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Take a moment to read about this "strong woman on a journey" who makes school lunch an adventure.

Not long ago a friend asked me for help with her packing list for a trip out west to Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks.  “Sure”, I said.  “I’v...

Today is the Feast of Saint Patrick, the day the Irish dedicate to their foremost patron saint, Patrick. Among other things, he was credited with driving snakes out of Ireland. While the country’s paucity of reptiles like snakes are probably related to climate, it is also said that Saint Patrick helped drive pagan religions out of Ireland: no mean feat in 5^th century Britain. He was a missionary who worked hard to convert the Irish, Picts, and Anglo-Saxons to Christianity at a time and place where Christ was considered an enemy, not a savior.

The past year has been difficult for everyone around the world, so it’s nice to hear good news for a change, especially in a small rural community where many people struggle to survive hard times day after day, year after year. So we’re happy to share a story about a strong woman on a lifetime fitness journey who took a chance with a new business that has not just succeeded but also helps many people – women and men both – grow stronger and healthier. Here’s the report about OUTsideIN’s January 2021 Strong Woman on a Journey, Caroline Duncan.

Recently an OUTsideIN blog fan was saddened to learn that the foods eaten to celebrate the Scottish New Year holiday, Hogmanay, do not include any part of a hog (see Hogmanay Kindness,)December 30, 2020. Like many people, this gentleman assumed that the presence of a food name in a word indicated food rather than something else, which is a linguistic quirk that fascinates the erudite squirrels in my brain.

OUTsideIN works for a variety of reasons, not all of which I can claim to understand. One of the ways it works came to clear to me recently when an artsy-craftsy friend told me that the craft group of older ladies she leads proves something she heard from Oprah Winfrey years ago: that that women who do crafts together, working with their hands, are emotionally healthier than those who don’t. In fact, this has been studied by a variety of experts, from neuroscientists to psychologists, who...

In Scotland, the New Year celebration is called Hogmanay – pronounced HOG-MUH-NAY. Ah, I can almost hear your giggles erupt. Hogmanay? HOGmanay? 

At this time of year it’s so easy to get overcome by all the immediate things that need to get done and overlook the really important thing that sh...

“We’re 14 for brekkers [breakfast] this morning,” Jenny explained as we set the massive dining room table with antique Blue Willow plates and ornate sterling silver flatware, “because we’ve six guests, plus the usual workers, slaves, Sir Gordon and Lady M.”

Already distressed by the prospect of frying 14 eggs, I suddenly realized that my presence might be an inconvenience rather than a help to the MacMillans. “So this wasn’t a good time for me to arrive here, was it?”

“No, no. Don’t worry. It’s just family. The MacMillans’ son John, his wife Belinda [pronounced “Bline-dah”] and their smalls [children], and Belinda’s parents. Lord Lumley-Webb was in the Army with Sir Gordon, and Belinda was once a slave. They’re all here for the Hunt.”

“The Hunt?”

“Yes, it’s shooting season, you see, so if it goes well, we’ll soon be dining on pheasant. Do you like pheasant? I’m not very keen on it, but the MacMillans adore it.”

 

Jolande saw me shivering and said, “Come here by the Esse and get warm.”

It was my first chilly morning at Finlaystone and I had no idea what the Esse was, but I joined Jolande beside it and did appreciate the warmth. While Jolande explained the daily breakfast routine, I happened to notice a skillet of burning bacon and without much thought, reached over and pulled it aside. The bacon and its tantalizing fat simmered down and I turned back to Jolande, who terrified me by telling me that there’d be 14 for breakfast that morning so I must fry 14 eggs. I glanced at the Esse and realized it was a stove. I would have to fry eggs on this stove? How? Where were the burners? Did it even have burners? Fourteen fried eggs?! FOURTEEN?!

 

I’ve lived in a lot of different places, some that invited tourists and others that tourists overlooked or even avoided, so I think I’m qualified to state that tourism can be a mixed blessing. Visitors can bring money, create jobs in hospitality businesses like hotels and restaurants, and foster a sense of pride of place in an area’s natives. They may also bring less desirable things, from littering to disrespect and COVID-19. A friend in Spain was dismayed this spring to learn that 800 German tourists were about to land on the island of Menorca – a boon for local businesses but a terrifying prospect in a pandemic climate. The tourists were eventually rerouted to the bigger neighboring island of Majorca, but it was a close call.