Tag Archives | scottish ambassador

This Ain’t No Disco

Yep, more about Hawaii. I rambled on a fair bit about the place. One of the things I liked best about growing up in Scotland was the fact that, other than a brief six month-interlude when my mother bribed me with Jelly Babies to attend ballet lessons, nobody made me dance in public. Towering above […]

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State fish and chips

Hawaiian escapades part the third. This Scottish-Hawaiian evening, billed as a “casual meet and greet social” promised “dancing, conversation and light refreshments” as well as the opportunity to display our aloha wear. We are soon greeted by several dancers, none of whom are Hawaiian. A couple from Brisbane who have flown over specially for this […]

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No Aloha

Another wee ramble from the new Hawaii Scottish country dancing debacle. … There’s an eerie silence as we trudge past the battered dumpsters, through the empty car park toward where our treasure map indicates that we might find the Mo’ili’ili Silent Dance Center. We turn the corner, see light streaming out of a quiet, small […]

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No Hula Class Today

A wee excerpt from the new Hawaii chapter – love to know what you think of it! A stray cat hovers at the ramp to the parkade, waiting for us to clear off so it can return to a tasty snack of road kill pigeon. The parking lot is otherwise deserted. An occasional beat-up low […]

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Scotswoman of the Year

Really, I should be pretty good at being Scottish. After all my mother was Scotswoman of the Year 1978 and you’d think the competition for top Scotswoman would be pretty fierce in Scotland. But my mother never taught me the basics of Scottish dancing, how to rustle up a succulent haggis or a nice creamy […]

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The English Ambassador

Despite my staunchly Scottish take on life, it might surprise some readers to know that one of the contenders for the role of my very favourite human is, in fact, English. That’s right, he’s a Sassenach! An eight-year-old Sassenach called Wee Joe. Wee Joe  is (a) wee, (b) named after my dad and (c) my […]

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Who is the most awesome Scotswoman?

Ooh, look, it’s a poll! Vote now! [polldaddy poll=4913096]

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The Ambassador

I am posting this wee chunk o’ the book again because (a) it explains where I came up with the name for the book and (b) because I am a slothful, lazy human who has failed to write anything new and amusing to entertain you with over the last week. Downtown Portland, Oregon, Rose Parade […]

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My Declaration of Arbroath

Here is my translation of Scotland’s most important document, said to be the basis for the US Declaration of Independence. I paraphrased a bit. Jesus didn’t say “awesome” all that often. To read my fascinating pre-translation ramble on the topic of Tartan Day, click here. Dear Pope, We are a posse of Scottish blokes. The Scots […]

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Tartan Day!

I’m sure everyone else is just as excited about it being Tartan Day as I am. Tartan Day, yeah! That’s right, the day when people round the world carouse and consume tartan-coloured pints and everyone wears tartan… Um… Yeah, I know, most people have never heard of Tartan Day. Like the Patrick’s Day parades, Tartan Day was […]

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