Iona beach
Happy Canadian Thanksgiving – I hope you are able to spend time with family, friends, loved ones, etc. We have the joy of attending a reception for a young couple who recently got married. The bride is a dancer and played/helped out at the ceilidhs. Then on Monday we are having some more dancing friends for a turkey dinner.
It is a bit more like Fall but am awaiting the gales and rain – maybe I should not speak too soon!! Flowers are still blooming and it seems a shame to howk (there’s a good word) them out but that needs to be done soon. The leaves are starting to drop and the cedars – well they just continue dropping something all year. Now many of the leaves/bracts/needles, whatever you call them, have turned brown and will fall over the next month but not all at once – that would be too easy. With about 20 large cedars they require daily sweeping etc.
The first Ceilidh dance of the year had its normal poor attendance. About 60 brave souls attended and had a lot of fun. We danced a lot of dances – just about exhausted Alison’s programme. Hopefully the word has spread and more will come for the October Ceilidh on the 27th. You can come in your Halloween costume if you like – if many of you do then we will have prizes.
If you are a bit wary come to the Ceilidh dance on Friday, October 27 at 7 p.m. in the Scottish Cultural Centre, 8886 Hudson Street, Vancouver. What is a Ceilidh dance? It is informal, easy Scottish Country dancing in a relaxed style for all ages. We teach everything, no experience or partner required just a desire to have fun an ability to move to wonderful beat of the lively music and to enjoy the company of other like-minded folk. But, it is not for the faint of heart for there is exercise both of body and mind!
Achiltibuie
It is time to remind you of the Ceilidh dates for this season and in particular the next one on Friday October 27 with the usual class at 7 and the dance following from 8 – 11 pm. No change in the price this year but that is dependant on great attendance at every dance so mark your calendars now and tell all your friends to do the same. We need 80+ to break even so with only 60 coming to the September dance – you can do the math. It is a team, we need you all to help. Tell your friends etc. about the dances – we can do it.
The other dates for this season are:-
- October 27
- November 24
- January 12
- February 23
- March 30
- April 27
The dances are all held at the Scottish Cultural Centre, 8886 Hudson Street, Vancouver (73rd and Hudson which is between Granville and Oak Streets). They are all held on Friday evenings and where possible the last Friday of each month – the exceptions are December (as we never schedule one) and January. Calanais have been practising and are raring to play for us again and Alison and I are rested and ready so all we need is you! Hope to see you on October 27.
Achnasheen – early snow fall
It has been another busy week – I am lying – I sat around all week being lazy. Can’t think of anything I accomplished but then my memory is going, and fast at that. I will have to check my calendar – oh yes I did sweep up the leaves, I did go in to the office and met with a client, I did go to the SCC and I did some bookkeeping. I did some other things too but I won’t bore you with that!
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Ailsa Craig under attack!
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Allan Water, Dunblane
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A filling station has become quite a landmark in Gauteng, South Africa with its daily #PetrolPumpWisdom, which are uplifting quotes written on a chalkboard. Some motorists say they deliberately travel this route just to read the quote which brightens their day. Here’s two more:
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Ardvreck Castle
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The next regular Ceilidh Dance is the last FRIDAY of October!! – That is Friday, October 27, 2017 and I sure hope you can come and bring lots of friends.
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I have updated the calendar with known dates at this time – see the Upcoming Events tab.
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Guess where? Hamish will tell you!
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Thanks to Steve at the Celtic Treasure Chest there is now an online list of all the Celtic societies as well as a calendar of events:
List https://www.celtictreasurechest.com/links/index.php
Calendar https://www.celtictreasurechest.com/celticevents/index.php
The Celtic Treasure Chest on Dunbar – stock up on all your favourite foods.
Celtic Fashions on E-Bay – go to https://www.CelticFashions.com
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Can’t remember if I’ve included this one before, if so I am sorry …
The king wanted to go fishing, and he asked the royal weather forecaster the forecast for the next few hours.
The palace meteorologist assured him that there was no chance of rain. So the king and the queen went fishing. On the way he met a man with a fishing pole riding on a donkey, and he asked the man if the fish were biting.
