A lunch guest

This handsome guy decided to join us for lunch, although he didn't come into the house, deciding instead to munch on the ivy on top of the shed at the back of Mum's tiny garden. This shot was taken from the partial shelter of the house with the back door open. The white lines are the washing line. He wasn't at all bothered with me taking pics, or the dog running round in the garden, and stayed there for ages. Mum's had a sheep up there before, but never a deer. The roof is a concrete slab, so is fairly secure.

This is another extremely windy day, and I had some fantastic shots of the wild seas, but having already posted one wave shot this week, decided to go for this, even though I have a couple of very funny shots of the dog running away from the waves. My sister and her husband took their two up to the carnival in Glasgow yesterday, and Kerri came back last night as she was working early this morning, and Chris and the kids were supposed to be coming back today. Guess that'll be another night on the mainland, all boats off today.

Mum and I went up to the distillery this morning for the showing of 'Arran on film'. The Arran Theatre and Arts Trust has commissioned Eddie O'Donnelly, who lives in Lochranza (though his work as an animator, often doing workshops and things in schools, has always required some travelling) to collect and edit old cinefilm footage of the island into a documentary film. It is still very much a work in progress, but was a fascinating thing to watch, containing footage dating from 1920-1970. There were lots of different bits, including old family films made by tourists and family footage from Lady Jean Fforde, whose family owned Brodick castle. More documentatry style stuff included Imperial War Museum footage of the testing of the 'Lily Pad', a floating runway developed during WW2 and tested in Lamlash bay, some footage about the barytes mine in Sannox, and some about hybrid potatoes developed and grown on the island by Donald McKelvie. Incidentally, my gran's uncle Peter Baird was one of the farmers who grew them for Mr McKelvie, and did so on Balnagore Farm in Machrie.

I think the film is still on for a few more days, so if anyone is on Arran, I heartily recommend it. See the Banner for showing times. Eddie is also keen to look at some of our old films, which will include some views of the island taken from the wee yacht the family had then, as well as the usual kids on the beach stuff, which he has already got more than enough of, though none of ours is any earlier than about 1958.