The Thirteenth Edition of Our Newsletter

Edition 13 Monday 22nd June 2020

Welcome to the Thirteenth Edition of our Newsletter

No, I am not superstitious! I hope you are enjoying our newsletters, it is so good to know that they are being shared with family and friends around the world! Please let me know if there are any features you would like to see and any ideas you may have for future editions. Gardening seems to be the theme at the moment so let’s hope the weather bucks up and we have a glorious summer!

Now we are moving into the second phase of the reduction in restrictions of lockdown, I hope some of you are meeting up with family and friends – observing social distancing of course!

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]

Music Inspired by Roses by Alan Malloy

Whether you have a garden, patio or you simply enjoy walking in the countryside, flowers, be they cultivated or growing wild are an absolute joy, particularly at this time of the year. For me, roses are the ultimate flower. I must say that I’m reluctant to buy a rose if it isn’t fragrant, never mind how beautiful the flowers look. The fragrance of some roses really is ‘the bouquet of paradise’.

‘My love is like a red, red rose’ Many songs have been written about love and roses, none better than the one by our own national poet, Robert Burns. I find this song particularly moving. This version is beautifully sung by Nicky Spence. Nicky was born and raised in Dumfries, and now regularly sings with English National Opera and opera companies abroad. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VSuN2eyui3k

‘Roses of Picardy ’ ‘Roses of Picardy’ was one of the most popular songs of the First World War. Picardy is an historical province in France. Here, the Somme battlefields are located, where some of the fiercest fighting of the First World War took place. This song became popular with British soldiers on their way to France. Interestingly, it helped soldiers suffering from ‘shell-shock’ - post-traumatic stress disorder - to regain their speech. This version is sung by Count John McCormack - the wonderful Irish tenor, whose parents both came from Galashiels. Apologies for the quality of this old recording. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=myOIkKuhCO0

‘La Vie En Rose’. The title literally means ‘life in pink’ but more colloquially ‘seeing life though rose-coloured spectacles’. The song is about love: the love of a woman for a man, in which she says that the man she loves makes her happy with everything he does for her. When she is with him, she can’t be unhappy. What a wonderful sentiment. Sung by of course by Edith Piaf, ‘The Little Sparrow’, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFzViYkZAz4

Rose Adagio from The Sleeping Beauty. Tchaikovsky was commissioned to write the score for this ballet, in which he used a number of texts, most notably, those of the Brothers Grimm. We all know the story of ‘Sleeping Beauty’ who is poisoned and falls into a long sleep, only to be awoken by a handsome prince. The rose adagio is so named because four suitors dance with Princess Aurora (Sleeping Beauty), and each hand her a rose. In this clip, Darcy Bussell effortlessly copes with the demands of this technically very difficult piece, staying ‘on pointe’ throughout, while pirouetting and dancing with each suitor. Watch this if you can. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uoHuTUo6_l4

Karen’s Crafty Corner

Please remember to send in your craft ideas!!

Yarn Butterflies

These are fun and easy to make and would be a great project to do with grandchildren!

Here are the materials you will Instructions: need: Take two lollypop stick and form a cross. Wind the

Any leftover wool wool around and around, crossing over so that the wool holds the sticks in place securely (picture 1). Pipe cleaners Lollypop sticks Wind the wool up the sticks until you come to the Scissor gap. Then switch to a figure 8 pattern (picture 2). Beads When you get to the end of the sticks either thread the wool back through or just tuck it in. thread the

wool back through (picture 3). Repeat the same pattern on the other side of the sticks (picture 4).

Trim the ends of the wool (picture 5).

Bend the pipe cleaner in half – if you have a shorter pipe cleaner use two and wind the ends together (picture 6).

Add a couple of beads to the end of the pipe cleaner (picture 7). Slot the butterfly between the two lengths of the pipe cleaner, twist the ends and add a bead for the head. 3 Fold over the end of the sticks to form antennae (picture 8) 1 2 3

4 5 6

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

This week it’s Yvonne MacDonald’s selection

Some songs take you right back to a particular place and time and ‘Without You’ by Harry Nilsson takes me right back to being 16 and having to part from my first serious boyfriend for the summer as we were going away and I was not allowed (quite rightly) to stay at home on my own.

One of the joys of living in Edinburgh is the annual lunacy that is the Festival and in particular, the end of the Festival Fireworks. Watching the fireworks explode in time with ‘Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture’ is a really amazing experience and one I will miss.

Some people say ‘Flower of Scotland’ should be our national anthem but ‘Caledonia’ by

Dougie Maclean is more thoughtful and meaningful for me.

I'm very lucky to have known my best friend for 44 years and ‘Army’ by Ellie Goulding resonates with both of us as we've stuck together through thick and thin. In particular, caravans featured in our early friendship and my friend has one now.

For something to put a smile on your face and get the circulation going you can't beat ‘Happy’ by Pharrell Williams.

I grew up with Jimmy Shand and his band on a regular basis so ‘Don't Sit on My Jimmy Shands’ by the not normally so light hearted Richard Thompson just makes me giggle - especially since 'you just can't get the shellac since the war'!

