Tuesday 11 August

An overcast day but mainly dry as yet.

The hurricane scene currently includes five systems: Etau near Japan (a minor tropical storm), tropical depression Felicia (near Hawaii), tropical storm Maka in the central Pacific, more than 1200 miles from Hawaii; another tropical depression further east in the Pacific (more than 1200 miles west of Mexico) and the Atlantic making a token effort with a tropical depression west of the Cape Verde islands. That is actually the second system of the 2009 Atlantic hurricane season, which has been underway for nearly 2½ months now. A massive contrast to the 2005 season, which was up to its 9th named system - 4 tropical storms and 5 hurricanes had already formed at this point.

Monday 10 August

Bright day with varying amounts of cloud and feeling warm. Temperature is 17C, so it's not that warm. Pleasant surprise this afternoon, in the shape of a stack of information from one of the island historical societies for my World War I tribute site for the island of Lewis. Just finished adding that to the site; I can now also make a tribute for the man who left the house I am typing this from for the War.

Hawaii is going to get a dousing from tropical storm Felicia, which will come rumbling by in the early hours of tomorrow morning (European time), with winds of force 7 to 8 on the Beaufort scale. The Far East is getting it in the neck, with tropical depression Etau bringing copious amounts of rain to southern Japan. Casualties and damage are already being reported, in spite of the fact that this weak system is still 400 miles away.

Sunday 9 August

Sun is trying to break through the mid-level cloud - successfully so. It will be a welcome sight across the globe in China and Taiwan, where two typhoons have wrought havoc. The wind wasn't so much the problem, it was the sheer amount of rainfall. Taiwan had to stomach 2 metres (80 inches) of rain, which caused a hotel to collapse. Across the Taiwan Strait, China is getting prepared for Typhoon Morakot (read: tropical storm Morakot). A million people have been evacuated. The second typhoon (actually, little more than a tropical depression) Goni caused problems on Hainan Island, west of Hong Kong, where 14 villages had to be evacuated.

Source: BBC

Hurricane update - 9 August

Hurricane Felicia continues to head west towards Hawaii, but adverse atmospheric conditions are taking their toll on the storm. Although at present a category I hurricane, Felicia will weaken steadily on its approach to Hawaii. Nonetheless, a tropical storm watch is in force in the Big Island and Maui County, including the islands of Maui, Kahoolawe, Lanai and Molokai. This means that tropical storm conditions are possible within the next 48 hours. Felicia is expected to be near or over Hawaii on Monday local time.

If you're in Hawaii, or know people there, please follow the advisories of the Central Pacific Hurricane Center closely; they are issued every 3 hours.

Saturday 8 August

Today is the day of the Lewis Carnival and the weather has decided not to spoil it with buckets of rain. It is breezy and cool, but we can cope with that.

The Lewis carnival had 6 floats in it this year; I am reliably informed that previous years (before I came to the island in 2005) there would be as many as 30. However, some years ago, someone fell off a float after the procession and was killed when the lorry ran over him. So (as you can see in the pictures), they ordered the installation of barriers on the floats, which took a lot of the fun out of the construction of the things. Anyway, too much talk already: here are some pictures and videos.




More here.

Friday 7 August

Sunny and fairly warm, with a breeze that is not as noticeable as yesterday. Pity about the midges though - the moment you sit down they're there. And later on, they'll be there in their zillions. It's August, what do you expect.

Talking of using a sledgehammer to crack a nut - yesterday's downtime on Twitter and problems on Facebook were caused because someone did not agree with the writings of a blogger in Georgia. All the social networking sites used by Cyxymu were targeted, according to the BBC. Twitter is still not working properly for me - can only access it through the 3rd party client Tweetdeck.

A few pics from the first days of August:

Closing notes

An unusual number of posts on Atlantic Lines today. First of all, many thanks to all who sent me happy birthday wishes through Facebook, Twitter (when it was working), email and on here. I realise I'm duplicating, but better too many than none at all. No, I didn't do anything special: it was a very windy day out here, although quite sunny as well. Did a lot of work on my Roll of Honour site.

