Three friends have passed away in the past six weeks. All three were my age or younger. In December, it was the sudden news of my high school girlfriend. More recently, the loss of a high school classmate after an illness. Just yesterday, a fraternity brother was the victim of an apparent heart attack.
All the memories come crowding in around the news, and I'm left a little more bereft. Each time, the shock and grief give way to the sadness that the world has lost another soul much too soon.
Amy loved horses and never strayed for too long or too far from her beloved Chicago.
Robin lived in Berkeley, Calif., but settled in Kauai, Hawai'i.
Dale was an enormous teddy bear of a man who found a community and a home in south Florida.
What's spooking me more than anything is that I still believe I'm too young to be losing so many contemporaries.
Notice the title of this post employs quotes. There are a bunch of white guys running to replace Barack Obama. There used to be a woman from Minnesota and an African American dude from Pizzaland, but they dropped out already. Now it's back to what Republicans love best - rich white guys. Do you have trouble keeping them straight? That's why I'm here. The New Hampshire primary is almost upon us. That's followed by South Carolina, Florida, then Nevada and Maine, yadda yadda yadda. For loyal readers who can't make heads or tails of the riff or the raff, what follows should help cut through the fog, hot air and froth (after all, Rick Santorum is still in the race).
We'll go from the bottom of the polls to the top.
Jon Huntsman: What? You've never heard of Jon Huntsman? That's because you don't live in either Utah or China. He's big in China. He used to be the U.S. Ambassador to China. Great, right? The man's got foreign policy chops, doesn't he? Why yes, yes he does. Ambassador Huntsman has more impressive foreign policy credentials than the rest of the Republican field combined. Only one problem: he was our Ambassador to China from 2009 to 2011. You don't see why that's a problem, do you? Think a minute. Who would his boss have been? Yesiree. Huntsman worked in the Obama Administration. As far as hardcore Republican voters are concerned, that doesn't just make him damaged goods, it damn near makes him the chief toady to the antiChrist. Huntsman is also the former Governor of Utah (and yes, one of two Mormons in the field). Apart from his former boss, his conservative bona fides are unassailable Having worked for The Dread Pirate Obama is not his biggest problem, though. Huntsman's real failing is he's a perfectly reasonable guy. He doesn't foam at the mouth, he doesn't like to offend people, he's incapable of right wing bluster and he isn't prone to saying outrageous things. Well ok, that isn't entirely true. He managed to insult the entire state of Iowa last week when he was trying to compliment New Hampshire. The Boston Globe is endorsing him for GOP nominee, partly because he's the only one in the field who doesn't make you want to put a gun in your mouth, and most importantly because he's not named Mitt Romney. Voters find Huntsman boring. They like to be entertained, and he's not fitting the bill. Ambassador Huntsman has the same chance of winning the GOP nomination as I have of being appointed manager of the New York Yankees. Pity. I'd love to see a debate pitting him against President Obama. I think he'd open a lot of eyes and elevate the discussion. Won't happen, though. Odds of nomination: less than 1%.
Rick Perry: What do they put in the water in the Texas Statehouse? First George W, (Shrub the Decider) Bush and now Rick Perry serving as governor of Texas? What is the deal with people down there? Perry led the GOP field in Iowa for the amount of time it takes to buy a cup of coffee. Then he got up on stage and started to speak. The man makes Obama's predecessor look eloquent. Remember this?
