Evening notes

The foot-and-mouth outbreak in Egham caused a bit of a panic at two livestock sales elsewhere in the UK. In the Derbyshire town of Bakewell, 8,000 sheep were detained at an auction mart, until the mart's operators obtained a license to move the animals. A ram at a sale in Lanark, southeast of Glasgow, was seriously ill which led to the detention of 700 sheep and 1,000 farmers on the premises. Luckily, whatever was ailing the ram, it wasn't foot-and-mouth.

The tropical system off Texas has augmented into tropical storm Humberto, which won't bring more than a force 9 gale to Galveston. Please be prepared for 5 to 15 inches of rain though - even after landfall. There are Local Hurricane Statements in force for Lake Charles LA and Galveston / Houston TX

The earthquake in Indonesia caused a localised tsunami - a wave just under 1 metre in height (that's 3 feet and a bit) occurred along the Sumatran coast. The watches for tsunamis have now largely been cancelled.

Foot and mouth

A new outbreak of foot-and-mouth (I believe it's called hoof-and-mouth in the US) disease has been confirmed amongst cattle at a farm in Egham, west of London. This comes on the very day that the European Union was going to lift export restrictions on UK meat.

Movement restrictions on livestock have been reintroduced in England, and parallel measures are being sought in Scotland and Wales.

Note

Yesterday, I forwarded an email to several dozen J-landers in the context of the 6th anniversary of 9/11. It generated some reactions and a storm in the email cabinet. An apology to all who felt distressed or offended in any way by either the email or the ensuing "Reply All" warfare and my mishandling of it. If I have anything to say, it'll be on the journal, and only on the rarest of occasions (Christmas, New Year, J-land chats and the like) will I send out group emails again.

Hurricane update - 12 September

A tropical depression has formed, with the prosaic name of "9", in the Gulf of Mexico. It is currently located south of Galveston and east of Corpus Christi. It will come ashore between Port O'Connor TX and Cameron LA tonight. The main problem is copious amounts of rainfall: 5 to 10 inches, locally up to 15 inches. Winds will reach tropical storm force (above force 8 on the Beaufort scale) near the centre before landfall.

Earthquake in Indonesia - tsunami alert

An earthquake measuring 7.9 on the Richter scale has struck Indonesia, near Sumatra. Buildings in the capital Jakarta were reported to be swaying as the earthquake took place, an hour ago at 1210 BST (1110 GMT or 0710 BST).

A tsunami watch is in force, full details from this site. Please check the PTWC site frequently for updates.

Wednesday notes

Back to today, which is turning into a mild sunny afternoon. News came through recently of another suspected outbreak of foot and mouth disease, this time at Egham, just west of London, near the intersection of the M3 and M25 motorways. A 3 km exclusion zone has been set up, which covers stretches of both motorways. The government's emergency COBRA [Cabinet Office Briefing Room A] committee will meet later this afternoon, as soon as the definitive test results are, confirming or otherwise whether foot and mouth does exist in the herd at Egham. The farm is located 30 miles to the north of the outbreak near Guildford.

It is reported that short-term use of the contraceptive pill apparently reduces the risk of cancer. The risks posed by breast and ovarian cancers are statistically less than the benefits of using the pill. They still exist though. In the longer term, the pill is associated with an increasing risk of cancer.

Couple of Russian news items that caught my eye. Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, has accepted the resignation of his entire cabinet, giving him free reign to appoint a new cabinet in the run-up to presidential elections in March 2008.

The governor of the Ulyanovsk region in Russia, 300 miles east of Russia, has called on couples to take a day off to have sex. Any babies born in 9 months time on June 12th will win the happy parents a prize. June 12th is Russia's national day. Am I allowed to say that I think this idea is bonkers? No, it's government policy to promote childbirth rates.

Seriously, changes are afoot in Russia, and you could do worse than read this article to keep abreast of developments.

Tuesday notes

A few remarks about yesterday, which was rather non-descript in terms of weather. Same as before. In the evening, I attended a performance of Rossini's opera La Cenorentela, known in English as Cinderella. It was put up by Scottish Opera as part of a 19-performance tour of Scotland which stretches from Kirkwall in the north to Biggar in the south. Every second or third night, the company puts up a show.

The music was provided by a very proficient pianist, with seven actors on stage. The decor was cleverly designed with revolving panels, which could also fold out and turn into a different background. It was very good indeed, and I thoroughly recommend it to anyone in Scotland between now and October 20th. The link above gives more details about the performance and venues.

9/11 - 6 years on

When I click "Save", it will be exactly six years to the minute that the first aircraft hit the World Trade Center in New York. The events of what is now referred to as 9/11 are only too well known.

My thoughts are with all victims, whether identified afterwards, or not. In New York, Washington and Pennsylvania.

My thoughts are with the passengers on the four flights destroyed. My thoughts are with the victims killed in the World Trade Center. My thoughts are with those emergency workers who lost their lives trying to save others'.

My thoughts today are with the families of those who perpetrated these atrocities, for they lost too. Even before the events of September 2001, they lost their loved ones to a delusion of hate that is not of the religion they claimed to be faithful to. Hatred leads to destruction - as shown six years ago. Forgiveness is a pillar of Christian faith, as it is one of the Islamic faith. Whether those that lost a loved one in 9/11 can find it in themselves to forgive is beyond my scope.

But first and foremost, my thoughts are with Norberto Hernandez, whose tribute I filed on this blog a year ago. Project 2996 urged us to add new material when reposting a tribute. I found this impossible. The searches for Norberto on Google are contaminated with references to the Falling Man, who was in fact another victim, Jonathan Briley. This confusion has led to much anger and anguish, something the families of both men could do well without.

Norberto, rest in peace.

This entry, as stated above is dedicated to the memory of

Norberto was a pastry chef from Elmhurst, working in the restaurant Windows on the World on the 106th and 107th floor of the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York. After the attacks, he was reported missing for a week until parts of a torso and an arm were found in a collapsed stairwell. DNA testing and finger printing reveiled that these were the remains of Norberto. It also invalidated claims that the image of the Falling Man was that of Norberto; this was another victim of 9/11 who will be the subject of a different tribute.

At the time of the attacks on the WTC, Norberto was aged 42 and had been married for 25 years. He was the fourth of ten children by his parents’ marriage, and also had six half-siblings through his father. His parents separated when he was young. Norberto himself had three daughters, three grandchildren and 37 nephews. He was a man of Puerto Rican origins, and had hoped to spend his final days there. Instead, after 9/11, a funeral service was held and his remains cremated in Puerto Rico.

 

His sister Luz described Norberto. “He was quiet, kind”, she said. “He was a handsome man. Everybody loved him, you know. Everybody.” Norberto’s nickname was Bible, as he was very dependable. Together Forever was his motto.