Something else to get the circulation going (which you need on a desert island!) is ‘Loch Lomond’ by Runrig - really good for a wee bop around!

Finally, something for the strange times that we're living in – ‘The Sound of Silence’, the

Pentatonix version - particularly haunting and rather beautiful.

A book to keep me company? ‘The Boy, The Mole, The Fox and The Horse’ by Charlie Mackesy - it's a lovely book to dip into. I'm very fond of the Mole and his love of cake - something I can identify with!

. Oh, the heady The song I would save from the waves is ‘Without You’ by Harry Nilsson days of youth!

Finally, my luxury would be a good camping stove - if I'm going to have to eat fish, I at least want it cooked - raw fish is a total anathema to me!

Letters to the Editor

Hello Karen What a wonderful album and happy event for John’s 100th Birthday. Well done you & your team.

It was lovely to have a little peep at Franca’s delightful garden. My poppy this year has flourished most profusely with over 70 buds now coming into bloom. Think the garden is responding to a little extra care and attention due to Covid19. With thanks for your astonishing magazine. Best of Wishes Jean (Cheyne)

Jean sent in this beautiful photo of her poppies

Dear Karen, Thought I'd let you know that the poem about Lockdown raised a good laugh a long way away in Sidcup Kent. I sent a copy to a friend in a retirement block there and all her friends The ‘Old Girls’ as she calls them enjoyed it. The Manager copied it and put it on the newsboard for others to see it and gave her a copy to send to a friend in Australia who also had a laugh. Needed these days. Thanks for all your efforts. Best wishes. Jean (Griffiths)

Have you got some news you would like to share or are there features in the newsletter you particularly enjoy or maybe those that you don’t!

I am hoping many members will use this page to keep in touch and let us all know how they are getting on,

An email to the Editor! A few days ago I received the following email from Andrew Bullen who is the secretary of Scunthorpe & District U3A. I thought it would be nice to share it with you Good morning Karen, I have been reading your newsletters for while now and am rather impressed that you manage to gather so much material for them. I was looking at other U3As to see what they were doing during lock-down hoping for some new ideas. The reason I chose Easter Ross and Sutherland U3A (which is a long way from Scunthorpe) was that my granny came from Shandwick. If granny were still to be with us I am sure she would have been a keen member. I have referred our members to your newsletter for inspiration; some have been very positive but as yet have not put finger to keyboard so to speak. Motivating folk is not an easy task. I hope that you do not mind me writing to you and hope that you all feel as much a part of the U3A family as we do here in Scunthorpe. Our web page can be found via the national U3A website should any of your members like to take a look south of the border. Wishing you all health and happiness, especially to John Webster on his 100th birthday.

Andrew Bullen (Secretary and newsletter editor for Scunthorpe & District U3A)

I replied to Andrew, thanking him for his kind words and asking him more about his granny. This is his reply Dear Karen Thank you for your lovely reply. I have had a conversation with our Chairman, Eleanor Wasley, who is very supportive and sends her greetings to John also. Obtaining items for your newsletter is very similar to ours, one person does most of the collecting. I do the gardening section (lifted from a website), quiz, photography and model railway sections. Would you mind if I shared a few snippets from your newsletter? You are welcome to share from ours. Granny came from Shandwick having been born in the early 1890s (1893 rings a bell). She was a herring girl and travelled to the fishing ports for work. She met her husband to be (Rudolph Oakes) in Lowestoft. They lived in the area all their lives. Granny was born Anne Ross and I can still wear the Ross tartan. My mother (Mildred) was granny's daughter. Granny had 4 girls and 7 boys. It may be that there are still nephews or nieces of granny but more likely any relatives will be a generation further away. Sadly, granny died young aged about 68. (I still miss her 60 years on.) Visiting Lowestoft the other year and in particular the maritime museum, my wife (Kathryn) spotted a picture of a herring girl who was very similar in looks to my mother. I was allowed to make a copy of the picture. It was taken in 1910 when granny would have been 17. If you have members who use Zoom, we hold a quiz every other Thursday morning, meeting at 10am. The next one will be on June 25th. If any member of ERAS U3A would like to join us they would be most welcome. I usually send the log-on details a few days before. Not being able to work in teams, we answer the questions on our own. There are lots of laughs and we all go away a bit wiser. No one is expected to set questions on their first visit and it is optional anyway. I always have a good selection as do other members if needed. Last week we had 13 participants and 13 sets of questions. As I said earlier, anyone from ERAS U3A will be very welcome. There are links on our website to the group convenors and you are welcome to publish my email address as it is specifically for U3A use. The last 3 of our newsletters are available on our website. I took over the editorship for the April issue onwards. Best wishes, Andrew

If anyone wants to get back to Andrew, his email address is [email protected]

If you would like to look at their newsletters then just Google Scunthorpe & District U3A to go to their website

Pets Page

This week’s Pet – Lavanja by Anne Fenech

Lavanja moved to her forever home aged 7 weeks on the Friday before the lockdown started. This meant no protective injections from the vet. Therefore she has lived a very cosseted life without making friends, or meeting other dogs for a month longer than usual. So, this called for special measures as she grew into today’s fluffy bundle of bounce, mischief and fun.

