November Calendar

[Nick]

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Very Novemberish I thought . . .

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Close hauled somewhere in the Minch
..............................photo - Adrian Snowball

[jeffree]

For somebody who has a geography degree, i had not heard of the Minch and thought it was some small island but it is not, looked it up;

The Minch (Scottish Gaelic An Cuan Sgìth, Cuan na Hearadh, An Cuan Leòdhasach), also called The North Minch, is a strait in north-west Scotland, separating the north-west Highlands, and the northern Inner Hebrides, from Lewis and Harris in the Outer Hebrides. It was known as "Skotlandsfjörð" ("Scotland's fjord/firth") in Old Norse.[1]

The Lower Minch (an Cuan Canach), also called The Little Minch, is to the south and separates Skye from the lower Outer Hebrides: North Uist, Benbecula, South Uist, Barra etc. It opens into the Sea of the Hebrides.

The Minch and Lower Minch form part of the Inner Seas off the West Coast of Scotland, as defined by the International Hydrographic Organization[2].

The Minch ranges from 20 to 45 miles (72 km) wide and is approximately 70 miles (110 km) long. It is believed to be the site of the biggest meteorite ever to hit the British Isles.[3] The Lower Minch is about 15 miles (24 km) wide. In June 2010 Eilidh Macdonald became the first person to swim the Little Minch, taking 9.5 hours to cross from Waternish Point on Skye to Rodel on Harris.[4]

The Minch Project is a collaboration of Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, the Highland Council and the Scottish Natural Heritage which aims to reduce pollution, minimise erosion, minimise litter and promote tourism — in particular wildlife tourism such as dolphin watching — in the Minch. Pollution is a particular concern as the Minch is a busy shipping lane — two and a half million tonnes of shipping pass through the channel each month.

- a tongue twister or wee ode for the sailors - "winching up in the minch in the wind"

[Nick]

- a tongue twister for the sailors - "winching up in the winch in the wind"

I think you meant "winching in the minch in the wind" . Slow morning at work Jeff?

[Telo]

Nice pic, Adrian.

Nick, isn't this a bit early. I mean, it's only the first of November today.

[jeffree]

- a tongue twister for the sailors - "winching up in the winch in the wind"

I think you meant "winching in the minch in the wind" . Slow morning at work Jeff?

Aye, i edited it 5 mins later realising my mistake. Office has ground to a halt of sorts, the database has packed in, BT, our work IT suppliers are trying to fix it, frankly, they are dire at IT, here anyway.

[Nick]

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Can't believe no-one has noticed this month's deliberate mistake yet . . .

[MrMcP]

The extra day you added to the month? Very generous, looking forward to a long lie.

[Telo]

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Can't believe no-one has noticed this month's deliberate mistake yet . . .

We assumed that it was a device to give you an extra day to get December's JPEG ready.

[DaveS]

Nice pic, Adrian.

I tried to pass this on when I saw Adrian last night, but he wasn't responding.

For those who don't know, Adrian is seriously ill. He collapsed suddenly in early August and has been in Ninewells Hospital, Dundee since. He was diagnosed with an infection on the brain. They operated to drain fluid and initially he made good progress and, with physiotherapy, was beginning to walk again, but then had a relapse. Further good initial progress was followed by another relapse. A few weeks ago the medics were saying they could do no more, but now they think he's making some progress. He does now also have pneumonia in both lungs, but his temperature is slowly coming down.

I've been in to see him regularly. He is sometimes alert enough to make eye contact, but only very occasionally manages to speak.

[claymore]

Not wishing to make light of a serious illness - and I'm sure I speak for all when wishing Adrian a full and speedy recovery - the sight of Davey in a nurses uniform sat by yer bedside, wid be enough tae render anyone speechless.....

[Telo]

Dave, like everyone else, I'm so terribly sorry to learn of Adrian's illness, which sounds very serious indeed. Like Claymore, I wish him a full and speedy recovery.

[Nick]

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I got an email from Adrian's cousin Pamela in mid-August informing me of Adrian's condition and assumed some of you had heard as well, but I have just had a look back and it was just sent to contacts in Adrian's address book.

Glad to hear he is making some progress, although obviously he is still very poorly. Please keep us posted Dave, and let us know if there is anythng we can do collectively or separately. If he becomes responsive tell him we are all thinking of him and hope to see him on CC2011.

[Silkie]

I had the same email and echo the sentiments expressed above but don't tell him that we hope to see him on the CC2011. Rather say that he's taken the shilling and he'd better get his erse in gear or the press will be paying a visit to his sick-bed.