 

Norberto started work in Windows on the World at the age of 17, washing dishes. He was interested in cooking, so a manager paid for his tuition at cooking school. Norberto became pastry chef and worked up to 10 hours a day. His sister Luz said that he made cakes, desserts, cookies and bread. His cakes were fabulous.

 

Outside work, Norberto loved sports, and was a fan of a Puerto Rican boxer, Felix Trinidad Jr. Four days before the attacks, he rang his mother and asked her to play “I would cry but I have no more tears” four times.

 

In the immediate aftermath of the plane striking the North Tower, Norberto called his sister Luz. “He said: ‘Yeah, don’t worry, I’m OK”.They were disconnected, and when Luz tried to call back she could not get through. Other accounts from Windows on the World tell that smoke and dust filled the restaurant after the strike, and that people lay on the floor to escape the worst of it. Air was beginning to run out at the time of thelast contact.

 

 

These are the facts that I have managed to pull together from the Internet.

 

From the little that I have learned of Norberto, he came through as a gentle giant. Although 6’2” (1.84m) tall, he was always listening, and talked later. His family suffered a double loss, as Claribel Hernandez (his sister-in-law), a secretary working elsewhere in the North Tower, was also killed in the attacks. Norberto was close in the family and responsible, which earned him the nickname Bible. He loved his work, and by the look of one of the images, loved to impart that knowledge to others around him. 

 

September 11th, 2001, dawned as a brilliantly sunny morning in New York. Two planes were flown into the two towers of the World Trade Center, leading to their collapse within 2 hours. The destruction of so many lives was brought about by mindless hatred and madness, fuelled by religious zealotry which was not based on any writing in any scriptures in any religion.

 

Norberto may have heard of that on news reports, but it was probably quite far from him. He was a man that lived for his family, always there for them. A diligent worker, putting in up to 10 hours a day, loving his creations from the oven. Travelling to the WTC on the Subway every morning, his thoughts were probably far from what was to happen not that much later on that fateful Tuesday.

 

Two thousand nine hundred and ninety-six are known to have died that day, or in its immediate aftermath. Norberto’s ashes were scattered in his homeland of Puerto Rico. His memory lives on in his family, and in the memory of those that read this. He is deeply missed by those close to him.

 

To Norberto Hernandez

 

Rest In Peace

 

Links

http://www.jrn.columbia.edu/studentwork/terror/sep19/three_lives.asp

I have attempted to contact the University of Columbia to use the material in this link, but have not received a reply. As it is central to thetribute, I have used it, and acknowledge the writer, Sarah Clemence.

 

http://www.poetrykit.org/pkl/tw6/tw4conte.htm

This is a poem by Barbara Phillips, from which I have used some factual references to Norberto. It refers to him being the Falling Man though.

 

http://www.unitedinmemory.net/gallery.php

I have been granted permission by UIM to reproduce the commemorative quilt for Norberto.

 

http://www.queenspress.com/archives/coverstories/2001/issue38/coverstory.htm

The poster, pictured above, proclaiming Norberto as missing after the attacks, hung on a walkway of Manhattan for more than a week

 

 

http://www.dcroe.com/2996/?page_id=2

2,996 persons.

J-land remembers 9/11

Comments from readers who do not have an AOL / AIM screenname can be left in the Guest Book, which you can find in the left sidebar of the main journal. I shall transcribe them into comments on this entry, with attribution.

Tags: 2996, project, 9/11, norberto, hernandez

Call for support

Could people call round Lisa's (seraphoflove9001) to give moral support? Thanks.

Tomorrow

9/11 - 6 years on

Tomorrow, you will see only one posting from me: the tribute to Norberto Hernandez. I'm endeavouring to post it at 1.46pm.

Help find Steve Fossett

The record-breaking aviator Steve Fossett went missing over Nevada, USA, last week. The help of the public is now sought to locate his missing plane and possibly learn his fate. You need Google Earth and a free subscription to amazon.com or amazon.co.uk to participate. The program used is called Amazon Mechanical Turk. Read the details on this BBC report.

Smoking ban

Following the introduction on a ban on smoking in public places in Scotland in March 2006, the number of heart attacks in smokers has been reduced by 6% and in non-smokers by 17%. Only goes to show, according to the medical profession, that passive smoking (inhaling someone else's smoke even if you do not smoke yourself) kills. One of the many health benefits the smoking ban has brought.

Cruiseliner

We have another cruiseliner in this afternoon: the Clipper Adventurer. You need deep pockets to sail in her, to the tune of £2,500 to £6,500 per cruise (multiply by 2 to get the price in dollars). She came in just before 1pm and looked quite smart from Goat Island where I had positioned myself to snap a pic .

Monday notes

All quiet on the hurricane front at the moment. Watch out later in the week though, when a new system turns up the heat between Africa and the Windward Islands.

Nice sunny morning, although not warm. Tonight might even see the first frost of the season, when temperatures dive to 3C / 37F in frostprone areas.

I cannot comment further on the Madeleine McCann case and quite frankly, I just find it beyond belief that the BBC's 24 hour news channel allowed all of Saturday and Sunday to be taken up by this case. The sum total of 48 hours' reporting is: Kate and Gerry McCann are formal suspects in the disappearance of their daughter and have now returned to the UK. They may be recalled to Portugal at 5 days' notice for further questioning or legal proceedings.

Looking back - Ben Nevis

The highest mountain in the British Isles, towering at 4,406 feet or 1,343 metres straight up from sealevel at Fort William in Scotland. It stands 100 miles north of Glasgow on the shores of Loch Linnhe. You cannot see it directly from Fort William, but a short trip west to Corpach will reveal it in all its stark splendour.

I have often relayed reports of climbers and walkers coming to grief in the mountains generally, and Ben Nevis claims its sad share of lives each year. Some casualties are genuine accidents which could happen to the most experienced of mountaineers. Some casualties are the result of people taking to the mountains in plimsolls and shorts. The majority of cases lie in between these extremes.

I found Ben Nevis a Challenge with a capital C, starting as I did from Ben Nevis. This entails a 2,000 ft unceasing climb at a very acute angle, before you level out at a loch, halfway up the mountain. I copy the diary entry from 30 October 2004.