Firstly we mowed/ chain sawed a path around the lochan at the bottom on our

garden. Now that she is 4 ½ months old she goes for 3

(20 min) walks a day, without meeting other dogs and less

ticks. When she was wee, we had to introduce her to all sorts of noises (while being

cuddled in our arms) so that she got used to tractors, Lavanja at 3 weeks strimmers, cars, vacuums cleaners, lawn mowers etc. Having since had her injections (when our Vet started clinics up again), she has met all these things standing on her own four paws. So you may have seen us circumnavigating the car park at Morrison's, or been mugged by us when walking on the beach if you look dog friendly. She has got several virtual friends such as Hector the Chocolate Labrador, and Tiller the black Labrador, with whom she exchanges texts occasionally. But she seems very interested in the tadpoles in the lochan. When we go for a walk now she wanders off to the waters edge and stands up to her tummy in water looking intently. If she sees some tadpoles, she pats the water, or woofs at them. This means that she (and we) get rather wet.

The watery theme is continued because she loves trying to bite the stream of water which comes out of the hose when the new lawn is being sprayed.

Her best friends are a soft toy duck which honks and crinkles when she plays with it, and a soft indoor football. She is ball crazy and so brings the ball back to be thrown again, which is unusual for a herding dog. They tend to pin things down to stop them escaping, rather than retrieve them. All our dogs have middle name which reflects their character. Lavanja’s middle

name has not been decided upon yet, but words like cuddly, pickle and playful are on the shortlist. Her personality is growing, along with

her hair. From being a very short haired dog

when we got her home she now sports a 1970’s shaggy hair style. Her hair will not grow really long for quite a while, but she is definitely

getting to look like a proper grown up Bearded Collie.

Lavanja at 5 months 9

Music Leads to Dancing

“So, come on now let`s Dance” My kind of Music, Scottish Dance Music & Traditional Airs

by Helen Campbell

My dancing started in a wooden hall in the countryside with a piper who taught us the basic steps of the pas-de-basque, and played the pipes for dancing. At primary school I learnt the Petronella with my class, and then in senior school we had dancing lessons in place of gym. The headmaster’s wife taught us and eventually we danced at local concerts in kilts and tartan bands across our white blouse and tartan scarves when doing reels. The dances we performed included the Gaelic Waltz, Mo Mh`arthair, An T-Eilean played by Ronnie Ross, Gay Gordons played by Raymond Chuchuk and his band and the Pride of Erin Waltz by Dick Black and his band. While at school we taught ourselves the quick step practising in the school corridors. The music we danced to included ‘Brightside of the Road ’and ‘Whistling Rufus ’both by Ronnie Ross. On a visit to Nethy Bridge Highland games, I met Angus MacPhail of Skipinnish and he signed his CD for me. My grandchildren are surprised I had even heard of Skipinnish never mind the signed CD, as now they are a favourite of the young ones. At college we were lucky to have a visiting lady who taught us set dances like Eightsome Reel, Quadrilles and the Lancers. She played the piano for us to dance to so we danced with great enthusiasm, many of these dances aren’t done any more, but bring back happy memories. Work, marriage and bringing up a family lead to very little dancing unless I was at a wedding reception. No dancing opportunities for me, so imagine my delight when an opportunity arose! While trying to rekindle activities in Nigg, I was on the Hall committee where we had two volunteers, a husband and wife, Cyril and Thelma Weaver. They kindly offered to teach sequence dancing, so each Tuesday for years we danced in Nigg Hall. We then moved the class to Portmahomack for a few years and then to Evanton for over twenty five years. We celebrated Thelma`s twenty fifth anniversary there last year. The class continues with Margaret and Frank now teaching and Thelma still joins us, ninety eight years young! My favourite airs are ‘Highland Cathedral ’on bagpipes, ‘Kate Martins Waltz’, ‘Dark Island ’and ‘Maggie ’by Foster & Allan.

Helen’s – Music Leads to Dancing Continued

My favourite dance is ‘The New Killarney Waltz ’by Dick Black. My new find is Peat &Diesel, they are favourites of the young Scottish Highlanders - not sure what you would dance to it but, the young do their own thing anyway! My favourite is ‘I love Loch Maree Islands’ Music for dancing: Gaelic Waltz: ‘Mo Mh`arthair ’by Ronnie Ross ‘ ‘An T-Eilean ’played by Ronnie Ross The Gay Gordons played by Raymond Chuchuk ‘Pride of Erin Waltz’ by Dick Black and his band The Quick Step ‘Brightside of the Road ’by Ronnie Ross ‘Whistling Rufus ’by Ronnie Ross Highland Schottische: ‘I Bhi Ada’, ‘Calum Crubach’, ‘Munlochy Bridge ’by Skipinnish Square Tango ‘The Carnival is over’ ‘Moonlight Tang ’by Ronnie Ross Saunter Together ‘Dark Island ’by Ian Powrie Britannia Twostep Raymond Chuckuk

Many of these dances aren’t done any more, but are happy memories. It is so sad that dancing will be among the last thing that will be resumed after lockdown.