He pretty much became a national punch line after that. In Iowa this week Perry polled around 10% and finished in fifth place. Normally, that's enough to eliminate you, but the day after Iowa, Michelle Bachmann dropped out of the race. Perry immediately announced he was staying in, because he wanted to be the go-to candidate for voters who are completely batshit howl at the moon nuts. Don't laugh. There are a lot of those votes out there to be had. You ever been to Texas? Odds of nomination: 3%
Newt Gingrich: Who says there are no second acts in American life anymore? Ol' Newtie is on his fifth. For ten minutes, he was the front runner in Iowa, until someone said out loud "Holy shit, THAT Newt Gingrich? The blowhard asshole who used to be Speaker of the House? Didn't he once leave his wife for another woman when his wife was undergoing chemotherapy? Oh my god, he's back? How did that happen?" That wife-leaving thing also took place while Newt was trying hard to impeach Bill Clinton in the aftermath of the Lewinsky affair. I love irony, don't you? In all fairness, Newt is the smartest man in the Republican field. If you don't believe me, just ask Newt. He'll be happy to tell you how smart he is. That's really all he does all day long. "Hi, I'm Newt Gingrich, and I'm smarter than you, and smarter than anyone you know." Nobody likes Newt. The man is a nasty piece of work, and he has been since he first entered Congress more than 30 years ago. In the past year, his entire campaign staff abandoned him. Twice. Newt can't win. He knows this, but he refuses to abandon the race. Say what you will about Newt, but one of his lifelong defining characteristics is that he's a spiteful sonofabitch. The only person he hates more than a Democrat with a good point is Mitt Romney. He dislikes Romney for two reasons. First, Romney is winning. Secondly, Romney's sanctimonious, holier than thou manner prohibits him from being openly nasty to anyone. Newt hates that. Newt likes venom. He's only happy when he's making people cringe, and Romney won't give him the satisfaction. So Gingrich has a new mission: do everything he possibly can to destroy Romney, even if that means the GOP has no nominee at all and Obama waltzes to a second term unopposed. In effect, Newt Gingrich is the most loyal Democrat in America. If you want to contribute to the Newt Gingrich for President campaign, please click here, Odds of nomination: 4%.
Ron Paul: He's your great uncle. The guy you see a couple times a year, plus weddings and the odd anniversary party. The kids love him because he sneaks them shots of Jack Daniels and regales them with stories of how he yelled at Paul McCartney at 5th Ave and West 56th Street in Manhattan in 1968 to cut his hair, and how McCartney gave him the finger. He worries you because midway through the appetizer course he starts in on how we'd all be in better shape if we returned to the gold standard, and how all substances, no matter how harmful, should be legalized, and how the country started going to hell when they allowed the blacks to vote, restaurants should be able to turn people away based on their race, and how people should have the right to beat their kids if they act up, because that's what the world was like when he was a kid, and he turned out ok, right? Ron Paul is a true blue Libertarian, and in many ways is the purest Republican in the field. You should have the right to anything you want. ANYTHING. And the government shouldn't have any say, because the natural state of affairs is the most natural, and the best. One absolute, inarguable truth about Ron Paul: he's consistent. What he's been saying in the past month is nearly indistinguishable from what he was saying in the 1970's. The problem is that it was just as ludicrous then as it is today. He doesn't want to run a government, he wants to destroy it and create a state of chaos, so things can just sort themselves out as they will. Thank God Ron Paul wasn't President during Katrina. He would have made George W. Bush's response look herculean and merciful. Paul's supporters are blindly supportive, but if you ask them why, they'll say "because he's different. He's not like everyone else." Yes, rotten fish is different too, but that doesn't mean I'm going to serve it for dinner, and I'm sure not going to vote for it. Odds of nomination: 7%
Rick Santorum: Everything that's wrong in the country can be traced to our giving rights to The Gays. He'd be the first to tell you the Bible should be taken literally, and should replace the Constitution as the country's owner's manual. Not metaphorically. For real. Christian Evangelicals see him as the only choice now that Michelle Bachmann has been returned to her padded cell in Minnesota, you betcha. Santorum has compared homosexuality to bestiality and incest. We're not just talking opposition to Roe V Wade. Santorum thinks it would be perfectly okey dokey for states to ban birth control, and sodomy (of course). Really hysterical for a guy who screams bloody murder about intrusive government overreach. And abortion is always wrong. Except when it matters to him. Does Santorum have a foreign policy platform? Why of course he does! He believes there's no such thing as a Palestinian. And then there's his frothy Google problem. If Santorum was nominated, I'm not sure he'd carry a single state. What happened in Iowa Tuesday night told you everything you need to know about how conservative Iowa Republicans are. More importantly, it exposed how much Republicans really don't like Mitt Romney. Nine fewer Iowans profess their fealty for Romney and Santorum wins. Tuesday was a great night....for Barack Obama. Odds of nomination: 10%
