Tuesday 9 October

Fairly bright day, not much wind but not very warm - we barely managed double figures. I resumed my look-up on WW1 casualties, a project I suspended last month at (nearly) the half-way mark. It is intended to bring all the information I hold onto one website. Another concatenation exercise, purely for my own benefit, is the Blog of Years. Each entry, for every day of the year, will have sections for the years 2004 - 2012, with a diary entry for each year under each heading. So far, I have progressed to January 4th.

Sir Jimmy Savile was a TV personality for 40 years on the BBC, with famous programs like Jim'll Fix It, making things happen for young people. It now appears that this knight of the realm is facing posthumous allegations of being a sexual predator on at least 30 women and young girls. His family will dismantle his gravestone in Scarborough (which consists of three huge panels) out of respect to the victims and those buried in the graveyard. The community at Glencoe (south of Fort William), where Savile spent his final years, is in shock, and the cottage where he used to live is not likely to be sold soon.

Monday 8 October

Today is the 8th anniversary of my blogging activities. It started in 2004 from the computer in the youth hostel at Kyleakin, Isle of Skye, where I tapped out a description of the day's walk on a blog called Northern Trip. That blog remained in existence for 4 years, until AOL pulled the plug on all its blogs in October 2008. This blog, Atlantic Lines, was its successor and I marked its 4th anniversary last Monday, October 1st. Since starting in 2004, my blogging activity has mushroomed. I became involved with the community of bloggers on AOL who were known as J-land. It fell apart in 2008, but regrouped on Blogger and Facebook. A number of those friends are no longer with us, and I shall mark their passing at the start of November. Others have joined us, or merged with J-land from Blogger and Facebook. I have always found this a unique community, which remains as strong as ever, irrespective of its location on the WWW. In the years after 2008, I have embraced Twitter and Facebook as a means of sharing information with people who hold like-minded interests, such as local history and news in the Outer Hebrides.

Today was a nice day in Stornoway, with occasional sunshine and light winds. Temperatures remain low, with the daytime max at 11C / 52F, and a low of 2C / 36F a few hours ago. Locally, the Office of Fair Trading was in Stornoway to take evidence in the on-going row about fuel prices. An independent wholesaler of fuel (Highland Fuels) has started to supply a garage in Back, 7 miles north of Stornoway, and that garage now retails fuel at 9p a litre less than those supplied by the main supplier, Scottish Fuels.

Sunday 7 October

After a cold night (3C) we managed 14C as an all-day high, but it felt far from warm when I walked the one mile to Sandwick Cemetery. Since returning from Holland on Thursday, a number of queries have wafted my way about local military history and one of these required me to look for a grave in aforementioned cemetery. I was not the only one there; a steady flow of cars through the cemetery indicated that a number of people took the opportunity to pay their respects to those that had gone on ahead. I was looking for the grave of Angus Mackenzie who had died of illness in 1919 after serving with the Canadian Expeditionary Forces during WW1. Unfortunately, it was not there. Angus originated from Braighe na h-Aoidhe, about 2 miles away near the present-day airport, and it is more likely that his last resting place is at the Eye Cemetery on the Braighe. I need to take a bus there, which obviously does not go on Sunday. As I completed my walk through the graveyard, ominous grey clouds were massing on the western horizon and I was treated to some light rain from Millar Road onwards. No, I did not really look in the Old Cemetery at Sandwick. I have access to two books which list each and every grave in that cemetery, which spares me the bother of going to look for it. The Old Sandwick Cemetery is ancient and the graves are scattered hither and thither, completely unlike the new cemetery, which is laid out in neat rows. As I finish this post, the smell of a curry dinner is wafting my way.

Saturday 6 October

Fairly bright today, but feeling cold, with the mercury only just into double figures. However, we did get some nice spells of sunshine which made up for the lack of warmth. Went for an amble about town to see if anything had changed, but this was not the case. The only exception was at the site of the old Nicolson Institute, which is rapidly disappearing from the face of the earth, as the demolition nears completion. The main tourism season is now over, and the final whistle will go at the end of the half-term holiday, in a fortnight's time, and certainly when the clocks go back. The trees, like in Holland earlier this week, are beginning to turn as well. It's October, and we'll know about it. Tonight, a widespread frost is forecast.

Friday 5 October

After a morning agonising over my missing luggage, it finally turned up by taxi from the airport at 2pm. The tags on it suggested that it never left Schiphol with me, and only my query at Stornoway served to get it to me. It had come via Aberdeen to Stornoway on the Eastern Airways service that gets in here just before 2pm. All was present and correct. Spent the rest of the day catching up with pics and GPS trails. Nights are closing in now, it's getting dark before 7 o'clock. At the end of the month, the clocks will go back, leaving us with darkness at 5pm.

