On the verge

The grass verges are covered in flowers at the moment. Carpets of birds foot trefoil, punctuated with spikes of purple orchids.

Managed to nip out for a quick cycle to top up the sunshine doseage as I've got to dash around the isles later today.

Did you know that the Orkney and Shetland (followed closely by the rest of Scotland) are in the unfortunate position of topping the world charts of multiple sclerosis sufferers? I certainly know far more people here who sadly suffer from MS than I have ever known anywhere else I've lived. It's thought there may well be a genetic link and there are lots of studies being done here. One theory is that there may be a link to a certain gene and not getting enough vitamin D because of those long dark winter nights.

So when the summer days are long and bright it's always a good idea to top up the sunshine levels. The only tricky bit is making sure we don't manage to burn our peely wally Scottish skin in the process.