Jim Yes I'm sure Jean will find things to do outdoors, although it may be more of a "rescue remedy" for poor wind battered plants. I love gardening but am unable to do very much except light gardening. In the winter I like to plan and fantasise what I might do in the garden once summer arrives. My first attempts were great learning experiences. Everyone had told me to shelter plants from the wind so I chose what I thought was a sheltered spot surrounded by three walls - but I hadn't bargained for the whirlpool effect of the wind and the patch of earth became scoured and stony and plantless by the Spring! Still it's fun learning to overcome the challenges. To answer your questions - I live on Graemsay, just across the water from Stromness. It's a small island with about 21 residents, about 50% of which are incomers. Everyone here was very welcoming from the first, including Orcadians. In fact I found myself adopted by my Orcadian neighbours which continues to this day. I moved from the suburbs of London where I had lived all my life. And I did what I tell everone else *not* to do - I fell in love with Orkney on my first visit and bought a derelict house on Graemsay which I saw for all of an hour in bright sunshine before my return flight to London. All my life I'd longed to live near the sea shore and in a rural community, and I have never regretted my decision. Despite most of my friends in the South of England declaring me fairly deeply bonkers....! Like you I don't miss the pressures of urban living. I enjoy my occasional sojourn to Edinburgh, Glagow, and York for work purposes but have no desire to return "south". The winters in Orkney can be long and dark that is true, but even living on the outskirts of London I struggled with Winter. But in Orkney I am able to organise my life to fit the rhythms of the seasons. I spend lots of time outdoors (whatever the weather) from April to October, then hibernate indoors from November to March either increasing the hours I work, or indulging in reading, catching up on DVDs, and other projects. This winter's project is to attempt to learn to play the guitar! The wind in the winter is my challenge. If it's too rough I can stay indoors, but there are times when it screams around the house for days and nights, wailing like a banshee, and just when I think I can't stand it any longer I wake up one morning to complete silence and perfect stillness, and in the evening the lights of Stromness stretch across the Sound on a calm sea to touch the shore of Graemsay. I've learned the value of silence since living in Orkney!! Welcome and may you enjoy many years of peaceful living in Orkney! Sian Message: 1 > Date: Sat, 8 Sep 2007 11:46:43 EST > From: James Thompson <[email protected]> > Subject: Re: [ORCADIA] Orkney Winters > To: [email protected] > Message-ID: <[email protected]> > > Sian, > > Thanks for the TV tips and your other suggestions. Jean and I are > both constant readers, but Jean's also a keen gardener so she may miss > that during the winter, although people tell us there's still lots to > do in the garden then. > > We've been coming to Orkney in the summers for years and have found > people generally welcoming. Perhaps our living in a sparsely > populated rural area has something to do with that. We get along fine > with all the local farmers, many of whom have gone out of their way to > make us feel welcome -- though not all of them are speaking to each other! > > If I may ask, what part of Orkney do you live in, and where did you > move here from? We came from sourthern California, and no, we don't > miss the weather there, or the traffic, smog, noise and crime. > > Regards, > > Jim (and Jean) > > > --------------------------------------------- > This message was sent using the UIA Web Mail Server. > ULTIMATE Internet Access, Inc http://www.uia.net/ > > > > > ------------------------------ > > To contact the ORCADIA list administrator, send an email to > [email protected] > > To post a message to the ORCADIA mailing list, send an email to > [email protected] > > __________________________________________________________ > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to > [email protected] > with the word "unsubscribe" without the quotes in the subject and the body > of the > email with no additional text. > > > End of ORCADIA Digest, Vol 2, Issue 230 > *************************************** >

Was I looking at your home/island from a comfortable chair in a home in Stromness near the Diving building and/or pier? Marion (Maine) > > To answer your questions - I live on Graemsay, just across the water from > Stromness. It's a small island with about 21 residents, about 50% of > which > are incomers. > > Sian

In Orkney we have the benfit of the wind, unrestricted by all those trees!