Heading North West

Thanks to everyone who sent birthday wishes to me yesterday.  Gifts from Blippers were also received!  These included a pair of Marigolds (I kid you not)  a copy of the Financial Times, a donkey, a coffee and walnut cake (courtesy of CMC) a copy of the script for ‘The Mousetrap’ – in Hungarian, a guide to tobacconists in Carpathia, a signed edition of the 1972 Deryck Guyler Annual.  And, I also kid you not, a 23 year old bottle of Pulteney.  I share my birthday with Kathleen, so CMC took us both out for a meal in the evening.  It was nonplussing, not having Dougal to speak to.  Today doing more preparations for the proposed polycrub - after visiting my mother.  Much to our amazement we had a visit from Neil, who arrived with half a dozen of eggs.  We used to get him very regularly when he kept kye on our ground.  He has never visited any of the Orkney Islands, or even been over the barriers, or been outwith Orkney in his life.  But he kens everything that’s going on the Parish.  He’s superb to listen to.  Extremely Orcadian spoken.  A bit like a sheep through a scrambler.  MI5 would have struggled with their listening devices.  There would have been mass walkouts at Bletchley Park, and by the Stasi.
 
The skipper of the pictured vessel does this trip most days of the week so was unperturbed heading towards the rain.  In fact he was in his hammock reading Hattie Jacques’ autobiography and fondling his grog.
 
Frances de la Tour is 79