Willard (Mitt) Romney: Ten years ago, he saved the Salt Lake City Olympics. After that, he spit the bit as Governor of Massachusetts. Willard insisted he was a regular guy, then set out to show that he meant he was a regular chameleon. He said he respected the culture of the Commonwealth, and immediately proposed a law to ban same sex marriage. That didn't go over well. He was the business genius, except on his watch there was a disquieting series of companies being sold and/or sending their headquarters out of state. The most galling of those losses was Gillette's sale to Proctor & Gamble (based in Cincinnati). The biggest ongoing news story in the state while Romney was in office was the famed Big Dig Tunnel Project. Romney wanted absolutely nothing to do with it, since it was a federal construction venture. That is, until a ceiling panel failed in a tunnel and a woman riding in a car to the airport was killed. At that point, Romney insisted he was going to be the adult and take control. Did he accomplish anything? No, not really, but he did succeed in complicating an already thorny situation by sticking his nose where it didn't belong, and where he had no jurisdiction. Soon after, Willard grew bored, and decided he wanted to run for President (the first time). He abandoned his office and started roaming the country giving speeches. Nearly all of these speeches featured punch lines about how terrible his "home" state was and how happy he was to be in (pick one) South Carolina, Iowa, etc. He has been nearly living in Iowa and New Hampshire for the past five years. With all that, he came within eight votes of losing the Iowa Caucuses - to Rick (Frothy Mix) Santorum!! Republicans can't warm up to Romney because he's as likable as a toaster and as trustworthy as your average politician. He was uncomfortably pro-choice when he was Governor of Massachusetts but strongly pro-life everywhere else. I'd like to set the record straight about the health care initiative he signed into law when he was governor. He didn't write the law. He barely even negotiated it. He did support it, however, because it was passed by the legislature and favored by the electorate. A veto would have been political suicide, and while Willard may not be regular, he's not stupid, either. The truth is, it was good policy. It didn't come close to containing costs, but it's hard to run away from a bill he is on record as wanting passed (and signed into law). The health care law expanded insurance availability and improved the quality of life in the state. I don't see how that's a bad thing. That said, I didn't vote for Romney when he ran for Governor, and I wouldn't vote for him if he ran again. He did a terrible job running one state when he had the chance, and for all intents and purposes, he quit partway through. You could say he pulled a Palin, without the bother of a formal resignation. What evidence is there that he would do a better job being president of all fifty states? Republicans don't like him and don't trust him. Religious conservatives complain that they can't support him because he's not a Christian. That's terribly unfair. They should refuse to support him because he's a two (or three) -faced liar who will say whatever he has to, based on whatever audience is in front of him at the time. Willard would be comfortable quoting Groucho Marx. "These are my principles. If you don't like them, well, I have others."
Odds of nomination: 75%
So okay, for everyone (read: Bill O'Reilly, Sean Hannity and all the other Fox News nitwits) who insists that Obama is a failed President, if that's true, then how come this field is the best you can do to try to unseat him? Are you waiting for Sarah Palin to ride to the rescue? Are you waiting for Ronald Reagan to return from the dead? Mitt Romney? That's the best you got? Really? Good luck with that. If Willard is your best hope, I'd say you're not trying very hard.
All that said, there's a reason I'm not quite yet booking my tickets for the second inaugural next year. It's called Citizen's United. Because of the wrongheaded and poorly reasoned Supreme Court decision, untold invisible tens of millions of dollars will flow to the conservative side of the election (most likely Romney). They'll have a nearly unlimited budget to spread any vicious lies and distortions they like, and paint the election in terms that will create a false dichotomy and fool people into making the wrong choice for the wrong reasons. Just because the Republican field is more laughable than the concept of a book written by Snooki doesn't mean that the election won't end up being far closer than it should be. Just don't try to tell me that you think any of the bozos above actually deserves to put his hand on the bible and take the oath of office next year.
While it's true that bad things happen to good people, I have always believed in karma. When I try to summarize 2011, the phrase that keeps returning to mind is "All comes round." That also happens to be the title of my favorite track from what I humbly believe is the best new album of the year. Our friends Lori Diamond and Fred Abatelli crafted something special this year. The album is called "True" (and P was excited to collaborate on it). You need to own this album. Here's the song I referred to:
Gorgeous, isn't it? That's Lori on piano, Fred on bass, our friend Kim Jennings singing backup and Phil Punch on percussion. Quick detour.....a word picture review for this album. It's a sunny, lazy Sunday morning. You're lounging in bed, covered by a crushed velvet blanket. You have your sweetheart, a big mug of fresh brewed coffee, a toasted bagel, a bowl of fruit, the Sunday New York Times, and the whole day to enjoy it all. The album feels exactly like that.