Helen hasn’t got any pictures of herself dancing so she sent two photos of where she grew up

This is Lochbroom where Helen lived

This is where Helen went to school

Bear

by Karen Abbott

A few years ago I attended a creative writing class and one week we were asked to compose a short piece including six randomly selected words. The words were – hamper, urge, lair, extricate, abhorrence and particular.

This is my short story.

Bear walked nonchalantly along his well worn path through the forest. The sun was dappled by the time it reached the forest floor as its rays tried to penetrate the tall trees and Bear felt safe and happy within his own territory.

The only problem was his grumbling tummy – don’t get me wrong, he had eaten his fill of leaves, berries and insects but he still yearned for ‘real food’. As he trundled through the thick undergrowth he thought about his last real feast! A hearty meal of roast hog – a treat left behind, still hot from the campfire over which it had hung on a spit. The camp left deserted by the human who had frantically raced away in terror as Bear approached, attracted by the delicious aroma.

But now visitors were very few and far between and the chance of a hot meal was not on the cards. There had been too many terrible incidents of mauling by bears and now humans rarely ventured into the forest.

But Bear kept his hopes up that one day he would happen across another unsuspecting victim. He had never tasted human flesh but had heard it was an exquisite delicacy.

Bear suddenly stopped, only just saving himself from falling in his attempt to concentrate on the sound he heard. His highly developed hearing had picked up the sound of voices. He didn’t want to get his hopes up so he tried to suppress his urge to pounce as he peered through the branches. There was no campfire – just a man and woman sitting on a blanket, in front of them was a huge picnic hamper.

Bears excitement had reached fever pitch – what goodies did the hamper hold. Hopefully not chocolate, Bear had an abhorrence of chocolate, several of his friends had died by eating too much chocolate, it was set in a trap as bait and it was a horrible death. Well there was no hot food this time but hopefully some cold chicken, Bear was particularly partial to chicken, perhaps some sausages or even a pie. Pie was a particular favourite of bears. Bear licked his lips in anticipation of what delights he was about to devour, his mouth watering at the thought of the treats in store.

Bear crept closer and the couple suddenly realised they were not alone. They looked up in terror and Bear could see the raw fear in their eyes. The woman screamed and tried to run but the man had obviously read the advice that was posted around the forest and urged her to stand completely still and avoid eye contact with Bear.

Later bear sat contentedly in his lair. He had spent quite some time wondering if he needed to extricate himself from his cosy home. He realised that this could be a problem as he had eaten so much that his girth had expanded to a point where trying to get through the already very narrow entrance to his lair would prove impossible. His stomach was very full and he felt very satisfied with life, he scratched his side and thought about the long sleep ahead. He decided that he wasn’t too bothered about leaving his lair, it was nearly time for hibernation and with his sated appetite he was ready for the cold months ahead.

He looked around at the picnic hamper lying open on its side on the floor, most of the contents strewn around his small but usually tidy den. It’s a shame they were vegetarians thought Bear – the hamper had yielded no more than leaves, fruit, nuts and vegetables, food items he could avail himself of any time. Never mind he thought, I saved the best till last as he delicately picked up one of the last remaining bones and chewed and sucked happily at the flesh.

A Brief History of Hector Malloy by Rhoda Malloy Episode Thirteen

Hector’s Friends Hector’s very first friend was Haggis, a beautiful little French Bulldog who belongs to Louise, my hairdresser from Dornoch. Like Hector, Haggis was born on 20th March, 2016, and although they are totally different in so many ways, they have always enjoyed scampering around together on the beach or, before the new CoCo salon was built, they would have rough and tumble sessions in front of Louise’s old portacabin.

One morning Alan arrived to collect me after my hair appointment and was waiting with Hector on his lead in the car park. The salon door was open, it was a beautiful, bright day. Haggis suddenly careered down the ramp towards them, desperate to greet his friend. After a couple of excited play bows, the fun began with Haggis darting this way and that, wanting Hector to chase him. Being near the road, Alan dared not let Hector off his lead, so his freedom to catch up with Haggis was extremely limited.

Shortly after Haggis’ exit from the salon, we were all startled to hear a loud shout. Rushing to the door, Louise found Alan at the foot of the portacabin ramp with his ankles tied together in Hector’s extendable lead, completely unable to move! It was a source of great amusement for all her customers that morning.

Just Walking by Nettie Mewha

We are now allowed to go out for more walks a day than at the beginning of lockdown, but at the moment we can’t travel for more than five miles, so we are still on the same walks with Hildi, our dog. So how do you make your daily walks more interesting when as one neighbour said the other day, ‘time to walk the prison yard’ as we walked around Saltburn Community Wood yet again. Even a gilded cage is a cage!

Have you tried meaningful walking? Start looking at things on your walks in a new way. Choose a colour to look for on your way, things from flowers to objects in people’s windows and gardens. I spent several walks looking closely at how the leaves on different trees and shrubs unfolded a couple of weeks ago before they achieved full leaf. The beech tree leaves unfold in scales whilst the horse chestnut unfolds its sticky buds into the big finger-like leaflets of palmate leaves. Look at how flowers appear close up, rather than just saying that is a bluebell or a dandelion. The horse chestnut flower spikes which I watched unfolding were really quite complex and there is a whole range of colours if you look closely at what looks like just a pink or white flower.

