Monday 5 December

Scotland awoke to a blanket of snow this morning. Here in Stornoway it was an inch, but probably rather more higher up in the hills. A lorry crashed off the road, but its driver was fortunately unhurt. Elsewhere in Scotland, two drivers lost their lives in crashes caused by the weather. First thing this morning, the snow was just pretty.

On 22 November, 16-year old Liam Aitchison was last seen alive in Stornoway. He had come up to Lewis a few months ago from South Uist. Liam was seen walking along Anderson Road. On 29th November, his remains were found in a derelict property at Steinish, about two miles northeast of Stornoway, and not far from Anderson Road. Today, police announced they were upgrading their investigations into his death to a full murder inquiry. It is more than 40 years ago since the last murder in Lewis, and the news of this tragic death has shaken the community to its core.

This evening, I went into the town centre here to take pictures of the Christmas decorations. When I compare them to images I took in 2005, the extent (in terms of distance) and variety have sadly shrunk dramatically.

St Nicholas

Today is the eve of St Nicholas, the original and only Santa Klaus (sorry). In Holland, Flanders and western Germany, children will have spent the past fortnight or so putting their shoe in front of the fireplace, with a carrot in it. St Nicholas rides the roofs on his white charger, surrounded by Black Peters who do the dirty work of bringing presents. During the night, they wil go down the chimney to collect the carrot and leave a present in the shoe. Children who have been bad will find a bunch of twigs, indicative of punishment. The really bad ones will be taken back to Spain in the sack.

It all starts in mid-November, when St Nicholas arrives in Holland (or one of its towns) in a steamer, well, any boat really, with his posse of Peters. The Peters go off running around, scattering sweeties amidst the assembled children. Towns not near the sea or water will see St Nicholas arriving by train. Or coach if there is no railway station. St Nicholas arrives from Spain, as that is the place where his remains lie interred. Originally, he is from Turkey, but when the Muslims came, the bones were spirited across the Mediterranean to Spain

Picture post - 4 December

Sunday 4 December

The sun has just set on a snow-clad day, with the mercury barely above freezing. At 9 o'clock this morning, a hefty snow shower left about an inch of snow which did not fully melt through the day. Through the seven hours of daylight that followed, there was sunshine interspersed with scattered snow showers. The mainland is also affected, more severely, with up to 10 inches in elevated terrain.

Two giant pandas were flown into Edinburgh this afternoon, taking up an entire hour on the BBC News. I know Edinburgh airport a bit too well, having had to wait there for a flight connection many a time. I hate waiting at airports. Having to do the same courtesy the national broadcaster is just not on. I mean, what's the deal? Yes, I know giant pandas are rare and an endangered species. They eat 25 kg (60 lb) of bamboo a day and are only fertile for about 48 hours. But if the male and female in question don't hit it off, there will be no cubs. Obviously. I'm sorry if I'm being sarcastic, but I don't see the importance.

Saturday 3 December

A day with a distinct wintry feel, as heavy showers of hail kept clattering down. At times, the town looked quite white, and the hailstones gathered up in reasonably thick layers in secluded corners. Although we managed +6C at 1pm, the mercury hovered on average around +3C / 37F. Last night saw a westerly gale, with a gust of 89 mph up at Eoropie, a very exposed location. Tomorrow, the Highlands are on warning for snow, and a layer of 10 cm / 4 inches is to be expected. Whether we get that too is not certain; the Hebrides are washed by the Gulfstream, which tends to keep things a bit milder than on the mainland.

In Germany, the town of Koblenz has seen a mass evacuation of 45,000 people in preparation for the defusing of a 1,8 tonne bomb which had turned up in the river Rhine. The bomb had been dropped by the RAF during WW2, and surfaced following record low waterlevels in the river. Checking the levels on the Dutch / German border, I notice that the measuring station at Lobith shows the gauge at 6.95 m, which is rather lower than the average of 10 m. For reference, a level of 15 m or more creates an immediate danger of overtopping of dykes and massive flooding.

Friday 2 December

A very cold start to the day; in fact, the lowest temperature of the night was reached before midnight (at 10pm yesterday), when the mercury dipped to -3C / 26F. Since then, it has grown steadily milder, with 8C on the thermometer at present. This was accompanied by rising winds and heavy rains. A gale is imminent, and will continue through the night. Disruption is likely on the ferry tomorrow morning; the overnight freight ferry has been cancelled.

The young man, found dead at Steinish a few days ago, has been officially identified. He had been in Stornoway only for a few months, but appears to have been living rough in a derelict building in the village. Police continue to appeal for information.

