Stephen, Robert, et al, My wife and I once spotted a wonderful little stone house with stone flag roof, right down near Scapa flow in Orphir, and thought it would make a grand place to own, but on a later trip we went to look at it and it was gone, torn down and replaced with a huge house being built by a guy who owns a disco or something in Kirkwall. Sad, but it would have taken so long and so much money and so much time spent there to make it habitable it was totally impractical for someone like me, with a career here, to be away that much and spend that much. But we did enjoy "planning" it in our heads, where the AGA would go, things like that. However, a house all ready to move into, paid for by about 8 people would be a different story. But then all 8 would be fighting for prime time in it, like the St. Magnus festival and so on, and no one would want it in February, so it would stand idle a lot. In the end, simply renting a self catering place is cheaper and easier, and then you don't feel pressured to go there every trip. We have rented Odin, the house with the red roof just beside the Stones of Stenness, three times now, and find it perfect. It overlooks the Loch, which is just a few feet from the front room, it has a beautiful front glassed in porch, a great living room with a fire, a wonderful kitchen complete with all mod cons, including a fan oven, plenty of cooking gear, nice wine glasses and so on, and sleeps 6, with 5 bathrooms for the six, so no one need stand dancing in the hall of a morning. At somewhere around 500 pounds a week you are a whole lot of money ahead in the long run - and the short one for that matter. But if someone comes up with a good bargain and a list of folks who want in, spread the word and there may just be interest anyway. Tuck, Sculptor, retired professor of Sculpture Indiana University South Bend. South Bend, Indiana On Mar 28, 2009, at 8:44 PM, Robert Sutherland wrote: > Me. > > ******************************************** > Robert James Sutherland, PhD > Alberta Heritage Medical Scientist > Canadian Centre for Behavioural Neuroscience > Professor, Dept of Neuroscience > Univ of LethbridgeLethbridge AB Canada > T1K 3M4 > Tel/Tél: 403-394-3987 > Admin assistant: 403-394-3900 > Fax/Télécopieur: 403-329-2775 > E-mail/Courriel: robert.sutherland@uleth.ca > ******************************************** > "We think in generalities, but we live in detail." > > Alfred North Whitehead > > > On 28-Mar-09, at 6:29 PM, stephen davie wrote: > >> ME! >> On Mar 28, 2009, at 5:27 PM, Tuck Langland wrote: >> >>> Stephan and all, >>> >>> Lining up some friends is indeed the way to go. First of all, owning >>> another house in a distant land, romantic as it may seem, has >>> certain >>> drawbacks. One is that's where you go every time you travel. So much >>> for France, Spain, Italy, etc., it's always to the same house in >>> Orkney. >>> >>> Second, when you get there you will probably spend most of your time >>> working to repair any deterioration since the last visit. Fun. >>> >>> Third, no matter where you are, one of your houses is sitting empty, >>> prey to burglars, water damage, fire etc. >>> >>> So the trust is a good idea, because you share cost, work, and time. >>> Know of anyone? >>> >>> Tuck >>> On Mar 28, 2009, at 2:37 PM, stephen davie wrote: >>> >>>> Tuck....You can't put a price on yer heritage and food fer yer >>>> soul. >>>> I will probably end up with jist enough property there for a cairn. >>>> Indeed, there was a lovely 50 acres with an old rickpile of a >>>> house, >>>> on the water not far >>>> from Finstown. Some Italian duckhunter bought it! >>>> Paid enough to buy about a hundred thousand ducks. >>>> >>>> I have the solution to your formula problem. >>>> Ya line up some relatives or friends, and form a trust. >>>> I call it my "share the pride" program. >>>> >>>> cheers...Stephen >>>> >>>> On Mar 28, 2009, at 11:17 AM, Tuck Langland wrote: >>>> >>>>> All, >>>>> >>>>> Several years ago, while visiting in Orkney and lusting after >>>>> buying a >>>>> small house there, I spoke to a local and said, >>>>> >>>>> "New let's see if I've got this straight. I buy a house for a >>>>> hundred >>>>> thousand, spend a second hundred thousand fixing it up all nice, >>>>> and >>>>> now I own a house worth a hundred thousand. Is that right?" >>>>> >>>>> And he replied, "You've got it exactly right." >>>>> >>>>> So perhaps now I can knock those numbers down a bit, but the >>>>> principle >>>>> remains the same. >>>>> >>>>> I guess I'll wait. >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Tuck >>>>> On Mar 27, 2009, at 9:51 PM, stephen davie wrote: >>>>> >>>>>> I noticed this evening, that there seems to be quite a raft of >>>>>> properties floating on the market in