Twitter is virtually back to normal, after what appears to have been a bout of cyber warfare between Georgia and Russia, according to some reports. Facebook, Youtube and LiveJournal (a favourite blogging platform in Russia) were also affected. Wish they'd just smash each other's heads in rather than involve everybody else.

64 years ago today

The first atomic bomb was dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima to force the Japanese Imperial forces to surrender. They did not do so until after a second atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki on 9 August 1945. The death toll from both devices, by the end of 1945, stood at 220,000. More people succumbed to the after-effects of the bombs in following years.

Never again. But the same was said at the end of World War I and II.
However, should nuclear war ever occur, it will be the end of all wars.

As there won't be anyone left to go to war for or against.

Twitter down, Facebook not working properly

Twitter has been down for more than an hour now, although Twitter Search shows that it is still possible to tweet using mobile devices. Twitter Status says they don't know what is causing the problem. So, on to Facebook.

But I can't put anything into Facebook either. So, on to Blogger.

Well, that's where the buck stops. I am able to put in an old-fashioned entry and take things on from here. Social networking by Internet? Well, it's up the spout this afternoon :-)

Exodus from the Outer Hebrides to Canada

Lucille H. Campey spoke at Stornoway Town Hall last night on the above subject. She took a novel angle on what is a central theme in the history of the Highlands and Islands, namely with a focus on Canada rather than Scotland. It is not easy to summarise a 60 minute discourse within the confines of a blog, but will go so far as to describe Ms Campey’s stance as controversial.

The exodus to Canada from the Outer Hebrides as well as other parts of Scotland is well documented. Nova Scotia, Cape Breton and Prince Edward Island in the far east of Canada are littered with pointers to the settlement of people from western Scotland, in placenames, culture and traditions. The mechanism of this migration is the underlying issue, and focuses on the landlords and his tenants.

I’ll focus on the town of Helmsdale in Sutherland to make my point. Two years ago, a statue was erected there to celebrate the achievements of the Highlanders in Canada. I’ll be the last to deny that the Scottish diaspora has achieved great things in their new homelands, whether they be Canada, the USA, Australia or New Zealand - or wherever. Why weren’t the people of the Highlands and Islands not put into a position where great things could be done at home?

Reference was made to the 1886 crofting reforms, prompted by overcrowding and poor soil (according to last night’s speaker). Having read some of Lord Napier’s reports, there was good soil to be had in the Highlands and Islands, access to which was denied to the tenants of the local lairds. Ms Campey denied that coercion played a major part in the drive to emigration, something that I do not believe will go down well with those that are intimately familiar with the history of this region - I do not claim to be. There are some who will say that government, rather than assist in the emigration, should have assisted people to remain. That was not the spirit of the time. If people were unable to afford their rent, set arbitrarily by lairds or his agents, they could be evicted. Conditions at the time, particularly after the potato famine of 1846, were undeniably dire for both tenants and landlords. But a landlord, committed to his tenants, would have worked with them - as was asserted as early as the 1880s, see the Napier report.

The focus in last night’s discourse was on the opportunities afforded in Canada to those who emigrated there. A more egalitarian society, as opposed to the class society to be had in Great Britain. Start a new life in a wilderness, away from materialism and an unjust society. Many people did very well indeed, achieving a wealth that would not have been possible in Scotland. Others did not do very well at all. Some could not afford the crossing, and ended up owing the fare to the ship’s captain. And when he came to claim his debt, the emigrants would once again be left with nothing.

I’ll be the first to acknowledge and celebrate the achievements of Scots overseas. But I’ll also be the first to assert that a lot of emigration, even bearing in mind society in the 19th century, would not have been necessary.

Hurricane update - 6 August

Nearly two months ago since my last update, although there were a few tropical systems that made landfall since - like two tropical storms affecting Hong Kong.

Typhoon Morakot is currently east of Taiwan, and will hit the island state with winds of a mere 115 mph by 1800 GMT tomorrow, that is 2 am local time. Initially, the storm was forecast to pass north of Taiwan, but since last night, the projected trajectory has been shifted south.

