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"For me optimism is two lovers walking into the sunset arm in arm. Or maybe into the sunrise - whatever appeals to you."
Krzysztof Kieslowski
Willy Whackit dreamed of playing baseball in the majors. He knew if he hung out in the corn long enough, the scouts would come. Unfortunately, Willy had no idea what corn looked like and, so, hanging out in the bushes didn't make him famous. Willy did get discovered, arrested and now has a photo on the post office wall after he jumped bail.
Huron, California 2007
Optimism and Pessimism
He loves me – he loves me not.
Venus - Goddess of Peace and Lust
Innocence of Youth
HKD
Falls Psychologie und Astrologie interessieren:
Die junge Venus mit dem Marstransit
Motivationskräfte sind so unterschiedlich wie Blätter an einem Baum. Und dennoch unterscheidet sich das Blatt einer Palme extrem von dem einer Eiche. Auch kann man Unterscheide finden zwischen Bäumen, die ihr Laub im Winter abwerfen und jenen in den tropischen Urwäldern, die das ganze Jahr über grünen. Und so gibt es auch Unterschiede bei Menschen, in denen eine bestimmte Motivationskraft wirkt. Beispielsweise gibt es bei der sanften Venus aggressive Energien, die typisch sind für Mars. Doch die Ausnahmen wie Mars oder die apollinische Rationalität bestätigen nur die Regel, wenn es sich grundsätzlich um eine Frau des sinnlichen Typs „Venus" ( B5) handelt.
Der Wechsel der psychischen Energien ist in der Astrologie bekannt, denn das Konzept ist dynamisch. Es zeigt den Wandel der Motivationskräfte anhand des Kreislaufes der Planten, die um die Sonne kreisen.
Angewandte Astrologie sagt das Auftauchen und Verschwinden von Energien voraus, etwa in folgender Art:
„Für die Jungfrauen heißt es jetzt aufpassen, da ein Mars-Transit angesagt ist. Vermeiden Sie Streit, auch wenn in den nächsten Wochen oft die Wut aufsteigt, besonders bei Angelegenheiten, die Sie für ungerecht halten. Der Transit birgt die Gefahr der Eskalation auch kleiner Konflikte. Doch wir erwarten schon bald einen Wechsel der Energie, denn Venus beginnt mit ihrem Einfluss auf die Jungfrauen.“
Eine sommerlich gekleidete junge Frau, die mir im Zugabteil gegenüber saß, blickte gedankenvoll durch das Fenster mit seinen vorbeiflitzenden Bäumen, Zäunen, Wiesen mit Kühen und im Hintergrund eine langsam verschwindende Kirchturmspitze. Ein Dorf kuschelte sich um sie herum und verschwand, während ich für ein paar Sekunden das von langem Haar nahezu verhangenne Gesicht im Profil betrachtete.
Sie schwieg und starrte aus dem Fenster, seit sie das Abteil betreten und mich freundlich nach dem Fensterplatz gefragt hatte. Auf diese Weise saßen wir gegenüber und unsere Füße begegneten sich beinahe.
Ich war etwas verwirrt, denn mit tiefem Ausschnitt, Kettchen und lackierten Fingernägeln legte sie Wert darauf, von sich ein attraktives Bild zu machen. Natürlich wollte sie auf Männer in ihrem Alter so wirken und vermutlich wäre sie kontaktfreudiger, wenn ihr spezieller Typ auf meinem Platz säße, dennoch schien sie stur und verbockt zu sein, denn die meiste Zeit hielt sie ihre Arme vor der Brust verschränkt.
Ich fragte mich, warum sie dicht gemacht hatte und spekulierte mit dem Gedanken, dass sie schwerwiegende Differenzen mit ihrem Freund austrug.
In der Art wie sie saß, erkannte ich meine eigene Gestik wieder, in die ich falle, wenn ich verstockt bin, um mich von bestimmten Gefühlen nicht mehr quälen zu lassen. Eifersucht beispielsweise schmerzt und demütigt.
Wut und Verstocktheit sind die Reaktion auf jene Person, die diesen Schmerz auslöst. Die Wut konfrontiert und droht: Tu das nie wieder! Das ist die aggressive Energie, das heißt Macht.
Die Verstocktheit dagegen sagt gar nichts, zieht sich schweigend ins Schneckenhaus zurück und gehört damit zur defensiven Seite ein und derselben Medaille, die als Yin und Yang gesehen werden kann.
Die junge Frau machte mir nicht den Eindruck dass ihre natürliche Energie der Offenheit sehr lange vom aggressiven Mars in Wut gehalten werden konnte. Wenn ich jetzt Astrologe wäre hätte ich vielleicht gesagt: „Schon morgen ist Mars zurück in seiner Kaserne und Venus taucht als Morgenstern am Horizont auf.“
Das Auftauchen und Verschwinden von Interessen hat schon die frühe Menschheit beobachtet und machte höhere, unsichtbare Wesenheiten dafür verantwortlich, die Götter. Liebe kommt und Liebe geht. Liebesglück und Liebesleid sind die Folgen.
Schwarz und weiß ist das Leben in seinem Wechsel der häufig durch weiße oder schwarze Vögel charakterisiert und metaphorisch dargestellt wird.
Die hier auf diesem Bild gezeigte Venus ist noch jung. Unschuldig sitzt die weiße Taube auf ihrer Hand, doch ist der Rabe, der pechschwarze Vogel der Unterwelt auch schon da. Die Erfahrung der Unterwelt bringt mit jeder Enttäuschung ein Stück Reife mehr im Leben und schließlich sitzen bei der gereiften Venus, das heißt der weisen Frau beide Vögel auf den geöffneten Handflächen.
