suspected though of stealing the results!

1. Alex won and wore red 2. The student wearing number 1 came third

3. Blake beat the student in yellow but he wasn’t wearing number 2 4. Only one student finished in the same position as the number they wore but they didn’t wear red. 5. Emery beat the student wearing number three and Glen wore yellow. 6. The student in green wore number 2

7. A spectator remembered one student wore blue but couldn’t remember anything else about them. Can you determine the positions the students finished in, along with the numbers and colours they wore?

Solution Position Name Wore Colour 1 Alex 4 Red 2 Emery 2 Green

3 Blake 1 Blue 4 Glen 3 Yellow

Question Question

A kind person decided to give 12 What word comes next? sweets to each of the adults in the jangled town and 8 sweets to each of the febrifuge children. marbles Of the 612 people in the town, only half apricot the adults and three quarters of the mayflower children took the sweets. jungle

How many sweets did the kind person julienne have to buy? Choose from: augment, elephant, autumn,

juiciest

Solution Solution

3672 Augment – The first three letters are the same as the first three letters of the months of the year in order.

Even more fun......

Can you solve these puzzles? – answers will be in next week’s edition

A farmer has just visited a local market and has bought a wolf, a goat, and a cabbage. However, the shortest way home involves a river crossing, and the farmer has a very small boat, which can only carry the farmer and one of the purchases.

o Only the farmer can row the boat.

o If the farmer leaves the wolf alone with the goat you can imagine what might happen. By changing the third letter of each of the words below, can you make another valid oword? Similarly, the goat would love to be left alone with the cabbage!

You have to change each word such that the third letters will reveal a ten letter word when read downwards. Below are thirteen words, each of Last week I travelled from London to whichTherefore, has hadwhat twonow reads letters KRZSAPROKD removed. will beLeeds, a real word.which is a distance of 174 miles. The remaining letters are in the correct BAKE order. CURE I started at 9.15am and completed the MAZE journey with an average speed of 40 BetweenPEST them, the thirteen words haveNE AT had the letters A-Z removed, miles per hour. eachRO PE once only. PORT On the way back, in the evening, I CanFO youOD find the original words? travelled exactly the same route, POKE starting at 5.15pm. The traffic was BAGSO DA DED light and I completed the journey with DIA an average speed of 60 miles per

UOA hour. IDE OEL What was the overall average speed UMS for round trip? PYY

GOU NAL The answer is not 50 mph. CRA UMB DTY

I had a painter and decorator round. He’s a currently furloughed Virgin Atlantic pilot. He

made a lovely job of the landing....

This was sent in by Margaret Southam who saw it in a magazine and shared it with us

Lockdoon’s over, go’n get back outside!

The pubs, they’ll be jumppin’

And we’ll aw be en route

And oor grannies will be waitin’

Kettles boiled, biscuit tins oot.

The weans’ they’ll be buzzin

To see their pals in school

And we’ll all be in Azda

To see the toilet roll shelves full.

That first cheeky Big Mac

And first beer garden jaunt

First proper date night with the Mrs

First day of “dae wit ye want”

We’ll probably aw be greetin

Cuddlin the folk we’ve missed

And then finally, it’ll hit us

What it really means tae exist

Cos, aye these times are hard

And its scunnerd everyone

But if there’s anything that’ll get us through

It’s how we’ll feel when it’s aw done.

IT Tips from our IT Group Leader Alan Malloy

Making Use Of Online Public Services

In addition to accessing sections of the health service, such as NHS online or the website of your local GP, you can also access the Highland Council online, on a range of issues. Visit the Highland Council’s website: www.highland.gov.uk

From this website, you can see that a wide range of services can be accessed:

Pay online As well as paying for Council Tax and fines incurred for parking, littering and a range of other offences, this section will also enable you to obtain a permit for garden waste collection, along with planning and building standards.

Report a problem Perhaps for many of us, this section will be the most useful. Here you can enquire about a wide range of issues including: -Missed bin collections - Counterfeit goods - Animal welfare concerns - -Bonfire or smoke problems - Noisy neighbours - Potholes - Traffic lights - Litter or fly-tipping

Request a service - Request a bin - Request collection of a large household item - Bus pass - Disabled person’s railcard

If you have a few minutes, have a look at this website, you may well find something useful!

Secret Garden Diaries by Franca Reid

During lockdown my routine has become dog walk, gardening, ERAS stuff, so when Karen asked if there was anything I could do for the Newsletter my garden sounded a good choice as it has certainly rescued me from boredom over the last weeks. The plan is that weekly I shall update you on my garden ramblings. However I am definitely not an expert gardener. I just love pottering, experimenting and being outdoors. Therefore throughout my blethers I shall be asking advice, questions etc and I really hope that some of you will respond with the answers or at least things to try. Also feel free to ask your own questions. For those of you who dislike gardening my garden is not just about plants!

This week I will mainly set the scene.

My garden is just less than two acres and is actually more of a wood with a house and a bit of cultivation so there is a constant challenge to keep the two things separate – ish! I live on the

Scotsburn Road between Tain and Alness, nearer the Alness end. We are about 100 metres above sea level and that does impact on what I can grow as it must be hardy enough to cope with the winter frosts. The ground is awful in that it is mainly clay with a covering of about 18 inches of topsoil, drainage is poor and the ground must be quite acidic as rhododendrons thrive.

Is clay acidic?