Hurricane Felicia is in the open Pacific, along 131 degrees longitude West, far from any land. The storm carries winds of 140 to 190 mph. The hurricane will gradually lose strength as it moves west, and by the time Hawaii sees it (in 5 days' time), Felicia will be little more than a tropical depression with force 5-7 winds.

For reference, a typhoon is the same phenomenon as a hurricane - just a different name.

Thursday 6 August

Breezy but bright today, with some good sunshine on offer. Temperature at 16C / 60F. Yesterday, the weather took a sharp turn for the worse at 6pm, when a sudden squall passed with heavy rain. It moved away east, and swiped Loch Carron, just north of Kyle of Lochalsh at 7.30. A sailing regatta was underway, but the storm overturned 14 boats, landing 30 people in the water. The accompanying safety boats pulled many competitors out of the water, and the lifeboat and coastguard helicopter assisted in the rescue of the rest. Stornoway Coastguard commented that summer weather is not guaranteed to be benign, and these squalls do pass through. It was a similar, more severe, squall that brought us a tornado 9 days ago.

Many thanks to those who wished me a happy birthday through Facebook and email. Another year's experience of being 21 ;-)

Wednesday 5 August

Bright day, but with a lot of high and mid-level cloud about. Quite breezy, with a steady force 5 on the go. Temperatures should reach 21C / 70F today, but currently at 16C / 60F. That is our average in the summer months, by the way. The odd shower is possible, the rainfall radar shows a few specks and spots just to our north and west.

Barclays and HSBC banks announced profits of £3bn earlier this week. Lloyds TSB published a loss of £4bn today, mainly due to very bad banking by HBOS, which they took over during the winter to prevent the group collapsing. Is the banking crisis over, some are asking. Maybe. But as long as the culture of greed continues, we'll be heading from boom to bust, and that's an old phrase, going back to the 1970s. I'm unlikely to forgot the report of the young banker who jumped in front of a train, after he saw his income slashed. This would have resulted in him losing his lavish, money-is-no-object lifestyle, with several villas across Europe and continual champagne parties. Now that he was no longer able to afford all that, the potential loss of face became unbearable. Shouldn't speak ill of the dead, but that epitomised the banking crisis to me.

Tuesday 4 August

Overcast but with a fair amount of brightness among the clouds towards the southeast. The odd shower is possible, as shown on the rainfall radar. You'd have to be very unlucky to catch one.

I've been extracting some statistics from the transcription of the Roll of Honour for Lewis. Of the 6,030 names on the roll, nearly 570 served in a Canadian unit. More than 700 came from Stornoway, not surprising as this was (and still is) the largest centre of population in Lewis.

The most common surnames were Macleod and Macdonald, which combined comprise one third of the Lewis contingent.

Half of the men from Lewis served in the Navy, including Naval reserves (2,400). The other half were in the landarmy, in units like the Seaforth, Gordon and Cameron Highlanders as well as the Ross Mountain Battery.

Some 1,150 died, and each year of the war (excluding 1914, but including 1919) claimed about 200 of them. Half of the fatalities were killed in action, either on land or at sea. According to the Roll of Honour (sic), 172 lost their lives in the Iolaire disaster (see disclaimer at the end of this post). The majority of those that died were aged 18-23.

The vast majority of medals awarded were Mons Star and 1914 Star, both given to those involved in the fight for Antwerp and the withdrawal from Mons to the Marne in late 1914.

As the Isle of Lewis has more than 100 villages (including Stornoway), it will take me a number of days to compile the webpages for each village. They will appear under my own website, which will be fully revamped with a shift towards local history.

Monday 3 August

Another overcast, slightly muggy day. Temperature reached 19C / 66F earlier on. Rain is heading north out of Ireland, but will not reach us before nightfall (10pm). Tomorrow, the mercury could well cross the 20C mark.

