Barebraes

 Most of you in Orkney are probably having a great time at the County Show.  Beer tent, Prize Giving, Farm Machinery and lots of fun and excitement.  Those of you who are outwith Orkney will be wondering what you are missing. Well to help you understand what it is all about, I will try to capture the  flavour of the day from the Shapinsay Show.

This year was somewhat untried and tested ground. The Horticultural and Agricultural Show had not been held together on the same day for a very long time. No one was quite sure why they separated but nevertheless they did and this year both Committees decided to see if could work.

For the people who dedicate their time and effort into arranging these functions it must have been a minefield of plans and preparation.  For the Exhibitors I can only guess that was as busy and stressful.  The Show field was set up a few days before the Show and the Hall where the  Horticultural and Industrial Exhibits were to be shown was set up with tables and tressles the weekend before.  Doors opened at 7pm the night before to accept  flowers , veg, cakes, knitting, embriodery, art work and photographs not to mention the jams, eggs, cheese and childrens  exhibits.

As the doors closed at 9pm the hall was awash with colour and smells, but this wasn’t the end, all  catagories had to be in the right order and  Tickets  for  First Second Third and Commended had to  be assigned to the various catagories ready for the Judges to  place on prized begonias and Fruit Cakes.  At  way after 10pm  the final touches were made to the Trophies and  the lights were switched off for the night. 

 Outside in the show park final preparations to the  side show tents were being carried out in torrential rain.  This was not looking good for the morn where rain had been forecast.  All the wishing and hoping would be in vain as it was going to be in the Lap of the Gods as to what weather  they bestowed upon Shapinsay.

I arrived  at the Hall at  8.15am  ready to help out. As a  Committe Member we were needed to  write prize names on prize tickets and  enter the same names in  the ledgers which have been kept and cherished for many years and can still be  viewed in the Heritage Centre on Shapinsay. 

Judges arrived on the  8.45 boat and were promptly invited for morning  tea. 

Outside in the  Show Park animals and people had begun to turn up and  the grey skies were parting to show  bonny blue  patches.   It was looking good.

The Agricultural Show was opened at 10am and the boat  bringing  people to Shapinsay was full.  There was plenty to  see and some excitement in the Cattle ring where a frisky Calf was causing a bit of trouble.  The Sheep Horses Cattle and Dogs were all judged and  proud owners duly had thier  pictures taken by Radio Orkney. 

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=161342&id=31395967167

 Inside the Hall Judging was  coming to a close and  after all the tickets were written and displays  arranged the doors opened at 1pm for the public to see the produce and  handicrafts. 

All in all the show went off very well and with gates up and exhibitor number increased it was hoped that both parties would consider to hold this  function together again next year

 I will leave  you with some of the sights of the Show.  Maybe next year you too will visit Shapinsay and sample the atmosphere.

Only a man would name a barge Pauline !!!!

When I look back at my last post which was in January its hard to beleive that its been just over 5 months.  The grass has grown and been cut the silage has been gathered and soon  the fields will be full of  golden  bales. I love this time of year, the island seems to come alive with activity, tractors  back and forth, cruise liners passing the lounge window, people walking past the house with  rucksacks. 

Here at Barebraes we are pushing on with the work and making  use of the warm dryish weather to  finish off outdoor jobs.  The gable end wall is dashed and I am in the process of rendering the back of the house, I hate picking  and chipping off the old render and lime but its a job that needs doing.  Mr B  has invested in the use of a mini digger and  all this week we are  putting in the drainage for the spoots ( downpipes). Whenever I hear the word spoots it transports me back to our  first few months here and the confusion regarding  the use of the word (BBC Bloggers might remember the post). Tomorrow should see that job finished and we  will then have to concentrate on the strapping and plasterboarding in the lounge and upstairs. 

I miss taking time out to take Hooch down to Ness for a paddle. :(  Its  hard to get out of  old habits.

A few months ago a mast was erected where the proposed wind turbine will be sited and a nice man placed a microphone and box of tricks in our garden to record noise and weather conditions.  I hope  that when the  data was examined they couldn’t hear Mr B shouting and swearing as he sometimes does when inanimate objects are missing from their place of residence :)  Well sometimes  one needs to let off steam

The next date on the Shapinsay Diary will be the Agricltural and Horticultural Show which  for the first time will be held on the same day, so if your in the area  make a note to keep the 10th August clear and book your place early on the boat as it often gets full.  Who knows I might have a few exhibits on show !!!