Woke up at 7.30, when it was still dark. Had breakfast with the morning star winking at me through the trees. Marched out the door at 8.30, it being fully light by that time. Quite a few people were heading out by that hour, and I left a route card at reception. My destination today:

BEN NEVIS 1,344m - 4,406 ft

Anticipated time of return: 6pm. Set out across the road, across the bridge and on to the track. This was innocently flat at first, but then started to climb. And never stopped climbing. Walked with one other hosteller. It was a demanding, exacting exercise. The ascent was continuous, and rapid. But it took its toll on legs, particularly the upper leg muscles. Speed is a killer in this sort of situation, so it was a case of proceeding slowly but persistently. You wind up the hillside to the junction with the path from the Visitor Centre, then climb up northeast until you reach the valley which leads to the Ben itself. You climb out of the corrie, until you crest out near Loch Meall an t-Suidhe, altitude 570m, 1,900ft. Things don't stop there, obviously. At a large wall, the tourist path from Fort William comes in, and it veers east again. The climb continues, across a stream and then into boulder land. At altitude 1,150m, 3,800ft, a patch of snow appeared along the trail. These quickly spread and multiplied, and eventually, near the summit, spread onto the path. It is very dangerous to walk on the snow without crampons on. It is not soft, fluffy snow; it is hard, frost-glazed and you'll slip if you're not careful. Follow the cairns up, and finally, by 11.40, the summit cairn and associated ruins hove into view. There are some truly hairraising precipices along the way, and one of them is topped by a cornice. Again, in poor visibility, if you stray onto those you fall a mere

600 metres - 2,000 ft

Similar cliffs and hazards abound round the summit area. Fantastic views, all along the view. There was a great atmosphere of camaraderie on the summit plateau; the most moving thing was the cairn, which was surrounded by dozens of memorial plaques, devoted to those who never came off the mountain. Some of them had teddies placed alongside; the most recent dated back to this July. There was the ruin of the old hotel, which existed here in the early 1900s. There is a shelter at the summit, and the summit trig point, placed about20 feet above the actual summit. Snows can be deep up here in winter. Chatting to a few fellow walkers, one of whom had done the walk in 2h36; I had covered it in 3h15. He intended to do the Three Peaks Challenge - Ben Nevis, Scafell Pike and Snowdon within 24 hours. Had a cup of soup and a roll on the summit, as well as some tea. Then the weather began to change. Cloud rolled in, a bank overtopping the summit by about 200m, 700 ft, wreathing everything in mist. Decided to start the descent at 12.30. Got into trouble immediately, because of the mist. Didn't see the bloody route, set out as it is in stone and snow. Waited till I heard voices coming up the mountain, and followed their route. Go wrong on the summit, and you'll fall deep. Met loads of people coming up. I walked out of the mist at about 1pm, then merrily walked on through the empire of stone. Greeted all oncomers and advised some of them on distance yet to be covered. They were all covered in sweat, as I myself had been. Drank some water out of streams, which you shouldn't really do. Returned to the lochan at about 2.30, and met my final oncomer below that at 2.40. She walked very slowly, and rested every 50-100 yards. The lady would not make it to the summit and back before nightfall; at time of typing I'm still worried, but nothing I can do. A gruelling hour descending the path to the hostel brought me back there at 3.40, 3 hours and 10 minutes after leaving the top. Oh dear, how knackered can you be. And how much good a shower can do LOL.

Hurricane update - 9 September

Tropical storm Gabrielle will pass over the Outer Banks off North Carolina this afternoon, with winds up to 45 or 55 knots (that is 50 to 62 mph). Rainfall will range between 1 and 5 inches, and tornadoes are possible. After this passage, Gabrielle will move away northeast and disappear off the weathermaps within a day or two.

Sunday notes

Wet and breezy today, and not very warm at all. Tomorrow will be better.

I should clarify that I am not intending to move blogs; I have a handful of webpages which you may admire from this link. It is some static information about my activities and the Hebrides in general, with an obvious focus on Lewis.

The parents of disappeared Madeleine McCann have arrived back in the UK following their surprise elevation to status of formal suspect in their daughter's disappearance. Their return apparently went with the full knowledge and consent of the Portuguese authorities. I repeat that I hope Madeleine will be found, but the likelihood of that is at best slender.

Those reading the Water's Edge blog [private] can count on a handful of entries over the days to come.

Transferring a domain

Well, I have this internet domain which has been lying idle on a shelf at Bravenet.com for nearly a year. I feel too restricted by what Bravenet.com has to offer, so am now transferring it to another registrar. The winning registrar sends me an email to click on a link if I want the transfer to proceed. The losing registrar sends me an email to click on a link if I want to cancel the transfer. Now I have to wait for 5 days for the thing to go through. My domain is not active at the moment at any rate, and I'm still looking for someone who can host my wee site without it costing an arm and a leg. It will be the site I've got on AOL Hometown at the moment. I've just stripped the HTML in the relevant webpages of everything related to AOL - you wouldn't believe the amount of crap that AOL puts on your webpage. And Hometown is so incredibly user-unfriendly, and their EasyDesigner at best clunky. Oh well, I'll let you know by the end of next week whether it has all gone through.

Sheep

Originally posted on the Lighthouse Blog, January 2006.

As an avid walker in the wilds of Lewis and Harris, my sole companions tend not to be fellow walkers, but sheep. Or at least, those tend to be the most numerous four-legged creatures alongside the path. They are not normally very taken with my (or anybody's) presence, so they scuttle off helter-skelter out of the way. There have been exceptions, as the accompanying gallery will show. Sheep have this unfortunate reputation of being stupid. Tend not to agree. They're not the brightest card in the pack of creation, but then which creature would be able to find the spot in the moor where they themselves were born to give birth themselves? It is only bettered by the salmon, which manages to find the very river where it spawned after a journey of thousands of miles and of many years. Sheep are also said to know their farmer. Don't believe that. Look at the reception I got at Dalbeg - picture in gallery. As winter progresses, the condition of the sheep deteriorates, and by the end of the 2004/5 winter, I came across a sorry procession of animals that had not survived. The look on the face of the Tolsta crofter who had piled up another two carcases at the bottom of his croft said it all. I still wonder what happened to the sheep that panicked to such an extent that it jumped clean into a fast-running and deep river north of Tolsta. It was carried downstream, and managed climb on to the riverbank. It was a freezing cold day, and that can't have been healthy. The track from Bogha Glas to Langadale, just across the Lewis / Harris border has seen me quite a few times at the beginning of 2005. I also became quite acquainted with the location of the dead sheep. Even not seeing them did not prevent me from knowing they were there - the smell said it all. In April, I discovered this dead sheep that was lying in the ditch beside the Marybank cattlegrid. As the days and weeks progressed, it was not moved, and deteriorated gradually. By August, only the fleece was left, and by October, even this had disappeared. Worse than that were the few unfortunate creatures whose eyes had been pecked out by a hooded crow, a corvine I have come to dislike. The poor animal was pedalling its legs, but could not get up. When I approached, I could see its eye was missing. I retreated as there was nothing I could do. Even more painful was the sight of the little lamb near Kinloch Seaforth in late April, standing uncomprehending near its prostrate mother, which was dying after losing its eyes. I was able to help the dumb animal that I found stuck in a bog a mile north of Laxay (Lochs). Managed to pull it out single-handed, and as soon as the animal realised it was free, the sheep started to feed like mad. To compensate, there was this ewe near Bragar who gingerly approached me with its lamb at foot, almost as if to say "isn't he beautiful?" And the twin lambs at Huisinis, Harris, which lay together in the bright sunshine.

Not one of my most pleasant entries, I agree, but it's all part of island life.


Ram at Eorodale, Ness.