During the afternoon, someone was spotted walking down to the tideline in the basin across the road with a canoe. They put it into the water and proceeded to paddle away at a rate of knots. Unusual. It was low tide at that point, but fortunately we're at neap tide, meaning the low tide is not very low.

Thursday 4 October

After a lunchtime call at my sister's, I headed off for Schiphol Airport for the flights to Inverness and on to Stornoway. Although I was not allocated a window seat on the Inverness flight, I noticed a couple of empty seats, so relocated to enjoy the views down. We came over British territory over the River Humber, then flew north to pass north of Glasgow, finally to land into a decidedly chilly Inverness at 5.15pm. The onward flight to Stornoway departed 15 minutes early, presumably because all that were booked to go on it were already on board. We flew into the sunset, and began to run into showers on the approach to Point. Landed at 6.30, only to find that my luggage had not come with me. Filed a missing luggage complaint, and proceeded back to base, just as darkness fell.

Until my luggage returns, I will not be able to post pictures of this trip.

Blogoversary

Although I am not currently blogging here, I still think it's worth noting that this is the 8th anniversary of my blogging, and the 4th anniversary of Atlantic Lines. I started on a blog called Northern Trip, which got axed by AOL in 2008, prompting me to move to this blog. Blogging has put me in touch with many, many people, to a man (or woman) most interesting kind and serving to broaden my horizon. Thank you all.

Two week break

Just a brief message to confirm that I shall be blogging on the Shell Gallery as of Saturday 29th September. I have no internet access until that date, as I am on holiday in northern Holland. I shall return to Stornoway on Thursday 4th October, and will resume blogging here the next day.

Wednesday 19 September

Quite a nice day, in between the odd downpour, with good sunny spells and magnificent cloudscapes. The day started with a dazzling rainbow, and the display lasted all day, until sunset at 7.20pm. The night was cold, 3C / 37F, and is heading in the same direction. As I type this, the mercury has gone down to the same reading.

Here in the islands, there has been a fair bit of controversy over fuel and its prices. I have repeatedly reported our average fuel price at £1.50 a litre ($9 a US gallon), which is a good 20 pence higher than in Inverness. What is an eye-brow raiser is the fact that Inverness is supplied by the same seatanker that supplies us - yet we are being charged through the nose. However, the people in the Uists now have the added problem of no fuel supplies. The storage tanks at Loch Carnan have failed a safety inspection, and cannot now be used until they have been repaired. As a result, the wholesalers, Scottish Fuels, who hold a monopoly, are now having to truck in fuel from the depot here in Stornoway - which is hitting a snag known as a springtide. When you get a springtide, you not only get high tides, you also get low tides. This is preventing the ferry between Leverburgh (55 miles south of Stornoway) and North Uist from sailing, meaning that the roadtankers can't come. It's, quite frankly, an outrage.

Tomorrow morning I am flying to Holland for a two-week break with my family. I am returning to Stornoway on October 4th, and will resume blogging here the next day. Whilst in Holland, I will not have internet access until Saturday 29th September as I shall spend a week off internet in one of the northern islands. From the 29th onwards, you'll get my updates on the Shell Gallery. A post to confirm this is scheduled to appear here at midnight tonight.

Tuesday 18 September

Quite a nice, sunny day, which started quite chilly. However, the sun soon came out and the few showers that were about did not amount to very much in the end.


Went for an amble about town for a few bits and pieces, also to check on the demolition of the Nicolson Institute. This is proceeding apace, with several of the key buildings now disappeared, or in the process of going down. Every week I go up to take pictures of the demolition, and the results (if anyone is interested) can be viewed in this Flickr-set.

En-route to the "Nic", I noticed that the flags outside the council buildings on Sandwick Road were at half-mast. This was to mark the death of one of the islands' councillors, Bill Houston, who passed away suddenly last Saturday. Mr Houston, 60, was elected last May and represented the (discontiguous) ward of North Lochs and Uig.

Still on local news, the petrol stations in Uist (the islands of North Uist, Benbecula and South Uist) are running out of fuel, apparently due to problems at the wholesalers', Scottish Fuels. The Uists are not only afflicted by a fuel shortage, theirs is also about the dearest in the land, £1.55 a litre.

Monday 17 September

Another day of sunshine and showers, but feeling markedly cooler, although 13C is not that much down on the 15C of late. As I type, the mercury is diving away at 5C / 41F. Autumn is most definitely here.

