Sunshine!

We've had a beautiful sunny day here today, really warm enough to sit outside and get a red nose! This is the view from our bedroom window this morning, two fat horses laying down in the sunshine!

But, as you can see, they did stir and wake up - must have been the sound of us giggling while taking the 'photos!

I feel like I've had a fairly productive day as I got a lot of work done for my Open University 'Start Writing Plays' course, which you can find here at;

http://www3.open.ac.uk/courses/bin/p12.dll?C02A176

I am enjoying it, though I am a really crap student. I know that if I was to work through the course, whichever it is, from the start and do all the exercises as they are laid out, I would probably do better than the grade C or, at best, B, I usually get. However, I tend to come across something I am unsure of, get scared, and place my head under the covers, so to speak, in a panic and leave it.
But, today I decided to just go back over what I should have been doing for the last couple of weeks, and actually, got through most of a whole block. With the exercies as well! This has really spurred me on and the ideas are now fizzing around this tatty head of mine.

And,

I had a couple of new pals from WI around last evening, which is something that doesn't usually happen. Oh, we have plenty of lovely visitors from England, but not really anyone local. That's why I joined the Scottish Rural (WI), to get to know people; as we've been here over two years and have not really made any close friends. ah, bless!

This is a very close community and, they are wary of incomers, especially from England. While we haven't experienced open hositility, and people are polite, they haven't been what you'd call welcoming with open arms. I know that people who move to Scotland, Ireland or Wales from England have similar experiences. But, as a white person, it is strange to be the ethnic minority in a country.

Also, because we live in a rural location, well the whole area really, it is very 'white.' Not what we are used to at all. And, to me, it seems a bit bland. There are hardly any black and asian people about and it feels odd.

Don't get me wrong, I know that the 'culture' in England is virtually eroded; what with no Easter or Christmas celebrations as such, for fear of offending people of varying cultures, races and religions. What a crap idea.

At least there is still a strong Scottish culture and, perhaps, they feel unable to embrace others for fear of losing that, not realising what they are missing. But, in the local, local culture it feels like a closed shop. Bit of a lesson for a white person, really, isn't it?

We have begun to make some friends, but these appear to be mainly amongst other incomers too. And, it is a start, I suppose. But, one of the reasons for relocating here was because we enjoy the Scottish people, culture and, well, the scenery is so stunning.

It feels like a waiting game, I suppose, in that people will probably get to know us and begin to accept us as part of the furniture. Unless we are horrible people, but I don't think that is the case.

Well, this started out all sunny and happy, and we are, really. We love being together and working alongside each other, even though we hate each other and row sometimes. But, as there's no-one else to fight with, we have fun making up too!