Well thats all for now so I will leave you with a few  views of this summer, until next time happy bloggin

 All of you  bloggers you will know that  Hooch has been a part of this and the BBC blogs since it started way back when. Unfortunately we had to take him to the vets on Thursday and it was decided that there was nothing we could do  for him.

He has been  with us for  over 6 years and  having being a rescue dog I am sure that  he has enjoyed his time with us as much as we have with him.

He was a characture and my everlasting memories of him  will be  when he was at his happiest  neck deep in the ocean cooling off.

Although I am very sad that he has gone, I am glad that  I was able to share  some time with him.

Girls outing to Stromness

As I sit here I find it hard to beleive that my last post was over 3 months ago. Shame on me !!!

Well what has been going on  here, to be honest I couldnt honestly tell you, Old Father Time has  stolen  last year from us and we are hurridly hurtling into 2010 without our seatbelts on. Someone save us from ourselves.

The winter weather is  with us and as usual we are having to dig ourselves out of  here with shovels.  Snow  has fallen  fairly lightly so far but more is forecast for tonight so I guess that  tomorrow I will have to take  a walk to the top of the Brae where my little car is sitting safe and ready for its terrifying  exit down the brae slipping and sliding on the sheet ice that has  settled and stayed on the long track.  One ex resident of Barebraes  had visitors on skis as the  track was  unpassable for days. 

Poor Hooch needs a sled as  his poor paws slip and slide on the frozen stuff and he  decides to  sit and look helpless when  his  legs  give way underneath him, trying to pick him up is a mammoth  task when you cant keep your own feet.

Apparently Harray Loch  was frozen and Mainland Orkney saw numerous accidents.  The Christmas and New Year Ba was held and some  pictures can be viewed here:

http://www.bagame.com/main.html

By all accounts they were splendid game with the Doonies upsetting the Uppies and  winning the Mens New Years Day Ba.

As for us at Barebraes we have been enjoying the festivities and look forward to a productive New Year, this mainly due to the fact that we have been very  busy doing other things and  the poor house has been  neglected. One day we will get it finished.

We wish everyone a  Happy New Year and a great 2010

Yesterday the phone rang at Barebraes and upon answering it I  was reliably informed that the Barge  bound for the Fair Isles  laden with  pods  for the  bird observatory  was leaving Hatsons Pier.  After  a short while I  took the  binoculars and peered over towards Kirkwall and there it was, lead by the pilot boat heading  along the String out  towards its destination.

As it passed very slowly I got a good view of the  contents of the barge, Little  houses all stacked  on the decks. The name of the Barge is Salina and it was accompanied by the MTS Vengeance.  The  day was  bright and  clear and  not too windy and I wondered  how long it would take to get to the destination as the speed  it was going was very  slow.

As it headed out into the  String I got ready for work at the  Thomas Sinclair. 

On arriving  at work  we could see on the horizon  what looked like a  huge moving hill, this was the barge but it seemed to be  getting nearer instead of farther away.  On inspection through binoculars we could see that she had turned around and was heading back towards Kirkwall  

 Apparently  they had decided that the weather window was too narrow and the swell too much to chance the journey and  back into port to wait another day they came.

Well when she goes again I hope that she makes her long journey and safely  gets to  the Fair Isles.

Here is a Link to the  Bird observatory site :

http://www.fairislebirdobs.co.uk/NewObservatory/Appeal_update.html

Well I am not  practicing for  a tongue twister competition just trying to keep you up to speed on the past few weeks in Shapinsay.

As mentioned in the previous post  it was the Shapinsay Horticultural Show.

What a turnout.
Despite the weather  being  far too dry for the veg the  folk of Shapinsay  did us proud. The Hall was a wash with  flowers, veg, crafts, baking, photographs, jams  and  dairy produce.  The judges had a hard job but rose to the  challenge and awarded the  prizes to the best in the  classes.

I managed a few  prizes for  some art work  and photographs  but alas  didnt feel that the  entwined carrots would  pass inspection.  The tattie in a bucket competition was a grudge match between Rousay and us and I am glad to say that the  heaviest bucket belonged to Shapinsay.

