Thursday 20/04/06

A late start as per usual. The morning is cloudy, and by midday the showers are popping up. The birds in the garden are busy with nests, the blackbird sings merrily every evening at nightfall. The peanut feeder is no longer required, as there are plenty of worms in the soil. Next week there will be a meeting here to discuss the future of crofting in the islands. A Gaelic language group meets in An Lanntair every Wednesday, for beginners as well as for more advanced speakers. At 4pm, I head into town to pick up the Thursday papers, which are a good read this week. Eorpa (BBC2 Scotland, 7.30pm) focuses on the problems around renewable energy in the Western Isles. A move is discernable away from large-scale windfarms and towards smaller, local schemes. Not just wind energy, but also heat from the soil (as they are using over in the Blackhouse Museum in Gearrannan), solar energy (Sports Centre Harris, streetlights in Cromor and Ranish), tidal- and wavepower. Only goes to show what strength popular opinion can wield. A comparison is made with Sweden, where progress in this field is stymied by red tape and conglomerates obstructing competition. Sunset 8.50, but it's still light in the north at 10.15.