Colin

Is there any truth in the rumour that a council road crew went to Ollaberry and, when they got there, realised that they had forgotten their spades. The situation was, apparently, only rescued when the foreman decided he would return to the depot to collect them and advised the crew to "lean against each other until I get back"

Presumably the 'Special Construction Allowance' was incorporated into the existing wage structure rather than being dropped altogether.? Smokescreen.. Judging by the number of vehicles strewn around the town, most SIC employees seem to have access to a car and anyway, bus times and child care arrangements can be altered. What would happen if SIC employees were required to put in a 40 hour week giving the 'Single Status' with most of the private sector? Bit of a novel concept. Getting paid for the time they actually work.. Nice one.. Not surprised to read that. Most public sector 'desk job' employees seem to have cushy little (non-productive) numbers where they rarely have to get their hands dirty. Maintaining the status quo would be pretty high on their list of priorities.

Someone told me ( so, unverified ) that the SIC annual wage bill was around £40 million. I wonder how much of the proposed 'across the board' cuts of 5% could be achieved by just paying employees for the time (including overtime) they work? This is a system that seems to work surprisingly well in the private sector. It is also time, in my opinion, to remove the 'Island Allowance'

Not given it to much thought but, how about Dylan - Knockin on heavens door? Been at a couple of funerals where traditional music did not feature. Maybe it's a sign of the times that the church/religion does not seem to feature to much in peoples lives. A bit off the topic but a 'musical' incident of the funeral variety that some may enjoy went as follows. We (Scalloway Hall) were asked to host a funeral service and, as WAS the norm, left most of the arrangements to the ushers. Anyway, the Hall was filled with mourners, the organist was playing away in the the background and everthing seemed in order right up until the minister took the congregation into the first hymn. Yep, that's when the 8 light cabinets and 5 large spots attached to our sound to light units kicked in... Guess who (quight correctly) got the blame

I put the wife's name in for a laugh. here's a few of the better ones Sandra needs; ..a ride milf swingers ..a new skin ..a loveley home. Puppies available now ..to be punched in the neck (yes, but who's gonna try it)

From the Shetland News web site. An opportunity to peddle junk science in favour of the creationist agenda or, something better than that? Comments?

A few of the better ones. Colin Needs.. A Bath the ould sod .. your help the uber geeks improvement.

Free Transport Isn't that what parents are for? Free Prescriptions Haven't seen a doctor in many years so I'm not quite sure but aren't prescriptions free to people under 16 or in full time education? Abolish (presumably) Student Loans Better in my opinion to raise the level of grant/bursary etc. Most students will go on to a better paid job and should be realise that there is no such thing as a free lunch. Lower the age of consent ? Why? I know that kids 'mature' earlier than they did 'when I were a lad' but as far as I can see, it's mostly physical. Mentally, at 16, most are still 'kids' and (in my humble opinion) need what little protection the current laws offer. Why is it that today's youth want everything for nothing and want it now... There you go. That should start at least 3 good arguments.

The local bakers might be persuaded to part with a little from time to time but I get one of my sisters to send some up from the mainland.

In my opinion, No.. Breadmakers give a pretty good consistent result but you can only use dried yeast. Fresh yeast is just to 'active' for the job. Only time I tried to use it the breadmaker looked like it had a hernia... Also, when it comes to ovens, gas does a better job. Seems that electric ovens are to 'dry' (?) Best bread I ever made was cooked in a really hot Rayburn. Crusty and awsome. Not giving a lecture here but if you haven't got a breadmaker or have never made your own bread you are missing out big time.. It's good for you as well. No added chemicals or preservatives.

Make my own quite often. It's the only way to get decent bread around here. 1lb bread flour yeast (fresh if you can get it) 375ml warm water 2 tsp sugar 1 tsp salt 1oz lard mix yeast with water/sugar wait 20 mins or so add to flour mix thoroughly add salt, lard mix again Place in loaf tin or on tray (rolls) WAIT until it has risen properly before baking. A quick shortcut that I use quite often is to let my breadmaker do all the mixing. Remove the dough and let it rise above the hot water tank. Some people brush the surface of the dough with milk or egg white before baking. I prefer brushing it with a fairly strong mix of demarera sugar and water for that lovely crusty finish. Best is to experiment until you find a recipe you like then stick with it.