Alles hat seine Zeit, auch der Reifeprozess einer Frau, deren Leben in erster Linie von der Göttin der Sinnlichkeit (Motivationskraft B5) bestimmt wird.
Die junge Frau stand auf, stieß versehentlich an meinen Fuß und entschuldigte sich. Unsere Blicke trafen sich kurz und ich sah in der Tiefe ihrer Augen den aufsteigenden Stern. Für eine Sekunde vergaß sie ihren Groll. Als ich lächelte tat sie es spontan zurück.
„Würden Sie für zehn Minuten auf mein Gepäck aufpassen?“ fragte sie. „Ich möchte einmal sehen, wo mein Verlobter abgeblieben ist.“
Es stellte sich heraus, dass sie ihr gemeinsames Abteil verlassen hatte, weil er mit seinem PC arbeitete und auf ihren Protest hin sagte, sie solle sich doch jemanden zur Unterhaltung suchen, er müsse den Bericht bis abends fertig haben.
Tatsächlich unterhielten wir uns bis ich aussteigen musste. Als ich vom Bahnsteig aus einen letzten Gruß zum Fenster sandte, winkte sie zurück. Neben ihr kam ein junger Mann ins Bild. Ich erfuhr nie, ob es ihr Verlobter mit dem Laptop war oder…
HKD
Digital art based on own photography and textures
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According to experts, yellow is the colour most associated with optimism and pleasure; it is a colour designed to attract attention, and is used for amusement.
I learned from nature that optimism can lead to hope, no matter how tough our days are, the dark clouds will clear and the sun have to shin again. The pain people experience in the past is what makes them enjoy today's happiness. Let's start our days with love and optimism.
تعلمت من الطبيعه ان التفائل يزرع الامل وان الايام مهما كانت قاسيه فلابد ان تنقشع الغيوم وتشرق الشمس من جديد، دعوة من القلب لكل الاحبة بالتفائل فاتراح الامس هي من جعلتنا نتذوق افراح اليوم
The Isle of Mull is the second-largest island of the Inner Hebrides (after Skye) and lies off the west coast of Scotland in the council area of Argyll and Bute.
Covering 875.35 square kilometres (338 sq mi), Mull is the fourth-largest island in Scotland and Great Britain. From 2001 to 2020, the population has gradually increased: during 2020 the populace was estimated to be 3,000, in the 2011 census it was approximately 2,800, and in 2001, it was measured at 2,667 people. It has the eighth largest Island population in Scotland. In the summer, these numbers are augmented by an influx of many tourists. Much of the year-round population lives in the colourful main settlement of Tobermory.
There are two distilleries on the island: the Tobermory distillery, formerly named Ledaig, produces single malt Scotch whisky and another, opened in 2019 and located in the vicinity of Tiroran, which produces Whitetail Gin. Mull is host to numerous sports competitions, notably the Highland Games competition, held annually in July. The isle is home to four castles, including the towering keep of Moy Castle. On the south coast, a stone circle is located in the settlement of Lochbuie.
The Isle of Mull has probably been inhabited since shortly after the end of the last Ice Age, around 11,000 years ago. This is evidenced by radiocarbon dating done in a mesolithic hut at Crieth Dubh on the northwest coast of the island. Later, Bronze Age and Iron Age inhabitants built brochs at Dun Nan Gall and An Sean Chaisteal, and a stone circle at Lochbuie along with numerous burial cairns. Two crannogs there have been dated to the Iron Age.
In the 6th century AD, Irish migrants invaded Mull and the surrounding coast and established the Gaelic kingdom of Dál Riata. The kingdom was divided into a number of regions, each controlled by a different kinship group one of these, the Cenél Loairn, controlled Mull and the adjacent mainland to the east.
Dál Riata was a springboard for the Christianisation of the mainland; the pivotal point was in AD 563, when Columba, an Irish missionary, arrived on the island of Iona – just off the southwest point of Mull – and founded a monastery there from which to start evangelising the local population.
In the 9th century, Viking invasions led to the destruction of Dál Riata and its replacement by the Norse Kingdom of the Isles, which became part of the kingdom of Norway following Norwegian unification around 872. The Kingdom of the Isles was much more extensive than Dál Riata, encompassing also the Outer Hebrides and Skye. The island kingdom became known as the Suðreyjar, meaning southern isles in Old Norse. The former lands of Dál Riata acquired the geographic description "Argyle" (now "Argyll"): the Gaelic coast.
In the late 11th century, Magnus Barefoot, the Norwegian king, launched a military campaign which in 1098 led the king of Scotland to quitclaim to Magnus all claim of sovereign authority over the territory of the Kingdom of the Isles. However, a coup some 60 years later, led by a Norse-Gael named Somerled, detached the whole of the Suðreyjar from Norway and transformed it into an independent kingdom. After Somerled's death in 1164, nominal Norwegian authority was established, but practical control of the realm was divided between Somerled's sons and the heirs of Somerled's brother-in-law, the Crovan Dynasty. His son Dougall received the former territory of the Cenél Loairn, now known as Lorn, of which Mull formed part.
Meanwhile, the Crovan dynasty had retained the title "king of the Isles" and control of Lewis, Harris, and the Isle of Man. After a few decades, they acknowledged the English kings as their overlords, so Dougall's heirs (the MacDougalls) complained to Haakon, the Norwegian king, and in 1237 were rewarded by the kingship being split; rule of the Hebrides was transferred to the MacDougall line, and they were made the "kings of the Hebrides". They established the twin castles of Aros (in Mull) and Ardtornish (on the mainland, opposite), which together controlled the Sound of Mull.
