Creating traditions

I have a tradition in October of spending a weekend walking in Corrour. This is my second year in a row. Long enough to make it a tradition in my books. As long as I am able to, I plan to continue this tradition. Last year I stayed in the youth hostel and was introduced to the station house. This time I treated myself to a stay at the Corrour Station House and dined in their restaurant. It is one of the best places I have ever stayed on holiday.

Sketches of Jazz Musicians

We lose special people through the years. A person that just entered your life for a mere moment but made an impact. Or someone who played a lead role in your life. Maybe you shared a certain phase of life like university or just found your lives crossing paths. Maybe you didn't even meet but this person touched your life.

Vocabulary

It just snuck up on me. I can't remember the exact moment.

It didn't take long for me to pick up many words/phrases that I hear daily in Scotland. But there is one word in particular that would not come naturally. It sounded so awkward, forced, foreign when I said it. I even practiced saying it when I was alone. After a few months, I gave up...figured it would just never become part of my natural vocabulary. Then last week I realized...aye, I do say it...aye has become natural. Yes, yeah, ok...are all still in my vocabulary. "Aye" is just added to the mix.

A three munro weekend

Time for me to get high again. I hit the road in my hired car Saturday morning with munros on my mind. Destination: Loch Tay. Ben Lawers National Nature Reserve.

The walk I chose begins through the forest (that would be the sparse collection of trees in the foreground), then climbing up to the ridge in the distance.

City centre

Working in the city centre. I have joined the stream of suits flowing into the city each morning. Quiet morning trains with people reading the morning paper, busy on their phones, enjoying a few tunes, or catching a few more moments of sleep. Upon arriving in the city centre, we all whisk away to our respective workplaces.

Adventurous or lost?

Adventurous or lost....sometimes it is hard to tell the difference. No one has openly suggested I may be lost but it has crossed my mind a few times over the last few years. Well, now that I think about it, the idea has come up periodically throughout my life.

Sticks in the park

I admit I am easily entertained. I just can't seem to get used to seeing a boy and his dad walking down a city street, wee golf bag with a handful of irons, headed to the park. There is a designated pitch and putt in a park nearby. I often see folks there, working on their game or having a fun competition among friends or just playing. What shocks me is that they are often using full swings and hitting distances of 150 yards. I love the casualness of grabbing a few clubs and heading to your local park.

Here and there

In May I returned to the Pacific Northwest after being away for a year. I hadn't really thought about how long I had been away until I was headed up Highway 405. Suddenly it seemed like ages since I had been to the NW, almost a bit foreign. It took a few days for that feeling to disappear.

Mother's Day

It is a special weekend. It is Mother's Day (in the States). A time to acknowledge the incredible woman that is my mom. How wonderful it is to have been raised by a woman with such intelligence, style, strength. I am so grateful to have her as a role model in my life. Oh, she has other qualities as well. She has a great attention to detail. I can't even imagine how difficult it was to sew my dance outfits (like fitted velvet jackets with silver trim!!). There was no better feeling than walking on that stage to compete, knowing my costume was impeccable (and comfortable!). She is the person you want on your team in a golf tournament. She can sound like a lion when waking up. I love that in addition to being my mom, she is my friend.


Happy Mother’s Day, Mom! I love you.

Two months in Shetland

The decision to live two months in Hillswick, a town in the north of Shetland, is one of the best decisions I have made.
Staying in a self-catering place that has hundreds of years of history- a barn built in the Eighteenth Century sitting atop buildings built much earlier, possibly a monastery- a barn that has had variety of uses over the years, including housing some of the seals recovering from the Braer oil spill in 1993...
Getting things I need at a local shop which is a short beach walk away and occasional bus trips into town...
Quitting my job and not actively pursuing employment...
Exploring activities I love, especially those that don't fit into a work week...

I'm glad I found a way to make it happen. And while I will be returning to the workforce, there are aspects of the my life from the two months that I intend to carry on.

Hillswick. See the white house (Old Manse) on the ness (peninsula) - looks like it is on the left end of the beach? I was staying in a stone building just to the left of it.

Wildlife sanctuary

What has been the best part of my recent stay in Shetland? Spending time at the wildlife sanctuary. I am tremendously grateful for and inspired by their dedication to the local wildlife and the community.

Prior to coming, I had been following their recent work with helping abandoned and/or sick seal pups and otter cubs via Facebook. When I arrived, I descended on them out of the blue to volunteer. While I have been here, I have spent a number of afternoons at the sanctuary. My intention was to help, put myself to good use. The reality is I have benefited so much from spending time with them, so much more than I have helped.

The release of two seal pups into the wild was a moment I will never forget.

Basking in the sun

Prepare to get sleepy. Today was glorious. Another day of exploration in Shetland. It is a good thing I prefer lounging in the heather. Because all the rock ledges were already taken. This place makes my heart sing.

Sea and sky

Sea and sky are a canvas for the ever-changing light.

Beach impressions

A series of mild storms have brought ashore new treasures. Shells. Massive amounts of kelp. Altered beach structure. And our footprint. It is a bit sad what washes up on shore. Most manmade items I merely want to dispose of again. Some I find oddly artistic, yet so devastating for the environment. Between weathers over the last week, I walked the beaches nearby. Here are some recent impressions made on the beach between weather....

Am I a nomad?

Not a nomad. To be a nomad, I would be part of a community that moves about the land. What about a leaf blowing across the land trying to reach the point where the wind can no longer displace it? Maybe. Although I have made conscious decisions with each move. I like to think it is following my instincts. Those that still keep handwritten address books learned long ago to use pencil for me. I can only imagine that the paper is getting worn out or that they have abandoned hope of keeping my current mailing address.

Looking at the ground

As gorgeous as the landscape and wildlife is that surrounds you in Shetland, I am just as happy to be absorbed with the ground under my feet.

A number

Age. The number of years since you were born. A measurement. I don't want to give it any other meaning or importance. Yet it is hard to resist using it as a benchmark, especially numbers divisible by ten. The thoughts just seem to creep in....by 30, I should be in a certain place in my life and achieved X, Y, and Z.

If you had asked the young me what I thought I would be like at my current age, I would have described someone looking much older than I do now, raising a family, owning a home. Not very accurate. But I didn't know what my current self knows now.

A break

Two weeks ago today, I was packing in preparation of living in Shetland for a few months. The next day I took a train, another train, a bus, a ferry, another bus, and finally a taxi to reach my home for a wee bit. I'm taking a break.

If you want a label, you could call it:

Re-energizing
Escapism

Adventure

Soul searching

Breathing

Exploring

Learning

Connecting with nature

Letting my mind wander

Becoming more active

Whatever it is, it is great and I am so thankful to have this opportunity. This place gives me so much inspiration and happiness. 

Hampden

Last autumn I finally made the trip to Hampden, Scotland's National Stadium.  A place with a glorious history. Home to the Scotland National Team as well as Queen's Park - the club that bought the land and built the largest stadium of that time. When the stadium still had standing only sections, it held up to almost 150,000 people. Now over a hundred years old, it has been updated and has a capacity of 52,000.