The  next day we were all back in the hall for the  RNLI fete.   A Bad forecast had  changed the venue from the  Village Green to the Community Centre. The Barbecue was set up outside the hall and side stalls  were both inside and out.  Sausages, burgers, steak rolls and various  relishes and  pickles provided by  Mrs O from  Orkney Island Preserves were devoured.  The  weather was  better than we had expected and apart from one  heavy downpour the sun shone and the money rolled in.

The  entertainment came from The Orkney Strathspey and Reel Society,  The girls of the Pipe band and  a local ensemble of musicians. In the afternoon there was a Sumo Wrestling Competition for all ages.  I can tell you those suits are some heavy and hot. I mananged to get knocked out in the  1st round mainly  due to the fact that  I couldn’t fight for laughing so much.

The Round Shapinsay  Sailing Regatta also took part and the  crews of the boats were invited to the function.

The Grand total  raised was just under £1000 which was a great acheivement.

The  frivolity lasted late into the evening and  we were all there the  day after to clear up the mess.

Well done Shapinsay

Well This year I have  eventually  got round to  growing a few Veggies, not that we will need a lot just for the two of us but its a start.

Its been a bit hit and miss as  the lovely Cabbages  were demolished overnight by a swarm (not sure if this is the correct terminology) of Creepy Caterpillars who devoured every  leaf and  stem. The tatties are looking good as are the  beetroot and carrots and we are awaiting the  produce from the Parsnips.

As the Show season is upon us  I  thought  it only fit to mention that the Shapinsay Agricultural Show was a huge success with hoards of visitors  attending and the poor MV Shap  being full to the  brim on at least 3 crossings, forcing the nice man from Radio Orkney to have to find altrernative  means of transport to  cover the prestigious event.

The  competition is heating up too on the Horticultural front with the Tattie in a Bucket Comp  being fought over between Rousay and Shapinsay.  The Horticultural Event is to be held on the 14th August and  usually a grand event to attend and to take part in.

I am going to  see if I can get  my  Prize Carrot into the  record books

 What do you think will it win any prizes

My how time flies…. here we are past  the longest day and heading back into shorter days.

Shapinsay has  been turned into a patchwork of  Greens and Golds, silage stipes and Hay bales are everywhere. They say its been an exceptional  year for the Silage, plenty of dry weather and  most of the  farms  all stocked up for the winter months again. The Haylage is  slowly being  cut and baled and  the feilds are awash with  golden  rolls. 

I love this time of year, Liners pass by the house on there  way to Kirkwall, people with smiles on their faces happy  with the warm weather.  All the tracks awash with  flowers and  the  Marsh Lillies out waving their yellow heads in the  breeze.  Hooch just lies in the garden  huffing and puffing at another warm dry day , his only respite being a  cool  dip in the ocean.  He  wallows  with his head  visible in the cool  water, not a care in the world and not  a thought  for the  gulls that fly above his head squawking.

Along the track to Barebraes we have had  lots of breeding oystercatchers and curlews and  on  entering  the track you can catch glimpses of the  adult and baby birds  practicing  flight.

Its fast approaching  the time  for the Annual cattle and Horticultural Shows as well as the RNLI Fete.  Shapinsay will  provide  a good show at all these events and many  cakes and cuppas will be  consumed.

As for us at Barebraes we have  been  busy trying to earn enough money to finance the  rest of our  building project and have hardly enough time to scratch our ***** :) , But  I have managed to  sew some seeds and  the  veggie patch is coming along.  So If your in the area and want to pop over to Shapinsay ,. I am  sure that you will get a good  warm welcome .

Well Day  Two and the Tea Cosy  was kindly invited to a Jaunt  at Haughland House. There was a spinning weekend and yours truly and the Cosy  decided that we needed to learn the art of  spinning and plying.

So off we went

Taking life in its hands on the open road

We arrived at Haughland in time for  Tea and Biscuits and were shown the fine art in  spinning with wheels and other implements…..

After Lunch we  went for a stroll aroung the grounds and found a few things to  look at

As you can see the Cosy was well and truly spoilt to a truly  interesting day

What  other  adventures will it have