Lambs at Huisinis, Harris


Ewe at Huisinis, Harris

Flock of sheep at Dalbeg

Ewe with lamb at  foot, Bragar

Lambing field at Breasclete

Saturday afternoon

Busy day here, with one couple departing for mainland Scotland by ferry, and another arriving by plane from the European continent. The latter had booked 6 months ago, and will be here for 2 weeks. I've already drawn up a list of things to do - just hope the weather holds. Although I am moaning about clouds and all, there is no real reason for complaint.

Am watching the starlings flock prior to their autumn migration, the 58 North yacht is sailing in the harbour. Yesterday, I was in the town centre, and a fishing boat was taking ice - accompanied by 4 seals. A few weeks ago, a seal had been lured into the Newton Basin, and the fisherman (in a small dinghy) was throwing fish to the animal. They are big beasts, so it caused quite a splash.

Saturday notes

Another overcast day, with a chance of some drizzle. The thermometer has put down roots around the 60F mark by the look of it. We're there again just now.

Osama Bin Liner has issued another video seance in which he rubbishes everything the Western world stands for, and tells the US to convert to Islam. Yawn. Seems Osama doesn't know his own Holy Scripts, which exempt subscribers to other faiths from Islamic scriptures.

The Russians have been flexing their military muscles of late, flying planes out over the North Atlantic and Pacific in a show of military assertiveness. Their space programme, however, is going to the dogs - or should that be bears? Another space launch went wrong, with a Japanese communications satellite crashing into Kazakhstan after a rocket motor malfunctioned. The Kazakhs aren't too happy about that 150 ft hole in their territory. The Russians launch from Baikonur, which they have leased from the Kazakhs since the break-up of the good ole USSR in 1991.

Gabrielle

Good morning all. This name will dominate the folks in North and South Carolina today, as a subtropical storm by this name is moving your way. She will become a fully tropical storm within 24 hours - I'll spare you the details of what the difference is. Gabrielle carries winds of 45 mph (force 9 on the Beaufort scale) to its north, but this will spread right round the system as it becomes fully tropical.

Parts of North and South Carolina (Edisto Beach northward to Oregon Inlet, including Pamlico Sound) are on a tropical storm watch, meaning that tropical storm force winds (in excess of 40 mph) are possible within 36 hours. This watch will probably be upgraded to a full warning later today, which shortens the timespan to 24 hours.
Rainfall totals will be between 2 and 4 inches, with localised totals of 6 inches possible.

Local hurricane statements have been issued for

Morehead City, NC
Wilmington, NC
Charleston, SC

I should stress that Gabrielle is not a hurricane and will not become a hurricane.
This storm will veer north once over the outer banks off the Carolinas and head off northeast into the North Atlantic.

Sheltering sheep

Found in the archives: the sheep, taking shelter from the elements in a busshelter in Harris

Friday pics

The first two images show the front and stern of the yacht Fortunate Sun.





This was the average cloudscape for today

Good morning America

and here is a tropical cyclone formation alert for the east coast.

The disturbance between Bermuda and the southeastern USA (code name 99L) has become better organised and atmospheric conditions have become more conducive for a (sub)tropical depression to form later today. The system will move west or northwest in the next few days and those on the East Coast of the USA should closely monitor this system's progress.

Note: At this stage, it does not appear that this will develop into a hurricane. A tropical depression will carry a lot of rain, and squally winds. Please monitor output by the National Hurricane Center in Miami.

Of bees and bugs

Over the summer, it was revealed that bee colonies across the United States were afflicted by a strange disorder, in which bees would abandon their hives and foodstocks. It is called Colony Collapse Disorder. After doing research, a common denominator has been found in bees from colonies that suffered CCD - a virus, referred to as Israeli Acute Paralysis Virus.

CCD first occurred in the USA in 2004, at the same time that bees were imported from Australia, a country known to have IAPV amongst its bees. There is little that beekeepers can do about CCD or IAPV. Another contributing factor is the varroa mite, which is a parasite. The island of Lewis, where I post from, was varroa-free until someone brought a hive here that was contaminated.

You may think "what is the importance of bees". Well, let me tell you that if all the bees in the world were to die out tomorrow, mankind would die out within 6 or 7 years. Bees are pollinators of all our foodcrops, from wheat to berries. Bees are worth $14bn to the US economy alone.

Read more here.

Madeleine McCann

After being interrogated for 11 hours yesterday, Madeleine's mother, Kate, has now been formally named a suspect, "arguida" under Portuguese law. This move is not known under UK or US law, but empowers the police to ask certain questions which they cannot ask when interrogating a witness. Conversely, it also affords certain protection to the named suspect and she is not obliged to answer certain questions.

When Mrs McCann arrived at the Portimao police station 45 minutes ago, she was met with boos and hisses from the assembled crowd. That's what I call jumping to conclusions - she has not been formally charged with any offense.

I will go so far as to say that wielding the press as a weapon in your cause is dangerous - it is a two-edged sword that can as easily turn against you as work for you. The McCanns have sought publicity, but unfortunately, are now encountering the flipside of that coin.

There is a storm of speculation, unfounded revelations etcetera in the tabloid press - I do not buy any of those papers, but the headlines scream out at you in 2 to 3 inch high letterings when queueing at the paper counter in Somerfields or other newsagents. I pay no attention to that at all - I just hope (against hope) that Madeleine will found alive and well. I hold the same hope for the thousands of other children that go missing, and have been missing for years in some cases, across the UK and across the world.

Hurricane update - 7 September

The three hurricanes that dominated the news this week are no more. Henriette rained itself out over New Mexico and Arizona yesterday, but not before claiming 9 lives across Mexico. Six died in mudslides near Acapulco, one drowned in high surf at Cabo San Lucas, and another two in the northwest of Mexico.

Felix is now known to have claimed 98 lives in Nicaragua, and the town of Puerto Cabezas, which was in the path of the worst winds around the hurricane, has been severely damaged. Dozens of people were swept out to sea, out of their houses or in their boats, and bodies were spotted in the debris-strewn sea off Nicaragua. The death toll could yet rise further. The remnant of Felix is currently over the Gulf of Tehuantepec, south of Acapulco, with a remote chance of turning into a tropical cyclone again.

Typhoon Fitow hit Japan in the early hours of today (i.e. 12 hours ago) with winds of nearly 70 mph and heavy rains. One man was killed by a falling tree, 50 were injured and searches are on-going for homeless people who were shacking up along the banks of a river which swept them away. Fitow is currently turning into a 'normal' depression over Hokkaido.

No hurricanes in the offing just now - I have lost faith in the NHC's prediction that a low pressure system off the Carolinas could turn into something nasty. They themselves are amazed at the lack of activity across the Atlantic and Eastern Pacific.

Autumn

I know it's only September 6th, but autumn is definitely on its way in.