Orkney. Perhaps it is just >>>>>> that >>>>>> I found a website with the bulk of the listings, or perhaps it is >>>>>> this new economy speaking to people. Lots of "doubling up" going >>>>>> on >>>>>> here in Canada, with family members merging their housing, as >>>>>> the >>>>>> economy continues to shrink faster than GM's bailout money. >>>>>> >>>>>> One add which was cute, suggested that if you moved to Stronsay, >>>>>> you >>>>>> could avoid traffic jams! haha. Over to you Bruce. Bin stuck in >>>>>> the >>>>>> rush hour traffic lately? >>>>>> >>>>>> Then the Balfour Castle is for sale, and comparing it to a >>>>>> Muskoka >>>>>> Estate near my place, the price at 2.7 million pounds is >>>>>> virtually >>>>>> justifiable, in an economy with some long term prospects that >>>>>> aren't >>>>>> so unholy scary. Indeed, the photos are just lovely, and the 14 >>>>>> bedrooms and 10 baths are a delight. To ever replace the stoney >>>>>> lofty >>>>>> structure would be virtually unthinkable. I further did not know >>>>>> that >>>>>> the property is indeed one that affords world class >>>>>> waterfowling. It >>>>>> would be the ultimate b and b. >>>>>> >>>>>> All the places posted seem to reflect a drop in price. There did >>>>>> not >>>>>> seem many with acreages a few years back, and indeed the >>>>>> prospects >>>>>> below two hundred thousand pounds, were few and sketchy. >>>>>> >>>>>> Indeed two of the places for sale are priced at thirty five and >>>>>> forty >>>>>> five thousand pounds respectively. One of these has six acres, on >>>>>> Sanday in think, and the other little place, only six miles from >>>>>> Kirkwall in Tankerness.... a wee rocky fixer-upper. >>>>>> >>>>>> It will be interesting to see how things fair in Orkney in the >>>>>> new >>>>>> world economic storm. I suspect, that like farming communities >>>>>> here, >>>>>> people will do better there than in the big cities to the south. >>>>>> Farmers near here say that in light of the fact that they live >>>>>> within >>>>>> a budget, and have no propensity for unrestricted spending >>>>>> frenzies >>>>>> on borrowed money, that their lives will be the same, basically. >>>>>> That >>>>>> frugality is evident in Orkney, and will shortly prove it's value >>>>>> methinks. And the expatriated Orkney families of yesteryear, will >>>>>> continue to return and explore their roots, and in some cases >>>>>> invest >>>>>> in their heritage with a property there. Orkney is indeed a world >>>>>> class attraction. >>>>>> >>>>>> So, not much news from the green isles these days. I still have >>>>>> two >>>>>> feet of snow some places in my yard, but that will soon >>>>>> disappear. >>>>>> Spring here, as in Orkney, is a tonic for the soul. >>>>>> >>>>>> Cheers....Stephen in central Canada >>>>>> >>>>>> ( the doonies in 2009!) >>>>>> _______________________________________ >>>>>> Orcadia Group Photo Album >>>>>> http://tinyurl.com/28bx9x >>>>>> ------------------------------- >>>>>> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to ORCADIA- >>>>>> request@rootsweb.com >>>>>> with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and >>>>>> the body of the message >>>>> >>>>> _______________________________________ >>>>> Orcadia Group Photo Album >>>>> http://tinyurl.com/28bx9x >>>>> ------------------------------- >>>>> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to ORCADIA- >>>>> request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the >>>>> quotes >>>>> in the subject and the body of the message >>>>> >>>> >>>> _______________________________________ >>>> Orcadia Group Photo Album >>>> http://tinyurl.com/28bx9x >>>> ------------------------------- >>>> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to ORCADIA- >>>> request@rootsweb.com >>>> with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and >>>> the body of the message >>> >>> _______________________________________ >>> Orcadia Group Photo Album >>> http://tinyurl.com/28bx9x >>> ------------------------------- >>> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to ORCADIA- >>> request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes >>> in the subject and the body of the message >>> >> >> _______________________________________ >> Orcadia Group Photo Album >> http://tinyurl.com/28bx9x >> ------------------------------- >> To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to ORCADIA-request@rootsweb.com >> with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and >> the body of the message > > > _______________________________________ > Orcadia Group Photo Album > http://tinyurl.com/28bx9x > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to ORCADIA-request@rootsweb.com > with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and > the body of the message