Throughout the early 13th century, the king of Scots, Alexander II, had aggressively tried to expand his realm into the Suðreyjar, despite Edgar's earlier quitclaim. This led to hostility between Norway and Scotland, which continued under Alexander III. King Haakon IV of Norway died shortly after the indecisive Battle of Largs. In 1266, his more peaceable successor ceded his nominal authority over the Suðreyjar to Alexander III by the Treaty of Perth in return for a very large sum of money. Alexander generally acknowledged the semi-independent authority of Somerled's heirs; the former Suðreyjar had become Scottish crown dependencies rather than parts of Scotland.
At the end of the 13th century, a violent dispute arose over the Scottish kingship between King John Balliol and Robert de Bruys. By then, Somerled's descendants had formed into three families: as well as Dougall's heirs (the MacDougalls), there were also the heirs of his nephew Donald (the MacDonalds) and those of Donald's brother (the MacRory or MacRuairi); the MacDougalls backed Balliol, while the MacDonalds and MacRory backed de Bruys. When Robert I defeated his Scots enemies, including the Comyns and MacDougalls, he declared their lands forfeit, dividing them between his friend, Angus Og Macdonald, Lord of the Isles, and Christina MacRory, King Robert's kinswoman. The latter acquired Lorn and some of the smaller Isles, but Angus Og, who fought beside King Robert at Bannockburn, was given the lion's share: The Isles of Islay, Jura, Gigha, Colonsay and Mull, and the mainland territories of Duror, Glencoe, Ardnamurchan, Lochaber, Morvern and Kintyre. After Bannockburn, Alexander Macdonald, Angus Og’s eldest son, then still alive, was granted Mull and Tiree. Angus Og's younger son John of Islay, became Lord of the Isles after his father's and his elder brother's deaths. He first married Amy MacRuairi of Garmoran, the heiress of the MacRory family, thereby consolidating the remains of Somerled's realm.
In 1354, though in exile and without control of his ancestral lands, John, the MacDougall heir, quitclaimed any rights he had over Mull to the Lord of the Isles. When Robert's son David II became king, he spent some time in English captivity; after his release, in 1357, he restored MacDougall authority over Lorn, effectively cancelling Robert's grant to the MacRory. The 1354 quitclaim, which seems to have been an attempt to ensure peace in just such an eventuality, took automatic effect, splitting Mull from Lorn and making it subject to the Lordship of the Isles.
In 1437, the Lordship was substantially expanded when Alexander, the Lord of the Isles, inherited the rule of Ross maternally. The expansion led the MacDonalds to move their centre of power from Islay to the twin castles of Aros and Ardtornish.
In 1462, the most ambitious of the Lords of the Isles, John MacDonald, struck an alliance with Edward IV of England to conquer Scotland. Civil war in England prevented this from taking effect and from being discovered until 1475, when the English court voluntarily revealed its existence. Calls for forfeiture of the Lordship naturally followed, but they were calmed when John quitclaimed most of his mainland territories. However, John's nephew launched a severe raid on Ross, but it ultimately failed. Within two years of the raid, in 1493, James IV of Scotland declared the Lordship of the Isles forfeit, transforming the realm into an intrinsic part of Scotland rather than a dependency.
Throughout this time, the descendants of the Cenél Loairn retained their identity; they were now the MacLeans. Now that John MacDonald was exiled, James IV restored the authority of the MacLeans over Mull. An earlier chief of the MacLeans had married the daughter of the first Lord of the Isles and received Duart Castle as the dowry; this now became the stronghold of MacLean control of Mull. The cadet branch of the family constructed a tower house at Moy on the southern side of Mull, while the senior branch retained Duart Castle.
Legend has it that the wreck of a Spanish galleon, laden with gold, lies somewhere in the mud at the bottom of Tobermory Bay. By some accounts, the Florencia (or Florida or San Francisco), a ship of the defeated Spanish Armada fleeing the English fleet in 1588, anchored in Tobermory to take on provisions. After a dispute over payment, the ship caught fire and the gunpowder magazine exploded, sinking the vessel. In her hold, reputedly, was £300,000 in gold bullion. Other sources claim the vessel was the San Juan de Sicilia (or San Juan de Baptista), which carried troops, not treasure. According to that account, the island's chief, Lachlan Mor Maclean, struck a deal with the Spanish commander to re-provision and refit the ship in return for military intervention on the side of the MacLeans in their feud with enemies on nearby islands. There have been numerous searches for the wreck and its rumoured treasure from the mid-17th century to the end of the 20th century. No significant treasure has been recovered in Tobermory Bay.
Following the Scottish Reformation, the MacLeans became supporters of Protestantism. By the mid-17th century, they had become promoters of conventicles, opposed to king Charles II's repudiation of the Solemn League and Covenant and supporting acts of civil disobedience. Though personally opposed to persecution of such people, Archibald Campbell, 9th Earl of Argyll, was specifically ordered by the Scottish privy council to suppress conventicles within his lands, which included Lorn. The atmosphere of hostility soon spread to Mull, where opponents of the conventicles felt emboldened, leading to outbreaks of violence between the two religious factions.