So back to the song. While it's talking about karma in the sense of "mess with me and the universe will pay you back, just you wait," my meaning is a little broader (though seeing the headline of Osama Bin Laden's demise wasn't so bad). For me, 2011 was as much about hard work and patience paying off in a good way. At the beginning of the year, I was finally getting Greene Means Go Consulting truly off the ground, and it was reaping rewards. Additionally, I was about to expand my writing repertoire with Pet Connection to include editing and scheduling posts on the website. In essence, preparing to help run the site. By the end of the year, Greene Means Go had scaled way back, because I had been presented with an extraordinary full time training opportunity I just couldn't pass up. Now I'm happy as a clam working for NetSuite, and although Pet Connection went out of business a few months ago (long story), I've landed a new writing gig. I'm now a contributing writer for Sergeant's Pet Care's new Pet Health Central blog. The vacation in England and Scotland was magical. Oh yeah, there's also my new car, which isn't so bad.
At the dawn of 2012, I'm even more excited for the new year than I was at this time last year. The possibilities for growth are endless. They didn't happen by chance, though. Everything that went before led to it. It all came 'round. My mother would nod and say it's been "beshert"...Yiddish for being meant to be. Even in sadness and grief, I have to admit there's often a bittersweet beauty. The tragic and sudden loss of Rabbi Don gave rise to an outpouring of love and appreciating in the community that loved him so much. The Beatles were right. In the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make. Don created an enormous amount of love in the world, and that returned to envelop the family -- and all of us -- when he left us.
The year 2011 wasn't easy. Far from it. It was a journey like any other, and some of it was downright terrifying. I'd prefer not to repeat those parts. Nevertheless, they led us to the possibilities of even greater events in 2012. There will be the London Olympics, an important election in the United States, and my parents' fiftieth wedding anniversary. I don't know about you, but I'm excited to be welcoming it all.
A happy, healthy and peaceful new year to everyone, and may it all come 'round for you.
The main reason we were in the U.K. wasn't really to see castles, cathedrals, or sheep. It was to celebrate the christening of our new honorary nephew. That ceremony took place on our last full day in England. It was even more fun that we'd be returning to the same wonderful little church where David and Jane were married almost exactly ten years before. On Thanksgiving weekend 2001 (just a couple months after 9/11), we visited Newcastle and Sunderland for the first time.
Finally, at the end of an extraordinary week, we were back at St. Bede's in South Shields. This time, David and Jane were the supporting actors, renewing their vows before the main event. Little William was the star. The same priest who married David and Jane was kind enough to officiate. As she did ten years ago, P was honored to deliver a reading during the ceremony. Exactly as ten years ago, I was just honored to be present. The ceremony flew by, though we do have pictures to prove it happened.
There were so many friends and family with whom we were reunited, and we felt like long lost cousins. That night at the reception in Sunderland, P and I spent a good chunk of the evening with Barry, a wonderful man we had first met in 2001. That day and night reminded me as much as any other moment of the entire week about what really mattered. Being with friends, celebrating the joys of togetherness, and appreciating the opportunity to connect and give thanks.
Heading home the next day was an adventure. Let me just say "London fog" isn't merely a figure of speech. After one canceled flight from Newcastle to London, one rerouted flight from Gatwick to Southampton, one anxious $200 cab ride from Southampton to Heathrow, another hour on the tarmac at Heathrow (one more time - fog), and one last cab ride from Logan, we finally made it home. We then found out we had been given one last generous gift before we left Great Britain: two nasty colds that haunted us through Thanksgiving week. In spite of the serious inconvenience of missing Thanksgiving dinner with my folks and the misery of persistent coughing, sneezing, sniffling, chills and aches, it was still worth it.
In fact, it was the very best vacation we've had in a long time.
Until the next time we return to the United Kingdom....
Before we left for the U.K., I made plans for us to take an all-day tour on Thursday in Scotland. In fact, the entire side trip to Edinburgh was based around this tour. Based on my research, one tour stood out as the best choice to see The Real Scotland, meaning territory and scenery outside of the big city. I booked two seats on the tour known as The Hairy Coo. Yes, I know, you're going to need an explanation, and before I get to it, I should stress it's all entirely family friendly. Really, it is.
Meet a hairy coo.