The fisherman said, “Your Majesty, you should return to the palace! In just a short time I expect a huge rain storm.”
The king replied: “I hold the palace meteorologist in high regard. He is an educated and experienced professional. Besides, I pay him very high wages. He gave me a very different forecast. I trust him.”
So the king continued on his way. However, in a short time a torrential rain fell from the sky. The King and Queen were totally soaked. Furious, the king returned to the palace and gave the order to fire the meteorologist. Then he summoned the fisherman and offered him the prestigious position of royal forecaster.
The fisherman said, “Your Majesty, I do not know anything about forecasting. I obtain my information from my donkey. If I see my donkey’s ears drooping, it means with certainty that…it will rain.”
So the king hired the donkey………
And thus began the practice of hiring dumb asses to work in influential positions of government.
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The Scottish Cultural Centre is a pretty unique and wonderful asset and space is available for rent to anyone or any group. The Centre does not run itself but is actually run by the United Scottish Cultural Society (USCS). Memberships in this Society are for individuals only and presently cost $10 annually. Membership Application Forms may be obtained either at the Centre or on the USCS website – www.scottishculturalcentre.com . The cost is only $10.
Any person may join USCS and Scottish Country & Ceilidh Dancers are encouraged to show their support by doing so. If any USCS member would like to be more involved, then, Darryl Carracher, the Manager at the Centre, will be pleased to give you further information.
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Ben Eighe
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Ben Lui & Ben More
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The next Ceilidh Dance is the last Friday of the month, October 27, 2017. That will be the second one for the season and the sixth one of 2017. There is lots of time for you all to get yourselves and your friends organized to come along for another fun, filled evening. Come and dance, it is lots of fun and really easy. Everything is taught from scratch – you won’t be the only newbie!
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Tired of constantly being broke and stuck in an unhappy marriage, a young husband decided to solve both problems by taking out a large insurance policy on his wife with himself as the beneficiary and then arranging to have her killed. A ‘friend of a friend’ put him in touch with a nefarious dark-side underworld figure who went by the name of ‘Artie.’ Artie explained to the husband that his going price for snuffing out a spouse was $10,000.
The Husband said he was willing to pay that amount but that he wouldn’t have any cash on hand until he could collect his wife’s insurance money. Artie insisted on being paid at least something up front, so the man opened his wallet, displaying the single dollar coin that rested inside. Artie sighed, rolled his eyes and reluctantly agreed to accept the dollar as down payment for the dirty deed.
A few days later, Artie followed the man’s wife to the local Costco Supermarket. There, he surprised her in the produce department and proceeded to strangle her with his gloved hands. As the poor unsuspecting woman drew her last breath and slumped to the floor, the manager of the produce department stumbled unexpectedly onto the murder scene. Unwilling to leave any living witnesses behind, ol’ Artie had no choice but to strangle the produce manager as well.
However, unknown to Artie, the entire proceedings were captured by the hidden security cameras and observed by the shop’s security guard, who immediately called the police. Artie was caught and arrested before he could even leave the premises.
Under intense questioning at the police station, Artie revealed the whole sordid plan, including his unusual financial arrangements with the hapless husband who was also quickly arrested.
The next day in the newspaper, the headline declared…
(You’re going to hate me for this….
keep scrolling…)
“ARTIE CHOKES 2 for $1.00 @ Costco”
Oh, quit groaning! I don’t write this stuff, I receive it from my warped friends and then send it on to other warped souls like you.
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Michelle has very kindly made up a Facebook event page for the Ceilidh but you need to “Search for Vancouver Ceilidh on Facebook and “Like” us to receive updates on upcoming Ceilidhs and other events”. Then, if you “Like” the Vancouver Ceilidh FB page (do as described above), you too will receive updates AND be able to share those updates and events on your personal Facebook page to your friends and ask that they “Like” and “Share”, etc. Ceilidh Dances are great ways to celebrate birthdays, anniversaries etc. Invite all your friends to come and join you at the Ceilidh. You are welcome to bring your own cake and we’ll even sing for you!!