Jland (or what's left of it) has a few health concerns around: Jeannette (see Call for Support) and Krissy both have relatives who require hospital treatment. I can also not help noticing some in the southwest of the USA suffering from sky-high temperatures, well above 30C. Keep cool!

Just to plug a new venture of myself, if you're in the Outer Hebrides (or interested in the place): my Dipity has links to a few dozen blogs, news- and photosites in the area - including my own.

Also, I am currently working my way through the transcripts of the Roll of Honour. I have put a trial-page on my website. Feedback welcome.

Sunday 2 August

Overcast day, with a bit of drizzle and a bit of sunshine here and there.

Archbishop Vincent Nicols, the head of the Roman Catholic Church in England, has sounded a warning bell against the (over)use of social networking sites on the Internet, particularly by young people. He claims that sites like Facebook, MySpace and Twitter give people a false sense of belonging to a group, a group that can sometimes turn out to be as ephemeral as the air itself. And when it all collapses, suicide is only just around the corner.

I know people who are strongly opposed to social networking sites for that reason, claiming that they prey on the vulnerable and leading to disaster should a meeting face-to-face ever ensue. All the people that I correspond with through the internet, with only a few exceptions, I have never met in person. There is exactly one person that I met as a direct result of a meeting on-line. I am no longer in touch (haven't been for 4-5 years), but will say that my impression face-to-face was little different from what I had been led to believe on AOL (as was). Although you miss the non-verbal communication (which makes up 70% of any face-to-face communication), I was surprised at the outcome. We were both aware of mutual vulnerability, and both took that into account. We parted as friends; circumstances led to a drifting apart.

There are a few people that I have "met" through AOL Journals, Facebook and Twitter I would like to meet in person. As in real life, you get close friends, "ordinary" friends and acquaintances on-line. I am wary of making the transition.

Cory Aquino

I was alerted by a Twitter trending topic that former Philippines president Corazon Aquino has passed away at the age of 76. She was propelled to power in 1986 after dictator Ferdinand Marcos was deposed in a popular uprising following the murder of opposition leader Benigno Aquino. The Philippines are in mourning for Asia's first female president, and for an icon for the return to democracy. Mrs Aquino died yesterday after battling colon cancer for more than a year; she had recently refused further treatment. She is to be buried next to her husband.

Last month of summer

August is here, and meteorologically speaking, it's the last month of summer. We were told this past week that tornadoes tend to occur in autumn, and the weather here has certainly been very autumnal. Out in the tropics, the Atlantic hurricane season is yet to produce a named storm, although the Antilles have seen their seasonal progression of tropical waves, with heavy rain and gusty winds. Tropical storm Lana is east of Hawaii, but not posing a threat to that US state.

Today is overcast with a soft breeze. The rainfall radar shows a thin line of rain crossing Lewis, and it should be here shortly.

Friday 31 July

July is closing as un-summerlike as you can think of. The Scots call it dreich, with drizzle although not much wind.

I have completed the transcription of the Lewis Roll of Honour for the First World War. There are 6,029 names from the over 100 villages and townships across the island. Some are just listed with their name and unit, others have decorations. Nearly 200 perished in the sinking of HMY Iolaire on their return home on New Year's Day 1919. Another 1,100 or so lost their life in the course of the war, or during the years afterwards. Once I have cleaned up the data, I'll give a further breakdown. I now have to contemplate how to plonk it all on the web. I'll probably do it by village.

140 degrees longitude

Nearly halfway round the globe, and this so-called African tropical wave has spawned a tropical cyclone. African waves are pulses of moist air, which move off the African continent in the summer months, into the Atlantic Ocean. They are the focal point for hurricanes to form in the Atlantic. However, the one that gave rise to tropical depression 6E travelled nearly halfway around the world. Within the hour, the Central Pacific Hurricane Center in Honolulu, Hawaii, will issue the second advisory, and it is likely to be for a tropical storm. Satellite images suggest that the system will continue to strengthen for a day or so. It will not directly affect Hawaii, passing 5 degrees of latitude to the south of the Aloha state.

The image shows 6E in the bottom right corner; Hawaii sits in the centre.