In which we don't go far to visit the Highlands and hear the music

Jim's birthday: 

the perfect excuse to go to Scotland.

 

Only...who has money for airfare?  And more importantly:  who will feed the horses? 

We'd better make the trip really fast, so they hardly notice that we're gone.

Fortunately for us (and for the horses), there was a Highland Games festival just up the road. 

We loaded up and went to see the sights...

...to watch the dancing....

...and to hear the music!


Jim got a black wool "formal" kilt to wear for formal occasions.

(It looks better without jeans underneath).

Done with shopping; time to watch some obsessive dogs moving the universe's dumbest sheep.

Speaking of frustrating tasks, how about a little caber tossing? 

If you've never seen the sport of caber toss before, here's a little sample:

The goal is to carry that thing that looks like a phone pole, then toss it end-over-teakettle so it lands pointing away from the tosser.  The caber, mid-toss:

I'm just not sure of the marketable skills gained here.  How on earth do you put that on a resume? 

 Ah, well, caber tossing is probably easier to sum up than the sheep pitch

which entails flinging a heavy "sheaf" (called "sheep") burlap bag filled with straw over a very high bar.  Chiropractors probably love the participants in these games.

Willy and Lisa had never seen a bagpipe band before, and it was fun to show them the sights.

and look:

we've come to the end of this post. 

I hope you enjoyed Jim's birthday in Scotland as much as we did!

Life is good!