I have sent off another 7 Postcrossing cards. I have so far sent off  80 and received 71. Two cards have not been registered (yet) within the two months' timeframe allocated for doing so. One has been on the go since August, and the other since September. I notice that several people have taken on the hobby, which doesn't need to cost much more than the postage. I intend to send off the next batch in January.

Thursday 1 December

We're now into the final month of 2011, and it has made a better start than November ended. It was bright and fairly sunny, but very, very cold. As I type, the mercury stands at freezing, after a daytime max of +4C / 40F.

It was reported earlier this afternoon that the death of a young man in a derelict building at Steinish, 2 miles northeast of Stornoway, is now being treated as suspicious. Liam Aitchison had been missing since November 22nd, having last been seen in Anderson Road, the Stornoway street closest to Steinish. Only a mile separates the two.

BBC Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson has shot his mouth off, by saying that the people who went on strike yesterday should be shot, executed in front of their families. I am aware of Mr Clarkson's propensity towards sarcasm, but do feel that he has overstepped the mark by several dozen miles. Irrespective of your views on yesterday's strike by public sector workers, those who went on strike did so out of genuine concern for their future. Clarkson is the one with the guild-edged pension, and I hope his wings will be clipped a bit. Pity his dismissal from the BBC appears unlikely. His status as hosting the most popular program on the national broadcaster is very much undeserved.

Wednesday 30 November

The day started reasonable, but at lunchtime the wind picked up to galeforce, and after dark (4pm), it increased further to severe gale force 9. Going to the shop by 5.30pm, I found the strong winds very tricky. There was also persistent rain, which did not abate until nightfall.

Some sad news in the island today, as the remains of a man were found in a derelict building at Steinish, a mile or so outside Stornoway. Police later added that these were likely to be those of a young man, aged 16, who had been missing for a few weeks. This comes hard on the heels of the death of a young woman, aged 26, in an accident in Harris last Thursday. Her car had gone off the road and ended up in a loch beside the A859 road south of Tarbert. Her funeral will take place at Bosta tomorrow.

Tuesday 29 November

It has turned rather a lot colder, with the mercury now barely above freezing. Yesterday's max was 10C / 50F, today's is 4C / 39F. The weather is marginally more friendly, with showers and less strong winds. But you do feel the cold now, and winter is definitely on the way in. There were severe problems with flooding near Glasgow today, particularly near Greenock, on the Clyde.

Good news today, in that the RET scheme is being extended to ferry services between Hebridean islands. RET (Road-Equivalent Tarriff) has reduced the fares on the Ullapool - Stornoway route by half, and has produced a 30% increase in tourism trade since its introduction in 2008. The scheme only applies to western Scotland, with the islanders of Orkney and Shetland complaining bitterly at being left out. The Shetlanders should, however, not complain so loudly. RET would mean an increase in fares on their long route between Aberdeen and Lerwick.

I have completed the project to add the portraits of WW1 servicemen from Lewis to the Imperial War Museum's Your Faces from the First World War group.

Monday 28 November

One of those eminently forgettable days, in terms of weather. Galeforce winds strafed the town, making it very difficult to walk against the wind (that is the definition of force 8 in the Beaufort scale) and lashing rain. Our hours of daylight are becoming very restricted, with sunrise at 8.45 am and sunset at 3.45 pm leaving us just about 7 hours. And on a day like today, it seems even less than that. Just saw a link about Seasonal Affective Disorder which tends to rear its ugly head at this time of year. Can't wait for the winter solstice, after which the days will lengthen again.

Another road traffic accident this afternoon, but this time not with serious consequences. A lorry was reported to be on its side on the hill at the Ceann an Ora quarry, 4 miles north of Tarbert. Cause not known, although, as I stated above, there were strong winds around this pm, and they tend to be funnelled through the gap between the Clisham and An t-Iosal on the other side of the A859.


Well, men, bored in the loo? Have a look at this

Sunday 27 November

Last night saw hurricane force winds in parts of Scotland. Fair Isle, between Orkney and Shetland, reported 90 mph, but the Cairngorm mountains, which rear up to 4,200 feet in height, were buffeted by 114 mph windspeeds. Here in Stornoway, we reached 70 mph around midnight; Eoropie, near the Butt of Lewis, managed 86 mph. However, by the time daylight came, just after 8 am, the winds had abated in the Hebrides. The day was actually pleasantly bright and sunny, with only the odd shower of hail. In winter, it is more common for hail to fall in this part of the world rather than snow. In the afternoon, I had to wash a fair layer of salt off the windows - not just at the front (facing the sea), but also out the back. More high winds tomorrow.