I’ve been reading a book on ‘Ways to Wander.’ It includes ways of walking, or rather wandering and advises you on how to take in more of the environment in which you walk. It encourages you to take notes or photographs as you go of something that interests you, or that you would like to know more about. Or you could go for a walk and just take left or right turns only and see where you end up. You could walk with a tennis ball, seeing how the different surfaces react as you bounce the ball. Or… yes you get the general idea, some of the ideas may be a little wacky but it does keep you entertained.

I have walked along the beach collecting different coloured stones, pieces of pottery or sea glass depending on each day’s walk with the dog. Then the other day after quite a stormy night and a high tide I realised we had more types of seaweed than normal and I counted about 10 types. Well, that got me interested, what are they?

There was bright green algae, brown seaweed including bladder wracks and kelp and some red sea weeds. All very different, and looking at this scrawny mess of several types of bladderwrack, slimy sea lettuce and various others I could not help but think who on earth thought of eating it? Well perhaps if it was kelp and you had very fresh seas around you, not the industrial Cromarty Firth, you might give it a go.

You would not be surprised to learn it was the Japanese, who it appears, were the first to add it to their diet thousands of years ago. They still have a daily diet that includes at least six varieties of seaweed because of its health benefits. In China only the guests of the Emperor were served it and the first book on sea vegetables came from China too. Other island communities around the world rely on its benefits as well. It was first used in about the 1200’s in Scotland and Ireland, a little late to the party but we got there!

Jeanie Lloyd’s Gardening News

You can see from the photo what our winter vegetable garden looked like. We redecorated and re-carpeted our bedroom at the beginning of the year and waste not, want not, being our motto, Steve used bits of the old bedroom carpet as blankets for the vegetable beds He thought they brought a bit of colour blankets for the vegetable beds. to the garden. To be fair to the previous owners of the house, the carpet did actually look a better colour on the floor than that shown on the photo, but it obviously bleached while being outside. The carpet has now been removed and is providing a cosy blanket for the various compost bins ranged along the back wall of the vegetable plot. We tackled, or perhaps I should say, butchered the very big apple trees and I thought they might have gone into a bit of a sulk. However, they are flowering up now, so with luck we may get a better crop than we did last year. The plum trees too have been reduced in height and flowered magnificently and for a few weeks they provided food for masses of bees – the nice big fat chunky ones, not the wee skinny-ma-linky ones – can you tell I don’t know much about bees? We were also amazed at just how many peacock butterflies flitted in and about the flowers, landing occasionally and spreading their pretty wings. Those flowers went over to be followed by the pear trees, which again produced a magnificent show, and now it’s the turn of the apples. To be fair the pear trees have never produced particularly nice fruit and I’m not sure why that is. I had a couple of cordon pears in Scarborough and the fruit from them was fabulous.

Jeanie’s Gardening News Cont...

Steve widened the southern border of the garden and now, of course, we can’t get hold of plants for it. We’ve done the best we can and like you, we’re broadcasting annual seed and we’ll just have to see how that goes. One thing about gardening – you learn to live with mistakes, or happy accidents as the case may be. Lidl had loads of packets of seeds. I’d thought they were 5 for £2, which I thought was a bargain. But better yet, they turned out to be 5 for a £1, so I bought loads and loads more. I must say I was pretty surprised to find just how many packets of cornflowers I’d bought and they just might turn out to be a happy accident rather than a big mistake.

Fed up with cutting so much grass, Steve has finally relented and decided to let grass around the area around the fruit trees on the east side to just grow. We’ll make an assessment at the end of the month as to whether we continue with it until the end of the growing season. I’ve always fancied a bit of a hay meadow – I can just see myself with a scythe, reducing it in height.

From our Chairperson, Franca Newsletter Prattle Hello All

I hope you are all managing to stay positive in the ongoing pandemic. The Scottish Government has told us today that we will move into phase 2 of the easing of lockdown but I don't see that it will change much for most of us though those shielding are getting a bit more freedom. We certainly still cannot not organise any ERAS meetings but I think that some of you are organising socially distanced meetings outdoors with one other person. At least it is a start. We have lots to be thankful for so I guess we just need to stay patient and focus on the positives.

Stay safe

Franca

We’ll make an assessment at the end of the month as to whether w I’ve always fancied a A Rude Awakening

- a true account experienced by one of our members during the second week of lockdown