Found this toadstool near the Stornoway Coastguard Station this evening - the other side of it was already rotting away. As this type of toadstool tends to do. It stood about 6 inches high. I was there at 7.30, to photograph the sunset. Back in July, I would have had to wait another 2 hours or so for:

Come wintertime, I'll have to be out there at 3pm to catch the sunset, and it'll be a good deal further to the left. Temperatures are still pretty good, 19C / 66F this afternoon in bright sunshine.

Henriette

For those in New Mexico: the remnant of cyclone Henriette is currently passing to the west of El Paso, Texas and is approaching Albuquerque from the south. Bearing in mind the current northnortheast to northeasterly course, Las Vegas could also get a dousing.

Please monitor NWS output for more detailed warnings.

Hurricane update - 6 September

Two down, one to go.

The remnant of Felix is producing showers and thunderstorms over Central America, and will pass into southeastern Mexico later today. It is not expected to regenerate.

Tropical depression Henriette is currently over the Mexican state of Sonora, and moving northeast. It is bringing heavy rains to northern Mexico, with totals varying between 2 and 6 inches. This afternoon, I shall post a link to the US Hydrometeorological Prediction Center, as New Mexico and Arizona should expect heavy rains (1 to 3 inches) out of the remnant of Henriette.

Typhoon Fitow is going to make landfall in 5 hours' time west of Tokyo, with winds of 85 knots (95 mph). It will become an extra-tropical depression after that, so that clears the decks.

Or does it? Something is brewing in the Pacific, something else in the Atlantic - it's peak hurricane season!

To close this post, an image from Cabo San Lucas from yesterday evening. Bit of a contrast to previous pictures from a day or so before.

Luciano Pavarotti

With thanks to YouTube user boellebent for featuring.

Thursday notes

Overcast but reasonably bright this morning. One of our guests went on the 7.15 am ferry on the way to the Orkney islands. Otherwise, all quiet on the western front.

Heard just now that famous opera tenor Luciano Pavarotti died at the age of 71. Pavarotti was one of the Three Tenors, who brought opera back to a broader audience some years ago. An extensive tribute can be found here. He sang "Nessun Dorma" [None shall sleep], the theme for the 1990 Football World Cup, held in Italy. Let us hope he can now sleep in peace, free from the effects of pancreatic cancer.

His name was associated with the Hebrides a decade ago, when the then-owner of the Isle of Eigg offered his island to Pavarotti to establish a school of music there. A crackpot scheme, which was quickly spotted as such by Pavarotti's staff. The school would house 3,500 students; Eigg has a population of 80. The then-owner of Eigg was a German 'artist' called Maruma, who would fire paint at a canvas and set it alight.

Flea-ridden pets? Read carefully!

There is nothing like having an infestation of fleas in the house to grab the nearest flea remedy and zap the blighters. Be careful though.


It was reported today that a number of cats had died or become severely ill within hours of being given a flea-remedy, intended for dogs. The canine remedy contained permethrin, which cannot be metabolised by cats, and is therefore extremely toxic to them. It was given to a 10-week old kitten, which went into convulsions and died within 2 hours - the fleas on it were still alive by that time. The remedy concerned was applied by a dropper in the neck region of the animal.

The labeling of the container that the flea zapper comes in should specify whether it's for a dog or a cat. If you have both a dog and a cat in the home, check very carefully before using it.

Call for support

Jeannette's grandson Daniel, who was recently admitted to hospital with a severe infection, is now to be readmitted for surgery early tomorrow morning (September 6). Please keep him and his family in your thoughts at this difficult time.

Eruption!

Mount Etna, located on Italy's southern island of Sicily has burst into life, six years after its previous major eruption. Spewing out columns of molten lava, hundreds of metres into the air, clouds of ash have wafted over surrounding areas, forcing the closure of Catania Airport, 7 miles to the south. Etna, dubbed the Good Giant by locals, stands 11,000 feet tall and is Europe's most active volcano. Most of its eruptions do not cause casualties.

I visited Etna in July 2001, and went up the mountain to an altitude of 2,900 metres (9,700 feet). None of the features present on the mountain above 2,000 metres (6,800 feet) are there today. A hot crevice, with a soil temperature of 90C / 200F is rather difficult to locate today, as a 500 foot high ashcone has built up above it. Another cone, just outside a resort, decided to erupt as well, changing the landscape for good.

You can monitor developments with Etna on this website. When you visit the BBC website, and search for Etna, a videolink will pop up, showing last night's eruption in its full glory. I cannot link to the video.

Spider's web

The spider's web was ONLY visible when I used the flash.

9/11 - 6 years on

Next Tuesday is the 6th anniversary of the event now referred to as 9/11. Two planes flown into the two towers of the World Trade Center in New York, one into the Pentagon in Washington and a fourth crashed in rural Pennsylvania, after the passengers took on the hijackers. More than 3,000 lost their lives.

On 11 September 2007, I shall repost the entry I posted in 2006. The tribute to Norberto Hernandez. Anyone else that participated in the 2996 project a year ago could do that too - or write a tribute to another person.

Hurricane update - 5 September

Felix has disintegrated to a barely recognisable tropical depression, but continues to dump vast amounts of rain on central America.

Henriette has held on to hurricane status after passing over the Baja peninsula. It is now on a rendez-vous with the northwest Mexican coastline. Warning for those in New Mexico and Arizona: expect very wet weather in the next day or so.

Fitow is finally on the home-straight, making for a point west of Tokyo, with winds of 100 mph. Landfall is expected in 24 hours' time.

Wednesday notes

A grey and drizzly morning again. Temperatures feel lower than the 16C that the thermometers indicate. We have a cruiseliner in, the Arielle.

 Probably the last liner of the 'summer' - I believe the season closes on September 15th. We have an Australian guest in who has toddled off to Harris this morning - hope the weather clears up sufficiently to see the mountains and the fantastic landscape down there.
Right, to close this post a catty pic.

Moonrise

This image should blow you away. It shows the moon rising over the eyewall of Hurricane Felix a few days ago. Wunderground photographer LRandyB, who flies on board Hurricane Hunter aircraft, shot that image a few days ago when his aircraft penetrated the core of Felix during the night.

Day on the beach

Fancy having a paddle in conditions like this?

Call for support

This is well-known across J-land, but Pennie [Pennie's Pieces of Ohio] has been admitted to hospital with leukaemia, which made an unwelcome reappearance. This graphic also appears in my sidebar, and joins those already there for J-landers who are battling cancer.

Monitoring Henriette

Felix has struck the Mosquito coast, with little Internet infrastructure.
Henriette is approaching a resort, and there is a fair bit to see.

Webcam

This was taken at 15.47 GMT today

Weather report
Radar images

Radar image for 15.34 GMT

Tuesday notes

Day started poorly, in terms of weather, with drizzle most of the time until 3pm. Since then, it has brightened up with the sun making a little effort to grace us with its presence.