In 1678, Campbell was specifically instructed to seize Mull and suppress both the violence and conventicles. It took Clan Campbell until 1681 to gain possession of the whole island. Campbell took charge of Duart Castle and ejected the MacLean leadership from Mull; they moved to Cairnburgh Castle in the Treshnish Islands off the north-west of Mull. Campbell's own position was somewhat undermined when he instigated Argyll's Rising against the reign of James VII. The loyalty of subsequent Campbell leaders ensured the Campbells retained possession of Duart (it was only after the Campbells sold it, and it had spent a century under other owners, that the MacLeans were able to recover it by purchase). Under Campbell pressure, shrieval authority was established under the sheriff of Argyll, which they controlled.
Following Jacobite insurrections, the Heritable Jurisdictions Act abolished comital authority in Mull and Campbell control of the Argyll sheriffdom; the Campbells could now only assert influence as landlords. Many castles that had been in the hands of the MacLeans (such as Moy) had been slighted by the Campbells or fallen into disrepair, but more comfortable homes were built nearby.
During the 18th century, the island was home to a Gaelic Bard, whom Father Charles MacDonald describes only as "The Mull Satirist." The Satirist is said to have been a vocal enemy of the Jacobite Bard Alasdair Mac Mhaighstir Alasdair and to have attacked the latter in many poems that have survived. When the Jacobite poet converted from the Calvinist Church of Scotland to the Roman Catholic Church, the Mull Satirist accused him of doing so, not out of serious conviction, but to curry favour with the exiled House of Stuart.
In 1773 the island was visited by Samuel Johnson and James Boswell during their tour of the Western Islands. Farming, fishing, and burning seaweed for kelp ash (used in the manufacture of soap and glass) were the main economic activities on the island until the 19th century. Tobermory was built by the British Fisheries Society in 1788 as a planned settlement to support the fishing industry.
The Highland Clearances in the 18th and 19th centuries resulted in people being evicted to make space for sheep and the Highland Potato Famine (1846–1847) encouraged mass emigration. These factors caused the population to decline from 10,000 to less than 4,000 and then to 3,000 by the 20th Century; this had a serious impact on the economy. Despite this, several grand houses were built on Mull in the period, including Torosay Castle.
In 1889, counties were formally created in Scotland on shrieval boundaries by a dedicated Local Government Act; Mull therefore became part of the newly created County of Argyll.
The whole island became a Restricted Area during World War II. The bay at Tobermory became a naval base commanded from HMS Western Isles. The base and the Restricted Area were under Commodore (later Vice Admiral) Sir Gilbert Stephenson, whose strict discipline and ferocious temper earned him the nickname "The Terror of Tobermory". The base was used to train Escort Groups in anti-submarine warfare. 911 ships passed through the base between 1940 and 1945. Following late 20th century reforms, Mull is now part of the wider area of Argyll and Bute.
According to a July 2020 article in Country Life, "The Benmore Estate occupies 32,000 acres of the Isle of Mull" and includes Knock House, a Victorian hunting lodge where tourists can stay. Guests can book rides on the estate boat, the Benmore Lady. Much of the lodge was built by the ninth Duke of Argyll for his wife, one of the daughters of Queen Victoria; they married in 1871. Reports indicate that the Queen stayed there, as did others including Wordsworth, Keats, JM Barrie and Sir Walter Scott.
According to the 2011 Scottish census, the Isle of Mull had a usual residents population of 2,800 with 1,271 households. Including the offshore islands, the population of Mull was 2,996.
In Mull and the adjacent islands Gaelic had been the traditional language since the early Middle Ages. However, the 20th century in particular saw a reduction in the number of speakers, with a significant fall (20%) in Mull after the Second World War. This was associated with strong emigration and abandonment of the language by the younger generation. In the 1951 census only 10 people said they could not speak English.
The following decades saw the beginnings of a revival. Gaelic medium education was introduced in 1996 after a long dispute with the authorities. A Gaelic-medium unit was introduced in Salen Primary School, followed by a second unit at Bunessan Primary School; the language began to be taught in the first two years of secondary school; and Gaelic playgroups were introduced. By 2006 it was found that, though only 10% of the working-age cohort spoke or understood Gaelic, language ability at school age was much higher. There was great local variation in the number of speakers, from around 25% in Craignure (Creag an Iubhair) to 4% in Aros. It has been argued, however, that in terms of language survival, there is reason for optimism in Mull.
There is a small amount of farming, aquaculture, and fishing, and Forestry and Land Scotland has several plantations on the island. Tobermory also has one whisky distillery (Tobermory distillery) and from 2005 to 2009 had a brewery (Isle of Mull Brewing Company). Tiroran is home to the island's other distillery (Whitetail Gin) which was established as the isle's first new distillery in over 220 years in 2019.
Tourism is definitely significant. The economy began to revive when the construction of Craignure Pier in 1964 started to bring tourists. Tourism is now the mainstay of the island's economy. Ecotourism became popular from the 1990s, and the reintroduction of white-tailed eagles in 2005 became a particular ecotourist attraction. The island is one of the few places to see sea eagles; there were at least 22 pairs as of April 2020.
Isle of Mull cheese is Scottish cheddar cheese made from raw cow milk produced on the Isle of Mull.
Apart from traversing the Ross of Mull on the way to Iona, visitors typically spend time in Tobermory, visit Glengorm Castle[citation needed] and then enjoy one of the beaches. One report states that "the south-west holds more white beaches, famous for their pink granite skerries and stunning sunsets, that are also perfect for kayaking". Accommodations for tourists include self-catering holiday cottages, a few hotels, and some campsites.