We have some beautiful mature trees: horse chestnuts, sycamore, oak, beech, silver birch, willow, ash, spruce and an old holly hedge down one side. 26

My one area of taming for flowers and bushes is south facing between the house and the road against an old wall. We call it the “Bank” because it is on a slope.

We have 6 raised beds, a poly tunnel and a cage for fruit and vegetables.

As I do the garden myself that is about all I can manage though I do have plans for another raised bed and possibly a small bed by the pond. I have to be mindful that although I have time and energy just now we hopefully won't always be in lockdown and I am getting older.

We also have a large grass area though I use that term loosely because it is more moss, dandelions, daisies and buttercups.

This year we invested in a dandelion remover. At first I was sceptical about how effective it would be but actually it is pretty good and for a few weeks one of my daily tasks was to scour the garden for dandelions. I know I should let some of them seed for wildlife but for some reason dandelions annoy me in my grass. Any non chemical tips for reducing the number of buttercups please?

I hope that has set the scene for you. So what have I been up to this week?

The poly tunnel comes into its own in the horrible weather we have had so in there I have been weeding, digging over the last vacant plot by

the door, staking and nipping extra shoots on the tomatoes, tying up the cucumber and keeping a close eye on my ripening strawberries. We got

our first strawberry crop this week. Is this quite early compared to previous years?

Should I nip out the extra branches on the bush tomatoes? I notice the flowers are coming on these already

Any tips to make it easier to tie up cucumbers would be welcome please?

The soil in the floor of the poly tunnel is really heavy. Over the years I have added compost, sand, wood chippings but it remains very heavy. Any suggestions of what else I could do/add?

On a completely different note we have been well entertained every evening for the past month by the pheasants who live in our garden amongst the bushes and trees. Who needs TV? You can get all the sex and violence you need on our grass! There seem to be even more male pheasants than usual this year and their jousting for position with the females seems to never end. Their posturing, fighting and communication is incredible.

We have names for many of them: there's No Tail, Two Tail, Boss & Croucher to name just a few. All the females are really interested in is getting food from the bird table! When the pheasants stop the blackbirds and pigeons take over – there's never a dull moment! Does anyone know if this is quite late for pheasants to be laying eggs? We thought they would have had their first brood by now but it seems not.

Have any of you noticed the different sounds that the male pheasants make for different situations?

My garden work this week included:

Weeding the gravel – not a favourite job! Digging out couch grass, yet again from a mint bed – any tips for getting rid of this very welcome? Weeding in the poly tunnel Filling in some of the low lying areas with wood chips Cutting back plants on the bank so that I can walk along the paths

Laying slabs to extend a path I started at the beginning of lockdown Is there anything else I should/ could be doing at this time of year? What have you been doing in your garden? I'm keen to know as it may give me ideas for other things I could/should be doing.

Name that Plant

Can you tell me what these plants are please? The pink ones just appeared a few years ago and now they are all over the garden. They are beautiful and quite spectacular.

Please send me any photos of plants you have which are looking good at this time.

Anyway that's been my gardening week. I'd love to hear back from you with answers to my questions or suggestions. Also things that you have been doing in your garden, pictures and any questions you have. I'm sure that if we share what we're doing it will help everyone. My email address is [email protected]. I look forward to hearing from you.

Franca 30

TOP TIPS To Stay Safe Highland & Islands Police Division As physical distancing and self-isolation continues, lots of us are still at home more than is usual.

Scammers know this.

People may find strangers on their doorstep offering bogus help or services. Or they may be contacted by telephone or on social media. Our advice is please be cautious - don’t let scammers fool you. Look after yourself, look after each other and look after your family. For more information and advice on identify theft, fraud and scams visit - https://www.scotland.police.uk/…/identity -theft-fraud-and-s… For information on doorstep crime and bogus callers -

https://www.scotland.police.uk/…/doorstep-crime-and-bogus-c… To read more about Police Scotland 'Shut Out Scammers' campaign visit - https://www.scotland.police.uk/…/personal…/shut-out-scammers

New Scam Warning – Test & Trace

A phone call claiming to be from the NHS Test and Trace Service informing the householder that they have been in contact with somebody who has tested positive for Coronavirus; they need to self-isolate and take a test.

The caller refuses to disclose who the householder has been in contact with but asks them to confirm their address so a testing kit can be sent to them . The caller then asks for payment card details to cover cost of the testing kit.

The NHS Test and Trace service is free and will not: ask for bank details or payments ask for details of any other accounts, such as social media ask you to set up a password or PIN number over the phone ask you to call a premium rate number, such as those starting 09 or 087.

John’s birthday celebration in pictures!

Just a thought to end on

Three good friends went for a swim. The one who was fat wished she was thin. The one who was curvy wished she was clever. The one who was clever wished she swam better. The really great swimmer wished she was witty. The one who was witty wished she was pretty. All three friends thought the other two were just fine. If only they could let their own bright light shine. So throw on your swimsuit if you're fat or you're thin. Enjoy fun and friendship .... love the skin that you're in!

Coming in the Next Edition

 Desert Island Discs – could it be you?  More Craft Ideas  More IT Tips  Hector’s next instalment  Franca’s ‘Secret Garden’  As well as lots of interesting news and features I would welcome feedback on your thoughts and ideas about this newsletter and let me know if there are any items you would like to see in future editions, Please remember when sending in items for inclusion in this newsletter, make sure you let me know if you are happy for your name to be added. Many thanks The Editor (Karen) [email protected]

Many thanks The Editor (Karen) [email protected]