Contributed

Brief Encounter. Old Steading, Altass

Brief Encounter. Old Steading, Altass

By Dave Goulder  Curious, I peered through the non-door  and saw old cow stalls, mangers between  roof supports, timbers for burning.  The new owner’s firewood, split logs,  chopping block, axe, bow saw.  No windows relieved the inside gloom  so I stepped closer, my body shape  framed by the

In Praise of My Beautiful Drains

In Praise of My Beautiful Drains

By Dave Goulder  We should be more appreciative of drains.  This underworld  of ssoft ssslithering sslime  sliding where?  Down   down   down   sslipping sslow ssludge  to septic tanks or sewer pipes or  ssesspits, (the old way)  settling to a smelly slough;   society’s waste slowly transformed  to something valued.  Occupied by

Sound of metal

Sound of metal

Release date (UK): 2021 |  Country: USA  | Running time: 120 min | Genres: Drama, Music |  Director: Darius Marder |  Starring: Riz Ahmed, Olivia Cooke, Paul Raci |  BBFC 15  By Jack Weir Darius Marder’s directorial debut stars Riz Ahmed as Ruben, a heavy metal drummer who blows out his eardrums during a show

Something sinister beneath the surface

Something sinister beneath the surface

When the dead come calling, by Helen Sedgwick by Liz Treacher, Author I’m a big fan of Helen Sedgwick’s work and really enjoyed her first two novels, The Comet Seekers and The Growing Season. Now this talented author, who lives near Tain, has turned her hand to crime.

The swarm

The swarm

How the small-but-mighty midges stopped a train By Anna MacRae MacDonald They have cut short many a walk, the midges, but did you know that they also stopped a train? An actual passenger train! It was the north-bound express engine pulling ten carriages, intending to complete its

The Spinningdale Cotton Mill

The Spinningdale Cotton Mill

It was built in 1792 by George Dempster of Skibo with the aim to improve social and economic conditions in this area and as an alternative to clearing lands for sheep. By Lynne Mahoney It’s hard to imagine what people in 1792 thought when they first saw the ambitious

Repopulation

Repopulation

How to tackle the depopulation in our area? With the new parliamentary team preparing a paper on repopulation in Sutherland and Caithness, crofting is very much at the heart of the question. by Russell Smith Depopulation has been a problem for Sutherland for a long time now. Various official figures