An item on the BBC website (Who is the most pirated near you?) prompted me to take the test. It would appear that even in this island people are not averse to a spot of illegal sharing. I won't go into details, as I am just not interested in that sort of thing. It would appear that the Internet does make it less likely that you get caught out for certain misdemeanours, although if your IP-address is logged, they can track you to your house. Not for one user of my acquaintance, who, although resident in Stornoway, has their IP address tracked to --- Exeter.

A man of 72 is lucky to be alive, after he was swept off his yacht, only to be swept back on it by the next wave. After previous large waves had knocked out his radio, he proceeded to activate his emergency locator beacon, which brought out the Coastguard and RNLI lifeboat. A gruelling 50 mile tow brought him to the safety of Stornoway, where he proceeded to tell the tale - very much aware that it could so easily have ended in tragedy, with perhaps nobody ever knowing what had happened to him, or his yacht.

Sunday 16 September

The day started fairly bright and sunny, but at midday we began to be treated to occasional downpours. This gave rise to nice cloudscapes, a few examples of which head up this post. The showers ceased after nightfall.

So, should royals be allowed to sunbathe topless, without footlong camera lenses peeking at them from every angle? I'd say so. If that were done to anybody else, the culprits would be apprehended for voyeurism if anything. I can understand why William and Kate are entering litigation against the French publication which posted her topless pics (taken presumably without consent) - not just for reasons of privacy, but particularly because William's mother (Princess Diana) was killed indirectly as a result of press harassment. Having said that, I do feel that those in the public eye should exercise caution in situations like this.

Saturday 15 September

Yesterday saw quite a bit of disruption on the ferry. It did not sail until 9.30 am, when it was due to leave at 6 am. As a result, the last of the three sailings was cancelled, and thus endeth the summer timetable for Wednesdays and Fridays. It was a very strange sight to see the ferry pull out at 5pm, a time that the boat normally is nowhere near Stornoway. Today, Saturday, there was no such disruption. It was windy, but the sun was out for good periods and it felt fairly mild, 15C / 59F. My visitors departed on the lunchtime ferry, which got up to some very strange shenanigans upon departure. It sailed precisely at 2.30pm, but then I noticed it doing this


It turned back and proceeded to dock alongside the ferry pier. The pedestrian ramp was put up, the vizor went up and the bridge for loading and unloading vehicles came out. After a few minutes, the ferry departed for Ullapool, now half an hour late.


The Isle of Lewis has been on this run since 1995. She is 101m (337 ft) long, 19m (63 ft) wide and has a draught of 4.2m (14 ft). At Stornoway, vehicles board through the bow-vizor, but at Ullapool they disembark through a door in the stern of the vessel. Whilst in the Minch, she does more than 17 knots, a speed that is reduced in Loch Broom, for the last dozen miles to Ullapool. This is to protect the coastline from erosion damage, which could result from her wake.

Picture post - 14 September

High swells




Callanish



Bosta

Friday 14 September

Jumped on the bus to Garynahine at 10.10 for a visit to Bosta with my overseas visitors. The weather was still wild, with high winds and occasional rain. Upon arrival at Bosta, just after 11 am, the sun started to come out, showing the place in its full beauty. Seas were crashing on outlying skerries and Old Hill, and big waves came ashore on the beach. The Iron Age House had closed for the season the week before, but the smell of the smouldering peat fire lingered around the building. Also showed people round the cemetery, primarily to highlight the Iolaire gravestone and the common epitaph Gus am bris an latha (Until the breaking of the Day, [and the shadows flee away]), a reference to the Youngest Day, the Day of Judgment. The bus returned as requested at 12.30, and we were taken through Breaclete and Kirkibost to the Bernera Bridge and Garynahine. Our driver very kindly flagged down the connecting service, which took us to Callanish at 1.20pm. We had a good lunch and a look round the Stones, as impressive as ever. The weather was still windy, but the sun now had the upper hand, and even a short shower did not spoil the enjoyment. At 3pm, we joined the bus back to Stornoway - the long way round. It stops for a while at Carloway and Shawbost schools to pick up the pupils. They are dropped off right outside their houses. On passing Gearrannan, you can see Old Hill again, but from a different angle. Whenever we had a view of the coast, especially at Dalbeg, South Bragar and Brue, my visitors were blown away by the sight. For one of them it was a return visit, and probably not their last either. We came back to town at 5pm.

I'll post pictures in a separate entry.