Meanwhile, I am keeping an eye on Felix and Henriette. Felix is lashing northern Nicaragua with 120 mph winds. Local people describe how sheets of corrugated iron fly through the air like shaving knives, power is off and phonelines downed. The main threat is flooding, as Felix was warned to have an 18 ft storm surge on its northern side. Rainfall totals in the mountains of Honduras and Nicaragua could reach 25 inches, 625 mm - compare that to London's annual rainfall total of about 34 inches. Floods and landslides are a likelihood.

Henriette is a category 1 hurricane, 60 miles off Cabo San Lucas, and showing beautifully in the radar imagery which I'm monitoring. Similar flood warnings exist, although to a lesser degree. This storm carries winds of 85 mph and is headed for CSL, where landfall is expected within 2 or 3 hours from now.

Once Felix has passed into the interior of Central America, and Henriette has dumped her rain on the southwestern US, there will be little left to monitor for the time being. On Thursday, typhoon Fitow will hit Japan with winds of 90 mph - by which time all three systems will be off the charts as tropical systems.

Felix update

Felix made landfall in northeastern Nicaragua as a category 5 hurricane, with maximum sustained winds of 160 mph within the last hour.

Water buffalo

A water buffalo died in southern Cumbria, after a car crashed into it. Two other vehicles collided when they swerved to avoid the scene. The buffalo, known locally as William Shakespeare, had a record for escapism from his enclosure, which on this occasion cost him his life. The driver of the car that hit him had to be cut free from the wreckage of his Fiat Punto.

London to Paris in 2 hours

The first trial run of the Eurostar service on a dedicated high-speed railline has seen the journey time between London St Pancras and Paris Gare du Nord cut to 2 hours 3 minutes. A train left Paris at 0844 GMT and arrived in London at 1048 GMT. Speeds average about 200 mph. Until recently, Eurostar shared tracks with Kent commuter lines, which do not allow speeds much above 75 mph.

A passenger service commences out of a refurbished London St Pancras on 14 November 2007, which means the closure of London Waterloo as Eurostar's terminal in London. New stations along the new line include Stratford and Ebbsfleet, the latter close to the large Bluewater shopping centre.

Hurricane update - 4 September

Two hurricanes making landfall today: Felix in a couple of hours - Henriette similarly in a couple of hours.

Felix has regenerated to a category 4 system, which could yet hit category 5 before landfall. Winds at 0900 GMT were at 155 mph. The main problem with hurricanes is not just the wind: it is also the phenomenal rainfalls.

Henriette is making a beeline for Cabo San Lucas, the southern point of Baja California, where it will make a direct hit with winds of 70 knots, 80 mph, this afternoon. Am monitoring the radar from that town, and it already shows the storm approaching.

Cryptosporidium and Cricket

The small port of Ullapool, where the ferry to Stornoway docks, has had to boil their drinking water recently. Levels of the bacterium Cryptosporidium, a nasty bowel-bug, were above normal. According to a conversation, overheard in a pub south of the border, Ullapool was the place to go for the England cricketers. If you didn't get any runs there, you would get them nowhere.

Geography

Geography comes with the territory of hurricane hunting (which is what I do by virtue of the Internet). Those that know me quite well are aware of my tendency to amass maps wherever I go. Apart from geography, a knowledge of geopolitics is also useful. Something that a hurricane hunter in a country I shall not name was decidedly lacking in.

My Sitemeter on the TC blog records the ways by which visitors reach it. 90% of folks come there by Google. The search terms are revealed. How about: "Hurricane Netherland". Right. So this poor chap thought that a tropical hurricane had struck in the Netherlands, Europe. Problem is that hurricane Felix passed by the ABC islands of the Netherlands Antilles, located just northwest of Venezuela. The N.A. are an autonomous region of the Netherlands, a former colony. The finer nuances were lost on our Googler. Bless.

Hurricane update - 3 September (II)

Hurricane Felix has weakened to a category 3 hurricane, although it could reintensify before making landfall, in about 12 hours' time. Winds are currently at 115 knots, that is 130 mph; the other hazard is heavy rainfall - 3 to 12 inches. Landfall will occur near the border between Nicaragua and Honduras. Afterwards, the cyclone will continue westnorthwest, and dissipate over the mountains of the interior of Central America.

Tropical storm Henriette bashfully declines to become a hurricane. It is supposed to be one by the time it makes landfall in southern Baja California on Wednesday. People in California and Arizona: expect some wet and muggy weather in a few days' time.

Typhoon Fitow: I am bored with this slow-coach of a typhoon that wobbles its way round the Pacific, heading for Japan. For goodness' sakes, get some speed up and let's get it all over with.

3 September 1939

Today, 68 years ago, Great Britain, France and Australia declared war on Germany. It was to be the start of World War II. After Hitler's Nazi-Germany had annexed Austria in what was euphemistically called the "Anschlu­ss" (the joining) in March 1938, the next country was Checho-Slovakia. The Sudetenland, containing a German minority, was joined onto the Fatherland, and the remainder of the country subjugated. When German troops invaded Poland, to join East Prussia onto the Fatherland, an ultimatum was issued by the British government for the Germans to withdraw from Poland. This was not obeyed, and at 11pm on September 3, 1939, war was declared.

A period of stagnant warfare ensued until the spring of 1940, when the Lightning War (Blitzkrieg) quickly overran Denmark, Sweden, Holland, Belgium and France. Hitler's conquests led him all the way east to Stalingrad, and south to North Africa. Stalingrad was to be his undoing. His troops suffered a defeat after a bloody battle, and the Red Army of Josef Stalin pushed them back - all the way to Berlin in April 1945. Meanwhile, Allied Forces, joined by the USA following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour in December 1941, invaded Italy from North Africa. D-day, in June 1944, marked the start of an invasion of northwestern Europe by Allied Forces, which eventually granted them victory 11 months later. In the Far East, war finally ended on 2 September 1945 with the enactment of the surrender of Japan, something agreed on 15 August after two nuclear bombs obliterated Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

By that time, 6 million people had been systematically murdered on an industrial scale and with industrial methods and precision. Why? Because they professed the Jewish faith. Twenty million Russian civilians lay dead, and Western Europe lay in ruins.

Nobody commemorates these days in September.

They should be.

They mark the beginning and the end.

Tags: second, world, war, september, 1939, blogplugs

Journals Tournament V

JOURNAL TOURNAMENT V is a three task tournament originally begun in November 2005.  Over a period of time, participants will search through any source they can to find the answers to ten questions of varying topics.  These questions are submitted by a deadline, scored, and the process is repeated twice.  After three tasks, the totals are added up, and a winner is declared.  This winner will receive an icon to place in their sidebar, and join the ranks of the winners gone before them.  Join JOURNAL TOURNAMENT V for challenge, camaraderie, and fun! 

Registration deadline 16 September 2007 11:59pm CST.

Details from Kellen on this link: http://journals.aol.com/IrishEyes1929/JournalTournament

New journal

Marilyn from Miami started a journal back in July - but so far, only one entry. Let's see what J-land can do to give her a proper welcome. Give some moral support, her PC crashed and it was TLC only from there on.

