Sudden Stop

It is legal to sell or advertise for sale a car on the public road but there is a limit to number that one vendor can advertise (three if I remember right). This won't be a problem for the people using Lochside (unless they have a small fleet of their own vehicles for sale there at the same time). What might be a problem is that it has become a very popular place to sell car - there's a range of all sorts, the stock changes regularly and the prices are negotiable. This is much more than can be said for a lot of the professional forecourts and could well be bugbear of their's. I wouldn't be surprised if one of the local garages had had a quiet word in a Councillors ear in an attempt to remove the competition.

OP, for what it's worth, I agree with the points you made in your letter however the 'threats' (for want of a better word) turned me away from wanting to side with you. I suspect that any recipient of a letter written with that tone would also have a negative reaction to it. To me, Marriage is a religious act/ceremony and therefore shouldn't be allowed for a non-religious couple. Civil partnerships are, to me, the appriopriate event for gay couples to demonstrate their public commitment to each other. Emotive subjects such as this are always going to be hard to discuss but please, everyone, try to stay civil.

Yeah, this the ' big' weekend. The old tower is now shut and the new one opens on monday!

Or taking the p1$$, unlike the bogs up north!

De-icing gear? No there's been no problem with any of that. Nae water in the toilet pan is a big problem though especially when you've got hundreds of guys that have been rattled to pieces crossing the north sea!

A water main near Brae needed some work today, so they'll have switched the operation to somewhere the toilets have water in them.

Are there any neuter programmes up here that deal with feral cats? I've noticed a family of them living near me, I presume they are a problem for ground nesting birds and the like?

What irrates me is the bloody spray paint. Regardless of the opinions of a few folk who are taking a hardline on which symbol should be on a sign - this really isn't THAT important. What is a really problem is that some morons have sprayed graffiti on road sign which everyone that passes then has to suffer. Shetland is pretty much free from graffiti apart from on the signs that are put up so that visitors to our islands can recognise a point of interest. The only thing that matters regarding which symbol is on the signs is whether tourists understand it's purpose. If there is evidence of people seeing a picture of a thistle and NOT connecting that to a place to visit, then fine, change it for something else. The extremely childish and pathethic spray painting of the signs is unsightly, uneffective and stops people from spotting places to visit. Grow up.

Tesco's is the worst offender for not planning ahead. The stock room simply isn't big enough to cope without daily deliveries from south. This is a major problem for them but they have handsomely diverted attention away from that with this PR stunt. Tesco's have effectively let their customers down by not having anyting to sell but have manged to turn the situation around (only in the short term mind) into a positive for them through throwing money at the problem and hoping the public fall for it - mission accomplished! This should have been an opportunity for the smaller retailers to show their value to shetland by filling the gap. Their use of local suppliers and more sensible 'Shetland style' stock control means that every shop I've been in still has full shelves.

There hasn't been a thaw here today, it's been down around about freezing all day and the ground temps will be that little bit cooler. Also, there hasn't been a gritter in sight all day. The roads WILL be icy (still) and they will get worse as the night goes on. Unfortunately, the roads are very simply, not safe for use just now. Don't bother trying to go anywhere, you may not survive the trip. It may sound over dramatic to some of you but this is the situation we find ourselves in. Only drive if you absolutely have to - stay home, watch some of the rubbish on telly instead and thank the council for their fantastic grasp on economics.

Dammit, I missed Looper. There doesn't look like much point in visiting Mareel from Friday 16th onwards...

No, that's not paranoid nor are you too self conscious - that's just being a decent human being and having some consideration for others. It's this built in 'code of conduct' that is unfortunately missing from quite a lot of people using Mareel.