Thursday 13 September

A wild day for sure, but here in Stornoway the gale was nowhere near as severe as forecast. I do gather that the southern isles were lashed by force 9-10 winds, but the highest gusts up at Eoropie (near the Butt of Lewis) were about 50 mph. I spent the day monitoring the situation on the ferries, as I was expecting people to arrive for a short visit. Although initially the late ferry was posted as "disrupted", she eventually made the crossing and appeared more or less on time at Stornoway. Although the sun had set by then (8.40 pm), it was still sufficiently light to see breaks in the clouds and the wind was dropping away.

Storm!

The remnants of tropical storm Leslie are approaching the Hebrides, and we are on warning for severe gales, possibly stormforce winds this evening. The weather at our latitudes is governed by differences in temperature, and Leslie swept up from Bermuda last weekend, carrying a large amount of warm, moist, tropical air. Having met with a frontal boundary to much colder and drier air over eastern Canada on Monday, the result is a deep depression to the south of Iceland. A tight pressure gradient to its south will push winds to force 9-10, and cause disruption on our ferries. The run between Oban and the southern isles is already cancelled, as this route is exposed to the southwesterly wind and swells. Other ferries are on warning for possible cancellation, including our link to Ullapool; today's evening crossing from Ullapool could be cancelled. I'm closely monitoring the Calmac website for updates.

Dutch elections

Yesterday, the people in Holland went to the polls for a general election. This had been called following the collapse of the coalition government, headed up by prime minister Rutte. The result saw some major changes in the seating arrangements in the 150-seat Lower House of Parliament in The Hague. The most noticeable changes are in the loss of 9 of their 24 seats previously held by the PVV of Geert Wilders. I have never hidden my dislike of Mr Wilders' politics and am pleased that his strength has been lessened. The centre-left Labour party gained 9 seats, but still came second after the Liberal party, who ended up with 41 seats.

The issue in the election had been the approach to the Eurozone crisis and necessary cuts. It would appear the pro-Eurozone parties have won. The next step is the formation of a coalition government, a process that is likely to take a number of weeks or months. For me, the decline of the Christian Democrat (CDA) party to a mere 13 seats is remarkable; for 70 years they were the inevitable party of government.

Wednesday 12 September

Yesterday was one of the most lively days we have had for a long time, but we ain't seen nothing yet. Plenty of heavy showers on Tuesday, and the temperatures heading down to the low teens. Observed the 9/11 commemoration at 1.46pm, which appears to be becoming a slightly lower key affair. Nobody alive and aware in 2001 will ever forget what happened that day.

Today, Wednesday, was a calmer day, and as I type this (10.30pm) the mercury is heading down fast, it's only 4C / 39F at present. I had a walk round to the site of the old Nicolson Institute, which is being demolished and is going down fast. A tall pile of rubble is now all that remains of the buildings fronting Springfield Avenue, but the edifices further back on the campus remain - as yet.

One of my projects is the abridged transcription of the Statistical Accounts of Scotland of 1791-99, and they are not exactly complimentary about the Parish of Barvas. I quote:

The parish of Barvas does not furnish much room for statistical investigation, and the few observations which occur respecting it, may be comprehended within narrow bounds. [page 263]

Betwixt Barvas and Strather [Shader], in the middle of a deep moss, where no other stones are to be seen, and at a considerable distance from the sea, there is a very large stone standing upright, called Clach i Drushel, famous for nothing but its size, being 18 feet above ground and 14 feet in circumference [...]. The vulgar traditions surrounding it, is too absurd and superstitious to deserve any notice. [page 271]

11th anniversary of 9/11

This tribute is published on the 11th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on New York, Washington and Pennsylvania on 11 September 2001, under the auspices of Project 2996.

Jeffrey Dwayne Collman

Image: Family photograph, via http://guy-at-judson.blogspot.com.

Source: Aurora Beacon News, Aurora IL 9-23-2001
Jeffrey Dwayne Collman, age 41, of Novato, California, formerly of Yorkville, IL, a flight attendant for American Airlines, died in the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in New York City at 8:45a.m. on Tuesday, September 11, 2001.

Jeffrey was a 1977 graduate of Yorkville High School in Yorkville, IL. Jeff was formerly employed, for over 10 years, at All-Steel in Montgomery, IL. He had then worked, for a brief time, at Cedar Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles, California before attaining his dream of being a flight attendant with American Airlines. Jeffrey loved his job and traveling to other countries around the world. He also loved to play and watch tennis. Jeff was a true people person who enjoyed visiting with and getting to know others. He became a flight attendant in 1997. Two years later, Jeff received the American Professional Flight Attendant Award and was considered a spirited and dedicated flight attendant. He liked to entertain children on his flights, and he was fond of playing tennis and traveling, friends said.