Journal resumed

Monae [southernmush] very kindly points us to a journaler who has resumed her journal after a gap of 8 months. Springsnymph writes Another Country Heard From, and she's worthy of some readers, I reckon.

Aruba update

I was a bit narky about a website on Aruba, proclaiming the island not to be in a hurricane zone, the day they had a sideswipe from Felix. Got a nice email back from the webmaster, who agreed with my points. He has now adjusted the wording to: hurricanes are not common. Which is better.
Below image (courtesy Arubalife.net) shows the crystal clear waters of Arashi beach on the island. Click on the picture to visit the site.

Hurricane update - 3 September

Hurricane Felix is now blowing winds of 145 knots, that's a trifling 165 mph (270 kph), with gusts to 175 knots, 200 mph (320 kph). He's out at sea, but heading for the border between Nicaragua and Honduras. Latter country is going to get a battering tomorrow, not to mention a drenching. I am waiting for daylight hours in the western Caribbean (not too far away) for another pic of Felix.

Tropical storm Henriette is stifled in her aspiration for hurricane status through the proximity to land. It will traverse Baja California tomorrow, after giving the south of a the peninsula a trashing as a category 1 hurricane. Henriette will dissipate in northwestern Mexico or southern Arizona. In other words, get your umbrella out.

Finally, typhoon Fitow is going the slow road to Tokyo. Central Japan will see winds of 90 mph on Thursday.

Monday notes

Nice sunny morning here, if a little cool - we're just scraping into double digits this morning. The gas tanker, Sigas Laura, which was lying at anchor all of Sunday, has finally come into port. Apparently, LPG tankers need a pilot to come in. The fuel tanker Border Heather comes and goes all the time on her own - she carries petrol and diesel. A man died in the Point area, 6 miles west of here, early on Sunday morning, when his house caught light. The firebrigade rescued him from the property, but he was declared dead on arrival at hospital in Stornoway. His pet dog also succumbed to the smoke and flames. And Isles FM gave us the usual Monday morning rogues' gallery, adding that moves are afoot to deal with offenses like being drunk-and-disorderly in a public place, by means of a fixed penalty of £40 a go. Not paying within 28 days will add another £20 plus court proceedings.

The nationalist administration in Edinburgh has decided that it is running a government, not an executive - the name previously given to the devolved parliament and administration. Now, Holyrood does not decide its own foreign, defence or tax policy, so not much of a government is it.

Did I read that correctly?

Did you know that...

1. 70% of visitors to Aruba is from the United States?
2. Aruba lies outside of the hurricane belt?
3. the average daytime temperature in Aruba is 82 degrees fahrenheit?

The above is taken from website www.arubalife.net.

Now have a look at this blog post, particularly the top image. So, Aruba is not affected by hurricanes, is it? Methinks it is. They had a lucky escape.

By the way, I have no way of letting them know they disseminate inaccurate information. They don't allow comments on the blog, on the website or on their Flickr site. Poor, very poor.

Addition: I did find a tiny "Contact us" link somewhere, so I left a constructive critique for them to mull over.

Tags: arubalife, hurricane, felix

Hurricane Felix (again)

Yes, I know I'm boring y'all to tears, but this is turning into a spectacular phenomenon. Since passing the ABC islands earlier this afternoon, Felix has intensified from a category 2 hurricane to a category 4. It'll easily become a category 5, bearing in mind its maximum sustained windspeed has shot up from 80 knots (90 mph) to 120 knots (135 mph) over the past 7 hours or so. The forecast peaks Felix at 135 knots, and even the NHC says that may be a conservative estimate. For the moment, it would appear that the hurricane will approach northeastern Honduras early on Tuesday local time, graze that country's northern coast, and make landfall in Belize. The forecast beyond that is very uncertain. More tomorrow. Meanwhile, this was the subject of this post 1 hour ago.

Winner

We have a winner in our midst: Donna (nightmaremom) was awarded the prize for August's Artsy Essay by JudithHeartsong. Please call round to congratulate - well deserved!

Hurricane Felix

This radarimage, from 1330 GMT (2.30pm BST, 9.30am EDT), shows the passage of the centre of Hurricane Felix within 100 miles of the Netherlands Antilles. The radar is based at the main island, Curacao, which is reporting a fresh breeze, heavy showers and thunderstorms. Hurricane Felix itself has maximum sustained winds of 105 mph.

Afternoon amble

One of my local strolls is around the Newton Basin to Goat Island, only about 5 or 10 minutes' walk. The Coastguard Station, not featured in this series of photographs, stands in a prominent position. At times of high winds or remarkable celestial events (like a full moon reflecting in the sea) I often go there to get the best pictures.

Goat Island used to be an island, but is now linked to mainland Lewis by a causeway. It now houses several buildings related to the fish-processing industry as well as boat maintenance. Not the most attractive of surroundings, but, again, a nice vantage point.

Sunday notes

Nice sunny weather with some puffy clouds about. Better than down south, which is having the rain that plagued us through yesterday.

I think we have little reason to complain - excessive rains in Mexico, associated with tropical storm Henriette, have caused mudslides which claimed lives. Henriette is now moving out to sea and for the moment does not pose a threat to land. The system is likely to attain hurricane strength.

Of more concern is hurricane Felix. This system, currently with maximum sustained winds of 95 mph, is rapidly approaching the Netherlands Antilles, off the northwestern coast of Venezuela. After demolishing orchards and a concert venue in Grenada on Friday, the storm will pass close to the islands of Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao. Hurricane force winds are not very likely, but tropical storm winds are. After passing the ABC islands, Felix will head for Central America, and make landfall with winds of 140 mph (still got hold of your hat?). The storm will once again trounce the Yucatan before reemerging into the Gulf of Mexico and this time with a northwesterly course in mind. This is very uncertain, but keep an eye on Felix. It's not a cat, it's a tiger.

Quechup - don't fall for it

Had an unsollicited email from somebody I don't know, inviting me to join them on the Quechup network. Another social networking site. Googling it first brought several warnings from people who did fall for it. If you reply, everybody in your address book will get an invite as well, whether you want them to have it or not.

My invite went into the Spambox.

Be prepared

Two contrasting stories from the Scottish mountains. An experienced hillwalker was reported overdue in the Cairngorm mountains, southeast of Inverness last night. He was found safe and well by rescue teams. He was fully prepared, food and water for 30 hours, had a bivvy bag (in which he spent the night), had maps and a compass - except the compass broke in a stumble, and he consequently got lost when mist shrouded his location. The next morning, he rang the emergency services on his mobile phone and he was located and assisted off the hill, unharmed and none the worse for his experience.

