Posted by Sarah on Jan 31, 2009 in
Fine Articles If you thought there were more Scots in Scotland than people of Scottish Descent in the one USA state of North Carolina you would be wrong.
That is hardly surprising as huge numbers of Scots left Scotland at the time of the Highland Clearances and in the following years to seek their fortune in the New World of USA as well as Canada, Australia and the Far East. Our Laird of Jura website looking at the history and culture of the Isle of Jura tells of nearly 2,000 people who left the island and the surrounding area and ended up in North Carolina.
However what I did not know until fairly recently when I was reading about the town of Laurinburg in North Carolina which is as Scottish as the country of Scotland if not more so. For example:
Lets look at Laurinberg which is in the county of “Scotland”.
Laurinberg’s High School is actually called “Scotland High School”. And what better school song could they have than “Scotland the Brave” the national anthem of Scotland itself.
Apart from their traditional marching band who wear the Royal Stewart Tartan as a uniform they also have a prize winning Scottish bagpipe team.
They use the same name “Fighting Scots” for their Basketball, Baseball and Football teams.
The local college is St Andrews Presbyterian College (St Andrew is of course the patron saint of Scotland) has a huge bronze statue of a highlander in native dress waving a Claymore sword.
The College is also home to the Scottish Heritage Centre.
Looking for something to eat? Skip McDonalds (not a Scottish Company) and instead go to Scottish Foods which uses a Scottish bagpiper as its main trademark and logo.
Its Shopping Center is called Scotland Crossing which has as a main feature the Scottish Rampart Lion (the same red lion on a yellow background that appears on the Scottish Royal Flag). Incidentally this Rampant Lion officially can only be flown by the Royal Monarch but our legal officials turn a blind eye to that law.
Lastly but not least there are numerous streets and roads named after places such as Oban, Skye, and Argyllshire the origins of the first settlers before they left Scotland.
Do you know any other place which is more Scottish than this town in North Carolina?
Want to become a Scottish Lord or Lady? Its easy enough and can be the ideal unique gift idea for anyone whether they have a Scottish connection or not.
Posted by Sarah on Jan 31, 2009 in
Fine Articles Situations that do not affect a digital camera. Not having to use film means that the cameras can actually be considerably smaller with only the batteries dictating the actual size. With the upsurge of home computers it means that almost anyone can store and then play with the images on their own pc. Unlike film where the image is captured on light sensitive film, these store the images as pixels that convert to computer bytes.
Strangely, both types of camera focus light onto a surface that captures an image using a set of lenses. The only difference between a digital camera and film cameras is how they capture this light inside the camera itself. one is more expensive than the other and called a CCD or charge coupled device.
There are two methods of achieving this, Images captured in what are considered to be the low-end cameras are using a CMOS device which competes directly with the CCD of the high-end variants.
The CMOS device is this reason that many models have come down in price so much as they are easier and cheaper to produce than their CCD cousins. While both the CMOS and CCD systems both capture an image using millions of solar cells to make up the whole picture, they perform this in slightly different ways.
Other than budget, your main concern should be resolution and what that means is the higher the resolution or megapixels you can afford the better the pictures will be, with the prices continually dropping, high resolution cameras are now more affordable. You may even consider buying or shopping for antique cameras for sale. There are good tutorials on choosing antique cameras.
The vintage camera is an essential piece when it comes to storing and collecting memories. Where you have a choice, optical zooms on digital cameras are better than digital ones – always, portrait shots that require ‘framing’ are so much easier with a an zoom facility. Rechargeable batteries are the best you can use with the NMIH versions able to be charged at anytime, even if they are not fully discharged, If it is possible, try to buy a model with many functions as you will be able to create some stunning effects, just a few examples of functions to look for are shown here:
Video capture Continuous shooting
Self timer
You will also need something to store the captured images on especially with the high megapixel models available today. Digital storage has come down in price so buying gigabyte card will no longer require a loan but you shouldn’t think of having anything less than this.
For photographers who will keep the camera with them at all time you may want to consider one of the more compact types that can be carried in a shirt pocket. Professional photographers may need heavy, bulky equipment but there is no requirement for a keen amateur to do so! These are just the basic things you have to look for in a camera when you buy one. With all its technology, versatility and portability, the digital camera is the future of photography.
Posted by Sarah on Jan 31, 2009 in
Fine Articles History of Mistletoe
The mistletoe, native to the forests of Northern Europe, is a parasite implant on deciduous and evergreen trees which produces yellowish flowers and waxy white berries. Its closest relative in North America has yellowish flowers and waxy white berries, and is also commonly known as mistletoe. Notably, it is the official floral emblem of the State of Oklahoma.
The name mistletoe came about from two Anglo – Saxon words: mistel which means dung and tan which means twig. And so, mistletoe quite literally means dung on a twig. Mistletoe infers that life can spring up from dung. This leeching plant grows and thrives on the dung of birds on the branches of trees. As a result, mistletoe became the symbol of vivacity and fertility.
The Christmas and New Year tradition of embracing for the bashful and kissing for the brazen under a sprig of mistletoe dates back to olden Britain. Also, it was prevalent among the Druids who were the learned class of the Celts.
The Druids celebrated the beginning of winter ( winter solstice ) by collecting mistletoe and burning it as a sacrifice to their pagan gods. To ensure a year of good faith, peace, and familial harmony, they hung sprigs of mistletoe around their homes. Twigs of the evergreen displayed visibly outside their homes welcomed relatives, friends, neighbors and weary travelers and the mistletoe within encouraged them to embrace shamelessly. Feuding parties or foes who happened to meet under trees that contained mistletoe were required to lay aside their weapons and settle their differences.
The Druids believed that the mistletoe had healing properties. It was often prescribed for female infertility and as an antidote for poisons of all kinds. The gathering of mistletoe was a ceremony by the highest priests using gold knives. Such a carefree rite of harvesting mistletoe is dramatically portrayed in Bellinis opera Norma.
The Celtic Druids were not the only people who ascribed so many marvelous attributes to the mistletoe, the Scandinavians, who called it mistilteinn; also believed that it was the plant of peace, the plant of hope and the plant of harmony. The Scandinavian lore claims that the mistletoe belonged to Frigga, the Scandinavian star of inclination, and the embracing and kissing custom is thought to have come from this notion.
Mistletoe was also used for a decorative green in the Roman Empire during their feasts of Natalis Solis Invicti and Saturnalia. Due to its ties to idolatrous festivities, the Church banned the use of mistletoe when Christmas on December 25 was officially recognized as the birth of Christ in the the fourth century.
As an alternative to the mistletoe, the holly was ironically proposed even thought it too had strong associations with atheist rituals. Nevertheless, the hollys white flowers were to signify the purity of Christ, the acerbic leaves were to symbolize the thorns in Christs crown and the red berries as drops of His blood. Thus, the Holly became a Nativity tradition, but, surprisingly enough, the churchs ban on mistletoe which was in effect throughout the Middle Ages still persists today.