Lying cosily beneath my duvet, drifting in and out of muddled dreams, I gradually became aware of the halo of light seeping around and above my curtains. Morning had arrived. As usual, I had absolutely no idea what day it was, and would not have been able to work out the date even under threat of torture. We were in lockdown. Such information was no longer important. After all I would not be venturing out to the shops to rifle through the chiller cabinet or the fruit and veg displays, hunting for products with the best sell-by dates. No, we were now left to the mercy of the Asda 'Click and Collect' brigade, who were obviously trained to select items that were the least fresh to place in desperate buyers' order boxes. Never mind, at least we had such an option. The need to place ourselves in danger by entering a shop was now no longer necessary. I lay in my warm cocoon and stretched out my legs, luxuriating in the peaceful half-light. Reluctantly I decided to face the new day and leave my bed. Throwing back the covers, I felt instantly cold. Looking at my nightdress, I realised that I was soaked in sweat. I rushed into the bathroom to study myself in the mirror. Did I feel ill? I was certainly in a state of shock. My skin didn't appear red or blotchy. I gave a few tentative coughs, preparing myself for a paroxysm, imagining my poor lungs struggling to cope. I knew a high temperature and a dry cough were definite symptoms of the corona virus. I began to panic, fearing the onset of shortness of breath, plus a myriad of other dreaded symptoms. My head began to ache as I returned to my bedroom to get back under my duvet. There was no possibility of that. The sheets were saturated. They would have to be changed. My fever must have been record-breakingly high, judging by the state of the bed clothes. Pulling back the duvet, my hand made contact with my hot water bottle. Reaching over, I grabbed hold of it and realised straight away it was empty. It must have sprung a leak in the night! Joy of joys, what a relief!

This recipe is a joint effort from Franca & Jackie!

Cheese Triangles Ingredients Oven: 180 C / Gas 4 75g (3oz) margarine Time: 15-20 mins 75g (3oz) SR flour 75g (3oz) cheddar cheese Rub the margarine into the flour until it’s 75g (3oz) oatmeal/porridge oats like breadcrumbs. (Jackie likes to add a little Add grated cheese and oatmeal/porridge. cayenne pepper to hers) Work together. Roll into a round about 8 inches in diameter and cut into 8 triangles. Place on greased tray and bake until golden brown. Serve with soup.

Photo is courtesy of Jackie

NIGG

Helen Campbell’s cousin, also named Helen, wrote this for Helen on her 70th birthday. Both she and her husband are historians By 300 AD local tribes had come together to create the kingdom of the northern Picts and the cultural importance of the Fern Peninsular, within the kingdom, is shown by its magnificent early Christian monuments. Great cross-slabs were erected at Nigg, Shandwick, Hilton and Tarbat, all carved in the late eighth or early ninth centuries. For over 1200 years visitors to Nigg have been drawn to its magnificent cross-slab now housed in Nigg Old Church. This is not only an important relic of the Pictish period but a major work of European art. The entrance to the deep waters of the Cromarty Firth has been of strategic importance for centuries. In 1179 the Scots King William (later known as ‘William the Lion’) established a castle overlooking the firth, as part of his campaign to control the north. This was at Dunskaith (Gaelic Dun Skath - the Fort of Dread). A few traces remain. The ferry crossing between Nigg and Cromarty was also important as the most direct route north and south. Two Scottish kings – Robert the Bruce and James IV – crossed here, both travelling to the medieval shrine of St Duthac at Tain. The Cromarty Firth was a major naval base during the First World War and, to a lesser extent, in the Second World War. There are extensive remains of the fortification of the Firth from these periods, including a mine store near here and gun emplacements on the North Sutor. The headlands at the mouth of the firth were originally known as the East and West Sutors - but the Admiralty, unable to adapt to the local sense of direction, changed this to the North and South Sutors in 1913, when the firth became a naval base. The prosperity of the parish of Nigg has been based on both agriculture and industry. An eighteenth-century gimal (grain store) with cross-stepped gables is now part of the Nigg Ferry Inn. Grain was stored here before being shipped south to the markets in Edinburgh In the 1970’s Nigg became a major centre for the construction of drilling platforms for the North Sea oil industry. A pipeline was laid to bring oil onshore from the Beatrice Field to storage tanks, where it could be transferred to tankers berthed at long pier to the west of here. Here modern industry coexists with a rich natural environment. Nigg Bay is an internationally important habitat for waders and wild fowl and a school of over 100 bottle- nosed dolphins swim here and in the wider waters of the Moray Firth.

Just for fun

Edition 12’s ‘Guess the Object’ was, of course, a coffee capsule!

Many thanks to Rhoda Malloy

Can you guess what this object is? Answer in next week’s newsletter

Thanks to Anne Fenech for this week’s interesting object

Just for fun

Continued

Here are the answers to the puzzles in Edition 12

Question Question

A farmer has just visited a local market and has Below are thirteen words, each of which bought a wolf, a goat, and a cabbage. However, has had two letters removed. the shortest way home involves a river crossing, The remaining letters are in the correct and the farmer has a very small boat, which can order. Between them, the thirteen words have only carry the farmer and one of the purchases. had the letters A-Z removed, each once only. Can you find the original words? 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. Solution o Similarly, the goat would love to be left BAG alone with the cabbage! DED

DIA UOA Solution IDE First journey he takes the goat OEL He then returns with an empty boat UMS Then he takes the wolf across PYY He then returns with the goat and leaves him GOU Next he takes the cabbage NAL CRA He returns again with an empty boat UMB Finally he takes the goat DTY

Question Last week I travelled from London to Leeds, which is a distance of 174 miles. I started at 9.15am and completed the journey with an average speed of 40 miles per hour. On the way back, in the evening, I travelled exactly the same route, starting at 5.15pm. The traffic was light and I completed the journey with an average speed of 60 miles per hour. What was the overall average speed for round trip? The answer is not 50 mph.