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You can join the e-mail list of the SFU Scottish and Celtic Society; the club connecting you to all things Scottish and Celtic at SFU and the community. As members of this mailing list, you will receive updates on events and learning opportunities. All are welcome to participate and enjoy. Facebook Group: As of today, our new Facebook Group is launched and available to join. It is an ‘Open’ group. Anyone can join and invite their friends. We will create Facebook ‘Events’ for all our occasions. Join today at this link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/451447541666799/
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Some fun and interesting sites: – note if you have a link to something you think others will enjoy send me the link.
Sound On; Full Page:-
Dancing with 100 people:
2017 Tattoo
A young group from Slovenia
COMING EVENTS IN THE NEXT FEW WEEKS: Note – please check the Branch website www.rscdsvancouver.org for and last minute changes.
| 2017 | |
| Oct 11 | Bellingham social dance – Fairhaven Library |
| Oct 14 | Ladies Step Dance class at Scottish Cultural Centre 1 – 3 p.m. |
| Oct 14 | Gleneagles Fall dance in honour of the late Ray Eagle, Christ the Redeemer Gymnasium, 595 Keith Road (off Taylor Way), West Vancouver 7;30 p.m. |
| Oct 20 | Tympath/Ceilidh at the Cambrian Hall, 215 E 17th Avenue, Vancouver from 7:30 – 10:30 p.m. with caller J. Erskine and the Rattlebone Band. Admission – over 13 $10 – 6-12 $5 |
| Oct 21 | Simply Scottish Workshop & Ball on Salt Spring Island – info: www.saltspringscottishdancers.org |
| Oct 21 | Ladies Step Dance class at Scottish Cultural Centre 1 – 3 p.m. |
| Oct 27 | Ceilidh Dance at the Scottish Cultural Centre, 8886 Hudson Street, Vancouver – no partner or experience required – live music with Calanais – refreshments available – class from 7 – 8 p.m. followed by dance from 8 – 11 p.m. – all dances walked, talked and called – admission at the door $12 (students $10 |
| Oct 28 | Ladies Step Dance class at Scottish Cultural Centre 1 – 3 p.m. |
| Nov 4 | Ladies Step Dance class at Scottish Cultural Centre 1 – 3 p.m. |
| Nov 8 | Bellingham social dance – Fairhaven Library |
| Nov 11 | Lady Aberdeen Tea Dance, Scottish Cultural Centre 1:15 p.m. hosted by the Gleneagles SCDC – proceeds to Doctors without Borders. |
| Nov 17 – 19 | RSCDS San Francisco Asilomar Weekend 2017 – info: www.asilomar.rscds-sf.org |
| Nov 18 | St. Andrew’s Ball – Saltire Society – at the Coast Hotel on Denman Street, Vancouver. Tickets- https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/2017-st-andrews-ball-vancouver-tickets-38098906856 |
| Nov 24 | Ceilidh Dance at the Scottish Cultural Centre, 8886 Hudson Street, Vancouver – no partner or experience required – live music with Calanais – refreshments available – class from 7 – 8 p.m. followed by dance from 8 – 11 p.m. – all dances walked, talked and called – admission at the door $12 (students $10 |
| Nov 25 | Delta Borderers Fall Tea Dance – 3 p.m. at the Kinsmen Centre, 5410 – 10th Avenue, Tsawwassen |
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The next Ceilidh Dance is Friday, October 27th, 2017. Same time, same place, same price, same amount of fun and entertainment. Now it is up to you all to help by planning on coming along and bringing loads of friends, family, acquaintances, etc. Please do your best to spread the word. Let me know if you would like a poster to put up.
Ben Nevis from Loch Linnhe
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What a great gift this newsletter would make (and it is free!!) Please pass along the website to your friends and ask them to subscribe. www.vancouverceilidh.org
Please keep opening the newsletter!! Any and all comments and suggestions are welcome.
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If anyone has any suggestions or complaints regarding the newsletter, please let me know – ceilidh@rscdsvancouver.org Please do not complain to your server that this is junk mail. There is a link on the e-mail should you wish to unsubscribe.