The Scots have a variant of cattle that's most ideally suited for the rough terrain and weather of the craggy, mountainous highlands. Highland cattle have a big shaggy coat, and huge horns. They're basically known as hairy cows, but you have to remember that Scotsman also have a peculiar dialect that isn't exactly the Queen's English. Instead of "hairy cows," they say "hairy coos." The hairy coos are actually quite adorable in a shaggy sort of way, though they can also be ornery, and since they have sharp horns (even the females), it's best not to antagonize them. Fortunately, they're always hungry, and we had food with us to pacify them.
I am NOT a hairy coo.
The tour bus we spent the day on is small, bright orange, and is made up to look a little like a hairy coo. Our fearless leader and guide was an absolutely priceless, very funny raconteur named Donald (he'd prefer to be known as The Don). The Don spent the entire day telling the best stories about Scottish history, the nature of the Scottish people, the highlands, clan lore, and best of all, everything you need to know about the beloved coos (after whom the tour buses are named...ours was Fiona). Oh yes, The Don also does this in a kilt, naturally. You see the guy in the picture way over on the right in the kilt? That's The Don.
The legendary Loch Drunkie
From the silliness of "vegetarian haggis" to the complex and sad tale of Mary Queen of Scots, to how Edinburgh came to be, to the origin of the name Loch Drunkie (it's pretty close to what you might think) to the differences -- and similiarities -- between Clan McGregor and Clan Campbell (he doesn't much like Campbells), Don had wonderful tales about everything under the sun and clouds while we made our way through the countryside. How much does the tour cost, you ask? Nothing. It's free. That's right. You are obligated to pay absolutely nothing. At the end of the day, when you exit the bus, you pay what you feel the tour was worth. I think our "tip" was about 40 GBP apiece. A major bargain. If we had more cash at the end of the day, we'd have probably tipped even more. This is a GREAT idea if you're ever in Edinburgh and want to see the countryside. We had a blast.
The Wallace Monument. Subtle it's not.
Early in the day, we stopped at the National William Wallace Monument near Stirling. The monument is essentially an enormous phallic symbol on a hill, dedicated to a man the English honestly believe was a terrorist (personally, I think the shape was quite intentional, a "pointed" message to the English). A careful reading of history indicates Wallace was the prototypical freedom fighter, and pretty much the definition of a Scottish hero. I was impressed with Donald's voluminous knowledge of the people and places in Scottish history and lore. He very correctly pointed out that although it was certainly entertaining, a huge chunk of the movie "Braveheart" was just wildly wrong. It completely mischaracterized who Wallace was, his upbringing, personality, and also glossed over some of the important context to the story. I know I'm in the minority, but I thought it was, not to put too fine a point on it, an overblown, overacted farce of a movie that did a terrible disservice to a great man and a tremendous story. Not to mention Mel Gibson's attempt to come off as a Scot was ludicrous. That's just me, though.
You've got something on your mouth there
Back to the coos. I've never seen an animal that looked quite like them. Ok, the drooling isn't the cutest thing in the world, but other coos don't seem to mind, so that's really our problem, not theirs. Given the environment they have to survive in, they're tough creatures, and I'm quite glad there was always a fence of some kind between us and them. In case you're wondering what they eat, they like turnips, potatoes and bread. We, however, didn't eat turnips, potatoes and bread. For lunch, we stopped off in a tiny, very rural Scottish village, where Don recommended a number of places, particularly a bakery cafe called Mohr. Their sign said "Eat Mohr Bread." They aren't just clever at picking names. I had the best open faced ham and cheese melt I've tasted in ages. Maybe ever. And a couple stores later, bought me a beautiful lambswool vest (not made from coos, or even sheep for that matter. We're not discussing sheep anymore, mmkay?).
My favorite part of the day involved one last castle. In and of itself, the castle isn't really anything special, but if you're of a certain age and quirky sense of humor, you will certainly remember this.
Yes indeedy, we visited Doune Castle, the setting for the funniest movie in motion picture history, Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Doune was the backdrop for the Insulting Frenchman, the Castle Anthrax, the rousing song Knights of the Round Table, and most importantly of all, this utterly perfect scene.
Is there someone else up there we can talk to?