Solution 48 miles per hour

Time = Distance divided by speed Speed = Distance divided by time The outward journey was 174 miles divided by 40mph = 4.35 hours The return journey was 174 miles divided by 60mph = 2.9 hours Therefore I travelled a total of 2 x 174 = 348 miles. In a total of 4.35 hours plus 2.9 hours = 7.25 hours. My average speed was therefore 348 miles divided by 7.25 hours = 48 miles per hour

Even more fun......

Can you solve these puzzles? – answers will be in next

week’s edition

 What comes in once a minute, twice in a moment and never in a thousand years?

 I have keys, but no locks. I have space, but no room. You can enter, but you can’t go outside. What am I?

 ByI have changing seas the without third letter water, of each coasts of the words without below, sand, can you towns make anotherwithout valid word? people, and mountains without land. What am I? You have to change each word such that the third letters will reveal a ten letter word  whenA man shaves several times aread day but still has a beard. downwards.Who is

Therefore,he? what now reads KRZSAPROKD will be a real word. BAKE CURE MAZE PEST TheseNE wordsAT can all have a letter addedRO andPE then be arranged to PORT This multiplication contains the all make FOa OnewD 5 letter word. POKE the numbers 1 – 9. Can you Eg NOUNSODA + I = UNION complete it?

If the 7 letters are an anagram of CHEMIST, what are the new *** words? 3*X

MAIL ---- EXIT GOSH **** CITY

NEWT DENY MINI

Buddleia Globosa by Rhoda Malloy

I really enjoyed Franca’s article in last week’s newsletter about her ‘Secret Garden’. The quotation of the week had to be, “Who needs TV? You can get all the sex and violence you need on our grass!”

In response to her request for photos of plants that are looking good at this time of year, I had to choose our Buddleia Globosa bush, also known as the orange ball tree. It is absolutely spectacular at the moment both in appearance and perfume.

I went over to it yesterday in order to fully appreciate its magnificence and as my shadow fell onto it, a host of butterflies, bees and hoverflies that had been enjoying its nectar, flew off in a cloud.

So, combined with beauty, this shrub is of great value to a wide variety of insects, making it a definite favourite in our garden.

IT Tips from our IT Group Leader Alan Malloy

Online Banking

Over the last few years, we have watched the significant decline of banks from our towns and high streets. For most of us, online banking is becoming increasingly necessary. The present pandemic has shown too, the potential dangers of physically handling money. Data from major banks show that cash withdrawals have dropped by 60%.

Staying Safe Reminders

1. Do not give any personal information* to anyone until you have verified their credentials (*name, address, bank details, etc). -Any concerns, do not reply. 2. Make sure that your computer has up-to-date anti-virus software and your firewall is installed 3. Never click on links on emails claiming to come from you bank or other financial organisation. Your bank will never ask you for personal information. 4. Sign up to ‘Verified by Visa’ or ‘MasterCard Secure Code’ whenever you are given the option while shopping online. 5. Finally, do check your bank and credit card statements to make sure all entries are genuine.

To help protect you, organisations such as Action Fraud ( actionfraud.police.uk ) provide not only excellent advice, but somewhere to report any fraud.

Signing Up to Online Banking

If you haven’t got an online bank account, you should enquire at your bank to get one. They are easy to set up and come with a raft of useful safety features.

Understandably, you will have to produce proof of identity, such as your passport and a recent utility bill, which may involve either visiting or posting these your bank but the effort needed to do this will be repaid once your online account is set up.

You will need to create a user ID (which could be your email address) and think of a strong password (remember a minimum of 12 randomly chosen characters). Often the banks will include further checks which include for example, memorable dates or names.

Once your online banking account has been opened, which takes a few days, you will be able to regularly check your bank account and make payments electronically.

This may be using Direct Debits (variable amounts) or Standing Orders (same amounts) for regular payments, or BACS* transfers for one-off or infrequent payments. (*Bankers Automated Clearing Services).

Most banks now use two-step verification for payments to people or shops you used before. haven’t Once you have set up the payment, the bank will send a verification code to your phone usually as a text (SMS) message, to check that it actually is you making a payment. You will need to enter that code (usually an 8 character password) to confirm the payment.

Finally, if you are making a large payment to a new person via BACS, it is wise to send a small sum (£10) first, check that this has been received and then send the balance.

Secret Garden Diaries Episode 2 by Franca Reid

This week I thought I'd focus on my poly tunnel as things are progressing well.

Just before lockdown I bought a lot of packets of seeds in Lidl. Most of them cost 29 pence each so I didn't have a lot of hope for success especially for the likes of tomatoes and courgettes. How wrong was I! Please let me know where you get your seeds? My bug bear is that there are always too many in a pack. Do they grow as well the next year? At the start of lockdown in my living room I planted trays of tomatoes, courgettes, peppers, pumpkin, aubergine and cucumber.90% of the seeds grew into healthy seedlings. I had hundreds of plants especially tomatoes! How did you get on with planting seeds this year? Most of mine I managed to disperse between friends and neighbours who were unable to buy plants due to nurseries being closed.