Tourism was negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic during 2020 and into 2021. A September 2020 report stated that "The Highlands and Islands region has been disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic to date, when compared to Scotland and the UK as a whole". The industry required short-term support for "business survival and recovery" and that was expected to continue as the sector was "severely impacted for as long as physical distancing and travel restrictions". A scheme called Island Equivalent was introduced by the Scottish government in early 2021 to financially assist hospitality and retail businesses "affected by Level 3 coronavirus restrictions". Previous schemes in 2020 included the Strategic Framework Business Fund and the Coronavirus Business Support Fund.
Tobermory – with just over a thousand people, the largest settlement on Mull – is home to the only whisky distillery on the island.
Ferry links to Mull from the mainland include:
The most-used ferry, from Oban to Craignure (approx. 45 minutes),
Kilchoan to Tobermory (approx. 35 minutes)
Lochaline to Fishnish (approx. 15 minutes).
Advance bookings are not required for the Kilchoan or Fishnish ferries; access to those two ferry terminals on the mainland side is via single-track roads.
There are also ferry links from Fionnphort on Mull to the neighbouring island of Iona and from Oskamull to Ulva. In past years there were direct sailings to Oban (calling at Drimnin, Salen, Lochaline, and Craignure), and to Barra, Coll, and Tiree from Tobermory. During the summer there was also a sailing to Staffa and Iona from Oban that called at Tobermory.
Buses
Buses are operated by West Coast Motors Ltd. There are routes from Tobermory to Calgary via Dervaig (Service 494), Tobermory to Craignure via Salen (Service 495), and Craignure to Fionnphort via Bunessan (Service 496). Limited services operate to Lochbuie and Gruline. West Coast Motors also provide guided tours around Mull, Iona, and Staffa, including boat transfers from Oban.
A minibus service also operates seasonally from Craignure to Duart Castle.
There is also a community-run service from Calgary to Salen via Ulva Ferry.
There is a landing strip for private light aircraft near Salen. There was a seaplane that linked Tobermory with Glasgow and Oban. The regular scheduled service terminated in 2009. Loganair operated a scheduled service to Glasgow in the 1960s from Glenforsa airfield, a 780-metre-long (2,560 ft) grass airstrip constructed by the Royal Engineers in 1965 near Salen. The airstrip has been operated since 2014 by Brendan and Allison Walsh, owners of the adjacent Glenforsa Hotel.
Tourist railway
The Isle of Mull Railway ran from Craignure to Torosay Castle but closed in 2011.
There is one secondary school on the island (Tobermory High School) and six primary schools. Salen Primary School has a Gaelic medium education unit. Secondary pupils (age 11–18) from Iona, Bunessan and Fionnphort in the south-west attend Oban High School, staying in an Oban hostel from Monday to Thursday.
Mull was connected to the mainland by a submarine telegraph cable between Oban and Grass Point in 1871. There were telegraph offices at Tobermory, Dervaig, Calgary, Craignure, Pennyghael, Tiroran, Fionnphort, Bunessan, and Iona.
The Post Office built an experimental wireless telegraph station on Meall an Inbhire near Tobermory in 1892.
In 2014, fibre optic cables for support of high speed internet were laid between Kilchoan (in Ardnamurchan) and Tobermory and between Dunstaffnage (near Oban) and Torosay. In February 2015 additional cables were laid underground between Tobermory and Torosay to complete the link.
AM radio, broadcast from Oban, came to the island in 1930 and television in 1954. New AM radio and UHF television transmitters were constructed on Druim Mòr, one mile (1.6 km) west of Torosay Castle, in 1978. Digital transmissions commenced on 15 November 1998 and analogue transmissions ceased on 27 October 2010. The digital transmitters have 22 relays on Mull, surrounding islands, and parts of the mainland, collectively the Torosay Transmitter Group.
Mull Theatre is a professional theatre company based in a 2008 theatre production centre on the outskirts of Tobermory. The company commissions plays, tours throughout Scotland and beyond, and runs an education and outreach programme. It started at the "Mull Little Theatre" at Dervaig in 1966 and was the "Smallest Professional Theatre in the World" according to the Guinness World Records. The National Theatre of Scotland were in residence at the Mull Theatre in April 2009.
An Tobar ("The Well"), based in Tobermory, is the only publicly funded multidisciplinary arts centre in Argyll. Established in 1997, it is a centre for visual arts, crafts and music. With effect from 1 April 2013, An Tobar and the Mull Theatre were brought together as Comar.
The Isle of Mull is a popular destination for naturalists and photographers for seeing some of Britain's more elusive species.
Mull has over 800 species of vascular plant (684 native and 171 naturalised) including 33 species of fern, at least 18 species of orchid and 22 native species of tree. There are about 700 species of lichen, 571 liverworts and mosses, and 247 marine algae (seaweeds), making a total of 2,388 species of plant recorded from the island. In addition, more than 2,000 species of fungi have been recorded on Mull: Dennis and Watling write, "When one speaks of the Inner Hebridean fungi one is referring to the floras of Mull and Rhum".
The island has 261 different bird species, including the white-tailed eagle, which was reintroduced to the nearby island of Rùm and migrated to Mull, where it now has a stronghold. Basking sharks, minke whales, porpoises, and dolphins are among the sea life nearby.
The island is home to a population of otters that live in coastal habitat, hunting during the day. The Mull Otter Group was established for the conservation needs of otters on the Isle of Mull.
The island also has several birds of prey, such as hen harriers, golden eagles, and short eared owls, all difficult species to see throughout the rest of the UK. Pine martens have also recently become established on Mull; based on sighting records and from resulting modelling exercises, it is believed the species arrived in 2004 through accidental transportation on timber boats from the mainland. It is unlikely that pine martens have ever been native to the Isle of Mull.
The Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust was established in 1994 and is a marine conservation charity that takes action through community based research and education. The Trust carries out long-term monitoring programmes on cetaceans in the Hebrides, by collating sightings reported by the public and running live-aboard research expeditions on their sailing yacht, Silurian. The Trust covers the west coast of Scotland, and is based in Tobermory, where it has its main office, Discovery Centre and the mooring of their research vessel.
There are also a number of invasive species on the island, including plant species such as Japanese knotweed and animals such as feral cats and American mink that are believed to be causing damage to the indigenous species populations through competition and predation.
Lochdon Free Church, built in 1852
The Tour of Mull is a road-closing rally around the island every October. It has been sponsored since 2005 by Tunnock's, the Lanarkshire teacake and biscuit manufacturer. A five-year sponsorship deal with Beatson's Building Supplies started in 2015.
There are several shipwrecks around the shores that offer scuba diving.
There is an Isle of Mull Cycling Club.
The Cross at the Castle cyclocross event is held annually at Glengorm Castle near Tobermory and features the World Santacross Championships and the Scottish Singlespeed Cylocross Championships.
Mull Runners organise a half marathon and 10K run each August between Craignure and Salen.
Rugby is played at Garmony (beside the Craignure to Salen road 6+1⁄2 mi or 10.5 km north of Craignure). The Mull Rugby 7s Competition takes place annually in May at The Isle of Mull R.F.C's rugby club.
There are golf courses at Tobermory (Erray Park), Craignure (beside the Craignure to Salen road 1 mi or 1.5 km north of Craignure) and on Iona.
Mull Highland Games are held each July in the grounds of Tobermory Golf Club (Erray Park). Events include Heavy Weights, Light Field, and Highland Dance.
The swimming pool at the Isle of Mull Hotel, Craignure is open to the paying public.
Tobermory has some free tennis courts.
Football is played, mainly in the south end. Bunessan F.C. play a number of games during the summer, most notably against arch rivals Iona FC, the island just off the south west end. Bunessan F.C. also hold an annual 5-a-side tournament in July.
Following research and community consultation in 1996/97, a development trust was created to identify key goals for the communities of Mull and Iona. Mull & Iona Community Trust was formed in 1997 and published a "Community Regeneration Strategy" for the islands. They purchased the only butcher's shop on the island (closed February 2010), created a community-run Countryside Ranger service, instigated various recycling initiatives, and provide a fundraising and training consultancy.
Martyn Bennett (1971–2005), Canadian-Scottish musician, lived on Mull, buried in Calgary Bay cemetery
Peter Bonetti, (1941–2020), English footballer (goalkeeper)
Major General Colin Gubbins, head of Special Operations Executive during World War II
Duncan Livingstone (1877–1964) Scottish Gaelic Bard, born at Torloisk, emigrated to South Africa in 1903. Continued to write Gaelic verse in Pretoria until his death.
Agnes Maxwell MacLeod (1783–1879) poet and minister's wife
Colin MacIntyre (b. 1971), Scottish musician who frequently goes under the name "Mull Historical Society"
Margaret McKellar (1861–1941), medical missionary
John McLean (1799–1890), Canadian-Scottish explorer and one of the chief traders of the Hudson's Bay Company
Norman Maclean (1902–1990), acclaimed Scottish-American author from Missoula, Montana, who explored the alcoholism and gambling addictions of his ancestors, Scottish Gaelic-speaking Presbyterians on the Isle, in the 1976 novella A River Runs Through It and Other Stories
Mary Macleod, 17th-century poet said to have been banished to Mull
Lachlan Macquarie, (1762–1824), Governor of New South Wales, born on the nearby island of Ulva[
it feels unreal to live here in temp home..like i would be in another country. can't explain. still must be optimistic and keep the head high..hopefully soon we'll be back home again.
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©All rights reserved Neya
I hope you're about to have an amazing day.
I've made that my goal.
In the last five or six... shit... maybe seven years I've been in so much trouble.
I've been in a lot of trouble I've deserved and that's a bummer but it doesn't bother me.
But trouble you find yourself in that you don't deserve to be in...
that's a different story.
Especially when it's motivated by revenge... anger... or a vendetta.
I've had a hard time dealing with that.
A really hard time.
Paying thousands upon thousands of dollars in lawyer's fees to deal with pure fiction.
And when fiction gets you into trouble that becomes a 'real problem.'
I've gone through a number of trials...
in one the prosecution told me that if I didn't take their 'deal' that they were going to ask the judge to send me to jail for a year.
Damn... for something that never happened... a malicious and manipulative fabrication.
I hope you never know what that experience is like.
But it happens to people every single day in this country.
Yesterday I was able to put all of that behind me.
It feels so good.
Shit... I got into so much trouble in the last few years that it started to weave itself together.
'This trouble' and 'that trouble' came together and they became 'one trouble.'
I blew the whistle on some government wrongdoing that hurt a lot of people.
A few people are going to spend quite a bit of time in federal prison for it.
People in your government who were either responsible, complicit or negligent got away with it completely and remain in positions of authority in your government today.
There should be a few more going to prison but they're powerful and wealthy people and their only punishment for destroying the health and lives of so many people are millions of dollars in legal bills and the disgrace of their names.
I will always maintain that they murdered those people.
To them I say 'fuck you... you deserve it... in fact you deserve so much more.'
If nothing else karma will have your ass.
In the end I believe that I will be personally responsible for a whole bunch of attorneys making more than a hundred million dollars.
Maybe hundreds of millions of dollars.
Stirred up a shitstorm on that one alright.
The prosecution of these government officials by the government is a disgrace in itself.