A family with a child had to be assisted off a mountain near Ben Nevis this morning, when the weather closed in on Carn Dearg Beag. This peak, 1,010 metres high, stands just under 2 miles north of Ben Nevis. Now, the weather can close in on you unexpectedly at all times in the mountains. However, I would not have gone into the mountains myself today - they were forecasting hurricane force winds at the summits early this morning.

Labor Day

This coming Monday is of course Labor Day, and everybody in the States should be taking advantage of the late summer heatwaves still blanketing many parts. I copied the below info from the US Department Of Labor website for a reminder of its history.

The History of Labor Day
Labor Day: How it Came About; What it Means

"Labor Day differs in every essential way from the other holidays of the year in any country," said Samuel Gompers, founder and longtime president of the American Federation of Labor. "All other holidays are in a more or less degree connected with conflicts and battles of man's prowess over man, of strife and discord for greed and power, of glories achieved by one nation over another. Labor Day...is devoted to no man, living or dead, to no sect, race, or nation."

Labor Day, the first Monday in September, is a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.

Founder of Labor Day

More than 100 years after the first Labor Day observance, there is still some doubt as to who first proposed the holiday for workers.

Some records show that Peter J. McGuire, general secretary of the Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners and a cofounder of the American Federation of Labor, was first in suggesting a day to honor those "who from rude nature have delved and carved all the grandeur we behold."

But Peter McGuire's place in Labor Day history has not gone unchallenged. Many believe that Matthew Maguire, a machinist, not Peter McGuire, founded the holiday. Recent research seems tosupport the contention that Matthew Maguire, later the secretary of Local 344 of the International Association of Machinists in Paterson, N.J., proposed the holiday in 1882 while serving as secretary of the Central Labor Union in New York. What is clear is that the Central Labor Union adopted a Labor Day proposal and appointed a committee to plan a demonstration and picnic.

The First Labor Day

The first Labor Day holiday was celebrated on Tuesday, September 5, 1882, in New York City, in accordance with the plans of the Central Labor Union. The Central Labor Union held its second Labor Day holiday just a year later, on September 5, 1883.

In 1884 the first Monday in September was selected as the holiday, as originally proposed, and the Central Labor Union urged similar organizations in other cities to follow the example of New York and celebrate a "workingmen's holiday" on that date. The idea spread with the growth of labor organizations, and in 1885 Labor Day was celebrated in many industrial centers of the country.

Labor Day Legislation

Through the years the nation gave increasing emphasis to Labor Day. The first governmental recognition came through municipal ordinances passed during 1885 and 1886. From them developed the movement to secure state legislation. The first state bill was introduced into the New York legislature, but the first to become law was passed by Oregon on February 21, 1887. During the year four more states — Colorado, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York — created the Labor Day holiday by legislative enactment. By the end of the decade Connecticut, Nebraska, and Pennsylvania had followed suit. By 1894, 23 other states had adopted the holiday in honor of workers, and on June 28 of that year, Congress passed an act making the first Monday in September of each year a legal holiday in the District of Columbia and the territories.

A Nationwide Holiday

The form that the observance and celebration of Labor Day should take were outlined in the first proposal of the holiday — a street parade to exhibit to the public "the strength and esprit de corps of the trade and labor organizations" of the community, followed by a festival for the recreation and amusement of the workers and their families. This became the pattern for the celebrations of Labor Day. Speeches by prominent men and women were introduced later, as more emphasis was placed upon the economic and civic significance of the holiday. Still later, by a resolution of the American Federation of Labor convention of 1909, the Sunday preceding Labor Day was adopted as Labor Sunday and dedicated to the spiritual and educational aspects of the labor movement.

The character of the Labor Day celebration has undergone a change in recent years, especially in large industrial centers where mass displays and huge parades have proved a problem. This change, however, is more a shift in emphasis and medium of expression. Labor Day addresses by leading union officials, industrialists, educators, clerics and government officials are given wide coverage in newspapers, radio, and television.

The vital force of labor added materially to the highest standard of living and the greatest production the world has ever known and has brought us closer to the realization of our traditional ideals of economic and political democracy. It is appropriate, therefore, that the nation pay tribute on Labor Day to the creator of so much of the nation's strength, freedom, and leadership — the American worker.

Incendiary

That is the term I would use for the material I received by email this morning from a historical researcher elsewhere in Scotland. It relates to the Iolaire Disaster of 1919, when more than 200 island seamen drowned on return from war service.

Allegations are made that the inquiry into the sinking of HMY Iolaire, conducted in February 1919, was a white-wash, intended to avert any blemish on the Royal Navy. The inquiry was set up in such a way that any witnesses would not be incriminating the establishment. You may think that that is going too far, and in a way perhaps it is. However, it says enough that the Admiralty only gave £10 to surviving Iolaire crew (not passengers) out of the estate of Admiral Beatty when he passed away some years afterwards.

It remains one of the worst maritime disasters of the 20th century in peacetime, after the Titanic and the Norge. The real circumstances of the sinking will likely never be known.

Rainy afternoon

Rain is now lashing down, which, coupled with the strong winds, makes it very unpleasant. A young couple who were here last night are just stepping off the ferry at Ullapool, I would imagine, probably glad to be off this vomit comet.

When I went into town earlier on, I could hear music - there is an open-stage event in the Castle Grounds which was called "Trees in the Park" last year. It was at Cuddy Point at that time, but I couldn't locate it today. Probably near the castle, but it was raining and I could not be bothered going all that way. An evangelical ensemble was braving the elements and inertia of Stornoway shoppers on Cromwell Street.

Central America can expect Hurricane Felix in a couple of days with 115 mph winds and lots and lots of rain. Another system is cooking up in the Atlantic - keep your eyes peeled. Henriette might give the sunshine seekers in Baja California a nasty surprise in a day or two. She is giving the forecasters a hard time, although the storm is now moving away from mainland Mexico.

Saturday notes

Overcast day with some brightness, but rather windy. I caught the Outdoor Activities forecast at 7 am, and it mentions winds up to 70 or 80 mph on the mountain tops. Down here at sealevel, it could up to force 5 to 7 on the Beaufort scale, that's up to 35 mph.

I'm pleased that Big Brother is over for this year. I have managed complete abstinence, and haven't got a clue about any of the contestants. I only knew it was over when I saw the newsfeeds on BBC just now.


I was intrigued by this massive spider's web, which has been spun by hundreds of spiders in a park in Texas. It stretches across 180 metres / 600 feet in trees and shrubs. The web will be there until autumn, when the spiders will start to die off. It is no longer white; all the captured mosquitoes and other insects have turned it brown.

Hurricane update - 1 September

Two systems to watch this morning. Tropical storm Felix is just leaving the Lesser Antilles and will pass the Netherlands Antilles later tonight. By the time it reaches Central America, Felix is expected to be a hurricane. It is following the track of hurricane Dean, only a few hundred miles to the south.

Across in the Pacific, tropical storm Henriette is lashing the coast of Mexico as it winds itself up into a hurricane within 36 hours or so. This system will make for Baja California, although its future path is very uncertain.