I one did a 'Google' on ginger hair (lot of it in my family) and found an article that claimed the the bit of genetics responsible for ginger was inherited from neanderthal man.. It also claimed a link to higher than average intelligence and several other features. Seems we were doing all right until you damned Cro-Magnons messed things up.. If I can find the link I'll post it.

Me too I'm working on it..

I'd be more concerned if they said they hadn't been feeling themselves lately..

Bit confused about the policemans ball.. Is it a dance or a raffle?

Improvement ?. Quite the opposite. As someone who generally makes his way around the town on foot, I have noticed a marked deterioration over previous years with some areas looking very 'scruffy'. If this is an example of 'Best Value' in action then I think someone needs to remind our public employees that best value is about more than saving a few pounds.

I heard a very similar rumour (from a VERY reliable source). The version I heard claimed that certain 'very high up' people within the SIC were trying to bully the Development Trust into doing things their way. Seems to me that, in my opinion, the convenor is trying to justify the several thousand pounds per year he gets as a director of Smyril Line. Wonder if it's ever occurred to him to declare an interest at DT meetings?

No 1's Would have been No 2's if they'd caught me though...

Into the fuel tank of a police car (a long time ago in a city far away)

Gave up on driving (voluntarily) about 12 years ago and it's amazing the number of people I know (even neighbours) who will not stop to give me a lift (No.. I didn't give up washing etc. as well!!). Strange thing is that they think nothing of asking ME for assistance when they need it. "Well, the first thing you gotta do is start taking some excercise. Try walking.." Generally enough to put them off..

That was the Fraser Park's own open air.

Did you make it? Picking up on the common thread here. It was not a very good event to be at. There just wasn't the atmosphere that you normally get. Not enough going on to keep people in the park etc.

Twartree year ago da Scalloway Fitba Club did Tins in the Park an mair recently da Fraser Park demselves organised several bands on wan night. Da problem wi da following year was dat Jeff Ampleford organised a big gig aboot da sam time an it was difficult tae get da bands. Nae raison why it soudna happen again. Da law changed recently makkin it illegal for fireworks displaye efter 11pm. Also I donna tink da Committe could affford it dis year. I don't think that Tins In The Park will ever happen again but, I organised the fraser Parks own event and, apart from the genrators running out of fuel at 11:45pm, it was a great success. The following year, it failed because Jeff (and also Whitedale Football Club) organised similar events that took the only available dates. I would have gone ahead against them but it was impossible to get sufficient bands, PA, stewards or the Red Cross (very necessary) etc. Don't know if the park will organise anything similar in the future as I'm no longer involved.

Music? Well the band was good even with a stand in drummer. Can't give a fair appraisal of the DJ afterwards as I *HATE* disco. [rant] Have you got a smiley for this? No offense to John Henry (or any other DJ) but, why anyone with almost zero musical ability is allowed to headline any event ahead of one of Shetland's best young bands amazes me. Where were the other bands? Was there any attempt to get them? Was it all done on the cheap? I was there with the Hall's PA and was not to happy to discover (only last week) that the headline act was a DJ. Like I said, nothing personal but, if I had been told early enough, I would have been in a pub instead. [/rant] Casualties? Apart from the usual I heard that one young lass had broken a toe or something. Attendance? About average I think. There were a lot more on the street than in the park. (I was told that they wanted band's not DJ's) Don't know if they all went into the park or not so, difficult to tell. Longevity? Don't know what you mean. Average Age? About 14 I reckon.. Gossip? Nothing to report. Looked into the park a few times through the day and thought the slide was a great idea. How about an adult version where you slide into a skip full of lager or something.. I agree that a lot more could be done with the Gala but, it's been in a steady decline for a few years now. Usual problems..lack of volunteers willing to assist etc. Yesterday's (Saturday) events seemed to consist of a beer tent and a few football matches. OK, there was maybe some other stuff going on as well but, it was a long way short of earlier years.

The smoking ban is a nightmare. We had a policy that once somebody was in the hall they were not allowed out unless they were leaving. This was good because it meant that the under 18's could not get to their carry out's etc. It also meant that we coud operate with only 2 door stewards. Because of the ban we have to let people out if they want to smoke and this has forced us to increase the number of door stewards. We had 250 people at the last gig and even the non-smokers wanted outside with their friends. It was almost impossible to control as there was a large crowd in the main lobby at all times. In short, it has caused huge problems and cured none.