"Snow ((Hey Oh))" by the Red Hot Chilly Peppers

Another walk ... This week I walked up Ben Rinnes with friends, Esmae, John and Edith

Ben Rinnes is ... well, here is an extract from Wikipedia, "Ben Rinnes (Scottish Gaelic: Beinn Ruaidhneis) at (841m/2,759ft) is a mountain in the region of Moray, Scotland. The mountain is popular with hikers with the sight from the summit that is described as truly amazing. At the summit you can see 8 counties (Aberdeenshire, Banffshire, Moray, Nairnshire, Inverness-shire, Ross and Cromarty, Sutherland, and Caithness) and on a clear day even the Moray coast. Another draw for the hiker are the waterfalls from the many rivers that flow down the mountain such as Linn of Ruthie."

As you will see in my photos we could not see much of the surrounding counties as there was a lot of snow about but it was great fun.

For more information on Ben Rinnes visit Friends of Ben Rinnes by clicking here

"These Boots Are Made for Walking" by Nancy Sanatra

The weather in this part of the UK has been poor over the past few weeks with snow showers and very cold spells of weather. So I have been reluctant to get out and walk. However, in the past two weeks I have walked up Top o'North and Clachnaben with my friends, John & Esmae. At Top o'North the wind was extreme and atop Clachnaben we had high winds and the odd drop of snow. BUT we had a great time.

Thanks for your company guys!


Top o'North - above




At the top of Clachnaben

"Turning Japanese" by The Vapours

So .. my Japanese name is Haru Kaoin. I took this from Anthony and his Kingdom BLOG. Thanks Anthony. And at the bottom of this entry I have linked The Vapours video of the song, Turning Japanese, for those of you who do not know the song.

Your Japanese Name Is...

Haru Kaoin

What's your Japanese Name?

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"Life's a Gas" by T-Rex

The end of an era.

My "home and workplace" for 10 years of my life is sadly being taken apart.

Let me explain; I worked on a Gas Compression Platform called MCP01 for 10 years of my career. It was located in the North Sea 110 miles north of Aberdeen. I worked a 2 week on 2 week home rota like most people did then in the North Sea oil & gas industry. Therefore it was inevitable that I would become attached to the place. It was like a village and it had lots of characters from all walks of life. We worked hard during the day but had a good social life in the evenings playing games, having quizes and watching films together. Christmas & New Year were always very special too with the best of food and professional entertainment flown out to the platform for our pleasure. We also put on our own entertainment specials too. All good fun.

Now MCP01 is being taken apart as it has stopped being part of the UK / Norway gas transmission system and is redundant.

TOTAL E&P along with Aberdeen University have commenced a project on the UK part of the FRIGG system from the design & construction through to their decommissioning, tying in with colleagues working on the Field including a history of the life on board.

Here are some photos below of the recent event held by TOTAL & Aberdeen University when I met up with Barry Scott & Harry Ross to reminisce over past good times.







Photos from past times.

"London Town" by Paul McCartney

We are just back from a few days holiday to London. We took the train from Aberdeen and stayed near Russell Square. I was keen to see the exhibition for the First Emperor, China's Terracotta Army at the British Museum in London before it finished in April. For me it was an opportunity of a lifetime as I have always wanted to go and see this magnificent find in Xi'an, China and this is the next best thing to going there. We also went to the King Tutankhamun exhibition and saw the musical show, Chicago.

LINK TO MY PHOTOS HERE, just click your mouse here.