I am not much of a football buff, but I am sad to learn of the apparent suicide of the manager of the national team of Wales, Gary Speed. He was only 42 and is mourned by the football community in the UK, and the population at large.

Saturday 26 November

More high winds today, with the ferry stormbound in Ullapool after making just one crossing, first thing this morning. It is now due to return from the mainland, departing there at 11 am tomorrow morning, and hopefully managing its customary Sunday return trip. The winds are not as high as on Thursday, when we topped 80 mph, but force 7 is still a near-gale.

As I have often mentioned (on Facebook), fuel prices in these islands are sky-high. A litre of diesel costs about £1.50 (that's $9.30 a gallon). In order to alleviate the pain, the UK government has gracefully allowed a 5p rebate in fuel prices. Fat lot of use. When the idea was floated, fuel prices shot up by a suspicious 4p a litre. There is something strange going on in this part of the world. Fuel is delivered by tanker ship, and the same boat delivers fuel to Inverness and Scrabster on the mainland, where prices are an eye-watering 20p a litre lower than here. If you can make sense of that, please let me know. I can't.

Friday 25 November

Yesterday's stormforce winds claimed a life: that of a 26-year old speech therapist from Coulregrein, on the northern edge of Stornoway. She had been travelling along the A859 Tarbert to Rodel road, when her vehicle is thought to have been blown into Loch nan Uidhean, just south of the Horsacleit Lodge, a few miles south of Tarbert. After being transferred by road ambulance to hospital in Stornoway, the woman died. The community is in shock.

Today's weather was very cold. Although the winds have abated somewhat, they were still strong, making the temperature of +4C / 39F bitterly cold. There were regular showers of rain, hail and sleet, with snow on high-level routes on the mainland. More high winds are forecast for Saturday and Sunday, but the worst of the conditions is expected in the Northern Isles (Orkney and Shetland).

This week, Lord Justice Leveson has started his hearing into the practices and standards of the British press. Several people who feature in the public eye, such as JK Rowling and the parents of Madeleine McCann, have given evidence. They complained bitter of the unparalleled intrusion into their private lives, all under the pretense of public interest. Actress Sienna Miller described how she was reduced to running down the street with a dozen burly men in hot pursuit. The only thing that legitimised their actions was the fact that they were carrying cameras. Otherwise, it just would have been a woman pursued by a dozen big men - which would have been cause for police intervention.

In the 14 years I have lived in the United Kingdom, I have never ceased to be appalled at the intrusion into the private lives of celebrities or public figures. Princess Diana died in August 1997 as a consequence of the harassment by the press. Even as the outcome of the Leveson Inquiry is being reported, some newspapers issue robust rebuttals, thereby indicating that in their minds, they are doing nothing wrong. A major change, of earthquake proportion, is required to bring about a differing stance by the press.

Thursday 24 November

A foul day, with high winds and heavy rain. The private weatherstation at Eoropie, the village nearest the Butt of Lewis, reports winds at a steady 50 mph, gusting to 76 mph. Most ferry services along the west coast of Scotland are off, and there is a warning that the Braighe, the causeway linking Stornoway to the Eye peninsula to the east, could be closed for high tide at around 6pm tonight. I went to the shop, a few hundred yards down the road, and found walking into the wind difficult. Darkness is falling as I type (3.45pm). It will remain windy until at least Monday.

Tuesday 22 November

After yesterday's calm weather, the wind is beginning to whip up towards galeforce as I type this (2.40pm). More gales on Thursday, with the remnant of tropical disturbance 99L scooting into the Arctic past the Outer Hebrides. I think we should be on our guard, because if this system gets closer than the weathercharts currently predict, we should not be surprised at stormforce winds.

