The Flying Scud

What better way to say "Merry Christmas" than with a Christmas tree (best seen zoomified) on the stern of The Flying Scud a small fishing boat in Peterhead Harbour?

Sadly, when we think of a scud these days, the most likely thing to come to mind is the Russian made Scud missile. In fact scud is a very old word and, used as a noun, it has has a number of very different meanings, including:

Dirt or refuse.

Iron pyrites embedded in coal seams.

Dirt, lime, fat, and fragments of hair which must be removed from a hide prior to tanning.

The action of scudding; hurried movement.

Light clouds driven rapidly before the wind.

A driving shower (of rain or snow).

A sudden gust of wind.

And finally, and the most appropriate for the name of a fishing vessel,
Ocean foam or spray driven by the wind.