By far the biggest problem faced by Mareel is it's own customers. There are far too many people going to the cinema that simply have no consideration for others - making noise, kicking chair backs and generally interupting the film. There are a few things that Mareel could do to minimise the impact these people have on others though: - Crinkly paper bags for popcorn replaced with little cardboard buckets. - No beer in the cinema - there's a hell of a stink from it and surely shetland's alcoholics can go two hours without getting their fix. - Reinforce the seat mounts. Everytime someone shifts in their seat, everyone else in that row gets a shake. - Have adult only screenings - there was a family there last night with very small childern for a film that was only starting at nearly 10pm and finish at midnight. It'd be nice to think that people could be trusted to think about others and not be disruptive but we all know that can be done. So, that leaves Mareel the choice to either let people do their own thing and accept they will lose customers permanently or try their best to promote cinema going etiquette and hope it catches on. I accept that watching a film with the public sitting all around you will add various 'cinema experiences' but the current experience will stop me returning. It's strange that there is so much difference compared to mainland cinemas where I've only rarely had any problems - I guess it's a cultural thing where Shetlanders are used to the etiquette.

Fares will have to go up and up, and up again. As someone said - the ferries are an road equivalent and as we all know it's getting more and more expensive to travel on roads. The cost of fuel is rising every week and that effects ALL forms of mass transport whether that be car, train, plane or the humble SIC ferry. I'm afraid the ferry fares will have to rise and people will just have to suck it up...

Yeah c'mon folks. The administrative side of the police was shut for a couple of days - it's not the end of the world. So long as their emergency repsonse capability was not affected it's just a pain in the backside, that's all. Have you ever tried getting to a bank while they are open? Now that is a proper joke.

Some recent news has got me curious. I don't want to discuss the individual stories but whether they have a politcal, behind the scenes, connection. The stories in question are the money for the new high school and the rent rises. To me it doesn't sound too much of a reach to envision a meeting between council and government where the two parties decided which area money would be spent on. Does this go on? Obviously, the money would have come from different depts but is there someone overseeing these decisions and offering money for one project if another issue is no longer persued?

Send the photo to: administrator@nature-shetland.co.uk They'll tell you!

Is there a seating plan online somewhere? I'm curious to see where I'm sitting now that it's out of my hands.

I was there last night (just as you were leaving actually (not stalking you honest)) and the foyer was perfectly clean and tidy. The second run through the carpark at night was still no more fun than the first attempt though. Also, regarding the little stair level lights in the cinema, I don't think their intensity is an issue - it's that they are omidirectional, rather that just downlighters. They are quite annoying even when sitting in the middle of a row.

I've been the once and was very impressed with the equipment in the cinema - both audio and visual were awesome! There were however, some surprisingly disappointing things. I don't know what I originally expected, but the building was a mess. To clarify, I was only in the foyer and the area outside the cinema so I am not commenting on the cafe or any of the other parts... yet. The car park verges on the rediculous - we arrived in the car during a rain shower at night and glares from those light pole thingys made it very hard to navigate. Add to that the very, bright screen/sign outside and I nearly had to wind the window down to poke my out out just to see where I was going. The paint finish on the walls looked... unfinshed. Whilst I queued to watch my film I thought to myself that this was just a primer and there would be another coat or two to come. Then I realised (having spotted the poem on the wall) that no, this is it. The place has been open a couple of weeks and already it is not ageing well - scuffs and scraps everywhere. The foyer looked plainly soulless and to be frank, a bit dirty. The hand prints on the wall outside the cinema . . . where to start with that . . . Who thought that would be a good idea? People cannot be trusted to draw on the walls - you end up with obscene drawings - C'mon! Who didn't see that happening? In the cinema though... wow. Brilliant. Clearest image and cleanest sound I've experiened. I'll be back there tomorrow and I'm excited already! Another bit of feedback though, the little stair level lights inside the cinema, reflect onto the inside of 3D glasses. Little downlighters or shrouds on the existing lights would help. Or I might glue some blinkers on the sides of my glasses instead!

I watched an Argos shed get torn into pieces smaller than when left they factory last year. And then watched the contents of said shed vanish. False economy.

As lifted from the facebook page: Excellent news! New and summer catch up films! CAN NOT WAIT!!!!

.... but yeah, not open to abuse, thankfully... which was my original question.

^^^ I've just seen the Ts&Cs. Strewth! Sounds like a really pain to use now. To get in, you'll need to present a vaild ticket, photographic ID and your discount card. You can board an aeroplane with fewer items....

Re: silver/gold tickets Are these open to abuse? Could someone go to Isleburgh with their silver/gold ticket and ID, book a half dozen films, collect their tickets and then flog them at a profit?