I read an awful letter on the local news website, which (to my mind) serves to reinforce the undeserved impression that Lewis is a place of religious intolerance. A fault of Protestantism is the differing interpretations of the Bible, and everybody claiming to have a hotline to God or Jesus Christ, implying that their reading of the Scriptures is the one that was intended. The Bible, as we all know, is a collection of scriptures, handed down over hundreds if not thousands of years, through translation out of Hebrew, Greek, Latin and what not. I only have to refer to the example of the word caritas to show the pitfalls of translations. I am currently reading the Qu'ran, and this claims that mankind did not get the message out of the Torah or the Gospel; and it does not look as if they got the message out of the Qu'ran either. Or from Martin Luther, Erasmus, Dr Chalmers or whoever. I grew up in Holland, which has two different Dutch Reformed Churches - they are designated by two different words in Dutch for "reformed". The church in my home village is now part of an oecumenical triangle of the two Reformed Churches as well as the Roman Catholic church in the next town. The pastor who wrote the letter is all against people talking to each other. That is how wars start. That is how the situation in Northern Ireland spiralled out of control in the 1970s and on. And that is exactly how NOT to proceed. I hope those attending the service on the second Sunday of Advent will have an enlightening experience.

Sunday 20 November

Another overcast day, but at least it stayed mainly dry and it wasn't really cold. Not that I showed my face outside much to gauge that, to be honest. I have continued to add more portraits of WW1 casualties from Lewis to the Flickr.com group from the Imperial War Museum - where everybody can put up portraits of their ancestors who fought in the Great War.

On Facebook, I have set up a group for everybody that used to blog with AOL Journals, until AOL in their infinite stupidity closed them down in October 2008. If you are on Facebook and want an add: leave a comment. I have already added 144 members, including myself. I'll continue to hunt for more names.

The Eastern Pacific Ocean is 10 days away from the end of its hurricane season, but has spawned a tropical storm, by the name of Kenneth. This system is nearly 600 miles south of Mexico and poses no threat to land. It could develop into a hurricane, well out to sea. Out in the Atlantic, 600 miles from the Lesser Antilles, another disturbance shows promising signs of development. I should add a note of caution, as this disturbance could run up a frontal zone towards western Europe at the very end of the forecasting period. Depressions that originate in the tropics tend to make a rather dramatic impact at our latitude.

A week in pictures

Saturday 19 November

Another overcast day with only occasional light drizzle. The high humidity made it feel cold though, and the thick cloudcover made it for a typical dark November day. Hoping for a bit more light tomorrow; we have to content with only 8 hours of the sun at the moment at any rate - which will decrease to 6 hours over the next week or so.

A lot has been said on the local news this week about 100 years of Harris Tweed. In 1911, the Orb was established as the trademark for the product, but it was not until 1960 that this was enshrined through an Act of Parliament. Harris Tweed can only be called that if the cloth has been hand-woven in the Outer Hebrides from virgin Scottish wool . The Harris Tweed industry has been reduced to only a shadow of its former self, with the dozen mills in Stornoway all closed down. Only mills in Shawbost and Carloway, about 20 miles west of Stornoway, now produce the cloth in any noticeable volume. Fellow researcher Direcleit has done a critical appraisal of the history of Harris Tweed, as told by Angus Ease Macleod, late of Calbost.

Friday 18 November

A rain-soaked day - not pouring, but just the Hebridean drizzle. And a strong breeze going. Today is Children in Need night, a national fund-raising event, culminating in a 7-hour TV show in the evening. One person has not been able to complete his challenge; a man who was planning to row the 130 miles from Castlebay (Barra) to Stornoway became unstuck when his oar broke off North Uist, half-way through his journey. The RNLI lifeboat had to come to his rescue in amongst high seas and treacherous reefs.

Over the past day or so, a large ship has been docked at the Arnish Fabrication Yard to remove a tall structure which has been camped out there since the summer. It is apparently the bottom structure of a tidal power generator, destined for trial off the island of Eday in Orkney. The other bits have been fabricated at Methil in Fife.

Thursday 17 November

An overcast day which turned rather wet in the last hour before sunset, which occurs at 4pm at the moment. The wind has picked up as well, after a handful of days with hardly any wind. The mercury made quite a jump last night, rising from -1C (30F) at 7pm to +7C (45F) an hour later, accompanied by the wind starting up from the south. Before the rain commenced, it felt very cold, although the mercury was not all that low, at 10C. End of weather report.

At the moment, I am adding portrait photographs to a group on the Flickr.com site for the Imperial War Museum. The IWM has invited all who have pictures of ancestors who fought in the First World War to add their portrait photographs to that group. Since this started on Monday, I have even encountered a picture of a German soldier among the portraits. This is not as strange as it may sound; three years ago, I photographed wargraves at the Royal Naval Cemetery at Lyness in Orkney, which contained 16 German wargraves. Those sailors died when their fleet was scuttled in Scapa Flow in June 1919. Personally, I have no problem with those guys sharing a cemetery with their adversaries in war. In death, all are equal; and it was their adversaries that gave them a decent burial.