Brora
Come Scottish Country Dancing – it is lots of fun. Just ask anyone who came along to the Dancing in the Park. We had great audience participation so I hope you will all come along and join one of our great classes or at least come to one of the Ceilidh Dances.
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The next Ceilidh Dance is Friday, October 27, 2017 with live music by Calanaish. This is the sixth dance of the year and the second of the new season. We need huge attendance with everyone coming along for a really fun evening.
Callandar
You still have time to spread the word about all the Ceilidh Dances as that is the best (and cheapest) form of advertising. It is great exercise and fun, for all ages, too. Here is a link where you can watch a short video of a Ceilidh Dance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0MvUwZnY9Ms and here is a link to the Facebook advert: https://www.facebook.com/events/597360563665264/597360566998597/ The format for all of the regular monthly Ceilidh Dances will be the same with the class from 7 – 8 p.m. and the dance from 8 – 11 p.m. and all dances will be walked and talked through.
They are all held at the Scottish Cultural Centre, 8886 Hudson Street, Vancouver. The price is only – $12 or $10 for students which, for what you get is a super bargain – everyone is welcome. No partner is required and you should wear FLAT, comfy shoes and loose clothing. Children are also welcome but should be prepared to dance with other people as some of the dances require a change of partner. Don’t forget to bring a few extra $$$$ to help defray the cost of the refreshments which are otherwise free.
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The Branch has opened a Facebook Page at “RSCDS-Vancouver” – check it out there are some good pictures etc. www.facebook.com/rscdsvancouver. There is a link on both our website www.vancouverceilidh.org and the Branch website www.rscdsvancouver.org
Camusdaroch Beach
Scottish Country Dance (SCD) classes are nearing the start of another season so plan to join a local class or one that suits your schedule. Check out the class locations and come along – see the “Classes” tab.
Come to a class – You will be made very welcome. Many classes have a policy that the first night is FREE! Plan to come along to try out a class in September. There are classes all around and on different nights so GIVE IT A GO! Go to either www.rscdsvancouver.org or www,vancouverceilidh.org for a list of class locations and times.
For those who don’t know SCD is a fabulous pastime (much better and lots more fun than golf!!) and is super exercise for body and mind. SCD is, naturally, rooted in Scotland but there are groups in almost every country so you can learn here and then dance with other groups when you vacation or travel. SCD is not to be confused with Highland Dancing which is more solo dancing. SCD is usually done with a partner in groups or sets however you do not need to come with a partner. It is more akin to Square Dancing.
It takes a year or two of classes, workshops, etc. to learn the basics then you can hone your skills in advanced classes. You start by learning the steps and formations. Dances (of which there are over 13,000) are made up of these formations so a good grounding will give you the ability to learn a new dance fairly quickly. SCD has its HQ in Scotland and is known as the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society (RSCDS) and there is a Vancouver Branch of the RSCDS under which there are many clubs throughout the Province (there is also a Branch in Seattle).
There are a great many classes and the ones in the Vancouver area are listed on the website. Come along – check us out – the first night is usually free and thereafter it will average about $6 a night and that’s for a 2 hour class! You will find many friendly people who will be eager to help you and welcome you to their club. You never know you actually might like it!! Check the list of classes at either at www.vancouverceilidh.org or www.rscdsvancouver.org. Note that the latter website has the latest updates to temporary changes to times and locations.
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as well there are classes all up and down Vancouver Island, a number of the Gulf Islands, the Cariboo, Okanagan, Sunshine Coast, etc. etc. and there are various groups all over this great Province, Country, World and who knows where else! Check the Branch website for all these details – www.rscdsvancouver.org
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Cardwell Bay pier looking to Gourock
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For upcoming events see www.vancouverceilidh.org and www.rscdsvancouver.org.
Other announcements etc:
Seattle Branch
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The next regular monthly Ceilidh Dance will be held on Friday, October 27th, 2017 in the Scottish Cultural Centre, 8886 Hudson Street, (73rd & Hudson which is between Oak & Granville), Vancouver,
We need everyone to help us get as many new comers (as well as former Ceilidh Dancers) as possible to come and join us. The Ceilidh Dances are a great way to celebrate birthdays, anniversaries, etc. Invite all your friends along. Contact me if you will have a group of 8 or more and we can give them a discount!!!