He is survived by his parents, Dwayne and Kay Collman of Yorkville, IL and Beverly Sutton of North Aurora, IL; his close companion, Keith Bradkowski of Novato, Ca; his brothers, Charles Collman of Fort Meyers, FL and Brian Collman of Las Vegas, NV; his sister, Brenda Sorenson of Aurora, IL; his step-brothers, Steve (Linda) Gengler of Yorkville, IL and Chuck (Lakshmi) Gengler of South Orange, NJ; his step-sister, Susan Bohan of California; a god-child, Marlene Wakelin; his half-sisters, Laura Kries of Brooklyn Park, MN, Caroline Sutton of Joliet, IL and Vickie Michel of Aurora, IL; several nieces and nephews, many loving aunts, uncles, cousins and friends. Jeffrey will also be missed by 100 other flight attendants.

He is preceded in death by his grandparents and his brother, Mark Allen Collman.
A memorial service was held on Monday, October 1, 2001 at the Immanuel Lutheran Church in Yorkville, IL with Pastor John Leaf officiating.

Father’s thoughts
Dwayne Collman's imagination gets the best of him when he thinks about the final minutes of his son's life on American Airlines Flight 11. He's filled with horror thinking about what the 41-year-old flight attendant from Yorkville went through as terrorists with knives steered the plane into the first World Trade Center tower. Collman knows his son received safety training in flight school, but he doubts it ever could have prepared him for the challenges he would face on the morning of Sept. 11. The grieving father is sure of one thing about his son, though, even if the details about his death are not certain:
"He would have fought like hell."

Jeffrey Collman, an American Airlines flight attendant for five years who grew up in Yorkville, died Tuesday morning when his hijacked plane, destined for Los Angeles, crashed into New York's famous landmark at 8:45 a.m. Though his body has not been recovered, his parents knew he was gone when he didn't call within a few hours after the tragedy. He had sent his stepmother, Kay, an e-mail the night before, telling her he would be flying from Boston to Los Angeles the next morning.

"I knew he was in that accident because every time there was something going on with airplanes, he would call and say, 'Hey, I'm all right,' " said Kay Collman. "So I knew that, when he didn't call, he was on that plane."

His parents [...] say Jeffrey Collman wanted to be a flight attendant because he loved to travel and meet people around the world. After working for years at Allsteel in Montgomery, he moved to California about five years ago to pursue that dream. Lifelong friend Dolores Humphrey, who went to school with Jeffrey Collman at all grade levels in Yorkville, said she feared he was killed when she heard the news because he often flew early-week flights from Boston to Los Angeles.
She said Collman never lost contact with his friends, even though his job took him around the world.

"Every time he got into town, he would call anyone he knew to meet for breakfast," said Humphrey, who last talked to Collman [5 days before 9/11]. "He would talk for a couple hours, then have to go fly somewhere else."

His stepmother said Jeffrey was the type of person who could "sit down next to someone on a plane and walk away knowing their life story." His father said Jeffrey loved tennis and flew around the world to watch professionals play. Kay Collman says her stepson never went anywhere meekly, and he loved his job so much that she's sure he didn't back down in the face of terror. "He took it seriously," she said, "and he would not have let anyone walk on him."

Humphrey said Jeffrey talked of flying even when he was a child, and his dream came true when American Airlines gave him a job. He was never afraid to fly, she said, always asserting that he was safer in the air than anyone on the ground. Collman's parents have begun to realize how their son died, and that he will always be remembered as a victim on one of the saddest days ever in the United States.

"It's completely different than just someone dying," Kay Collman said. "We'll have the pictures forever. We'll always see where he died. It's part of history."

Seattle Times, 17 September 2001
His partner, Keith Bradkowski, said Collman was courageous and safety-conscious. "He was so focused on safety," Bradkowski said. "If there was a threat, he would have done anything in his power to prevent it." He didn't normally work the Boston-to-Los Angeles route but made an exception to get vacation time at the end of the month. Collman grew up in Yorkville, Ill., and besides Bradkowski left behind four brothers and a sister. (Seattle Times)

Further information: the fate of Flight 11.

Memorial to flight crew

Source: www.maritimequest.com


Postscript
Blogger Nathanael V.  found out 5 years after 9/11, that Jeffrey Collman was a neighbour's grandson.

Sources
http://www.afacwa.org/memoriam/jeffreycollman.htm
http://www.historycommons.org/entity.jsp?entity=jeffrey_collman_1
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=5767989

and as attributed above.