I planted most of what I kept into the poly tunnel. 27

As is usual I lost a few plants when I planted them out but as you can see below more than enough have survived. Some of the tomatoes have started to produce their first trusses of flowers so I'll start feeding them.

Tomatoes Courgette

28 Cucumber Pumpkin I do have a slug problem in the poly tunnel and after trying many things over the years to stop them from eating my plants I have had to resort to slug repellent which is very successful though I hate finding the shrivelled up little slug corpses. Do any of you have any more environmentally friendly

suggestions? I've tried the ground shells, coffee dregs, roof felt, organic slug pellets but none of them seem to work.

I don't know where the wee devils come from because I have gone out at 10 o'clock at night to catch them but there are never any. Then in the morning another few plants are nibbled. Slugs are not the only pests who live in the tunnel as I'm sure mice contribute to the plant destruction at times too. I also have thousands of white flies on the strawberries but they don't seem to impact on how they produce fruit. Any ideas on how to get rid of them? This year again I have a good crop of

strawberries in the poly tunnel. Those outside are nowhere near ready yet. I'm hoping for them to be ready as the poly tunnel ones are finished but nature never goes according to plan! Are your berries ready? It'd be interesting to compare to note the difference in altitude. Living in my tunnel

strawberries are a good number of toads and frogs. You have to remember this when you reach down for some fruit and it all starts moving! Do they eat slugs and white fly? They definitely don't eat the strawberries so I am very happy to share

the tunnel with them.

I planted peas and beans back in early April in the ground of the poly tunnel but only one bean grew and two peas. I tried again in a different part of the tunnel but still directly into the earth mid May and all of these germinated and are growing well. This ground is always very wet due to the clay subsoil so I wondered if the seeds were rotting but it appears not.

I did plant some peas last October to see if I could get a spring crop. They were poor but there was enough for one meal and to plant. I have never planted peas directly from the plant without them being dried out before but some of them have started to come through. Something else I've learned! Any tips on when is best to sow these? Is it normally not effective to do an autumn sow?

I also planted spinach, broccoli, carrot, onions, garlic, lettuce, mixed salad

leaves, rocket and radish. I have thinned and transplanted the broccoli and we are well through eating the

salad plants. The onions seem to be growing well but the garlic has rotted I think. Any tips on growing garlic? How

do you know when onions are ready to pick?

Last year I was given some asparagus seeds which I planted in a raised bed in the tunnel. I've never grown it before but I looked up the book and followed the instructions. Nothing happened. A couple of months later I decided that they weren't going to grow and planted some tomato plants in their place. About three months after originally planting them green fronds started to appear. At first I was baffled as to what they were and eventually realised it was the asparagus! You mustn't pick it for two years apparently so I left it over winter and in

April up it popped again and is happily taking up space in a raised bed exactly where I'd rather it wasn't but I mustn't move it apparently. It better produce a crop next year! Any tips on growing this very welcome. How do I know when to pick it? How do you harvest it?

I have also planted some companion plants as these are supposed to be beneficial for the veggies. I planted French marigolds, pot marigolds, sweet peas and sunflowers.

The only ones that have survived are the pot marigolds. Any ideas on why most of these seeds did not even germinate?

My grape vine is growing away although I don't think it has so many branches as usual. Maybe they'll come yet. We usually get a couple of very small bunches of grapes from this but I live in hope that one year we'll get some to eat. Any tips for getting a better crop?

Last week was flower of the year week apparently so please send me some pictures of your favourite blooms this year so far. Carol has sent me this:

‘Thank you for your gardening feature. This magnificent plant I inherited when I moved to Scotland. It is named Bergenia; a large plant with large evergreen, paddle shaped leaves, also called ‘Elephants Ears’, and as I have just learned, also called ‘Pigs Squeak’, because of the noise the leaves make when rubbing two leaves together; a talking point when showing the grandchildren this special plant you have growing in your garden. Apparently, there are several varieties with

different coloured flowers; mine has pink flowers. They need

plenty of room to display their beauty, and I'm just about to attempt to

transplant one of mine to give it more room. In the winter time some

of the leaves go black and soft, but I just remove them and they

have come back with fresh growth in the spring’.

Please email me on fnreid@btinternet with how your plants are doing. It'd be great to share experiences. I'm always desperate for tips and new ideas as I am just experimenting all the time – no expertise here! 32

Community Hub

Highland Council has opened many Household Waste Recycling Centres.

FrancaAlness, Brora, Dingwall, Inverness, Tain, Thurso, Wick and plenty more. However Bonar Bridge, Durness and Lairg remain closed.

Journeys to the centres must only be made if your waste cannot be

stored safely at home. In addition to bagged household waste and garden waste you can now dispose of cardboard and both small and large electrical items

For more information email: [email protected]

Or go to their website https://highland.gov.uk Highland Council Helpline 0300 303 1362

TOP TIPS To Stay Safe

With announcement last week that Scotland is moving into phase four of the easing of restrictions, you can find out exactly what this means for you and get the latest information at https://www.gov.scot/coronavirus-covid-19/

Just a thought to end on

Coming in the Next Edition

 Walter Pattie’s Desert Island Discs  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]