We Really NEED YOUR HELP to advertise the Ceilidh Dances!!!! It only costs $12 ($10 for students) – it is worth so much more in fun, exercise and camaraderie. Use any access to free adverts etc. You can also use things like the YouTube link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bh2HV3OPBgw or the Face-book page https://www.facebook.com/p.php?i=116203315&k=Z5C5Y4TZPT6G6BD1PKZZTWQQQ6BAW26L34AV&oid=164741310207760 https://www.facebook.com/events/597360563665264/597360566998597/
Suggestions to improve our advertising are always welcome. Don’t forget to tell them about the website www.vancouverceilidh.org and get them to “subscribe” to the newsletter.
Most of you have been to at least one Ceilidh Dance so you know how it goes. You don’t need a partner; you don’t need any experience; you should wear FLAT soft soled shoes; we walk, talk, and call every dance and you should come to have fun and have a good evening of exercise and entertainment and maybe even to learn!
There is a FREE class from 7 – 8 p.m. and the dance from 8 – 11 p.m. with music by Calanais. Remember to bring some extra cash so you can make a donation towards the cost of the refreshments. Without these donations we will have to increase the price of admission again!!
The schedule for the 2016/17 season shapes up as follows:
All on Fridays of course and, except for January, it is the last Friday of the Month —
2017
October 27
November 24
2018
January 12
February 23
March 30
April 27
Come along and get some great exercise while also having lots of fun. We hope to have lots of new Ceilidh dancers. Remember to bring your smiles and wear flat shoes.
Please do your best to assist us in letting as many people know as possible. Use Face-book, e-mail, telephone or even word of mouth and tell everyone you know what a fun night it is.
We would like to attract more young adults and students from Universities and all the colleges. Somehow we have to get word out to these students etc. Please do all you can to help us. Come one, come all to the same place (Scottish Cultural Centre, 8886 Hudson Street, Vancouver) and the same time (7 p.m. for the class and 8 – 11 p.m. for the dance) and the same amazing price ($12 or $10 for students.)
Carlingwark Loch
You should check the website – www.vancouverceilidh.org – from time to time as you can find various pages listing “Ceilidhs and Events;” Classes:” Duncan’s List;” etc. On these pages you can check all the upcoming events, where all the classes are located, times, etc. and some places to find Scottish things or some local trades, etc. I will continue to highlight the more current events in each week’s newsletter but, as stated, the calendar of all events will be available on the website.
You should also have a look at the Vancouver Branch website from time to time – www.rscdsvancouver.org – as there is always useful information on it and it is a very good-looking site.
If you have any questions regarding the Ceilidh Dances send them to me at ceilidh@rscdsvancouver.org Please check the website – www.rscdsvancouver.org for updates, pictures and news.
Dance – it is good for your health.
Keep sending jokes, pictures and info you wish to have included. Don’t forget to look at our web pages at www.vancouverceilidh.org If you know of anyone who would like to be on the mailing list please send them the web address – www.vancouverceilidh.org and ask them to subscribe.
If anyone has good pictures from the Ceilidh Dances please send them to me so I can put them on the web page. If you have any announcements please send them to me preferably in Word; Times New Roman 12pt format with a layout similar to the one used in this newsletter. I occasionally hear of an event somewhere in our beautiful Province, on the Island or in the Interior, but don’t know all the details.
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This newsletter reaches out to some 376 subscribers from all over the Province, Country and to many other countries as well, so please send me the details of your event and I will only be too happy to include them.
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Carlton Hill at sunrise
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Enjoy yourselves – come Scottish Country Dancing – for it is good for your health and you never know you just might …..!
See Coming Events on the website for info – www.vancouverceilidh.org
Happy Thanksgiving one and all
May your troubles be one, may your blessings be more,
and may nothing but happiness come through your door.
Duncan MacKenzie ceilidh@rscdsvancouver.org