With the deepest of respect to all readers and listeners (and three cheers to Anne for her ideal solution to hard ginger snaps)!, Don't feel to down hearted Anne and if you feel grumped then join me Grumpy, for there is strength in numbers. I think Anne, if you had said an old Orkney tradition was to dip hard ginger snaps in tea or coffee, then you would had got off the hook, instead of being rebuked by the male fraternity (oh my god will I now be accused of being a feminist)! I sympathise with Sigurd in trying to keep things under control, one minute his hat is on, next minute his hat is off!, which is a sure and certain way to catch a head cold (according to an Orkney tradition) Unfortunately Sigurd certain rules and guide lines are hard to interpret as black and white, grey areas can form (a bit like the OIC's Planning Policy). Sigurd you can never keep all of the people happy all of the time, but for those that are unhappy with some postings, I have the following message - Remember Jesus is not just for Christmas, ( oh my god here comes the bible bashing accusation)!, lets try and be a bit more understanding towards others, and wether you believe in him or not, there is no denying that throughout the course of the last 2,000 years, people with a kind and gentle spirit have shown great kindness and understanding towards others. This religious bit does have something to do with Orkney history (St Magnus etc etc) Take care and God Bless you All, especially Anne. Grumpy PS. Hello Lance, I see you have noticed the lack of trees in Orkney, there are many species of trees that grow well in Orkney even with the salt laded winds. Species such as Acer pseudoplatanus, Sorbus aria, Sorbus aucuparia, many Salix species. Unfortunately there is this old Orkney tradition which states that tree won't grow in Orkney, therefore people don't plant them. The Orkney climate is very similar to the South Islands of New Zealand where trees and shrubs flourish in abundance, in fact many shrubs that grow in Orkney are from New Zealand, planted by more open minded people. Take care Grumpy

Grumpy, thanks for the note. I suspected that the idea that trees wouldn't grow there was worng. For one thing, I believe that prior to the Iron Age all of Great Britain was covered with trees and that our forefathers saw fit to cut them down for the smelters. Anyway, I was going to say that here in Alaska we have a tree called the Sitka Spruce that would grow in a keg of salt...they grow in rocks on storm swept beaches where you wouldn't think a limpet would be able to live. We're coming over there next year. Let me know if you need some seeds. Best, lg > Grumpy > > PS. > > Hello Lance, > > I see you have noticed the lack of trees in Orkney, there are many species > of trees that grow well in Orkney even with the salt laded winds. Species > such as Acer pseudoplatanus, Sorbus aria, Sorbus aucuparia, many Salix > species. Unfortunately there is this old Orkney tradition which states that > tree won't grow in Orkney, therefore people don't plant them. The Orkney > climate is very similar to the South Islands of New Zealand where trees and > shrubs flourish in abundance, in fact many shrubs that grow in Orkney are > from New Zealand, planted by more open minded people. > > Take care > > Grumpy > > > ==== ORCADIA Mailing List ==== > To unsubscribe from the Orcadia mailing list, send an e-mail with the word > 'unsubscribe' in the message body to orcadia-l-request@rootsweb.com > >