They seem hell bent on keeping the truth from the people and prosecuting only to the extent that they need to in order to look like they actually 'gave a shit.'
Your government has a propensity to try not to make itself look bad.
I can assure you that anyone you've ever seen prosecuted for government corruption wasn't really prosecuted for that... they were prosecuted for 'stepping on the toes' of someone else in a powerful position or a coalition of people in positions of power.
But I go on without anger or malice in my heart.
Because it's filled with love and light.
I have spent so much time in court in the last five years I never want to walk through the doors of a courthouse again.
I don't like courthouse doors.
They give me the willies because I know what goes on there.
It isn't fair or pretty or real.
And as much as I've been there I've never seen 'justice' once.
I've only seen highly intelligent people manipulate the realities of what happened to try and change the outcome for their clients.
And I've seen them do that well.
I once spent a day on the stand as a witness... cross examined by the defense they just tore me apart... got me to admit to things I couldn't believe I admitted to even as I admitted them... precisely the way that they wanted me to admit to them.
I got off that stand that day expecting to be taken straight to jail in handcuffs.
For a long time.
I whispered to the attorney... 'did I just admit to a felony?'
That letter I wrote to the Chief of Police... the one that in his chambers the Judge complimented me for saying 'I have never seen such a despicable letter written to a public official in all my time as a judge'...
he said it with a smile because he knew that I was right.
How can it be 'blackmail' if you tell a guy that if he doesn't 'do the right thing' that you're gonna 'squeeze his nuts in the nutcracker until they pop.'
But they really made it look like blackmail... or witness tampering at the very least.
And I signed that letter with my name.
'Statute of Limitations' you've been a friend to me.
I got off that stand and I didn't even like myself.
I realized that they could have done the same thing to Mother Teresa.
A good lawyer could tear her apart and make an evil dictator look like a 'victim' of her 'diabolical scheming and manipulative ways.'
I've seen so many things I only wish I could 'unsee.'
But I stood up and did the right thing.
Sometimes that was the hardest thing to do.
Gahd it cost me a lot.
I did my civic duty.
If no one stands up to fight evil and challenge wrongdoing the world will crumble into a state that I'd hate to see it fall into if only for the fact that I have children who will have to live here even after I'm gone.
Yesterday I became free of the last vestiges of those years of conflict.
It was the most personal battle in that long series of battles.
I don't think it's really sunk in yet.
I keep 'looking behind me' still.
Thinking 'what in the hell is gonna happen next.'
I must have asked the attorneys a half a dozen times... is this it... is it over... can any of this shit be regurgitated... revived... dug up... brought up again or otherwise reincarnated to come back and haunt my ass anymore?
'No' I was told again and again.
I still don't believe it.
Maybe it will sink in over the next couple of 'conflict free' weeks.
I've learned so much.
I've learned that when you go to court and there's a dude there to sketch you with pastels that you're in a world of shit.
I've learned that when Dr. Phil chimes in you're fucked.
I've learned that I look goofy on television.
I've learned how awkward it is to see your life all over the newspapers, the TV, the radio and especially the internet.
I've learned so many things.
I have seen the very worst in human behavior and I hope I see nothing like it ever again.
I've watched people fight just to fight and in the end only end up fighting with themselves.
I've seen people pervert the justice system with their vendettas and try to use the courts of this state purely for revenge.
I've sat there or stood there and watched people lie under oath.
Flat out lie.
No big.
I've seen people violate the orders of the court without getting so much as a slap on the hand.
I've seen people get away with murder.
But I did what I had to do.
And in the end most of the bullshit and the shennanigans were made apparent by the light of day.
Maybe it took an excruciatingly long time.
But I've seen a judge make wise and fair judgements.
That's the one thing I'm left with being impressed with throughout the debacles of these last few years.
I don't know how the hell these judges do it.
They always hear two very different stories and they've got to render a judgement and go home and sleep that night.
Yesterday a judge thoroughly impressed me with his command of the courtroom and the fairness of his judgement.
But if he could have only 'heard the truth' he would have probably judged things differently.
Our legal system makes it hard to even bring the truth in front of that judge not just sometimes... but all of the time.
I'm not sure if I'm at liberty to say much more at this point...
partly because I still can't believe I'm done with this shit... and partly because I've had that liberty 'taken away from me' and I don't know where that stands.
I slept better last night than I have in a long time.
I woke up ready to take on the day and focus on the things in my life that need to be focused on...
not to deal with a bunch of bullshit that wasn't real in a fight that was being obviously fought for the sake of fighting it and nothing else.
The morning sunshine looked so much brighter today.
I feel so much lighter.
My heart is filled with love and light.
I feel free.
I am filled with an optimism that I haven't been filled with in a long time.
And I feel good.
I feel really good.
I hope you're feeling good and optimistic today too.
I hope you're feelin' that love and light just like I am.
View of the west side of Cleveland the day after a snow storm (taken from the MetroHealth tower)
explored Feb 7, 09 #224
Photo captured via Minolta MD Rokkor-X 85mm F/1.7 lens. Spokane Indian Reservation. Selkirk Mountains Range. Okanogan-Colville Xeric Valleys and Foothills section within the Northern Rockies Region. Inland Northwest. Stevens County, Washington. Early November 2020.
Exposure Time: 0.5 sec. * ISO Speed: ISO-100 * Aperture: F/11 * Bracketing: None * Color Temperature: 4198 K * Plug-In: 43 Autumn Lightroom Presets * Filter: Hoya HMC CIR-PL (⌀55mm) * Elevation: 2,436 feet above sea-level
Clem brought his daughter, Lucy, to work with him. She had never ridden in a train engine before let alone driven one. Pretty big day for a four year old. Too bad Clem suffered a heart attack and hadn't bothered showing Lucy how to stop the train!