Unless you grew up memorizing Monty Python dialog as I did, I can't even describe the complete and all encompassing joy of being inside and then walking the perimeter of the setting of Holy Grail. I've probably seen the movie two, perhaps three hundred times, and I still laugh at the great lines. To me (and Donald admitted, to a lot of his visitors on his tours), Doune is something akin to a shrine. I'm quite sure he's used to the giddy expressions and the endless recitations of the script from otherwise normal looking tourists who encounter Doune for the first time. Best of all, Donald thoughtfully had a couple pairs of coconuts on the bus! I can now rightfully say I visited Doune Castle and had two coconuts which I was bangin' together. I think P thought I had completely lost my mind. I didn't care. I could die happy now. I found the perspective of size in this picture (at right) interesting, particularly given that of all the castles we saw in the United Kingdom, this was by far the smallest. That's me in the white sweater at Doune's entrance. I could walk the entire circumference of Doune Castle in about ten minutes. It was tiny, but for me, worth the whole day.
It was, all in all, a very long day, that despite what the pictures would indicate, was mostly raw, rainy and otherwise utterly Scottish. I suppose it could have been better if the skies had been clear, sunny and warm, but I honestly didn't mind. I thought it was one of best choices we made, and I'm only sorry we didn't have more time to see more of the countryside. I knew we'd love Newcastle and Northumbria (and we did), but I didn't expect to be so thoroughly entranced by Scotland. We need more time there. Much more.
Next chapter: The whole reason we were in England in the first place.
DSG and P outside Durham Station with Durham Cathedral in the background
On Tuesday, P, David and I had lunch at Blackfriars (mentioned in Chapter Two), then hopped on the train down to Durham. When you disembark from England's National Rail at Durham Station, you're treated to a view that all by itself makes it worth being there. A short 10-minute walk away stands the greatest Norman building in Great Britain. Maybe anywhere. Durham Cathedral dates to 1093, and when you stand at the base of the immense columns and spires that tower into the sky, it makes no difference if you're Anglican, Jewish, Roman Catholic, Quaker or Hindu. Durham Cathedral is a majestic marvel. The highlight for me was standing behind the altar, between the church organ's twin sets of pipes, while the organist practiced for an upcoming service. The depth, power and transcendent beauty of the pipe organ's melody almost made me sob.
Looking down the hill of the Royal Mile
On Wednesday we traveled ninety minutes up the coast to the Scottish capital, Edinburgh (proper pronunciation if you want them to take you seriously: ED'nburruh).We couldn't have known when we got off the train that we were about to fall in love with the city, and the country. Edinburgh is as ancient as the rest of the area. At its heart is the Royal Mile, anchored by the fortress that sits on Castle Rock. There are castles, and then there's Edinburgh Castle. It's vastly older than its brethren to the south, having been inhabited in one form or another since the 9th century BC. It's been a royal castle for a millennium, since the reign of David the First. For modern day Scots, the relevance of Edinburgh Castle is driven home by the sight of two statues of latter-day heroes, one on either side of the main gate:
William Wallace on the right (did you see Braveheart?)
and Robert the Bruce on the left.
Edinburgh Castle
Every inch and every stone in the ancient castle complex pays tribute to the virtues of bravery, tenacity, loyalty and honor. It's a monument to bold and uncompromising Scotsmen who have survived and flourished over the centuries, despite repeated attempts to vanquish or assimilate them. It made me wish I had a clan to call my own, complete with my own tartan.
The castle has dozens of rooms and artifacts worth visiting, but a couple of them jumped out at me. The first was near the castle's peak. From one of the very top walls, you can look down about ten feet on to what appears to be a small, perfectly manicured garden. A second glance reveals small grave markers around the perimeter of the garden. It's not a garden. It's a graveyard, but no people are buried there.
Dog Cemetery
This is the Dog Cemetery, reserved for the pets and mascots of soldiers over the years. Of all the sights we encountered that first day in Edinburgh, nothing spoke more eloquently to me of the essential Scottish character. They are a fiercely proud and passionate nation, but even in the country's most famous and important military fortress, a strategic place of honor is lovingly maintained and reserved for their faithful companions. Dogs, particularly terriers, have historically been a key part of Scottish history (West Highland Terriers, Cairn Terriers, Scottish Terriers, and Skye Terriers, not to mention Golden Retrievers and Border Collies, among others, all have Scottish roots). Edinburgh is also home to the famous Greyfriars Bobby statue. He was a Skye.
The other location I particularly liked requires no explanation.
None shall pass.
I think I could be very comfortable here...they respect me!
Next post: The Scottish Highlands, cows, and coconuts