The above story is fictitious.
Kern County, California 2013
Athens, Greece.
[ Canon EOS 600D ]
© 2015 Jordan Kevrekidis
(this is a photograph, no photo-editing)
Our Daily Challenge ~ Dalai Lama Quotes
Stay safe and well everyone.
Thank you to everyone who pauses long enough to look at my photo. Any comments or Faves are very much appreciated
Photo captured via Minolta MD Tele Rokkor-X 135mm F/2.8 Lens. Stuart Mountain Range. Central Cascades Range. Chelan County, Washington. Late October 2016.
Exposure Time: 30 sec. * ISO Speed: ISO-100 * Aperture: F/11 * Bracketing: None * Filter: Vü Sion Filter ND-10
Remember keep a balance for appreciation of the finite nature of existence, but still hold dear the present, and rejoice in being alive in this moment in time.
I surround myself with the reminders. Arrowheads, ancient pottery, my grandfather's war medals. They were each people, vibrant, alive - as I am now, full of the joy that lies ahead. Now they are gone - that will be me someday.
Knowing this and pondering it is a burden and a joy. You try to live fuller because of it, but always have to fight the lingering despair as you think of how fast time seems to rush us by...and one day we too will be on our deathbed with a new generation writing these words and thinking these thoughts.
I hope it's worth it.
Bohn was a Detroit-based manufacturer of metals and alloys with a reputation for union-bashing. In the 1940s they invested heavily in a long series of adverts that looked forward to a future utopia where human ingenuity would triumph over the constraints of space, time and gravity, grandly presented in full page and full colour streamlined visions. The presiding genius behind the campaign was local illustrator, Arthur Radebaugh (1906-74) who described a world where monorails, flying cars and torpedo-shaped ocean liners battled the elements to conquer time and space. It was an ingenious effort to combine the after-imagery of the Streamline era with the galactic vision of Astounding Science Fiction to project forward into an imagined future of unlimited connectivity. Vast aviation hubs, multi-level cities, high speed trains, towering cruise ships and driverless cars have all, to some degree come to pass - only the monorail has stubbornly failed to catch on. Later attention turned to more prosaic consumer products (lawnmowers, telephones, motorcycles, kitchen storage). It seems that Radebaugh himself already inhabited the future he was busy imagining for the rest of us. He would travel the nation in a 1959 Ford Econoline van that he had customised into a mobile studio complete with futuristic styling. As for Bohn, post-War optimism decayed into anti-Communist paranoia, shelling out for ads that would tear the mask of peace from the hard vicious face of Communism.
I'm going to be optimistic today. Because, frankly, I really really need it.
1. I love my cameras. Even though I grumble about it a lot, I do enjoy looking back on my past 365s, so I can only imagine I will do the same for this one. Even the crappy, quick snaps like this.
2. My kid is my ultimate happiness. There is nothing more amazing or unexplainable than the love between a mother and her child.
3. I really enjoy rain. I know, sunshine is lovely, and lately I've been craving it...but nothing beats that low-lying blanket of clouds and the sound of raindrops plunking into puddles. For me, anyway.
4. I love coffee. A lot. I grew up every day of my life watching my parents sit at the breakfast table with big mugs of steaming coffee and talk and laugh. It's more than just some awesomely delicious liquid that zaps the sleep outta me. It's...comfort and habitual and a memory.... and I adore that.
5. I love simplicity and snuggly clutter. Yes, both. I like things like...bare white walls and a simple one color bedspread with a shelf that is just chock full of knick knacks and odds and ends. It's a balance, you see.
6. I love that feeling when you wake up all warm and comfy and know you have nowhere to be. Of course, I'm a mommy...so technically...I always have 'somewhere' to be...but at least I can do it in my jammies.
7. I love it when I can't find the words to finish what I want to say, or I say the wrong word, and whoever I'm talking to just knows exactly what I mean and doesn't say a word. Bliss.
8. I love the smell of a new book. I also love the sound it makes when you first open it.
9. I love it when everything is where it belongs. I have a mini-panic attack when I wake up to a mess...pretty much anywhere.
10. I love laughing so hard that I feel it in my stomache...the next day. Where, its so funny you are in physical pain and your eyes water. It doesn't sound awesome, but trust me....it makes your whole week better.
11. I love waking up from happy dreams, and my whole day seems that much brighter.
12. I love simple pleasures. Like a surprise candy bar, or water by my bed when I wake up, or when a diaper miraculously changes itself. Yep, my husband is pretty good at that stuff.
13. I love warm, sunny summer evenings where you have nothing but a screen door between you and the smell of growth and moisture and bbqs, and you can almost hear the grass move as you watch it.
14. I love days of quiet and privacy, where I can wander around in my shorts and tank tops all day and noone sees me but my 1 yr old. If the doorbell rings, I ain't home.
15. For every minute you are angry you lose sixty seconds of happiness. ~ Emerson
*hugs*
mwah
.K
Random Fact: 16 pennies stacked up equals one inch, and 16 pennies in a line is one foot.
Learner's definition of
OPTIMISM : a feeling or belief that good things will happen in the future : a feeling or belief that what you hope for will happen
Both of them expressed optimism about the future of the town.
The early sales reports are cause/reason/grounds for optimism.
Most of us reacted to the news with cautious/guarded optimism. [=a feeling that something good may happen but will not definitely happen]
— opposite pessimism